In this concluding volume of the Fiddleback Trilogy, the old saying that "the enemy of my enemy is my friend," is sorely put to the test. Pygmalion, apprentice to the Dark Lord Fiddleback, has rebelled against his master and has established himself as a Dark Lord. To defeat him, Coyote and Fiddleback must join forces.Pygmalion is not without his own allies. He has taken an apprentice, the god-man Ryuhito, grandson of the Japanese Emperor. Through him, Pygmalion horrific power is amplified. But the fires of betrayal burn within Ryuhito's heart, and his grandfather will spare no expense to get his grandson back.Deceit, treachery and revenge boil together in this war of Dark Lords and their minions. Coyote and his aides, mere humans all, go to war with the Dark Lords to prevent the nightmare of... Evil Triumphant
Quick thoughts: Mixd feelings her. The pacing was odd, characters make mistakes and act certain ways solely for the plot requirements, there's some reconning going on that doesn't completely gel, telling instead of showing comes up repeatedly, and it generally is the weakest of the trilogy. On the other hand the story is still compelling, certain character arcs really shine, and it brings things to a fitting conclusion tying together numerous threads going all the way back to the beginning. Decent overall with some great flashes, but a noticeable step down from the others.
Great read. Loved the character complexity and interplay. Only complaint: lots of scanner typos. "Urn" becomes "Um", and similar substitutions scattered throughout.
As with the other 2 books in this tie in to the Dark Conspiracy RPG, it's a product of it's time. Some of it hasn't aged well at all, some of it is timeless cheese that you can't help to enjoy. It reads like an epic Let's Play of the RPG system and should be enjoyed as such.
A fast paced conclusion to the Dark Conspiracy trilogy of Fiddleback. I think subsequent novels and short stories could be picked up with ease. Hint, hint, Michael Stackpole!