The Shadow of Narwyrm

The Shadow of Narwyrm

by Tom Fallwell

4 out of 5

Synopsis
Baric has already failed once to stop the horror of the dragon, Doomrage, who continues his attacks against the people of Hir from the realm of shadows. Baric and his new found companion, Ramura, the Lord of the Lions, must journey to find an artifact of great power created by an ancient race from a previous era of Hir.

Still hoping to save the soul of his lost love, Whisper, from the monster's shadowy prison, Baric doesn't realize that Doomrage now has full control and has sent Whisper's simulacrum to slay the very man in whom she once placed her hope, and the deadly assassin now tracks the Rangers on their quest to find the ancient relic they need to defeat the equally ancient dragon.

The world of Hir now stands on the brink of war with the demonic Manenase and their massive horde of Morok minions. The armies of the civilized races of Hir come together and gather to meet this threat from the Great Divide, as Baric, Ramura and the Zumarian, Sainsha, journey to the haunted Ghost Swamp to find the lost Amulet of Thiranor, which holds the key to stopping Doomrage, once and for all.

In the epic conclusion to the Shadows Trilogy of the Rangers of Laerean series, much lore from the ancient past is learned, and the history of the ancient magical creatures known as the Mythica is discovered, while the shadow of the great Dragon Spirit, Narwyrm, looms over them all.



Review
Baric, the Rangers, and their allies, all have to come together to stop the Mananese army that threatens to wash over the world and destroy all that's good.

I won a copy of this book when it was released.
This is the third and final part of Rangers of Laerean trilogy (well, of the Shadow books - I'm guessing Laerean has a lot more to give). And when the story ended, I felt that little pang of sadness that it was all over; which is always a sign of a good series.

I have to say that the second book - Where Shadows Fall - has been my favourite out of the trilogy. It was such a strong adventure, with the heroes finding their place; and a really awesome enemy. The fact that the bad guys could pop up anywhere and frame the heroes for murder and dissent...
The start of The Shadow of Narwyrm follows on, that most of the nations are on shaky ground, but starting to reunite. Unfortunately, this means that the first half of this book lacks the angst and danger I found in book two.

The Rangers, the King of Laerean and many other interesting characters set out on different paths to prepare for the coming battle, and to secure a way to defeat Doomrage, the immortal dragon that only exists in shadow and fire. Baric and Ramura head off on a quest to find an item that can aid them. And Sainsha... well, she's just awesome. I was so happy to see how her part has grown since her introduction in the second book.

The ending was perfect, it wrapped everything up nicely, whilst still leaving enough threads open that Fallwell can return to his Laerean stories in future.

Goodreads link
Amazon UK