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| 4 out of 5 stars |
For more than a millennium now Erna’s humans have maintained an uneasy stalemate with the fae, that treacherous force of nature which feeds on the human psyche. Adepts and sorcerers work the fae for their own profit, while the demonic creatures who feed upon such efforts rapidly gain in power and ambition. Now one of these demons, a Iezu called Calesta, has declared war on all of mankind.
Master of illusion, devourer of pain, he plans to remake the human species until mankind exists only to sate his unquenchable thirst for suffering, and omens of his triumph are already apparent.
Only Damien Vryce, warrior-priest of the One God, and his unlikely ally, the undead sorcerer Gerald Tararnt stand between Calesta and his triumph. Nothing short of the demon’s absolute destruction will save mankind from his unholy influence. But no one on Erna is certain just what the Iezu really are and no man has ever succeeded in killing one.
Faced with an enemy who may prove invulnerable, Damien and Tarrant must risk everything in a war that will take them from the depths of Hell to the birthplace of demons and beyond—in a battle which could cost them not only their lives, but the very soul of all mankind.
Master of illusion, devourer of pain, he plans to remake the human species until mankind exists only to sate his unquenchable thirst for suffering, and omens of his triumph are already apparent.
Only Damien Vryce, warrior-priest of the One God, and his unlikely ally, the undead sorcerer Gerald Tararnt stand between Calesta and his triumph. Nothing short of the demon’s absolute destruction will save mankind from his unholy influence. But no one on Erna is certain just what the Iezu really are and no man has ever succeeded in killing one.
Faced with an enemy who may prove invulnerable, Damien and Tarrant must risk everything in a war that will take them from the depths of Hell to the birthplace of demons and beyond—in a battle which could cost them not only their lives, but the very soul of all mankind.
A good ending to a very dark fantasy trilogy. Damien Vryce must come to terms with his role in the Church--running around with its demonic founder, Gerald Tarrant, has damaged his reputation and made the Holy Father very, very angry. Apparently saving humankind on the planet Erna does not give him special dispensation to associate with the Hunter. What did amaze me was that after his visit to Hell to rescue his demonic pal, Vryce continues to bellyache about conditions all along the way as they sought to confront the demon Calesta.
Counterpoint to Vryce is the Hunter’s last remaining human descendant, Andrys Tarrant, who is in Calesta’s thrawl and is well on the way to addling himself through drugs and alcohol. The Holy Father recruits him too and becomes similarly disenchanted with this substance dependent pretty boy.
I am a fan of the ambiguous ending, which made me very happy with Friedman’s conclusion to this book. The ending also explained to me the image that Michael Whelan painted for the cover. Who is this pretty boy in black leather pants, wielding a cold-fire sword, swishing his duster suggestively? You’ll find out in those final pages!
Book number 339 in my Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading Project.
Counterpoint to Vryce is the Hunter’s last remaining human descendant, Andrys Tarrant, who is in Calesta’s thrawl and is well on the way to addling himself through drugs and alcohol. The Holy Father recruits him too and becomes similarly disenchanted with this substance dependent pretty boy.
I am a fan of the ambiguous ending, which made me very happy with Friedman’s conclusion to this book. The ending also explained to me the image that Michael Whelan painted for the cover. Who is this pretty boy in black leather pants, wielding a cold-fire sword, swishing his duster suggestively? You’ll find out in those final pages!
Book number 339 in my Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading Project.
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