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The DemonWars Saga #3
The Demon Apostle: The DemonWars Saga, Book 3
This is the third installment of Salvatore's Demon trilogy that starts with The Demon Awakens and The Demon Spirit.
Once again the demon dactyl of Corona seems defeated. Ranger Elbryan Wyndon goes north to protect the new settlers from goblins and powries, but his beloved Jilseponie returns to Palmaris. There Father Abbot Markwart is consolidating his power over Church and State with the aid of gemstone magic and the demon's power. Pony's determination to stop the evil abbots puts her and Elbryan in deadly peril, for even the king has been turned against them.
619 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 4, 2000
82 people are currently reading
1883 people want to read
About the author
R.A. Salvatore
607 books11.3k followersAs one of the fantasy genre’s most successful authors, R.A. Salvatore enjoys an ever-expanding and tremendously loyal following. His books regularly appear on The New York Times best-seller lists and have sold more than 10,000,000 copies. Salvatore’s original hardcover, The Two Swords, Book III of The Hunter’s Blade Trilogy (October 2004) debuted at # 1 on The Wall Street Journal best-seller list and at # 4 on The New York Times best-seller list. His books have been translated into numerous foreign languages including German, Italian, Finnish, Greek, Hungarian, Turkish, Croatian, Bulgarian, Yiddish, Spanish, Russian, Polish, Portuguese, Czech, and French.
Salvatore’s first published novel, The Crystal Shard from TSR in 1988, became the first volume of the acclaimed Icewind Dale Trilogy and introduced an enormously popular character, the dark elf Drizzt Do’Urden. Since that time, Salvatore has published numerous novels for each of his signature multi-volume series including The Dark Elf Trilogy, Paths of Darkness, The Hunter’s Blades Trilogy, and The Cleric Quintet.
His love affair with fantasy, and with literature in general, began during his sophomore year of college when he was given a copy of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings as a Christmas gift. He promptly changed his major from computerscience to journalism. He received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Communications from Fitchburg State College in 1981, then returned for the degree he always cherished, the Bachelor of Arts in English. He began writing seriously in 1982, penning the manuscript that would become Echoes of the Fourth Magic. Salvatore held many jobs during those first years as a writer, finally settling in (much to our delight) to write full time in 1990.
The R.A. Salvatore Collection has been established at his alma mater, Fitchburg State College in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, containing the writer’s letters, manuscripts, and other professional papers. He is in good company, as The Salvatore Collection is situated alongside The Robert Cormier Library, which celebrates the writing career of the co-alum and esteemed author of young adult books.
Salvatore is an active member of his community and is on the board of trustees at the local library in Leominster, Massachusetts. He has participated in several American Library Association regional conferences, giving talks on themes including “Adventure fantasy” and “Why young adults read fantasy.” Salvatore himself enjoys a broad range of literary writers including James Joyce, Mark Twain, Geoffrey Chaucer, Shakespeare, Dante, and Sartre. He counts among his favorite genre literary influences Ian Fleming, Arthur Conan Doyle, Fritz Leiber, and of course, J.R.R. Tolkien.
Born in 1959, Salvatore is a native of Massachusetts and resides there with his wife Diane, and their three children, Bryan, Geno, and Caitlin. The family pets include three Japanese Chins, Oliver, Artemis and Ivan, and four cats including Guenhwyvar.
When he isn't writing, Salvatore chases after his three Japanese Chins, takes long walks, hits the gym, and coaches/plays on a fun-league softball team that includes most of his family. His gaming group still meets on Sundays to play.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/rasalv...
Salvatore’s first published novel, The Crystal Shard from TSR in 1988, became the first volume of the acclaimed Icewind Dale Trilogy and introduced an enormously popular character, the dark elf Drizzt Do’Urden. Since that time, Salvatore has published numerous novels for each of his signature multi-volume series including The Dark Elf Trilogy, Paths of Darkness, The Hunter’s Blades Trilogy, and The Cleric Quintet.
His love affair with fantasy, and with literature in general, began during his sophomore year of college when he was given a copy of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings as a Christmas gift. He promptly changed his major from computerscience to journalism. He received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Communications from Fitchburg State College in 1981, then returned for the degree he always cherished, the Bachelor of Arts in English. He began writing seriously in 1982, penning the manuscript that would become Echoes of the Fourth Magic. Salvatore held many jobs during those first years as a writer, finally settling in (much to our delight) to write full time in 1990.
