The Fall of Númenor - Tak's Reading Room

English language

Published Sept. 24, 2022 by HarperCollins Publishers Limited.

ISBN:: 978-0-00-853785-2

(1 review)

J.R.R. Tolkien famously described the Second Age of Middle-earth as a ‘dark age, and not very much of its history is (or need be) told’. And for many years readers would need to be content with the tantalizing glimpses of it found within the pages of The Lord of the Rings and its appendices, including the forging of the Rings of Power, the building of the Barad-dûr and the rise of Sauron.

It was not until Christopher Tolkien published The Silmarillion after his father’s death that a fuller story could be told. Although much of the book’s content concerned the First Age of Middle-earth, there were at its close two key works that revealed the tumultuous events concerning the rise and fall of the island of Númenor. Raised out of the Great Sea and gifted to the Men of Middle-earth as a reward for aiding the angelic Valar and the …

J.R.R. Tolkien famously described the Second Age of Middle-earth as a ‘dark age, and not very much of its history is (or need be) told’. And for many years readers would need to be content with the tantalizing glimpses of it found within the pages of The Lord of the Rings and its appendices, including the forging of the Rings of Power, the building of the Barad-dûr and the rise of Sauron.

It was not until Christopher Tolkien published The Silmarillion after his father’s death that a fuller story could be told. Although much of the book’s content concerned the First Age of Middle-earth, there were at its close two key works that revealed the tumultuous events concerning the rise and fall of the island of Númenor. Raised out of the Great Sea and gifted to the Men of Middle-earth as a reward for aiding the angelic Valar and the Elves in the defeat and capture of the Dark Lord Morgoth, the kingdom became a seat of influence and wealth; but as the Númenóreans’ power increased, the seed of their downfall would inevitably be sown, culminating in the Last Alliance of Elves and Men.

Even greater insight into the Second Age would be revealed in subsequent publications, first in Unfinished Tales of Númenor and Middle-earth, then expanded upon in Christopher Tolkien’s magisterial twelve-volume The History of Middle-earth, in which he presented and discussed a wealth of further tales written by his father, many in draft form.

Now, adhering to the timeline of ‘The Tale of Years’ in the appendices to The Lord of the Rings, editor Brian Sibley has assembled into one comprehensive volume a new chronicle of the Second Age of Middle-earth, told substantially in the words of J.R.R. Tolkien from the various published texts, with new illustrations in watercolour and pencil by the doyen of Tolkien art, Alan Lee.

4 editions

Soh Kam Yung reviewed The Fall of Númenor by J.R.R. Tolkien

A nice telling of the story of Númenor and the Second Age of Middle-Earth

4 stars

A good collection of stories about the Second Age of Middle-Earth, told in chronological order. The stories are from the writings by J.R.R Tolkien, as collected and edited in various books by Christopher Tolkien. Many of the stories concerns Númenor, from its rise as an island haven for Men in the west after the fall of Melkor (Morgoth), to its downfall (and the end of the Second Age) after being corrupted by Sauron.

The book starts with a look at the geography and ecology of Númenor, followed by what makes Númenoreans different from other men in Middle-Earth. The chronological story of the Second Age is then told, showing the rise of Númenor, first as teachers of the men of Middle-Earth, then becoming arrogant and turning into conquerors. The parallel story of Sauron, who deceives some of the Elves into crafting Rings of Power, only to craft the One Ring to …

A good collection of stories about the Second Age of Middle-Earth, told in chronological order. The stories are from the writings by J.R.R Tolkien, as collected and edited in various books by Christopher Tolkien. Many of the stories concerns Númenor, from its rise as an island haven for Men in the west after the fall of Melkor (Morgoth), to its downfall (and the end of the Second Age) after being corrupted by Sauron.

The book starts with a look at the geography and ecology of Númenor, followed by what makes Númenoreans different from other men in Middle-Earth. The chronological story of the Second Age is then told, showing the rise of Númenor, first as teachers of the men of Middle-Earth, then becoming arrogant and turning into conquerors. The parallel story of Sauron, who deceives some of the Elves into crafting Rings of Power, only to craft the One Ring to rule them all, is also told, setting up the conflict between Númenor and Sauron.

It is one that Númenor apparently wins at first, but Sauron is cunning and corrupts most of the Númenoreans from the inside, eventually leading to its downfall. Back in Middle-Earth, the kingdoms of the faithful Númenoreans in exile and Elves form the Last Alliance to fight Sauron and succeed in defeating him. But the One Ring is lost, not destroyed: the story of its discovery and destruction would be told in other books.