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The Destroyer #4
The Destroyer Book 4 Lib/E
The Empress almost has control of the world she was promised and soon her enemies will not be able to thwart her. There is just one man keeping her from her prize: Kaiyer.
Audio CD
Published July 10, 2018
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385 people want to read
About the author
Michael-Scott Earle
76 books1,586 followersNYT and USA Today bestseller of fiction. Top 100 Amazon best selling author.
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You can buy my novels on my website. www.michaelscottearle.com
I DON'T ANSWER QUESTIONS ON GOODREADS ANYMORE. IF YOU HAVE A QUESTION, JOIN MY FACEBOOK GROUP OR MAILING LIST.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/15622...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews
June 15, 2018
I'm going to admit I wasn't a big fan of this one as it switches perspectives from Kaiyer to Iolarathe, his former elven slave lord. The Destroyer books are ostensibly about the titular character, who is a Darth Vader-esque warlord from the past who liberated mankind from slavery at the hands of the elves only to turn on them at the last minute. He was then bound away and slept for millennia until he was freed in the Medieval-esque present day. Just in time for an invasion of another group of elves and his former troopers' descendants.
This book finally explains pretty much everything which happened to Kaiyer but does so from the perspective of his former slave master who he is still desperately in love with. The problem is that Iolarathe is not a remotely interesting protagonist. It says something when a bisexual elvish wizard sex-pot fighting off a genocide she triggered is boring. I mean, with that premise you could be trashy or badly written but you should at least be interesting.
The problem is the book attempts to make Iolarathe sympathetic and she's...not. At all. She's a selfish psychopath from the start of her story and doesn't really learn anything from her experience other than "I wish I hadn't been a selfish psychopath to these particular people." I don't understand or really care why Kaiyer loves her because she's such an incredibly unlikable person that whenever the story refers to her, it just stops dead in its tracks.
The rest of the book is Kaiyer being prisoner with the Empress of the Elves and the two faking having sex to keep each other alive (it sort of makes sense in context). The back and forth between them got old pretty quickly. Basically, I feel like the story has stopped and nothing really of note happened during this novel.
Still, I'm going to buy the next one. I'm hoping for Kaiyer to finally get his harem of likable protagonists and get back to the elf-ish asskicking versus mooning over Sylvanas.
5/10
This book finally explains pretty much everything which happened to Kaiyer but does so from the perspective of his former slave master who he is still desperately in love with. The problem is that Iolarathe is not a remotely interesting protagonist. It says something when a bisexual elvish wizard sex-pot fighting off a genocide she triggered is boring. I mean, with that premise you could be trashy or badly written but you should at least be interesting.
The problem is the book attempts to make Iolarathe sympathetic and she's...not. At all. She's a selfish psychopath from the start of her story and doesn't really learn anything from her experience other than "I wish I hadn't been a selfish psychopath to these particular people." I don't understand or really care why Kaiyer loves her because she's such an incredibly unlikable person that whenever the story refers to her, it just stops dead in its tracks.
The rest of the book is Kaiyer being prisoner with the Empress of the Elves and the two faking having sex to keep each other alive (it sort of makes sense in context). The back and forth between them got old pretty quickly. Basically, I feel like the story has stopped and nothing really of note happened during this novel.
Still, I'm going to buy the next one. I'm hoping for Kaiyer to finally get his harem of likable protagonists and get back to the elf-ish asskicking versus mooning over Sylvanas.
5/10
May 28, 2021
I have some problems with this series.
Going into this series at no point in the first book did I get the impression that this was a dark fantasy series. This maybe an error on my part but nothing I read from the first book, led be to believe so. So imagine my surprise as I continued to read. This series is about the all powerful destroyer Kaiyer but at no point in the series do you believe that Kaiyer is actually this person.
Book 1 was all about hyping up Kaiyer. Every scene, every memory, everything was focused on how untouchable this dude was. He was strong, intelligent, a master tactician as well as charismatic but all those attributes are tossed aside and beaten until the character we are first introduced to is unrecognizable. As the story progressed, we learn more and more about his short comings and failure/betrayal, but if this is what the story focused on to break his character this would have been excellent. We would have gotten to see that the invincible hero is human, makes mistakes but at the end he is still the strong character that we were introduced to. BUT NO! This series insist in being a pseudo torture porn for Kaiyer. Everything this man touches becomes shit. Everywhere he goes becomes shit. Everything he does is shit. This series insist on breaking his character but goes about doing so in a confusing, disappointing and very fucking lengthy manner.
After book 1 the series follows a very particular trend. Kaiyer chases down one of his friend(s), learns about some of his other friend(s) being captured and he leaves the current friend(s) he is with to save the other friend(s) only to have that friend(s) he was previously with, get captured. Yup, rinse and repeat that a few times and you have The Destroyer books 2, 3 and 4. The only saving grace of these books is learning more about Kaiyer's past. Without it, this story would have been a disaster. Why?
Well first let's talk about story and setting. These books are just filled with boring repetition about the same setting and storyline. The setting remains the same throughout the majority of these 4 books, (I swear we only ever experience a setting that is around or near the castle of Nia) and the core plot remains the same i.e. rescue one of his friend being captured and learning something about his past. Yup, a repetitive storyline with the same setting where someone gets caught, and Kaiyer must go and save them only to end up with more people getting caught.
Next is Kaiyer's character. This is such a confusing character. Kaiyer is supposedly so strong that the O'Baarni and elves cower in his presence but at no point in this series does that statement ring true. Every time Kaiyer is put in a position where he could fight his way out, he surrenders. The no nonsense, driven, murderous elf slayer is reduced to being a person when given a choice of killing elves instead chooses (willingly) to surrender 100% of the time. Yup, the dude we learnt about, and the dude we are presented are not even remotely connected to one another. I swear Paug from book one had more balls than this imposter Destroyer. This is an excellent way to present an unkillable Destroyer, having him not fighting and surrendering all the time. The author is actually fucking stupid with the way he writes Kaiyer's abilities. Every time you visit one of his past memories and listen to the interactions of everyone around Kaiyer you hear about how strong he is, how untouchable he is, yet he loses every single battle he faces in his current timeline. Whether it be a physical battle (i.e he always gives up) or a mental one, Kaiyer always loses. How can you write a character that is supposedly the greatest warrior of his time and one if the smartest of his race yet never actually back up the sentiment atleast once? Someone PLEASE explain to me how is this interesting to read?
Let's also touch a little on his intellect. This dude, with nothing more than a handful of survivors was able to out maneuver, out strategize the elves for 30+ years yet at no point in the present timeline does he show he is able of performing this feat. There was a legit reason for why he was so successful in his previous life, he took no chances and never back down from fights that was winnable, but it seems that sentiment is lost here. Every time, he is shown to be a real idiot as his actions always results in the opposite of what he wants and he never learns from it. (Jeezus why do you always leave your allies only to be surprised when they are caught again? IS HE FUCKING RETARDED? Didn't he say the only reason why the O'Baarni were able to get where they were, was them being tactful.) Yet this master tactician is outwitted at every single turn. Great character writing. Everyone outsmarts him. At no point do you feel that he is ever one step ahead. He always feels 12 steps behind, even against people that aren't relevant.
Then lets talk about payoff. You think with all this feeling of being trapped, all this feeling of being powerless 100% of the time that eventually we would get some sort of gratification that Kaiyer would actually be the person he would need to be. NOPE, instead it's him begging for peace, taking blame for everything and him silently agreeing. Yup, entertainment. This is fun to read. This dude is constantly dragged through the dirt in his past life and in his current one, but all he does is passively watch as he is constantly blackmailed, deceived and forced into situations that only makes things worse for him. I don't get why people enjoy reading about someone being broken down with nothing to build them back up. Do people like reading a story about someone's miserable life with no hint of them overcoming anything? If so, that's fucked up!
