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The Last Rune #6
The First Stone (The Last Rune, #6)
The Pale King has been defeated, his legions decimated. The Dark God Mohg has been destroyed. And the evil corporation, Duratek, has been disbanded, foiled in its efforts to strip-mine the world of Eldh. And for our heroes, three years have passed in relative peace. But only relative, because every one of them know in their hearts that their duties are not yet ended. For perihelion approaches, as the two worlds continue to grow nearer. And bad things are coming in its wake.
In the skies over Earth, astronomers have noted an anomaly which seems to be swallowing stars whole. On Eldh, these rifts in the sky are appearing as well--and the dragon Sinfathisar tells Grace Beckett that, if left unchecked, these holes of anti-being will annihilate all of creation forever. He adds that only Travis Wilder--whom the Mournish believe is fated to raise the lost city of Morindu the Dark from the desert sands that hide and hold it--can save the world. But what is the connection between the lost city of the sorcerers and the wounds that rift the heavens?
As Grace goes in search of Travis and Travis goes in search of his kidnapped daughter, all the threads of fate begin to pull together, revealing ancient mysteries on both worlds, and connections within connections that carry all the way back through time. With both worlds increasingly wracked by tempests and earthquakes and a palpable sense of hopelessness and despair, and with magic sputtering and dying around them, can our heroes patch together the missing pieces of the puzzle before all of life is annihilated?
From the Paperback edition.
In the skies over Earth, astronomers have noted an anomaly which seems to be swallowing stars whole. On Eldh, these rifts in the sky are appearing as well--and the dragon Sinfathisar tells Grace Beckett that, if left unchecked, these holes of anti-being will annihilate all of creation forever. He adds that only Travis Wilder--whom the Mournish believe is fated to raise the lost city of Morindu the Dark from the desert sands that hide and hold it--can save the world. But what is the connection between the lost city of the sorcerers and the wounds that rift the heavens?
As Grace goes in search of Travis and Travis goes in search of his kidnapped daughter, all the threads of fate begin to pull together, revealing ancient mysteries on both worlds, and connections within connections that carry all the way back through time. With both worlds increasingly wracked by tempests and earthquakes and a palpable sense of hopelessness and despair, and with magic sputtering and dying around them, can our heroes patch together the missing pieces of the puzzle before all of life is annihilated?
From the Paperback edition.
530 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2002
9 people are currently reading
257 people want to read
About the author
Mark Anthony
43 books190 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
Mark Anthony learned to love both books and mountains during childhood summers spent in a Colorado ghost town.
Later he was trained as a paleoanthropologist but along the way grew interested in a different sort of human evolution—the symbolic progress reflected in myth and the literature of the fantastic. He undertook Beyond the Pale to explore the idea that reason and wonder need not exist in conflict.
Mark Anthony lives and writes in Colorado, where he is currently at work on his next writing project.
Also writes under Galen Beckett.
Mark Anthony learned to love both books and mountains during childhood summers spent in a Colorado ghost town.
Later he was trained as a paleoanthropologist but along the way grew interested in a different sort of human evolution—the symbolic progress reflected in myth and the literature of the fantastic. He undertook Beyond the Pale to explore the idea that reason and wonder need not exist in conflict.
Mark Anthony lives and writes in Colorado, where he is currently at work on his next writing project.
Also writes under Galen Beckett.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
June 28, 2017
Rating this hurts me. I started this series almost exactly one month ago and after books 4 and 5 were in my opinion better than the earlier ones, I was absolutely stoked for the last one. Especially since it looked like it was all working out for my favorite characters and then... this. I'm so disappointed and a tad angry.
Okay, let me straight out say what my biggest beef was with this book:
This is the last book in a series with quite a lot of characters and locations. So far it mostly managed to balance all that in a way that it felt like every important character got their part. The reader had time to get used to all of them and appreciate them.
Now, why would you - for your final book - ignore like half of them, make a minor character suddenly a major one, make up some new ones that you don't have time to flesh out and blather on for 100 (!!!) pages about the backstory of a character we only ever heard about before? And then send the few characters we have left on a long adventure into a desert, ignoring all the realms you created before? WHY?
