Harpist in the Wind

The Riddle of Stars #3

by Patricia A. McKillip

In the midst of conflict and unrest the Prince of Hed solves the puzzle of his future when he learns to harp the wind, discovers who the shape changers are, and understands his own relationship to Deth, harpist of the wizard Ohm.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, High Fantasy, Magic, Young Adult, Epic Fantasy

263 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

About the author

Patricia Anne McKillip was an American author of fantasy and science fiction. She wrote predominantly standalone fantasy novels and has been called "one of the most accomplished prose stylists in the fantasy genre". Her work won many awards, including the World Fantasy Award for Lifetime Achievement in 2008.

Reviews

[Beth · Rating 5 out of 5]

A riddle is a tale so familiar you no longer see it; it's simply there, like the air you breathe, the ancient names of Kings echoing in the corners of your house, the sunlight in the corner of your eye; until one day you look at it and something shapeless, voiceless in you opens a third eye and sees it as you have never seen it before. Then you are left with the knowledge of the nameless question in you, and the tale that is no longer meaningless but the one thing in the world that has meaning any more. (Heir of Sea and Fire)

I cannot review the books in this series individually because they've come to form one achingly beautiful tapestry for me, one epic story broken up into three parts. In a way, I can't review them at all because every detail I'd want to comment on constitutes a spoiler. I will say instead that it's been a long time since I've read a series this brilliant and brave, this grand in scale, this heartwarming and heartbreakingly sad. This is an epic and simultaneously intimate story, one that is so perfect it makes me catch my breath in awe.

The story takes turns I could never have foreseen and yet I should have foreseen them because they are so organic to the story that the book never could have progressed any other way. The language is poetry breathing through prose, elegant and lyrical, and it manages to capture the things that seemingly cannot be put into words.

The grandeur of this series, the emotional intimacy, the thematic perfection, is something relatively matchless, I think, in the field of classic high fantasy. I cannot understand why this series is out of print. I can only say that if you find the books anywhere, grab them. They're worth it.

[Theo Logos · Rating 5 out of 5]

”I am branded with stars on my face. I can take nearly any shape that has a word to name it…I have a name older than this realm and have no home except in memory. I asked a riddle two years ago and now I’m trapped in a maze of riddles, hardly knowing how to begin to find my way out.”

”There is a tangle of riddles at the heart of the realm. I want to see its unraveling, even at the risk of my life.”

The final book of the Riddle Master trilogy, Harpist In the Wind brings this great, too often unsung fantasy epic to a stirring and satisfying conclusion. Morgan and Raederle journey toward Lungold, the ancient city of wizards, where the recently reawakened wizards are gathering to battle Ghisteslchlohm, Lungold’s founder and their betrayer. Though both Morgan and Raederle have come into great power through their trials and journeys, the great mysteries are still left to be riddled — the riddle of Morgan’s True Name and identity, the riddle of the ancient Earth Masters and why they’ve returned to war on the realm as the Shapechangers, the riddle of Deth and his inscrutable betrayal, and even the riddle of the High One himself. As all the Land Rulers of the Realm gather on an ancient plain with their forces for a hopeless stand against the invincibility of the Earth Master’s power, Morgan must riddle out these answers or see the world he knows destroyed.

This lyrical, layered fantasy is wreathed round with the mystical mist of Welsh inspired myth. Though it shares some tropes with Tolkien, it has a unique atmosphere and mystery all its own, and deserves to be lauded among the greatest of high fantasy epics.

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the perfect end to the series. I feel satisfied with the answers to the riddles, and the ending is beautiful, especially Chapter 15, the second to last chapter of the novel. McKillip maintains the mystery throughout most of the novel but provides answers before the reader goes crazy with not knowing. Even after the riddles are pretty much all resolved, the book comes to a nice closing, not too drawn out or anticlimactic.
As a series, I fully enjoyed Riddle-Master. I went on a journey with Morgon, trying like he does to answer the riddles of his destiny and of the past, present, and future of the High One's realm. The story is complex, but even when I felt most confused while reading, I was still enthralled by McKillip's prose and by the characters. Morgon's transformation from the Prince of Hed into the Star-Bearer is well done. It's subtle and realistic but striking by the end of the series. Deth is a great character, and I loved meeting the other wizards in this book. There could be an entire series just about them: Nun the pigherder, Aloil the poet, Talies the historian, Ghisteslwchlohm the Founder, Yrth the harpist...
I recommend this series to fantasy lovers. The books aren't long, but the stories are complex, so you might take your time with them, but they're well worth it. I plan to reread them one day now that I have the answers. It will be interesting to go back and see how everything really fits together. I'm curious now about what other riddles McKillip has woven into stories.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was a bit disappointed with this book. A bit too much mysticism & I wanted to kick some of the main characters a few times. My wife liked it a lot, better than the other two. It certainly, FINALLY, answers the myriad of questions that have been raised & comes to a resounding conclusion, but it wasn't blood thirsty enough & idolizes the idea of 'doing no harm'.

Let me explain. It's not blood thirsty enough because our hero has put up with a lot & this is a sword & sorcery book. The hero feels too guilty at every death. Come on! He's been chased, had friends & family threatened & people tortured & murdered. Grow a pair & take a few heads with satisfaction, dude! But no, he has to whine about it. Ugh. It's one reason I generally prefer this sort of fantasy written by a guy. Women writers too often don't get behind the idea of vengeance, although when they do, they can be too mean. I think it's the way we're wired.