Plus no reunion with Iolarathe, no payoff with his relationships (is this supposed to be a harem series or a true love situation, if so pick one, using both doesn't work), NO REVENGE! Subverting expectations works when there is some sort of payoff. Doing things just to subvert expectations isn't how to engage the reader. Especially when these actions doesn't actually matter at all. When did the author do something with a character, only to later introduce something else and it really mattered? You read this story for so long, hoping to see the MC win at something, but because the author wants to subvert your expectations and write a torture porn for Kaiyer, he would go out of his way to make Kaiyer weak and stupid just so he can say, DRAMA! NO! It's stupid. Changing and weakening your character to only suit this long winded narrative is stupid. Don't weaken the MC without a legitimate reason. Don't have the MC constantly losing without reason. Fuck man, in Game of Thrones, the betrayals works because they were outplayed, not them being total fucking idiots. (Well maybe Ned Stark and Joffrey were idiots.)
And lastly, my biggest gripe with this entire series, the selective amnesia. Everything that occurs in this book is because of selective amnesia. The way his memories came back to him is actually frustrating because they only serve to nerf the MC when the author wants him to be nerfed. Every useful/entertaining piece of history is only obtained by the reader if they are willing to read through chapters that doesn't mean anything, enhance the story, or make any sense. The whole thing seems so contrived by the author and it feels like he is writing the story like this to lengthen out his story so he can say he wrote an expansive dark fantasy story with tons of political intrigue and plot twist, but instead we get a lengthy boring book with a broken character that is Kaiyer. We just see him wallow in misery as more of his past life comes to him. These memories only add a feeling of hopelessness for the readers and is unappealing to read. Plus when you have Kaiyer being passive and just taking every single shit thrown at him, this leads to a more aggravating read.
Let me ask you some questions. Is it entertaining to read a story where the main character is always a failure? Is it entertaining to read about the main character's miserable life? Is it entertaining to read a story that only breaks the main character? Is it entertaining to read a story where the main character is always passive with everything that happens to him and just accepts all the shit around him without even trying to do anything? Is it entertaining to read a story where nothing good ever happens, nothing to make you really exciting ever occurs. Is it entertaining to read a story where you the reader always feel hopeless? Is it entertaining to read a story that is always teasing? Do you like being teased and getting no release? If you answer Yes to all of these then you are 100% going to like this series. If you say no to even one of these questions, stay far away. If you expect Kaiyer to be a badass destroyer don't read this series. You won't find anything badass here, only depression and misery.
This series should not be called the Destroyer as nothing was actually destroyed (except maybe the reader's hope that something exciting might actually occur). It should have been called the Betrayer.
PS Xe Sands narration always makes me fall asleep. She just has a tone that makes the story sound monotone. She reads so passionlessly it's hard to really be invested when her chapters starts. Also why does the author show so much emphasis on Kaiyer's current love life. That ruins a lot of things, atleast I think so.
Going into this series at no point in the first book did I get the impression that this was a dark fantasy series. This maybe an error on my part but nothing I read from the first book, led be to believe so. So imagine my surprise as I continued to read. This series is about the all powerful destroyer Kaiyer but at no point in the series do you believe that Kaiyer is actually this person.
Book 1 was all about hyping up Kaiyer. Every scene, every memory, everything was focused on how untouchable this dude was. He was strong, intelligent, a master tactician as well as charismatic but all those attributes are tossed aside and beaten until the character we are first introduced to is unrecognizable. As the story progressed, we learn more and more about his short comings and failure/betrayal, but if this is what the story focused on to break his character this would have been excellent. We would have gotten to see that the invincible hero is human, makes mistakes but at the end he is still the strong character that we were introduced to. BUT NO! This series insist in being a pseudo torture porn for Kaiyer. Everything this man touches becomes shit. Everywhere he goes becomes shit. Everything he does is shit. This series insist on breaking his character but goes about doing so in a confusing, disappointing and very fucking lengthy manner.
After book 1 the series follows a very particular trend. Kaiyer chases down one of his friend(s), learns about some of his other friend(s) being captured and he leaves the current friend(s) he is with to save the other friend(s) only to have that friend(s) he was previously with, get captured. Yup, rinse and repeat that a few times and you have The Destroyer books 2, 3 and 4. The only saving grace of these books is learning more about Kaiyer's past. Without it, this story would have been a disaster. Why?
Well first let's talk about story and setting. These books are just filled with boring repetition about the same setting and storyline. The setting remains the same throughout the majority of these 4 books, (I swear we only ever experience a setting that is around or near the castle of Nia) and the core plot remains the same i.e. rescue one of his friend being captured and learning something about his past. Yup, a repetitive storyline with the same setting where someone gets caught, and Kaiyer must go and save them only to end up with more people getting caught.
Next is Kaiyer's character. This is such a confusing character. Kaiyer is supposedly so strong that the O'Baarni and elves cower in his presence but at no point in this series does that statement ring true. Every time Kaiyer is put in a position where he could fight his way out, he surrenders. The no nonsense, driven, murderous elf slayer is reduced to being a person when given a choice of killing elves instead chooses (willingly) to surrender 100% of the time. Yup, the dude we learnt about, and the dude we are presented are not even remotely connected to one another. I swear Paug from book one had more balls than this imposter Destroyer. This is an excellent way to present an unkillable Destroyer, having him not fighting and surrendering all the time. The author is actually fucking stupid with the way he writes Kaiyer's abilities. Every time you visit one of his past memories and listen to the interactions of everyone around Kaiyer you hear about how strong he is, how untouchable he is, yet he loses every single battle he faces in his current timeline. Whether it be a physical battle (i.e he always gives up) or a mental one, Kaiyer always loses. How can you write a character that is supposedly the greatest warrior of his time and one if the smartest of his race yet never actually back up the sentiment atleast once? Someone PLEASE explain to me how is this interesting to read?
Let's also touch a little on his intellect. This dude, with nothing more than a handful of survivors was able to out maneuver, out strategize the elves for 30+ years yet at no point in the present timeline does he show he is able of performing this feat. There was a legit reason for why he was so successful in his previous life, he took no chances and never back down from fights that was winnable, but it seems that sentiment is lost here. Every time, he is shown to be a real idiot as his actions always results in the opposite of what he wants and he never learns from it. (Jeezus why do you always leave your allies only to be surprised when they are caught again? IS HE FUCKING RETARDED? Didn't he say the only reason why the O'Baarni were able to get where they were, was them being tactful.) Yet this master tactician is outwitted at every single turn. Great character writing. Everyone outsmarts him. At no point do you feel that he is ever one step ahead. He always feels 12 steps behind, even against people that aren't relevant.
Then lets talk about payoff. You think with all this feeling of being trapped, all this feeling of being powerless 100% of the time that eventually we would get some sort of gratification that Kaiyer would actually be the person he would need to be. NOPE, instead it's him begging for peace, taking blame for everything and him silently agreeing. Yup, entertainment. This is fun to read. This dude is constantly dragged through the dirt in his past life and in his current one, but all he does is passively watch as he is constantly blackmailed, deceived and forced into situations that only makes things worse for him. I don't get why people enjoy reading about someone being broken down with nothing to build them back up. Do people like reading a story about someone's miserable life with no hint of them overcoming anything? If so, that's fucked up!
Plus no reunion with Iolarathe, no payoff with his relationships (is this supposed to be a harem series or a true love situation, if so pick one, using both doesn't work), NO REVENGE! Subverting expectations works when there is some sort of payoff. Doing things just to subvert expectations isn't how to engage the reader. Especially when these actions doesn't actually matter at all. When did the author do something with a character, only to later introduce something else and it really mattered? You read this story for so long, hoping to see the MC win at something, but because the author wants to subvert your expectations and write a torture porn for Kaiyer, he would go out of his way to make Kaiyer weak and stupid just so he can say, DRAMA! NO! It's stupid. Changing and weakening your character to only suit this long winded narrative is stupid. Don't weaken the MC without a legitimate reason. Don't have the MC constantly losing without reason. Fuck man, in Game of Thrones, the betrayals works because they were outplayed, not them being total fucking idiots. (Well maybe Ned Stark and Joffrey were idiots.)
