The Master Warrior by Scott Blasingame

The Master Warrior by Scott Blasingame

When one holds the final book of any given series in their hands, you know the author has done their job if this little ritual evokes a gamut of emotions. First, there is a certain sense of relief that the author put their entire vision on paper before being whisked away in dark, velvety robes of the Reaper (at which point, Game of Thrones fans' hands grow clammy). There is a certain sadness, mainly stemming from the knowledge that this is a farewell of sorts...to characters you've grown to love, a landscape you've come to admire, and a world you come to identify with.

One also feels anxiety, knowing that the stakes in this climatic offering are higher than ever. If the author has not been squeamish about killing off likable characters, how much more bold and brazen will they become as the protagonists and their opponents gather for the final showdowns, be they of whatever nature the author may choose. Alliances may shift. Values may change. Good may indeed prevail, but rarely does it without high costs.

Conversely, if the author has failed in their job, then one simply greets the bookending novel with a sigh of relief, ready to declare themselves victor of finishing another series, that they may move onto another. Thankfully, the emotions of the former scenario engulfed me as I removed it from the package.

Set five years after the events of The Warrior Lost, we open to rumors of war among the tribes that border the Valley of the Hand. The evil Rame of the Kudzu tribe (along with his neighboring puppet chieftains) is goading the other tribes into armed conflict. Meanwhile, Thorn is trying to live a simple, idyllic existence until tragedy strikes. He is thus propelled into the middle of the intertribal tension that threatens to boil over into all-out war. As he and his fighting companions--the Warrior-Sons of the good tribes and some other familiar faces--try to raise up allies, certain surprises (some good, some not) await him on the final leg of his journey.

The Master Warrior is a suitable finale to an action-packed fantasy series about a lowly man's quest for happiness amidst the political intrigue of the numerous tribes that inhabit his world. It draws upon all of Scott Blasingame's strength's as an author, from his vivid descriptions to his likable characters to the copious amounts of descriptive martial arts duels. The narrative wraps up the main overarching conflict, plus numerous character subplots, in a generally satisfactory manner. There is tragedy, to be sure, but it never seems forced nor gratuitous. There are moments of romance that will tug at the heartstrings, at least they tugged at mine. There was one evening in which I read more than 100 pages just so I could find out how one relationship was going to resolve itself. The book is a good example of an absolute "page-turner."

The last several chapters detail the final battles between the good guys and the bad guys. The final showdowns are just perfect in terms of their length, description and dramatic impact. Before that, there is a chapter that depicts a huge battle between different armies, detailed in such a way that both makes you fear for the "good side" while simultaneously never becoming incoherent. The battle sets the ground to resolve several personal conflicts that were started in books 1 and 2. If I have any gripes, it's that some of those showdowns were quite short, given the build-up in the previous books.

But all the action in the world can't make up for characters that we don't care about, especially in prose. Thus, I'm happy to report that Scott did a great job of writing the characters as they overcome both internal and external conflicts, both for the greater good and their own personal happiness. I found myself re-reading several chapters just so I could bask in the interactions between certain key characters, enjoying their growth and moments of joy and triumph. And that's just great writing there.