Castle of Wizardry (1984)

2010 reread part the fourth! ( )

I read this when I was quite young, so I don't remember much about it. I do remember that David Eddings books seemed pretty similar to me in plot -- all of them. The same great quest, multiple times. All the same, I liked this trilogy very much at the time, and I think it was my first Eddings. ( )

This series is a childhood favourite. ( )

The quest begun all those months ago at Faldor's Farm is coming to its end. The Orb of Aldur has been recovered. Now it is a matter of getting it to the island kingdom of Riva before Erastide. With Belgarath incapacitated by his fight with Ctuchik and Polgara concentrating entirely on shielding the child Errand, bearer of the Orb, leadership has been thrust upon Garion to get them to safety. As they journey across the lands, Murgo soldiers and Grolim sorcerers try to stop them. After that, however, Garion was sure that his part in these events would be over. But the evil god Torak begins to stir from his long sleep and the Prophecy has more in store for Garion than he imagines.

Castle of Wizardry is the fourth book of The Belgariad. The story picks up immediately after events in Castle of Wizardry. While a few events do happen to move the story along, this book focuses more on the characters than what we've seen previously. It is also the set up for the final book so reads more as the middle book in a series to me than the previous two. As we have less events happening, the book is a slightly slower read than those previous as well. This is also the point when Eddings has more characters than the story needs. A few get focused on while the rest fade into the background.

Two characters we were briefly introduced to in the last book become members of the party: Errand, an innocent child and unlikely thief, and Taiba, a slave woman the party rescues. While he plays a larger role in the second series, here Errand is primarily used as a plot device. He is the only true innocent on the planet and therefor able to touch the Orb. His name comes from "errand" being the only word he says as he tries to give the Orb to anyone he sees. His innocence is also used occasionally as a distraction to get others to do the right thing. Taiba seems primarily to be a foil to Relg. Being a slave her entire life, she has had a hard life and is unused to the outside world. She also represents the ultimate temptation for Relg: sin. It is through her that Relg starts to have a small character arc as he realizes that the world is not as black and white as he would like. Ironically, after the party gets to Riva, these characters pretty much fade into the background.

Garion continues to grow, transitioning from a typical teen to the beginnings of maturity. After his true heritage is announced to the world, Garion has no choice but to accept the role the Prophecy has laid out for him. It is with a mixture of relief and trepidation that he looks full on his destiny and choose the path that will save the most lives.

Ce'Nedra also begins her character arc. For the first time in her life she realizes that she is not the center of the universe and cares more for another than for herself. It is through this strength that she is able to complete the tasks set out for her by the Prophecy. It is good to see her as something more than a spoiled princess.

One of the downsides to The Belgariad is that Eddings sets up little side stories and then they don't go anywhere. It's a shame really as some of those stories could have been interesting. It is probably to keep things focused as many of those asides don't have much bearing on the overall story, but it still would've been neat as a way to revisit other areas of the world. ( )

In the fourth book of the Belgariad, The Castle of Wizardry, all the set up from the series so far finally come to fruition and the stage is set for the final book. Picking up where the story left off Garion finds himself leading the small group as Belgarath is out of it after the last show down and Polgara is maintaining a shield to protect Errand. What follows is Garion not just making the journey into adult hood but also stepping up into a position of responsibility and authority. Garion finally grows up and it is wonderful to see.

The middle of the book does drag a bit as it gets bogged down in some very necessary but at least mostly peaceful politics. Stick with it to the last third and you will be rewarded.

This book features a major plot twist to set up the fifth and final book, and I won’t spoil it for you except to say that Garion is not the only one that does some major growing up, Ce’Nedra does as well. And, finally, we see some sparks start to really fly between our two annoying love birds.

We also finally get to journey through Drasnia and of course see the prince, Silk, in his element. The ending will leave you begging for the final book in the series.

I listened to this entire series on audio book and I just have to say that the reader for this series, Cameron Beierle, is phenomenal. Not only does he have a different, unique, and distinct voice for each of the characters but each kingdom has its own unique accent. The moment you hear him start to speak a line of dialogue you can tell what kingdom they are from immediately. He is an excellent reader and I can’t recommend his audio books enough. ( )