If you'd have asked me before I read this book who the still-alive-at-this-point main characters of this story were, I would have said: Grace, Travis, Aryn, Beltan, Falken, Melia, Vani, Lirith, Sareth and Deidre. And I would have counted Hadrian Farr, Sir Tarus, Teravian, Master Larad and Aldeth as supporting characters.
If you're here for any of these characters except Grace, Travis, Vani, Deidre, Master Larad and Hadrian, you're out of luck. Hell, I think Aryn probably didn't get more than 10 pages altogether and she was a major POV character through all of the series since the second book.
And I decided that, no matter how annoying it got, I definitely prefer several centuries old Falken and Melia as sources of infinite wisdom over someone who just arrived in Eldh three years ago. Nothing like foreigners going "Oh, yes. I've heard about this incredibly rare thing in my studies somehow, let me lecture you." on a native person.
Plus, there was the laziest thing you can do when you don't want to describe what happened after the evilest evil got defeated in your last book: A time jump.
At the beginning of the book, three years have already passed and now everyone is married and either already has a kid or one is on the way.
The love triangle was solved off screen, so there is no pay-off there for the reader. How convinient.
Of course everyone was already in different locations at the beginning, as is tradition in this series, but in a twist of events, this time no one tried to get back to anyone else.
And then there was Grace. My beautiful, smart and strong Grace. Grace who went through horrible abuse as a child. Who never felt at home on Earth. Who embraced Eldh with all her might. Fought for it. Almost died for it. Several times. Who learned how to ride with ease. Who studied the language and history. Who found out that this fantasy world is actually where her parents came from. Who had friends and people who loved her for the first time in her life. Who always said that she had finally found her home.
This same Grace was now doubting EVERYTHING. Wanted to be somewhere else. Didn't want to be Queen. Didn't want people to rely on her. WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?
And it all culminated in (major spoiler)
And why she needed to learn that she can still fall in love, after what was done to her as a child, for a third (or was it already the fourth?) time is also a mystery to me.
I knew from the moment that Vani showed up and was all IT IS YOUR FATE YOU HAVE NO CHOICE. I WILL LET NO ARGUMENT COUNT CAUSE FATE! towards Travis - which is btw. the worst argument ever - that this book would let me down, but I wasn't quite ready for the level of disappointment I would feel after finishing. Most of my favorite characters ignored, a plot I wasn't interested in on Eldh (way too much T'Gol stuff) and exposition tango on Earth.
So, why did I give it two stars instead of one?
Well, first of all, I have a lot of fond feelings for this series. Will it go down as one of my all-time favorites? No. But it doesn't happen often that I'm able to read six books with the same characters in a row. You can't help getting attached to them. The thing is, all the characters I loved got a happy ending. Often with the person I wanted them to get a happy ending with.
I kind of wish now that book 5 had ended with an epilogue, telling us all about these happy endings instead of suffering through this book.
I was also glad to see that my probably favorite character Beltan (which I didn't expect after the first book), got time to shine. He had some great scenes and no character assassination in sight.
And for the first time since she showed up in the second book, I thought Deidre was interesting. I had already given up on her.
Plus, like in the other books, there were some scenes and moments that I thought were truly great and thought provoking.
So all in all a disappointment, but not a disaster. I'm still pretty sad.
Okay, let me straight out say what my biggest beef was with this book:
This is the last book in a series with quite a lot of characters and locations. So far it mostly managed to balance all that in a way that it felt like every important character got their part. The reader had time to get used to all of them and appreciate them.
Now, why would you - for your final book - ignore like half of them, make a minor character suddenly a major one, make up some new ones that you don't have time to flesh out and blather on for 100 (!!!) pages about the backstory of a character we only ever heard about before? And then send the few characters we have left on a long adventure into a desert, ignoring all the realms you created before? WHY?
If you'd have asked me before I read this book who the still-alive-at-this-point main characters of this story were, I would have said: Grace, Travis, Aryn, Beltan, Falken, Melia, Vani, Lirith, Sareth and Deidre. And I would have counted Hadrian Farr, Sir Tarus, Teravian, Master Larad and Aldeth as supporting characters.
If you're here for any of these characters except Grace, Travis, Vani, Deidre, Master Larad and Hadrian, you're out of luck. Hell, I think Aryn probably didn't get more than 10 pages altogether and she was a major POV character through all of the series since the second book.
