Reviews with content warning for Death - The Return of the King

So look.. I tried reading the LOTR trilogy years ago. I read the hobbit, book one,... And stranded halfway book two. I'm glad I listened to them on audio but my verdict's the same.. It's beautiful. It's well written. It laid the groundwork for so much fantasy that came after and has tried to emulate it, to equal its success...
But for me, it's way too descriptive. I want to know what the surrounding mountains look like and I want two hear what the characters are saying, I do.. But it's just that little bit too much for me. I find myself getting bored, thinking "let's get on with it" a lot. I get distracted from the audiobook to the point that I'm unsure what big thing ™ is evening happening in this chapter and rewinding it to see if I missed anything important.

I like that I have finally read this series, but I probably won't do so again. It is of a great importance and also just not for me.

Content Warnings

johannarose's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

So, I switched over to an audiobook version when I got about 100 or so pages into the irl book version and just couldn’t get through it.

Moving through the audio version, I still felt like it was quite a slog, especially the ending, which just… Kept… Going…

I honestly felt sort of disappointed by this book, especially because I am quite fond of the rest of the series and enjoyed reading them quite a lot. I just found this one to be way too dense for my own taste. Maybe it’s because I ended up listening to the unabridged version, because it was the only one available at my online library app 🤷🏼

In any case, not my favourite book in the series, and a bit of a let down.

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linnylionheart's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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gendercrisis's review against another edition

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adventurous slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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marareading's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Another comfort read of this book. I read this trilogy every year, and I love it. It is always my favorite high fantasy. The books that got me interested in fantasy. Like so many others, I love them.

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journeythroughthechapters's review against another edition

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adventurous dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

Thoughts
I feel like I'm being harsh with this rating but I literally only really enjoyed the last 3 chapters. Which was a surprise and different from the movie.

My biggest issue with the start was the pacing. I felt like there plot could have been told in one chapter but instead the story just went on and on.

Sam is 1000%%% the best character in this series and Frodo does not deserve him.

The rest of the fellowships plots I feel were supposed to get their shining moments but I was just bored.

There was war and politics but not good politics because there wasn't enough depth to care.

I honestly just read this so the series could be done. It's not my favourite. I can see it's value but it's not for me. And that's okay.

Representation
N/A

Content Warning
War, Death, Death of Animals, Decapitation, Suicide

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dlrosebyh's review against another edition

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adventurous slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

this is definitely the best book i read in the trilogy. it was just okay. it had so much potential, the build-up was great, but the battle sequence was not very climactic as i expected it to be.

i was expecting arwen to appear, but she didn’t. if she did, i’d have probably gave it more than 3 stars. and the love triangle ? a big no.

the ending was very bittersweet, and i thought it could be better. i’m sad that i’ll leave these characters behind, though.

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