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Scepter of Mercy #3
The Scepter's Return
With the survival of their world at stake, two rival kings must unite to recover the magical talisman that will enable them to defeat a malevolent god
When Avornis falls, the Banished One will reign supreme. Rival kings Lanius and Grus each covet solitary power, but realize that a kingdom divided cannot stand against the evil god who enslaves the minds of men through their nightmares. Once, Avornis was safe from his dark influence, protected by a powerful talisman supplied by the pantheon of deities who expunged the immortal called Milvago from their ranks. But that was centuries earlier, before the Scepter of Mercy was lost, and only through its recovery can Avornis survive. Now, Lanius has a daring—most likely impossible—plan, but it requires the cooperation of his fellow ruler, the warrior and usurper king Grus. If they fail to work together they will die together nevertheless, along with everything that is good and right in their world.
Hugo Award winner Harry Turtledove brings his Scepter of Mercy trilogy to a spectacular end with a story of courage, conflict, and selfless sacrifice. In The Scepter’s Return, as in the previous books of the series, the acclaimed world-builder reimagines epic fantasy, leaving his own special imprint on the popular genre much as he has done with the alternate history for which he is so justifiably renowned.
When Avornis falls, the Banished One will reign supreme. Rival kings Lanius and Grus each covet solitary power, but realize that a kingdom divided cannot stand against the evil god who enslaves the minds of men through their nightmares. Once, Avornis was safe from his dark influence, protected by a powerful talisman supplied by the pantheon of deities who expunged the immortal called Milvago from their ranks. But that was centuries earlier, before the Scepter of Mercy was lost, and only through its recovery can Avornis survive. Now, Lanius has a daring—most likely impossible—plan, but it requires the cooperation of his fellow ruler, the warrior and usurper king Grus. If they fail to work together they will die together nevertheless, along with everything that is good and right in their world.
Hugo Award winner Harry Turtledove brings his Scepter of Mercy trilogy to a spectacular end with a story of courage, conflict, and selfless sacrifice. In The Scepter’s Return, as in the previous books of the series, the acclaimed world-builder reimagines epic fantasy, leaving his own special imprint on the popular genre much as he has done with the alternate history for which he is so justifiably renowned.
480 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 1, 2005
6 people are currently reading
93 people want to read
About the author
Harry Turtledove
569 books1,987 followersDr Harry Norman Turtledove is an American novelist, who has produced a sizeable number of works in several genres including alternate history, historical fiction, fantasy and science fiction.
Harry Turtledove attended UCLA, where he received a Ph.D. in Byzantine history in 1977.
Turtledove has been dubbed "The Master of Alternate History". Within this genre he is known both for creating original scenarios: such as survival of the Byzantine Empire; an alien invasion in the middle of the World War II; and for giving a fresh and original treatment to themes previously dealt with by other authors, such as the victory of the South in the American Civil War; and of Nazi Germany in the Second World War.
His novels have been credited with bringing alternate history into the mainstream. His style of alternate history has a strong military theme.
Harry Turtledove attended UCLA, where he received a Ph.D. in Byzantine history in 1977.
Turtledove has been dubbed "The Master of Alternate History". Within this genre he is known both for creating original scenarios: such as survival of the Byzantine Empire; an alien invasion in the middle of the World War II; and for giving a fresh and original treatment to themes previously dealt with by other authors, such as the victory of the South in the American Civil War; and of Nazi Germany in the Second World War.
His novels have been credited with bringing alternate history into the mainstream. His style of alternate history has a strong military theme.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
September 10, 2015
What a great ending to a strong trilogy! By far the best book in this series, everything comes together at last! I ended up pulling an all nighter to finish this one! Without giving anything away, all plot lines come together for a thrilling finaly! The Scepter of Mercy, The Banished One, and the succession of the throne of Avornis! Need I say more?...
July 4, 2022
The most tedious of all.
I've been very flip with my opinions of this trilogy, and to be honest, I would have stopped after the first book if I hadn't bought the entire set.
The general concept behind this story is a good one (you can read a synopsis on the book's main Goodreads page). Unfortunately the villain is cartoonish and ineffectual, and the good guys spend a lot of time agreeing with each other at great length, which becomes boring very quickly.
The main reason for my unhappiness is that the background, the history, what characters feel about each other, and what they're planning to do is stated, re-stated, re-re-stated, recapitulated, stated again, and again, and again, and again...ad nauseam. It was physically tiring to read the last 50 pages.
It's clumsy and annoying. I feel this may be an earlier work of Mr. Turtledove, because I've enjoyed his other work.
That's my humble opinion.
I've been very flip with my opinions of this trilogy, and to be honest, I would have stopped after the first book if I hadn't bought the entire set.
The general concept behind this story is a good one (you can read a synopsis on the book's main Goodreads page). Unfortunately the villain is cartoonish and ineffectual, and the good guys spend a lot of time agreeing with each other at great length, which becomes boring very quickly.
The main reason for my unhappiness is that the background, the history, what characters feel about each other, and what they're planning to do is stated, re-stated, re-re-stated, recapitulated, stated again, and again, and again, and again...ad nauseam. It was physically tiring to read the last 50 pages.
It's clumsy and annoying. I feel this may be an earlier work of Mr. Turtledove, because I've enjoyed his other work.
That's my humble opinion.
November 10, 2024
3.25 Unfortunately a relatively lacklustre end to an entertaining and interesting series. The ending was foreshadowed in the last part and the steps there are just not that thrilling. Kudos for telling the story until its actual conclusion. I liked that part better than most of it. Just lacks the general spark of the series, though.
October 15, 2018
It’s ok
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 9, 2019
Boring.
April 30, 2014
My brief review of "The Bastard King" really applies to the entire trilogy. I have to go on a minor rant about the publisher. The first two novels were listed as being by "Dan Chernenko." So naturally, when I went looking for the third novel, I looked in the C's in the fantasy/SF section of my local bookstore, and could never find the darn thing. One day, while just browsing the shelves randomly, I found "The Scepter's Return," except it was listed as being by "Harry Turtledove, writing as Dan Chernenko" and so was filed under T. I had no idea Chernenko was actually Turtledove. Note to publishers: if you're going to use the pen name use it on ALL books in the series; don't switch 2/3rds of the way through!!!
May 19, 2016
This last book of the Scepter of Mercy Series was a big disappointment for me.
You can see the plot ending at the second book already, and that is just how it is going to end. There are no twist, no sudden revelations. The writer just drags the readers along on a tale that remains much the same from the first two books to finally reveal what is long suspected.
I didn't enjoy the other books much either by the way. 3 stars for the first, 2 stars for the second, 1 star for this third. Maybe when you liked the other, you will like this one too.
You can see the plot ending at the second book already, and that is just how it is going to end. There are no twist, no sudden revelations. The writer just drags the readers along on a tale that remains much the same from the first two books to finally reveal what is long suspected.
I didn't enjoy the other books much either by the way. 3 stars for the first, 2 stars for the second, 1 star for this third. Maybe when you liked the other, you will like this one too.
June 6, 2010
I liked this fantasy series a lot. At first I felt like I was missing some background (and would love a map!) but the characters are well-drawn, multi-dimensional...not just all good or bad. The story line hangs together pretty well over the three books, and there are some interesting plot twists and turns. I think there are more stories to be told of this world, its gods and its peoples. I hope there's more to come!
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January 15, 2016Ever read the last book in a series in just a handful of hours -- not because it was that great, but because you really wanted to finish with the story and characters and put it away? This is that book. It's well written, but just not my cup of tea.
June 16, 2009
Fun series. Semi-lame ending.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews