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Queen of Sorcery (The Belgariad #2)

4.1 of 5 stars 4.10 · rating details · 26,085 ratings · 385 reviews

The master Sorcerer Belgarath and his daughter Polgara were on the trail of the Orb of Aldur, stolen by a priest of Torak. With them went Garion, a simple farm boy, who had never believed in sorcery and wanted no part of it. Yet as they traveled the power grew in him, forcing him to acts of wizardry he could not accept.

Paperback, 327 pages

Published 1984 by Corgi (first published 1982)

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Aug 29, 2011 Christina rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Christina by: Ruth Warner

Shelves: 2011, library

For the first half of this book, I was slightly bored and felt that it was an echo of the first one ("they travel, run into enemies and Silk does business, get away, travel, run into enemies and Silk does business, get away..."). I wasn't sure that I would continue reading the series after this book because I thought the book was "just okay." However, something changed about halfway or more into the book and now I look forward to reading the next one. The routine pattern finally changed and the...more

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Jun 12, 2013 Ryan G rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

With Queen of Sorcery, the second book in The Belgariad series, the action is starting to heat up and we are starting to meet some of the world's movers and shakers. We meet Ran Borune XXIII, the Emperor of Tolnedra, and are joined on their quest by his daughter Ce'Nedra, who will play a huge part in Garion's life later on down the road. We also are introduced to Salmissra, the Queen of Nyssia. She decided to kidnap Garion in order to seduce him to her side, needless to say Polgara wasn't too ha...more With Queen of Sorcery, the second book in The Belgariad series, the action is starting to heat up and we are starting to meet some of the world's movers and shakers. We meet Ran Borune XXIII, the Emperor of Tolnedra, and are joined on their quest by his daughter Ce'Nedra, who will play a huge part in Garion's life later on down the road. We also are introduced to Salmissra, the Queen of Nyssia. She decided to kidnap Garion in order to seduce him to her side, needless to say Polgara wasn't too happy about it and she changed Salmissra's life for forever after. I wouldn't count either one of these rulers to be the good guys, but they are not on the side of Torak either. They have their own agendas, most of which will not line up with our questers.

We also get to meet two new members of the quest, Mandorallen who is a Mimbrate knight running from a broken heart, and Lelldorin, a Asturian archer. Needless to say Mimbrates and Asturians aren't the fastest of friends, so there is a lot of tension between the two of them. Both of them are great characters, as are most of the questors. My only complaint about the members of the quest is that other than Durnik, they are all nobility. Every single one of them, including Garion (though he doesn't know it yet) have noble blood coursing through their veins. I would have liked to have more of them be a little more common, but since that's not the case, I can deal with it. I love them all, especially Silk and Hettar.

We do learn more about the individual members of the quest. Silk is a master spy, Hettar can talk to horses, Barak is some sort of werebear, and Ce'Nedra is part Dryad. Now I know some of you make be shaking your heads just about now, but this is fantasy. Questers have to be more than they appear to be. It's part of the rules.

Most importantly though, this is the book that Garion realizes that he is more than he ever though possible. He is in fact one of those who are destined to become a sorcerer, whether he likes it or not. And he really doesn't like it. When he is forced, through magic, to kill Chamdar, a Grolim High Priest, Garion rebels at what he's done. He feels betrayed and lied to his whole life, and doesn't want the power or the responsibility that comes with it. He doesn't want to be know as Belgarion, he wants to be the simple Garion. Little does he know he has more surprises in store for him. Including one that will really change the way he sees himself.(less)

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Jun 22, 2012 David Sarkies rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

Maybe I should have discussed this topic under Pawn of Prophecy because the title of that book seems to be more conducive to that discussion than this book, however I wanted the discussion under Pawn of Prophecy to be a bit of an introduction to the series as a whole rather than focusing on something specific. I note that the first review here indicates that the first part of the book seems to be a series of 'meet the enemy, escape, Silk does some business' and that is pretty much it. I persona...more Maybe I should have discussed this topic under Pawn of Prophecy because the title of that book seems to be more conducive to that discussion than this book, however I wanted the discussion under Pawn of Prophecy to be a bit of an introduction to the series as a whole rather than focusing on something specific. I note that the first review here indicates that the first part of the book seems to be a series of 'meet the enemy, escape, Silk does some business' and that is pretty much it. I personally do not remember that part of it, but as mentioned previously, it seems to be a continuation of the tour around Edding's world.
The series is basically about a young man named 'Garion' who is the Pawn of Prophecy that is the title of the first book. He grows up on a farm with his Aunt Pol pretty much watching his every move, however unbeknowst to him he is actually prophesied to become the High King and then go and bet up the evil god and his armies and thus usher in a new era of peace and prosperity to the land. In a sense his life has already been prophesied and in effect he pretty much has no choice in the matter.
While when I first read the book I really related to Garion (who would not want to be the prophesied one who will save the world) when I look back upon it I once again simply see unoriginality. The idea of a farm boy going of and saving the world is nothing new, Tolkien did it as have numerous other writers. However, the difference with Tolkien is that Frodo actually isn't a part of any prophecy, he is just a little person with a very big task, and the reason he is performing the task is because he first of all was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and secondly he pretty much has a heart of gold. Even then, when standing at the top of Mount Doom, not even he could bring himself to destroy the ring.
The idea that a prophesied one would come and save the world is nothing new either. That concept was pretty much stolen from the bible, and in many cases the bible did it much better than any author could ever dream of doing. In books like this that rely on a prophecy it is usually only a small poem that pretty much spells out this hero's life. The entire Old Testament is the prophecy that heralds Christ's coming. In fact some have suggested that there were over 2000 prophecies in the Old Testament that pointed to Christ and the argument is that he fulfilled every single one of them. It is also noticeable that half of the prophecies he could fulfil by his conscious actions (such as riding into Jerusalem on a donkey) while the other half he had absolutely no control over (such as being born in Bethlahem).
The other thing that I notice is that in many of the books we see that the main character is either reluctant to take up this role and has to be pushed into fufilling it by his mentor, and that they are very vulnerable, particularly when young, and his mentors must protect him and groom him. However this was never the case with Christ (depending on your interpretation of the scriptures that is, but this is my interpretation). First of all he was aware of the prophecies and who he was and he willing went about performing what needed to be done, which included willingly going to his death. Secondly he did have a protector, but it was God. He never needed to rely upon any human beings and further his parents never took the role of mentor and guide. He was the 'Son of God' and in effect no grooming was needed. Instead he spent his time on Earth preaching and teaching about God the Father, and then dying on the cross and propitiation for humanity's sins. (less)

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May 11, 2012 Jess Candela rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-pre-calibre-tracking, read-in-2012, sff

I enjoyed this more than the first. It felt more...nuanced, or something. It helped me better understand why I loved these so much as a teenager. But for all that I'm enjoying these books again, I'm never for a moment forgetting that I'm reading them. They're never pulling me so far into the story that I live it with the characters. It's more like a satire of the classic quest, I guess.

In every classic fantasy quest the hero (it's almost always a hero, he who will become High King) travels the l...more

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Apr 23, 2012 Harold Ogle rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, fun-characters

Queen of Sorcery continues the story begun in Pawn of Prophecy in two respects: the plot picks up exactly where the previous book stopped, and it also has a title that is really unrelated to the story itself. United States audiences like to lampoon modern Japanese culture for its frequent combination of two completely unrelated words to make a title, such as "Metal Gear Solid," "Fullmetal Alchemist," or "Sailor Moon," but this book's title is just as nonsensical. We do hear a little bit more abo...more Queen of Sorcery continues the story begun in Pawn of Prophecy in two respects: the plot picks up exactly where the previous book stopped, and it also has a title that is really unrelated to the story itself. United States audiences like to lampoon modern Japanese culture for its frequent combination of two completely unrelated words to make a title, such as "Metal Gear Solid," "Fullmetal Alchemist," or "Sailor Moon," but this book's title is just as nonsensical. We do hear a little bit more about the "prophecy" suggested by the first book at the beginning of the second, but we're never really shown why the book is called Queen of Sorcery. Apparently Eddings was going for a chess theme when naming the books, which explains how the title came to be, but not how it relates to this particular book.

