I Read Books: Master And Fool

 

Master And Fool

At the end of A Man Betrayed the Duke of Bren was killed, but not before he consummated his marriage with Melliandra. She’s now in hiding, pregnant, with her father Lord Maybor, and her champion, the former knight Tawl. Also Tawl’s thief sidekick Nabber. Evil magician Baralis has control of the city of Bren, and intends for King Kylock, his secret son, to marry Catherine, the heir to the city. Kylock, his own magic kept under control by a drug Baralis feeds him, is a brutal military strategist, whose sanity is unwinding. He believes that marrying Catherine will cleanse him of the taint of his mother’s infidelity.

Jack, the Baker’s Boy, is heading for Bren drawn there by his feelings (by the thread of prophecy). Tawl receives a letter from the wise man he killed, under the influence of the malign island of Larn. When he and Jack meet up, they realise that Jack’s mother came from Larn, and that they must destroy it. Setting off to do so they have to leave Melli, only for her to fall into Kylock’s hands. Having killed Catherine after discovering she is not so pure as he thought, he decides Melli is his chance for redemption; what is purer than a mother?

The quest of Jack and Tawl to destroy Larn, and on the return to attempt to redeem the knights (allied with Kylock for reasons of money/power and also religious orthodoxy*) takes up the time for Melli’s pregnancy to culminate. There’s a certain amount of things like this, pieces having been put in place prominently in order to arrive at their place for the ending. Nabber is able to firstly blackmail the Archbishop’s aide to get access to the Archbishop, and then blackmail the Archbishop. A very neat and satisfying bit of business, which stands out a bit with all the other neat connections.

The prophecy keeps coming up, and Baralis and the Archbishop were former rivals, both attempting to study under the same magic tutor/theologian, both using what they learned to gain power, and both misunderstanding the prophecy as they attempt to use it for themselves. I’m still not sure it makes a lot of sense, though Jack does finally figure it out. Meanwhile Jack is the Baker’s Boy; many people were Betrayed in the second volume; I’m still not sure who is Master and who is Fool. Possibly Jack again, twice?

Read This: Strong, satisfying ending to a trilogy
Don’t Read This: Very dark acts by villains, plot thinly held by prophecy and instinct

* There’s a Most Holy priest in the city of Silbur who is ineffectual throughout the series. At one point it’s explained that the old empire was deliberately dismantled by the church after they did bad things. Kylock’s lightning conquests take everyone by surprise, his forging of an empire is inherently threatening (and possibly heretical). All of this is quite irrelevant, even excessive, as for threats, firstly his armies are brutal, and secondly there is a prophecy foretelling all this. But interesting!