The Return of the King

trade paperback, 440 pages

English language

Published Aug. 19, 1983 by Houghton Mifflin.

ISBN:: 978-0-395-27221-3
OCLC Number:: 53126739

(2 reviews)

In celebration of The Hobbit's fifteenth anniversary, the authoritative edition of its stirring sequel, The Lord of the Rings, is elegantly presented in handsome, uniform editions. In the First Part of The Lord of the Rings, 111-year-old Bilbo Baggins (hero of The Hobbit) passed along his magical ring to his orphaned nephew, Frodo — unwittingly setting its original owner, the horrible Gollum, on his trail. Lest the ring fall into evil hands, Frodo sought to destroy it at the Mountain of Fire in the enemy land of Mordor. In the Second Part, which recounts his perilous journey, Frodo succeeded in taming Gollum and enlisting his aid; the creature's treacherous nature, however, soon reasserted itself. As the Third Part opens, Frodo has been captured by orcs, and the task of destroying the ring — and saving the world of Middle-earth — falls to his plucky servant, Samwise. --back cover

46 editions

Bert Schal reviewed The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien

Still captivating

5 stars

Yes, I liked it. It was really great to revisit the Lord of the Rings books after reading them 20+ years ago.

So, which book is the best. Hmm, I see it as a whole so every book, every volume has its ups and downs - definitely more ups than downs.

I think I liked volume 1 - the beginning - the best. With Volume 3 I thought it would've been perfectly ok to end it with Chapter 4 of Book 6. But it went on and even though I didn't like chapter 8 I think chapter 9 was beautifully written and a very superb ending to an amazing series.

The appendix is absoluetely fascinating, even though I only skimmed it. I had to return the book to the library. The next reader was already waiting.

And where should I go from here? To quote Theoden "This journey is over, …

Yes, I liked it. It was really great to revisit the Lord of the Rings books after reading them 20+ years ago.

So, which book is the best. Hmm, I see it as a whole so every book, every volume has its ups and downs - definitely more ups than downs.

I think I liked volume 1 - the beginning - the best. With Volume 3 I thought it would've been perfectly ok to end it with Chapter 4 of Book 6. But it went on and even though I didn't like chapter 8 I think chapter 9 was beautifully written and a very superb ending to an amazing series.

The appendix is absoluetely fascinating, even though I only skimmed it. I had to return the book to the library. The next reader was already waiting.

And where should I go from here? To quote Theoden "This journey is over, maybe, but I have far yet to go."

There are still The Hobbit, The Silmarillion and other stories. But right now I'm gonna watch the extended movie versions by Peter Jackson.

If you're into fantasy, you probably know The Lord of the Rings already, and if not. Read the books, they are highly recommended.

Sean Bala reviewed The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien (The Lord of the Rings, Part 3)

Review of 'The Return of the King' on Goodreads

3 stars

"The Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien brings the "The Lord of the Rings" to a ringing conclusion. At the end of the journey, one cannot help but be impressed by the level of detail and imagination that went into this beloved work of literature. While for the most part "The Return of the King" is a satisfying conclusion the story, the experience is lessened by a disjointed and often confusingly crafted narrative structure of the whole novel.

"The Return of the King" follows the battle between the forces of the West led by Gandalf and those of the Dark Lord Sauron. What is so wonderful about this volume is that each of the Hobbits is able to come fully into his own - Frodo completes his quest, Sam shows courage and bravery in Mordor, Merry becomes a squire to the King of Rohan, and Pippin enters into the …

"The Return of the King" by J.R.R. Tolkien brings the "The Lord of the Rings" to a ringing conclusion. At the end of the journey, one cannot help but be impressed by the level of detail and imagination that went into this beloved work of literature. While for the most part "The Return of the King" is a satisfying conclusion the story, the experience is lessened by a disjointed and often confusingly crafted narrative structure of the whole novel.

"The Return of the King" follows the battle between the forces of the West led by Gandalf and those of the Dark Lord Sauron. What is so wonderful about this volume is that each of the Hobbits is able to come fully into his own - Frodo completes his quest, Sam shows courage and bravery in Mordor, Merry becomes a squire to the King of Rohan, and Pippin enters into the service of the Steward of Gondor. Following each of these characters we are allowed to see them play integral parts in the story, which I think is one of Tolkien's main points - the Hobbits are the essential players for the fate of the world.

It is in this volume where much of the complex mythos that Tolkien has constructed comes into play. Here we see the passing of the Third Age and the departure of the Elves from Middle-earth and the transition to the Fourth Age and the Age of Men. This gives the author the opportunity to pose interesting thoughts about the passage of time and history.

While I have done my best to focus this review on the third volume of the novel, it is impossible to consider the last part without looking at the whole work that came before it. The novel as whole is truly brilliant in its creativity and imagination. And after reading nearly 800+ pages one becomes heavily invested in the story and wants to see it through to its conclusion.

But in my opinion "The Return of the King" is the weakest volume of the novel because of what is my biggest criticism of "The Lord of the Rings" - a disjointed narrative structure. There are some wonderful passages and images in "Return" (I found myself noting quotations in this volume more than the other two). But, whether an intentional creative choice or not, the novel for all of its brilliance is hindered by Tolkien's style of story telling. I give the whole novel four stars but this volume three stars for its narrative flaws. Even with those flaws, however, volume three was captivating and immensely enjoyable!