The Redemption of Althalus

Overview

It would be sheer folly to try to conceal the true nature of Althalus, for his flaws are the stuff of legend. He is, as all men know, a thief, a liar, an occasional murderer, an outrageous braggart, and a man devoid of even the slightest hint of honor. Yet of all the men in the world, it is Althalus, unrepentant rogue and scoundrel, who will become the champion of humanity in its desperate struggle against the forces of an ancient god determined to return the universe to nothingness. On his way to steal The Book from the House at the End of the World, Althalus is confronted by a cat--a cat with eyes like emeralds, the voice of a woman, and the powers of a goddess. She is Dweia, sister to The Gods and a greater thief even than Althalus. She must be: for in no time at all, she has stolen his heart. And more. She has stolen time itself.

Editorial Reviews

As the first stand-alone one-volume epic fantasy by the popular Eddings team (whose series include The Belgariad; The Malloreon and The Elenium), this hefty saga about Good trouncing Evil plumps an engaging young reprobate hero into the arms of aDliterallyDdivine feline heroine. A professional thief and occasional murderer, Althalus accepts a commission to steal a supernatural tome known as the Book. When he arrives at the mysterious House at the End of the World, a lissome black cat with emerald eyes turns out to be the fertility goddess Dweia. Together they enlist a Mission Improbable team to out-sorcel the assorted villains marshaled by the sorcerer Ghend, who is bent on converting this medieval-like world from the worship of Dweia's good god-brother, Deiwos, to awful servitude under their wicked sibling Daeva. Plenty of derring-do spices up the first two-thirds of this jolly romp, and some zingy flashes of wit home in neatly on stuffy human institutions like overorganized religion and landed aristocracies. Unfortunately, the Eddingses can't resist a lengthy time-traveling reprise, which drags the story down into so-so conventionality. Though the Eddingses' multitudinous fans will likely feel right at home here in their safely magical realm of good-natured fun, this circle of would-be faerie has been trodden so often that here it yields very little deep-rooted literary greenery to munch on or to savor, still less to ruminate upon. (Dec. 26) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information. -- PUBLISHERS WEEKLY.

Author Information

Bio of David Eddings

David Eddings is a writer and educator. He was born in 1931 in Spokane, Washington. Eddings attended Reed College in Portland and earned a B.A. in 1954. In 1961, he earned his M.A. from the University of Washington, writing part of a novel as his Master's thesis. After serving in the U.S. Army in Germany, Eddings began working as a grocery clerk. He later worked for the Boeing Company, placing Minuteman missiles throughout the U.S. Eddings spent a few years teaching English in a business college and a teachers' college. Eddings' first novel, High Hunt, was an outdoor adventure about a group of men on a deer hunt in the mountains of Washington State. After nine years, Eddings published Pawn of Prophecy, the first of the Belgariad series. The success of that series led to two more, The Mallorean and The Elenium. 03

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Additional Info

Imprint

Random House

Filesize

1.38 MB

Number of Pages

800

eBook ISBN

9780345446923