Not as good as I remembered it.

This is the second prequel to the Belgariad and Malloreon (after Belgarath the sorcerer).

This volume, as the title implies, tells us Polgara's side of the story, from her childhood in the Vale, growing up with her twin sister Beldaran, spending time in her tree, to the guarding of the Rivan line and her moving to Faldor's farm with Garion.

She tells us about the pain of the separation from her sister when the latter leaves to marry Riva, about her learning medicine when Beldaran becomes pregnant, and about the devastating loss when her sibling finally passes away.

Then follows an account of the time she spent in Asturia as the Duchess of Erat, trying to reunite the belligerent Wacites, Arends and Mimbrates into a semblance of peace, and of the war that finally breaks out, killing several close friends. Polgara then retires to her estate near Lake Sulturn and later creates Sendaria.

Polgara manages to save the Rivan line when she rescues young Geran, the only remaining heir after an terrible attack on the Isle of the Winds. From then on her task will be to protect these little boys from Torak and his minions, and to secure the progeny until the Godslayer is born.

All in all, this volume wasn't as good as I remembered it, although I'm sure I enjoyed some chapters, such as Polgara's time in Asturia, more than the first time. The favourite passages I was looking forward to weren't actually that poignant, and I found her tone and haughty petulance rather irritating in the long run. Not to mention the awfully long months it took me to read it again, which seem now a bit like a loss of time.

7/10