Heart of the Mountain

Saga of the Forgotten Warrior #6

by Larry Correia

What happens after the War of the Gods?

The answer lies in the Heart of the Mountain…

Ashok Vadal was chosen by a powerful weapon to be its bearer. As a Protector, an elite roving law-enforcer, his path to leader of the Sons of the Black Sword has been anything but straight.

Thera Vane, a child of privilege, has become the reluctant prophet of an illegal and forgotten god—whose prophecies are proving all too correct, if frustratingly unclear about the war between demon and man.

Ashok’s erstwhile sword brother, Lord Protector Devedas, was meant to be a puppet king, but he and his wife, a court scholar, have other plans. And possibly even access to the lore that will let them triumph.

Grand Inquisitor Omand Vokkan is a man of ambition. He’s set in motion all that was necessary to destroy the current order and install Lord Protector Devedas as a tyrant. But Vokkan has a vision beyond control of the continent. He would challenge even the gods. . . .

It seems the time of prophecy and the Age of Law is over: it is time the prophecies will be fulfilled.

Genres: Fantasy, Audiobook, Fiction, Epic Fantasy, Magic, Demons, Adventure

385 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 4, 2025

About the author

Larry Correia (born 1977) is the New York Times bestselling author of the Monster Hunter International series, the Grimnoir Chronicles, and the thriller Dead Six.

Reviews

[John Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

God I loved this series so much. I cared about every single character and boy was the antagonist a mothertrucker! Ashok will go down as one of the greatest characters in fantasy.

This series is Larry’s only work I’d ever read and it’s his only fantasy work so far. I have no idea the quality of his other works but this is top-top tier. Every single chapter matters. Every single word is specifically designed to progress the character in a certain direction, which is why his books are usually around 400 pages.
I love a grand sweeping tale with a great setting but sometimes it’s nice to just get a series that just sticks to imperative information with so much action and an ending that was just magical. One of the best endings I’ve ever read.

This has become a top 10 series for me.


2025 5 Star Reads in Preferential Order

Heart of the Mountain by Larry Correia
Once There Were Heroes by Philip C Quaintrell
Justice of Kings by Richard Swan
In The Shadow of Kings by Philip C Quaintrell

[Brent · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow what a conclusion. I'm a big fan of endings and conclusions, and I think making one wholly satisfying is one of the biggest challenges of any fantasy series. Do not worry in the case of The Saga of The Forgotten Warrior because Larry Correia has landed the plane in the best way possible.

When I heard the final book was being split into two installments I had some concerns. In other series this has sometimes caused some issues with uneven pacing or plotting. When I read Graveyard of Demons (the prior installment) and really liked but didn't love it I was a bit concerned. However, The Heart of The Mountain was pretty much everything I wanted from this series from the beginning. It takes a little to get going, but it soon hits its stride and delivers some of the best moments from the entire series. It has maybe some of the best action/battle sequences I have read. It had fantastic character arcs. It has fitting conclusions to those arcs along with plot points. I has satisfying reveals. The dialogue and prose even feels leveled up here. And the ending is just outstanding. It leaves you wanting more but also a feeling of satisfaction that lets you know you don't necessarily need more.

This final book cements this as one of my favorite fantasy series. A very strong 5 stars and liked will be on my 2025 top 10.

[Todd · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an Earth shattering finish to this tumultuous ride of a series. Larry Correia, better known for his urban fantasy series Monster Hunter International has knocked it out of the park with this fantasy series.

The epic battle against the demons, which will determine the humans' future will happen at Vadal City. And this book tells the entire thing.

[L'encre de la magie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Une fin parfaite !!! 😭😱💖
Je n'arrive pas à croire que c'est terminé

[L.N. Win · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’m sad that this series is over, but Forgotten damn, what an ending.

[Graham Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect ending.

[Zach Reads Fantasy · Rating 4 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️║A fast, furious, and fitting finale to one of the most purely entertaining fantasy series I’ve read. Heart of the Mountain gave me the awesome, tightly written finish I was hoping for.

