Fortress of Ice

Final novel in the C J Cherryh fortress series. Excellent ending of the series as it cleared up many of the questions raised in the earlier editions. I thouroughly enjoyed it.

A welcome return to the Fortress series, wherein to combat an ancient enemy, a powerful but dying wizard has brought an ancient and magical Sihhe lord, Tristen, to life. But the Sihhe have long passed from the world, the human Marhanan line rules, having killed the last Sihhe king. Tristen had befriended the Marhanan king in the previous books, and saw him to power, despite the past. They defeated the sorcerous enemy together, but Tristen is distrusted by the humans, so he's withdrawn to his lonely, ancient fortress. In the meantime, Cefwyn, the king, has his own worries. One of his old enemies, a sorceress, had seduced him before revealing herself, and bore him a son, Elfwyn. She is now imprisoned and the son is now 16 and stands on the cusp of good and evil. Elfwyn wants to love his brother, Cefwyn's legitimate son. He wants his father's love. But his given name is the name of the hated, last Sihhe king who was killed by his father's ancestors, and his last name belongs to his traitorous mother. At court, he's also distrusted by the Quinalt, the church of the province of the King. A series of strange events start to occur, seeming to sabotage all Elfwyn touches. He suspects the evil influence of his mother, but he's young and insecure and uncertain and it seems as if nothing he can do is right. Evil seems about to break out once more into the world and whether Elfwyn aids it or thwarts it, us still to be told... Lyrical and mysterious, the magic and power of this world is subtle and strange and the stuff of legends. I continue to find the world and the characters compelling.

Fortress of Ice (2006) is the fifth fantasy novel in the Fortress series, following Fortress of Dragons. In the previous volume, a little sorcery by Orien Aswydd gets her sister Tarien pregnant by Prince Cefwyn Marhanen. Afterward, Cefwyn's father, King Inareddrin, died in an ambush arranged by Heryn Aswydd, aetheling of Amefel. Cefwyn became King of Ylesuin and, after a small war, hung Heryn for regicide. Although he also executed Heryn's sister Orien, he spared Tarien as well as his son born of Tarien. Upon advice from his friend Tristen, the child -- named Elfwyn by his sorceress mother -- is fostered out to a local hedge witch. The boy calls the witch Gran and she bestows the name of Otter on him for his nimble and clever ways. In this novel, Otter and his half-brother, Prince Aewyn, have become friends during their father's annual visit to Amefel. For years, they have played together while their father stopped to talk to Gran. Now Aewyn has received permission from his father to invite Otter for a visit to Guelesfort. Otter has come to Guelemara with his foster brother Paisi, who acts as his personal servant. Although Otter is uncomfortable in his role as a prince of the kingdom, Paisi was a personal servant for many years to Tristen and Emuin. Otter receives some very sage advice from Paisi during the visit. Otter becomes close friends with Aewyn and trusts him completely. Still, he is uncertain about the motives of their father. He knows that he will be viewed with suspicion by the Guelesfolk during the coming holidays because of his Bryalt heritage. Yet the king has sent sumptuous clothing for him to wear during the Quinalt service on the first day. Then Otter and Paisi dream that Gran is ill and trapped within her cottage without a fire. Since both have the same dream, they immediately make plans for Paisi to return to Amefel to take care of Gran. Otter will stay behind to alleviate suspicions and to attend the religious services. But everything goes wrong and eventually Otter also returns to Gran's cottage. In this story, Otter learns that the dreams had been false and he decides to leave Gran and Paisi to visit Lord Tristen in his tower. Despite the terrible weather, Otter finally reaches Ynefel and meets Lord Tristen. He is advised to accept the name of Elfwyn and to learn vision and patience. Yet Tristen does not agree to take him as an apprentice wizard, but instead sends him back on the following day with a letter and message to Duke Crissand. This story is a tale of self discovery by Elfwyn. He learns much more about his mother and aunt and also learns something about his own Gift and its extents and limitations. Moreover, he discovers that Aewyn too has a Gift from his mother's bloodline. Indeed, these Gifts work together to save the brothers from their enemies. Cefwyn likewise learns more about fatherhood during this period. He had already learned much about parental misjudgments from his father'

I have come to find over the years that if you "Like" the writings of CJ Cherryh, then you probably "Love" to read her books. Some people don't get them, can't get the cadence of her style or whatever... I ADORE her books I look forward to every one and am never disappointed. In Ms. Cherryh's award winning Cyteen, the protagonist is giving an interview when she explains that a "Genius" is a person with the long view (one who can see the cause and effect steps ahead) but a "Special" (one who's mind is a treasure of state) can see the wide view as well as the long view. Looking at her catalogue in total you can see Ms. Cherry is in fact a treasure, she never looses the ends of her universe, every word is connected to every other story (given the Sci-Fi (all the Sci-Fi) is one universe and, the Fantasy stories are separate to the world created for the story. The Fortress stories are wonderful, and picking back up fifteen years into the story, "Fortress of Ice" loses no steam, or intensity, or beauty. As a Cherryh tale, we see the ripples across the world from a single event, that sets the ball rolling, where resolutions occur, but conclusions do not, as the universe feels the butterfly effect. So would this book be a good read as a stand alone? Maybe, but you would miss the nuance, which is the essence of a Cherryh story. I reread the Fortress series this month before reading Fortress of Ice, and I'm glad I did, not only because I enjoyed "Ice" so much more fully, but because the series is so well crafted and such a joy to read. But, I digress. Fortress of Ice is a wonderful tale of brotherhood, of friendship, of love, and of alienation,and of finding ones place in the world. It is a story where the Characters are smart and there is never a desire as the reader to yell at the characters HELLO!!! DUH!! he's in the closet!! ETC. You learn as the characters learn, there are never unsupported details, and never gotcha moments. Just action, dialogue and delemas as the plot beautifully continues to unfold. Well crafted, visual, and uplifting. If you enjoy Ms Cheryh's Fantasy stories this will not disappoint in the least, I am so glad to have read it, I dreaded turning the last page,and I anxiously await another installment.