Legacy of the Eldric

Legacy of the Eldric is the first volume in the Prophecy of the Kings trilogy, written and published by David Burrows. The version being reviewed here is the Omnibus volume which contains all 3 novels in the series.

In the distant past an all but forgotten race called the Eldric fought against the demon hordes in the legendary Krell Wars. In a close fought battle the Eldric became victorious and banished the soul of the Demon Horde's leader, a sorcerer of immense power known as Drachar. After the battle the Eldric disappeared from the land, taking with them the knowledge of sorcery lest another rise up and miss-use the power and they, along with the war and knowledge of demons faded into myth and legend.

Recent times have given rise to a prophecy that says the shade of Drachar will rise again and with him the demon hordes.

Kaplyn is a prince of the realm who is desperate to escape the stifling confines of the Royal Court and sneaks away for an adventure. Kaplyn manages to find trouble soon enough in the form of bandits who have captured a stranger to the land. After rescuing this stranger, who goes by the name of Lars and has been shipwrecked on this land after a storm, they soon encounter Vastra, a sorceror who enlists their help to find a relic of the long dead Elric. All three soon become embroiled in a quest to discover just what happened to the Legendary Eldric and if possible, bring them back.

Legacy of the Eldric is a classic high fantasy novel, inspired by JRR Tolkiens work (as many authors are) the novel manages to pay homage to the Lord of the Rings without any attempts at plagiarism. The central protagonists are rich in character and well fleshed out, Kaplyn the young prince desperate to have some adventure and avoid the drudgery of his high born life, while Lars is the tough but dependable fighter while the sorceror Vastra is the unknown quantity, somewhat dark and troubled and really only seeming to aid when there is something in it for himself. Vastra shows the weaker elements of the human psyche, greed, selfishness, anger and sometimes even malice but occasionally tempered by more positive character traits.

The plot is quite fast paced with the minimum amount of world building needed to give background to the story while the 3rd person narrative is both clear and easy to read. Although the novel does contain the standard fantasy fair of Dwarves, Elves (at least their equivalent) and evil creatures, we are only really introduced to these as the story requires and nothing feels forced.

Legacy of the Eldric is pure escapism, a high fantasy novel that manages to entertain from beginning to end with an easy to read narrative, interesting characters and intelligent world building, I highly recommend this novel to any fan of fantasy fiction.