And lastly, my biggest gripe with this entire series, the selective amnesia. Everything that occurs in this book is because of selective amnesia. The way his memories came back to him is actually frustrating because they only serve to nerf the MC when the author wants him to be nerfed. Every useful/entertaining piece of history is only obtained by the reader if they are willing to read through chapters that doesn't mean anything, enhance the story, or make any sense. The whole thing seems so contrived by the author and it feels like he is writing the story like this to lengthen out his story so he can say he wrote an expansive dark fantasy story with tons of political intrigue and plot twist, but instead we get a lengthy boring book with a broken character that is Kaiyer. We just see him wallow in misery as more of his past life comes to him. These memories only add a feeling of hopelessness for the readers and is unappealing to read. Plus when you have Kaiyer being passive and just taking every single shit thrown at him, this leads to a more aggravating read.
Let me ask you some questions. Is it entertaining to read a story where the main character is always a failure? Is it entertaining to read about the main character's miserable life? Is it entertaining to read a story that only breaks the main character? Is it entertaining to read a story where the main character is always passive with everything that happens to him and just accepts all the shit around him without even trying to do anything? Is it entertaining to read a story where nothing good ever happens, nothing to make you really exciting ever occurs. Is it entertaining to read a story where you the reader always feel hopeless? Is it entertaining to read a story that is always teasing? Do you like being teased and getting no release? If you answer Yes to all of these then you are 100% going to like this series. If you say no to even one of these questions, stay far away. If you expect Kaiyer to be a badass destroyer don't read this series. You won't find anything badass here, only depression and misery.
This series should not be called the Destroyer as nothing was actually destroyed (except maybe the reader's hope that something exciting might actually occur). It should have been called the Betrayer.
PS Xe Sands narration always makes me fall asleep. She just has a tone that makes the story sound monotone. She reads so passionlessly it's hard to really be invested when her chapters starts. Also why does the author show so much emphasis on Kaiyer's current love life. That ruins a lot of things, atleast I think so.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 7, 2016
There are other worlds than this one
We have heard it in many other tales; notably in Stephen Kings Gunslinger series. I admit, I balked at paying $10 each for book 3 and 4. After all, this isn't Stephen King. I also quickly paced for through the sex scenes. There aren't many in each book but they are quite lengthy and extremely detailed. If I wanted to read that type of genre, it would have been exceptional. I did not.
So why all the stars? I flipped through that which didn't appeal to me and thoroughly enjoyed the rest. There's the multiple worlds with combating humans vs elves. There's dragons and magic. There's battles; physical, mental, and emotional. You were able to lose yourself between then and now. If our history was told in such a manner, more school children would have a better knowledge and be less prone to repeat our ancestors mistakes. Fortunately we do have John Jake's who made the Civil War come alive. Yes,we have our bards; of which I am thankful for.
This is not a series for minors due to the explicit sex sections. Trust me, a 13 yr old boy is not going to pace through that as I did. It is for adults but only those who can truly envision the journey that Frodo made and the adventure of his uncle before him.
We have heard it in many other tales; notably in Stephen Kings Gunslinger series. I admit, I balked at paying $10 each for book 3 and 4. After all, this isn't Stephen King. I also quickly paced for through the sex scenes. There aren't many in each book but they are quite lengthy and extremely detailed. If I wanted to read that type of genre, it would have been exceptional. I did not.
So why all the stars? I flipped through that which didn't appeal to me and thoroughly enjoyed the rest. There's the multiple worlds with combating humans vs elves. There's dragons and magic. There's battles; physical, mental, and emotional. You were able to lose yourself between then and now. If our history was told in such a manner, more school children would have a better knowledge and be less prone to repeat our ancestors mistakes. Fortunately we do have John Jake's who made the Civil War come alive. Yes,we have our bards; of which I am thankful for.
This is not a series for minors due to the explicit sex sections. Trust me, a 13 yr old boy is not going to pace through that as I did. It is for adults but only those who can truly envision the journey that Frodo made and the adventure of his uncle before him.
August 28, 2018
Story goes like this. Blackouts, time jump, flashback, POV change, time jump POV change, friends held hostage, POV change flashback, deal is made then broken. Mix and match these and we get this series so far. Its frustrating as hell. It feels like author thinks none of the characters stories are intresting enough by themselves so they are mashed together. Felt like padding.
Having read so many books now I have noticed that so many would be better if condensed into one or 2 books.
Authors talent for sex scenes shows though, he should right erotica instead, and I dont mean that in a snarky way, I would read that in a heartbeat.
Having read so many books now I have noticed that so many would be better if condensed into one or 2 books.
Authors talent for sex scenes shows though, he should right erotica instead, and I dont mean that in a snarky way, I would read that in a heartbeat.
January 25, 2017
I hate this series.
I love this series.
Do NOT read this series if you dont want to be deprived of 3 days worth of sleep and food.
I couldn't put down the book until ive finished it. I didn't sleep for 3 days, ate almost nothing and got the biggest headache and heartpain ive had in a long time.
The book beginns with the awakning of our Protagonist Kaiyer from a very long slumber.
Right away we meet our plot characters together and the adventure starts.
Our hero does not remember a thing about his past and his new friends take him to their home and try to help him remember who he is and how he can help them defeat the new threat on the planet that is the ancients.
Here is the Deal:
The First two books were fantastic, not to dark, light humor and very good erotic scenes. Our hero shows that he is a badass and that he can kick ass and do what he wants. He becomes friends with the girls and sometimes much more. Up until now its the dreamread ive been searching for.
Then everything became shit.
Starting book 3 our friends get hammered with enemys and unfortunate events. Murder, Betrayal and separation from each other.
Also our Hero suddenly lost his balls.
You see, the first time when he surrenders and whines about how he cant take on 10 ancients its ok. He doesnt remember everything yet and potential power is avaiable.
But it gets boring after the 10th time he surrenders because some of his friends got caught for the 10th time, again...and his balls are stil gone. Maybe transported to another Planet.
The Title for the third and fourth book shouldn't be The Destroyer, it should be The Struggle.
Its like this over and over again:
1:somebody got abducted/got caught while fleeing/got caught while our hero wasnt here
2:our hero travels to the place and frees his friend
3:meanwhile somebody else is abducted ect.
4:our hero travels to the place and frees his friend
5:while he did 4 friend in 1 got abducted again
6:our hero travels to the place and frees his friend
7:while he did 6 friend in 4 got abducted ect. AGAIN
This was very depressing, seeing him and his girlfriend enjoying themselfes only to be seperated for half a book by OH LOOK ITS A PLOTTWIST AGAIN TOUGH LUCK BUDDY.
Also the relationships suffered immensely while Kaiyer walked all over the continent to save his friends while his friends he left get caught and are used to add a oh so new twist to the plot.
Why limit yourself to on castle and one country? 3/4 of the books play out in the castle or the near surrounding of it. Its gets boring. It got worse when our oh so strong hero couldn't do anything and surrendered again.
Another HUGE problem is the lack of erotica in the last books. It started great and the reader always had in mind that its a mature novel and the many ,,i want to drag her to bed'' lines did a great job highlighting that. The Sex parts were a highlight of a relationship and i was very interested how the characters going to act to one another after the deed.
In 3/4 its GONE BABY.
Because our hero is busy saving friends and surrendering there was no time to further expand his relationships/start new ones. No after these party he forgets about them and when they are together again, mostly after half a book after he saved them again, he does react like a dead fish, means he doesnt. No bed line, no further nights together, nothing. Its like his balls are gone...oh wait.
The story in itself was the only thing that kept me reading until i fell dead on my bed and slept for a day. Its fantastic and thanks to the ,,i dont remember'' option you discover new things with the hero instead of him telling you. This is the strongest point in this series.
The ending did a number on my heart and i had to watch 3 hours of funny videos on youtube to not be depressed, im not good with tragedy/drama.
The series seems to be finished BUT many things stay unresolved and many things need answers. Ive heard that the new novels going to be based on this series, well see. I dont know if i want to read it, not after kaiyer lost his balls till the end.