The R.A. Salvatore Collection has been established at his alma mater, Fitchburg State College in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, containing the writer’s letters, manuscripts, and other professional papers. He is in good company, as The Salvatore Collection is situated alongside The Robert Cormier Library, which celebrates the writing career of the co-alum and esteemed author of young adult books.
Salvatore is an active member of his community and is on the board of trustees at the local library in Leominster, Massachusetts. He has participated in several American Library Association regional conferences, giving talks on themes including “Adventure fantasy” and “Why young adults read fantasy.” Salvatore himself enjoys a broad range of literary writers including James Joyce, Mark Twain, Geoffrey Chaucer, Shakespeare, Dante, and Sartre. He counts among his favorite genre literary influences Ian Fleming, Arthur Conan Doyle, Fritz Leiber, and of course, J.R.R. Tolkien.
Born in 1959, Salvatore is a native of Massachusetts and resides there with his wife Diane, and their three children, Bryan, Geno, and Caitlin. The family pets include three Japanese Chins, Oliver, Artemis and Ivan, and four cats including Guenhwyvar.
When he isn't writing, Salvatore chases after his three Japanese Chins, takes long walks, hits the gym, and coaches/plays on a fun-league softball team that includes most of his family. His gaming group still meets on Sundays to play.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/rasalv...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 62 reviews
April 19, 2024
3.5 ✨
Better than book 2 but just couldn’t capture the charm of the first book
Better than book 2 but just couldn’t capture the charm of the first book
March 16, 2025
Another volume in this series that draws you in and keeps you reading. I was surprised by some of the plot twists and overall enjoyed the book,but there were certain elements that just did not make sense. If the ranger is as graceful as a “clumsy elf”, then how can De’Unnero even with the power of gemstones face off alone against two elves and be victorious? How can Markwart both die and not when essentially shot in the head with a gemstone? What is going on with Avelyn’s arm? How can the elves profess to remain neutral in the face of human affairs, but make side deals with the King? There are a fair number of discrepancies in this book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 10, 2018
The Demon Apostle was about Jilseponie, keeper of the Avelyn's sacred stones, and Elbryan, the elven trained ranger in their quest to rid the world of the evil demon dactyl that seems to be corrupting the very order of the Abellican Church. The book follows five monks searching for the truth of their religion and Pony, Elbryan, and their friends in their journey to free the land from the plague of evil. These two groups will soon find that their journey was leading in very similar directions, as they discover the true spirit of the dactyl in the Father Abbot, Markwart. There journey will require much sacrifice for the greater good, and the strength of each persons will power. I thought this book was the best in the series so far. I was hooked the entire time and couldn't put it down. I loved the characters, and the plot was intriguing.
August 3, 2017
OVERVIEW (Spoilers)
As before I listened to this novel through Graphic Audio which was as wonderful as always, and in my option is the best way to experience this story. That being said I did not enjoy this book nearly as much as the previous novels as it's nearly all politics, and not even in a interesting way which is a drastic change from the previous two books which were much more personal. The thing that really carried this book for me was Pony, her character development was really one of the only highlights of the story, until the ending were a plot twist involving Pony's baby tries to set up future books, but feels totally forced in at the last minute and leaves a major plot hole.
THE NEGATIVE
- A lot of politics that seemed to have been left out of the other two books was crammed in here and in a way that lacked intrigue, it wasn't until the finale chapters that the political struggle even felt real.
- The story overall seemed to have a hard time finding its flow, some characters would be over looked for chapters at a time, and there felt like there was an unnecessary amount of travailing back and forth to the same few locations.
- Night-Bird was really hard character to connect to (not great for a main protagonist) and the reason was the way he was written, as he speaks in a overly proper manner that felt very nonhuman.
- Pony's pregnancy and subsequent loss of her child worked to motivated her to new heights, but the twist at the end that she in fact did not lose the baby, but had the child and it was taken from her WITH OUT HER KNOWING! is silly not to mention that she only seemed to carried the baby for less then 6 months
THE POSITIVE
+ Marcalo De'Unnero made an excellent villain and with the use of the Soul stone Tigers Paw became a dangerous adversary in his epic battle with Night-Bird
+ Jilseponie's story arch was fantastic and her personal hatred of Father Abbot Markwart was palpable, all culminating in Pony going full Magneto on the city of Palmaris and ultimately defeating Markwart in a dual of the soul.
