*Spoilers*

I'm not really sure how to summarise my feelings here. The first two novels in the "Song of Albion" trilogy I found refreshing, considering that most other fantasy books tend to end up accidentally ripping off either The Lord of The Rings or The Chronicles of Narnia (or both). However, "The Endless Knot" seemed to both exceed and tumble far below my expectations. The first half, without a doubt, convinced me this was going to be the best of the three, with good plot development and a few unpredictable events that deliver a solid shroud of mystery. I liked, for instance, how it was uncertain whether or not the protagonist's presence in the otherworld and the lack of it in his own was partially or even entirely responsible for the new troubles arising in Albion. He often seems to realise the possibility of him unknowingly introducing foreign concepts into Albion and thus contributing to the unravelling of the barrier between the two worlds. The book, however, seems to slowly go downhill shortly after they arrive at Tir Aflan. The concept of another realm, unprotected and free for evil to inhabit was a new and welcome addition to the trilogy. Unfortunately, Mr. Lawhead (author) seems to be very good at setting the scene for the presence of evil and then ruining all he has built up shortly after. The "blood-sucking spirits", for example, were well-introduced and more horrific than anything we've seen so far before in the series. The description of the dead horse and the way its state and appearance seem to affect the rest of the company is chilling. The description of what they are and what they are capable of is vague enough to leave much to the reader's imagination and you dread the point at they'll appear in the book. Of course, they do appear and they are not nearly as frightening as you thought they could be. This seems to repeat itself a lot throughout they're travels in Tir Aflan. The sacrificial lair of the worm in the temple is another horrifying and gripping moment that ends in a dull and ill-described battle, in which many swords and spears are thrown at a large and unoriginal snake-like creature. Later on, the voices of the dead are also rather haunting until they actually appear in a form more grotesque than scary. Despite these disappointing encounters, the story still remains enough to push the reader on for a while until we eventually come to an overblown battle where swords and spears go against guns and machinery and we are reunited with characters we didn't expect and to be honest didn't really want to return.

*Mega spoiler alert*

We are then presented with the finale in which the main character (who, by the way, is narrating the story) is stabbed in the chest by his ex-best friend and then slowly burns to death while his pregnant wife weeps over the remains. All is well though! For the "Sure Swift Hand" completely restores Tir Aflan and all its miserable inhabitants by making them new and incinerating the bad people, thus ridding the world of evil forever. The now-dead main character then continues to describe to us everything from then on from the transporting of his body to the burying of it after which he suddenly reappears alive and well back in the world from whence he came. He, of course, writes down all of what has happened while an implied love interest between him and his now dead backstabbing best friend's former girlfriend begins to develop.

First half: 4
Second half: 2 ( )

I won't give any spoilers, but this well-written trilogy comes to an exciting, surprising, and fulfilling conclusion in this third book. I don't usually read a series twice, but I will read this one again. It was terrific! Read more Stephen Lawhead novel reviews at Fantasy Literature ( )

Otherwise known as "Everything Is Terrible." God, this is a dull, depressing end to an otherwise entertaining series. People are happy for approximately five minutes, then shit catches fire. After that, it's one long slog through boring, gray territory being menaced by various monsters and never quite catching up to the enemy. When they finally do, everyone dies.

Well, not exactly, but close enough. It solves the central problem of how to get Lewis out of the place he doesn't belong, and the section where he watches his own funeral is unintentionally funny, but then we get to the final "reveal" that, immediately after equating Lewis with Christ, implies that he is, in fact, Stephen R. Lawhead. I'm sorry, man, you didn't earn that.

Honestly I'd read the first two of this series and skip this one. It adds nothing of interest and is a terrible mess besides.

( )

The conclusion in the Song of Albion trilogy, The Endless Knot, picks up the storyline immediately preceding the events in The Silver Hand, with the narrator shifting back to Lewis Gilles, now Llew.

Against Professor Nettleton's dire warnings, Llew decides to stay in Albion. He hopes as High King of Albion to heal the damage done by Simon, and as Goewyn's husband to find a measure of happiness for himself. The Stones of Song are for now safe and protected at Dinas Dwr, and the survivors are establishing new lives after the ravages of war. But the knot binding the two worlds together is continuing to unravel. The key to healing Albion and restoring the endless knot lies in Tir Aflan, where Llew's continuing mythic adventures take him. There Llew will find a bleak land, new dangers, and old enemies. It will take a great sacrifice for balance to finally be restored and for the Song of Albion to spread to every location and every heart. ( )

Goed einde van deze trilogie, maar iets te lang. Dat had makkelijker een paar hoofdstukken korter gekund. Het einde is een beetje gezocht, maar op zich wel verklaarbaar. ( )