The idyllic idea of doing no harm by being an herbivore that vegetates in the snow, basically retreats into Limbo, doesn't do much for me, although it is certainly more humane & better in the long run. Still, this along with some similar devices stretched the story out & made me impatient.

It's possible that I was just frustrated a bit because this book couldn't top the first two & I really wanted it to. Both of them were new & fantastic in many ways & this one didn't have any really unique kick to it, but I'd built my expectations too high. Oh well, it's a must-read & you can make up your own mind. If you read the first two, you HAVE to read this one.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Book Three of the Riddle-Master trilogy. Another re-read, but I'm reading along with one of my groups.

I think this was my favorite of the three.

The storyline throughout this whole trilogy is like one huge riddle. The MC, Morgon, (also known as the riddle-master), has his work cut out for him in unraveling the riddles of his life, the land, and other characters' motivations. The author's language, while very beautiful, is sometimes a study in ambiguity. At times I had to read some sections more than once to exactly determine what the heck just happened. And I have read this series before! I still have always loved her work. Most of her books I've read multiple times, as a matter of fact.

I really like the MC. His compassion for Deth was terrific. In spite of his faults, he has a very decent personality. The concept of the land-rulers was cool, too. Land-rulers basically become one with their land, even down to the rocks and roots, in order to care for it. It's kind of like a magical stewardship. I enjoyed reading about each distinct land-ruler.

If you are a Patricia McKillip fan, this is recommended reading!

[Kristina Coop-a-Loop · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The shape-changers melted out of the trees, flew after him. For a while he raced ahead of them in a blinding surge of speed toward the distant green mountain. But as the sun set, they began to catch up with him. They were of a nameless shape. Their wings gathered gold and red from the sunset; their eyes and talons were of flame” (132). Harpist in the Wind the last book in the Riddle-Master trilogy, is a satisfying conclusion. Patricia McKillip keeps readers in suspense until the very end of the book; Morgon struggles with riddles and how to master his power in order to end the war while you, the reader, growls in frustration.

The wizards, loosed from the Founder’s power, are gathering in the ancient ruins of the wizards’ school in Lungold. Raederle and Morgon travel there to meet with them and to help them fight against their old foe. Raederle, still fearful of the temptation of her shape-changer’s heritage, refuses to shape change into other forms that would make their passage across the land safer and quicker. While the other two books prepared the characters for battle, in this book the battles begin. Morgon is fighting two enemies—Ghisteslwchlohm and the shape-changers. He as yet does not understand the nature of the battle nor does he understand why the High One has remained silent all this time. While he is still hiding from the shape-changers and trying to find their place in this power struggle, he is also wary of Yrth, a Lungold wizard who is accompanying he and Raederle on their desperate journey across the land.

I’ve read this book so many times you’d think I’d remember who is who and what the battle is ultimately about. I always forget though—probably because McKillip weaves the plot so expertly around riddles and myths and characters who are much more complicated than they seem—and almost all of the characters are complicated and full of deep, dark mysteries. Because this is the last book, riddles are answered, the true nature of shape-changers are seen, and the power of the realm is finally settled. There is a certain sadness in this book, because endings are never as exciting and fresh as beginnings, but Harpist in the Wind is a dramatic conclusion to this wonderful trilogy.

If you prefer your fantasies to be less philosophical and poetic with the emphasis on magical deeds and swords, then you may want to skip this series. Stripped bare of its harping and star-bearing swords, it’s the story of knowing yourself and trusting yourself; of love that endures despite betrayals and hardships. All three books are lovely and well-written and should be considered classics of the fantasy genre, or any genre. My editions all include a “People and Places” glossary at the back (very helpful) and a map drawn by the author of the (nameless) realm (also very helpful).

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the series and wasn't captivated. Four years later, I read the books. I got MUCH more out of reading, rather than listening. I found that the story became more gripping. I cried towards the end. I was able to predict some of what happened, but McKillip didn't employ all the normal tropes (only some of them).

Riddles (questions about history and destiny) occur throughout the series, and those unanswered questions bedeviled me. But they were FINALLY and FULLY addressed as the story reached a resounding conclusion.

The audio narration by Simon Prebble was not bad, but nor did it enhance the story. I could barely hear a difference between voices for the wizard Ohm and Deth, for example.