And I decided that, no matter how annoying it got, I definitely prefer several centuries old Falken and Melia as sources of infinite wisdom over someone who just arrived in Eldh three years ago. Nothing like foreigners going "Oh, yes. I've heard about this incredibly rare thing in my studies somehow, let me lecture you." on a native person.
Plus, there was the laziest thing you can do when you don't want to describe what happened after the evilest evil got defeated in your last book: A time jump.
At the beginning of the book, three years have already passed and now everyone is married and either already has a kid or one is on the way.
The love triangle was solved off screen, so there is no pay-off there for the reader. How convinient.
Of course everyone was already in different locations at the beginning, as is tradition in this series, but in a twist of events, this time no one tried to get back to anyone else.
And then there was Grace. My beautiful, smart and strong Grace. Grace who went through horrible abuse as a child. Who never felt at home on Earth. Who embraced Eldh with all her might. Fought for it. Almost died for it. Several times. Who learned how to ride with ease. Who studied the language and history. Who found out that this fantasy world is actually where her parents came from. Who had friends and people who loved her for the first time in her life. Who always said that she had finally found her home.
This same Grace was now doubting EVERYTHING. Wanted to be somewhere else. Didn't want to be Queen. Didn't want people to rely on her. WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?
And it all culminated in (major spoiler)
And why she needed to learn that she can still fall in love, after what was done to her as a child, for a third (or was it already the fourth?) time is also a mystery to me.
I knew from the moment that Vani showed up and was all IT IS YOUR FATE YOU HAVE NO CHOICE. I WILL LET NO ARGUMENT COUNT CAUSE FATE! towards Travis - which is btw. the worst argument ever - that this book would let me down, but I wasn't quite ready for the level of disappointment I would feel after finishing. Most of my favorite characters ignored, a plot I wasn't interested in on Eldh (way too much T'Gol stuff) and exposition tango on Earth.
So, why did I give it two stars instead of one?
Well, first of all, I have a lot of fond feelings for this series. Will it go down as one of my all-time favorites? No. But it doesn't happen often that I'm able to read six books with the same characters in a row. You can't help getting attached to them. The thing is, all the characters I loved got a happy ending. Often with the person I wanted them to get a happy ending with.
I kind of wish now that book 5 had ended with an epilogue, telling us all about these happy endings instead of suffering through this book.
I was also glad to see that my probably favorite character Beltan (which I didn't expect after the first book), got time to shine. He had some great scenes and no character assassination in sight.
And for the first time since she showed up in the second book, I thought Deidre was interesting. I had already given up on her.
Plus, like in the other books, there were some scenes and moments that I thought were truly great and thought provoking.
So all in all a disappointment, but not a disaster. I'm still pretty sad.
January 24, 2011
For a book that concluded a series that really was finished after book 5, it really is a good read. Very fast paced, lots of action, magic, blood sorcery, and runes. This series as a whole is a must read in the fantasy genre. Travis and Grace are fabulous heroes that made this series so enjoyable. I have read most of these books more than twice now, and they are always better with each read. Highly recommend these books!
January 3, 2015
"It was amazing."
God, I loved this series so much.
I never would have looked twice at these books if not for how much I loved Anthony's other books under his Galen Beckett pen name. But I'm so glad I did. I adored them. I adored this.
Beltan and Travis happy together. Grace finally content with her life. The secrets of the Seekers and Morindu revealed at last. The amazing mix of science and magic that makes me love these books so much, how the Void and the Worlds are just Antimatter and Matter, the amazing wonderfulness that is absolutely everything about these books.
I loved the ending. This is a perfect final book.
God, I loved this series so much.
I never would have looked twice at these books if not for how much I loved Anthony's other books under his Galen Beckett pen name. But I'm so glad I did. I adored them. I adored this.
Beltan and Travis happy together. Grace finally content with her life. The secrets of the Seekers and Morindu revealed at last. The amazing mix of science and magic that makes me love these books so much, how the Void and the Worlds are just Antimatter and Matter, the amazing wonderfulness that is absolutely everything about these books.
I loved the ending. This is a perfect final book.