FINAL THOUGHTS
This was the finale book of the first trilogy in the Demon Wars saga, and while I loved the magic system that R.A. Salvatore created for this universe, as well as some of his characters, ultimately the story was just okay, it wasn't Lord of the Rings epic nor did anyone character stand out as someone I will never forget.
As before I listened to this novel through Graphic Audio which was as wonderful as always, and in my option is the best way to experience this story. That being said I did not enjoy this book nearly as much as the previous novels as it's nearly all politics, and not even in a interesting way which is a drastic change from the previous two books which were much more personal. The thing that really carried this book for me was Pony, her character development was really one of the only highlights of the story, until the ending were a plot twist involving Pony's baby tries to set up future books, but feels totally forced in at the last minute and leaves a major plot hole.
THE NEGATIVE
- A lot of politics that seemed to have been left out of the other two books was crammed in here and in a way that lacked intrigue, it wasn't until the finale chapters that the political struggle even felt real.
- The story overall seemed to have a hard time finding its flow, some characters would be over looked for chapters at a time, and there felt like there was an unnecessary amount of travailing back and forth to the same few locations.
- Night-Bird was really hard character to connect to (not great for a main protagonist) and the reason was the way he was written, as he speaks in a overly proper manner that felt very nonhuman.
- Pony's pregnancy and subsequent loss of her child worked to motivated her to new heights, but the twist at the end that she in fact did not lose the baby, but had the child and it was taken from her WITH OUT HER KNOWING! is silly not to mention that she only seemed to carried the baby for less then 6 months
THE POSITIVE
+ Marcalo De'Unnero made an excellent villain and with the use of the Soul stone Tigers Paw became a dangerous adversary in his epic battle with Night-Bird
+ Jilseponie's story arch was fantastic and her personal hatred of Father Abbot Markwart was palpable, all culminating in Pony going full Magneto on the city of Palmaris and ultimately defeating Markwart in a dual of the soul.
FINAL THOUGHTS
This was the finale book of the first trilogy in the Demon Wars saga, and while I loved the magic system that R.A. Salvatore created for this universe, as well as some of his characters, ultimately the story was just okay, it wasn't Lord of the Rings epic nor did anyone character stand out as someone I will never forget.
June 3, 2016
The last book in the trilogy brings everything to a close in a dramatic and action packed way. It is a good book that has a very fitting end. Many ups and downs and inner struggles happen throughout the book, on both the heroes' and the monks' side. The problem I have with the series is the how the church is written. Not wanting to spoil anything, but it is never shown how the church has power or why common folk look up to it. The church pretty much only murders and tortures, upsets the king, and threaten commoners. This wouldn't be too much of a problem, except the monks play such an important role in the story and have more POVs than the heroes of the story. Otherwise, the characters and writing are well done and the story is overall entertaining.
June 10, 2018
This book is the culmination of the Corona: The DemonWars Saga trilogy but to me was the worst of the three and a disappointment for someone who has read 17 of R. A. Salvatore's books.
In book one, The Demon Awakens, we have the terrible evil demon and a shower of magical gems retrieved by a religious sect that was once good but has been corrupted and is well on its way to be morally bankrupt. The book deals with the hero and heroine becoming orphaned in a goblin attack on their village while another character, a monk of the sect, that was sent to collect the gems and decides to steal them away from the monastery. While the hero is trained by the elves as a ranger, the heroine goes to a city where she is more or less adopted by a couple who run a tavern. After many adventures the three characters, along with a centaur and a couple of elves, defeat the evil demon. I liked this book, but gave it 3 stars because it was actually fairly average sword and sorcery fantasy. Worth reading, but didn't grip me and certainly didn't effect my dreams.
The second book, The Demon Spirit, within the religious sect, one of the leaders has become tainted by the demon of the first books spirit and moves to consolidate his power and remove, rather viciously, his enemies within the religious sect. In the meantime, the hero teaches the heroine the secrets the elves taught him, alienating the elves in the long run, while they go about dealing with the leftovers of the demon's army. In the meantime, the monks of the religious sect have captured the centaur as a criminal against them because of his part against the demon and his association with monk who originally stole the gems; who has been declared a heretic. After freeing the centaur the good characters go on to continue the fight against the monks, ending the book in more or less a draw. I also liked this book but also gave three stars for more or less the same reasons as the first. Note that I would have given both 3 1/2 stars if I had that capability.
