I have finally finished the last book in The Obsidian Trilogy,
When Darkness Falls. The series, although a little slow especially at first, accelerates until the end of the last book, which is fast-paced and full of twists and surprises. Here is a final review for the series.
In the beginning of this book, Kellen lives in the Mage-City of Armethalieh. The entire city is based upon magick: the very walls themselves to the smallest household items are impacted by magick. But Kellen comes to realize that the mages are corrupt. When he finds three books describing a different kind of magic he hasn't seen before, he is banished by his father. He uses this new magic to call a unicorn named Shalkan who helps him to escape the boundaries of Armethalieh. Once outside the boundaries, he finds a mage who has the same three books, and he discovers that she is his sister. She trains him in the ways of the Wild Magic, but he is not very good at it. Eventually, they have to evacuate to the Elven Lands because Armethalieh is expanding its borders. Once there, they find the Elves deep into drought with no supposed cause. But Idalia and Kellen realize that there is a barrier stopping all the weather from coming in. Kellen and Idalia's elf-friend Jermayan embark on a journey to destroy the barrier. On the way there, Kellen discovers that he is a Knight-Mage, an amazing warrior that uses magic to make him nearly invincible in battle and a great strategist. The books ends after he completes this quest.
To Light a Candle starts where
The Outstretched Shadow left off. Kellen and Jermayan are just beginning their journey back after freeing the Elven Lands from their drought. However, the rains are being released with the force of many months' rainfall at once, which makes journeying treacherous. By the time Kellen gets back, the Elves have realized that the Demons are preparing to attack the creatures of the Light (elves, humans, unicorns, etc.) again, just as they did a thousand years ago. The Elves gather their armies to fight the Demons, but this time the Demons are using different tactics: instead of planning to meet their enemies on the battlefield, they have been slowly, over the decades, weaving traps and impurities through the Elven defenses. This book consists mostly of the setting up for the next book, namely, the Elves' trying to get rid of these impurities. The main foe the Demons have leaked into the Elven Lands are the Shadowed Elves, which are a Tainted race of Elves that the Demons created specifically for the purpose of secretly infiltrating caves around the Elven Lands. Much of the book tells of the army's attempts to find and destroy the Shadowed Elves' hideouts.
When Darkness Falls is the final book of the Obsidian Trilogy. It is the most action-packed and my favorite one. A lot of stuff happens that I don't want to give away, so I'll give a brief summary. It starts with Kellen, Idalia, Jermayan, Shalkan, and a few more characters counteracting a direct magical attack by the Demon queen on the army. Through the following greater portion of the book, the tension is increasing as the Demons make bigger and bigger attacks on the Elves, on their allies, and on Armethalieh. As the Demons get stronger, the Allied Forces have to find more and more ways of combating them. In the process, Kellen is given more and more responsibility with leading greater portions of the army. In the end, Kellen will have to be a hero and lead the whole army for them to have success. The story ends with a huge climax that brings together all of the elements that have been previously building up. Read it to find out what happens!
The Obsidian Trilogy is a great trilogy full of twists and turns. It has many forms of magic, and many creatures too. Although a little slow-paced, especially in the first two books, it accelerates until a gigantic climax that is filled with surprises. I recommend this series for anyone who likes fantasy books that create their own world and have a large plot.
I give this series a 9/10.