Correia delivers exactly what he promised with this series—brisk pacing, pulpy energy, and characters who go out swinging. The plot ties up beautifully, every major arc lands, and the final battle is pure spectacle. Ashok remains an unbreakable, larger-than-life force of nature, and the rest of the cast—Thera, Devadas, Javed, Gutch, Jagdish, Omand—each get satisfying sendoffs.

The worldbuilding continues to be wonderful without overdoing it, expanding the lore and prophecy threads without bloating the scope or bogging the reader down in needless detail. I especially loved how the last few pages tease at the wider world beyond, and Correia knows we don't need to know and understand everything out there. The prose stays lean and sharp, the tone fun with splashes of grim humor, and the action flat-out rules.

Correia keeps it tight, focused, and true to what made The Saga of the Forgotten Warrior so addictive from the start. This final entry gives us a strong, crowd-pleasing finish. If you enjoy action-driven epic fantasy with heart, humor, and nonstop momentum, this series is worth every page.

Saga of the Forgotten Warrior by Larry Correia
Book 1: Son of the Black Sword 4/5
Book 2: House of Assassins 4/5
Book 3: Destroyer of Worlds 4/5
Book 4: Tower of Silence 4/5
Book 5: Graveyard of Demons 4/5
Book 6: Heart of the Mountain 4/5

[Jennifer Ritchie · Rating 4 out of 5]

“What have you been doing with these kitchen knives? Getting in sword fights with ancestor blades?!” — my husband, valiantly sharpening my chef’s knife.

While I can’t blame Angruvadal for the nicks in my knife blades, I can blame this book for keeping me up until 2:30 a.m. — because I couldn’t put it down.

All in all, I found it to be a satisfying end to a really entertaining series. My only complaint (sort of) is that I wanted more answers to the mysteries of the past and the ancestors and all that. The things that are revealed in this book resulted in more questions than answers! I can understand Correia’s decision not to explain everything — sometimes it’s good to leave a little mystery and room for imagination. All the same, it leaves me wanting more stories from the world of Lok. Maybe someday he’ll write some more for us.

I don’t want to give spoilers, so I’ll just say that pretty much all the characters we’ve come to love (and Omand, whom we hate) appear in this one (except Jagdish’s wife Shakti, who remains in the background). I enjoyed Jagdish especially (but then, I always do). Javed’s storyline was full of surprises. The way it all played out was satisfying but not completely predictable. There are some character deaths — as you would expect with the way this one was setting up to be an ultimate showdown. I’d been wondering all this time about the whole blood-of-Ramrowan thing, and when that was revealed, it was not at all what I was expecting, but it wasn’t a letdown either!

Overall, I’d say this series has been very consistent in terms of quality throughout. There isn’t any one book that stands out to me as obviously the best, and I never picked up on any continuity issues or problems like that. It feels like a very cohesive whole. If you’ve enjoyed the other books in the series, you’ll like this one, too.

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the prerelease copy from the publisher. Its an excellent ending to a series i really liked. As much as I enjoyed the series I still think it got a little lost in the middle and could have been a 4 book series. That said, there is *excellent* work in each of the books and the length is way more manageable then one of my *other* favorite authors recent releases.

[Tom Anderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great finish to one of the best series I’ve ever read. FWIW, the dedication at the beginning of the book is priceless.

[Jim · Rating 5 out of 5]

A solid end to the series! I hate to see it end because it's been a wild ride, building to a climax that brings a satisfying resolution for all the major players.

Correia has built and concluded a fascinating epic in a world that, if he chooses, could be explored in one or more new series. But the story that had begun in book one of Saga of the Forgotten Warrior has been completed on a high note.

Correia cheekily dedicated this conclusion to George R.R. Martin, who famously hasn't finished his Song of Ice and Fire series, with "see? It's not so hard." I know many people are resisting multi-book series until the last book is published, because - well, as someone who got hooked on David Gerrold's War of the Chtorr series decades ago, only to be left hanging, I get the wariness. But the easiest way to guarantee a series dies on the vine is to not give it a chance in progress. Jim Butcher's Dresden series still has several books left, and waiting for the next is always torture, but I came to the series late and still had a fantastic run of fifteen books before I caught up. And I don't regret the ride he's taken us on so far.

