This novel was a bit better than my 3 star rating but not good enough for 4 stars. Oh well. It is fairly 'typical' of the genre in its theme, characters and content. There is nothing very notable that would justify its hefty weight and publication as a fantasy behemoth; and I do mean behemoth. At nearly 900 pages, reading this novel is akin to slogging through a James Michener novel. I found it peculiar that a fair number of pages at the end were devoted to selling the remainder of the series. I'm not certain I'm up for more.