As Storm Breaking opens, the western allies, led by Karal, Karsite Sunpriest and delegate to the Valdemaran Court, and the Adepts Firesong and An'desha, have traveled deep into the Dorisha Plains to locate the ancient ruins of the Tower of Urtho, Mage of Silence, creator of the gryphons. Legend has it that below the Tower, deeply buried beneath the plains, is Urtho's Vault, hidden stronghold of some of the most powerful magical weapons ever devised -- weapons that Urtho himself felt were too dangerous to use. With the help of the Shin'a'in plainsmen, they have successfully excavated this ancient arsenal, and risked their lives triggering one of these antique but potent tools of death to unleash a monstrous burst of mage-energy. With this explosion of magical power, Karal, Firesong, and their companions have temporarily counteracted the ever-increasing waves of the mage storms. But they know that this desperate action will not save them -- they have bought themselves precious time, but are still far from a permanent solution. They know now that the mage storms are an "echo" through time of the prehistoric Cataclysm which destroyed Urtho's Tower, created the vast and barren Dorisha Plains, and permanently warped their world more than two thousand years ago. And they also know that if they don't find a way to banish these magical vibrations they will culminate in another Cataclysm -- this time destroying their world for good. But the Vault is not the only thing buried for centuries below the Dorisha Plains, and camped in the ruins of what once was the workplace of the most ingenious mage their world has ever known, the desperate allies soon come to realize that their solution may lie beneath the dust at their feet. The saving of their world just might be accomplished by the work of a man who has been dead for millenia!
Storm Breaking doesn't work quite as perfectly for me for a couple of reasons, but it's still fairly solid. This is in large part due to Karal, who is just a delightful viewpoint character, and his sections work well with the Hardorn bits, which I also enjoy.The main problem with the whole series is that each book ends with exactly the same climax, just with slightly higher losses. Nothing really innovative happens, and it sucks some of the climax out of the last book when it becomes obvious that we've seen this scene before. It doesn't quite overshadow all the lovely small bits, but... well, don't read this book for the plot.The lesser problem is the Empire POV scenes. They're wedged in and just don't fit - they'd make an interesting companion novella, but they don't work for me at all as interludes in this book about people I actually like. The Empire has ceased to be the villain, or in fact relevant at all, and this last gasp effort to bring them back flat doesn't work.Overall, though, I enjoy the trilogy quite a bit.
What do You think about Storm Breaking (1997)?
It seems that the best character in this trilogy, Duke Tremane, has been reduced to a sad and pitifully stupid character, fallen from the great heights of an excellent military leader-- an excellent military leader that made the fatal mistake of attempting to deal in politics against the Valdemarians. I wanted him to be Chosen. I wanted the Heralds to ask the difficult questions of the meaning of their morality now that there is this bad, bad man in their ranks. I wanted the problems to be solve
—Speedtribes
What I remember most about this book is that even in this fantasy world where gods have routine physical manifestations, there is so much misunderstanding. The talk that the priest has with his other-worldly companion about misperceptions is good, and it is underlied by the hints that each of the religions in the story is only getting part of the picture. One country worships the male sun god, another worships the female moon goddess, but when they meet a centuries old mage, she worships brother and sister twin gods, and there is a crazy lunatic back in the capital that thinks they are all one.
—Jh6p
Storm Breaking picks up very tidily after the minor cliffhanger ending of Storm Rising, and proves to be just as enjoyable. While I still admit some confusion concerning all of the mage storms that are the books inspiration, and while I actually find the "main focus" of this book (Karal, An'desha, Firesong, and company in Urtho's tower) to be the most boring/routine component of the story, it's an overwhelmingly good climax for the story arc.More time is spent back in the empire, and I love the
—Daniel Millard