December 20, 2014
The conclusion to the Last Rune series starts at an odd place. At the end of the previous book, the Pale King has been defeated, as well as the old god Mogh who wanted to remake the world in his image. Travis Wilder re-created the world as it was to let his friends and the people of Eldh continue living their lives, in peace and happiness, and his closest friend, also from Earth, begin her rule as the Queen of the reborn kingdom of Malchior. What could possibly go wrong?
Three years later, they find out. Magic begins to fail, people become listless, and a blot of darkness appears in the sky, blocking a swath of stars from view. Grace heads off to try to find Travis, even though he's begun a life back on Earth, with his love Beltan, introducing the warrior to the modern world. As things progress, Grace learns that the problems with the world extend across continents, and all types of magic, and with Eldh and Earth inevitably linked, similar effects start appearing on Earth as well, driving the Seekers to get involved, as well as sorcerers set on grabbing the ancient power of Morindu the Dark.
Soon enough different lives on different worlds become entwined again, and Travis and Grace need to once again delve into the most ancient of secrets that are behind what looks to be the end of the entire universe. The First Stone does an admirable job bringing back all of the loose threads from the series to be finally addressed, and wraps up an epic story of two worlds and the entire universe deftly.
My one complaint was the hundred page section in the middle of the book, which shifted to an entirely new character's history and backstory. While it did address some of the history of the plot, I felt it was disjointed and could have easily been either drastically trimmed, or preferably replaced with dialogue between the new character and the existing one who meets him and only cover the most critical parts of the plot.
Still, despite this flaw, the book was a fun read, and a satisfying conclusion to the series.
Three years later, they find out. Magic begins to fail, people become listless, and a blot of darkness appears in the sky, blocking a swath of stars from view. Grace heads off to try to find Travis, even though he's begun a life back on Earth, with his love Beltan, introducing the warrior to the modern world. As things progress, Grace learns that the problems with the world extend across continents, and all types of magic, and with Eldh and Earth inevitably linked, similar effects start appearing on Earth as well, driving the Seekers to get involved, as well as sorcerers set on grabbing the ancient power of Morindu the Dark.
Soon enough different lives on different worlds become entwined again, and Travis and Grace need to once again delve into the most ancient of secrets that are behind what looks to be the end of the entire universe. The First Stone does an admirable job bringing back all of the loose threads from the series to be finally addressed, and wraps up an epic story of two worlds and the entire universe deftly.
My one complaint was the hundred page section in the middle of the book, which shifted to an entirely new character's history and backstory. While it did address some of the history of the plot, I felt it was disjointed and could have easily been either drastically trimmed, or preferably replaced with dialogue between the new character and the existing one who meets him and only cover the most critical parts of the plot.
Still, despite this flaw, the book was a fun read, and a satisfying conclusion to the series.
November 2, 2013
Really enjoyed this series -- it was in many ways sort of a pulp sf blend of, like, the Lord of the Rings with Back to the Future and a dash of super sweet pining and romance. Really enjoyed the matter of fact depiction of gay and lesbian characters, of people being bi and of the trans* character. These books had a lot of heart, too, and I was definitely cheering for not just the main characters that we grew to know and enjoy but a huge number of the background minor characters too -- the author does a great job of sketching people three dimensionally (sometimes too good a job, woe for the body count of charming innocent bystanders in some cases :/)
Trigger warnings for one attempted assault 'on screen' in the first book, and for repeated reference (and several flashback scenes) to a main character's history of sexual abuse as a child. I really wish there'd been another way chosen to incorporate the plot points that that served, but the author did do a fairly sensitive job with it, at least. I can probably give more details if friends would like them, but I would still definitely recommend reading this series. (I want moooooooooore!)
Trigger warnings for one attempted assault 'on screen' in the first book, and for repeated reference (and several flashback scenes) to a main character's history of sexual abuse as a child. I really wish there'd been another way chosen to incorporate the plot points that that served, but the author did do a fairly sensitive job with it, at least. I can probably give more details if friends would like them, but I would still definitely recommend reading this series. (I want moooooooooore!)
December 9, 2009
Not my favorite ending. Good series though.
January 14, 2020
With this book, my second reading of the Last Rune series comes to a close.
