I love the comparison to The Princess Bride. It's a fun way to look at the story.
And introducing Talamagne was one of those delightful moments, where you have to go, 'wait... did the writer introduce them just to kill them?' Because so many authors play it that way, it creates that suspicion.
Poor Ondolemar. Out of all of the characters are having a bad day, I feel especially bad for him, suffering so quietly in the background.
Humperdink would make a good Thalmor, lol. I could see him and Radac as friends ^_^