To be fair, Crown of Shadows is not that much worse than the first two novels of the Coldfire Trilogy. But the fact that it doesn't improve at all on its predecessors makes it a much more frustrating (albeit shorter) read.

My previous reviews (Black Sun Rising and When True Night Falls) pretty much summarize my feelings about this series. There's not too much to add here: like the previous books, Crown of Shadows has bad pacing, bad action sequences, and boring characters (even Andrys Tarrant, the newest character, is pretty deathly dull despite being the most angst-ridden member of the cast). Friedman's continued refusal or inability to develop more fully the concept of the fae is no longer disappointing; instead, it's just become another fault in an overly long series.

Copyright © 2002 Steven Wu