Return of the King, The by J.R.R. Tolkien

Greetings

I am in my forties and cannot imagine life without LOTR!!

I guess that prior to the release of the LOTR movies, reviewing any of the novels was probably preaching to the converted. Now I suspect there is an entire new generation of possible readers.

I would suggest to anyone in the slightest way interested, to certainly read all three novels. But be prepared for many differences between cinema and novel! I was in fact dissapointed in many ways with what cinema did to the story however....


The ROTK is a good read, the whole story gathers pace rapidly and brings out the best (and the worst) in the main characters. The stark comparison between how Denethor and Theoden deal with the final challenge to the Men of middle Earth, the conclusion of Frodo and Sams' epic journey, Aragorns' courage and rise to greatness (at last we can understand how great the Numenorians must have been in the "good days"), the reward for all Gandalfs toil in Middle earth and sadly, the diminshing of the elves. Who would not want to read this novel?

ROTK is also a vital piece of work as far as the whole Middle Earth concept goes, not just because it "wraps the whole LOTR thing up" but because of the appendicies included. Anyone who is serious about checking out why Tolkien admmited that his main regret re the LOTR was that it was too short needs to read every line of the appendicies.

There is no telling where the story(s) of Middle Earth would have ended had Tolkien had time to expand more fully on the concept, once you have got into the appendicies you will understand.

My criticism of RTOK is that it seems to race through the last big battles quite quickly, we have read through two big pieces of work to get to quite a rapid conclusion of the big finale, however each to their own. What is there is good enough!!

Happy Reading

When I looked at the page and how many reviews have been written on each of the LOTR series I was shocked that only one had been submitted on (in my opinion) the best book of the series.

The book commences with the mustering of the Rohhirrim. They have a task against time to reach the seige of Gondor before it is too late. Meanwhile the Gondoians are mustering their own forces while being locked in minor skirmishes in Osgilliath.

Meanwhile Frodo is having many big troubles of his own. Being caught in Orc castle with only Sam to save him and the treacherous Gollum never stopping until his greatest desire is fulfilled.

I can't tell you any more, but I must say it is an absolute must that you read this book to be considered a true fan of the fantasy genre.

I love all of Tolkien's books, and this one is my absolute favorite. He describes the thin barrier between good and evil in such an amazing way, showing how even the good guys could be currupted by evil. My favorite character, Eowyn, really shines in this book also. I think the best thing about this book is the fact that I havent tired of it yet, and I don't remember how many times I've read it! I would suggest this to anyone with a thirst for adventure (and clean romance!)