Customer Reviews

Crucible: The Trial of Cyric the Mad: The Avatar Series, Book V

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

If you're looking for the brave, valiant knight that leads the forces of good to victory over unholy evil then look elsewhere. The story is told from the perspective of Malik, a follower of Cyric, the evil God of Strife, Lies and Murder. Malik is an unlikely anti-hero who possesses traits more of a merchant and part-time rogue than a warrior who brandishes steel to combat his enemies directly. Malik is comical and sometimes clumsy. However its' his unwavering devotion to his god that gets him through a grueling fanatical life, which all makes him a very distinctive, unconventional, and enjoyable character.

The book fleshes out how Kelemvor and Mystra/Midnight came to terms with their new role as gods, and their transition from mortality to the responsibility of immortality and the worshipers and portfolio that came with it. On the other side of the coin, it also deals with Cyric's self-delusions caused by the Cyrinshad debacle, which drove him insane.

You'll also read of interactions between the newly crowned gods and the established personalities within the Faerunian Pantheon. Much intrigue occurs, particularly between Mask and Cyric, which I found highly amusing.

If you feel very strongly for the forces of good from the books in the Avatar Trilogy and Prince of Lies, then Crucible will probably leave a bitter taste in your mouth. If you abhor Cyric or similar evil Gods, then you'll be disappointed. If you've got an open mind about how mortals deal with their new existence and responsibilities that come with attaining godhood, as Troy Denning spells out here, then I think it's an excellent read.

Troy Denning, one of my favorite authors, has written an unconventional book that isn't your standard fair FR novel. This is how I'd describe Crucible in one statement: "Attaining power is easy, understanding it is difficult, and keeping it is extremely hard."

But unlike the Cyrinishad, this will not make you into a Follower of the One. Yes, Midnight, Kelemvor, Adon, and Cyric (and even Fzoul) are back again, albeit somewhat changed. But our hero, and narrator, is Malik, a merchant turned spy, devoted faithful of the mad god Cyric, riding forth on his not-really-that-faithful bone-crunching steed Halah (named after his not-really-that-faithful prince-dallying wife). With his Inspector Clouseau like antics, his god-given inability to suffer harm, and his "Liar Liar" like inability to say anything but the truth (even to his god), he provides us with a presumably accurate, sometimes touching, often gruesome, and occasionally humorous account of the time of Cyric's madness. Of course Midnight is now known as the Harlot, Kelemvor is the Ursurper, etc. etc. but their dialogue and actions are still familiar to those of us who have known them since Shadowdale. Mystra's love and devotion to Kelemvor, Adon, and her followers stands out, as do her frustrations in being reprimanded by the gods for her lack of objectivity or neutrality concerning good and evil. The story of the gods is interwoven with Malik's story of his quest to cure his god's madness while being pursued by the veiled Harper witch, Ruha, from Troy Denning's "The Parched Sea." We don't see enough of Adon (who's been getting the short end of the stick time-wise since his scarring in the Avatar Trilogy), and Rinda and Gwydion deserved more screen time. But Denning's prose and imagination really shine in this story -- here's hoping this isn't the last! And if you (like me) have a secret crush on Mystra, then you've got to get this book dude.

A worthy finale to the Avatar series. A certain couple's cheap death really annoyed me but overall the book is... "addictive". When I realized what Lord Death had sacrificed to restore a certain priest's faith in his deity I almost wept. A good read well worth your time.

Troy Denning is one of the better TSR (I won't mention WOtc) fantasy authors, and he deserves credit for writing a novel in the form of a first-person account of the trial of Cyric and its circumstances. It's especially interesting since the point of view is that of Malik, a pathetic -and at times humorous- spy that clings to Cyric despite that god's cruelty to him. Thus the tone of the book is morbid, but Malik is an interesting enough character to keep one reading, if only to discover what extremes he will push himself to to attempt to free Cyric of his madness.

Like the previous Avatar books, the gods are major characters, and some are fleshed out better than they were before, such as Tyr and Talos. Torm, however, one of the protagonists of Prince of Lies, is barely to be found here. Instead, Mystra, who represents the 'good guys' in the book, appears to be fallible, and Kelemvor suddenly discovers the meaning of Lawful Neutral. The chapters that describe characters other than Malik are told mostly in a third-person narrative, but still from the pen of Malik, so Mystra is at times described as the "Harlot" and Cyric as the "One" or "Our Dark Lord."

This may be why the book does not much discuss the fate of Gwydion and Rinda, two prominent and likeable characters from Prince of Lies who are slain early in the book by Malik in a very Douglas Niles-like fashion. For that matter, much of the book is filled with grotesque imagery and gore, usually due to Cyric (surprise), but Denning's writing style is good enough so that this does not become cliche. Just be prepared for a character to enter the novel, begin to be fleshed out, then die in a horrific way. It all reminds the reader of the Moonshae Trilogy at times.