I must admit i did not see the Grimdark line on the recomendation and i honestly regret reading these books. I cant stand drama, i cant stand our hero in book 3/4 and i cant stand the cheap plottwists. But once started the desire to finish was bigger than my thirst after a week in a desert without water. A dangerous drug i tell you.
If you can handle Drama/Dark Fantasy, like erotic scenes but not to much of them and can sit through heavy loads of repetition youre gonna love this series. Buy it.
If you cant handle drama/Dark fantasy and prefer light and funny stories, like many erotic scenes and a great romance/harem/polygamy environment and a strong male lead who know what he is doing, dont buy it and dont try to read it.
I love this series.
Do NOT read this series if you dont want to be deprived of 3 days worth of sleep and food.
I couldn't put down the book until ive finished it. I didn't sleep for 3 days, ate almost nothing and got the biggest headache and heartpain ive had in a long time.
The book beginns with the awakning of our Protagonist Kaiyer from a very long slumber.
Right away we meet our plot characters together and the adventure starts.
Our hero does not remember a thing about his past and his new friends take him to their home and try to help him remember who he is and how he can help them defeat the new threat on the planet that is the ancients.
Here is the Deal:
The First two books were fantastic, not to dark, light humor and very good erotic scenes. Our hero shows that he is a badass and that he can kick ass and do what he wants. He becomes friends with the girls and sometimes much more. Up until now its the dreamread ive been searching for.
Then everything became shit.
Starting book 3 our friends get hammered with enemys and unfortunate events. Murder, Betrayal and separation from each other.
Also our Hero suddenly lost his balls.
You see, the first time when he surrenders and whines about how he cant take on 10 ancients its ok. He doesnt remember everything yet and potential power is avaiable.
But it gets boring after the 10th time he surrenders because some of his friends got caught for the 10th time, again...and his balls are stil gone. Maybe transported to another Planet.
The Title for the third and fourth book shouldn't be The Destroyer, it should be The Struggle.
Its like this over and over again:
1:somebody got abducted/got caught while fleeing/got caught while our hero wasnt here
2:our hero travels to the place and frees his friend
3:meanwhile somebody else is abducted ect.
4:our hero travels to the place and frees his friend
5:while he did 4 friend in 1 got abducted again
6:our hero travels to the place and frees his friend
7:while he did 6 friend in 4 got abducted ect. AGAIN
This was very depressing, seeing him and his girlfriend enjoying themselfes only to be seperated for half a book by OH LOOK ITS A PLOTTWIST AGAIN TOUGH LUCK BUDDY.
Also the relationships suffered immensely while Kaiyer walked all over the continent to save his friends while his friends he left get caught and are used to add a oh so new twist to the plot.
Why limit yourself to on castle and one country? 3/4 of the books play out in the castle or the near surrounding of it. Its gets boring. It got worse when our oh so strong hero couldn't do anything and surrendered again.
Another HUGE problem is the lack of erotica in the last books. It started great and the reader always had in mind that its a mature novel and the many ,,i want to drag her to bed'' lines did a great job highlighting that. The Sex parts were a highlight of a relationship and i was very interested how the characters going to act to one another after the deed.
In 3/4 its GONE BABY.
Because our hero is busy saving friends and surrendering there was no time to further expand his relationships/start new ones. No after these party he forgets about them and when they are together again, mostly after half a book after he saved them again, he does react like a dead fish, means he doesnt. No bed line, no further nights together, nothing. Its like his balls are gone...oh wait.
The story in itself was the only thing that kept me reading until i fell dead on my bed and slept for a day. Its fantastic and thanks to the ,,i dont remember'' option you discover new things with the hero instead of him telling you. This is the strongest point in this series.
The ending did a number on my heart and i had to watch 3 hours of funny videos on youtube to not be depressed, im not good with tragedy/drama.
The series seems to be finished BUT many things stay unresolved and many things need answers. Ive heard that the new novels going to be based on this series, well see. I dont know if i want to read it, not after kaiyer lost his balls till the end.
I must admit i did not see the Grimdark line on the recomendation and i honestly regret reading these books. I cant stand drama, i cant stand our hero in book 3/4 and i cant stand the cheap plottwists. But once started the desire to finish was bigger than my thirst after a week in a desert without water. A dangerous drug i tell you.
If you can handle Drama/Dark Fantasy, like erotic scenes but not to much of them and can sit through heavy loads of repetition youre gonna love this series. Buy it.
If you cant handle drama/Dark fantasy and prefer light and funny stories, like many erotic scenes and a great romance/harem/polygamy environment and a strong male lead who know what he is doing, dont buy it and dont try to read it.
March 25, 2017
Ugh
I wish I was a quarter satisfied with the read as the women the main character pumped his baby batter into.
I wish I was a quarter satisfied with the read as the women the main character pumped his baby batter into.
February 10, 2020
What an amazing finale, everything came together and left so many doors open at the same time, that there better be more!
August 25, 2017
I really enjoyed the Destroyer series. It is rare that I find edgier mature fantasy, which does not overdo the romance, gore or sex. An author that is able to weave all three elements through the story without going overboard is rare.
Yes there is graphic sex and violence, but I believe in comparison to contemporary writings, the sex is fairly vanilla. A MFF threesome and some lesbian sex, but in light of society today, that is fairly mellow.
The author could have gone, and I expected him to go, very puerile with the sex, making the story more about the wild sex rather than how sex ties the characters together. The sex also gives us some insight into how different the Elven culture is from the culture of Nadea and Jessmei. The Elven are poly and most (of the women anyway) appear to be bisexual as well enjoying lovers of both sexes without shame in their culture.
I like how Kaiyer decides that he will honor Nadea’s and Jessmei’s desire for a monogamist relationship, even when tempted by the Empress offering her body. Where earlier Kaiyer would have screwed any woman who lay still, it shows that he is thinking more than just with his dick.
Some have complained about characters having different motivations and personalities. But I wonder if these readers failed to realize that as time passes characters change. I also wonder if the reader was aware that Iolarathe part was in the past when her and Kiyer’s story begins.
Right now it looks like Kaiyer is set to marry Jessmei, and is her fiancé. Nadea is obviously putting on a good face for her cousin, but she obviously has not lost her love for Kaiyer no matter what she says. I am betting that in the next book, some political marriage necessity is going to end Jessmei’s betrothal to Kaiyer.
I also wonder if Jessmei was indeed pregnant with Kaiyer’s child, and her uncle had the herbalist midwife abort the child. Imagine what Kaiyer and Jessmei would do if they learned her uncle aborted their child. I imagine Kaiyer will be more than a little pissed should he learn that Jessmei’s uncle aborted his child. I would not want the Destroyer mad at me for killing his unborn child!
I like how the second part of this book we get to see the beginning of the story from Iolarathe’s POV. It explains why Iolarathe was so nuts for Kaiyer, when before she thought of humans as nasty smelly animals and banished them from her father’s house.
From Iolarathe’s POV we also get to read her feelings and understand her reasoning and why she killed Kaiyer’s brother and father in front of him. We see just how badly she erred, and how she felt trapped and unable to both keep Kaiyer as her lover and hide him from the other Elven. The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
The revelation of Shlara’s condition was interesting. I wonder if we will see a showdown between Kaiyer, Shlara, and the last dragon (not even going to attempt spelling that name).
Iolarathe is still very much alive, just on another plane of existence. Entas has proven that it is possible to go back and forth from that plane to the living. So I would not be surprised to see Iolarathe reappear in the flesh in the story sometime.
It will be interesting to see how the author solves the three way love triangle between Jessmei, Nadea, and Iolarathe. I also wonder if the Empress will take another shot at Kaiyer, aiming to have a child with him especially if his betrothal to Jessmei gets cancelled because of some political BS.
Yes there is graphic sex and violence, but I believe in comparison to contemporary writings, the sex is fairly vanilla. A MFF threesome and some lesbian sex, but in light of society today, that is fairly mellow.
