I picked this up because I didn't like Cole as much as I thought I would while playing DA:I, and because I wanted to know more about the story behind the "Locate Rhys and Evangeline" mission. This helped on that front, and I do like Cole a bit more, or at least find his story more compelling.

The book is a bit of a slow build that frankly isn't written that well at all. It's about on par with Blizzard's "Diablo" and "World of Warcraft" books, which is not glowing praise by any means, although "Asunder" has the benefit of including Shale and Wynne interacting, which is lovely. Shale brightens anything she's in, and the book's perhaps only saving grace is that it almost perfectly captures her personality (both stars are for Shale, but she unfortunately cannot save the book). What I mean overall is that I had a low bar for "video game related book" already, and on the scale of what I've read... this probably hits around the lower middle for quality?

The plot itself perhaps suffers from being a mix of badly written originality with some of the same centrist nonsense ("everyone is the same, what is the point of trying to change the status quo because everyone who does so is always awwwful see I'm a 'progressive' but actually I think we're better off with nothing changing and actual progressives are as bad as conservatives") and plot fumbles from DAII. It was at the point where I was missing the centrism nonsense because they'd gotten into trying to justify the nonsense of DAII's climax that I knew something was deeply wrong.

None of the protagonists are particularly compelling. Cole is interesting, but his sections are largely boring. The relationship between Rhys and Wynne is the only one (outside Wynne and Shale) that's at all enjoyable to observe, and it's so bumpy and barely present that it's not really something worth holding on for. Leliana pops up, and Divine Justinia is great.

Also: the cover for the apparently regular version for this is so bad? I actually accidentally discovered that it's apparently supposed to be Lord Seeker Lambert, who is one of the primary antagonists. Just a profile image of his face where he looks kind of like a zombie in armor he doesn't wear for most of the book, and he isn't a POV character for most of it, either, and the one time he is, he's not wearing his helmet (at least for most of that section). This tells me nothing about the book, and honestly why not draw Cole? Or Rhys? Like I'm used to bad covers, particularly for video game adaptations, but please, please, there are so many good cover artists out there, PLEASE HIRE THEM! Not that the deluxe edition is much better. I mean art-wise it's at least not ugly to look at, but it's kind of plain, and says nothing about the content of the book.

Overall, if you want a relatively meh backstory on Cole, this is for you. Otherwise, reading the game wiki is probably fine. If you want more "Dragon Age", "Until We Sleep" is a nice story. The art is a roller coaster of quality, but well, most of the story is good, and it's got a great cast. ( )

Well that sure was a video game novel.

Pros:
-Shale and Cole are some of my favorite characters in the series and I was delighted to see them again. While I already knew Cole's origin/past from DA:I, I still wanted more.
-This book focuses on the mage/Templar dynamic more than previous books.
-While some action is present, it was a 'quieter' novel than previous books in the series and feels less dungeon-crawl-y.
-Prose is technically better.
-Decisions made in this novel hold significant weight and impact.

Cons:
-While Shale's voice is spot-on, Cole's is noticeably absent. The cryptic, alliterating, staccato voice you know and love from DA:I is not present here at all. I can only assume that it is because he didn't know his nature during the novel, and remembering his origin/mastering his abilities at the end of the book sparked the change. Except if you push him to be more human in DA:I, he doesn't stop speaking like that altogether, so that explanation doesn't quite 'fit' to me.
-The novels seem to have the same formula involving a dungeon crawl and a Fade segment (mirroring the games to some extent). It wasn't quite as bad in this one, but it was still there.
-While the prose is technically better, it is flat. ( )

Asunder is the backstory of Cole, Rhys, and Evangeline, characters from the game of DA: Inquisition. It also involves Wynne and Shale from DA: Origins as Wynne is Rhys's mother. It involves the mage rebellion against the Templars pre-Inquisition. Rhys is a mage and Evangeline a Templar who unite to find a killer in the White Spire, the home of the mages in Orlais. Meanwhile, Rhys has befriended Cole, a young man/spirit haunting the lower reaches of the White Spire. When Rhys is the one accused of the murders, Wynne shows up to help her son.
I love these characters, and it was great to get this backstory for them. Rhys and Evangeline aren't actually in the game but are referred to by Cole several times, and I've always wondered about them. And Wynne is a favorite party member for me. Mr. Gaider is a wonderful fantasy writer and he's woven a story that stands on its own even if you haven't played the games. ( )

I swear, this guy just keeps getting better and better. ( )

David Gaiders tredje Dragon Age-roman är inte bakgrundshistoria, i alla fall inte än: den utspelas tvärtom efter de två spelen, med magikerna på randen till uppror efter vad som hände i Kirkwall och tempelherrarna alltför glada att slå till hårdare. Till magikercirkeln i Val Royeaux kommer så Wynne för att söka hjälp för att ta reda på vad som hänt en vän som forskat i ett av medlen tempelherrarna använder för att hålla magikerna lugna.

Hjälp får hon också: Rhys, som anklagats för en serie mord på magiker och lärlingar, Adrian, som vill försöka befria magikerna från all utomstående översikt med vad medel hon än kan finna, samt Evangeline, tempelherre fast besluten att skydda magikerna, även från sig själva. Samt Cole, spöket i tornet där magikerna hålls fångna, osynlig för alla utom Rhys, och den som begått morden Rhys anklagats för. Dessutom dyker ett par andra bekanta upp, både från spelen och tidigare böcker.

Det är en bok som känns betydligt mer intressant än den tidigare boken, möjligen delvis eftersom man inte kan ana sig till ungefär hälften av vad som kommer hända efter att ha spelat spelen, men också för att det är mindre slagsmål och explosioner: det handlar mer om moraliskt ansvar och mindre om ren strid för överlevnad. Inte för att sådan inte står på spel, men det finns kanske saker det kan vara värt att låta sig dödas för, inte bara att dö när man söker uppnå dem.

Det är inte direkt existentialism, men det är i alla fall mer än omslagets »heroic fantasy novel« påskiner. ( )