The Warlord’s Domain – Peter Morwood

Legend, printed 1990, copyright 1989, 279 pages

ISBN: 0-09-958910-9

Read January 2014, at age 35

First time read, I think.  I may have read it in high school, as some scenes were kind of familiar.

What it is:

Book four of a series beginning with The Horse Lord. There is, as yet, no book five.  Given that it’s been 25 years, I’m doubtful that it’s going to happen.

From the back cover:

BETRAYED…

By the king he had loyally served, Aldir and his lady, Kyrin, are now plotting a course for the city of Drakkesborg, deep in the hostile Drusulan Empire.

There lies the Warlord’s Domain – ruled by the evil Voord, slayer, sorcerer and former Commander of the Imperial Secret Police, a man whose hatred of the land of Alba is fathomless.

And Aldric has sworn to recapture a powerful jewel: the talisman that will permit Gemmel, his foster-father, to return home after centuries of exile.  It is a debt Aldric must repay, even if he must face his deadliest foe to do so.

Reactions after the break:

I was quite looking forward to this series.  I remember it being quite good when I was younger.  Having read it now – and it was a short series – I’m pretty much just glad that it’s done. 

I didn’t get caught up in any of the books, least of all this one.  I didn’t feel that I knew the characters well enough to like or dislike them, or to predict their moves and when they were breaking from form.  The setting was interesting, and there were obviously hidden depths that weren’t worked through, but they never really came clear to me.  As a result, the politics and especially the magic seemed really arbitrary and everything seemed to work at the speed of plot. (For instance, it turns out that Gemmel can teleport.  Why wasn’t he doing this before book 4?  There were lots of times it would have come in handy.)  Also, not a fault of the author, but all four books were terribly copy-edited.  There were typos and homonym errors throughout.  It detracted from the reading experience.

At the end of it, it was a passable fantasy.  It was based on feudal Japanese culture rather than European, which was all right.  It was an ok change, but I've seen it a few times.  The imagery was very good, but the pacing and characterization fell short.  The writing just wasn’t compelling throughout the series, and I found it a disappointment.

Rating: 3

Other reviews:

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There’s essentially nothing out there.  Let me know if you’ve found or written one you think I should read.  And seriously, tell me.  I love comparing other people’s reading experiences to my own.