Product Description

Once upon a time the great Faeran high king, Angavar, became trapped in mortal Erith along with his twin brother - and nemesis - Morragan 'the Raven Prince', when the gate to the Faeran Realm was closed on them. . . Now, many centuries later, the fugitive who calls herself Tahquil has at last discovered the truth. She is being hunted down by the Raven Prince because she alone can reopen the gate to the Fair Realm, so Morragan plans to use her for his escape from exile. However, Tahquil's mind is still clouded by a potent spell called the Bitterbynde, and she is also dying from a mystical wasting disease. The cure, and the final answers to the mystery of her past, can only be found in Evernight - at the fortress of the Raven Prince himself.

Nothing can prepare Tahquil for the horror that is Evernight. Here magic rules, the sun is banished -- and the Raven Prince's whims shape the very nature of existence. As Morragan's wights and Angavar's knights become locked in a battle that could engulf all of Erith, Tahquil's quest for the truth finally hinges on a desperate choice. If she opens the Gate, will she thereby save two worlds -- or instead destroy everything she holds dear?

'I extend the plea: More! More!' Tanith Lee

'Like Tolkien and many of the best fantasy writers, Dart-Thornton has created a wonderful fantasy world that is a delight to wander through' Herald-Sun

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #66427 in Books
• Published on: 2004-08-20
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 656 pages

Amazon.co.uk Review
Australian author Cecilia Dart-Thornton concludes her high-fantasy trilogy, The Bitterbynde, with The Battle of Evernight. The first title of the series, The Ill-Made Mute, earned praise from fans, critics and colleagues; the lyrical novel's admirers include no less an authority than the Grande Dame of Fantasy, Andre Norton. The sequel, The Lady of the Sorrows, garnered further acclaim.

In this third instalment, the once scarred and nameless mute, Tahquil has regained her voice, her looks, and some memory. But she and her companions, Viviana and Caitri, are stranded far from her beloved, and are being pursued by the tireless and dangerous Lord Morragan, Crown Prince of Faerie. Tahquil may not regain the rest of her memory in time to save her companions or herself. And even if she does, a shocking discovery may doom any possibility of love.

The Battle of Evernight is not for newcomers to Dart-Thornton's fantasy universe. Her trilogy has a complex plot and her world of Erith is developed with uncommon depth. Additionally, The Battle of Evernight has some structural problems. Too many of its early events don't really forward the plot. The climax occurs too far from the conclusion. And the ending's coy note may annoy fans as well as newcomers. Also, while not a structural flaw, the three main female characters are disappointingly passive, and seem to exist mostly to be acted upon by the males; for example, Tahquil observes the critical titular battle from a distance. If you're new to the Bitterbynde, start with The Ill-Made Mute. --Cynthia Ward, Amazon.com

About the Author

Cecilia Dart-Thornton’s interests include playing music, oil painting, computer image-making, photography and clay sculpture. She lives in Australia.

Customer Reviews

A terrible conclusion to a very promising series
Battle of Evernight is the concluding volume in the Bitterbynde trilogy, where the main char must embark upon a hazardous quest that spans the dimensions of love, time and hate. In this book most questions are answered, and most issues resolved.

The third book, alas, is an anti-climax of an epic scale painfully counterbalancing the epic success of the first two books. The start is a drag that is devoid of the wonder and gripping tenacity that held readers on in the first two books. The story then follows a predictable plot, which in itself is no bad thing, but the long winded way that the author pursues the revelation of key facts already guessed at by the reader stagnates the progression towards the culmination of the event described in the title.
It is debateable whether the writing style is inferior, my opinion is that it is not so much the Author sloppily finished her work, but rather that she is a victim of her own success in the previous two books, which leaves such high expectation in the reader that when the third book finally comes along it is dissapointing to find it severely weakened in plot, perhaps the author just ran out of ideas? The volume itself is no shorter than the previous two, but there appears to be alot more description and far less plot development. The author seems to be torn between rushing us all to the end and yet decorating the passageway to the end with countless sidetrips of description, that add very little to the atmosphere already ruined by a dragging storyline.

Although opinions differ, it is my belief that the ending is a disaster that condemns the book that otherwise would have attained a mediocre rating, despite all its faults. Following the painful yet enthralling journey of discovery, emancipation, and adventure that the readers are led, through the eyes of the main protagonist, the worst ending could be one of unpromissing ambiguity, but that is exactly what occurs in Battle of Evernight. The frustration and senselessness of the ending diminishes the good work of all the plot development and character building so painstakingly constructed in the earlier volumes. While some readers may revel in this pain, the mainstream reader is not craven nor sadistic; he/she will be thoroughly dissapointed by the ending.

It is still worth reading this if you desire a conclusion to a fantastic series, even though the third book ruins the potential built up by the previous two.

When will it end!
I almost didn't read this after the second book but decided to carry on because I was curious whether the ending would be as I expected. The author comes up with some beautiful imagery but the descriptive narrative just went on too long for me, maybe because I read all three books in a row. I found myself skipping large chunks. Some of the characters were engaging but the heroine made me wish she'd drown by half way through. The end was odd too, as if the author ran out of time. The main story was followed an explanaition of the end because the story didn't do a good enough job. Which is a bit odd considering the length of narrative the went before it.

Doesn’t live up to its prequels but has its moments.
The Battle of Evernight takes its time to start moving. The first few chapters, while entertaining, do little to advance the plot, and can be slow. Perhaps because by now you’ve read two books of colourful description, the eyes skim over the pages while taking in less and missing little. When Dart-Thornton gets into the action, however, she picks up the pace and hits you in the face with yet more surprises and twists. But just as you think a nice, tidy, but clichéd happily-ever-after is on the cards, the protagonist (now called by her real name, Ashalind)’s fortunes change and suddenly in the final chapter the story comes full circle. After that, the story ends too quickly and somewhat frustratingly, leaving old ends untied, and untying new ones. Dart-Thornton gives two versions of what happens next in the epilogue, though it is pretty clear that the “fanciful twist” is the “true” story – it just has to be. It is a strange, not altogether satisfactory ending, but certainly a memorable finale to a magical trilogy.