As with many fantasies, invented names for characters and places are hard to differentiate and remember via audio (An, Aum, Ohm, El, Iff, Nun, Tel, Tor, Hed, Har, Rood, Rork, Ymris, Yrth, etc) so I referred to a VERY helpful website: https://wizzley.com/riddle-master/

[Othy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I can't really figure out exactly why I didn't like this book and perhaps due to my confusion I rated it three stars (though something in me wants to give it only two). The first thing that comes to my mind is that the delicacy of the first book of the series (Riddlemaster of Hed) was missing, and I think this was because the focus of the story was not on learning about the magic but on using it and noting its effects. There are certainly some delicate and silent moments, but it seemed that McKillip was more 'searching' for them than 'writing within them' (though this is making a lot of assumptions about her writing process, I suppose). The story was interesting, the climaxes very fine and fantastic, and the outcome, in my opinion, really well done. I liked where the main characters went, what the story became and how the questions of the first two books were answered, but, again, there was something missing. Perhaps it was that all the questions were answered that was my problem. McKillip really stretched the act of writing and the abilities of the English language in getting at the intricate details of her world, but in this I feel that she got almost -too- close. There is a distance that she hit in the first book that was really rather beautiful, but in the Harpist in the Wind I feel that she tried too much to embrace and hold the mystery rather than explore and encircle it. To reference Tolkien's Leaf by Niggle, perhaps she painted too much the far off mountains instead of leaving there only hints and painting a great tree. Perhaps I am being too critical, but I just felt that there was something lacking, and lacking because there was too much there.

[Night Owling · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let's quantify our five star rating shall we?


characters 12/5 ⭐

prose  12/5⭐

pacing 2/5✳️


This review will get progressively more and more unhinged, you have been warned.


General review: 


I stand by all the whining and complaining I did while reading this book. Even though the ending is incredible, getting there was a very frustrating ride.



Mild spoilers-(list of grievances)🚨:

Reardelle establishes herself as a powerful clever character in book 2,  on her own journey of self-discovery and very strong powers. In book 3 she gets relegated to a supportive girlfriend role and that was very disappointing. 

The love story falls sort: If the story is going to sag in the middle why not have Morgon teach Reardelle how to use her powers more? Why not have some fun with disguises or talk about the future or I don't know flute/harp duets...We needed more "do you want me to teach you the 100 curses" moments and less "I'm going to not talk to you for undefined reasons" moments.


There are several very quirky fascinating characters that show up in book 3: there's a pig woman, several wizards, Rood, Lyra, Reardell’s father and brothers and of course Tristan. We could have seen more of them.

Instead we get a lot of Morgon inhaling knowledge, sensing blades of grass etc etc, fascinating but not enough



Actual Spoilers(yes, I am still complaining)🚨🚨🚨🚨:


Let's talk about Reardelle some more. We get some conflict in the beginning because she is too terrified to shape shift. But then when the battle happens she disappears. She could have tried to reason with her shapeshifting people, she could have gotten trapped into the mountain with them, she could have taken their side, what is even the point of giving her all this power if she doesn't do anything with it in book three?



The reveal of the High One was incredible. It just was. Just for that one should read the entire series, flaws and all.



Unhinged Spoilers-🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨:


And this is where I spin my “this is a parable/riddle” theory.

I feel like this could be Patricia McKillip’s version of CS Lewis “the problem of pain.”


The High One doesn't interfere enough to rescue or offer justice, and Morgon and all the land rulers and the wizards understandably want to know why…and then the High One says I let you go though all this pain because I needed you trained, I am about to hand you all this power…🤔


Really makes one think…

[Paul Perry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I confess that part way though this book - the final part of the Riddlemaster trilogy - I thought I was going to give it a lower rating than the previous two books. I began to feel that it was losing me, that some aspect of the colourful language and growing complexity of the plot was becoming heavy going.


However, I realised this was because I'd been dipping into it, reading a chapter here and half a chapter there. This is the type of book that really rewards full immersion, where - should you give it the chance - McKillip's writing will completely draw the reader into both the superbly constructed world and complex characters.


Where the first book, The Riddlemaster of Hed, was a fairly straight forward tale on a small stage (compared to most fantasy epics, anyway) following Morgon of Hed, and the sequel The Heir of Sea and fire focussed largely on his paramour Raederle, giving her an agency separate from being simply a love interest and at the same time expanding the scope, this last instalments weaves together not only their tales but thee many threads that had be prepared along the way.


The ending was hardly a surprise, but that doesn't matter. This is myth-making, archetypal, truly mythic fantasy, with the lyricism of well-worn folk tales in a world that feels utterly real - there is a strong flavour of Celtic myth to much of the author's work - and is not afraid to explore shades of grey while building to an inevitability that perhaps the protagonists are the only ones who are caught out.


It isn't perfect. I found the use of names that are also real words sometimes took my out of the story - Iff and Nunn and, of course, Deth the immortal harpist - and I never got my mind around the name of that wizard, only recognising it as an unpronounceable tag that meant him. As well as the "chosen one" storyline, we also have a society that is utterly stratified (and there is no hint of criticism of this) where the rulers of each realm are literally better people than the commoners, where the magic of the land - the land-lore - runs through their veins.


But this is minor. It fits the story and the style perfectly, and McKillip's writing is all-but flawless, both her prose and her construction of plot, so I would have allowed her far more egregious faults.

[Simon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This time, I didn't leave it too long before reading the this volume after reading the previous. I made that mistake with the second part and I think it affected my enjoyment of the book as I spent much of the time trying to remember things from the first part which were essential to making sense of the second part. And that is a point that I want to emphasise from the outset, these books really don't stand alone. The trilogy should be taken and read as one volume to get the most out of it.

That said, I think this final part really is a more engaging read than the previous. Almost from the outset, Morgon is being hunted, relentlessly. He is still wrestling with riddles; what is his purpose, where is the high one, who are the shape changers, why did Deth betray him, what does Ghisteslwchlohm want with him? And remaining doggedly at his side, through thick and thin, is his beloved Raederle.

