Rise of the Blood Royal: Volume 3 of The Destinies of Blood and Stone

Rating All Ages Genre fantasy Publisher Ballantine Books/Del Rey External Links Official Blood and Stone Website

Billed as a "conclusion" to the "trilogy" of The Destinies of Blood and Stone, the reader is promised many things: answers to questions, new wonders and horrors, and changes to the lives of our heroes, Tristan and Shailiha, The Chosen Ones. While there are answers provided, and while the storyline is new, and while the book brings change to our main characters, this cannot, in my mind, be billed as a "conclusion." It doesn’t just leave the door open for the possibility of a sequel -- it demands one.

Tristan and Shailiha continue their fight to reach the other side of the world, separated from their country by the mystical Tolenka Mountains. And while in some ways they succeed, the price they must pay is higher than they might have hoped. Meanwhile, across the Tolenkas, Vespasian, emperor of the Vagaries country of Rustannica, plots a new war to steal the gold reserves of Vigors country Shashida. Tristan finds himself caught up in the epic struggle, while Shailiha finds herself defending their home from a new invader.

Having read the previous volume, I was intrigued to see where the story was going. I find myself less intrigued now, and not because all the questions have been answered and the series has found an exciting ending. I realize this story is probably one in the vein of The Wheel of Time -- one that is destined to go on as long as it possibly can. Whether the author decides to continue to release them in groups of three, epic trilogies, or not, is irrelevant. The fact is, I came in wanting closure, and left without it.

The new enemies that arise to challenge our heroes on their side of the world are the Viper Lord and his minions. I did not feel much for the character of the Viper Lord, Kristos, mostly because I can't imagine I was supposed to. He was an enemy with minimal story, only one short flashback explaining his existence. On the other hand, Vespasian is more fully developed, with a back-story and real motivations. While he works on the side of evil, Newcomb is trying to make us see the world as less black-and-white. The book argues the point that, since good and evil, Vigors and Vagaries, are determined by a person's blood, perhaps they are not fully responsible for their actions. Perhaps they are compelled to fight one another because of their blood. While the Vagaries seem to be more basely evil than the Vigors seem to be basely good, in the end both sides are forced to cross lines that neither had been willing to cross before, all in the name of ending a centuries-long war.

The writing leaves a lot to be desired. Some are just minor irritations that perhaps only irritating to me. For example, some descriptions are repeated: mystical torches always burn "eternally, with no smoke" and Tristan's hair is always described as "salt and pepper" in color. This bothered me. I don't need to be reminded, for one, what color a character's hair is. And as interesting as a torch that burns "eternally, with no smoke" is, I wish the author could have found a different way of saying it rather than the cutting-and-pasting that took place. Generally, there is a lack of flair to the proceedings, but Newcomb is telling an epic story, not writing a candidate for the Pulitzer.

I can't recommend Rise of the Blood Royal to anyone who is not a fan of high fantasy. But if epic fantasy is your thing, you'd do well to check it out.