Peril's Gate (Wars of Light and Shadow, Book 6)
Eos, January, 2002.
Hardcover, 736 pages.
ISBN: 0061052205
Thirty years ago, two half-brothers, the dark Arithon s'Ffalenn
and the blond Lysaer s'Ilessid, united to destroy the Mistwraith.
But the Mistwraith cursed them so that they would
hate and destroy each other. Still battling, each brother believes that
he is in the right. In this third entry in the Alliance of the Light series,
the Master of Shadow, Arithon, has escaped imprisonment
and death by the skin of his teeth. Wounded and tired,
he is pursued over rough terrain in the heart of winter.
The magic of the world has been thrown terribly out of
balance, and the sorcerers of the Fellowship of Seven
are stretched to their very limits holding the world
together. Arithon has a terrible journey ahead of him.
Pursued by his half-brother and the Alliance of Light,
as well as numerous other enemies, Arithon will have
to make some terrible choices in order to survive.
The Wars of Light and Shadow series is a departure from the standard fantasy fare, in which the good guys and bad guys are usually fairly obvious. Taking the stance that every war has two sides and two stories, Janny Wurts shows both sides of this conflict -- and lets the reader draw his own conclusion about who is right, who is wrong -- and who is a total hypocrite. The plot is labyrinthine and the characters complex; this is hard-hitting fantasy for the literate reader who enjoys having his preconceived notions challenged.
Peril's Gate (Wars of Light and Shadow, Book 6) is available for purchase on Amazon.com
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This review was published in the May, 2002 of The Internet Writing Journal.
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