Some of the scenes in this book particularly impressed me. His battle with Ghisteslwchlohm in the defence of Lungold is one of the best wizardly battles I've ever seen laid down in writing. Also his escape from Lungold and the pursuit of the shape-changers as he is being driven to Erlenstar mountain is described beautifully, the sense of desperation, hopelessness and fear conveyed so effectively.

And throughout this book, as with the rest of the trilogy, McKillip's eloquant writing style pervades. She has a turn of phrase and prose that makes her writing unique. Her writing definitely has a strong feminine feel, an emphasis far more on emotions and feelings rather than battles. In conversations, more is often communicated in the silences in between words than the words themselves.

Overall, whilst I thought this trilogy was very good, I did not enjoy this as much as I enjoyed The Forgotten Beasts of Eld and I would recommend that rather than this trilogy for anyone looking for somewhere to start with this author.

~ After a reread my feelings on this book are largely unchanged from the first time I read it. Not her best work and I feel that she is best suited to writing standalone novels.

[Amanda Kespohl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a confession to make. I actually tried to read Patricia McKillip's Riddle-Master trilogy once before and failed. Despite the glorious things I had heard about the books, I got lost in a maze of odd names and confused about who was who, and I stopped reading about 20-some pages in due to an information overload. But I promised myself that I'd come back to it one day, because some of the things I'd been told about the books made them sound like a story that should not be missed.

To say that I'm really glad that I did is an understatement. Once I learned to focus on the important things and allow the story to tell me which details were important, things went much more smoothly. All the place names and people that were mentioned slid off my mind like beads of water while I fixated on the main character, Morgon of Hed, his funny, brawling family, and his high-tempered friend, Prince Rood of An. And of course, once I realized that there was a romance in this book, I was hooked. (I'm a sucker like that.)

As the story unfolds, we learn that Morgon is the Prince of Hed, a tiny, inconsequential farming kingdom where very little happens of note. That is, until Morgon decides to challenge a ghost in the land of An to a riddle match. When his sister finds the crown he won under his bed, Morgon discovers that he's stirred up a hornet's nest by quietly winning a contest so many men have died trying their hand at. He also discovers that the crown was not the only prize for besting the ghost: King Mathom of An also promised his daughter, Princess Raederle, to whoever beat the ghost's riddle game. Raederele is the sister of Morgon's friend, Rood. Morgon has known and admired Raederle for some time, and he's quite smitten with her. With visions of a beautiful, amber-eyed redhead dancing in his mind, he sets out from Hed with the intention of coming forward with the crown and seeking Raederle's hand.

As much as Morgon would have been perfectly content to take his princess back to Hed and return to farming, making beer, and bickering with his siblings, the universe has other plans for him. No sooner does he leave his little island than do strange enemies come out of the woodwork, endangering not only Morgon, but those he loves best. In fighting and fleeing his foes, Morgon finds himself faced with a host of riddles even he can't answer that all seem to revolve around the mark of the three stars that has been on his face since birth. Those stars seem to mark him for a destiny that is larger than life, one set in place thousands of years before he was born. He must either give in to it or perish, even if embracing his destiny means giving up all of the things he holds most dear.

The journey Morgon undertakes makes this Patricia McKillip's most traditional fantasy novel yet, as it has the quest structure and some of the familiar high fantasy archetypes. However, what elevates it and makes it extraordinary is her rich, imaginative world, filled with golden horned vesta bounding through the snows, land-rulers who are bonded to their lands such that they share an empathy with the earth itself, and odd, beautiful magic, where even the gentlest harping may hold great power. Once I started traveling with Morgon into these other lands, I couldn't have put the book down if I'd tried. Each new place held such marvels that I couldn't wait to see where he went to next or who he would meet. There is no doubting after you read this book that Patricia McKillip's imagination is a national treasure.

The characters are another strong draw. Morgon, himself, is a sympathetic and flawed hero. He is not entirely willing to be sucked into the role of a legendary hero, but when duty calls, he has enough honor to step up. He's a kind, gentle man and a good brother, and relies on wit and intuition rather than pure brawn. And it also speaks well of him that he respects his lady love. Even though he has won the right to marry her by winning the riddle match, it is never Morgon's intention to show up and claim her like lottery winnings. No, Morgon's first through is to ask her if she would be willing to marry him, and then and only then will he take her back to Hed.

Raederle, herself, is absent from the first book, but takes on a very nontraditional role in the second book. And that's the other thing that is so spectacular about these books. This fair princess is not sitting somewhere knitting booties for her future offspring while the hero does all the work. Raederle is an active heroine in the story herself, a fiery, spirited, independent, strong-willed woman who knows what she wants and goes after it. After all, Morgon is not the only one with a destiny here!

I could go on about how beautifully McKillip handles Raederle's interactions with Morgon, keeping a legendary tone to the story, but also with a thread of realism and relatability, but I don't want to get too spoilery. Suffice it to say that this is not your typical fantasy story, though it's every bit as lovely and magical as you would hope it to be.