Now this book, the monks' power continues to increase until they are almost omnipotent and their leader's influence by the demon has become a subtle possession. The monks take control of the city and rival the power of the king. The hunt is on for the centaur and those who freed him; while anyone found to be their friends are beaten, tortured, or killed by the monks. The heroes split up and have a few adventures while the monks' hold on everything becomes so powerful that even the elves are endangered. At this point, the hero embarks on what turns out to be a totally pointless quest to the site of the defeat of the demon from the first book. Here, I thought when I read it, was the hero going for something that would enable him to aid the heroine, who is now his wife and who is having terrible things befall her. Or at least stem the tide of the evil monks. But the trip is totally pointless and, if this book was a mystery, would have been a giant red herring. By this point in the story, I was more than a little frustrated. Anyway, the heroine, terribly embittered and angry, without anyone's help until the very last moment, goes and faces the leader of the monk's demon for the final battle.
I found the read a bit of a struggle for some reason. In parts I would breeze through it while in others it was like each paragraph was a fight. All and all, the book was ok and, frustrating as it was, still worth reading. So I gave it 2 stars. Not one of R. A. Salvatore's best works by any stretch.
In book one, The Demon Awakens, we have the terrible evil demon and a shower of magical gems retrieved by a religious sect that was once good but has been corrupted and is well on its way to be morally bankrupt. The book deals with the hero and heroine becoming orphaned in a goblin attack on their village while another character, a monk of the sect, that was sent to collect the gems and decides to steal them away from the monastery. While the hero is trained by the elves as a ranger, the heroine goes to a city where she is more or less adopted by a couple who run a tavern. After many adventures the three characters, along with a centaur and a couple of elves, defeat the evil demon. I liked this book, but gave it 3 stars because it was actually fairly average sword and sorcery fantasy. Worth reading, but didn't grip me and certainly didn't effect my dreams.
The second book, The Demon Spirit, within the religious sect, one of the leaders has become tainted by the demon of the first books spirit and moves to consolidate his power and remove, rather viciously, his enemies within the religious sect. In the meantime, the hero teaches the heroine the secrets the elves taught him, alienating the elves in the long run, while they go about dealing with the leftovers of the demon's army. In the meantime, the monks of the religious sect have captured the centaur as a criminal against them because of his part against the demon and his association with monk who originally stole the gems; who has been declared a heretic. After freeing the centaur the good characters go on to continue the fight against the monks, ending the book in more or less a draw. I also liked this book but also gave three stars for more or less the same reasons as the first. Note that I would have given both 3 1/2 stars if I had that capability.
Now this book, the monks' power continues to increase until they are almost omnipotent and their leader's influence by the demon has become a subtle possession. The monks take control of the city and rival the power of the king. The hunt is on for the centaur and those who freed him; while anyone found to be their friends are beaten, tortured, or killed by the monks. The heroes split up and have a few adventures while the monks' hold on everything becomes so powerful that even the elves are endangered. At this point, the hero embarks on what turns out to be a totally pointless quest to the site of the defeat of the demon from the first book. Here, I thought when I read it, was the hero going for something that would enable him to aid the heroine, who is now his wife and who is having terrible things befall her. Or at least stem the tide of the evil monks. But the trip is totally pointless and, if this book was a mystery, would have been a giant red herring. By this point in the story, I was more than a little frustrated. Anyway, the heroine, terribly embittered and angry, without anyone's help until the very last moment, goes and faces the leader of the monk's demon for the final battle.
I found the read a bit of a struggle for some reason. In parts I would breeze through it while in others it was like each paragraph was a fight. All and all, the book was ok and, frustrating as it was, still worth reading. So I gave it 2 stars. Not one of R. A. Salvatore's best works by any stretch.
November 4, 2018
A painfully boring read. The plot barely moved forward in 600 pages and most of it happened in the last 20. The rest of it was meandering in the wilderness and the cities, where they have spars with corrupt priests. Also, lots of dull politics that don’t amount to much. What’s the point of having all those nobles from different kingdoms and info about the culture of each of them, if nothing comes out of it?
-Elbryan remains bland as always and the only things I remember about him, is having sex, becoming a father, and dying valiantly in battle.
-Jil keeps being the dull love interest, with hints of personality. She fights a bit, goes to the offense, gets captured (again), gets used as bait (again), and then gives birth to Elbryan’s son (who is possessed by Dactyl, lol what a troll).