The author could have gone, and I expected him to go, very puerile with the sex, making the story more about the wild sex rather than how sex ties the characters together. The sex also gives us some insight into how different the Elven culture is from the culture of Nadea and Jessmei. The Elven are poly and most (of the women anyway) appear to be bisexual as well enjoying lovers of both sexes without shame in their culture.
I like how Kaiyer decides that he will honor Nadea’s and Jessmei’s desire for a monogamist relationship, even when tempted by the Empress offering her body. Where earlier Kaiyer would have screwed any woman who lay still, it shows that he is thinking more than just with his dick.
Some have complained about characters having different motivations and personalities. But I wonder if these readers failed to realize that as time passes characters change. I also wonder if the reader was aware that Iolarathe part was in the past when her and Kiyer’s story begins.
Right now it looks like Kaiyer is set to marry Jessmei, and is her fiancé. Nadea is obviously putting on a good face for her cousin, but she obviously has not lost her love for Kaiyer no matter what she says. I am betting that in the next book, some political marriage necessity is going to end Jessmei’s betrothal to Kaiyer.
I also wonder if Jessmei was indeed pregnant with Kaiyer’s child, and her uncle had the herbalist midwife abort the child. Imagine what Kaiyer and Jessmei would do if they learned her uncle aborted their child. I imagine Kaiyer will be more than a little pissed should he learn that Jessmei’s uncle aborted his child. I would not want the Destroyer mad at me for killing his unborn child!
I like how the second part of this book we get to see the beginning of the story from Iolarathe’s POV. It explains why Iolarathe was so nuts for Kaiyer, when before she thought of humans as nasty smelly animals and banished them from her father’s house.
From Iolarathe’s POV we also get to read her feelings and understand her reasoning and why she killed Kaiyer’s brother and father in front of him. We see just how badly she erred, and how she felt trapped and unable to both keep Kaiyer as her lover and hide him from the other Elven. The road to hell is paved with good intentions.
The revelation of Shlara’s condition was interesting. I wonder if we will see a showdown between Kaiyer, Shlara, and the last dragon (not even going to attempt spelling that name).
Iolarathe is still very much alive, just on another plane of existence. Entas has proven that it is possible to go back and forth from that plane to the living. So I would not be surprised to see Iolarathe reappear in the flesh in the story sometime.
It will be interesting to see how the author solves the three way love triangle between Jessmei, Nadea, and Iolarathe. I also wonder if the Empress will take another shot at Kaiyer, aiming to have a child with him especially if his betrothal to Jessmei gets cancelled because of some political BS.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 20, 2018
Boring and Frustrating.
If you're desperate to see every bit of the action before the big 'He was a God this entire, eternally recurring, time?' reveal that's been obvious since book two then go for it. Otherwise save your money.
The protagonist is little more than a bumbling torture-magnet at this point. Every single major character save the protagonist is a mincing 'chessmaster' villain who is somehow also not terribly bright. Most of the characters you liked from previous novels are completely dropped from this one or given 2 minutes on stage to say how much they now hate the protagonist before just walking away from them like I should have from this book.
The protagonist has developed 'selective plot amnesia' so that interesting things can 'have happened' without the reader getting to actually read any of the good parts. Everything is distant in time from the current action, flashbacks within flashbacks within dream-sequences. Remember season 2 of Lost?
The worst part is that there are no answers to any of the 'big mysteries' proposed throughout the series, just more amnesia and blackouts and 'revelations' from the memories of characters that aren't even present in the real action and 'mysteeeeerious hiiiiiints' from god-like entities who are apparently paid by the ambiguity. When the protagonist gets a head-ache prepare to wade through gibberish pronouncements and LONG descriptions of banal sex or painful torture for a while. Reads like the journal of a black-out drunk with all references to drinking carefully edited out.
If you're desperate to see every bit of the action before the big 'He was a God this entire, eternally recurring, time?' reveal that's been obvious since book two then go for it. Otherwise save your money.
The protagonist is little more than a bumbling torture-magnet at this point. Every single major character save the protagonist is a mincing 'chessmaster' villain who is somehow also not terribly bright. Most of the characters you liked from previous novels are completely dropped from this one or given 2 minutes on stage to say how much they now hate the protagonist before just walking away from them like I should have from this book.
The protagonist has developed 'selective plot amnesia' so that interesting things can 'have happened' without the reader getting to actually read any of the good parts. Everything is distant in time from the current action, flashbacks within flashbacks within dream-sequences. Remember season 2 of Lost?
The worst part is that there are no answers to any of the 'big mysteries' proposed throughout the series, just more amnesia and blackouts and 'revelations' from the memories of characters that aren't even present in the real action and 'mysteeeeerious hiiiiiints' from god-like entities who are apparently paid by the ambiguity. When the protagonist gets a head-ache prepare to wade through gibberish pronouncements and LONG descriptions of banal sex or painful torture for a while. Reads like the journal of a black-out drunk with all references to drinking carefully edited out.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 23, 2018
The mystery of this series is really why so many readers can't put the book down. We want to know how it ends. And the ending of this book closes one door and leaves us wanting to see how the next "chapter" goes.
The problem with this book, and really the series, is there is too much filler in between the meat. I know fantasy loves to throw filler in there, but if this author had a good editor and a big publishing company behind him, he could have trimmed these books down to a trilogy.
After re-examining my earlier thoughts on Iolarathe as being every 3rd chapter in this book....I feel the book could have been better if the author didn't stick to suck a locked pattern of A, B, C and cycle for each chapter. Why not have D, E, F? I didn't really like her as a character (though more than I liked Jess and her "C" chapters in book 3).
The author has a lot of great ideas for this book, and I am really surprised this series hasn't been blogged about more or made more lists.
The problem with this book, and really the series, is there is too much filler in between the meat. I know fantasy loves to throw filler in there, but if this author had a good editor and a big publishing company behind him, he could have trimmed these books down to a trilogy.
After re-examining my earlier thoughts on Iolarathe as being every 3rd chapter in this book....I feel the book could have been better if the author didn't stick to suck a locked pattern of A, B, C and cycle for each chapter. Why not have D, E, F? I didn't really like her as a character (though more than I liked Jess and her "C" chapters in book 3).
The author has a lot of great ideas for this book, and I am really surprised this series hasn't been blogged about more or made more lists.
August 8, 2016
I read this quickly and it did not disappoint. I will look forward to reading more about this story as some things are left unresolved. I enjoyed the new stories that were presented but some of the main charachters were not really in this one as much as I would have liked. I knew as I got close to the end that there was no way he could tie up all the loose ends with this one. The author tells a great story and you cannot help but feel for Kayier throughout the entire length of this series. Some parts of the ending were strange and i had to re read some passages to make sure i fully understood what was really going on but again this was an awesome book. I wont go into the story or plot as it follows the same path as the other 3 books. If you made it through the first 3 ,then this is a no brainer to pick up and read.
July 18, 2016
Yeah!
What can I say about this series....Damn good. Amazingly crafted worlds. Great characters. Kaiyer is now one of my all time favorites. Supremely flawed hero, you will love and pull for him no matter what he's done. An incredibly epic series with delicious personal dramas. Graphic sex and violence, yes and yes. And not cheesy in the league. Maybe my new personal favorite fantasy series. Love it and can't praise Michael--Scott Earle enough...
What can I say about this series....Damn good. Amazingly crafted worlds. Great characters. Kaiyer is now one of my all time favorites. Supremely flawed hero, you will love and pull for him no matter what he's done. An incredibly epic series with delicious personal dramas. Graphic sex and violence, yes and yes. And not cheesy in the league. Maybe my new personal favorite fantasy series. Love it and can't praise Michael--Scott Earle enough...
January 29, 2019
Wonderful book with many threads. 2 things I hated in it:
- the random jumps JUST at the times the story started to get interesting
- the not real ending on a lot of storylines and, eventually a not 100% happy ending. I mean cmon.
Otherwise brilliant, even the 4th book kept interest throughout the whole procedure.