So ..if you're holding out until a series is done, this is an official green light for Ashok Vadal's saga. If you don't like Correia - I know many don't like his combative online personality - all I can say is, consider picking it up anyway. This isn't Monster Hunter International (which I have also enjoyed so far): it's a mature, sweeping, addictive story.

[Brian Heckman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Explosive and action packed ending to a fun series.

[Lucas · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.25/5 really good series, definitely recommend. Everything got wrapped up, maybe a bit too tidily but awesome final battle and very satisfying character arcs.

[Mike Massa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Larry Correia, perhaps best known for his extensive and ongoing Monster Hunter International (MHI) universe (several novels, several additional collaborations, several anthologies, and a great board game - people line up for hours to hear him talk about MHI, to get a signature, etc.) BUT- he writes a lot of other stuff. For example:

The Saga of the Forgotten Warrior, set in a caste-centric, magical world that approximates India, is a sweeping six volume tale. Larry’s last installment, Heart of the Mountain (HotM,) released via the publisher, Baen Books (www.baen.com,) a cpl days ago. I picked up the HotM electronic Advanced Readers’ Copy (eARc) on release day. In this volume, the leading character, Ashok, Protector of the Law, the Black Heart, rouge and bandit, and impartial deliverer of justice, whose actions drive much of the action across the entire series, finally achieves closure.

I don’t want to provide spoilers, so this will be necessarily vague. By the end of the first novel, Son of the Black Sword, you understand that the humans of this world are divided into rigid social groups, and the shape of human activity is bounded by the border between land and sea. Almost irresistible, nearly invulnerable demons populate the oceans, and they do love them some human Scoobie snacks. Strange new technology begins to disrupt existing cultural patterns, and predictably, the existing order fights back. Ashok has to navigate his growing understanding of his role in the world, where humans may have a long dormant protector who is both critically necessary but whose awakening will come with a terrible price. Meanwhile, other forces are at work, aided by evil humans who view the rest of the population as so much fuel for their diabolical schemes. Oh, and Ashok might Fall in love.

Larry delivers on all of it – the highs and lows, incredible action scenes, characters in whom you easily become invested. I complained to him a few books ago I wasn’t happy he’d allowed a villain to escape justice. With a wink and nod he assured me to keep going – leading to a very satisfying conclusion for that character much later.

Hardest and most impressive of all, in my opinion, Larry has created a ladder of ever more challenging (sometimes impossible) dilemmas, duels, and battles, which allow the both reader and the characters to grow while keeping the story fresh and the tension high. Importantly, Larry doesn’t break his own universe’s rules or “jump the shark” – everything tracks, conforming to the existing framework. However, the stakes raise higher in every volume, and when you think the danger is at its highest, Larry turns it to 11.

I had a very good friend who encouraged me to read a certain Big Name author whose sweeping fantasy was adapted into a dragon-y series. Of course, Big Name never finished (never will, given actuarial realities) his own story. While that is his prerogative – authors owe their customers only the very best writing in the stories which are published and not some future book – it did disappoint my friend who wanted to reach The End. Many readers (not me) feel the same, and won’t buy volume one till volume N (here N = completed series) is out the door. HotM is that finishing point, so fear not, and go get the entire series. Consider having some personal days on your schedule if like me you need - *need* - to finish a given book once you’ve started.

My favorite character wasn’t Ashok, though I found the Black Heart’s unintended humor droll. There’s a former slave – part-time rogue – and eventually influential trader named Gutch. He gets plenty of laugh lines in the series; being a person of (initially) very low status, he sometimes can say things no one else can. Gutch blends pragmatism, a disregard for social order, and loyalty in equal measure.

So, yes, Larry has completed the story. He gives all his characters a complete arc, and then some. I’m disappointed there are no more novels coming, but perhaps he has some shorts or novellas lurking. Hopefully, we’ll see Gutch again.

[Bobalot · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic ending to a great series.

The dedication was hilarious.

[Kristine · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the finale of an amazing series. During the past 6 books, we have followed the journey of many people, but specifically of one man - Ashok Vadal -as we watched him start his life with a firm idea of what was right and wrong, only to learn that EVERYTHING he thought he knew was completely wrong. And not only that, but he had been manipulated in the worst ways. The series shines as Ashok had to learn on his own what he believed in - and it was NOT easy. Ashok is a character that will stay with me, and I very rarely say that about a character.

