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WarCraft #3
L'Ultimo Guardiano
In un passato offuscato dalla nebbia del tempo, prima ancora che la storia venisse tramandata, vi era il mondo di Azeroth. In quel tempo, le creature magiche vivevano in armonia con le tribù degli uomini, questo fino all'arrivo di demoni ed orrori provenienti dalla Legione Infuocata comandata da Sargeras, signore oscuro della magia del caos. Draghi, nani, elfi, goblin, umani e orchi, competono ora per la supremazia nei diversi regni, prendendo parte al grande disegno che determinerà il destino del mondo di Warcraft. In segreto, i Guardiani di Tirisfal: una successione di eroi estremamente potenti, combattono una battaglia solitaria contro la Legione Infuocata attarverso la storia. Medivh, sin dalla sua nascita, viene designato dal fato come il più grande e potente del nobile ordine dei Guardiani, ma ancor prima di vedere la luce, l'oscurità macchiò la sua anima, prendendo la sua innocenza e trasformando il potere che avrebbe servito il bene in un grande pericolo per ogni forma di vita. Diviso tra due destini, la battaglia di Medivh contro la sua malvagità si intrecciò con il fato di Azeroth stesso ... cambiando il mondo per sempre.
Paperback
First published December 1, 2001
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About the author
Jeff Grubb
199 books194 followersHe is an author and game designer.
See more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Grubb
See more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeff_Grubb
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 272 reviews
December 9, 2018
All the shards, all the pieces of history, known and unrevealed, spiraled down the tower or rose from its dungeons and flowed into the man who had been the Last Guardian of Tirisfal. The pain was great, but Medivh grimaced and accepted it, taking the energy and the bittersweet memories it bore with equal measure.
Anduin Lothar, Llane Wrynn, Garona Halforcen, Gul'dan the Warlock and Medivh himself. I've finally met some of the greatest legends of the Warcraft universe!
A lone young apprentice is sent by the council of the Kirin Tor to the tower of Karazhan, there to spy on the secrets of the most powerful magic-wielder alive. The apprentice is Khadgar, and his new master is Medivh, the last of the mysterious and seclusive Guardians of the Tirisfalen.
Like the other Warcraft books, this one was an easy and enjoyable read. The plot and the writing is better than anything I've read from this universe so far, and it may be the best of the old Warcraft books. It does suffer from being a bit too simple, but the only reason to read this is to learn more about the wonderful lore of Azeroth, and it certainly does deliver on that.
Anduin Lothar, Llane Wrynn, Garona Halforcen, Gul'dan the Warlock and Medivh himself. I've finally met some of the greatest legends of the Warcraft universe!
A lone young apprentice is sent by the council of the Kirin Tor to the tower of Karazhan, there to spy on the secrets of the most powerful magic-wielder alive. The apprentice is Khadgar, and his new master is Medivh, the last of the mysterious and seclusive Guardians of the Tirisfalen.
Like the other Warcraft books, this one was an easy and enjoyable read. The plot and the writing is better than anything I've read from this universe so far, and it may be the best of the old Warcraft books. It does suffer from being a bit too simple, but the only reason to read this is to learn more about the wonderful lore of Azeroth, and it certainly does deliver on that.
January 17, 2018
I️ really enjoyed this book. Just walking through the lives of Medivh and Khadgar was super exciting, especially if you play a mage or love Karazhan. I️ felt like I️ was there along with them through their adventures. There was never a dull moment. I️ would definitely recommend this book.
May 29, 2018
با دنیای وارکرافت ناآشنا نبودم. بالاخره یه زمانی بیشتر از الان بازی میکردم و بازیش رو دوست داشتم. میدونستم کتاب داره اما همیشه فکر میکردم که کتاب از روی بازی نوشته شده است. وقتی کتاب رو شروع کردم فهمیدم که اشتباه میکردم.
قبل از شروع مجموعه حقیقتا حس خوبی بهش نداشتم و فکر نمیکردم ازش خوشم بیاد اما در مجموع دوستش داشتم. هر چند پایانش به نظرم یه خورده سرهم بندی شده بود. ترجمه کتاب روی هم رفته روون بود اما عالی نبود. خیلی جاها کلمات به نظرم بهتر بود که ترجمه بشن در حالی که بدون توضیح به صورت نوشتار فارسی ولی در اصل انگلیسی اورده شده بود. خیلی جاها هم فقط از چیزایی که قبلا از فانتزی خونده بودم میفهمیدم داره چه اتفاقی میفته. مثلا اون حلقه قدرت برای احضار اهریمنان و... توضیحات کتاب بعضی جاها کم بود و جا داشت مترجم یه چیزایی رو پانویس کنه. اما اونقدر ترجمه بد ادم میبینه این روزا که باید دست این دوتا مترجم رو بوسید.