Still, it's a good and engaging read. Eddings continues his "high fantasy with grounded-in-reality heroes" approach to good effect. Garion meets a high-spirited teen named Lelldorin, whom he befriends and only realizes belatedly is something of an idiot. Even so, Garion holds onto prejudices that Lelldorin gives him, and he meets Mandorallen, who is a Lancelot-style character of questionable parentage ("The Song of Ice and Fire's" Brienne is a spiritual descendant of Mandorallen). Garion takes an immediate dislike to him, but Mandorallen proves himself a doughty and reliable boon companion as the group continues ever south, chasing after Belgarath's fellow sorceror, Zedar, who is revealed to have stolen the Orb of Aldur (pretty much any reader of the first book who didn't skip the prologue have pieced this together long before it is revealed to Garion). They are concerned that Zedar is taking the Orb to the high priest of the Grolim, Ctuchik, so that Ctuchik can revive the slumbering mad god, Torak, and so all haste is given to the chase. The problem is that the party keeps getting waylaid by Murgo villains sent to delay their pursuit. Chief among them is Asharak and Brill, who've been keeping pace with the party since the beginnings of the first book.

From what I can tell, this is the "Two Towers" of the series: it's a lot of fun, but somehow it's not quite as satisfying as what came before or after. That's not to say that nothing happens, of course: the book is very engaging with plots, counterplots, and quickly changing scenery as the protagonists move across four nations. At first, they try to warn the human nations of Arendia and Tolnedra that war is coming, speak to the Dryads in their sacred forest south of Tolnedra, and then finally are embroiled in the machinations of Salmissra, serpent queen of the swamp kingdom of Nyissa. Is Salmissra supposed to the Queen of Sorcery, though her sorcery is practically nonexistent? Is Polgara, even though she is not a queen (at least, as far as is intimated in this book)? It's vexing. Still, in each country, the heroes are involved in some plot by or against the leaders of the land, which they foil through different methods. Garion gradually begins to appreciate that he has some aptitude for sorcery himself (another reviewer complained that "suddenly Garion is throwing lightning bolts from his hands," but that doesn't happen here); his developing any aptitude with magic is slow but inevitable. What's interesting, in reflection, is how very much plot there is in this book, and yet the focus is so powerfully on the characters and their interactions that the plot if almost secondary.

It's definitely not a stand-alone book - one needs to have read the previous book in order to make sense of this one, as Eddings makes none of the usual efforts to provide a "what came before" summary here - but it's definitely worth reading. Maybe that explains why most of the reviewers on here were too lazy to review each book separately, but instead begin with "this is for all of the Belgariad...and the Malloreon to boot."(less)

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Jan 12, 2012 Denae rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: epic-fantasy

There was something very repetitious about this book. They're traveling throughout the whole thing, always after the same thief. Bandits attack, robbers attack, some strange creatures attack, soldiers attack, and so forth. And that's the main part of the book. Yes, the whole party stops 3 times, meeting old friends and old enemies and having vital discussions and learning vital information. All of it felt very simliar.
Except that Garion does learn more about himself. Not the whole truth about hi...more

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Sep 29, 2011 Nicolo Yu rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

Queen of Sorcery continues the Belgariad of David Eddings with this volume, the second of the series. It picks where the first book, Pawn of Prophecy ended, with the group journeying to the southern kingdoms on the trail of the thief of the most important artifact of their world.

The cast here increases as the group travels more characters join them, apparently in fulfillment of the prophecy that is one of the themes of the Belgariad that spans the series. Eddings continues to develop his charact...more

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Aug 05, 2011 Amanda rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I really really like the David Eddings books, and they were where I properly started out reading in the fantasy genre, back when I was thirteen or so. I adore them and have read them time and again. However, Queen of Sorcery is far from the strongest entry in the Belgariad, and this time during my re-read it was very hard to prevent myself seeing the many faults. I still love the whole series, but struggle with this particular book.

One problem I have is the character of Garion. With all the (man...more I really really like the David Eddings books, and they were where I properly started out reading in the fantasy genre, back when I was thirteen or so. I adore them and have read them time and again. However, Queen of Sorcery is far from the strongest entry in the Belgariad, and this time during my re-read it was very hard to prevent myself seeing the many faults. I still love the whole series, but struggle with this particular book.

One problem I have is the character of Garion. With all the (many, many, many) clues that are dropped we know already that he is destined for greatness. Even if it wasn't prophesied, the fact that he is distantly related to Polgara and Belgarath should mean that he is something out of the ordinary. And yet this clever boy (it is pointed out a number of times in the text that he has a great deal of intelligence) is completely oblivious to what might be coming to pass. I really struggle to comprehend how this could be.

Sticking with Garion for now, Eddings (in this book) employs the tactic of "tell, don't show". We are told that Garion is seeking vengeance for the murder of his parents. And then the matter is dropped entirely until he meets said murderer and then Eddings reminds us that Garion is mightily annoyed at this person. That sense of hatred should have been carried through the novel in a better manner and shown through Garion's actions.

Other than Garion, the other characters irritated me more than pleased me in this outing. Barak and Silk are very interesting and entertaining characters. Silk, in particular, is a complicated little fellow - and I could have stood to see much more character development, and motivations for their following Belgarath (apart from being told to!) Instead we are introduced to yet more characters who seem to have absolutely no reason to be on-page at all, such as Lelldorin. He turns up, he shoots a few arrows, he tells Garion about a plot to kill the king, and then he is left behind with a near-fatal injury. Why? And the trip across Arendia seemed futile, including a scene in the Arendish throne-room that felt incredibly repetitive after a *very* similar scene in book one of the series, in the Cherek throne-room.

Speaking of Arendia and Cherek - isn't it useful for the reader that you can completely recognise where a character is from by their appearances and foibles? Chereks all have bristling beards, drink ale and hold grudges (dwarves, anyone?), while the Algar are all brilliant horsemen, with flowing scalp locks. And so it continues across every race of man. This just seemed far too lazy on the part of the world-builder - it makes a novel far more interesting when race is not so heavily defined.

The story itself suffers somewhat from middle book syndrome - we are still gathering characters together, and discovering the overall arc of the plot. There is a lot of travelogue-style fiction - namely, wandering around from place to place and having episodic adventures.

And we have the PROPHECY and the VOICE. Neither of these plot points were in Pawn of Prophecy at all (despite the title) and it feels as though Eddings felt they would be good additions to the overall story. I know this isn't so, thanks to reading The Rivan Codex, a novel where Eddings describes how long it took him to develop the world and story, but it reads as such. Suddenly we hear about the prophecy about Torak rising again, and the Tolnedran princess who will marry the returned Rivan King.

As a personal preference I find prophecy to be a very tired device (maybe it wasn't when the Belgariad was written, but it just creates such innate plot problems). It takes away all freewill from the characters and is essentially one big deus ex machina if the author gets into any problems - "oh, that happened because the prophecy said it needed to..." Add to this the 'dry voice' that speaks in Garion's mind - "don't mind me, I've always been here, I can show you how to use the magic you never knew you had etc etc." Again, a very cliched manner of moving the plot along - need to explain to a dense boy what is going on? Use the mysterious internal voice that is never adequately explained....

