Category Fantasy Books

Jan 3 2015
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Book Review: Kushiel’s Justice by Jacqueline Carey

kushiel's justiceTitle: Kushiel’s Justice

Author: Jacqueline Carey

Series: Imriel’s Trilogy #2

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 4.5 stars

The Overview: Imriel de la Courcel’s blood parents are history’s most reviled traitors, while his adoptive parents, Phèdre and Joscelin, are Terre d’Ange’s greatest champions. Stolen, tortured, and enslaved as a young boy, Imriel is now a Prince of the Blood, third in line for the throne in a land that revels in beauty, art, and desire. After a year abroad to study at university, Imriel returns from his adventures a little older and somewhat wiser. But perhaps not wise enough. What was once a mere spark of interest between himself and his cousin Sidonie now ignites into a white-hot blaze. But from commoner to peer, the whole realm would recoil from any alliance between Sidonie, heir to the throne, and Imriel, who bears the stigma of his mother’s of his mother’s misdeeds and betrayals. Praying that their passion will peak and fade, Imriel and Sidonie embark on an intense, secret affair.

The Review:

This is one of those epic fantasies you remember for the rest of your life. The story is so beautiful and profound that I find myself getting completely swept away every time I pick it up. And it’s not just what the author is saying, it’s how she’s saying it. I get lost in her words.

The first book in this trilogy (Kushiel’s Scion) offered an incredible emotional journey of self-discovery where Imriel struggled to find himself and his place within the world. Kushiel’s Justice’s profoundness came from external conflicts – how his decisions affected the people around him. It struck a different chord, but it was still beautiful to read about.

This book also involved a lot of travel, with immersion into many different cultures. While the emotional story was compelling, it was this adventure to new lands and new people that I found the most exciting. Carey weaves such a realistic picture that I would dare call the places I got to visit and her books downright breathtaking.

Okay, I think I’m done gushing now. This is the type of series I could literally go on for hours about, but I’ll spare you. I can’t guarantee that anybody else will love it as much as I do, but it’s books like this that make me so grateful that I’m a reader.

All things considered, this was an amazing book. The only reason it didn’t get five stars is that I’m down to splitting fine hairs, and I happen to like the first one just a bit more. This author is quickly escalating towards becoming one of my all-time favorites, and I hold her work in the highest regard. If you pick them up, be prepared for the adventure of a lifetime! But be warned of some very explicit content.

Other books you might like:

by Niki Hawkes

Nov 29 2014
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Book Review: The Last Dragonlord by JoAnne Bertin

The last Dragon LordTitle: The Last Dragonlord

Author: JoAnne Bertin

Series: Dragonlord #1

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 3/5 stars

The Overview: First published in 1999, the Queen of one of the Dragonlords’ subject realms has suspiciously drowned and two regents vie for control of the vacant throne. At the same time, a secret society led by a sinister image has dark plans of its own. Linden realises that the deadly magic that holds him may make him the last dragonlord…ever.

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The Review:

I first read The Last Dragonlord and its sequel about ten years ago but decided to reread them because the final book in the trilogy (The Bard’s Oath) came out last year, and I’d been waiting so long for it that I’d totally forgotten what had happened in the first two books. I normally have pretty decent book-recall, but I didn’t seem to remember much of anything about this one other than that I liked it. While I enjoyed the story throughout this reread, it was not nearly as good as I remembered it. This was probably one of the first dragon books I read, so that may have positively influenced my initial rating, but since I’ve now become Dragon Obsessed, I can name at least a dozen titles I liked better.

That’s not to say that there was anything wrong with this book, necessarily, just a handful of things I thought could’ve been better. It was an incredibly unconventional story, which worked both for and against the author. On one hand, nothing about it followed along the same old cliché story lines, so that in itself was refreshing, but the choices that were in it place were just a little too odd for my taste.

To start with, Linden, the hero of the story, was kind of an ass. I found him selfish, impulsive, and severely lacking in compassion and common sense. He definitely didn’t inspire any confidence in his ability to handle the broad conflicts, and I found myself unable to really get behind him. The good news is that all of the other characters (at least, the ones on the “good” side) were absolutely delightful. So, even though the main protagonist was kind of a flop in my book (pun intended), all of the other interesting characters kept me reading long after I would have thrown in the towel. There were a ton of different POVs from which the story was told, which may have helped me ignore Linden, but I’m still on the fence as to whether I liked them or not.

