Review: A lot of fun to read, but like the rest of the series, never quite grew into it's full potential
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 06 9, 2014
“City of Light” is the third book in Will Wight’s “Travelers Gate” series.  It appears that this may be the conclusion of the trilogy, although Wight does mention after the book that he may revisit The Traveler’s Gate universe at some point down the road.  In this third installment, The incarnations are free and one of them (someone thought dead from the last book) comes back into play and tries to organize all of the incarnations into a ruling power underneath his authority.  Returning are our three central characters: Alin, Simon, and Leah.  Leah is queen now after the death of her father and is trying to come to terms with her new position and the implications thereof.  Simon has continued to train in the House of Blades and stands ready to fight the incarnations.  Since incarnating in the last book, Alin has taken control of his territory and is struggling to deal with the conflicting powers that now rage within him.I enjoyed this third book, as I did the previous two.  I absolutely believe that Will Wight is a talented author and I look forward to reading whatever he turns out next.  To be fair, I must say that even though I enjoyed the book and the series, I am somewhat disappointed now that I’ve read its conclusion.  Not disappointed in what’s in the book – but rather disappointed in what is not.  The story should have been much larger than what’s contained in these three books.  Alin’s character is mostly abandoned for this third episode, appearing at the beginning and then returning at the very end to serve his purpose.  The worldview and inner struggles of an incarnation of almost limitless power could have been a terrifically interesting side story in the book, but is instead completely ignored.  The dynamic of Leah versus her incarnated father could have been a heart wrenching dynamic in the story and instead is very underplayed.  But most disappointing in my opinion is Simon’s story arc.  He is without a doubt the heart of the trilogy and far and away the most interesting of the characters.  Well, that may not be true.  His combined story is the most interesting – not necessarily just him.  I was completely intrigued with the house of Valinhall.  What lies in the rest of the secret rooms of the house?  With Simon as the “founder’s heir”, who’s the real authority in the house now – Simon or the Nye?  Will Simon be able to retrieve all of the dragon’s fangs?  What about the new masks that were made – that supposedly held the power of the house but didn’t have all of the negative side effects?  I could list a dozen more questions I’d like answers to, but you get the point.  It seems to me that there is quite a bit more to be told regarding Simon and his territory and I certainly hope that Wight will make the time to revisit this world he’s created – and hopefully sooner rather than later.Those things aside, I loved the book and look forward to reading Wight in the future.  He’s an excellent world builder that shows much promise.