- the random jumps JUST at the times the story started to get interesting
- the not real ending on a lot of storylines and, eventually a not 100% happy ending. I mean cmon.
Otherwise brilliant, even the 4th book kept interest throughout the whole procedure.
June 24, 2016
One of the best series running
Very unorthodox approach to telling an extremely compelling story with well developed characters. I'm eagerly awaiting the next installment! I'd definitely recommend!!
Very unorthodox approach to telling an extremely compelling story with well developed characters. I'm eagerly awaiting the next installment! I'd definitely recommend!!
October 22, 2016
This was a fantastic conclusion to Kaiyer's story. There is one unfinished story - but the author said that it will be answered later in the next series based in The Destroyer's story. Definitely worth reading! I cannot wait until the next part of Kaiyer's story is continued!
June 28, 2016
Powerful conclusion to the Destroyer series. A great and heady read. So much more than I expected and very worthwhile time spent reading all 4 books.
Read
June 5, 2019Finished this very long series (time wise)... and as usual book 4 gets the best and worst of all the books smashed up in it as a final rating.
I really liked books 1 and 2. They did have less back bone then 3 and 4 but the author isn't particularly good at writing a story and so the cluster **** of the first two books had a certain unapologetic charm to them. Not to mention, by the end of book we've ended things, in a way. Earle could have stopped there, to be honest.
What we get is two books that essentially repeat a formula - both in present time and the past. It's repetitive to the point you realize nothing is really going to change. I gave book 3 a 2 star rating because it just felt like we were treading water - I couldn't even really appreciate the details because it was just never ending.
Then book four just took it up and kept with the cycles.
Mild spoilers - the repetition is part of the ultimate story line - it's part of the 'purpose' if you will. But, if that is so, that's a case of tell me don't show me. I don't want to participate in the endless cycles of these novels, I'll be okay just knowing that... like... the last THREE books are a fine example of what has been happening.
Also, mild spoiler part deaux - the book finally had a cryptic old man who's cryptic and annoying ways ended up actually making sense in the end. Doesn't change the fact that you want to smash him as much as Io'larathe does but, still, there's pay off there. there was enough hints in book three so that when you get to the end it's not a shock but a kind of satisfying bit of things falling in place (or, at least half of 'it')
The ending - it just happens. You're set up for, yet, another repetition of memory loss and time loss. You, the reader, realize this book is almost over... so you're thinking, what? This is book 4 of 4, it's going to end? And yeah, it just does.
So, I'm unsatisfied with the series as a whole. I didn't expect much either and so I guess 'The Destroyer' gets a book four 'meh.' My main readers critique is this should have been a trilogy, from book 3 we didn't need Jesme's POV - it didn't add anything. The few nuggets of story and important scenes could have been blended into the other volumes. I didn't need either the padding or the repetitive situations.
Io'larathe's life, desires, hopes, etc should have been blended throughout the volumes better as well... we get her for half of book four and it's cheap. As it is - Earle missed a real chance to give us a tone of 'ohhh, that's why' moments with her in this book - the few we did get were lame and meaningless.
I did like the sex, war, battles, food. Sometimes it was a bit much or too long. Worse is none of it helped with the story - it was just sensory stimulation. At some point early on you realize nothing is going to stop Kaiyer... so as the books go on each battle is just a blur of words that gets us to the forgone conclusion of his victory. Minor - but the graphic nature of the book, in every-way, does make it difficult to recommend
So, 3 stars. I was hoping for a better story then we got - the opportunities were there. The scaffolding of a true epic was erected - but it all kind of fell away as the books progressed. The narrative felt like it was lost. And the major insights at the end were barely touched upon.
I really liked books 1 and 2. They did have less back bone then 3 and 4 but the author isn't particularly good at writing a story and so the cluster **** of the first two books had a certain unapologetic charm to them. Not to mention, by the end of book we've ended things, in a way. Earle could have stopped there, to be honest.
What we get is two books that essentially repeat a formula - both in present time and the past. It's repetitive to the point you realize nothing is really going to change. I gave book 3 a 2 star rating because it just felt like we were treading water - I couldn't even really appreciate the details because it was just never ending.
Then book four just took it up and kept with the cycles.
Mild spoilers - the repetition is part of the ultimate story line - it's part of the 'purpose' if you will. But, if that is so, that's a case of tell me don't show me. I don't want to participate in the endless cycles of these novels, I'll be okay just knowing that... like... the last THREE books are a fine example of what has been happening.
Also, mild spoiler part deaux - the book finally had a cryptic old man who's cryptic and annoying ways ended up actually making sense in the end. Doesn't change the fact that you want to smash him as much as Io'larathe does but, still, there's pay off there. there was enough hints in book three so that when you get to the end it's not a shock but a kind of satisfying bit of things falling in place (or, at least half of 'it')
The ending - it just happens. You're set up for, yet, another repetition of memory loss and time loss. You, the reader, realize this book is almost over... so you're thinking, what? This is book 4 of 4, it's going to end? And yeah, it just does.
So, I'm unsatisfied with the series as a whole. I didn't expect much either and so I guess 'The Destroyer' gets a book four 'meh.' My main readers critique is this should have been a trilogy, from book 3 we didn't need Jesme's POV - it didn't add anything. The few nuggets of story and important scenes could have been blended into the other volumes. I didn't need either the padding or the repetitive situations.
Io'larathe's life, desires, hopes, etc should have been blended throughout the volumes better as well... we get her for half of book four and it's cheap. As it is - Earle missed a real chance to give us a tone of 'ohhh, that's why' moments with her in this book - the few we did get were lame and meaningless.
I did like the sex, war, battles, food. Sometimes it was a bit much or too long. Worse is none of it helped with the story - it was just sensory stimulation. At some point early on you realize nothing is going to stop Kaiyer... so as the books go on each battle is just a blur of words that gets us to the forgone conclusion of his victory. Minor - but the graphic nature of the book, in every-way, does make it difficult to recommend
So, 3 stars. I was hoping for a better story then we got - the opportunities were there. The scaffolding of a true epic was erected - but it all kind of fell away as the books progressed. The narrative felt like it was lost. And the major insights at the end were barely touched upon.
October 24, 2021
So I have a bit of a love hate relationship with this book/series…
I absolutely loved books 1 / 2 / 3 for me they were in my top 5 favourite fantasy series! I would have given them all 5 stars.
I love Kayier! When I’ve been reading the books I picture a blend of some of some great fantasy characters. For me he’s a blend of Kratos / Sauron / Thor / God Emperor (warhammer 40k) I love OP main characters and he’s a great one. I think Michael Scott Earle has created an amazing character and fantasy universe
However having now finished book 4 I’m not really sure where the author was going with it all.
First 3 books built up this amazing story and I had assumed in this final book it would fill in all the gaps but unfortunately it doesn’t do that.
The author had hinted at all these amazing story elements in the flash backs but nothing is explained or elaborate on so the reader is left to fill in the gaps. I don’t know maybe this is what Michael Earle wanted?? Maybe he wanted the reader to fill in the gaps??….But I didn’t like it.
Shlara becomes a Vader like dictator complete with the melted armour stuck to her rotting flesh and lives with the agony of being burned alive over and over again but there is maybe one brief chapter devoted to her character and this story arc…
The last great dragon who fought at the final great elven/O’Baarni battle 5000 years in the past is still alive and hunting the kayier-Iolorathe bloodine but is only very briefly mentioned….
How Kayier’s generals exile him to the radical is pretty much glossed over in one paragraph in the very last chapter, we get a very basic explanation, and it feels so rushed! It’s almost like he forgot and had to put it in. Would have loved to see this all unfold in flashback scenes. It’s such a major part of the whole story, how Kayier was sent to the new world and held in stasis so I don’t know why it wasn’t fleshed out more?! Like you find out but honestly it’s a poor explanation and I think at best 3-4 lines are devoted to this.