You see, the story starts out by bouncing around a dozen different perspectives – all within the first fifty pages. I found it frustrating and a bit difficult to keep track of them all as the story progressed… that is until I finally started seeing some of them on a consistent basis. So on one hand it’s great because if you have a character you don’t like, you’re not with them for very long, but on the other hand all of those perspectives means there’s not much left for the reader to discover. And that brings me to my next observation:

The interesting thing about this book is that the first third of it was a perfect case study in dramatic irony (when the audience knows something characters do not). I’m typically not a fan of that writing tactic because it takes away almost all feelings of suspense and discovery, and I wind up impatient and antsy for the characters’ knowledge to catch up with my own. It kind of keeps the reader at an arms distance because, while the characters were feeling the stress and tension, I already knew what was really going on so it didn’t affect me as much. On top of that, there were quite a few scenes that didn’t really add to either character growth or plot advancement, so I had to wait even longer for the characters to figure out the things that I’d learned a hundred pages ago. Needless to say, reading this book was a bit more of a struggle than it could have been. 

I have a whole bunch of reasons why I didn’t value the book is highly as I could have, but I finished it, so that should speak to some positive attributes. I enjoyed the overall arc of the story, the writing itself, and the creativity and vividness of the scenes and the people. While this won’t go down as the best book I’ve ever read, it still sits comfortably in the “enjoyable” slot, and I will definitely be continuing on to reread the second and finally get the conclusion I’ve been craving with the third. If you’re in the mood for something dazzlingly unconventional, The Last Dragonlord definitely fits the bill.

Other books you might like:

by Niki Hawkes

Nov 19 2014
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Book Review: The First Confessor by Terry Goodkind

The first confessorTitle: The First Confessor

Author: Terry Goodkind

Series: Sword of Truth #.5

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 1/5 stars

Overview: In the time before the Confessors, when the world is a dark and dangerous place, where treason and treachery are the rule of the day, comes one heroic woman, Magda Searus, who has just lost her husband and her way in life.

The Review:

I don’t know about you, but when I pick up a prequel it’s because I’m interested to learn more about something referenced within the main series. As Kahlan is my single most favorite female character from any series, you can understand why the idea of learning more about where the Mother Confessors originated was incredibly appealing to me. The problem is, about 75% of this novel was focused on explaining all of the things readers would already know from having read the main series. Call me crazy, but I think we can safely assume that anybody interested in reading this book has probably read most, if not all of the Sword of Truth books. It’s bad enough Goodkind drills concepts into his readers over and over again throughout the entire saga, but to do it again in a 480 page prequel without showing us anything new was just plain disappointing.

Seriously, it was chapter after chapter of the same old things being explained to Magda (and her in turn explaining them to other people) – how the Temple of the Wind functions, what the Slith is and how she helps the wizards, who the Dream Walkers are (he spent a ton of time on this one), how the devotions to Rahl prevent said Dream Walkers from taking over, and how spectacularly special Magda Searus is. If any of this rings a bell, congratulations – you’ve just been gifted 3/4 of this book in one nifty little paragraph.

Need I go on?

Ugh, I know I sound a little harsh, but I had several cool ideas on where I thought the story was going to go and was really disappointed when Goodkind didn’t explore any of them. I mean, come on! The Mother Confessor is an all-powerful (and kickass) character who has to live with the consequences every time she chooses to destroy a life for the “greater good,” and I was eager to learn what that would’ve been like for someone who wasn’t born and raised into this magic but had it thrust onto them as an experiment. Not to mention the effects this new powerful magic would have on society as a whole. But none of that was explored for more than a couple of paragraphs… it was kind of pathetic.

The thing is, I don’t think my opinion of this title will surprise many lovers of the main series – Goodkind has a reputation for being long-winded and incredibly repetitive. I normally am willing to sift through all of that for the golden moments that make his novels so special, but this is the first time I didn’t get a payoff for my efforts. Well, that’s not strictly true (Pillars of the Earth, I’m talking to you) but I think you know what I mean.

