Originally posted on Once Upon a Bookcase.The final book in The Tamuli! And what a book!After Sparhawk released the Troll-Gods up in Atan, they took back control of the Trolls and turned them against Cyrgon and his Cyrgai. Being butchered and eaten by the Trolls, the ranks of the Cyrgai fall, causing Cyrgon to do the unthinkable - release Klæl. The brother and opposite of Bhelliom, Klæl is a monster beyond all imagining, and Cyrgon is a fool to think he can control it.Unbeknownst to Sparhawk, while up in Atan releasing the Troll-Gods, his wife was abducted by Scarpa, son of the traitorous Styric, Zalasta. If Sparhawk is ever to see Ehlana alive again, he must follow the strict instructions given to him in messages which will lead to an exchange - Ehlana for the Bhelliom. But without the Bhelliom, there's no way to defeat Klæl.This is more like the Eddings I know! I mentioned in my review of The Sapphire Rose that I was a little disappointed that there was more politics than action, but that's not the case in The Hidden City. There is a still a lot of political intrigue going on, but Sparhawk and his companions take massive steps to fight Cyrgon and Klæl. He and his companions devise ways to combat the various forces across the Empire, and split up to do so. Skirmishes here, infiltration there, disguises and disception pretty much everywhere. It's awesome!There's a lot that happens in this book, and a lot to discover, so I don't want to go into it in too much detail. But I pretty much flew through this book, and I loved every second. Something I found interesting was the things I remembered about the trilogy. There are scenes or moments from the story, images that stood out vividly in my mind before I re-read them. Although I had forgotten the general plot of the story, I remembered these images because they really impressed on me at the time I first read them. It was amazing to see this time round that the images or moments that I remembered so clearly could be just a paragraph or two long. There were several of them in this book, and I was amazed to see how short they were. It's amazing what the brain holds on to, isn't it?I finished this book with a heavy heart. There are only two trilogies featuring these sets of characters, and although this was a re-read and I knew it would end, it still left me feeling really sad to say goodbye to such well loved characters. Although my memories of the stories wasn't quite right, and I was disappointed with some aspects, the characters themselves are awesome, and I fell in love with them all over again. The monachs, the knights, the criminals, the government officials, the gods - or rather, the goddess; Aphrael will steal anyone's heart. I'm really sad to have come to the end. Has me itching to re-read some of Eddings other novels, but I think I might wait for a short while.A fantastic to end to another great trilogy full of wonderful characters you can't help but adore.
What a way to end a series.David Eddings' career was always fascinating to me, largely because many of his fans view it as a parabola. He started out mediocre, and rose to greatness quickly, eventually descending back into mediocrity with the subpar Dreamers saga.But the Elenium and the Tamuli are, in my opinion, beyond anything he's ever written.Being book 6 in the Elenium/Tamuli storyline, I suppose there's no real reason to convince you to read this book because, quite frankly, you've stuck with the other 5 by now and I really can't imagine anyone suddenly deciding to stop without seeing how it all ends.So as a critique, Eddings' wit is amazingly sharp throughout the entire book. I got many a stare bursting out into hysterical laughter while I read this on the train every day. Dry as ever, his dull yet charmingly witty observations, nitpicking details in his own story and playing off the stereotypes of his stock characters leads to expecting yet delightfully accepted humor.The strategies and limits he puts on the forces in this book are one of the things that made me love him. Everything, from man to deity, has its' limits, and in harmony the forces of good and evil fight once more to see who will reign victorious.Eddings has done the "side fueled by a good deity" vs "side fueled by a bad deity" plot in every single fantasy book he's ever written, but none of them were done nearly as well as in these two series.I absolutely recommend the series in general, and hope many people experience it. Eddings isn't the best author, and his books won't teach you much, or reinvent the way you think, but it's an enjoyable, laughable, and exciting story the whole way through.
What do You think about The Hidden City (1995)?
Between the the books from the first series (The Elenium) and the second series (the Tamuli), The Hidden City is the best out of all 6 books. It has the fastest pase where more things are accomplished. Also there is more action and plot. It does get confusing though because there are a lot of people and the books jumps around alot. Ending is kind of abrupt compared to how long the series took to build up the story. Sparhawk's main purpose is almost laughable compared to what the guy went through but overall it was good.
—Chrystal
The third and final book of the Tamuli, The Hidden City, sees Sparhawk and his clan finally win through triumphant in climatic battle (though not as climatic as many over books in the genre) and all loose ends gets tied up in a nice neat bow.The series is the same as the Belgariad/Mallorion and while still worth a read the format is getting over used. The wit and batter which is charming to begin with also reached the end of it’s welcome by the end of the series (which with the Belgarion books totals 18). Overall I really enjoyed Sparhawk and his companions despite their adventures and personalities being largely replications of those in the Belgariad/Mallorion. They must have been stretched as far as they could go though as the Redemption of Althalus and Dreamers series that followed were shockingly bad missing just about everything that made Eddings first two series so good.
—Jak
WAR TO THE DEATH The Pandion Knight Sparhawk had bested the massed forces of the God Cyrgon upon the field of battle. But victory turned to ashes when the foul God's minions kidnapped Sparhawk's wife, the beautiful Queen Ehlana. Sparhawk must surrender Bhelliom, the awesome jewel of power--or Ehlana would die. But Cyrgon's lackeys had misjudged their foe. Sparhawk fought on, and none of his companions flinched from the awesome struggle, though each must vanquish forces of evil from Tamuli's dark past, and from fetid places beyond human ken. Still, the full magnitude of their peril was yet to be revealed...Cyrgon had dared the unthinkable: He had called forth Kleal, Bhelliom's opposite, to rend the very world asunder. Thus, as it had ever been decreed, would Bhelliom and Kleal contend for the fate of this world--even as the man Sparhawk must finally face the God Cyrgon, in mortal combat and alone...### From Publishers WeeklyIn this conclusion to the trilogy begun with Domes of Fire, Sir Sparhawk must rescue his wife, Queen Ehlana of Elenia, from the followers of the mad god Cyrgon. Her kidnapping occurs as various Church Knights and Atan troops are finishing what they believe are mopping-up operations against the enemies of the Tamuli emperor, Sarabian. Ehlana's abductor is the son of the Styric renegade masterminding a plot against the emperor. Her safe return is promised in exchange for Bhelliom, the powerful living gem responsible for the destruction of the evil god Azash. The Pandion knight Berit, disguised as Sparkhawk by a spell, moves from place to place following the kidnappers' instructions, while Sparhawk, in another guise, seeks allies, and the child-goddess Aphrael (reborn as Ehlana's and Sparhawk's daughter Danae) calls on some reluctant fellow gods to lend aid. These moves are gravely complicated by the machinations of Cyrgon, who has unleashed Klael, the ancient embodiment of evil. A new note of introspection gives a fuller dimension to Eddings's rousing adventure. Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. ### From Library JournalTo rescue his beloved Queen from the clutches of a mad god's minions, the Pandion Knight Sparhawk confronts a monster capable of destroying his world. The conclusion to the latest series by the best-selling author of "The Belgariad" and other fantasy series promises to be a much-requested title. Libraries should purchase according to demand. Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.
—Andrew Wilson