There was hint of Kayier’s generals trying to seal him away in liquid Mercury I imagined this to be like when Wolverine was ‘killed’ in the marvel comics (wolverine a bit like Kayier can’t be killed) and sealed in liquid Adamantium but remained alive. I was so hoping for a flashback chapter devoted to this, but it’s never even mentioned in book 4! Why the author built it up and then never mentioned it again I don’t know!!
There is a dragon entity / statue on Kayier’s new world and it remembers him as the old god and is his loyal servant…..but why is it there?? This made no sense without any explanation. Like how cool would it be to get an explanation on how Kayier made the dragons (father of dragons) to fight the ancients and he sent them to different worlds
I could go on! But these were the ones that really annoyed me. There was a lot more.
So where does this Leave the Destroyer series…I had read there was suppose to be follow up books, another trilogy, but doesn’t look like Earle has revisited the character for a few years and not sure he ever will.
Was just a bit disappointed one of my favourite stories felt a bit rushed and was left a bit unfinished at the end! Hopefully Earle does decided to revisit the series one day and we get answers and more adventures because I think he’s created a superb fantasy universe blending fantasy and sci-fi with an amazing main character and I love his writing. Fingers crossed
I absolutely loved books 1 / 2 / 3 for me they were in my top 5 favourite fantasy series! I would have given them all 5 stars.
I love Kayier! When I’ve been reading the books I picture a blend of some of some great fantasy characters. For me he’s a blend of Kratos / Sauron / Thor / God Emperor (warhammer 40k) I love OP main characters and he’s a great one. I think Michael Scott Earle has created an amazing character and fantasy universe
However having now finished book 4 I’m not really sure where the author was going with it all.
First 3 books built up this amazing story and I had assumed in this final book it would fill in all the gaps but unfortunately it doesn’t do that.
The author had hinted at all these amazing story elements in the flash backs but nothing is explained or elaborate on so the reader is left to fill in the gaps. I don’t know maybe this is what Michael Earle wanted?? Maybe he wanted the reader to fill in the gaps??….But I didn’t like it.
Shlara becomes a Vader like dictator complete with the melted armour stuck to her rotting flesh and lives with the agony of being burned alive over and over again but there is maybe one brief chapter devoted to her character and this story arc…
The last great dragon who fought at the final great elven/O’Baarni battle 5000 years in the past is still alive and hunting the kayier-Iolorathe bloodine but is only very briefly mentioned….
How Kayier’s generals exile him to the radical is pretty much glossed over in one paragraph in the very last chapter, we get a very basic explanation, and it feels so rushed! It’s almost like he forgot and had to put it in. Would have loved to see this all unfold in flashback scenes. It’s such a major part of the whole story, how Kayier was sent to the new world and held in stasis so I don’t know why it wasn’t fleshed out more?! Like you find out but honestly it’s a poor explanation and I think at best 3-4 lines are devoted to this.
There was hint of Kayier’s generals trying to seal him away in liquid Mercury I imagined this to be like when Wolverine was ‘killed’ in the marvel comics (wolverine a bit like Kayier can’t be killed) and sealed in liquid Adamantium but remained alive. I was so hoping for a flashback chapter devoted to this, but it’s never even mentioned in book 4! Why the author built it up and then never mentioned it again I don’t know!!
There is a dragon entity / statue on Kayier’s new world and it remembers him as the old god and is his loyal servant…..but why is it there?? This made no sense without any explanation. Like how cool would it be to get an explanation on how Kayier made the dragons (father of dragons) to fight the ancients and he sent them to different worlds
I could go on! But these were the ones that really annoyed me. There was a lot more.
So where does this Leave the Destroyer series…I had read there was suppose to be follow up books, another trilogy, but doesn’t look like Earle has revisited the character for a few years and not sure he ever will.
Was just a bit disappointed one of my favourite stories felt a bit rushed and was left a bit unfinished at the end! Hopefully Earle does decided to revisit the series one day and we get answers and more adventures because I think he’s created a superb fantasy universe blending fantasy and sci-fi with an amazing main character and I love his writing. Fingers crossed
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 16, 2019
Oh wow, what an ending... It's unfortunate that the author has been focusing on other endeavors - I hope they come back to this and provide some closure!
I have to admit that I really love what Kaiyer has turned into at the end as a person. He has been transformed throughout the series, and watching his friends (and/or enemies?) transform as well was thoroughly enjoyable.
Spoilers!
I'm glad this book didn't allow the different perspectives to jump all over history. That detracted from the book greatly in the previous books. These were MOSTLY in order, if sometimes a bit longer than desired.
For some real spoilers though, because that ending hurts a bit...
I really felt like with how everything was wrapping up (kind of... still a big cliffhanger and a HELL of a lot of questions) that this book might make 5* for me. Unfortunately, the different perspectives felt padded/unnecessary sometimes and the frustrating nature of Kaiyer still randomly going nuclear without knowing why/how caused me to tick it down. There were a few other things but that's mostly just nit-picking. Overall, it's a good 4* for me though. The middle books were a bit worse I thought, but the beginning is engaging and this book is pretty good also. I look forward to if/when the author decides to answer the crazy questions that this one raises.
I have to admit that I really love what Kaiyer has turned into at the end as a person. He has been transformed throughout the series, and watching his friends (and/or enemies?) transform as well was thoroughly enjoyable.
Spoilers!
I'm glad this book didn't allow the different perspectives to jump all over history. That detracted from the book greatly in the previous books. These were MOSTLY in order, if sometimes a bit longer than desired.
For some real spoilers though, because that ending hurts a bit...
I really felt like with how everything was wrapping up (kind of... still a big cliffhanger and a HELL of a lot of questions) that this book might make 5* for me. Unfortunately, the different perspectives felt padded/unnecessary sometimes and the frustrating nature of Kaiyer still randomly going nuclear without knowing why/how caused me to tick it down. There were a few other things but that's mostly just nit-picking. Overall, it's a good 4* for me though. The middle books were a bit worse I thought, but the beginning is engaging and this book is pretty good also. I look forward to if/when the author decides to answer the crazy questions that this one raises.
March 29, 2021
This series could have been 1, maybe 2, books. Instead it is 4. This is because MSE needed to make room for the merry-go-round of characters being captured and escaping/of plans starting and never finishing.
This MC: “The Destroyer” is unbeatable in combat. Until the plot requires him not to be. He’s a master tactician… that gets thwarted all the time. He never forgives a slight… wait, no… he must be a masochist because he lets people give him shit constantly.
If you are looking for payoffs, don’t read these books. The books are too busy trying to subvert your expectations to worry about payoffs. Let’s do a list…
Does the MC:
Expel the occupying army from his surrogate home? No… This master of guerilla tactics, and insurgency warfare gets doubted and thwarted at every turn and consistently called a monster for trying.
Kill the Empress? No… She is a total bitch antagonist the entire series. He even saves her from certain death at one point. Doesn’t matter, she’s still a bitch and doesn’t die. But she does get to verbally berate him a few times while he silently agrees with her. Awesome…
Secure safety for his planet? No… Instead of sealing the world from danger, the world has a very tenuous security that is reliant on one mortal person (not the MC). Everyone seems fine with this.
End up with the girl he pines over from book one? No… He gets shunted off into a political marriage with the lesser of his two love interests. He never even consummates his love for the primary love interest.
Get revenge on the evil prince? No… That would give the reader satisfaction, and we can’t have that. The prince dies off-screen in an official execution.
Have a reunion with Iolarathe? No… She does get to watch him fumble around, and bang other women though.
Do anything productive? No… He basically makes things worse, and gets dragged through the dirt for four books. And every single potential payoff is taken away from him, and by proxy, the reader.
End up futilely begging his enemies for forgiveness and small favors by the end of the last book? Yes! This total badass “Destroyer” is at the mercy of everyone who wants to fuck with him by the end of the last book. Yes, he gets completely broken. What a great character arc…
This MC: “The Destroyer” is unbeatable in combat. Until the plot requires him not to be. He’s a master tactician… that gets thwarted all the time. He never forgives a slight… wait, no… he must be a masochist because he lets people give him shit constantly.
