Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
This is not the end, is it?, May 29, 2006
All credit to an author who sets out to write a trilogy and manages to do it - a rare thing in this line of publishing. That is, if this will still be a trilogy...
This is a very disappointing sequel to the very good Warrior-Prophet. Mainly, what causes problems in this novel is Bakker's continuing penchant for liberally sprinkling pseudo gems of undergraduate level philosophy and psychoanalysis throughout his text. There is so much of it that it hinders reading, as you are constantly re-reading passages to make sure that a) you didn't miss anything, b) did you understand what Bakker was trying to say, and c) often wondering what a load of balderdash his characters tend to spout. We could have done without this, as one might imagine Bakker would trust us enough to understand his characters by now. But, from having read the glaringly sycophantic comments and reviews on his websites, one wonders if he was in part taken in by those who seem to like this sort of writing.
I don't know why he felt the need to do this, as it really obscures what is an otherwise interesting plot, some well worked characters, a world with a lot of potential and scope, but with one monstrous flaw - and that is Kellhus. He is just not credible as a character, nor is he likeable. One man cannot do what Bakker makes him do. If he only had given Kellhus the more limited task of influencing the elites of the Three Seas who would then, always using Bakker's own political and philosophical assertions, have carried their peoples with them, it would have made the reader's acceptance of his abilities easier.
Bakker still has real talent, however. Some loose ends are nicely tied up, particularly those involving Maithanet, the Cishaurim, the spy within the Mandate, and Moenghus. Conphas gets a quite monumental comuppance. The skinspies take on depth and complexity. He manages the multiple scenes of the book's climax well, although the battle between Inrithi and Fanim warriors, again awash in names of people we know or care nothing about, could have been shorter to give more time to the more important confrontation between Kellhus and his father, which fizzles out frustratingly and inconclusively. As well, the Biblical tone of the book resonates well with his geography and grasp of his world's antiquity, and every time the Consult makes an appearance the book and writing work better - the scene between Kellhus and a possessed Esmenet is excellent.
But, but, but... One wonders why he went to all the trouble of creating the Consult and the No-God (which never even makes an appearance) if he never planned on doing anything with them. The sprinkling of Achamian/Seswatha flashbacks add nothing to the story, and only serve to underline the way in which Bakker could really have made something of the Mandate's dreams, like enabling Achamian to work out who the Dunyain are (they obviously existed during the Apocalypse) and what they stand for, as well as throwing a spanner in the works by having the Seswatha alterego actually possess one of the Mandate, or something like that.
Well worth the read, but if he does continue this, he needs a better editor.
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13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Admirable conclusion to metaphysical-fantastical series, March 23, 2006
I enjoyed the first two novels in R. Scott Bakker's "Prince of Nothing" series -- his weaving of action, humor, sex, and metaphysics into a fully-realized alternate universe demonstrated astounding dexterity and full-fledged commitment to his story. I can't imagine the permutations this story must have gone through as Bakker wrestled with a plot that was truly epic in scope, not to mention his philosophical, slightly archaic diction.
I eagerly dove into "The Thousandfold Thought," anxious to see how Bakker was going to wrap up this announced trilogy. In some respects, the plot of "TTT" is straightforward: the otherworldly Prince of Nothing, Kellhus, has led the Holy War to the threshold of its goal -- the plains outside the city of Shimeh. What ensues is, for approximately the last 20% of the novel, a battle between invader and invaded that rivals anything since the Battle of the Pellenor Fields from Tolkien's "Return of the King." It's hard to say who is more terrifying -- Bakker's battle-hardened human soldiers or their sorcerer allies. Nobody writes a more powerful, more dazzling battle scene than Bakker, and that's high praise indeed.
But much of "TTT" is given over to metaphysical debate as Kellhus confronts his father, the sorcerer Drusas Achamian confronts the truth of Kellhus and his love for his former wife Esmemet (now Kellhus' lover), and the barbarian Cnaiur confronts his former lover and tormentor. Plus, "minor" characters plot, scheme, and kill as they seek to twist the Holy War to their own ends.
To be honest, I am not all that interested in philosophy, so much of the metaphysical stuff Bakker obviously adores was lost on me. Bakker writes it well, but I am not the correct audience. I liked it fine, but it's not the kind of stuff I'm going to eagerly revisit, and it made much of "TTT" pretty slow going.
Much of the humor found in the first two books in this series is absent from "TTT," as the major players are moved to peaks of triumph and despair in the midst of war. There's naturally not much room for levity. That's unfortunate, but it's not a weakness. "TTT" is just a weightier tome than the first two novels.
Bakker takes the interesting step of ending his trilogy with what is essentially a cliff-hanger. Does he intend to keep the story alive? He's got more than a few plot threads left to tie up. Or does he want the reader to puzzle over their own interpretation of these plot threads (such as, what's going on with the bird-with-the-human-head, what happens to Cnaiur, etc.). That would be a daring choice considering all the work that went into this trilogy.
Ultimately, I admire the "Prince of Nothing" series more than I enjoy it. I don't shun complexity, but this series is the first one I've really wanted to finish where the third novel starts out with dozens of pages summarizing what happened in the first two novels, and attaches 100 pages of expository appendices to the end. Again, Bakker has created a complex world populated with a staggering cast of characters and with its own extensive history -- I'm sure his world's version of the "Silmarillion" is out there just waiting to be published. And I'd probably check it out.
Not for the faint of heart, the "Prince of Nothing" series is probably better suited for armchair reading than the stairmaster at the gym -- you're going to need the time and the energy to work through Bakker's complex stories. And in the end, it's worth it.
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20 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Where's the rest of it?, February 18, 2007
Reading this book is a profoundly frustrating experience. Because there has been nary a hint that more books will follow this one, the reader expects both major plotlines--the one involving the Holy War and the other involving the conflict with the Consult--will be resolved. But that's not at all what happens. Though the Holy War is definitely over by the time the book ends, the Consult is still creeping through the brush, as it were, trying to kill off mankind. Will we ever get to see what happens next? I have no idea.
Mr. Bakker really could have been more charitable with his readers, given what an onerous slog he's demanded from us. He's given us only one sympathetic character, Achamian. The rest range from indifferent (Esmenet, Proyas, and others) to absolutely loathesome (Kellhus). And though Mr. Bakker does provide readers with some food for thought, now and again, I think his political/philosophical musings are by and large going to be familiar territory to modern readers. Can anyone, today, be shocked by the manipulations and cynicism of cult leaders (of which Kellhus is a characteristically revolting example)? I doubt it.
On the flip side there's Mr. Bakker's weird explanation of why the Consult wants to commit mass murder: if they can reduce the human population to a small enough number, the world will no longer have access to the "Outside," i.e. the gods and the afterlife will no longer be accessible to anyone inhabiting the planet. That's just plain bizarre. The implication seems to be that, since it takes a certain critical mass of souls to access the Eternal, a single soul has no worth on its own. That's a fine metaphysical position to take, but it really does require some elaboration, I think. Which we don't get.
All that aside, the book's worth a read. Just don't expect to set it back on the shelf with any particular feeling of satisfaction for having finished it.
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