Even without Morgon and Raederle earning gold stars for awesomeness, there's a whole host of supporting characters who shine in these books. Deth, the High One's harpist, is an intriguing riddle of a man who kept me on my toes throughout the books. King Har of Osterland, Danan Isig, Astrin Ymris, the Morgol, and Mathom of An also earned my respect and devotion in their time on the pages. I loved every one of them like they were old friends and anytime any of them had cause to grieve, I wanted to wade into the story and hug them.

And did I mention how beautifully McKillip writes? You've heard me wax on about this before, if you've read some of my other reviews of her books. Still, it cannot be said enough: this woman has a poet's soul and a novelist's mind. Her words glitter and glint on the page, filling your mind with gorgeous, dream-like images. When describing a character's impatience, we are told that she feels that "even the dead of An, their bones plaited with grass roots, must be drumming their fingers in their graves." This book is filled with gorgeous passages that make me want to hang up my keyboard and stop pretending like I can share the name "writer" with someone like McKillip.

In the end, as the pieces of the story came together, I could clearly see what McKillip had been building to from the beginning. Even the small patches where I doubted, thinking she was meandering a bit, snapped into focus as crucial moments that shaped the ending. In other books by this author, I've had to spend time mulling the rightness of the ending, wondering if the plot points truly lined up in the direction she had chosen. Usually, I come around to appreciate it, though I sometimes find myself wishing that things had played out a little differently here and there. This time, I didn't even have to think about it. I felt the rightness in the story, even though parts of it broke my heart.

Ultimately, these books will resonate in my memory as some of the best I've ever read. So, to put it mildly, I'd recommend them. To put it less mildly, why are you still sitting here reading this review? Quick, order your copy now! And then come back and tell me how much you loved it! :)

[Paul Fergus · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fabulous prose, but pretty substandard story.

The author really gains incredible command of their gift with words. At times the narrative dances through your brain from concept to concept as the main character uses their considerable magic power to understand nature. It really makes for some fine reading all by itself.

Unfortunately, the characters just don't seem to make a lot of internal sense most of the time. The plot drags, and even the action sequences seem to lack urgency. What's at stake again? I'm not really sure.

The antagonists never really gel as a believable force to me. An army of shapeshifters ought to inspire a lot more hysteria or sense of futility than they do. In the earlier books they seemed a lot more menacing. Here, even though we have a character on the side of the good hats who is half shapeshifter, that fact never reaches any kind of interesting catharsis or revelation.

The main character remains an enigma for the most part. We've had three books now to build up his destiny and it all unravels literally within a few paragraphs and wham boom we're done with the book cue to epilogue. WHUT?

Too much buildup and not enough payoff.

The woman who was the main character in the second book pretty much just follows around her man like a satellite character the whole book, waiting for him to stop putzing around and get on with it. Really some wasted narrative ammunition there.

There's a good series in here, with some gobsmacking ideas and scenes that want to come out. Maybe it ought to have been baked a lot more to let the flavors come out.

Very disappointing, but oh well more books in the sea I guess.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes I find story-lines that catch me at the heart, and this was one of them. The characters in this series are creative and varied, and the plot goes much deeper than I expected it to when I first stumbled upon these books in a used bookstore. Morgon experiences an incredible amount of character growth and change.

But the part that held me the most was the true identity of Deth and the relationship this character has with Morgon. I knew from the beginning that there was something different and special about him, and while I had bits and pieces of it, the book gave a very satisfying explanation. The chapter where Morgon finds the High One in the tower moved me to tears. I feel emotional just thinking about it.

My only complaints are similar to those I've had with other books written by this author -- the endings are wrapped up very quickly. This is a personal preference; I like more of a denouement, more explanations, and more time with the characters after the climax is over. There were also a few points I'd wished had been addressed further: Raederle's struggle with her identity/accepting her heritage, and the relationship between her and Morgon. These things aren't ignored, but they are definitely in the backseat and I would have liked a bit more resolution than what we were given. But to be clear, these are small complaints. This series struck a chord for me.

[Kat Hooper · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are some fantasy epics that all literature professors, and most normal people, would consider essential reading for any well-educated person — J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, Lewis Carroll, etc. So, yeah, I read those a long time ago. But beyond that, there's not much fantasy literature that's essential reading. So, for a long time, I didn't read any. In my drive to be educated, I stuck to the classics (which are classic because they're great literature, usually). But one day, maybe 15 years ago, Patricia McKillip's RIDDLE-MASTER fell into my hands. I can't remember exactly when, and I can't remember how. I can't even remember enough to t... Read More: http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...

[Ryan Middlebrook · Rating 3 out of 5]

The conclusion of the Riddle-Master series finds Morgon and Raederle struggling to find the mysterious High One and the reason for the war that has spread across the realm. The quests begins simply enough as they head for the ancient wizard’s city of Lungold. This book, like the other two, has almost all of its action take place on the way to destinations instead of at them. Morgon and his bride-to-be struggle on the journey and have their characters developed. They fall into traps, escape, get to Lungold, where they fall into a trap, escape, head to another destination, fall into a trap, escape…I think you get the idea. The main riddles of the book, if not the series, are who is the High One, who are the Earth Masters, and what does one have to do with the other? These questions have needed to be answered for a long time, and when they finally are, it almost really doesn’t matter.

