The return of the king Book

Tolkien is the master of world building. With his writing comes generations of detailed history and lore. Middle Earth did not simply spring up overnight. Instead it is firmly established with the most thorough groundwork that is simply unmatched. And here his epic trilogy comes to an end. I've read it many times over the years, and reviewing it is no easy task. So, like my reviews of the first two books, I've picked out ten things I really love about the book. Spoilers ahead.

1.The blade that was broken has been remade.

"From the ashes a fire shall be woken, A light from the shadows shall spring; Renewed shall be blade that was broken, The crownless again shall be king."



Aragorn never really felt kingly until he was given the sword of Elendil. His commanding presence became more than just a presence when he wielded the sword. We all knew it was coming, but it was great to see it happen nonetheless.

2.The last of the stewards

With the return of the kings also ushers in the end of the stewards. For all Boromir's weakness, and his father's madness, Faramir maintained his honour. Had he taken the ring for himself, the realms of men would have fallen. He played a pivotal role in the action, and his actions demonstrated that men are not as weak as the elves thought. His fate and future titles show such a thing.



3.Théoden's Sacrifice

There are many heroes within this trilogy, many men who give up their lives to vanquish evil. In spite of Gondor ignoring his calls for aid, in spite of Gondor watching Saruman ravish the lands of Rohan, Théoden still rides to her aid when his own lands are safe. He honours his pledge even when the one made to him was broken. Acting on the advice of Gandalf, he squashes his own hurt pride and rides for war because he understands what is at stake if he does not. Théoden was a true king and one the bravest men of this story. He knew what he rode to, but he went anyway.

"Arise, arise, Riders of Théoden!
Fell deeds awake, fire and slaughter!
spear shall be shaken, shield be splintered,
a sword-day, a red day, ere the sun rises!
Ride now, ride now! Ride to Gondor!"



4.Girl Power!

"What do you fear, lady?" [Aragorn] asked.
"A cage," [Éowyn] said. "To stay behind bars, until use and old age accept them, and all chance of doing great deeds is gone beyond recall or desire."

There have not been many moments for women to show their strength in this story. Arwen's moment in the films was non-existent in the book. Frodo was saved on the river by an Elf-lord called Glorfindel. So when Eowen battled the Witch King, it is the first major moment Tolkien gave to a female hero. In a vastly male dominated genre, it was great to read this scene. If I have one criticism of Tolkien, it's that we didn't see more of such things.



5.Golem's internal war

Golem almost comes back into the light. He tries so very hard to conquer the ring, though ultimately it defeats him and he succumbs to its power. Had Frodo never been forced to betray Golem to Faramir in The Two Towers I do think he would have stayed loyal. Perhaps he would have survived the events of this book. What do you think? Could he ever have been on the ships bound to the grey havens after all had done?



6.The Siege of Minas Tirith

This is probably one of the most exciting action sequences I've read in fiction. Sauron's hoard is unleashed in all its brutal fury, and the realms of men quake in its wake. Their defences are weak; their courage faltering, but they do have one weapon to stem the tide: the white rider. Terry Brooks loved it so much he copied the entire thing, or thereabouts, in The Sword of Shannara.



7.The Mouth of Sauron

"Is there any in this rout with authority to treat with me? Or indeed with wit to understand me?"



A massively unrepresented character on the screen and one who spent much of the third age waring the dwarves in the north and the elves of Mirkwood, The Mouth of Sauron is the vessel of Sauron's voice. Second only to the Nazgul in the command structure, The Mouth of Sauron is sent in to negotiate, threaten and persuade when more tact is required. Nazgul are clearly incapable of such a task, so it falls to him. I'd love to know more about this character, and his deeds, but his end at the Black Gate in the movie is most fitting. We can only presume that he also died there in the book, though there is no mention of his demise….

8.Hobbit loyalty

Frodo: Frodo wouldn't have got far without Sam.
Sam: Now Mr. Frodo, you shouldn't make fun; I was being serious.
Frodo: So was I.

Sam saves Frodo so many times in this series. Whilst Frodo has the burden of the ring, Sam has the burden of Frodo. Without him Frodo would be dead, most likely murdered by Golem in his sleep or, if he made it that far alive, eaten by Shelob.



9.The Hobbit war

In the films Saruman dies at Isengard. In the book he is imprisoned by Treebeard only to later convince him to let him escape. He and Wormtongue, in a senseless act of aggression, conquer the Shire. Such a situation allows for the Hobbits to show that they no longer need wizards or Kings to deal with their problems. They arrive back, rally their people, and crush the evil that has infected their home. Saruman, who only has the power of his voice at this point, dies in the action. All though this dragged the book out a bit, it was entirely necessary to show the growth of the characters after the story had ended.



10.The Grey Havens

It also explains Frodo's decision to leave the Shire, something the movies fluffed up. The Shire is never the same, and any attempt to rebuild it will never make it feel like home for Frodo. He has gone through too much to go back to his old life. So he needs a new one, one where he can heal and attempt to put his past behind him. The beautiful lands to the west await him. I love this final image:



"But I have been too deeply hurt, Sam. I tried to save the Shire, and it has been saved, but not for me. It must often be so, Sam, when things are in danger: some one has to give them up, lose them, so that others may keep them."

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