Overall, if you are a fan of the series, I don’t think The First Confessor is worth your time. Those who haven’t read any of Goodkind’s work might find it an entertaining fantasy, but why learn the stuff ahead of time if you just get to spend 10+ books rehashing it over and over again, anyway? For the record, I absolutely loved the series the first time around and highly recommend it… just skip past this particular one and call it a day. :-) 

Other books you might like (better): 

by Niki Hawkes

Sep 21 2014
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Book Review: Spirit’s End by Rachel Aaron

Spirit's endTitle: Spirit’s End

Author: Rachel Aaron

Series: The Legend of Eli Monpress #5

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 4/5 stars

The Overview: Eli Monpress is clever, he’s determined, and he’s in way over his head. First rule of thievery: don’t be a hero. When Eli broke the rules and saved the Council Kingdoms, he thought he knew the price, but resuming his place as the Shepherdess’s favorite isn’t as simple as bowing his head. Now that she has her darling back, Benehime is setting in motion a plan that could destroy everything she was created to protect, and even Eli’s charm might not be enough to stop her. But Eli Monpress always has a plan, and with disaster rapidly approaching, he’s pulling in every favor he can think of to make it work, including the grudging help of the Spirit Court’s new Rector, Miranda Lyonette. But with the world in panic, the demon stirring, and the Lord of Storms back on the hunt, it’s going to take more than luck and charm to pull Eli through this time. He’s going to have to break a few more rules and work with some old enemies if he’s going to survive.

Spirit's end 2

The Review:

If you are a fantasy-lover and have not yet had the pleasure to read The Legend of Eli Monpress, you are missing out. This series has some of the best world-building of any series I’ve ever read. Combine that with great characters, a cool magic system, originality, an engaging plot, and a fantastic writing style, and you can begin to see why I hold this author and series in such high regard. Aaron is such a great writer that, in my opinion, there’s not a single element storytelling from a craft standpoint that she doesn’t do brilliantly.

With that said, you would think composing this review would be a walk in the park, however, I’ve stalled on writing it longer than any other book this year. I loved how it wrapped up all of the conflicts of the series. It was a beautifully epic series that deserved an epic ending, and that’s exactly what it got. I feel really guilty for saying this, but I think the ending may have been just a tad bit too drawn out. It essentially took up a full third of the book, making me hold my breath uncomfortably for a really long time. There was so much momentum going into this last book that I don’t know how Aaron could have done it any other way. I wanted to know what happened badly enough to devour it in one sitting, but definitely had one of those Lord of the Rings (film) moments where I wasn’t sure if it was actually ever going to end. As with the LOTR, although it felt drawn out, I couldn’t tell you which part I felt she should cut… it was all essential to completing the plot and everything needed time to fully flesh out (not to mention the dozen or so amazing characters that needed proper resolution). Anyway, I think you can see why I’ve had such conflict over this one. Let’s suffice to say, now that I’m finished with the series, I eventually loved where it ended. We ‘ll leave it at that.

I’m actually kind of sad it’s over – I thoroughly enjoyed these characters, some of which are now among my all-time favorites (Nico, I’m talking to you). This is one of those books I will definitely go back and reread, if for nothing else than to study the craft because, seriously, Aaron is brilliant. The good news is, I just found out she published a space opera trilogy under the name Rachel Bach, so you’d better believe I will be devouring those as soon as I can get my hands on them!

Other books you might like:

by Niki Hawkes

Sep 14 2014
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Book Review: Dragonsong by Anne McCaffrey

Dragon songTitle: Dragonsong

Author: Anne McCaffrey

Series: Harper Hall Trilogy #1

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

The Overview: Every two hundred years or so, shimmering threads fall, raining black ruin on Pern. The great dragons of Pern hurl themselves through the beleaguered skies, flaming tongues of fire to destroy deadly Thread and save the planet. It was not Threadfall that made Menolly unhappy. It was her father who betrayed her ambition to be a Harper, who thwarted her love of music. Menolly had no choice but to run away. She came upon a group of fire lizards, wild relatives of the fire-breathing dragons. Her music swirled about them; she taught nine to sing, suddenly Menolly was no longer alone.

Dragon song 2

The Review:

This is going to be a fairly short review for a really great dragon book. I don’t know that I can honestly claim to have a Dragon Obsession with out having read at least a few McCafferys (although I’d like to note I eventually plan on reading all them). Even though Dragonsong is only the first book of the Harper Hall Trilogy, I can already tell it’s going to be just as good as the original Dragonriders of Pern series.