Patricia McKillip’s writing is quite good. She describes details and emotions with a power to draw the reader into imagery. The effect is such that – like the illusion that the wizards of this book so often create – there is an illusion that this story has more of a plot than it actually does. Thankfully, in the final third of Harpist, the main plot is finally revealed, and yet when it is, there’s not really any more to it than what one kind of expects. The motivations behind the final reveal and what all the characters are fighting about are basically left to the idea that power corrupts. It’s vague, but at least the writing was nice.

There are moments of real emotion in the book. Raederle’s character is continually the touchstone for any strength this series has found. I have read many reviews that claim that this is that reader’s all time favorite series. My only conclusion is that they have connected with these characters in their brief moments of genuine insight. Each of them, especially Deth the harpist, have the potential to be major fantasy characters, but at the end of the day, plot helps flesh characters out, and these books were lacking in it. Florid prose does not a series make.

The Riddle-Master Trilogy had many good ideas and characters – even though their fullness didn’t quite pan out. There was enough here that I would be willing to try more from this author. If you read this series, you may not be disappointed, but there’s also plenty of other fantasy out there you should hit first.

5.5 out of 10 stars

Red Eagle's Legacy

[prcardi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Storyline: 3/5
Characters: 3/5
Writing Style: 3/5
World: 4/5

The first two books of the Riddle-Master trilogy had largely gone unrecognized by awards committees. Harpist in the Wind, in contrast, received acclaim, garnering both a Hugo and a Locus as well as several other nominations. I started reading the series, in fact, merely to reach this book. After reading the first two, I had wondered, along with others undoubtedly, whether the third was really going to be that much better than The Riddle-Master of Hed and Heir of Sea and Fire . The answer, I can give now after finishing the third and final book, is “Yes.” McKillip finally figured out where she wanted to take the series, and it was not in the direction that the first two books had indicated. For too long the series had masqueraded as an epic, one lacking, however, the scale and depth such a label would have required. The first two books had sketched a world and plot, let us in on some intriguing characters but left readers largely unconnected to the great events occurring in the plot. We were passive spectators to awesome characters whose abilities and roles we did not understand. This striving for and failing to be an epic continues partway into Harpist in the Wind, but then McKillip redirects the story away from plot and on to style. That is where she is going to have her success; that is what is going to get the book the awards. Critics and fans can tell you that she had all along toyed with some more obscure mythology in the story, but it is in this volume that it comes to the forefront. McKillip answers the necessary questions and gives us the hoped for intersections; she even gives a plot climax in keeping with the rest of the story. What readers really get though—beyond a finished story—is a spectacular magic system presented in an artistic voice. Nothing—not the answers, the relationships, the character development, or the resolution—mattered in comparison to presentation of the supernatural world in Harpist in the Wind. In many ways it was an unsatisfying series and a disappointing culmination, but the extra added in the trilogy’s ending volume made it a remarkable book, worth have experienced.

[Kevin Michaelis · Rating 5 out of 5]

After discovering this trilogy more than 2 decades past, I have read the: "Harpist in the Wind," almost once a year. Mostly for the purely symbolic way Ms. McKillip has woven events of riddlery like unto prophecy, and how those events shape and bind upon the Starbearer an unimaginable outcome, foreshadowing the coming of the High One. Surely there is much in these novels that is delightful, powerfully awesome fantasy! There is also realism in the symbolism so captivating and relational to our own journey to the highest destiny all of us have the potential, so fearful to accept, to receive and ultimately to achieve. I feel Ms. McKillip's masterful storytelling becomes like unto our own story of our own journey unto the High One, the One who has bound all power unto Himself and binds upon those who love Him, that same power. Power, which evil craves passionately, only to use selfishly, destructively, and seeks to tear from each of us completely, all such bindings of His power. It makes of this fictional work of Patricia A. McKillip, potentially Messianic. Until each of us bravely climbs up to that one and only Name, to that one and only Way, we will ever climb a tower of knowledge, but never be able to come to a knowledge of the truth.

[Ian Mathers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think when I was younger I found the way the end of this one played out just a little deflationary, but now I think it's really amazing. I keep going back to the line from the previous book, "they were promised a man of peace", and what it's revealed to mean, in terms of who said it, who "they" were, who made the promise, and who it's said to. I apologize if these reviews have become just impossibly cryptic, but 1. I don't want to spoil any part of these really wonderful books for anyone 2. I actually love this series too much to really write coherently about it? This is an ending that is fully worth all the time I put into the first book as a magic- and mystery-loving teenager. These books really are, as the initial subtitle puts it, about "the end of an era". By the end the world of the High One is profoundly changed, and so are all the characters we've been reading about. Fittingly enough for a writer of her calibre and sensibility, McKillip doesn't half-ass that the way so many fantasy series do; she's no doubt aware of how human it is for all of us to want more stories with these people and/or in this place, but this is the story. Sometimes things end, and it doesn't make them less wonderful.

[☆Ruth☆ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a series of books that plunges you straight in at the deep end. During the first few chapters of book one, I felt almost like I had missed reading an introduction or a prologue somewhere.... but with the help of a map and the glossary of characters at the end of the book, everything soon started to slot into place. However, this is not a simple tale – the basic concept is unusual, woven into a story which includes sorcerers, shape-shifters, spirit-wraiths and immortals.
My most lasting impression is of the author’s prose, which is so poetic I found myself reading paragraphs over again just to savour the beauty of her descriptive passages – one of my favourite lines:
“The clouds, softly shaped by the wind, rested on the silence.”

