3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Disappointing Conclusion, May 17, 2008
This review is from: The Right Hand of God (Fire of Heaven Trilogy) (Mass Market Paperback)
The first book was just good enough to make me read book two. Book two was just good enough to make me read book three. Good thing there is no book four, because I wouldn't have continued. This is a very disappointing conclusion to the trilogy. Kirkpatrick is a marvelous writer, to be sure, and his evocation of place is excellent, but in the end the characters just don't do enough to justify a book.
Without entering any spoilers in thie review, suffice it to say that the final showdown between the Falthans and their evil nemesis finally takes place in a fairly dry manner. In the end, this series would have worked better as a single book, with some tight editing and more attention to character development and plotting.
If you liked books one and two, you'll probably like book three. I found it disappointing and probably won't buy any more of Kirkpatrick's books until he stops trying to stretch one book into three.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
A great trilogy ends...but some concerns with this final book., April 22, 2010
This review is from: The Right Hand of God (Fire of Heaven Trilogy) (Mass Market Paperback)
'The Right Hand of God' is the third book in the "Fire of Heaven" trilogy by Russell Kirkpatrick.
First the good (about the book and the series in general):
1.)I loved the premise for the story, even though it's the well travelled path of the unlikely, ill-equiped good guys going up against the all-powerful evil tyrant. The plot is slowly explored and then developed without rushing to ill-conceived conclusions.
2.)The multple characters of the saga were diverse enough to give interesting combinations of personalities, in both strengths and shortcomings. Conflicts and personality clashes were very helpful in providing a real human quality to the entire three books.
3.)There was a wealth of maps: maps of such extraordinary detail and scope. I've never a seen maps in any novel(s) that took the time to make sure the reader could not only find out where the heroes were but also what geographical problems they confronted.
The Cons: *SPOILER Warning*
For all the good things I've experienced with this trilogy I'm compelled to mention a perceived fault: a fault that degraded this final book to 3 (maybe 3 1/2) stars.
My concern was the prolonged (emphasis on prolonged) inability of our main progatonist (Leith) to come to grips with his destiny. Granted this was a 17+ year old boy, who had unwantingly thrust upon him, the responsility of saving the world. And instead of acting like the hero he should have been, he acts like, but what else, a 17 year old boy. Unable to come to grips with his duty to lead, unable to communicate with his parents or more importantly, Hal his brother. Or in fact, any of the slew of people in his party that were trying to help him.
And many of the concerns were not so much with Leith's very understandable immaturity in his dealing with this onerous responsiblity, it was the author's decision to drag this trait out over almost the entire length of this final third novel. It seemed that this 'shortcoming' was the main focus of this book, even more so than the final upcoming good vs evil confrontation. In short, I simply became tired of Leith's 'problem'...it resulted in many utterings to myself of "not again".
And yet having just explained my concerns, Leith's shortcomings were perfectly understandable. I'm just not sure that, within the context of a fantasy story, we (the readers) needed the prolonged exposure of an ideation more in keeping with a dramatic work of literature.
*End SPOILER*
Conclusion:
As a trilogy an outstanding work of writing. I loved the slowly developing story line, the characters and the maps. To me Leith's lack of 'maturity' issues, which seemed to dominated a significant portion of the final book, lessened the overall quality of the finale.
Book III 3 1/2 Stars. Entire trilogy 4 to 4 1/2 Stars
Ray Nicholson
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Judge for yourself..., January 26, 2011
This review is from: The Right Hand of God (Fire of Heaven Trilogy) (Mass Market Paperback)
If you've read the first two books of this series, and are hesitant to pick up the third because of conflicting reviews on Amazon (Like I was)... I say "Read on!!"
I read some of these reviews and was discouraged to read the last book in the trilogy because I was afraid I wouldn't like how it finished. Well, I have just finished and feel full contentment. Mr. Kirkpatrick gives a good story with exciting fight scenes, heart-wrenching moments of despair, and nail-biting pages of suspense. All of which kept my hand turning page after page until I found a good ending, and allowed myself a sigh of satisfaction at a story well told.
One reviewer expressed frustration at the main character's constant bemoaning of his circumstances, immaturity, pride and envy (you know what I'm talking about if you've read the first two books). It's true, Leith's personality does make him an unlikely and sometimes annoying protagonist. However! Mr. Kirkpatrick really does a good job of explaining his circumstances and in a small way challenges the reader... how would we react in Leith's place? Leith may not have the humbleness of a hobbit, but he definitely does have the uncertainty and honest insecurity of a very normal 17 year old human boy. He just happens to hear the voice of god.
So my challenge remains, if you read the first two books.... don't be discouraged! Continue the journey!
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