-De Unnero, the evil priest, remains a completely flat and uninteresting bad guy who is defined only by his magic abilities than his personality or goals. He wasted two books in plotting and scheming before getting defeated anticlimactically within 2 pages by an unborn baby during a boring mental duel.
There was no reason for this book’s existence. It could have easily been one with the second, as long as the writer had removed the chaff from them. And by chaff, I mean almost everything. The good guys are now completely passive and almost like support cast in their own story. The real protagonist becomes the bad guy who doesn’t even put up much of a fight at the end. If we go by fractions, the first book was half decent, the second was a fifth good, and the third is a hundredth good. I suggest you skip everything besides the last 20 pages. You won’t miss a thing.
-Elbryan remains bland as always and the only things I remember about him, is having sex, becoming a father, and dying valiantly in battle.
-Jil keeps being the dull love interest, with hints of personality. She fights a bit, goes to the offense, gets captured (again), gets used as bait (again), and then gives birth to Elbryan’s son (who is possessed by Dactyl, lol what a troll).
-De Unnero, the evil priest, remains a completely flat and uninteresting bad guy who is defined only by his magic abilities than his personality or goals. He wasted two books in plotting and scheming before getting defeated anticlimactically within 2 pages by an unborn baby during a boring mental duel.
There was no reason for this book’s existence. It could have easily been one with the second, as long as the writer had removed the chaff from them. And by chaff, I mean almost everything. The good guys are now completely passive and almost like support cast in their own story. The real protagonist becomes the bad guy who doesn’t even put up much of a fight at the end. If we go by fractions, the first book was half decent, the second was a fifth good, and the third is a hundredth good. I suggest you skip everything besides the last 20 pages. You won’t miss a thing.
January 16, 2018
Read this book so many years ago, but doing a reread in preparation for the release of "Child of a Mad God". Wonderful to come back to the world of Corona!
SPOILERS!
This book sees the end of both Elbryan (more on that in a moment) and Father Abbot Markwart, the slow rise of the good in Brother Francis, many changes in the battle between the Abellican Church and the Crown, the strengthening of Pony as a lead character, and the deception of the Touel'alfar in keeping the child to raise as a ranger.
Back to Elbryan, Salvatore does something here (rare, at least to my reading sensibilities way back in 1999) and kills off his main character. Not many authors have the courage to do that and continue their stories, or at least they didn't back then. In doing so, I remember thinking "wow! I'll read the next one just to find out how everything pans out with him being gone."
I'm pretty sure this led to him being asked to write "Vector Prime", the now 'Legends Era' Star Wars novel famous for killing Chewbacca. Well, either this, or "The Legacy", which killed off Wulfgar.
R.A. Salvatore is my favorite author, no contest. I can never recommend his books enough. But..... don't read them out of order.
SPOILERS!
This book sees the end of both Elbryan (more on that in a moment) and Father Abbot Markwart, the slow rise of the good in Brother Francis, many changes in the battle between the Abellican Church and the Crown, the strengthening of Pony as a lead character, and the deception of the Touel'alfar in keeping the child to raise as a ranger.
Back to Elbryan, Salvatore does something here (rare, at least to my reading sensibilities way back in 1999) and kills off his main character. Not many authors have the courage to do that and continue their stories, or at least they didn't back then. In doing so, I remember thinking "wow! I'll read the next one just to find out how everything pans out with him being gone."
I'm pretty sure this led to him being asked to write "Vector Prime", the now 'Legends Era' Star Wars novel famous for killing Chewbacca. Well, either this, or "The Legacy", which killed off Wulfgar.
R.A. Salvatore is my favorite author, no contest. I can never recommend his books enough. But..... don't read them out of order.
April 19, 2022
This was your typical Salvatore story and yet, maybe not so typical. Salvatore found a way to surprise with an ending I didn't see coming, which would have been made better by not writing at the omniscient 3rd person level (the entire novel would have been better had the author had 'shown' instead of 'told'.
Still this was an enjoyable story that has left me curious to find out more about the second phase of the DemonWars Saga.
Still this was an enjoyable story that has left me curious to find out more about the second phase of the DemonWars Saga.
October 2, 2017
I understand that there are four more books in this over arching series and that the events in this book may more sense later. However, the last 100 pages of this book made me angry. It felt so rushed and underwhelming considering the magnitude of the events that transpired.
January 20, 2018
Spectacular
Another extremely well written story by R.A. Salvatore. Heart wrenching moments of truly amazing descriptions of events.
