Thirty years have passed—in the real world as well as in Osten Ard. The young heroes from Tad William’s “Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn” trilogy have all grown up and the old heroes are elderly. The immortals—well, they’ve changed in a different way.

So much could have gone wrong in returning to a cherished world, but Williams gets it all right. Beloved characters have changed, as they should. They’re not just older versions of themselves—thirty years of living have left their mark. Circumstances are a mix of good and bad, as you might expect.

The biggest question I had picking up The Witchwood Crown was the plot. How can you top the apocalyptic rage and power of Ineluki? Let’s just say you should never underestimate Utuk’ku.

One of the criticisms of “Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn” were the lengthy chapters that went nowhere—like Simon’s wandering under Asu’a. While these criticisms are overstated (I think the wandering prose echoes Simon’s wandering path and mind), that sort of writing doesn’t appear in The Witchwood Crown. Tad Williams has refined his craft over the years and despite the 700 pages, no words are wasted.

If you’ve read “Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn,” you really should read “The Last King of Osten Ard.” The experience is satisfying and surprising. And, in classic Williams style, the trilogy will take four books to tell the story along with two additional smaller novels (so far), so there’s much to enjoy.

Williams, Tad. The Witchwood Crown. DAW, 2017. The Last King of Osten Ard 1.