IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE FIRST TWO NOVELS OF THIS SERIES ("THE DRAGONBONE CHAIR" AND "THE STONE OF FAREWELL"), THERE MAY BE SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW.

IF YOU HAVEN'T READ "TO GREEN ANGEL TOWER" YET AND DON'T WANT TO KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE ENDING, I DO DISCUSS IT (WITHOUT GIVING IT AWAY). YOU CAN STILL READ THE REVIEW THOUGH, AND I WILL WARN YOU BEFORE I DISCUSS THE ENDING.

In "To Green Angel Tower", Tad Williams realizes that he's been wasting time, and that he has a lot of story to get through before he is done, and he's only got one book left to do it in! That's why this book is so massive, it's a huge 1066 page hardcover, which had to be published as two 800 page paperbacks!

Another reason for the length of this book is that Williams likes to tell each part of the story from different perspectives. This seems to happen more frequently near the end of the book. He gives a step-by-step account of the events that happen through the eyes of each character; we see the same event happen from Miriamele's perspective, the from Simon's perspective, then from Tiamak's perspective, almost ad nauseum. Annoying, yet bearable all at the same time (William's somehow manages to still make it interesting!).

The pacing in this book is much better than the previous two in the trilogy, especially The Dragonbone Chair, which drags on for about the first 200 pages with nothing of importance happening. I love when a book keeps me on the edge of my seat, not letting me put it down. There is rarely a quiet moment in this book!

This novel takes us through the adventures of Simon, Binabik, Miriamele, Jiriki, Prince Josua, Tiamak, and others, in the search for the two swords, Memory and Sorrow, that they still haven't managed to retrieve.

The characters really get treated badly in this book. You can't help but sympathize with the horrors they are going through, and it's great that the reader feels like they are sharing their victories when they do happen.

The villians also become more real; the danger seems to be getting closer, and as well there are a few more villians added to the mix that are trying to foil the plans of Simon and his friends.

One thing I don't like about the book is Simon's travels through the tunnels. This was already done in the first book and it seems repetitive, though it does lead into an interesting plot that has been in the development for some time.

Rachel "the Dragon" plays an interesting role, as does Dr. Morgenes' old lackey, Inch. Many of the small, supposedly insignificant characters from the first book show a lot of real development in To Green Angel Tower, showing a lot of planning on William's part. This type of thing is something that really makes me like a novel; I like when everything ties together really nicely at the end.


---THIS IS WHERE I DISCUSS THE ENDING---

The ending, for the most part was good, but that was simply because there were a few pleasant surprises. I'm not going to tell you if they win in the end, all I can say is that I wasn't completely happy with the ending... it came too fast, like it was the fastest way out.

Don't let that change your mind about reading this series or this book though, the trip was well worth it! And how often have you been completely impressed with the ending of a book (Only C.S. Friedman's "Coldfire Trilogy" comes to mind for me). I have learned that it doesn't matter if I am completely happy with the ending to a book, as long as I liked the book, and this book was the best one I have read in a long time!

Do expect to be surprised, but yet not surprised at the same time with the ending; it's almost as though I was expecting the turn of events at the ending (but now I've told you that there is a surprise ending - I warned you this could be a spoiler!)

Thanks for reading!



Recommended: Yes