In many ways, the preceding volume felt like the true ending; it wrapped up the biggest plotlines that had been running all the way back to the beginning of the book, and provided an ending for almost every character. The First Stone, therefore, feels more like a coda than a conclusion, showing where most of the surviving characters ended up and telling one last story with Grace and Travis.
And yet, the core plot of the novel is the crux of everything that's come before. The secrets of the Philosophers, the Scirathi, the God-King Oru and Morindu the Dark, and even the origins of Earth and Eldh themselves are all revealed here; without this book, the series would not truly be complete.
This book is also considerably more focused than the others, focusing entirely on Grace, Travis, Deirde, and the few companions traveling with them. Most of the other characters show up only briefly, and almost entirely in the first hundred pages or so; we see what happened to them in the three years since the last book, but not much more than that. While it's unfortunate not to see much of Melia, Falken, and Aryn (among others), the additional focus on Deirdre, Travis, and especially Grace greatly benefits them and the story.
All in all, a satisfying conclusion to a series that, thankfully, mostly still holds up nearly fifteen years later.
In many ways, the preceding volume felt like the true ending; it wrapped up the biggest plotlines that had been running all the way back to the beginning of the book, and provided an ending for almost every character. The First Stone, therefore, feels more like a coda than a conclusion, showing where most of the surviving characters ended up and telling one last story with Grace and Travis.
And yet, the core plot of the novel is the crux of everything that's come before. The secrets of the Philosophers, the Scirathi, the God-King Oru and Morindu the Dark, and even the origins of Earth and Eldh themselves are all revealed here; without this book, the series would not truly be complete.
This book is also considerably more focused than the others, focusing entirely on Grace, Travis, Deirde, and the few companions traveling with them. Most of the other characters show up only briefly, and almost entirely in the first hundred pages or so; we see what happened to them in the three years since the last book, but not much more than that. While it's unfortunate not to see much of Melia, Falken, and Aryn (among others), the additional focus on Deirdre, Travis, and especially Grace greatly benefits them and the story.
All in all, a satisfying conclusion to a series that, thankfully, mostly still holds up nearly fifteen years later.
October 5, 2019
This is the last of a six book series, The Last Rune Series. I tend to be a bit of a binge reader, so I tend to read the whole series before totally judging. Those of you who know my reviews, know that I almost never give 5 stars. Therefore, four stars is damn good. I would give 4.5 but it is not possible.
This is a great series - an epic fantasy combined with a smidge of sci-fi. Many of the books end HEAFN, but the last is a HEA - my favorite. The books feature places where same-sex relationships are looked at as one variant of normal, and they play an important role in several leading characters. However, if you are looking for hot sex, you ain't gonna find it. Warm love that suggests that hot sex happens - yes, but scenes describing love-making no.
That having been said, this has been the best read I have done in a long time. There is deep character development, intricate interwoven plots, magic, mystery, intrigue, and more. I recommend it strongly.
This is a great series - an epic fantasy combined with a smidge of sci-fi. Many of the books end HEAFN, but the last is a HEA - my favorite. The books feature places where same-sex relationships are looked at as one variant of normal, and they play an important role in several leading characters. However, if you are looking for hot sex, you ain't gonna find it. Warm love that suggests that hot sex happens - yes, but scenes describing love-making no.
That having been said, this has been the best read I have done in a long time. There is deep character development, intricate interwoven plots, magic, mystery, intrigue, and more. I recommend it strongly.
May 12, 2020
When I first picked up this series at Value Village, I did not expect the heartwarming queer ending that I desperately wanted to see in books and stories. Travis did not suffer because of his sexuality and the romance played an important part in the story, but the book was not centred around it. The relationship added depth to Travis’ and Beltan’s characters. With every book, I hoped that they would work out. Beltan and Travis for ever!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 22, 2018
This was a great ending to a series I really did not want to end! How often does one still want to story to go on after 6 books? All the loose ends were gathered & dealt with...not all as I could have wished, but that is the way of epic storytelling. To state specific examples might spoil the ending for others...so I will just say...but Grace...why?? ; ))
I will miss Travis & Eldh...sigh...
I will miss Travis & Eldh...sigh...
