The Sorcerer

Forgotten Realms: The Return of the Archwizards, Book 3

By: Troy Denning

Narrated by: Kevin Kraft

Length: 10 hrs and 57 mins

Publisher's summary

The exciting conclusion of the Return of the Archwizards trilogy.

The Sorcerer concludes the Return of the Archwizards trilogy by New York Times best-selling author Troy Denning. Events in this trilogy will have great impact on other Forgotten Realms novels to come, and this particular title introduces elements of change to Forgotten Realms listeners.

In the blasted ruins of Tilverton, demons stalk the shadows.

In Evereska and Cormyr, alliances crumble.

In the sun-baked desert of Anauroch, an empire of darkness is established.

In the soul of a tortured elf, the future is decided.

From the author of The Summoning, The Siege, and Death of the Dragon (with Ed Greenwood), the Realms-shaking Return of the Archwizards series comes to a stunning conclusion!

©2011 Wizards of the Coast LLC (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

So, you have come this far....

If you have read my two former reviews of this series, one might ask what you are even doing here?
However, I shan't dismiss your efforts dear reader since I could have asked myself the same question.
No matter your quest, be it as my own to have experienced every Realms-book to expand my knowledge of the history and peoples of the Forgotten Realms, or due to an enjoyment of the personas of the Princes of Shade, or something else entirely, I shall enlighten you of what to expect here, at the end of the road.

Know that the final stretch of the journey through this series indeed does grow brighter. Though it is far too much to ask for a second miracle regarding the book's quality, like that having occurred within The Avatar-series when jumping from "Tantras" to "Waterdeep" and beyond. However, this book is still a legitimately decent-ish story, finally managing to have many of its pointless and detrimental plotpoints from earlier books pay off and move ahead; most notably the culmination of "The Shadow" plotpoint, resulting in a far better story once that culmination has been reached near the middle of the book.
Much of the plot-forced idiocy of characters has also finally been left behind, though there is still plenty to be found here-and-there; and the book still can't help itself from adding a new and completely pointless subplot revolving around the Protagonist's former love-interest, and almost immediately dropping all drama the subplot resulted in the moment the author decided to end the book.

However, regardless of its flaws, "The Sorcerer" is a book worth going through simply for the sake of finishing off the trilogy, and manages to reward the reader/listener with some half-way-decent storytelling as a reward for sticking through it to the end as well.