[Katie · Rating 4 out of 5]

So I do like the story this told, but I think I'm sticking with the feeling that the writing just was a bit lost on me.

I did, however, have to stay up until I finished this last night, which says something!

[Eileen · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

I'd probably give the trilogy 3.5-4 stars, with the second book being my favorite. This story wraps up the different threads of the first two books and brings the protagonists of those books together (finally). I listened to the book and followed along when I could, but I'm wondering if I would get more out of the book if I just ignored the audio and read the whole thing myself.

Part of it is the writing. It's beautiful, but it's also esoteric (I think that is the right word) at times, and there were many times when I had to back up and relisten to a portion of it, trying to figure out what she was describing. I kept thinking I was missing something, and perhaps I was. It took me about half of the first book before I realized that a riddle was not what I was thinking it was, but I still wasn't entirely sure until I read threads on reddit that explained it. I think that a riddle-master is more a master of lore, in this case, the lore of the land. The deep understanding of the mysteries of the land. The land master is the one who has an intimate connection with all living things that reside on that land, and that connection is immediately formed when one king dies, and the heir inherits. However, in this story, when Morgon disappeared, the connection formed for his heir (his younger brother), indicating to many that perhaps he had died. So, I think it's more complicated than that. Regardless, Morgon and Raederle do join forces in this story, and the transformation/growth that they undergo even as they work to unravel mysteries was something I really enjoyed reading.

Overall, I am glad I read this trilogy, and I plan on rereading it sometime, but this time read it for myself. I'm very curious if my view of this series will change.

[Ron · Rating 4 out of 5]

“He cleared his mind again, let images drift and flow into thought until they floundered once again on the shoals of impossibility.”

Satisfying end to the series. McKillip may feel, with some justification, that this is not great epic fantasy, but it’s a good one. Read all three books in order and at once. What it lacks in epic sweep, it makes up in intimacy and flow.

“You have a name and a destiny. I can only believe that sooner or later you will stumble across some hope.”

Good foreshadowing of the role and identity of many major characters—some hiding in plain sight, others obviously significant but not as they initially seemed. Satisfying interplay between protagonist and significant other, building characters and plot.

“All I wanted was truth. I didn’t know … you would give me everything I have ever loved.”

Of course there are problems which knock the conscientious reader out of the spell of the story, but none fatal to overall enjoyment.

“Do all riddles end in a tower with no door? I feel as if I built that tower stone by stone, riddle by riddle, and the last stone fitting into place destroyed it.”

[Jeremy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have never read a trilogy in which the story comes together as ethereally and slowly as this one. I also don't recall ever giving each book in a trilogy one more star than the previous book. So. Hang in there.

[Luke Burrage · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good end to a good series.

Full review on my podcast, SFBRP episode #374.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This last book of the trilogy didn't survive my teenage years. The first two books still felt new - mysteries, world-building, getting to know the characters - but this one just felt repetitive. First repeating elements already covered, then repeating them. I suggest reading the first two and then if you really need to know how it ends just ask a friend! I still love the author.

[Amir Arslan · Rating 4 out of 5]

این ریویو قرار خیلی طولانی باشه...
خب اول از یه داستان شروع میکنم بعدش نظرم در رابطه با کتاب...
نزدیک یک سال و نیم پیش بود که بنده نزدیک ۳۰ جلد کتاب از انتشارات کتابسرای تندیس سفارش دادم مستقیم از صفحه اینستا خود نشر و چون خریدم زیاد بود بهم جلد اول این مجموعه را هدیه دادند گذشت نزدیک چند ماه و من کتابو فقط گذاشته بودم توی کتابخونه ام و خب ولش کرده بود بعد از چند وقت یکی از دوستانم (پدرام) که تو کانادا زندگی میکنه توی کتاب فروشی کانادا بود و چون آگاه بود که من از فضای کتاب فروشی دوست دارم باهم تماس تصویر گرفت و کلی باهم گفتیم و خندیدم و لذت بردیم آخر ویدئو بهم گفت ارسلان بیا یه کار پایه کنیم گفتم چی گفت من یه عدد میگم تو برو تو کتابخونه ات همون کتاب در بیار منم اینجا در میارم باهم می‌خوانیم گفتم باشه گفت طبقه سوم ردیف دوم کتاب ششم و دقیقا جلد اول معماگر در اومد از اون طرفم پدرام رفت و سه جلدو دیده اونجا هست خرید و بعدش منم به خاطر این کتابخونی دونفری دو جلد بعد رو خرید نزدیک ۲ ماه باهم جلد اول و دوم تمام کردیم که پر باگ بود که در آینده میگم و به جلد سوم که رسید وسطای جلد یه اتفاق برا مادر پدرام افتاد که نزدیک یک سال دراپ شد ادامه خواندن کتاب اما خب خداراشکر حل شد و باهم تمامش کردیم...
اما برسیم به کتاب اول از همه مترجم هفتاد صفحه از جلد اول و جلد دوم کم گذاشته بود و به جلد سوم اضافه کرده بود برا همین جلد سه ۴۰۰ صفحه بود
مترجم یه جاهایی بد ترجمه کرده بود
خیلی سانسور صحنه عاشقانه داشت یعنی پدرام یه چیزی میگفت از صحنه های عاشقانه من میگفتم جانم این کجای کتاب بود؟ بعد وقتی می گفت من یاد این می افتادم که آره فلان جای کتاب یهو دراپ میشد و نمیفهمیدی یهو چطور شد ولی خب بازم چندتا بوسه و حرف عاشقانه بود و از داستان اصلی کم نمی‌کرد
جلد اول کتاب خسته کننده بود و روند آرام پیش می رفت چون باید کلی اسامی و کشور و پادشاه یاد میگرفتی ولی خب زیبا بود بعد از فهمیدن جلد دوم همش درباره آموزش ها بود و خب جذابیت خیلی قشنگی داشت که هر جادویی چطور پیدا کنه ولی نکته مهم این بود که در جلد اول و دوم کارکتر اصلی کتاب خیلی خام و بی عزت نفس بود و کلا احمق بود بعضی مواقع حرص میخوردی اما جلد سوم خیلی بالغ شده بود و خوب شده بود نبرد خیلی قشنگی داشت تو جلد سه و خیلی خفن شده بود کارکتر اصلی ولی بازم میگم ترجمه بد بود...
آهان راستی پایانش خیلی بد زد تو ذوقم آبکی ترین پایان ممکن بود قشنگ تر میشد تمام بشه...
اگه غلط املایی داخل متن یا بعضی مواقع کتابی یا عامیانه حرف میزنم به من خورده بگیرید...

[Krzysztof · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure why this book receives such high praise around these parts. It's ok. It's a perfectly functional epic fantasy story, with a satisfying arc for the main character and an intriguing world. Why didn't I particularly like it, then?

I think my problem is similar to the one I had with another fantasy classic from the 70s/80s, The Chronicles of Amber. This series also focuses on descriptions of visions, rapidly changing surroundings etc. and is as confusing to read and chaotic in places, if not more. It is also very dodgy when it comes to character motivations, similarly to Zelazny's work - the heroes mope around, repeat the same sentences over and over, and it doesn't help that a lot of that consists of "I don't knows" and other utterances to the same effect. The characters are clueless of their plight, and the reader stays clueless with them - which also means it's very hard to understand the stakes in this final, epic, confrontation... in which the sides are almost entirely anonymous and poorly defined to the point of being stand-ins.

Why three stars, then? This book escalates the previous two books' themes and story threads to a logical conclusion, which feels satisfying even though the road to it really isn't. This is more of a middle-of-the-road 2.5/5, but I'll give it three stars just because in the end, it was a light enough read and I didn't want to just abandon the book altogether as with Zelazny.

[Komble III · Rating 5 out of 5]

ის მომენტი წინა წიგნიდან რომ არაფერი ვიცოდით მთავარ ანტაგონისტებზე, ის თუ რა მოტივაცია ამოძრავებდათ მათ, რაც მაგრად მაღიზიანებდა და შეგრძნებას მიტოვებდა რომ ხელოვნურად წელავდა წიგნს, აბსოლუტურად გამართლებული აღმოჩნდა. ზუსტად იმ დოზით იხსნება კარტები და ირკვევა ამბები ტრილოგიის დასკვნით წიგნში, რა დოზითაც საჭიროა. ყველა დეტალი გათვლილი და გადანაწილებულია, შესაბამისად წიგნის კითხვაც კომფორტული და სასიამოვნოა.

მორგონის გაზრდა-განვითარების პროცესი ძალიან საინტერესოდ მიდის და პერსონაჟებიც მოტივირებული და ლოგიკურები არიან წინა წიგნისგან განსხვავებით.

ისევე როგორც წინა ორში, აქაც არ არის მასშტაბური საბრძოლო სცენები და აქცენტი უფრო მორგონის შინაგან სამყაროზე და მის განვითარებაზეა გაკეთებული. იდეალური ვარიანტია იმ ერთფეროვნებისგან თავის დასაღწევად რომელიც ამ ტრილოგიის წერის პროცესში იყო გამეფებული ფენტეზი სამყაროში.

საბოლოო ჯამში ამ კონკრეტულ წიგნს 5 ვარსკვლავი - ალალია
ტრილოგიას - 4. მეორე წიგნი აშკარად იმედგაცრუება იყო.
ავტორს ქება და დიდება. ძალიან მაგარი ს��მყარო შექმნა, ყველასგან და ყველაფრისგან განსხვავებული, ჰაი ფენტეზის ჩარჩოებს გაქცეული, თვითმყოფადი და საინტერესო

[Dave · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a disappointing end to a mediocre trilogy. Harpist in the Wind is about 98% style and 2% substance. I often found it difficult to see the story through the prose, as if I was trying to read the story through a haze the whole time.

The story itself was pretty unremarkable. It seemed that the two protagonists mainly traveled to a whole bunch of different places in the world, talking to people and dithering about what to do. The problem for me was that neither the traveling, the talking, nor the dithering were very interesting to read. Then everything comes to a very rapid conclusion in the last few pages of the book.

I have a couple more unread books on the shelf by McKillip, but I am honestly no longer in any hurry to get to them.