The Redemption Of Althalus

David and Leigh Eddings

Althalus has been a thief his whole life, so when he’s offered a lucrative job after a run of bad luck, he’s quick to accept. It would have been better if he had found out more about the job before he took, because what he finds when he gets to the house he is to rob he finds more than the book he has been paid to steal, he finds a mission to save the world from evil.

As a big fan of David Eddings and his previous series, The Belgariad and Sparhawk books, I went out and bought this book the moment I saw it was out. I won’t say that I wish I hadn’t because it is a decent book, it’s just not as good as his others. In the series he wrote before he created many good characters that I enjoy revisiting, characters I’d love to know more about – in a couple of instances Eddings had written books that allow characters to do just that, but I can’t say the same for this book. The characters are decent in The Redemption Of Althalus but lack the depth of those he created previously, both the good and the bad.

There’s some cleverness to the plot, which jumps around a little as time is played with, as is space and distance to beat the bad guys, but ultimately it all seems too easy. I would have liked it to be a little tougher for the good guys to win. There wasn’t even any real sense of danger for Althalus and his companions, as he manages to be in complete control even it looks like things are going against them.

If you like your fantasy light then you may well enjoy this book, but if you’re after something harder (as I’ve been accustomed to) I suggest you look elsewhere.