I cannot say enough about this series. It has everything you would want in an epic fantasy series- exceptional world building, an incredibly unique magic system (well, whatever you want to call the black steel Bearer blades that choose their wielders, prophecies galore, and not to leave out.... a heck of a lot of demons) In addition, it was filled with strong incredible characters that we watched come together to become something great - something bigger than their individual selves.

This story moved me in so any ways. It made me cry, it made me angry, it made me unbelievably proud, and it also had moments when I was downright scared. There were times that I could not conceivably figure out how they were going to get out of certain situations, and other times when I was so happy that this crazy band of misfits had each other.

This ending has been building for quite a while- heck, it's been 6 books, and they aren't short books. Unfortunately, not all of our favorite characters made it out in the end, but that was okay because it added to the realism (at least that is what I had to tell myself).

Sometimes, after all that build up, the actual climax of a series can be a bit of a let down. But nope, not this series. Mr. Correia ended it with an epic finale and we even got a very poignant Epilogue.

The other thing that made this series so wonderful was the narration by Tim Gerard Reynolds. He is a one of a kind narrator and truly a master in his field.

Yes, I'm sad that it has ended, but I am so very glad that I got to experience it all.

[The_Pale_Woman · Rating 4 out of 5]

First and foremost, that dedication calling out George RR Martin is strange, immature and just plain rude. I'll admit I crack jokes about George all the time but putting it in print on your dedication page feels weird. 

Beyond the peculiar dedication... I'm going to have to say that this series ended up being rather mediocre in my opinion. The final battle was good. Once the action starts flowing, this book really flew by. However, I take issue with more than one aspect of how this story concluded. This series started out strong. Unfortunately, I think this guy dropped half the balls he was juggling. Too many questions were left unanswered. Too many mysteries were left unexplored. Too many characters got shafted. 

The most egregious failure in my mind is what was done to Devedas. His character never earns his redemption. His bad moves and practices are forgotten and never confronted. You even had his wife telling him she didn't know if she would ever be able to forgive him, and then the conflict is completely dropped. By the end, she names him a hero without any hesitation. There are a million ways these conflicts could have been explored more, but it's just brushed aside. It felt like the author had a man crush on Devedas and just wanted all his other characters to be nice to him. 

The ending itself would have been fine if it had just stopped instead of tacking on those lazy epilogues. It felt like some editor or beta reader convinced Correia that he should try to wrap more of his character arcs up. So rather than actually writing it into the story, he just added a little extra to the end. 

Despite my complaints, I'd still recommend this series to fantasy fans. I'm a hater, but that's because I have extremely high expectations.

[Scott S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yet another excellent series by Correia. Redemption, action, love, betrayal, loss and surface level political intrigue. I'm a fan. I'm probably giving it a little more pomp than it deserves, but I enjoyed it. The section after the final battle, more or less an epilogue, is satisfying.

I don't know that I've ever seen fight scenes written better. So much happens, but is always easy to follow.

Correia is one of the authors that makes me want to be a writer. Accessible without being dumb.

Fantastic narration.

[THATGUY501 · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a climactic ending! I'm so sad I'm at the end of an era finishing out one of my favorite series, but I leave Saga of the Forgotten Warrior satisfied. Full of Correia's trademark bloody battles, thoughtful themes, and twists that you don't see coming, this is a fitting conclusion to an epic saga!

[Sara Potter · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this series! The last three books are my favorite!

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Larry Korea brings it home. Great finale that wrapped up everything neatly.

[Per Gunnar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, there was not really any doubt that I would like this book. Larry would have to screw up in unheard of and unimaginable ways for me to not like it. Larry is one of the few authors where I think there is not a single book by him that I have not liked.

There is not much I can say about this book that I have not written already when reviewing previous books.

The book brings us to the conclusion of the saga and along the way there is of course plenty of action and good reading.

The conclusion, well it is as good as the rest of the series. I was wondering when reading this series if it would turn out that this black metal would be some remnant of an advanced civilization or even this civilization that somehow had gone through an apocalypse. Well, small spoiler, it did not happen exactly like that.

As good as this book was, the best part of it really was the dedication. Spot on and so funny.

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

Futuristic sci Fi swords and sandals. possible Post apocalypse future.

There are hints of alien beings and certain rocks that gives powers to some people.

lots of twists and turns. This book wraps it up

[Rick Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.75. Amazing ending to an amazing book series. Lovend it from beginning to end. Lots of great action scènes and a very nice plot.

[Volpot · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 stars. Good conclusion. Overall, I felt this series was a good one and I recommend it. The one drawback to the series is the multiple POVs (5 or 6). While they were presented well, the number of them somewhat prevented the reader from getting an in-depth feeling for any one of them.

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

While HotM doesn't quite reach the highest highs from Graveyard of Demons or Destroyer of Worlds, this is an incredibly satisfying conclusion to what is now one of my favorite fantasy series. Correia's use of theme and deeply embedding the series' core values into the worldbuilding, characters, and plotting is nothing short of masterful.

Truly a must-read series.

[Mafaz Kattih · Rating 3 out of 5]

Underwhelming ending to what started off as a great series. This review will be both a review of this book as well as the series as a whole.

The book: Very slow start with boring battles that were meaningless. The characters interacted as if they had always been friends and were not enemies just a few days prior. It seemed incongruent to the story that everyone gets along nicely. Many of the actions taken were out of character and seemed to be there only to serve the plot. When the final battle begins, the story does pick up but the ending was extremely telegraphed without any major twists. The ending was not satisfying and read like a sparks notes version of events. There were many many plot threads left hanging with no resolution. I was wary about how they would all come together but apparently they did not.

The series: This series started off strong with a unique twist and promises of mysteries to be revealed. The characters were distinct and motivated, with clashes between their personalities and personal codes. As the story unfolded, the hidden pieces were slowly revealed but that brought about more questions and mysteries of the world. However this all started to unravel as the pace of the series, which was at a fast pace early one, became breakneck without room to process. We moved from major event after major event without seeing how these major events would impact the world. Oh sure we were told HOW they would impact the world but we didn't actually get to see any of it. I think this may be my biggest gripe with the series. The worldbuilding which seemed deep and intricate in the first book was shallow and lackluster by the end. This was because there was no evolution of the worldbuilding and 90% of it was done in the first and second books. The series had some foreshadowing but it was not subtle with very direct messages about what was going to happen. The end of the series left a lot to be desired and will be up to personal preference whether it was satisfying or not. Overall while I did enjoy reading this series, I am unsure if I would recommend it.

[Ivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review will serve as my distilled thoughts about the whole series, since the story is continuous and we follow if from the beginning to the end in a rather straight line.

I came late to the Saga of the Forgotten Warrior, but in a way that was a good thing for me as a reader, since I got to enjoy four books one after the other. Between the first four and the fifth I read MHI, which is I believe Correia's first published work and although I found it to be a fun read, I must say that the quality of his writing has greatly improved. SoFW is written on par with much more famous and talked-about authors. Correia won't win any Nobel Prizes anytime soon, but Saga of the Forgotten Warrior is written competently, intelligently, with good characterization, character development and world building and in whole, I consider it to be one of my favorite reads of the last year and the biggest positive surprise, alongside DCC series, which I also was prejudiced against.

I admit I was prejudiced against Correia, mostly because of the Hugo thing, although I tend to agree with some of the things he said, if not in the way he said them. Although I'm a European (from the Balkans) and Socialist (sort of), I thoroughly enjoy reading conservative authors, although American politics is a pit of lunatic vipers that has no real semblance to the global reality, so I tend to approach those themes and motives as a sort of additional spice to the fiction I read and a throwback to the books I read as a kid (in communist Yugoslavia, by the way; we had a lot of Golden Age American SF published here). I'm mentioning this because the author's politics is important to some readers and there are readers who can not or will not separate the art from the artist. I mostly don't have that problem unless the author's political views encroach too much on the story. For the most part of the series, if I haven't already know Correia's political leanings, I would think that the books were written by an old-school left-wing author. I suppose that's saying something about modern politics, that what was very leftist several decades ago (class struggle) now belongs firmly in the domain of conservative right ideology. Nevertheless, Correia has written non-Eurocentric science fantasy series with well-developed both male and female protagonists, with several really strong female characters, although there could be a bit more female characters in general, tackling themes such as racism, class-based society and social inequality, individuality vs. collectivism. This is something we should all take note of.

The last two books of the series are slightly weaker, in my opinion, than the first four. The fifth book ends rather abruptly, almost as if the author decided to divide the last novel in the series into two parts. This was not a huge issue for me since I read the first four one after another and I didn't have to wait a long time for the last novel, and I already said that I'm taking this whole series as one story, simply divided into longish chapters.

Sixth book I had some issues with. It didn't feel rushed, but i found that it lacked something that the rest of series had, or perhaps it had something more - perhaps it was more colored by the real-world political events or perhaps my view of the book was colored by them; I can't say for sure. Strictly subjectively speaking, I liked it a bit less than the the rest of the series, perhaps half a star less, up until the very end, the last 10% or so of the novel. I dislike the "after the fact" endings and epilogues, although I understand why would author feel the need to finish series like that.

Anyway, I sincerely recommend the series in it's entirety. The series as a whole 4,5*, and Heart of the Mountain 4*

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's never easy to review a book that you've been waiting years for, plus the extra few months after the paper is released to get the audiobook so you can have read the whole series in the same format. This was a worthwhile ending, but I also felt like it was somehow superficial. I guess Ormand's completed transformation into a mustache twirler wasn't what I was expecting. I think I might not have even expected Ormand to feature at all. I get what Correia did there, but eh. His final form wasn't evil enough; there might not have been a level for him to get to.

I appreciated the flashbacks that shed light on the previous parts of the story. I loved all the new history for old characters. I loved the Army of Many Houses. I loved the new Heart of the Mountain alongside the old Heart of the Mountain. I loved Radha coming into her own, though as usual I could have used much more of her even tho this book featured her more prominently than ever. I loved Ashok who never ceased being ASHOK. I really loved Jagdish, as usual, even though he seemed to have to give up a bit of time so Devadass could have a little more and some other characters who'd been sort of tertiary could become sort of secondary. I loved so much of it.

Spoilers, kinda, past this point:

And I don't know, in the end, if I love or hate the fact that Correia didn't quite do what it seemed like he was going to do with the story of Black Steel. Yes, they're computers. Yes, it's so far in the future it seems like the past. But aliens? A supercomputer with gene editing nanobots? Wormholes? I mean, I don't know. I guess I wanted the Mirror to tell Radha the big history of demons and the sea or whatever, but... it's just a few leftover satellites launching ICBMs or something. Don't listen to me. My concentration and memory lapses more each and every grief-stricken perimenopausal day.

Anyway! A perfectly cromulent ending to a banger of series I'd recommend to anyone who likes adventure and intrigue. Tower of Silence was the best of the series, but it's all very good.

[Steven · Rating 3 out of 5]

As the last book in a long series, this inevitably becomes a review of the series as a whole and not just this particular book. Which is difficult.

The characters and major plot points have been very enjoyable to follow through the 6 novels. Especially the slow turn of Ashok from his icy fanaticism to something a bit more human, Thera's struggle and final acceptance of her role, etc. All of that was wonderful and I want more of it.

But the worldbuilding leaves a bitter taste. For the majority of the series Lok is presented as a pretty straightforward fantasy world. Magic, gods, prophecies... All the classics make an appearance and it works. But the introduction of some sci-fi elements take more away from the story than they add.

Fantasy needs only to have internal logic. An author establishes rules and as long as those rules are followed the fantasy works. But sci-fi has to co-exist with the physical rules of the universe as we understand them. There's some wiggle room (faster than light travel, for example), but sci-fi is fundamentally at odds with fantasy tropes by it very nature.

So with the slow trickle of sci-fi elements into this series I was hoping for a conclusion that brough the two concepts together. What actually *is* black steel? Are the gods actually gods or something more grounded? Why does black steel have the same magical properties as demon flesh? Demons are not bred but built -- but how?

These questions (and many others) need not be answered in a fantasy novel. It simply is because that's the universe the author created. Trying to square that with a world that has space travel and advanced technology with no help from the author is unpleasant.

So its a 3/5 because I loved it and I hated it. It was satisfying and frustrating. It should have been more or it should have been less.