Jacqueline Carey is the author of some of my favorite books, the Kushiel’s Legacy series. The Sundering is another series from her, consisting of two books, Banewreaker and Godslayer.
The Sundering was a little hard to get into. The names were odd, and there is a lot of history that you have to absorb in order to understand what is going on. But don’t worry, if you don’t get it during the first explanation, things are restated for you in various ways. It gets a little repetitive in places.
The Sundering is basically an alternate telling of Lord of the Rings. The characters and the world are completely different, but much of it is obviously meant to be compared to Lord of the Rings or other fantasy. The key difference is that good and evil are not black and white. In a few ways, i like this version better, because there are so many shades of gray. In The Sundering, you hear both sides of the story, and the “darker” side is actually given more stage time. Imagine if Sauron didn’t really want war, but was being forced to defend himself because the forces for good were giving him no choice. Except that their propaganda says he’s the bad guy. That’s what is happening in The Sundering.
The number of similarities in the two series borders on ridiculous, which means it must be completely intentional. Here’s a list of the major likenesses.
- Lord Satoris = Lord Sauron. The big evil meanie who is orchestrating everything.
- Malthius = Gandalf. He is a wise old guy with special powers. He even disappears into the bowels of the earth and resurfaces. When he resurfaces, he is changed and he is dressed all in white.
- Aracus Altoris = Aragorn son of Arathorn. Aracus is often referred to as a “son of Altoris.” Even the alliteration is the same.
- Aracus is betrothed to Cerelinde (aka Arwen). It is the first known union between a man and an Ellylon.
- Ellylon = Elves. They have the exact same features such as beauty and immortality.
- Rivenlost = Rivendell. Rivenlost isn’t actually a place, but rather refers to a collection of the Ellylon.
- The Three = The Nine. Satoris has only 3 “mini-bosses”, while Sauron had 9. They aren’t nearly as scary in The Sundering.
- Malthius’ Company = the Fellowship of the Ring. This is a band of 7 people representing different races. In their company is one Dani, who is The Bearer.
- The Bearer = The Ring Bearer. In The Sunderer, the Bearer is bearing the Water of Life, not a ring. He and only he can carry it, and the others are helping him on his quest.
- The Bearer gets separated from the rest of his company. He has one remaining sturdy companion, who is one of the folk from his homeland.
- The goal of the Bearer is to go deep into enemy territory (Darhaven=Mordor) and use the Water of Life to quench the marrow-fire. (Basically, going to the middle of a big volcano in the hardest possible place to reach.)
I liked it, but i found myself hoping for a different outcome. The dark side perspective is told very well, and i was rooting for them, even though i knew how it would have to end. (I have the same problem whenever i watch Titanic – i hope the boat won’t sink this time.)