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Under Fallen Stars

by Mel Odom

Reviewed by Coral


The war between the peoples of the sea and the surface realms continues, as Iakhovas continues to bind the underwater realms to his cause.  And though Laaqueel suspects that his ultimate goal is far greater than anything she could have imagined, she doesn't have the power to stop him, and is no longer as sure that she should.
 
Jherek has followed his destiny to Baldur's Gate, reaching the city in time to help out during an attack by the sahuagin and their allies. In the city he is given, then loses, something that may be the key to not only his destiny, but to ending this conflict once and for all.
 
Pacys is a bard who has been haunted by a song that he hasn't been able to complete. Told by a merman that the song is of the raging war with the underwater realms, Pacys has been on a quest to find the song's hero. He believes it to be the young man he meets briefly in Baldur's Gate, Jherek. But before he can speak to him about the song, Jherek goes missing. Can Pacys piece together this elusive song to help Jherek end this war?
 
Iakhovas and Laaqueel's story is the only story line that I am really interested in.  I find both Jherek and Pacys' story too weighted down with needless characters and pointless side diversions. I wish they could all be on the same page and working together to defeat Iakhovas already, but I don't think they even know that he is behind the war at this moment.

That worries me, because with only one book left in the series I am afraid that the ending will be too rushed and that Iakhovas, who has been shown to be quite powerful, will be quickly defeated in an unsatisfactory way - to me. But that's for the next book.

I didn't like to potential romance between Laaqueel and the pirate. That was also pointless and sort of insulting; why do they always have the female characters fall for people who are not only rude to them, but who randomly kiss them, unasked, just because they can?

The only reason I haven't graded this book a C is because of how Interested I am in what Iakhovas is planning.

 
Grade: B