Malik himself is both amusing and disturbing, both because he is willing to go to shocking extremes for Cyric, who he seems to both love and hate, and because the little turd's stinginess is amazing (such as when he 'only has time to take the gold'). The end of the book does not tie up all of the loose ends that this series has presented, nor could it be expected to, since it is 'written' by a Cyricist, but its conclusion is very exciting and does not produce a clear victory for good or for evil.

Disgusting at times, but an engrossing read. In some ways, I wouldn't mind another novel that might involve some of the lesser characters -such as Rinda, whose cheap death is one of the books' more bothersome aspects- in some way, but this is good enough for now. At least Elminster kept himself out of this one.

I was quite disappointed in Crucible. I read the Avatar trilogy, and Prince of Lies, and this book simply killed all the good character's in these books! Rinda, Gwydion, Adon, and especially Kelemvor, were much more interesting before this book. Still, I can't rate it too low, as it is a good stand-alone book. My official recommendation, for series readers, is to avoid Crucible unless you really want to know what "officially" happens or you simply want to be depressed.

I might rate this series too low just because I've seen one of the best in Salvatore's Dark Elf series.
Whereas in Dark Elf's series the stories was so believeable that reader will feel involved and plunged into that world, the avatar series, while deal with a great story that will impact the whole Forgotten Realm, thus making it even worst, comes with so many logic flaws that will make reading the book torturing.

I think the real problem with the series is that the writers tried to tell the story about the gods and goddess of Faerun and their struggle against each other. Creating a story about a mere mortal is much different than telling stories about deities.
The flaws come in describing the deities' capability and their limits. So much time the deities are either so powerful yet other time they are so pathetic that they can't resist magic weaved by humans.
I think with making story THIS big, a writer should really sit down and write it properly, do the research, re-write, re-edit and re-write again before submitting it. Some stories are not made to be written while utterly drunk or stoned.
You can't make a story about a trial, let alone a trial held by deities without any research of what a trial IS and not making oneself looks like a fool.

I can give tons of example of logic flaws, but that will mean that I have to give a spoiler.



minor SPOILER WARNING!!!!
Lets just say that
1. A goddess of magic that can stop another god from being able to use magic with a blink of an eye won't have to worry about book written by human that supposedly has enough magic that it can even affect god to believe what's written in it. Let alone not having ability to just destroy the book.

2. A witness or evidence given in a trial has to have something to do with the trial. Didn't see any relationship between a trial of a god neglecting his duty and the god reading a book about his biography regarding his ascension from mortal to godhood. Surely a god of justice can see that and reject the evidence as irrelevant.

O well, I think I rant enough about this book.

Don't waste your time reading this book. This is perhaps one of the most dissapointing sequels in history. It would be a better sequel to "Parched Sea" rather than "Prince of Lies". This book was about as flavorful as frozen orange juice made with 4 cans of water rather than 3.

For months after I'd heard rumor this title was being released I waited in anticipation for its arrival. When it arrived I was not dissappointed.

Following after the events in "Prince of Lies" by James Lowder, "Crucible" tells the tale of the eccentric Malik, a Calishite merchant, and devoted worshipper of Cyric. We watch as he seeks out the Cyrinishad, followed closely by a seethingly angry Ruha, a bedine witch made famous in "Veiled Dragon" also by Denning. The story is told as though Malik were the author, a tactic I found delightful. Not only does it allow you to look into the mind of a villain, but his narration in regards to the deities and other "good guys" is just wonderful, and often funny.

Any follower of this series of novels will also delight in the further delving into power plays between deities within the Forgotten Realms world. This title does a marvelous job of detailing Jergal, Tyr, Helm, Mystra, Kelemvor, Talos, Mask, and especially Cyric. We witness as we are allowed a greater understanding of how the gods think, and how they pine against other deities. We also gain witness to the growth of Kelemvor as a Fearunian god.

Despite a pile of nay sayers against this title, I suggest you give it a shot, it's a fun read, and a good book. However, if you're a staunch "canon" Realms fan, remember this is written by Malik, if you don't like his history consider it propoganda, but don't turn away from the book, it's worth the time.

This novel unfolds the truth about Gods of Forgotten Realms. A reader will learn the history powers allies and true nature of each of the gods. That alone is reason enough to read it. But I feel that the most important things about this story is the point of view it's told from. A mad man, one lost in the love of his own God but not because of faith but because of power he will receive for staying in his favor. As you read this novel feel yourself as a mad man would. Cyric is the God of madness and for that reason the story is being told by a mad man. This allows the reader to truly see and feel what we will never (hopefully) feel in our lives and more importantly what Cyric truly feels. Read this novel if you true want to understand what goes on in the forgotten realms but even more importantly, when a God goes mad.

Well, all i can say is that mr Troy Denning has got balls made of solid brass. To dare write a novel in FR series, with main characer evil-hearted is a heroic act. To write it so - that the novel is worth to be classic in the future is truly a hard quest. An mr Denning has completed that quest. This book is worth every penny you pay for it, and it is filled with twists, plots and superbly well developed characters and background from the start to the end. And i cant describe the ending. The final twist was simply marvelous.