A Darkness Grows

Raymond E. Feist really seems to find his groove with these characters.

Arutha was fun, and we get to see a lot more of him in A Darkness At Sethanon, but we also get to see more of Jimmy the Hand again.

While I didn't have quite the crush on Jimmy that I had on Arutha, I really enjoyed Jimmy. The idea that a boy born to the common people (a boy who was a thief until he royally pissed off the guild of thieves) could become a noble, and learn to rise above his poor beginnings ...

Don't we all kind of wish for that?

A Darkness At Sethanon is still very much Arutha's story, but Jimmy is a bigger part of it. You get a real sense that Jimmy has no idea why he is doing it, but he has dedicated the remainder of his life to this Prince, and whatever Arutha asks of him, Jimmy will do with no hesitation, no questioning. The real meaning of unshakable loyalty.

We also get to learn more about the great magic users, the magicians, sorcerers, and other beings we have met in passing in this ongoing saga.

The history of the Dragon Lords, the Valheru, is revealed, we get up close and personal with a dragon, the magicians play around with time, and we see the beginning of the universe through their eyes. How much better can it get?

Big armies, big wars, big explosions, if this was a movie it would be full of so much fire and blood it would definitely be rated 'R' for violence. And yet, there's no sex, no foul language, and the story is gripping. The evil is evil, and the good is good - all very black and white.

Isn't that the best way to have a fight between good and evil? Black and white?