We made it all the way to the end of the five book series, The Belgariad, by David Eddings. Woot! Congratulation are in order. I’m finding myself a donut. The last book, Enchanter’s End Game brings us to the end of Garion’s story arc and ties up all the loose ends, just as it’s supposed to. I still stand by my initial feeling that the majority of this book could have very well been included into the end of Castle of Wizardry, but the publisher probably argued that it would have made that book too long.

If you want to check out my reviews on the first four books in the series, here are some handy links:

• Pawn of Prophecy
• Queen of Sorcery
• Magician’s Gambit
• Castle of Wizardry

The Story

We began the Belgariad by learning that the Orb of Aldur, a magical item created by one of the pantheon of gods in this universe, had been stolen. At book three, the orb is successfully recovered. In book four, it is restored to it’s rightful place. Now, in book five, the one who was behind the plot to steal it must be confronted and receive an appropriate consequence.

And … this is where the weird starts happening. Not that what has happened earlier in the story wasn’t unique in itself, but this is a bit weirder than usual. The overarching villain of this entire saga is none other than Torak, the god of the Angarak people. Torak, being a god, knows of Garion’s destiny and wants to thwart it. Instead of just killing him, Torak tries to make a deal.

It seems one of the Mallorian Prophecies marks his Aunt Pol as Torak’s fiancé. I told you this got a little weird. Torak wants to marry Pol and have Garion accept him as a father.

Hmmm . . . where have we heard this story line before?

There is a bunch of sneaking and fighting. The party gets captured by the mini boss, Zedar who delivers them to Torak. Torak uses mind control to get Pol to do what he wants. Garion uses magic to protect her. More fighting and all the feels happen as everyone tries to make it out of this story alive.

As this is the final book in the series, there is a rather lengthy post victory sequence where everyone gets what they want.

My Review

It’s always a little bittersweet to get to the end of a story and know that every battle, fight, and conflict must lead to something final. For me, the best part of a long series is watching characters grow into themselves and realize what kind of role they need to play. The journey is more interesting than the destination.

That said, there are some really nice moments in this book where these characters who have been through so much finally get what they deserve. Hard earned happiness is the best way to send a main character off into the sunset, and our motley crew of misfits each get a nice ending.

While I personally don’t ever want an exciting story to end, this one does end and Eddings makes it a good one. The series was so successful, that Eddings went on to expand this universe and the timeline, creating another five book series, the Malloreon, as well as three stand alone books.

Recommendations

The Belgariad is a must read for fantasy enthusiasts, especially those who want to dive into the roots of modern fantasy and see where different ideas and concepts took root. Critics claim that it was the Belgariad that breathed new life into the fantasy genre when many started to turn away.

It’s clean, fun, full of adventure, and good for everyone ages 12 and up.

I rate Enchanter’s End Game 4/5 for being a solid conclusion to a great story, even though the post climax material did feel a bit long.

I rate The Belgariad 5/5 for being an awesome, well paced, fantasy.

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