Review by Booklist Review
The finale of the Wake the Dragon trilogy (starting with Spine of the Dragon, 2019) stirs the already boiling pot in unconventional ways. For instance, two villains (Klovus and Utho) have had their way with Ishara and the Commonwealth and so they face off on the seas between their realms. The Impra of Ishara has been gathering her strength to retake her throne, so there will be a showdown. The capital of the Commonwealth has been left with newly installed Konag Mandan in charge, facing a decree sent by his brother and uncle, kings of the countries he rules, declaring him a traitor. Unfortunately, they are facing the greater threat of a combined force of ice- and sandwreths who are hellbent on waking the dragon, Ossus, to remake the world. Of course, that union of wreths also pitted villainess versus more reasonable villainess prior to the ultimate clash. Bestselling author Anderson keeps the chaos of wars as well as numerous individual confrontations fought on many fronts understandable and exciting.
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Anderson knocks it out of the park with the explosive conclusion to his Wake the Dragon epic fantasy trilogy (after Vengewar). The new frostwreth queen sets out to end the conflict with sandwreths, hoping to unite their peoples in time to face the long foretold waking of the dragon Ossus--but to do so, she first must kill the sandwreth queen. Meanwhile, the humans of the Commonwealth are pulled in several directions and must decide whether to focus their energies on combating the wreths, who want to remake the Earth, or their longtime human enemy, the country of Ishara. Ishara faces its own internal strife, as it's still reeling from the destruction of Priestlord Klovus's godling and Empra Iluris, who never wanted a war, supposedly lies in a coma. The well-developed characters and frequent heart-racing action keep the pages flying, and Anderson expertly ties the intricate story lines together on the way to a thrilling and surprisingly moving conclusion. Readers will be wowed. Agent: John Silbersack, Bent Agency, and Dan Strone, Trident Media Group. (Jan.)
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Review by Library Journal Review
The Three Kingdoms and Ishara have been warring for millennia but must now cooperate. An ancient race has arisen with intentions to violently take--and remake--the world. From the coauthor of the Dune sequels; with a 25,000-copy first printing.
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
The concluding volume of Anderson's Wake the Dragon trilogy wraps up the epic fantasy tale chronicling a grand-scale war between nations, races, and even family members that could raise a mythical creature and destroy the world. As the novel opens, hatred and resentments that have been smoldering for thousands of years are finally igniting. The three kingdoms--led by the newly crowned but unbalanced Konag Mandan--are going to war against the nation of Ishara. Adan Starfall, king of Suderra, and Kollanan, king of Norterra, understand that Ishara isn't the three kingdoms' biggest worry--that would be the wreths, a race of magical humanoid creatures who believe their ultimate destiny is to awaken, and slay, the great dragon Ossus so that the god Kur can remake the world. Attempting to kill Ossus would require the wreths to wake the monstrosity from its slumber underneath a mountain range--and waking it could not only remake the world, but destroy it. Adan and Kollanan are also aware that dethroning Mandan is of utmost importance in stopping an unwanted war with Ishara. In Ishara, a power-hungry priest named Klovus has grabbed control after attempting to kill Empra Iluris, the nation's spiritual leader. Barely alive, and hidden away, Iluris must somehow win back her people and country. Meanwhile, Koru, queen of the frostwreths, plots to kill the sandwreth queen in order to unite all wreths before waking the dragon….Although the narrative--parceled out in the form of multiple storylines from a diversity of characters--is a bit unwieldy in the opening chapters, those storylines slowly converge and intertwine, propelling the grand-scale action forward at what turns out to be a relentless pace. The numerous threads eventually meet in an earth-shattering bloodbath of a final conflict that will have fans of George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire standing up and applauding. Shelf-bending fantasy that is action-packed, intricately plotted, and breakneck paced. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