The joys, sadness and hopes of the characters are felt throughout the book.
Another extremely well written story by R.A. Salvatore. Heart wrenching moments of truly amazing descriptions of events.
The joys, sadness and hopes of the characters are felt throughout the book.
June 30, 2017
I really disliked the end to this book. Honestly, there was only one character that kept me into this series. I will not be reading on to the next series of books within this world.
October 22, 2018
the book is too much interesting
February 18, 2019
Not a proper ending to the series
March 24, 2019
Overall disappointing. Got stronger halfway through, but wasn't enough to pull together this overall weak trilogy. Bummer, 'cause I love Salvatore :(
August 12, 2019
Gah but the elves in this series are a little annoying.....
January 7, 2020
THe saga continues and I was surprised at the end with the revelation that sets up the next bks - I have the next 4 books and continuing on
Want to read
February 13, 2020New
July 14, 2020
Good read, wasn't too happy with the ending though, all in all a good trilogy.
March 5, 2021
"Do you think you've the power to stop this?"
Pony does something surprising and particularly bad-ass that makes this installment worthwhile all by itself.
Pony does something surprising and particularly bad-ass that makes this installment worthwhile all by itself.
December 2, 2021
Good story. Did not like how it ended.But the story continues. Already reading it,
July 5, 2022
Very surprising ending! Good read.
February 14, 2025
This book was a perfect end to the trilogy. The denouement alone was worth the journey. 5 stars, and I would recommend this series to any fantasy readers out there.
October 9, 2025
Enjoying this but little slow in parts
January 2, 2021
Third read through of this 3rd novel of the Demonwars saga.
November 29, 2020
This book was in 3-star territory for awhile, and then it started sliding and sliding, and hit bottom right at the end.
As with books 1 & 2, I listened to Graphic Audio and then skimmed the book. I think I've gotten used to Graphic Audio adding "dramatisations" to the dialogue and skipping descriptions. So no problems there.
The good thing about book 3 is that the focus is now fully on subtle confrontations and political conflict, which began in book 2. The poorly-written "monster war" is finally behind us. Unfortunately, missed opportunities and dangling plot points made this just as disappointing.
The villains have much better characterisation than the protagonists. From the Father Abbot, to Francis, De'Unnero, and even the rather ineffectual King Danube had better moments than the good guys. The good guys felt like they're mostly just swept along when events happen, especially Elbryan, who faded into a supporting role. Pony was obviously painted as the main character, having her go through the most emotional changes and suffering. But I think it was done poorly, because I got the impression that Pony simply became a selfish and not very likeable character.
Even though the monks are now in the forefront, they continue to be as generic as they were in the previous two books. Again, there was no attempt to explain why this order of monks had so much influence over the people. The story tells that these monks mostly stand apart from the common folk, so what gives them their considerable influence over the people that even the court fears them? This is the primary reason why the conflict between church and state fails - it just doesn't show why should the state be afraid of the church.
The magic system became even more "for convenience's sake" only. When someone needed to be fatigued, then the magic fatigues them. When they really shouldn't be fatigued, then they won't be the least bit tired. And there's several instances of "new" or "just-discovered" uses of the stones, and yet no one seems to bat an eye much. These monks are completely not-curious about the stones and their potential.
But I wasn't at all bothered by all of these plot holes, since the previous two books had already dropped my expectations drastically. I was simply enjoying the narration while doing something else... right up until the end.
The finale was really weak. The trigger was horrible. The final encounter was over pretty fast. And it was over in a very unsatisfying way. The wrong people died , some just won't die , and one plot point that should have stopped, suddenly restarted.
The last chapter wrapped up the main plot so quickly that I was wondering whether the author was literally rushing for a deadline. Aside from the main plot, there's no closure of anything else.
As with books 1 & 2, I listened to Graphic Audio and then skimmed the book. I think I've gotten used to Graphic Audio adding "dramatisations" to the dialogue and skipping descriptions. So no problems there.
The good thing about book 3 is that the focus is now fully on subtle confrontations and political conflict, which began in book 2. The poorly-written "monster war" is finally behind us. Unfortunately, missed opportunities and dangling plot points made this just as disappointing.
