In the Earth Abides the Flame

by Russell Kirkpatrick

Book Overview

They have journeyed across the face of the world, but their quest is far from over...

Battered and bruised, suffering grievous loss, the Company enters the great city of Instruere. They have to warn the Council of Faltha of the Destroyer's threat -- but they have no idea of the depth of treachery that awaits them.

When the arrival of a disturbing stranger ignites political and religious tensions, events escalate beyond control. Only...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0316003425
• ISBN13: 9780316003421
• Release Date: February 2008
• Publisher: Orbit
• Length: 688 Pages
• Weight: 0.72 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.4" x 4.3" x 6.7"

Customer Reviews

Great story and world.

Kirkpatrick tells a great story and creates a vibrant world. For those that love a good description, and not just the action, the realm of Faltha comes to life. Only a few fantasy worlds can beat this, and I'm thinking Tolkien, GRR Martin, Donaldson and Jordan. Book two continues the tale.

Superior to Book One: Recommended Fantasy

After reading book one, I was on the fence. I decided book one was good enough to buy book two, and I did. I'm glad I did so. Book Two, In the Earth Abides the Flame, is superior to the first book in the trilogy. The characters are well-drawn and evolve, and the world created by Kirkpatrick becomes more fully realized. The book convinced me to go with book three. If you like fantasy, I think you'll like this series. It is pretty typical quest fantasy, but the world is well-conceived and the majority of the characters are well-drawn. It is slow-moving at times, and more character- than story-driven, but the action improved and I went ahead and bought book three, which I have enjoyed thus far after about fifty pages. Recommended.

entertaining save the world fantasy

In Faltha, the Company led by teens Hal and Leith completed their quest, rescuing their parents Mahnum and Indrett from the Bhrudwons who snatched them to keep their invasion plan secret (see ACROSS THE FACE OF THE WORLD). However, the group still grieve their losses and the survivors recover from their wounds; but wary they realize a new mission has surfaced as the Bhrudwons were right to want to silent Mahnum, who knows their insidious scheme. The Company needs to inform the ruling Council of Faltha that their neighbor led by the Destroyer plans to invade so the country can prepare. The heroes travel to the capital Instruere where they soon find themselves mostly ridiculed by the Council members; as some are corrupt and already bought by the Bhrudons while others disbelieve such an assault is imminent and all fear the at hand religious threat from within. Frustrated Hal and Leith realize the only hope to unite the country resides with finding the legendary Jugom Ark that most people believe never existed. The second quest has begun. Like its predecessor this quest tale differs from fantasy sagas as most of the plot occurs on the mundane plane rather than the otherworldly realm; this enables the audience to feel they are part of the Company with a deep taste of geography and history. However, after the harrowing escapades of their previous rescue adventure, the relationship between the siblings feels off as it seems static rather than having changed, which makes them feel less developed than in the previous book. Still this is an entertaining save the world from evil entry although it behooves new fans to read the previous entry first. Harriet Klausner