So, rather scathing all round. The thing is, this book is essential reading in the quintology that makes up The Belgariad. You can't really skip it, unless you've read these books before. And, well, it's Eddings - the prose is still smooth and very readable, the dialogue is still amusing and sometimes very touching. I LOVE Eddings. But this one, I'm afraid, was a wee bit of a struggle. (less)

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May 22, 2011 Jill added it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

Queen of Sorcery is the second book in the Belgarath series by David Eddings (you can see my post about book 1 here). It picks up shortly after the end of book 1 and chronicles the continued adventures of Garion, Aunt Pol, Mister Wolf, and their companions on their quest to regain an item of particular importance from the one who stole it. The story focuses a great deal on young Garion finally learning certain truths about his life that had long been kept from him. And in learning about the deep...more

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Mar 19, 2011 Vasya rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Harry Potter fans

Shelves: fantasy-paranormal

I have a hard time distinguishing where the first book ended, where this one started, where it ended and where the third one started because I'm reading them without a pause - they are that good.

Garrion is still a boy, and one with puberty hitting him like a slap in the face. Everybody around him still consider him as a small boy, while he considers himself a man, and in trying to make them see from his point of view, does and says some pretty stupid stuff. He keeps everything to himself until t...more

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Jul 11, 2010 Julie rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: scifi-fantasy

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Ah, the fluffy fantasy continues. This book sees Our Heroes leave Sendaria and travel across Arendia, Tolnedra, and Nyissa as they chase down Zedar, who has stolen the Orb of Aldur. (Got all that? Good.) Eddings seems to be quite fond of racial essentialism: all Arends are chivalrous but hotheaded; all Tolnedrans are practical but corrupt; all Nyissans are snake-like, and on and on.

In fact, the sense I've gotten as I've read through these first two books is that the Belgardiad is nothing more th...more

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Aug 22, 2012 Danica Simmons rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I really started to get into this one more than I did the first. I admit that my complaining about the first book just seeming like a set up to the the second may have been a bit preemptive. The pace picked up in this installment as we didn't have to bother with introductions and what not as much as we did in the first book.

These books are an easy read, and I can see why so many people love them. The pace is smooth and carries the reader through quite easily. I'm glad that I'm finally getting i...more

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Jul 02, 2012 Brecht Denijs rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: favorites

Wow, I rushed through this in a mere 5 days. The only reason it took me so long was because I had work and other stuff I needed to do. Actually I tried to delay myself so I could enjoy the book longer and I failed miserably. I love the more old fashioned Tolkien styled fantasy so series is right up my alley. The story itself doesn’t progress all that much, it really does feel like setting up the board, but the characters are wonderfully diverse and the interaction ranges from deep, to touching t...more

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May 23, 2012 Lydia Presley rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2012, favorites, fiction, fantasy

I'm always a little apprehensive when approaching the middle book of a trilogy. The questions in my mind are usually: How will people I've come to love in the first book be treated? Will the main character (especially since he's a child in this case) grow annoying and hard to relate to? Who else will be introduced? How will the story move toward a conclusion in the third book?

David Eddings did a fantastic job with putting me at ease regarding each and every one of those questions. New villains w...more

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Apr 11, 2012 Dina rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

So... all in all I think, a better written story than the first installment in this series. Eddings must have worked out a bunch of his kinks with PoP, because his writing here in QoS is a bit crisper, layered in places and more descriptive, less rote. Of course, the storyline is still rather predictable, but only because he seems to be following the typical Tolkien-esque epic fantasy script. Prophecy, evil God/force to thwart, grizzled sorcerer, band of varied countrymen journeying together in...more

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Feb 18, 2013 Derek Eby rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

(Pulled from Pawn of Prophecy to cover series)

I still remember walking through the book store trying to find something to pass the time one not-so-fine summer. I was young enough to identify with the cover and picked this book up the first book solely for that reason. Quite a lucky break for me...