If you are looking for payoffs, don’t read these books. The books are too busy trying to subvert your expectations to worry about payoffs. Let’s do a list…
Does the MC:
Expel the occupying army from his surrogate home? No… This master of guerilla tactics, and insurgency warfare gets doubted and thwarted at every turn and consistently called a monster for trying.
Kill the Empress? No… She is a total bitch antagonist the entire series. He even saves her from certain death at one point. Doesn’t matter, she’s still a bitch and doesn’t die. But she does get to verbally berate him a few times while he silently agrees with her. Awesome…
Secure safety for his planet? No… Instead of sealing the world from danger, the world has a very tenuous security that is reliant on one mortal person (not the MC). Everyone seems fine with this.
End up with the girl he pines over from book one? No… He gets shunted off into a political marriage with the lesser of his two love interests. He never even consummates his love for the primary love interest.
Get revenge on the evil prince? No… That would give the reader satisfaction, and we can’t have that. The prince dies off-screen in an official execution.
Have a reunion with Iolarathe? No… She does get to watch him fumble around, and bang other women though.
Do anything productive? No… He basically makes things worse, and gets dragged through the dirt for four books. And every single potential payoff is taken away from him, and by proxy, the reader.
End up futilely begging his enemies for forgiveness and small favors by the end of the last book? Yes! This total badass “Destroyer” is at the mercy of everyone who wants to fuck with him by the end of the last book. Yes, he gets completely broken. What a great character arc…
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 1, 2025
I thoroughly enjoyed this fourth book in The Destroyer series. It’s easily one of the best dark/grim fantasy series I’ve read, and I’ve read a lot in this genre. The way the mystery unfolds around the main characters is absolutely captivating. The secrets and hidden truths surrounding them keep you hooked and make the story even more engaging. An excellent read that I highly recommend! I’m definitely looking forward to continuing with the next books in the series.
However, there is one big 'but'...
While this book ends, the story is far from complete. All the threads are still left hanging. Given that this fourth installment was released in 2016 and we’re now in 2025, I can’t help but feel that the author may have dropped it, which would be a real shame.
I truly hope additional books will be released, as Mr. Michael-Scott Earle has yet to provide any closure. If no further books are released, I would say this series is ultimately not worth your time—an amazing story with no conclusion is a deal-breaker."
However, there is one big 'but'...
While this book ends, the story is far from complete. All the threads are still left hanging. Given that this fourth installment was released in 2016 and we’re now in 2025, I can’t help but feel that the author may have dropped it, which would be a real shame.
I truly hope additional books will be released, as Mr. Michael-Scott Earle has yet to provide any closure. If no further books are released, I would say this series is ultimately not worth your time—an amazing story with no conclusion is a deal-breaker."
August 24, 2019
Ends with a flop. I enjoyed Iolarothe’s point of view more so than the other female’s pov in previous plots. Yes, she was cruel but it was understandable given the society she was born in. I could see her character development and appreciate it. Kaiyer was kick-ass as the O’Barney in his past life but, in this life, he was so passive that it was incredibly frustrating to listen to him pled again and again for peace and taking the blame for the killing of all the elevens that attempted to murder him. He allows people to manipulate and blackmail him left and right. It was as if this Kaiyer and the O’Barney Kaiyer were totally different man. I’m also disappointed with the ending. The ending was anticlimatic, and I wanted him to end up with Iolarothe but he did not.
2 stars because the story does have some interesting fighting scenes.
2 stars because the story does have some interesting fighting scenes.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 5, 2017
The saga continues!
Kaiyer has remembered much more of his previous life. The mistake that he made in fighting Shlara becomes clearer. Much comes out about his relationship with Iolarathe and a lot is learnt about her journey and about the birth of her child. Iolarathe eventually learns what it is all about but Kaiyer is still in ignorance.
Unfortunately this is not the last book in the series! There are more to come but the big question is 'when?'. MSE is so busy with other series that something has to miss out. Personally I think that this series is the best adult Fantasy that MSE has written to date. I would like to see more although I feel that Kaiyer is going to be lessened somehow!
Kaiyer has remembered much more of his previous life. The mistake that he made in fighting Shlara becomes clearer. Much comes out about his relationship with Iolarathe and a lot is learnt about her journey and about the birth of her child. Iolarathe eventually learns what it is all about but Kaiyer is still in ignorance.
Unfortunately this is not the last book in the series! There are more to come but the big question is 'when?'. MSE is so busy with other series that something has to miss out. Personally I think that this series is the best adult Fantasy that MSE has written to date. I would like to see more although I feel that Kaiyer is going to be lessened somehow!
June 2, 2017
Superb!
Rarely have I read a story as compelling in its breadth and scope, and yet simultaneously compelling as this one. Michael has given a true masterpiece of love, greed, hate, avarice, mercy, hatred, and suspense which is a kind of shrine to the Tolkien'ian universe with a big "what if". This can bring out the best while showing the worst that humanity has to offer. Take the time to read and think about this great author's work.....totally worth the effort you put in to imbibe it!
Rarely have I read a story as compelling in its breadth and scope, and yet simultaneously compelling as this one. Michael has given a true masterpiece of love, greed, hate, avarice, mercy, hatred, and suspense which is a kind of shrine to the Tolkien'ian universe with a big "what if". This can bring out the best while showing the worst that humanity has to offer. Take the time to read and think about this great author's work.....totally worth the effort you put in to imbibe it!
October 7, 2019
No, no, no! This was an amazing journey!! I can't believe it's over (for now). I started suspecting who I though Kaiyer and Iolarathe were, but wasn't sure. The ending, confirmed it, and I rejoiced that I was correct. I seriously can't wait, and hope beyond hope, for book 5. I was so hooked into this story, I couldn't put them down. Again, another emotional roller-coaster, perhaps the most extreme one in this series. I never suspected who Entas was, but it actually makes sense who he turned out to be. Very well done, and I've enjoyed my journey through these novels.
April 20, 2023
Okay so that took a BIG turn from the last one. It’s become so much bigger than anticipated. I really liked that one. Still a lot of sex in it which was fine. It’s almost a nice conclusion to this first story and there are doubtless Infinite stories that can come from this.
Edit. I’ve had a think about this and have decided to make it further down. The more I think about it the more ridiculous it is. There is so much to-ing and fro-ing. The past the future, kaiyer getting more and more powers then surrendering. Shagging loads and then trying to get with two women whilst still living Iolrathe. It’s too convoluted and annoying. I wouldn’t read the next ones.
Edit. I’ve had a think about this and have decided to make it further down. The more I think about it the more ridiculous it is. There is so much to-ing and fro-ing. The past the future, kaiyer getting more and more powers then surrendering. Shagging loads and then trying to get with two women whilst still living Iolrathe. It’s too convoluted and annoying. I wouldn’t read the next ones.
November 24, 2017
I cannot say enough about this series. Loved it from beginning to end! Such a powerful story, with a roller coaster of peaks and valleys. One of the best reads I have had, and I enjoyed every minute of it! I can't stress it enough. If you haven't started this yet, then I strongly recommend it. You will not be disappointed. Thank you Michael-Scott for giving us this great series!
June 6, 2021
Did the writer not realize this was the last book of the series? Or did he just give up on it?
Either way almost none of the mysteries or plotlines were resolved. They were the main draws to this series and I imagine why most of us soldiered through the endless fillers. As it stands this whole series is a pointless waste of time.
Either way almost none of the mysteries or plotlines were resolved. They were the main draws to this series and I imagine why most of us soldiered through the endless fillers. As it stands this whole series is a pointless waste of time.
January 15, 2018
Through out the series the author does a great job developing the back story since the main character just cannot completely remember his past. I just feel there is just too much sex though through out the series. I do wonder what happens next and enjoyed the books.
October 3, 2018
Great book and good series so far. I do enjoy these type of books. I can see some plot holes and sometime the story gets a little confusing but for the most part it is has some great story lines and characters. I will be looking for more book by this author.
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