قبل از شروع مجموعه حقیقتا حس خوبی بهش نداشتم و فکر نمیکردم ازش خوشم بیاد اما در مجموع دوستش داشتم. هر چند پایانش به نظرم یه خورده سرهم بندی شده بود. ترجمه کتاب روی هم رفته روون بود اما عالی نبود. خیلی جاها کلمات به نظرم بهتر بود که ترجمه بشن در حالی که بدون توضیح به صورت نوشتار فارسی ولی در اصل انگلیسی اورده شده بود. خیلی جاها هم فقط از چیزایی که قبلا از فانتزی خونده بودم میفهمیدم داره چه اتفاقی میفته. مثلا اون حلقه قدرت برای احضار اهریمنان و... توضیحات کتاب بعضی جاها کم بود و جا داشت مترجم یه چیزایی رو پانویس کنه. اما اونقدر ترجمه بد ادم میبینه این روزا که باید دست این دوتا مترجم رو بوسید.
February 10, 2017
در مورد کتابهای فانتزی نوشتن خیلی سخت است. خیلی دوستش داشتم و خیلی لذت بردم. اگر وقتم اجازه میداد، میشد کتاب را بیوقفه خواند.
-----------------------------------------
جملات ماندگار کتاب:
همیشه از میان دو حق انتخاب، سومی را برگزین.
...
در حال حاضر به هیچ نژادی علاقه ندارم.
...
نقش تو هر چه هست، همان چیزیست که خودت انتخاب میکنی.
-----------------------------------------
جملات ماندگار کتاب:
همیشه از میان دو حق انتخاب، سومی را برگزین.
...
در حال حاضر به هیچ نژادی علاقه ندارم.
...
نقش تو هر چه هست، همان چیزیست که خودت انتخاب میکنی.
August 3, 2011
For WoW Lore lovers, this will be a fantastic book. For those of you who might not love the lore as much but are still interested in it, you might like this. For those of you who just want to read a fantasy book, I would not recommend it. I love WoW's lore therefore, I enjoyed this book a lot. I'd give it 3.5 stars considering it's not the best Warcraft book I've read but if I have to choose from 3 to 4 stars, I choose 4. The book can be slow at times but if you truly love lore, you will enjoy every minute of it, especially when you've seen the characters in-game and have interacted with them. I read this a long time ago. I don't play Warcraft anymore, however, I remember it being really interesting and fun to go see characters I read from in the book after having known all their story. It's also important to note I read this when Karahzan was a major raid, so it was really enjoyable at the time. Definitely recommend for you WoW Lore lovers! Hope you enjoy it !
July 1, 2016
First off, and I don't know if this is true of all editions, there are an unforgivable number of spelling, punctuation, and grammar mistakes in this book. I don't know what kind of editing or proof-reading this thing went through, but I know it wasn't very good.
Once you get that past that, the story itself is actually quite serviceable. It is interesting to see a very early look at the Warcraft lore, because, yes, the lore here is still very much in its infancy with a lot of the Warcraft arcana yet to be firmly established. I was actually quite surprised with how well this book lines-up with the newer entries in the Warcraft expanded universe.
You get a good look here at some of the legendary Warcraft characters, Khadgar, Medihv, Garona, and Anduin Lothar. A fairly good story overall.
Once you get that past that, the story itself is actually quite serviceable. It is interesting to see a very early look at the Warcraft lore, because, yes, the lore here is still very much in its infancy with a lot of the Warcraft arcana yet to be firmly established. I was actually quite surprised with how well this book lines-up with the newer entries in the Warcraft expanded universe.
You get a good look here at some of the legendary Warcraft characters, Khadgar, Medihv, Garona, and Anduin Lothar. A fairly good story overall.