My fascination for finding the next epic fantasy novel began with this book. Eddings brings all the characters to life with good dialogue and development. The places and lives you encounter all feel rea...more

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May 17, 2013 Wanda Panda Hartzenberg rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: epic-fantasy

Belgariad book 2 - Queen of Sorcery by David Eddings
Narrated by Cameron Biarly

Aunt Paul comes to her full force in this book looking after Belgariad who himself comes into his powers. I love aunt Paul and Mr Wolf and the way they move from town to town speaking to monarchs imparting what they have learned regarding the coming war was nice and interesting and lend itself to fluff out more characteristics of the book's main protagonists.
It is also contains some really funny parts and these I enjo...more

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Mar 01, 2009 Holly rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The fun continues. I only have two complaints with the series, really. 1. The emotions are pretty nonexistent. Like, Eddings mentions how someone feels, but he only mentions it once, so I forget about how characters are feeling a lot. Like I remember at one point in this book it mentioned Garion feeling consumed with hatred for his parents' murderer, and I was like, "Really? Oh yeah." And 2. Garion is really, really, really oblivious. Maybe I'm just thinking so because I knew who he really is fr...more

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Apr 11, 2011 Jeff rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Another solid entry in the series. My partner read these books last century and remembers them mainly as a travelogue - our adventurers traveling from one section of the map to another, then another, etc... and that's pretty accurate. There isn't a lot of complexity here - one of the author's main points seems to be to set forth a simple but respectable morality, which i can appreciate. It also seems that whenever trouble befalls one (or all) of our heroes you can count on them getting out of tr...more

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Jul 23, 2009 itpdx rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a fun fantasy adventure. It is Book #2 of the Belgariad. I have not read Book #1 Pawn of Prophecy but this book contains a prologue, which I am assuming filled me in. The main character, Garion, is a 13 or 14 year-old-boy and acts like it. His "grandfather" and "aunt" have set out with him and a band of interesting characters to save the world--in this case to try to prevent the bad guys from waking an evil god. They pass through a number of kingdoms facing their own problems that are be...more

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Aug 28, 2012 Patrick rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-not-ya

Heh. Eh. Meh. I don't know. Very run-of-the-mill fantasy. Tolkien comes off great compared to this I think. Much less dated.

They ride along having mildly exciting incidents with some mildly interesting characters until some action at the end that was pretty weird. I think the whole style of such passive narration from the 3rd person that follows Garion just doesn't resonate with me anymore. Fantasy has improved. I just reread some Brandon Sanderson and this cannot hold a candle to that. Don't ge...more

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Mar 13, 2011 Peter added it

It just gets better: Continuing on from where the Pawn of Prophecy left off, Queen of Sorcery plunges us headlong into the world of the Belgariad. Hot on the trail of the apostate Zedar and the stolen Orb of Aldur, Mister Wolf and Aunt Pol lead their band of destiny bonded warriors across lands and continents in the search. This book sees the first signs of Garion's true destiny, what he is to become and introduces further races and in fact encounters with Gods themselves. Everyone wants to poss...more

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Jan 16, 2012 Lisa rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: series, fantasy, ya, children-9-12yo

I'm beginning to feel annoyed with series novels--not this one in particular necessarily, but it's a committment and I have fifty thousand other books on my TBR shelf.

I still enjoy this story. I like it at its very basic level, and I'm still impressed with its pacing and accessibility although I'm wondering just how much longer I'll have to wait to get a few answers--which is, I imagine, how Garion feels. I don't necessarily understand why this installment is called "Queen of Sorcery" as I don't...more I'm beginning to feel annoyed with series novels--not this one in particular necessarily, but it's a committment and I have fifty thousand other books on my TBR shelf.

I still enjoy this story. I like it at its very basic level, and I'm still impressed with its pacing and accessibility although I'm wondering just how much longer I'll have to wait to get a few answers--which is, I imagine, how Garion feels. I don't necessarily understand why this installment is called "Queen of Sorcery" as I don't remember Polgara playing a more-than-intregal part.