October 24, 2021
Loved this series when it came out then nothing
March 17, 2015
The story picks up three years after the events of book five. Travis and Beltan live together now in London (finally), Vani has disappeared (I don´t care) and Grace has made her home at Gravenfist Keep. But one day Vani stays before Travis´ and Beltan´s door with her (and Beltan´s) daughter. She tells Travis that the Lost City of Morindu the Dark has been found and that the sorcerers of Scirath are already seeking it out. Travis must return to Eldh..
For a last ime Travis has to go back to Eldh to save the day but honestly I found this book not nearly as exciting as the previous volumes (and even there the suspense was tolerable). It was seemingly written to tie up loose ends and to tell us about the origins of the Philosophers – the story about Marius Lucius Albrecht the most famous Seeker in history is about 100 pages long! And there is a new danger ahead: a rift in the sky on both worlds and the Philosophers don´t seem to be what we thought they were. Also the drastic change of Travis´ feelings for Vani were after all his indecision and pining at least astonishing. Just as fast as he fell in love with her just as fast he noticed that he never really loved her??! And I could have made it without Grace´s tries to persuade the people of Eldh to elect their rulers in the future.. for god´s sake let Eldh have their kings and queens (wasn´t there a desiderata about not to interfere in other worlds?).
Summary: I liked the Last Rune Series and I can´t say it was lost time reading it but I´m nevertheless happy to have made it through all these adventures unharmed. The bad guys are defeated the good guys are rewarded (well not all, there were victims) and I can venture on - reassured that the world was saved and still exists - to other shores.. ahm books I mean books of course....
Website of the author: http://www.thelastrune.com/
For a last ime Travis has to go back to Eldh to save the day but honestly I found this book not nearly as exciting as the previous volumes (and even there the suspense was tolerable). It was seemingly written to tie up loose ends and to tell us about the origins of the Philosophers – the story about Marius Lucius Albrecht the most famous Seeker in history is about 100 pages long! And there is a new danger ahead: a rift in the sky on both worlds and the Philosophers don´t seem to be what we thought they were. Also the drastic change of Travis´ feelings for Vani were after all his indecision and pining at least astonishing. Just as fast as he fell in love with her just as fast he noticed that he never really loved her??! And I could have made it without Grace´s tries to persuade the people of Eldh to elect their rulers in the future.. for god´s sake let Eldh have their kings and queens (wasn´t there a desiderata about not to interfere in other worlds?).
Summary: I liked the Last Rune Series and I can´t say it was lost time reading it but I´m nevertheless happy to have made it through all these adventures unharmed. The bad guys are defeated the good guys are rewarded (well not all, there were victims) and I can venture on - reassured that the world was saved and still exists - to other shores.. ahm books I mean books of course....
Website of the author: http://www.thelastrune.com/
February 15, 2016
Reading the final book of a series is always a love/hate process. You love the story and getting to revisit its world again, but at the same time you know it's coming to an end. And endings are something I always struggle with. This book was definitely a struggle for me. Anthony did a good job rounding out the story and bringing various plots to a close, but did so in a very finite way. The end felt like a kick in the stomach to me, as the connection between Earth and Eldh where permanently severed, therefor ending the relationships between the characters and taking away the literal and figurative magic of both worlds. I didn't like that. I didn't like when Durge died in the previous book. I didn't like when Dierdre died in this book. And I'd didn't like that Travis, Grace, Beltan and Nim decided to stay on Earth. But yet I couldn't stop reading and was drawn deeper into the story. That definitely makes it a powerful story, if not an easy one to swallow.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 2, 2011
Good book and continuation of the story. Nice ending to the hero's tale. It did slow down and get a little hard to read once the journal was found, but once you got past that it picked up and continued on nicely.
June 16, 2014
Such a deeply mediocre series, but I do enjoy it so. I have a real fondness for the characters, even if the writing becomes a bit of a slog. This particular book is great if you are into reading about a character reading someone's diary where they are writing about reading another diary.
January 8, 2015
Brilliant end to the series. The story lines were all tied up nicely, (though I didn't understand one of the main character's final decisions).
July 4, 2018
I honestly felt the last book was really forced, and would have enjoyed the series to have concluded with the fifth book.
October 28, 2013
I don't think there are words for how completely bizarro these books are, in a good way.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews