Flight of the Nighthawks

The Darkwar Saga #1

by Raymond E. Feist

A new evil threatens Midkemia, its web stretching from the deepest criminal underworld all the way up to the highest seats of power in ancient Kesh. And the Conclave of Shadows, charged unexpectedly with the training of two apprentices, must also best powerful agents of the darkest magic . . . for the fate of two worlds lies in the balance.

The New York Times bestselling author and master of fantasy Raymond E. Feist returns to his signature world of Midkemia in this first book in a gripping new trilogy that ushers in the third, and most dramatic, Riftwar yet: the Darkwar.

In the middle of the night on Sorcerer's Isle, the powerful sorcerer Pug is awakened from a nightmare that portends destruction for all of Midkemia. Disturbed by the dream, Pug calls for a convening of the Conclave of Shadows. Though Pug does not yet know it, his son Magnus has discovered the cause of Pug's prophetic dream: a beacon has been unleashed, directing a vast army of alien invaders to Midkemia, an army so formidable that even the might of the Tsurani Empire might fall before its fury.

Meanwhile, in far Stardock town, two boys are coming of age. But on the dusty path that leads them from home they are thrust by fate into a life undreamed of, becoming enmeshed in intrigue, murder, and treason. Though untrained and unready, they are called upon by the mysterious Conclave to travel deep into the heart of the Empire of Great Kesh, to confront a plot so dark and twisted it will implicate even the highest-ranking nobles of the Empire, even members of the royal family itself. And behind this plot they discover the ancient Brotherhood of Death, the clan of assassins known as the Nighthawks.

And Pug will find himself once again facing his old nemesis, the evil wizard formerly known as Sidi, now Leso Varen, in a confrontation with everything at stake: his honor, his life, and the future of Midkemia.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy, Epic, Ebooks, Science Fiction Fantasy

420 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Raymond E. Feist was born Raymond E. Gonzales III, but took his adoptive step-father's surname when his mother remarried Felix E. Feist. He graduated with a B.A. in Communication Arts with Honors in 1977 from the University of California at San Diego. During that year Feist had some ideas for a novel about a boy who would be a magician. He wrote the novel two years later, and it was published in 1982 by Doubleday. Feist currently lives in San Diego with his children, where he collects fine wine, DVDs, and books on a variety of topics of personal interest: wine, biographies, history, and, especially, the history of American Professional Football.

Reviews

[Bradley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Remember the fun of the original Riftwar saga? Add some polish and shine. Mix it up with new and fun characters from the last few books, and even send some rubes to Kesh. Sound like fun? Make sure the intrigue is high, the stakes are much, much higher, and throw in a mad god invading the world and make it spicy with a mad body-hopping mage.

This is Feist doing what he's best at and it shows. I'm having a great time.

And yes, Pug is in here. That means that the fate of many many worlds is at stake. And the gods are freaking out. :)

Is this series getting really good again? I'd say so. It was never all that bad, but all the things I used to get annoyed with have been excised nicely. Now it's all adventure, intrigue, battles, spies, and enough assassins and mad gods to keep anyone amused. :)

[Sotiris Karaiskos · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first thing I understood by reading the first part of this trilogy is that the author when he was writing this book did not had many fresh ideas to get it started. The beginning of history takes us to a peaceful place where two young men without having anything specific to do finally leave to engage in an espionage case, just when is ascertained that a great evil threatens the universe. Of course, all of this reminds us something, but better to go further because things are getting more interesting there. Then we return to our well-known heroes from the previous books, and from that point on they are guiding the plot. But things are not improving remarkably, as the lack of originality continues to torment us, with theological discussions that recycle the same issues, the pitfalls they face in a spectacular way, and the magical end that leaves promises for the sequel. To be fair, of course, all of this means that there are many of the elements that make this whole series special, with humour, debates about good and evil, the little dose of emotion where it should, the action that escalates in end. I just waited for some surprise, which would lead the story to different paths and I did not find it.

Το πρώτο πράγμα που κατάλαβα διαβάζοντας το πρώτο μέρος αυτής της τριλογίας είναι ότι ο συγγραφέας γράφοντας αυτό το βιβλίο δεν είχε και πολλές φρέσκες ιδέες για να το ξεκινήσει. Το ξεκίνημα της ιστορίας μας μεταφέρει σε ένα ειρηνικό μέρος όπου δύο νεαροί άνδρες χωρίς να έχουν κάτι συγκεκριμένο να κάνουν τελικά φεύγουν για να εμπλακούν σε μία υπόθεση κατασκοπείας, την ώρα που διαπιστώνεται ότι ένα μεγάλο κακό απειλεί το σύμπαν. Φυσικά όλα αυτά κάτι μας θυμίζουν αλλά καλύτερα να πάμε παρακάτω γιατί εκεί τα πράγματα γίνονται πιο ενδιαφέροντα. Στη συνέχεια επιστρέφουμε στους γνωστούς μας ήρωες από τα προηγούμενα βιβλία και αυτή από εκεί και πέρα καθοδηγούν την πλοκή. Βέβαια τα πράγματα δεν βελτιώνονται σε εντυπωσιακό βαθμό καθώς η έλλειψη πρωτοτυπίας εξακολουθεί να μας βασανίζει, με τις θεολογικές συζητήσεις που ανακυκλώνουν τα ίδια θέματα, τις παγίδες που αντιμετωπίζουν με θεαματικό τρόπο και το μαγικό τέλος που αφήνει υποσχέσεις για τη συνέχεια. Για να είμαι δίκαιος, βέβαια, όλα αυτά σημαίνουν ότι υπάρχουν αρκετά από τα στοιχεία που κάνουν όλη αυτή τη σειρά ξεχωριστή, με το χιούμορ, τις συζητήσεις για το καλό και το κακό, τη μικρή δόση συναισθήματος εκεί που πρέπει, τη δράση που κλιμακώνεται στο τέλος. Απλά περίμενα να υπάρχει κάποια έκπληξη, κάτι που θα οδηγεί την ιστορία σε διαφορετικά μονοπάτια και αυτό δεν το βρήκα.

[Nikola Pavlovic · Rating 5 out of 5]

Toliko je knjiga napisao da prosto mora da reciklira, i to samoga sebe. Ali hej, barem reciklira jednog od najboljih :D :D :D Pored same reciklaze ova knjiga donosi i neke nove elemente u velikoj borbi dobra i zla ci epilog zeljno iscekujem u narednih par serijala. Novi likovi su dobro osmisljeni, uvedeni u pricu i tu su da zamene one cuvene junake zbog kojih smo i zavoleli Riftwar serijal. Mapa se siri, pozornica je sve veca i nijedan svet niti nacija nisu postedjeni zlog dodira prognanog, Personifikacije zla ne interesuju granice a to nama citaocima donosi puno vise informacija o do sada spominjanim ali slabo istrazenim delovima Midkemijskog sveta. Fajst je pun samopouzdanja i zeljan pisanja, Fajst uziva u onome sto radi.

[YouKneeK · Rating 3 out of 5]

Flight of the Nighthawks is the first book in the Darkwar Saga, the third-to-last subseries in the very large Riftwar Cycle.

I had mixed feelings about this one. Sometimes it held my attention very well, but at other times I had trouble focusing on it. Part of that could be outside distractions, but those distractions were no worse this week than they’ve been in recent weeks, so I don’t think so. All the books have had recaps to some extent, but they seemed especially tedious in this book. Whenever I caught myself staring off into space and thinking about something else instead of reading, I almost always returned my attention to my book to find myself reading some sort of recap. I imagine people who had a longer wait between books, especially those who read this series over many years as it was originally published, may have appreciated them more. I, however, have read these first 24 books within the past 6 months so the details are still pretty fresh in my mind.

Aside from the recaps, which were especially prevalent in the tiresome scenes with the magicians, most of the story held my attention pretty well. Feist used a lot of familiar plot devices and character types which I tend to enjoy, but there wasn’t anything really new here. I didn’t feel like any real progress was made in the overarching plot, and the end was kind of an “ugh, not again” moment, but maybe I’ll feel differently by the end of this trilogy.

I’m going to rate this at 3.5 stars since I was entertained for the greater portion of it, but I’m rounding down to 3 on Goodreads due to the frequent feelings of repetitiveness and sameness.

[Sud666 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Feist's Darkwar Saga is starting out better than his Riftwar.

So it is set in the future. Pug is now old and his first wife, whom I liked, is gone and he has married the annoying shrew Miranda for some reason. But the true story is about his sons now- Caleb, a non-magical boy, and his brother Magnus, a powerful magus.

In the Kesh Empire something strange is happening. Nobles are being killed off and there are rumors of a secret group operating out of the shadows. The story revolves around Pug and his sons banding together to go to Kesh and root out this mysterious assassin's guild known as Nighthawks.

Fast paced and entertaining I enjoyed this first book in this series. The character of Bek shows real promise and this "fragment of the Namless One" is rather interesting. The Nighthawk operation and the efforts of Pug and his Conclave were well done. A good first book in this trilogy.

[William Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was actually the first Feist book I've read and I think it serves as a great introduction to anyone who also hadn't read his other works.

Nighthawks still remains one of my favourite Feist books too.

[Alex Jackson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now that was a proper fantasy story.

I've never read Feist before but if this is anything to go by, I will quickly become an avid reader of his work.

Flight of the Nighthawks felt like everything you could imagine and want in a traditional fantasy novel. Think of those paint-style covers on books in the 80s and 90s, with monsters, magic, and barbarians on the cover in some crazy outfits.

This channelled all of that. Blue Oyster Cult would probably write the soundtrack for it.

I know that this is not the typical jumping off point for the world of Midkemia and Pog's story, but I genuinely loved how I could pick this up, and not feel like I'd missed out on the other stories that came before it.

This is the third Riftwar (an era/storyline), the Darkwar.

There are a multitude of references to characters and stories that come before it, but Feist speaks about them in such a way where you're included in the story, and don't feel alienated - even if you haven't read them (like me).

There is a host of characters, and shifting perspectives, and I really had a good time with each of them.

Genuinely, this was such a surprisingly enjoyable read, I found myself wanting to finish and keep learning more about both the characters, and the world.

Already started book 2.

4.0/5.0

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book 23 in the world of the Midkemia. This book has a lot of my favorite characters in it and that made it so much fun to read.

Leso Varen is back-the guy just cannot stay dead! And his evil magic goes full force into the country of Kesh. The intrigue and conspiracy run deep into the noble lines. And, while we know Varen has resurrected himself in a new body, no one knows whose! Feist builds the tension until the very end. The writing reminded me of my very first time reading Feist. As I said, so much fun. I am going to be very lost, not having these books as a great escape, when I finally complete the series.

[Matthew Green · Rating 2 out of 5]

Flight of the Nighthawks has a good narrative that flows rather nicely. However, the plotline is one of Feist's weaker works, resulting in a somewhat meandering and, in the end, cliched style.

The book begins focusing on the two boys, Tad and Zane, though somewhere along the line, Feist seemed to forget about them, leaving me wondering why he introduced them in the first place. Identifying a main character toward the end seemed rather difficult as it seemed to be spread out over numerous characters. While incorporating a number of different main characters into a storyline is not a poor writing technique, it fails here primarily because Feist seemed to have the two boys in mind, then changed his mind or became too involved with other ideas to continue with them. Therefore, they simply don't hold the book together.

The thrust of the series also seems to have devolved into a simple chasing after Leso Varen, an all-too-familiar plot of one evil wizard threatening the world and a race to stop him. While the threat of the talnoy and Dasati remain, they are relegated to the background. Even the return of the nighthawks, the very threat for which the book is titled, are not particularly threatening and seem only a rung on the ladder toward Leso Varen. For that matter, when dealing with the nighthawks, unlike in A Darkness at Sethanon, there was no real sense of danger. I felt little apprehension at the characters' activities when chasing after a guild of assassins, a deadness that seemed inappropriate.

Finally, the concluding chapters were simply cliche. While Feist took pains to never directly mention what the characters had come to conclude about Varen's hiding place, it was rather obvious and particularly unoriginal. For the author to drop mention of Kaspar and Tal and others' knowledge while not disclosing it to the reader, as if it were to be a great surprise and leaving the reader on the edge of his seat, was simply trite at the reveal. Both more subtlety and creativity was warranted.

Still, I didn't find myself bored with the book until the last few chapters, and most of my frustrations really came about after reflecting on the storyline. Feist's writing style is generally fluid and interesting, which makes this book a reasonably enjoyable read, just not one that anybody should expect much out of in the end.

[Jamie · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wow, Raymond Feist is really phoning it in here. Feist is one of my guilty pleasures as far as books go, and only one of two high fantasy authors I read everything from any more (the other one being George R. R. Martin). That may have to change, though.

Flight of the Nighthawks really isn't all that well written, what with half the characters using idioms straight out of the 20th century and with clumsy and distracting phrasing that any editor should have been able to catch. It seems pretty clear that Feist wants to write something in another genre, but can't make himself or is just fulfilling some contract. Two of the characters even get drunk on whiskey (a far cry from the staples of ale or wine) and one of them owns a restaurant. I'm not against breaking out of the mould, but Feist's really not doing anything interesting with it; it's like he's breaking the rules out of bordom, not creativity.

The book doesn't even have a very interesting story, unlike previous installments in this new series. The pacing is completely bizarre, the characters are uniformly uninteresting, and Feist can't seem to let go of old standbys (though that's probably just as well, since his new characters are unremarkable). Oh, and everybody gets a plotline in this book. Magnus? He's got one. Pug? One for him. Nakor? Caleb? Tal Hawkins? Kaspar? Yep, all got their own private plotlines. Miranda? Well, no --she's a woman and for some reason Feist doesn't write women. Just as well, though. And it's not like all these threads weave together in any significant way. It's practically the SAME overall story as the last book --cliched, mad magician disguises self and tries to take over the world only to be suddenly stoped by a party of high level characters once the page count hits a certain mark. Bleh.

I think Feist needs to take another break. Write something in another genre, whatever. I'm sure I'll read the last 2 or however many books in this series just to close it out, but I'm not exactly hopping from one foot to the next in anticipation and I really hope things pick back up.

[Baal Of · Rating 4 out of 5]

This seems even more familiar (recycled?) than other Feist books, at least at the beginning. Yet another pair of brothers starting off at level 1, untrained but with promise, being sent off with someone who is going to be their mentor. I guess I shouldn't be ready to judge at 90 pages in, but damn...

---

Feist is still completely unable to find any word for hiding other than "secreted" even when Talwin (if I remember correctly) was blending himself into a crowd, and of course my brain working the way it does, envisioned Talwin excreting himself from the ground into the mass of people like some kind of slimy tumorous growth, which I assume is not the mental image Feist was aiming for. I have my own writing tics, but I'm not a published professional.

---

Turns out this book is not really about the newly introduced brothers Tad and Zane, rather it's really about familiar established characters Pug, Talwin, Nakor, Kaspar, Miranda, Magnus, and with a special focus on Pug's son Caleb. I'm guessing that Feist is setting up for more development of T&Z in subsequent volumes but for now they are in their formative years.

---

The plot itself is quite fun, checking all the boxes for D&D based epic fantasy, i.e. it's tasty snack food. With all the heavy non-fiction I've been reading lately, sometimes I just need a snack. 3.5

[Phillip · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not sure how many more times I'll let Feist get away with the framework of "a young man (two in this case), through an unlikely set of circumstances, begin(s) training in a wide variety of skills - swordfighting, athletics, tracking, horseback-riding, gambling, etc. - and find themselves integral participants in battling evil with potentially world-spanning ramifications." But based on how much I enjoyed this book, apparently at least one more. Granted, in this instance that was just one of multiple intertwining plot threads, but it was certainly there nonetheless.

And what can I say? It continues to work for me. I really liked the characters introduced in the previous series - Talwin, Kaspar, and Amafi - returning to join the old favorites (Nakor remains one of my favorite characters in fantasy), as well as the few new to this book.

A fun start to a new trilogy, and I'm nearing the end of the Riftwar Cycle.

[Aaron · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars! (Close to being 5!)

This is the first book in the Darkwar Saga. The cast of characters in this books was great! It might be the top 1 or 2 books in the Feist world so far. It had some great favorites that have been with us and made appearances throughout the series. The new characters that were introduced were really good. They fit right in and were likable. They were introduced in such a way you weren’t sure how they would fit into the story, but now I’m excited to see how they will fit in the later books. The villian appears to have made a comeback at the end of the book, so we will see how that progresses into the next read. Overall the story had action but was also written to give the world and characters life.

[Cognatious Thunk · Rating 2 out of 5]

Since it reads a bit like an extended synapses of every other book the author has ever written, I am forestalling definitive judgement until I read his first book (or possibly books.) However, since the author's focus seems to be equally divided between the books plot and his past accomplishments, it's quite likely my rating will go down.
Amendment: I was correct in my assumptions. This book is equal parts fan service "Hey remember when that character did that cool thing you liked," intermixed with a tepid plot.

[Edwin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dit verhaal speelt verder in de toekomst dan 'De oorlog van de grote scheuring'. Puc is ouder geworden, en zijn eerste vrouw is al lang geleden overleden. Hij is nu getrouwd met Miranda, de dochter van Macros. De hoofdrollen zijn echter vooral weggelegd voor hun zonen, Magus, een grote magiër, en Caleb, die geen magische geven heeft.

Er is iets vreemds aan de hand in Kesh. Nobelen worden er vermoord, en er gaan geruchten over een groep mensen die zich in de schaduw ophouden. Puc en zijn twee zoons werken samen om de geheimzinnige moordenaars (bekend als de Nachtraven) op te rollen.

In het begin loopt het boek wat langzaam, maar gaandeweg komt de vaart er in, een nieuwe personage, Bek, wordt geïntroduceerd, en hij is een interessante toevoeging.

Wat ik jammer vond, is dat de stiefzonen van Caleb, niet echt uit de verf kwamen, en we ze weinig in actie hebben gezien.

Die nieuwe Nederlandse vertaler heeft schijnbaar niet de eerdere boeken gelezen, want anders had deze vast de naam van Claudius Haviks aangehouden, in plaats van Engelse naam.

[Blake · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favorite fantasy author of all time. It's just a joy to read his work, as he continues the story of Pug, and totally keeps you hanging on by having Pug, many books ago, told everyone around him, his loved ones, would die. Amazing character development.

[Martin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Do you think it is crazy to jump into the series on book 24? Well, they don't call me madlad for no reason. (Nobody is actually calling me madlad- I'm just trying to reach today's youth.) I got his book as a gift from my dear wife as she is trying to expand my horizons. After last year's summer with Alastair Reynolds and Peter Hamilton, I was prepared for something different than sci-fi, and I got this book.
Flight of the nighthawks continues Feist's Riftwar saga, but it is still the first book in its own trilogy - The Darkwarsaga. Let me be honest; I was completely lost. There were about 20 main characters introduced, each with their own intricate backstory that they briefly hinted at before disappearing from the narrative. However, I still managed to finish the book and even enjoyed it - albeit with some difficulty.
Overall, I get why Raymond Feist is such a beloved author - "Flight of the Nighthawks" is a thrilling page-turner that kept me engaged until the end. I'm looking forward to reading the other two books in the trilogy, hoping they'll give me some more context so I won't be so lost next time.

[Shivesh · Rating 2 out of 5]

An inauspicious start to this trilogy... Feist has this down to a formula, with strict ingredients and instructions. A standard trilogy starter, with cardboard characters and a generic plot. Pug, Miranda, Nakor and Tomas take their usual turns in this fantasy, without much reminding us of why we liked them to begin with. Leso Varen, the mad mage from the previous trilogy, is back and madder than ever. This is a guy who can't die! Some cheap theatrics and poorly written intrigue with the court of Kesh lead us to giant plot holes and inconsistencies that will take us through the rest of this muddled mess.

Unlike some of his earlier novels, this one is a fast paced and fast moving tale, with plenty of excitement. But where is our love for the characters? It is simply not there. How many times can Nakor grin after every sentence? How many times can characters shrug nonchalantly? It gets irritating.

Pug is completely lost and confused in this book. For being the leader of the Conclave, and manifestly the most important, most knowledgeable and most powerful magician in the universe, Feist doesn't give him much to do, and certainly makes him an idiot compared to the Pug of the Riftwar. It is a travesty to see major fantasy figure like Pug reduced to this. Magnus, Jommy and the rest of the "kids" are poor imitations of Jimmy the Hand and others. Pity that Erik von Darkmoor of the Serpentwar Saga actually seems like a complex and interesting figure compared to these people.

However, the story moves along quite rapidly and Leso Varen is entertaining in a silly kind of way. As the most powerful necromancer in the world, all he could produce was some black flame and a scary voice. Sheesh. The Dasati are appropriately frightening but they don't measure up to the dread we felt at the entrance of the Tsuaranni so long ago. More's the pity.

Two stars for the story and a decent start to what can be an interesting saga.

[Stephen Sims · Rating 1 out of 5]

And the honour of my first 1 star review goes to.... this book.... something about Nighthawks... not really sure who they are still.

1.5 stars really...Blimey... 400 pages....250 pages of pointless nothingness at the front end... introducing 500 characters and half explaining nothing... followed by 90 pages and hinting something might happen...50 pages of action before the end followed by 10 pages setting up the sequel (why bother, I’m certainly not going to read it)

Every fantasy cliche and the most obvious plot twist to boot... have enjoyed fantasy in the past but never read Feist before. Didn’t mind the writing style and description but seriously there was no character development for all that wordiness and nothing happening... not a quitter otherwise I would have ditched it.

Seriously not the worst book I’ve ever read but not far off and possibly the most boring.... got an upgrade to 1.5 off the back of 50 pages that was actually good....

[Brad OHagan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was disappointed in this book. It seemed that about half way through a ghost writer may have taken over. Whilst plot development was still along the normal lines for this epic saga of books, writing style changed with a lot of abnormal dialogue between characters and some outright errors in character history raised. These things took the gloss off the story and frustrated me. Then again, maybe the chaotic writing was a function of the nameless one? I will continue to read on. I know these are old now, but I hope that there is more consistency with the initial writing style and character back stories in the remaining books. .

[Gavin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Three things. First, someone should rewrite the preface. This isn't really a story of brothers or assassins. It's more politics and sorcery. Second, this book is alright. It's nothing great, but narration flows nicely and the anticipation to the climax is steady. Third, as warning, as I found out, this book is the first of a saga, but is not something brand new. There are more works, more story already built into the world this story takes place in.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to say that this wasn't my favourite, I liked some of the new characters that he entered into the story, but found the backstory weak at best. I usually pick up one of his books and feel like I don't want to tear myself away, but this one I found hard to pick up. Here's hoping it gets better with the next instalment.

[Plesz Roland · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sok dolgot nemértettem ezzel a könyvel kapcsolatban. De volt benne tipikus kiképzés, világbemutatás... mondjuk leso varen továbbra is csapnivaló főgonosz. Nagyon gondolkozom a három és a négy pont között; végül négy pontot fog kapni, de csak mert Feist...

[Thomas Arvanitis · Rating 4 out of 5]

More like 3.5 stars really. A breezy read, interesting without being overly deep. Quite enjoyable, but with many, many jarring typos. The editor of this edition was asleep at the wheel.

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s been a long time since I went back and checked on my friends from Midkemia but I’m glad I did. I started reading the Magician series about 20 years or so back and fell in love with it. The first two, “Apprentice” and “Master”, have permanent spots on the top shelf of my prized bookcase. I read the next four or five and lost all interest in the series, except those first two. Having seen me read those first two multiple times over the years my wife was no doubt thrilled to give me a box found at a thrift store that contained numerous books by REF. Having little else to read I began my adventures in Midkemia again.

From the original, at least a century of time has past so some of the characters and past histories were lost on me but this book does quite well as a standalone. The writing is on point as usual with likable and believable characters (though usually stereotypical) and good pacing throughout. This one has a much darker tone than some of the earlier novels but still has some of the lightness and wonder to help balance the tone of the book.

I’d recommend this book to a new reader or to a fan of the series but, it does contain echoes of all of Mr. Feist’s works in that it’s a coming of age tale for two (or more) adolescent boys who are brothers or who have formed a brotherhood between them. Not a bad thing, but it was the reason for my hiatus in the first place.

[Truls Ljungström · Rating 3 out of 5]

Inte dålig, men långt ifrån fantastisk. Denna bok upprepar mest gammal skåpmat - magernas hemliga orden har hittat ett fynd, och tecken på att en vandöd trollkarl har tagit sig en ny kropp. Fyndet kopplas till en annan värld, och studeras vetenskapligt. Den vandöda trollkarlen besegras, men inte riktigt (i så fall hade det inte funnits möjlighet till uppföljare).

Denna är av samma generella kvalitet som conan-pastischerna. Jag rekommenderar den bara för samma läsare.

[WhatShouldIRead]

OK I give up. Apparently this guy is a really good fantasy writer so I don't know if it was my mood, the small reading spurts I had or I just wasn't in the mood for the book after awhile, but I'm putting this one aside for now. I hope to pick it up where I left off soon but for now I have other - many other - books waiting for me to get to.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Darkwar Saga is another installment in the adventures of the magician Pug, and a continued exploration of the universe within which Feist sets his novels.
One of the things I find most interesting about Feist's universe is how expansive it is, covering not just planets and space but also realms of existence, higher or lower dimensions. This is one of the original concepts of his work, in the connection between Midkemia and Kelewan through the the Rift (as explained in the Riftwar Saga). Here in the Darkwar series, the conflict comes in a potential invasion through a rift from not just another planet, but from a wholly different realm (somewhat analogous to a different dimension).
One of the things I find most frustrating about Feist's universe is how expansive it is, with poorly explained connections between realms or levels of reality or suchlike. This is a difficult concept to convey and only works as a setting with magic and suspended disbelief. I really like Feist's idea of the Hall of Worlds, a magically accessible connection to wide-flung planets and places. I don't quite understand why we have to change realms to find a new disaster for Pug and Midkemia. A lot of words were spent trying to explain the setting and how changing realms will impact the characters.
That said, the imagined culture of the Dasati invaders is interesting, and the story brings plenty of engaging action and heroics. Favorite characters from previous stories show up. The Darkwar Saga is a fun series for fans of Feist's writings.

[Peter Harris · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is the lowest rating i’ve ever given to a Riftwar cycle book. And that’s not to say I didn’t enjoy reading it because I still did, but I do feel like of all the Riftwar cycle books this one seemed to have the fewest plot elements to it.
Tad and Zane for example were set up as new young protagonists early in the book in much the same way that Talwin Was in the prior saga, but unlike Tal, Tad and Zane don’t actually have any integral part to play in the story. Yes they saved Caleb’s life and act as companions to him but if they weren’t there the story could result in the same way. Which makes me feel like the pages of the book dedicated to their backstory is just not really necessary.
Raymond Feist has always been one to relish in the backstories and I love that about the author, makes the universe feel full of lived in characters, this book just seemed to miss a bit of a point to the backstory. But there are still two more titles in this saga so It might well be the backstories are more relevant there.

[Debs · Rating 3 out of 5]

As usual, the story line for this was good. Plot twists, all the favourite characters were there with a couple of new ones to keep things interesting. The references that were made to the Princes of the Blood was nice as that’s not often a book referenced in the series and you got an unusual insight into Pug and Mirandas relationship.

The main disappointing factor was I felt the writing was sloppy. Things were repeated in adjoining paragraphs frequently unnecessarily, details were wrong - Kaspar is not an only child as anyone who has read the Talon of the Silver Hawk series will know, the wrong character names were used when the context of the paragraph was clearly referring to someone else. I don’t know if I got my hands on an early edition or something but I felt disappointed and annoyed at a series I enjoyed was marred by silly errors.

Worth a read, especially if you like the worlds of Midkemia and Kelewan but not the best.