July 15, 2019
I really missed when World of Warcraft had great story and lore, rereading this made me go back to those days
November 10, 2023
3.5*
Gibt es etwas, das mehr “Dark Academia” schreit, als wenn Medivh und Khadgar zusammen in Karazhan die Geschichte der Magie in Azeroth studieren, dabei Theorien über Zeit und Macht entwickeln und dazu mächtige Zauber erlernen. Ich würde sagen nein :)
Hab das Buch auch immer nebenbei als Hörbuch konsumiert und muss sagen, dass ich mir Fantasy einfach super gern so gebe. Dazu ein paar Kerzen anmachen. Einfach die perfekte Stimmung! :)
Von den Vier Warcraft Büchern fand ich “Lord of the Clans” das stärkste, aber die anderen müssen sich definitiv nicht verstecken! Freue mich jetzt mit der World of Warcraft Reihe anzufangen…
*Loggt sich bei WoW ein*
Gibt es etwas, das mehr “Dark Academia” schreit, als wenn Medivh und Khadgar zusammen in Karazhan die Geschichte der Magie in Azeroth studieren, dabei Theorien über Zeit und Macht entwickeln und dazu mächtige Zauber erlernen. Ich würde sagen nein :)
Hab das Buch auch immer nebenbei als Hörbuch konsumiert und muss sagen, dass ich mir Fantasy einfach super gern so gebe. Dazu ein paar Kerzen anmachen. Einfach die perfekte Stimmung! :)
Von den Vier Warcraft Büchern fand ich “Lord of the Clans” das stärkste, aber die anderen müssen sich definitiv nicht verstecken! Freue mich jetzt mit der World of Warcraft Reihe anzufangen…
*Loggt sich bei WoW ein*
November 3, 2022
This is exactly my kind of comfort reading. Comfort reading for Reni. Comfort reading written especially for Reni. That kind of comfort reading. Except for the sad (forgone) conclusion. But then this is WarCraft, which, as a franchise, is like those edgy adult cartoons in that it likes to combine child-friendly designs with horrible, child-unfriendly content. Except less explicitly gory.
I expected very little from this book and it gave me so much, including a massive hunger for all things high fantasy, so expect me to maybe post some more reviews of fantasy books later this year.
Now my experience of WarCraft is limited to playing a lot of WarCraft 3 as a tween/teen, playing WoW Classic for a few months in 2019 (during which I absorbed a lot of lore from the more experienced players in my guild who explained a lot of the backstory to me. Thank you, guys, for being so patient!) as well as that live action movie, but to me, the disconnect between the chunky, colourful visual presentation and the bleak, bleak lore of the franchise is definitely a big part of its charm.
This being a novel, there isn't much in the way of visual presentation, of course, but still the book captured this charming mix of cuteness and doom perfectly. The characters and their arcs veer between adorably charming fantasy cliché storms and horribly depressing representations of more high-concept themes.
Having lots read of media-tie-ins of varying quality especially as a teen, I didn't expect much of this book and actually ended up impressed with how well it handled some of its themes. The fact that this book attempted themes at all despite being a short media-tie-in intended for a very niche audience was a pleasant surprise. I am not used to books like this being that ambitious. I particularly enjoyed the way the novel depicts the disconnect between centuries-old Aegwynn and humans with a more normal life-span and the butterfly-effect of problems stemming from that.
And then there is of course all the emphasis that is put on Medivh having had his youth stolen from him only for him to him to end up inflicting a similar fate on Khadgar.
But by far my favourite part of this novel is the characterisation of Medivh, whose depressive mood swings take him from presenting the trophies of his demon hunting to his friends with a boyish delight, to responding to basically being told that the world as humanity knows it is about to end with "good for her!". It shouldn't come as a surprise that I adore this character with all my heart, despite the underlying tragedy of his story. This guy has, colloquially speaking, no more fucks to give by the time the story starts and it makes him endlessly entertaining to read about in a tragi-comic sort of way.
There is also a good chunk of humour in this book that worked really well for me. From Khadgar (who is only 17 in this novel. Bless his little socks) seemingly being more shell-shocked from being accepted as Medivh's apprentice than his first battle with an Orc scouting party, to Medivh teaching Khadgar how to do magic drunk – the implication here being, at least in my arguably biased interpretation, that if Khadgar is to ever have his teacher's job that he's gonna be drunk a lot.
The writing itself isn't that ambitious and more like what I'm used to from these kinds of books. I stumbled over a few awkward sentences while reading this and some of the dialogue is admittedly rather clunky. And then there's some obvious plot conveniences like the visions of the past Khadgar summons never quite showing him what he wants to see except for when it's time for the big reveal. That one felt a bit too much like the author decided that now that all the building blocks were in place it was time to rush in the finale so he get this thing over with and write something else. Still, Khadgar and Garona learning The Truth basically five minutes after they finally started bonding by talking how much they both love Medivh and how he must be protected at all costs was its own kind of darkly funny.
All in all this was an extremely fun quick-read with the occasional added bits of depth that I did not expect.
One bit of warning though: If you expect a lot of action from this because this novel is set during the first war between Orcs and Humans in the lore, you are going to be disappointed. This is the story of Khadgar's ill-fated little adventures as Medivh's apprentice and, since Medivh's keeps himself out of the war for reasons you probably already know about, the war is more of a background event. Anduin Lothar is in this too though for a bit, and he is very salty and a bit frustrated and extremely likable.
Another warning: While this book was published to clean up the lore of and flesh out the plot of the original strategy games, this was published before World of Warcraft was launched, so some details might throw you off if you are a WoW player, such as Orcs and humans speaking the same language (well, sort of).
I expected very little from this book and it gave me so much, including a massive hunger for all things high fantasy, so expect me to maybe post some more reviews of fantasy books later this year.
Now my experience of WarCraft is limited to playing a lot of WarCraft 3 as a tween/teen, playing WoW Classic for a few months in 2019 (during which I absorbed a lot of lore from the more experienced players in my guild who explained a lot of the backstory to me. Thank you, guys, for being so patient!) as well as that live action movie, but to me, the disconnect between the chunky, colourful visual presentation and the bleak, bleak lore of the franchise is definitely a big part of its charm.
This being a novel, there isn't much in the way of visual presentation, of course, but still the book captured this charming mix of cuteness and doom perfectly. The characters and their arcs veer between adorably charming fantasy cliché storms and horribly depressing representations of more high-concept themes.
Having lots read of media-tie-ins of varying quality especially as a teen, I didn't expect much of this book and actually ended up impressed with how well it handled some of its themes. The fact that this book attempted themes at all despite being a short media-tie-in intended for a very niche audience was a pleasant surprise. I am not used to books like this being that ambitious. I particularly enjoyed the way the novel depicts the disconnect between centuries-old Aegwynn and humans with a more normal life-span and the butterfly-effect of problems stemming from that.
And then there is of course all the emphasis that is put on Medivh having had his youth stolen from him only for him to him to end up inflicting a similar fate on Khadgar.
But by far my favourite part of this novel is the characterisation of Medivh, whose depressive mood swings take him from presenting the trophies of his demon hunting to his friends with a boyish delight, to responding to basically being told that the world as humanity knows it is about to end with "good for her!". It shouldn't come as a surprise that I adore this character with all my heart, despite the underlying tragedy of his story. This guy has, colloquially speaking, no more fucks to give by the time the story starts and it makes him endlessly entertaining to read about in a tragi-comic sort of way.
There is also a good chunk of humour in this book that worked really well for me. From Khadgar (who is only 17 in this novel. Bless his little socks) seemingly being more shell-shocked from being accepted as Medivh's apprentice than his first battle with an Orc scouting party, to Medivh teaching Khadgar how to do magic drunk – the implication here being, at least in my arguably biased interpretation, that if Khadgar is to ever have his teacher's job that he's gonna be drunk a lot.
The writing itself isn't that ambitious and more like what I'm used to from these kinds of books. I stumbled over a few awkward sentences while reading this and some of the dialogue is admittedly rather clunky. And then there's some obvious plot conveniences like the visions of the past Khadgar summons never quite showing him what he wants to see except for when it's time for the big reveal. That one felt a bit too much like the author decided that now that all the building blocks were in place it was time to rush in the finale so he get this thing over with and write something else. Still, Khadgar and Garona learning The Truth basically five minutes after they finally started bonding by talking how much they both love Medivh and how he must be protected at all costs was its own kind of darkly funny.
All in all this was an extremely fun quick-read with the occasional added bits of depth that I did not expect.
One bit of warning though: If you expect a lot of action from this because this novel is set during the first war between Orcs and Humans in the lore, you are going to be disappointed. This is the story of Khadgar's ill-fated little adventures as Medivh's apprentice and, since Medivh's keeps himself out of the war for reasons you probably already know about, the war is more of a background event. Anduin Lothar is in this too though for a bit, and he is very salty and a bit frustrated and extremely likable.
Another warning: While this book was published to clean up the lore of and flesh out the plot of the original strategy games, this was published before World of Warcraft was launched, so some details might throw you off if you are a WoW player, such as Orcs and humans speaking the same language (well, sort of).
May 23, 2016
2/5
Cuando salieron los tráilers de la película de Warcraft, me puse a buscar en qué libros y personajes se iban a basar. El caso es que leí que era en este, pero después me enteré de que en realidad se basa un poco en El ascenso de la Horda y otro poco en El último Guardián, y ya había empezado a leer este, así que por eso el orden inverso xD
Al acabar este libro, me doy cuenta de por qué la película no puede estar basada sólo en este libro, y es que me faltan personajes: los de la Horda.
En general el libro me ha gustado bastante. Lo que más, el ir recordando y visitando lugares y mazmorras que yo misma he jugado y he pasado grandes aventuras en ellas.
Sin embargo he tenido un gran problema, y es que este libro está claramente centrado en la Alianza, que tiene que ser así por la trama y punto, pero yo he sido siempre de la Horda, lo que significa que todos los lugares y personajes de la Alianza son recordados como enemigos para mí... Supongo que me pasará lo mismo en la peli.
Obviando eso, he disfrutado mucho de la trama, porque el Magus Medivh es un personaje bastante famoso en World of Warcraft y su torre de Karazhan otro tanto, y ha estado genial saber su historia.
El final me ha dejado un poco confusa y se queda bastante abierto, pero nada, tocará seguir leyéndolos.
Recomiendo el libro a quien sea muy fan de Warcraft o por lo menos haya jugado, porque si no, puede parecerle un libro de fantasía más. Lo bonito para mí ha sido unir el videojuego con las historias.
Cuando salieron los tráilers de la película de Warcraft, me puse a buscar en qué libros y personajes se iban a basar. El caso es que leí que era en este, pero después me enteré de que en realidad se basa un poco en El ascenso de la Horda y otro poco en El último Guardián, y ya había empezado a leer este, así que por eso el orden inverso xD
Al acabar este libro, me doy cuenta de por qué la película no puede estar basada sólo en este libro, y es que me faltan personajes: los de la Horda.
En general el libro me ha gustado bastante. Lo que más, el ir recordando y visitando lugares y mazmorras que yo misma he jugado y he pasado grandes aventuras en ellas.
Sin embargo he tenido un gran problema, y es que este libro está claramente centrado en la Alianza, que tiene que ser así por la trama y punto, pero yo he sido siempre de la Horda, lo que significa que todos los lugares y personajes de la Alianza son recordados como enemigos para mí... Supongo que me pasará lo mismo en la peli.
Obviando eso, he disfrutado mucho de la trama, porque el Magus Medivh es un personaje bastante famoso en World of Warcraft y su torre de Karazhan otro tanto, y ha estado genial saber su historia.
El final me ha dejado un poco confusa y se queda bastante abierto, pero nada, tocará seguir leyéndolos.
Recomiendo el libro a quien sea muy fan de Warcraft o por lo menos haya jugado, porque si no, puede parecerle un libro de fantasía más. Lo bonito para mí ha sido unir el videojuego con las historias.
November 10, 2025
I loved this book. It’s a very “me” book, it’s got wizards, cool Warcraft lore and an interesting plot with the mysterious Mage. It’s a pretty self-contained story too so I could actually recommend this to anyone to just pick up and read very easily.
February 25, 2018
This is it. The grand finale of this Warcraft trilogy.
Exactly 33 books ago I finished the "Day of the Dragon" which was the beginning of my Warcraft adventure and now it is time to wrap up with "The Last Guardian."
I have always been fascinated with Medivh and Khadgar from playing World of Warcraft, so this story was very welcome. I am not sure how those who never played Warcraft 3 of WOW will perceive this book, I would think it might not make for a very fun read in that case. I, however, played WOW for over a decade and each character is a very familiar face. Once Grubb throws some time travel/manipulation into the mix of it all, I was sold.
Characters: 5
Characters in this story are absolutely fascinating. From the main 3 to a couple of support ones, it was so GREAT to see them go on an adventure. Seeing Khadgar as a young apprentice to a legendary Guardian after having played the last few expansion with him as a powerful wizard in his own right, was nothing but satisfying. I understand that my immersion, in part was due to me being very familiar with Khadgar and Medivh, and it is very difficult for me to remain objective here, so take this review with a grain of salt for sure.
Medivh is not very much spoken of in the game. Small tidbits here and there, he is very much a mysterious figure. The book keeps his as such, but adds new information and shows deep in the mind of Medivh through Khadgar's observations. I loved it. The emotional struggle that he had to put up with his entire life, living with a gift he has never asked for and oh...you'll see what else, you'll see...that's a LOT of emotional baggage. I don't know if, personally I see Medivh as a villain that he is supposed to be in the story. I kind of actually sympathize with him. It might be, I am just a tad bit evil myself. That might be.
Last but not least, Garona! What I kept thinking about was the Warcraft movie where all three of them, as well as Karazhan, were showcased and I immediately wanted to get to know more about the half-orc emissary. She's different, but fun to get to know, to say the least. (no spoilers).
It is very hard for me to pick which of the three I liked the most, each one was different enough to stand very strong in their own right.
Plot: 2
This was, to me, the weakest part of the book. In part, it might be because I did not like Jeff Grubb's writing style as much as I like Knaak's or Golden's (who wrote the previous two books). It seemed unnecessarily dry at times and confusing to follow. I think he tried to divulge certain details at certain times to create suspense and make me wonder but in many cases, I either forgot about that detail and was confused later or just did not care enough for his cleverness.
Also, I am still not entirely sure what the ending means. I think I get it, but I am not sure. It was very unsatisfactory to me and left me looking at the last page, going: "What the hell? Really?"
The other two books have a clear advantage over this one to me in the Plot category, which is why the 2 stars.
In other words, if this story was not about Medivh, Khadgar, Garona and took place mostly in Karazhan, it would probably be a 2-3 star read.
Setting: 5
As I already mentioned above, the mere fact that this story takes place in Karazhan warrants 5 stars. I literally went and raided the old Karazhan on my higher level toon by myself just to experience it all over again. It is also why someone who doesn't have that particular set of memories to refer to, will not understand the excitement.
Overall, I would say, if you have read first 2 books, reading this might one might almost be required by OCD laws.
If you have played Warcraft, or WOW, especially during the Burning Crusade expansion, definitely read this.
If you are looking for a good fantasy read, move along. This will not captivate you. Much better works of stand-alone fantasy out there.
I, myself, without a doubt, am looking forward to the next read in Warcraft universe that is somewhere on my 2018 reading list.
Roman "Ragnar"
Exactly 33 books ago I finished the "Day of the Dragon" which was the beginning of my Warcraft adventure and now it is time to wrap up with "The Last Guardian."
I have always been fascinated with Medivh and Khadgar from playing World of Warcraft, so this story was very welcome. I am not sure how those who never played Warcraft 3 of WOW will perceive this book, I would think it might not make for a very fun read in that case. I, however, played WOW for over a decade and each character is a very familiar face. Once Grubb throws some time travel/manipulation into the mix of it all, I was sold.
Characters: 5
Characters in this story are absolutely fascinating. From the main 3 to a couple of support ones, it was so GREAT to see them go on an adventure. Seeing Khadgar as a young apprentice to a legendary Guardian after having played the last few expansion with him as a powerful wizard in his own right, was nothing but satisfying. I understand that my immersion, in part was due to me being very familiar with Khadgar and Medivh, and it is very difficult for me to remain objective here, so take this review with a grain of salt for sure.
Medivh is not very much spoken of in the game. Small tidbits here and there, he is very much a mysterious figure. The book keeps his as such, but adds new information and shows deep in the mind of Medivh through Khadgar's observations. I loved it. The emotional struggle that he had to put up with his entire life, living with a gift he has never asked for and oh...you'll see what else, you'll see...that's a LOT of emotional baggage. I don't know if, personally I see Medivh as a villain that he is supposed to be in the story. I kind of actually sympathize with him. It might be, I am just a tad bit evil myself. That might be.
Last but not least, Garona! What I kept thinking about was the Warcraft movie where all three of them, as well as Karazhan, were showcased and I immediately wanted to get to know more about the half-orc emissary. She's different, but fun to get to know, to say the least. (no spoilers).
It is very hard for me to pick which of the three I liked the most, each one was different enough to stand very strong in their own right.
Plot: 2
This was, to me, the weakest part of the book. In part, it might be because I did not like Jeff Grubb's writing style as much as I like Knaak's or Golden's (who wrote the previous two books). It seemed unnecessarily dry at times and confusing to follow. I think he tried to divulge certain details at certain times to create suspense and make me wonder but in many cases, I either forgot about that detail and was confused later or just did not care enough for his cleverness.
Also, I am still not entirely sure what the ending means. I think I get it, but I am not sure. It was very unsatisfactory to me and left me looking at the last page, going: "What the hell? Really?"
The other two books have a clear advantage over this one to me in the Plot category, which is why the 2 stars.
In other words, if this story was not about Medivh, Khadgar, Garona and took place mostly in Karazhan, it would probably be a 2-3 star read.
Setting: 5
As I already mentioned above, the mere fact that this story takes place in Karazhan warrants 5 stars. I literally went and raided the old Karazhan on my higher level toon by myself just to experience it all over again. It is also why someone who doesn't have that particular set of memories to refer to, will not understand the excitement.
Overall, I would say, if you have read first 2 books, reading this might one might almost be required by OCD laws.
If you have played Warcraft, or WOW, especially during the Burning Crusade expansion, definitely read this.
If you are looking for a good fantasy read, move along. This will not captivate you. Much better works of stand-alone fantasy out there.
I, myself, without a doubt, am looking forward to the next read in Warcraft universe that is somewhere on my 2018 reading list.
Roman "Ragnar"
July 17, 2018
الآن که کتاب تموم شد به سرعت اومدم ریویو بنویسم . این کتاب و بخشی از کتاب قبلی یعنی طلوع هورد همون داستانی هست که فیلم اول وارکرفت نشون میده . فیلم تا حد خوب و زیادی به داستان وفادار بوده . اما دیدنش بدون خوندن کتاب ها خیلی بیهوده ست . من الآن که فکر میکنم کلا هیچی از فیلم نفهمیده بودم !
کتاب خودش خوب بود . داستانی بود جذاب . یه ساختار سه پرده ای کلاسیک داشت و والسلام . برای کسایی که فانتزی دوست هستن کتاب خوبیه و توصیه می کنم بخونید . من رفتم جلد بعدی و بخونم تا ببینم چی پیش میآد !
کتاب خودش خوب بود . داستانی بود جذاب . یه ساختار سه پرده ای کلاسیک داشت و والسلام . برای کسایی که فانتزی دوست هستن کتاب خوبیه و توصیه می کنم بخونید . من رفتم جلد بعدی و بخونم تا ببینم چی پیش میآد !
July 29, 2017
Fascinating. For years I've known the basic summary of what and who Medivh and Aegwynn were. Karazhan was my first raid in World of Warcraft. Now it is all clear. The last few paragraphs were really interesting. I wonder if that particular story will ever be continued.
July 9, 2021
It hurts a little to only give 3 stars and have it be only because of the premise and the ending, without it, it would have to have been 2. I really like the character of Medivh and I have been fighting alongside Khadgar for Azeroth for quite a while now but the story in this book feels more like reading about someone reading about something. A big portion of information is just delievered in a passive way like someone having a vision, reading a book or getting told by someone, without knowing how close to the truth it really is (the historian in me really struggled just taking the stuff for granted without asking for the source).
The ending is satisfying and it's the biggest portion that keeps it's plot in the presence. Sadly, it ends very soon after - with some great storylines opening up from there - but overall I would have loved to get more in terms of aftermath to everything that went down. Maybe in some of the other novels?
The ending is satisfying and it's the biggest portion that keeps it's plot in the presence. Sadly, it ends very soon after - with some great storylines opening up from there - but overall I would have loved to get more in terms of aftermath to everything that went down. Maybe in some of the other novels?
July 14, 2021
This book had so many aspects I would have LOVED in any other story: a magical tower, a (platonic) mentor/apprentice relationship, ghosts, visions, magic circles, gryphons!!!!, political intrigues and a magical library with dangerous books, but it was still such a let down. This book had a huge pacing problem, almost nothing happens for about 60% of the book and then everything happens, but also not in an exciting way? A problem arises and after two pages it is solved (not even by our main character, but by someone else), this happens again and again.
The main issue I had with this book was the telling and not showing aspect. I often felt like I read a story within a story, because of all the visions we got to see trough Khadgar's eyes. The protagonist is so incredibly passive and only get's shit done at the end of the book.. everything else is only him being whisked from one destination to another and asking questions.. Quite disappointing overall.
The main issue I had with this book was the telling and not showing aspect. I often felt like I read a story within a story, because of all the visions we got to see trough Khadgar's eyes. The protagonist is so incredibly passive and only get's shit done at the end of the book.. everything else is only him being whisked from one destination to another and asking questions.. Quite disappointing overall.
January 5, 2022
The Last Guardian de Jeff Grub se numără printre cărțile mele preferate din universul WoW din câte am citit până acum. Unul dintre cei mai puternici oameni de pe Azeroth, Medievh, un mag temut, reprezintă o infinită sursă de cunoaștere pentru cei din jur, iar acest fapt atrage tot felul de oameni. Kadhar, un tânăr iscusit și cu foarte mult potențial, devine ucenicul magului și între ei se stabilește o relație profesională frumoasă, totul până când tânărul ucenic observă tot felul de mici detalii legate de maestrul său care-l pun pe gânduri.
The Last Guardian a fost o lectură plină de acțiune, dinamism, urmărind maturizarea lui Khadgar și transformarea acestuia, sub îndrumarea maestrului său, Medich. Mi-a plăcut povestea și execuția sa.
The Last Guardian a fost o lectură plină de acțiune, dinamism, urmărind maturizarea lui Khadgar și transformarea acestuia, sub îndrumarea maestrului său, Medich. Mi-a plăcut povestea și execuția sa.
August 8, 2024
Продовжуємо епічне знайомство з світом Варкрафт, тільки по іншу сторону порталу. Це по суті перше нормальне знайомство з Азеротом, якщо дивитись по хронології книжок. І воно трохи скучне після подій Орди і її становлення. Потрібно мати хороше розуміння про Орден, Даларан, Кірін Тор, аби повністю зануритись в контекст подій. Без цього контексту, враження від читання неповне. Кінцівка зовсім заплутує, якщо ви ніколи не грали в ігри по Варкрафту або ж WOW.
Добре хоч читається легко і просто.
Добре хоч читається легко і просто.
July 22, 2023
همهچیش خوبه، شخصیتپردازی، روابط بین شخصیتا، داستانا، پلات، فلان بهمان. تازه اعصابخردیهای جلد قبلم نداشت. البته خب آخرش یکم ناراحت شدم ولی باشه اشکال نداره.
February 27, 2025
Como Khadgar llega a a ser Khadgar, a quien no le va a gustar
April 1, 2023
Історія того, хто в майбутньому приведе Орків до старих коренів та нового життя.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 24, 2017
Muerto me he quedado con la historia de Medivh, muerto. Es lo que tiene ponerte al día con el lore, años y años después de empezar jugar.
Por otro lado, la anticipación que crea a pocas semanas de adentrarme en la tumba de Sargeras, es de lo mas paladeable.
