This series is the fantasy I recommend for people who don't like fantasy. I particularly like that the characters change over time, something which happens too rarely in most high fantasy. ( )

Ook door dit boek denderde ik heen. Makkelijk leesbaar, geliefde personages, leuk plot. Heerlijk vakantievoer. ( )

This will be the same review for all the books in ‘The Belgariad’ and ‘The Mallorean’.

These books changed me.
I started reading them as an 11 year old who was kind of floating around in this thing called life. I had friends at school, but no meaningful connections. This I didn’t understand until I was older. By reading these books I was drawn into an incredible world filled with characters that I knew and loved, and in some cases wanted to be (come on people, I can’t be the only kid that put a streak of white paint in their hair). The story is Garion’s ‘hero’s journey’ but I felt that the adventure belonged to me too. It was my ‘Neverending story’ if you will and it gave me the confidence to be more present in my own life. I own all the copies of both series set in this marvellous world and most of the extras too. They are a pretty tired looking collection of books because I bought them as a university student from second book shops all over Christchurch and Auckland. I love that they have been released again relatively recently with a fresh new look so that they can appeal to the younger generation. I thoroughly recommend these books for lovers of high fantasy, action, and relatable characters. It is the quintessential hero’s journey. ( )

{Third of 5 in the Belgariad; fantasy, quest, adventure, epic fantasy, high fantasy}(1984)

I'm really enjoying this re-read. This was one of the first fantasy series I read and I'm having a lot of fun revisiting it. Fair warning, this is the third book of an ongoing quest and there may be spoilers for the first two books ahead (although I'll try and avoid them).

Garion, an ordinary farm boy from Sendaria, is travelling on a quest with his aunt Pol, Mister Wolf - an old disreputable-looking peddler (also known as the sorcerer Belgarath), and their friends Durnik - a smith from the same farm, Silk - a Drasnian merchant, and Barak - a huge Cherek warrior. They are tracking an object that has been stolen by a disciple of Torak, the maimed god of the Murgos; an object which has until now assured the safety of the countries of the west and discouraged invasion by Torak's hordes. And, as they travel, they pick up more companions from different countries so that Belgarath can feel that he's covered the eventualities mentioned in an obscure version of the Prophecy which they happen to be fulfilling. However, their foes are following an opposing Prophecy, which they are equally determined to fulfil.

Belgarath's group continue to cross the continent in their race to prevent the object reaching the east and being used to wake the slumbering Torak in this third book of the quest. Their journey takes some unexpected twists as they travel into more regions and countries of the west and they gain (and lose) more companions on the way, all necessary to the prophecy they are following.

This one feels like things are getting a bit more serious as Garion comes into his powers and the stakes climb, though the banter still continues. The teenagers of the group start to grow up and act a bit more responsibly (well, a bit):

Over the months since she had joined them, he had seen her attitude toward him change until they had shared a rather specialised kind of friendship. He liked her: she liked him. Everything had been fine up to that point. Why couldn't she just leave it alone? Garion surmised that it probably had something to do with the inner workings of the female mind. As soon as a friendship passed a certain point - some obscure and secret boundary - a woman quite automatically became overwhelmed by a raging compulsion to complicate things.

although Garion still struggles with what he can do with his unexpected (and unwanted) sorcery.

Despite the summery image on the original (Corgi UK) cover, it is winter and the group spends a lot of time being cold.

The wind tore at them as they rode, and the driving sleet half-blinded them. Garion moved confidently, however. For some reason every rock about them seemed absolutely familiar, though he could not have said why. He rode just fast enough to stay in front of the others. He knew they would ask questions, and he didn’t have any answers. They rounded a shoulder of the peak and rode out onto a broad rock ledge. The ledge curved along the mountainside, disappearing in the swirling sleet ahead.
‘Where art thou taking us, lad?’ Mandorallen shouted to him.
‘It’s not much farther,’ Garion yelled back over his shoulder.
The ledge narrowed as it curved around the looming granite face of the mountain. Where it bent around a jutting cornice, it was hardly more than a footpath. Garion dismounted and led his horse around the cornice. The wind blasted directly into his face as he stepped around the granite outcrop, and he had to put his hand in front of his face to keep the sleet from blinding him. Walking that way, he did not see the door until it was almost within reach of his hands.
The door in the face of the rock was made of iron, black and pitted with rust and age. It was broader than the gate at Faldor’s farm, and the upper edge of it was lost in the swirling sleet.

The characterisation is very clear; each person has their own quirks and you never confuse any of the ensemble cast. The addition of new members and the introduction in person of some of the gods of this universe show us that, though Belgarath and co. are intent on fulfilling their prophecy to make it come out in favour of Good, there are other important events happening in this world.

The chess and magic theme of the book titles carries on.

‘I thought Ctuchik was a sorcerer,' Garion said, puzzled. ‘Why do you keep calling him a magician?'
‘It‘s a term of contempt,' Belgarath replied. ‘It‘s considered a deadly insult in our particular society.'

(Ctuchik being the magician in question attempting the gambit.) This book does end on a bit of a cliff-hanger (almost literally); the group have a major breakthrough but we leave them in the midst of danger.

I'm enjoying re-reading this series, which was one of the first books to introduce me to a life-long love of fantasy. I initially borrowed them from the library to re-read in the hopes that I would still be able to find and buy books with the original Corgi UK covers by Geoff Taylor, which I love, but they've been reissued with new covers.

(March 2022)
4.5 stars ( )

Magician’s Gambit is the third of five books in David Eddings’ Belgariad series. I enjoyed this at the same level as the previous book.

This is the first book that adds another POV character, Ce’Nedra, the girl who joined their party in the previous book, although her POV doesn’t get too many pages. I enjoyed seeing a different POV, although she can be annoying at times. Garion, on the other hand, seemed a little less annoying in this book than in the previous two. I continue to be exasperated with some of the obviously necessary information that Wolf and Aunt Pol hold back. For example, maybe if they had let the party know they were traversing an area filled with quicksand, everybody would have been more precise about making sure they followed the exact path they were being led on! Also, I’m pretty sure their poor horses went in places that no horse has ever gone before. I had to laugh occasionally at all the unlikely places they dragged their horses.

So there are still a lot of little annoyances here and there, but I also continue to enjoy the story, the characters, and the banter between them. This one had an abrupt ending. There was a major accomplishment at the end, but it ended almost immediately after that with the party still in danger. I think I actually jumped a little when I turned to the next page and was unexpectedly faced with the author’s photo. I had known I was near the end, but I was expecting a little more, and I was startled to see a face on the page when I’d turned the page eagerly expecting more words. Fortunately I have the next book ready to go on my Kindle! ( )