The villains have much better characterisation than the protagonists. From the Father Abbot, to Francis, De'Unnero, and even the rather ineffectual King Danube had better moments than the good guys. The good guys felt like they're mostly just swept along when events happen, especially Elbryan, who faded into a supporting role. Pony was obviously painted as the main character, having her go through the most emotional changes and suffering. But I think it was done poorly, because I got the impression that Pony simply became a selfish and not very likeable character.
Even though the monks are now in the forefront, they continue to be as generic as they were in the previous two books. Again, there was no attempt to explain why this order of monks had so much influence over the people. The story tells that these monks mostly stand apart from the common folk, so what gives them their considerable influence over the people that even the court fears them? This is the primary reason why the conflict between church and state fails - it just doesn't show why should the state be afraid of the church.
The magic system became even more "for convenience's sake" only. When someone needed to be fatigued, then the magic fatigues them. When they really shouldn't be fatigued, then they won't be the least bit tired. And there's several instances of "new" or "just-discovered" uses of the stones, and yet no one seems to bat an eye much. These monks are completely not-curious about the stones and their potential.
But I wasn't at all bothered by all of these plot holes, since the previous two books had already dropped my expectations drastically. I was simply enjoying the narration while doing something else... right up until the end.
The finale was really weak. The trigger was horrible. The final encounter was over pretty fast. And it was over in a very unsatisfying way. The wrong people died , some just won't die , and one plot point that should have stopped, suddenly restarted.
The last chapter wrapped up the main plot so quickly that I was wondering whether the author was literally rushing for a deadline. Aside from the main plot, there's no closure of anything else.
December 30, 2016
This final book of the excellent Demonwars Trilogy does a fine job of wrapping up the tale. While it starts off rather slow (thus the 4 stars, instead of 5), the final 1/3 of the book is excellent. As all of the plot threads introduced in this book and the previous one come to a head, you'll have a hard time putting this one down. This is definitely a step up from THE DEMON SPIRIT, but still not quite as good as THE DEMON AWAKENS. It is just hard to keep the reader interested without introducing new characters and mysteries. So, it could have been better, but was still highly entertaining and did a good job of finishing off a great trilogy.
While I didn't find the political struggling between the king and the Father Abbott very entertaining, I thought the emotional turmoil present throughout the book (especially with Pony) was great. Her attack on the Father Abbott was my personal favorite part of the book, where the action really takes off towards the dramatic conclusion. That being said, some things about this book were a bit disappointing. All of Pony's work to incite discontent within the population of Palmaris really didn't come to anything, so what was the point? Also, Salvatore made absolutely no attempt at explaining the miracle at the Barbacan, which was a great part of the book but left me wanting to know more.
**** SPOILERS ****
I see a lot of reviewers complaining about the ending of this book. Personally, I thought it was just what the series needed. Something unexpected (especially from Salvatore) and shocking to give the trilogy an exclamation point. Also, the tale is obviously not finished, with the son of Elbryan and Pony being taken in by the elves and being possessed by the demon. Sounds like a potentially exciting tale coming in the next series, but I hope Salvatore can introduce some new concepts for the future. Maybe try and explain the miracles of Avelyn's tomb?
Highly recommended trilogy.
While I didn't find the political struggling between the king and the Father Abbott very entertaining, I thought the emotional turmoil present throughout the book (especially with Pony) was great. Her attack on the Father Abbott was my personal favorite part of the book, where the action really takes off towards the dramatic conclusion. That being said, some things about this book were a bit disappointing. All of Pony's work to incite discontent within the population of Palmaris really didn't come to anything, so what was the point? Also, Salvatore made absolutely no attempt at explaining the miracle at the Barbacan, which was a great part of the book but left me wanting to know more.
**** SPOILERS ****
I see a lot of reviewers complaining about the ending of this book. Personally, I thought it was just what the series needed. Something unexpected (especially from Salvatore) and shocking to give the trilogy an exclamation point. Also, the tale is obviously not finished, with the son of Elbryan and Pony being taken in by the elves and being possessed by the demon. Sounds like a potentially exciting tale coming in the next series, but I hope Salvatore can introduce some new concepts for the future. Maybe try and explain the miracles of Avelyn's tomb?
Highly recommended trilogy.
February 2, 2016
I flew through the first part before I had realized that I hadn't added it on Goodreads. BOOOOO! Shame on me!
Really though this saga has been awesome! I am so glad that I've finally picked up Salvatore's work.
I really like the intrigue of the Barron's death leaves. I'm reminded of the example of a power vacuum.