It was, as other have said, rather repetitive. They're traveling, get attacked, deal with the attackers, move on, get attacked, deal with it, and on and on until around the half of the book or somewhere after.

I am getting to know the characters better, though, and I like every single one of them, even Mandorallen who I wanted to go away ASAP when he first showed. We only really get to know Garion, it seems, through his involuntary actions or through the voice in his head (which is becoming more and more important). Garion isn't the most self-reflective boy, and I don't think that's necessarily unrealistic, and I find his impulsiveness realistic and his feelings of repulsion to the violence he imparts realistic...enough.

Some feel Garion is one-dimensional and I can see that, but I don't necessarily agree with it. There is a *ton* of telling in this book (as opposed to "showing") which probably lends much more to that impression.

I'm hesitant to voice another criticism (or even call it a criticism) because for all I know this will matter more later, but some of the events and side stories don't seem to have a place, as if they're told just to be told, to push the story along. But I'm tired of insisting every story have every word count and have it all be cohesive. It's definitely the marker of a great story, but sometimes I just like to read a story.

But I speak too quickly, I'm sure of it.

I'd like to finish the series and I will, but I've so many other self-contained novels that I'd like to get in, one or two especially before the next semester begins.(less)

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May 27, 2013 Aiman rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: already-reading-next-book-in-series, amazinglytastic-cover, cliffhanger-ending, delicious-writing, fantasy, historical-sorta, kick-apple, passed-expectaions-by-infinity, romance, series

When reading a series where I found the first book quite interesting, I always find myself being a bit skeptic when starting to read the next book in the series. Thankfully, Queen of Sorcery did not disappoint me and although it didn't wow me, it did meet up to my expectations. Queen of Sorcery starts its story from where the first book left off, with Garion and the group pursuing the thief who stole the orb of Aldur. While travelling, Garion meets new friends and confronts some of his past enem...more When reading a series where I found the first book quite interesting, I always find myself being a bit skeptic when starting to read the next book in the series. Thankfully, Queen of Sorcery did not disappoint me and although it didn't wow me, it did meet up to my expectations. Queen of Sorcery starts its story from where the first book left off, with Garion and the group pursuing the thief who stole the orb of Aldur. While travelling, Garion meets new friends and confronts some of his past enemies. In Queen of Sorcery many things were left unexplained so I found it hard sometimes to understand some actions of the characters.

In the last book, Garion was constantly left out in the dark even when there were conversations concerning him, unfortunately he was once again left oblivious to all things important. It wasn't even his fault that he didn't know but more of how everybody who did know refused to answer his questions about himself. I felt that he had the right to know, as his own person, about the prophecy and how it involves him. Frankly, I wouldn't be surprised if he's left oblivious until the last book. Because Garion is still a developing character, I guess I can forgive the fact that he hasn't started to figure out the obvious by himself.

We are introduced to two new characters in this book: Lelldorin, an Austrian archer, and Mandorallen, a Mimbrate knight. These two often clash because of Lelldorin's animosity towards Mimbrate Arends. Lelldorin becomes instant friends with Garion, mostly because of his contagious cheerfulness but he leaves fairly early in the story, where as Mandorallen continues travelling with them. I'm still not too sure of what Lelldorin and Mandorallen's part in the story is, but I hope that in later books that their part in the journey will be explained more.

It's very obvious what Ce'Nedra's role in this tale is but throughout the book I couldn't bring myself to like her. I can only hope she gets less...irritating as the series progress. Her demanding attitude and spoilt ways never once failed to annoy the hell out of me. But because a friend of mine actually likes her, I decided not to give up on her. Towards the end of the book I see her growing out of her childish behaviour, and because of that fact I think I might like her in the next book.

Now we saw Barak's bear form in the first book but we saw it once again towards the end in this book. That's one of the things that really confuses me. I hope that this is also something that will be explained later on in the books.

We also get to see more snippets of Polgara and Belgarath's hidden past. Like every other character, they are still developing and probably will continue to until the end of the series. The revealing of their hidden past added much more depth into their characters, which in turn helped me understand actions that I probably wouldn't understand otherwise, so I hope that in the later books I'll get to see more of their past.

This book is a simple but good read. The writing was simple and easy to understand and the storyline is also fairly simple but it's not simple in a bad way but more of an enjoyable way. My one complaint is that the storyline is a bit too slow and that's understandable, considering that the characters are still developing. But I hope by the next book,the story will pick up its pace.
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May 05, 2012 Stephanie Jobe rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

After a brief recap the mismatched company resumes their journey throughout the various regions. New friends come and go and Garion learns about how different people can be. Though the story has always been through his eyes now it is more obviously about him as well. He learns more about their journey and his own abilities. The danger is greater, the stakes are heightened and Garion can no longer pretend it is a game. With every chapter it becomes increasingly apparent that there is something ve...more

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Sep 12, 2011 Zack Parks rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

A little more actually happened in this book, as opposed to the one before it. Still, it doesn't seem like a complete book, but finally, we get a little action. What you've already suspected about the main character starts to finally show itself, and the book takes off on a little traveling adventure through a few different countries, which makes things more interesting. It's a slightly complicated world, politically, but the story itself thus far seems rather simple. I've jumped straight on to...more

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Nov 15, 2010 Eric Moreno rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jan 04, 2012 Zachary rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: january-2012

The second book in Eddings' first series, Queen of Sorcery picks up immediately after the events of Pawn of Prophecy. While there are one or two very important reveals in this installment, I always found it a bit of a letdown after the series kickoff. On my first re-read in years, that feeling hasn't changed. Don't get me wrong, I still love the book, but in the grand scheme of things not much has gone on. To be fair, the first two books combined still only add up to 700 or so pages, so in epic...more

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Sep 20, 2011 Paul Lunger rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The 2nd booke in "The Belgariad" series continues the story of Gorian in his quest to learn who he is & gives us a bit of an inkling as to where this series is going. For this installment we learn that the Orb of Aldur has been stolen & follow our cast of characters on their quest across the kingdoms of Arendia, Tolendar & Nyssia in the quest to find it. For some reason I had a lot more trouble keeping track of what is essentially a rather dull plot that throws out characterizations...more

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Apr 19, 2013 Dark-Draco rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy-series, favorites

The second book of The Belgariad. Garion is still traveling with Aunt Pol and Wolf, plus other assorted companions, but some of their secrets have come to light. He knows that he is related to them both, that they are powerful sorcerers and that they are looking for the Orb of Aldur to prevent a mad God from waking. But other things are also revealing themselves - his shadow from childhood is suddenly made real, the birthmark on his hand becomes more noticeable and the voice in his head is sudde...more

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About David Eddings

David Eddings is an American author who has written several best-selling series of epic fantasy novels. David Eddings' wife, Leigh Eddings, is uncredited as co-author on many of his early books, but he has lately acknowledged that she contributed to them all.

David Eddings' first books (which were general fiction) sold moderately well. He later switched to writing epic fantasy, a field in which he...more

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Enchanters' End Game (The Belgariad, #5)

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“I thought you said you were the one in charge!" Ce'Nedra exclaimed.

I lied." Silk said. "It's a vice I have.” — 56 people liked it

“Exaggerating?" Silk sounded shocked. "You don't mean to say that horses can actually lie, do you?
Hettar shrugged. "Of course. They lie all the time. They're very good at it."
For a moment Silk looked outraged at the thought, and then he suddenly laughed. "Somehow that restores my faith in the order of the universe," he declared.
Wolf looked pained. "Silk," he said pointedly, "you're a very evil man. Did you know that?"
"One does one's best," Silk replied mockingly.” — 26 people liked it

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Queen of Sorcery (The Belgariad #2)

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