The Destroyer Goddess: In Fire Forged, Part 2

"The Destroyer Goddess" the last in the wonderful trilogy by Laura Resnick actually does what few last fantasy books accomplish-it wraps up the series nicely and answers all the questions the previous books posed. I will be brief in this review as I have not in those I wrote for the previous two books, because basically, if you finished the second book, nothing will stop you from reading this one, so here is basically some of what happens in this book. Mirabar does in fact marry the insane Waterlord Baran, but only after she and Tansen have admitted they love each other. Tansen is understandably pissed, but understands the duty and destiny aspect of the whole situation. We find out why exactly Baran and Kiloran hate each other so much. We learn about Zarien's biological parents, and his true destiny. His relationship with Tansen, as his new blood son continues to mirror Tansen's with his own blood father in that Zarien somehow wants Tansen to be a different man (of course of all of this, and the father/son Tansen/Armien, Tansen/Zarien stuff in this book in the last are clearly leading to something big.) Tansen continues on his quest to rid the country of Waterlords. The Volcano Goddess continues to throw increasing tantrums and visions in the sky continue and pilgrims head to Dar's Volcano in religious fervor waiting for something. Mirabar attempts to get pregnant while trying to find the new leader of the country-who will also be a child. Cheylan acts very evil . Kiloran acts very evil. Elelar does very surprising things. Ronall and Najdan debate the pros and cons of Tansen beating his son. And the sea king is found. All in all, I just love this book. In spite of the difficulties a marriage to another man brings to our romantic couple, this is a romantic novel. Its also surprising, funny and like all the books in the series has the completely charming characters, in life or death situations, often just losing it and arguing about really stupid things, which is just so normal that it makes it feel real. And the ending is something. Really something. I only wish the author would finally return to this world with more books. I know she intended to explore the other countries of the "world" in some books, but personally I'd be happy with more of this particular little Island nation. Five stars.

A rousing finish to what I now think is one of my favorite fantasy series. This book provide a satisfying conclusion to the many subplots in the story. I am quite impressed with Ms. Resnick's storytelling ability and her writing style. The plotting and character development were outstanding, but what I liked most of all was the witty dialogue and often realistic-sounding exchanges between father-son, lovers, friends, etc. My only minor quibble is that the book uses the term "dryly" a bit too much when describing dialogue. It was dry and witty, but there was no need to point this out all the time! All-in-all, very nicely done.

The Valdani have finally left Sileria after hundreds of years of occupation but now the water lords, led by their powerful chief Kiloran, intend to take over. Their rule, should they be successful, will be far harsher and far more complete than anything the Valdani dreamed of. And all that stands in their way are a handful of guardians (fire mages) and Tansen--a great warrior to be sure, but hardly a cult leader like his brother, now killed by Kiloran. Things only get worse for Tansen when the great fire-mage and prophet, Mirabar--the woman he loves despite her cruelty to him--decides to marry a crazy waterlord. They need dissension among the waterlords, but Tansen hates the idea that any man but he will touch Mirabar. Tansen, along with his adopted son, do their best to stir up troubles among the waterlords, playing them off against each other. But the prophecies require children to be born for real freedom--and Kiloran's assassins are doing their best to kill any of the likely candidates. Author Laura Resnick has created a fascinating magical world. Tansen and the half-Valdani lord Ronall, in particular, come to life as flawed but fascinating characters. The magic system with its battles between water and fire magic is fully developed and very nice. Resnick's word pictures of the water magic are especially powerful. THE DESTROYER GODDESS is the strongest of the three novels in this series. The plot is more tightly integrated as the characters come together for the resolution of the centuries-old struggle between fire and water, between the Society and the Guardians, and between the peasants and the sea. Even the gods come ito play in this one. The novel could be read as a stand-alone but readers will find it more interesting if they read the three novels in the order they were written.

This is the third book of the series In Legend Born. I've waited for this book for 3+ years and although I have forgotten some of the minor characters (such as Jalilar) this book is a very memorable conclusion of the series. It has many plot twists, many of which are predictable (but I don't read a story for the twists, i read it for the story) and has very full characterizations of the main characters. The war against the Waterlords are also occasionally analyzed in a big-picture objective, omnipresent view which helps with clarifying what has been happening. My biggest gripe with the book is that it gives us no sense of how much time has passed, and when it does [fastforward through time], time passes so fast, that u wish it had more details so that there would be more to read. However it does not demerit it enough to a 4. All in all this is a high-quality political, magical and adventure fantasy book with strong themes (which i didn't feel like covering) and highly recommended