Salvatore is also the first writer I've come across that doesn't portray centaurs as stuck up snobs. Loving this factor. Bradwarden is one of my favorite characters and his Which was certainly traumatic to me.
Roger's plot line in this book has grown and matured; to where he is using his wits for seeing what the Father Abbot is up to. He also makes another favorite character.
The role of the church in this saga is spot on in the importance of, in my opinion; why the church does not rule the land. I see that Salvatore did must have put a lot of research time into the Spanish Inquisition. The writer has really impressed me with this factor alone. Love It!
Tear fest gall-or by the ending because Salvatore isn't honestly writing for the readers; he's writing a sob fest for himself. Damn you damn you! I can't believe this ending. Hopefully I'll be able to find the next book at my local library.
Until then...
Fly My Pretties! Fly! Fly!
Really though this saga has been awesome! I am so glad that I've finally picked up Salvatore's work.
I really like the intrigue of the Barron's death leaves. I'm reminded of the example of a power vacuum.
Salvatore is also the first writer I've come across that doesn't portray centaurs as stuck up snobs. Loving this factor. Bradwarden is one of my favorite characters and his Which was certainly traumatic to me.
Roger's plot line in this book has grown and matured; to where he is using his wits for seeing what the Father Abbot is up to. He also makes another favorite character.
The role of the church in this saga is spot on in the importance of, in my opinion; why the church does not rule the land. I see that Salvatore did must have put a lot of research time into the Spanish Inquisition. The writer has really impressed me with this factor alone. Love It!
Tear fest gall-or by the ending because Salvatore isn't honestly writing for the readers; he's writing a sob fest for himself. Damn you damn you! I can't believe this ending. Hopefully I'll be able to find the next book at my local library.
Until then...
Fly My Pretties! Fly! Fly!
November 16, 2015
The Demon Apostle is a fantasy tale that must be read by all lovers of fantasy. R.A. Salvatore creates some characters that the user grows to love and some that you will fear. The story starts off a little slow, but picks up the pace in the last 200 hundred pages, or so. Pony seems quite different in this book, as compared to the others, because she is so full of anger—towards the church and towards herself for letting herself become pregnant at such a critical time. Another things that makes this story different is that Nightbird and Pony are never really together. The story also revolves heavily around Markwart and De’Unnero and their plans for taking over Palmaris and then the entire kingdom.
I was glad to finally begin this book, so I could end the trilogy. I was a little disappointed with the speed of the book at the beginning, being kinda slow, but it is still a good story with characters that I am familiar with and that I also enjoy reading about.
Overall, loved The Demon Apostle and I really enjoyed the entire trilogy. I think that if you like tales of fantasy, this is a great one to read. R.A. Salvatore is an excellent storyteller who really know how to write action scenes. I really do enjoy his level of detail. Should you like this trilogy, don’t worry, and new trilogy will be starting soon based upon the Second DemonWars.
I rated this book an 8½ out of 10.
I was glad to finally begin this book, so I could end the trilogy. I was a little disappointed with the speed of the book at the beginning, being kinda slow, but it is still a good story with characters that I am familiar with and that I also enjoy reading about.
Overall, loved The Demon Apostle and I really enjoyed the entire trilogy. I think that if you like tales of fantasy, this is a great one to read. R.A. Salvatore is an excellent storyteller who really know how to write action scenes. I really do enjoy his level of detail. Should you like this trilogy, don’t worry, and new trilogy will be starting soon based upon the Second DemonWars.
I rated this book an 8½ out of 10.
November 10, 2016
This book is about Elbryan Wyden and his friend\girlfriend pony as they try to redestroy the dactyl who recently returned from the dead. Meanwhile the town of Honce the Bear gets into a civil War. It is a nice combination of friendship, fantasy and a sprinkle of romance. It is also a great entry into the series of Elbryan books. The writing was just as great as you could expect to see in such a book as this one. The way that the secondary caratchers were presented was so cool that I was kind of surprised by it. Usually the hero is the one that gets the focus while the villain gets the back burner. But this new variation on it was so cool. To go back to the caratchers for just a second, I have to mention the other great caratchers such as Juraviel, Bradwarden and Rodger. The one problem that appeared was the fact that the number in the series differed from the inside cover and the outside one. But that was a really small gripe that barely even scratched the otherwise flawless book. As for the action, it was a good deal more stronger then I had expected. I will say that this book was, compared to others in this series, probably the best one. I gladly give this one a truly deserving four star review.
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