Por otro lado, la anticipación que crea a pocas semanas de adentrarme en la tumba de Sargeras, es de lo mas paladeable.
June 26, 2014
The Last Guardian is an odd book. I'm not sure someone who hasn't played World of Warcraft would find it interesting as a stand alone fantasy story. For any WoW player however, especially those who have been inside Karazhan within the game, it's a fascinating look inside the lonely tower. Jeff Grub has done a delightful job expanding on the lore of the characters and the strange tower. Which is impressive, as the novel was written years before the dungeon appeared in-game. WowWiki has a section of contradictions between the novel & the in-game dungeon but honestly they are few and far between. As a WoW player your mind will fill in the blanks and expand the memories you have of Karazhan as you read about Medivh, his mother & father, Moroes, Khadgar, Garona and all the mages of the Kirin Tor. Karazhan remains one of my favorite places in World of Warcraft and Grub's novel is recommended to anyone who has ventured inside the strange tower in Deadwind Pass.
December 3, 2009
The Last Guardian is a fantastic book, well written with great description and a plot that holds your attention to the very end. It also has some fascinating takes on magic, which are very useful to those who enjoyed the Warcraft video game series, as well as the popular MMORPG, World of Warcraft. I personally found myself underlining some of the text for later use. Anyone who enjoys Warcraft, or simply a good fantasy novel, should read this book.
July 27, 2009
The beginning confused me, but after the prologue and first chapter, I was sold. The story was great and it keeps you at a distance until the end. The only thing that I would change or add to it is that I would have loved to know even more about Khadgar. I read the entire book in about a day. I couldn't put it down. Wonderful book.
October 12, 2007
i dont know why but this is my favorite warcraft book. I just got sucked into the book. and i read it in a short while!
August 4, 2016
I didn't expect a Warcraft book to make me cry but it did....
September 17, 2023
3.5 ⭐ overall
Another really fun entry into the Warcraft world of books. I am REALLY enjoying these books so far, and am excited to continue on.
This was a fun one as it followed a mage. A Mage that wanted to be tutored by The Last Guardian of mages. The most powerful mage. Who is a little odd but endearing. Which might seem a little too on the nose, but by the end of the book I was impressed with the twists and turns the story took us through.
This book had less to do with orcs than most books. This book was about destroying evil, but it felt wholly and completely Warcraft nonetheless. There was one orc that played a role though, Garona, and the banter and friendship that happens between her and Khadgar is a great little way to constantly keep me interested and involved in the story.
Special shout out to the ending of this book as well. I loved how it left certain things open and gave you closure, but maybe we'll just leave this little thing open. It was done well and kept me pumped to read the next Warcraft book. Enjoying all these very much so far.
Another really fun entry into the Warcraft world of books. I am REALLY enjoying these books so far, and am excited to continue on.
This was a fun one as it followed a mage. A Mage that wanted to be tutored by The Last Guardian of mages. The most powerful mage. Who is a little odd but endearing. Which might seem a little too on the nose, but by the end of the book I was impressed with the twists and turns the story took us through.
This book had less to do with orcs than most books. This book was about destroying evil, but it felt wholly and completely Warcraft nonetheless. There was one orc that played a role though, Garona, and the banter and friendship that happens between her and Khadgar is a great little way to constantly keep me interested and involved in the story.
Special shout out to the ending of this book as well. I loved how it left certain things open and gave you closure, but maybe we'll just leave this little thing open. It was done well and kept me pumped to read the next Warcraft book. Enjoying all these very much so far.
April 1, 2020
comparing this book to the previous ones that I read of the Warcraft world, I couldn't help but give it 3 stars, the story was great but weakly told, the promising characters with so much potential, weakly described, poor choice of words, I couldn't help but wish the story was written by Richard A.knaak or Christi golden...
December 6, 2024
This book is an absolute biscuit for the brain. Moroes is one of the best characters i have ever imagined in a story and I wish I could sit down and have a cup of tea with the man... "I... yup." His catchphrase is amazing and made me laugh every scene he was in. What an beautiful use of comic relief.
Khadgar being a bumbling buffoon was entertaining to the core and it is always a pleasure to see how the character of azeroth play in the sandbox of life. What a beautiful story that explains the interworkings of the base for politics and diplomacy for The World of Warcraft.
I would rate this book 69 "i...yups"s out if 10. Must read if you enjoy magic, world of Warcraft and its lore.
Khadgar being a bumbling buffoon was entertaining to the core and it is always a pleasure to see how the character of azeroth play in the sandbox of life. What a beautiful story that explains the interworkings of the base for politics and diplomacy for The World of Warcraft.
I would rate this book 69 "i...yups"s out if 10. Must read if you enjoy magic, world of Warcraft and its lore.
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