I liked it. For me, I always want to know why. Why didn't the Elves do more against Sauron? They live long lives, so while history turns into legend, many of them have first hand memories. How did Sauron come to such power and evil and no one noticed? Did he have a teacher or was he self-taught? Things of this nature interest me. So I read this novel with an open mind to learning more. It did and it didn't answer my questions.
First off, it doesn't really give a clear cut answer to the Elves and their indifference. It does, however, mention how the overall father/mother of all beings wanted the Elves to be first, following his children. Think God, then archangels, then regular angels. That was how I separated them. Then the archangels created their own line (Nephilim and/or Hobbits) and then the angels created theirs (dwarves). It was like Elves and then after everyone else, Man. I hope this makes sense because the beginning gets a little confusing with the whole genesis.
Second, it does explain Sauron and his evilness. Think Lucifer corrupting a man, and away we go. Only Lucifier disappears and now here's this evil dude running around creating havoc, that's Sauron. It also explains the rings and Gandalf's true role that the movies kind of miss out on. It was a bit disappointing to learn and know it wasn't mentioned in either movie series.
Finally, and I firmly believe this is important, the names were a big issue. There were characters who ended up having 3 different names in their lifetime. It was really confusing. As my neighbor said when she recommended this book, "Take notes or earmark the appendix. You will need it."
Overall I enjoyed learning more about the world of Middle-Earth so I rated this 4 out of 5 stars.
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