A review by taisie22
Last Flight by Liane Merciel

4.0

The Last Flight is a DA story about unintended consequences. It's split into two parts that go back and forth as the book progresses. The first part takes place during the Mage/Templar rebellion and after the events of DA Origins. The Gray Wardens are recruiting and Valya, a young elvish mage, is sent to the Warden stronghold in the Anderfels where she is assigned to do research on the Fourth Blight. The alternating story is of the research she's doing when she finds a journal detailing events that took place during that time. The Fourth Blight was when the darkspawn invaded Antiva, Rivain, and the Free Marches, held back only by the Gray Wardens and their Griffons. While Griffons have long disappeared from this world, Valya is fascinated by the story she finds in Isseya's journal. Isseya is an elvish mage, Gray Warden, and griffon rider and also sister to Garahel, the only elf to defeat an Archdemon and put an end to a blight.
I found the Valya parts of the book a little weak, but the story of Isseya and Garahel which was fascinating and more than made up for any structural weakness in the other sections. I can only hope that griffons may once again appear in Thedas.