The Return of the King

The Return of the King 

The Return of the King is the latest novel to be checked off my to be read list. It is the third book in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings series. 

This is my husband Nathan’s favorite series and has been for longer than I can remember. I have no idea why I’ve never read the series before, but this was a fun one for me. Looking back, I am loving reading more of his favorite books and actively starting to take an interest. 

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I’ll be the first to raise my hand and gladly admit that I’m not normally a fantasy genre lover. It has never been a favorite of mine. But it is for my husband. He gets lost in those books, and the world that the author has created. I’m more straightforward. I need a good plot, but minimal characters. 

Coming together to read and listen to this series was a new one, as we rarely mix books. I read mine, he reads his, and we both talk about them, but never read the other. Now that we have, I find myself wanting to do it more. 

Have you read The Return of the King? Come on in and let me tell you about it! 

About The Return of the King 

The third part of J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic adventure THE LORD OF THE RINGS . 

The Dark Lord has risen, and as he unleashes hordes of Orcs to conquer all Middle-earth, Frodo and Sam struggle deep into his realm in Mordor. 

To defeat Sauron, the One Ring must be destroyed in the fires of Mount Doom. But the way is impossibly hard, and Frodo is weakening. The Ring corrupts all who bear it and Frodo’s time is running out. 

Will Sam and Frodo succeed, or will the Dark Lord rule Middle-earth once more? 

Thoughts on The Return of the King 

I have become fully invested in this series at this point, and I need to see it through to the end. I’m actually amazed at how driven I am to finish it. This is the sign of a good quality story, in my opinion. Where I don’t necessarily want it to end, but I am completely driven to finish it at the same time. 

I also found myself sad at the end. I’m amazed by the way Tolkien ended it. You can tell he was a soldier, and this felt like it came from his own experiences in war. While he (or in this case Frodo and Sam) were off having adventures, fighting, and trying to stay alive through it all, the world still goes on like normal. Things change, people change and grow, the world never stops moving. When they return, they are amazed at how much they have also changed. It isn’t as simple as going back to life as they knew it. 

As I look back on reading and listening to this series, I’m surprised that I loved it so much, and I’m actually sad to see it come to an end. I wanted more hobbits, more songs from Tom Bombadil, more adventures with Frodo and Sam, more everything. J.R.R. Tolkien took me into a world I didn’t realize I wanted to be a part of, and Andy Serkis brought it to life through narrating it. 

This was a fun exercise in pushing myself outside my comfort zone to try something my husband loves, and I’m so glad I did. Normally I just sit back and hand him fantasy novels to read, or just leave him to what he loves, and I stick to what I enjoy, and we live in our own separate genres. But this one brought us together, and I’m really glad it did. 

From Nathan 

The Return of the King is the third and final entry in The Lord of the Rings trilogy. After the events of the previous novel, The Two Towers, many of the characters are now separated from each other. Tolkien masterfully juggles these disparate narratives and brings them all together in a way that feels natural and earned.

Despite the fact that The Two Towers ended in a cliffhanger with Frodo being captured by some of Sauron’s Orcs, we don’t get a resolution to that story until the second half of The Return of the King. As was the case in the previous novel, Return’s first half is dedicated to the adventures of Gandalf and Aragorn as they try to save the city of Minas Tirith from imminent attack by Sauron’s army.

The assault on Minas Tirith is the highlight of The Return of the King, and in any other book, it would be at the climax of the story rather than in the middle. But Tolkien’s genius here shows that it’s not always flashy swords and bright armor and heroic acts of valor that win the day; it’s often the smallest things done by the meekest of people that really matter.

And that’s where Frodo and Sam come in. For although Frodo was kidnapped by Orcs and taken away to be tortured, Sam doesn’t hesitate to try to rescue his master, alone, and lightly armed. And with that task accomplished, it’s up to them to find their way across the barren wasteland of Mordor to Mount Doom, the only place where the Ring can be destroyed, and the power of Sauron broken forever.

It’s not Tolkien’s style to end the story with “Happily Ever After,” and so although they are ultimately triumphant, success comes with a price. In a denouement that echoes the feelings of soldiers coming home from World War I, Frodo can no longer find comfort in his homeland. And so it is quite appropriate that The Return of the King ends on a rather melancholy note.

Final Thoughts on The Return of the King 

When writing the final book of a series, most authors struggle to stick to the landing. Yet Tolkien seemingly has no trouble juggling all the separate storylines and putting them back together again. The Lord of the Rings truly is a triumph in the fantasy genre, as well as in literature in general. 

Nathan and I are both calling The Return of the King a five star read. A big part of a five star read for me is that I want to read it again, and Nathan reads this series about once a year. 

If you aren’t normally a fantasy book lover, try the audiobook version, narrated by Andy Serkis. It really made this series for me, and I enjoyed it so much. I’m not sure I would have enjoyed this the same way if I had tried to read the actual book. But listening made all the difference for me. It may do the same for you, and I encourage you to give it a try. 

Discussion 

Have you read The Return of the King or any other writing from J.R.R. Tolkien? Are you a fan? Let me know your thoughts in the comments! 

About the Author 

J.R.R. Tolkien was born on 3rd January 1892. After serving in the First World War, he became best known for The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings, selling 150 million copies in more than 40 languages worldwide. Awarded the CBE and an honorary Doctorate of Letters from Oxford University, he died in 1973 at the age of 81. 

Purchasing The Return of the King 

• If you are interested in buying the paperback version of The Return of the King, click here.
• For the hardcover version, click here.
• For the audiobook, click here. 
• Click here for the Kindle version.
• Click here for my favorite Kindle I currently own.

More From J.R.R. Tolkien 

If you’ve enjoyed my review of The Return of the King and want more, check out these other books! 

• The Fellowship of the Ring 
• The Two Towers 
• The Return of the King
• The Silmarillion 

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