As with Pern, I initially had trouble getting into the flow of the story because of the writing style – it’s not exactly what I would call accessible. McCaffrey uses a rather high-brow language that can sometimes make you feel as if you’re trying to read a textbook. While I think the more readers you can retain with your writing the better, this particular writing style is part of what makes these books unique, so they get a lot of allowances where other books might not. I only had a difficult time focusing at the beginning of the book, but once I settled into the flow of the language, the story came alive.

I absolutely love Dragonsong’s storyline – it’s about a teenaged girl who accidentally enthralls a bunch of fire lizards with her remarkable music. The main character, Mellony, was as charming as she was atypical. She is not a petite, helpless little waif but a tall, strong, capable young woman who knows what she wants out of life (even though she doesn’t always get it). I found her incredibly likable because of how humble, hard-working, compassionate she was – I can totally see why the fire lizards were drawn to her.

I liked this story so much that I’m kind of kicking myself for not continuing on straight away. I’m eager to see where Mellony’s story takes her next and am secretly hoping for some sort of love story to develop. Overall, if you like McCaffery (or dragons in general) I think you’ll enjoy Dragonsong. It takes place chronologically after Dragonquest of the Dragonriders of Pern series, but right before The White Dragon, so you may at the very least want to read the first two of that trilogy to avoid spoilers. In trying to figure out what order to read the books in, I found the lists on this website very helpful.

Other books you might like:

by Niki Hawkes

Aug 12 2014
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Book Review: The Fool’s Assassin by Robin Hobb

fools assassinTitle: Fool’s Assassin

Author: Robin Hobb

Series: The Fitz and The Fool #1

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 5/5 stars!

The Overview: FitzChivalry—royal bastard and former king’s assassin—has left his life of intrigue behind. As far as the rest of the world knows, FitzChivalry Farseer is dead and buried. Masquerading as Tom Badgerlock, Fitz is now married to his childhood sweetheart, Molly, and leading the quiet life of a country squire. Though Fitz is haunted by the disappearance of the Fool, who did so much to shape Fitz into the man he has become, such private hurts are put aside in the business of daily life, at least until the appearance of menacing, pale-skinned strangers casts a sinister shadow over Fitz’s past . . . and his future. Now, to protect his new life, the former assassin must once again take up his old one. . . .

Want more details? Head here: www.atrandom.com/fools-assassin

fool's assassin 2

The Review:

Before I get into talking specifics about Fool’s Assassin, you should know that Fool’s Fate (the last Hobb book that included these characters) was the story that single-handedly made me want to start a book blog. It was profound and wonderful – a perfect completion to the story arc that had been developing since the Assassin’s Apprentice. I laughed, I cried, I enjoyed the pieces out of that book. Most importantly, it was so mesmerizing that even though I read it a couple of years ago I still remember every detail – it’s likely to stick with me for the rest of my life. I don’t usually have such a profound connection to a story and its characters, but those rare occasions when I do is proof that books are magical. So, having finished Fool’s Fate feeling completely satisfied with the ending, I was thrilled when I found out Hobb decided to continue the story.

There’s more?!!!! :D

Although several years had passed for the characters, picking up Fool’s Assassin brought me back home. It’s as if nothing had changed – the people were rounded and interesting (because they are too real to be considered mere “characters”), the world was rich and familiar (especially because I’ve since explored more of it in the Liveship Trilogy and the Rain Wild Chronicles), and the plot was totally immersive. Hobb conveys such a great depth of character that I was immediately absorbed back into Fitz’s world. All of the things he’s gone through on his journey came tumbling back over me in waves of joy and sorrow, but I also found myself hopeful for his future as he faced several new challenges.

Without giving much away, I feel it’s prudent to point out that Hobb spent a good portion of the book introducing some amazing new characters (don’t worry, there were plenty of meaningful passages with beloved characters too). Because of this, however, the overall arc of the story really didn’t come into play until near the end of the book. A couple of my fellow reviewers didn’t love how long the story took to get going, but seemed to agree that it was still oddly absorbing. While I can definitely see where they are coming from, I love being in Fitz’s world so much that every moment felt golden and purposeful. It gave me new insight into Fitz himself (which I loved seeing) and also made me fall in love with some of the new characters. I think the bond they formed with both Fitz and the reader will be very important going forward. I loved every bit of this book and was incredibly sad when ended. It was heart-wrenching and beautiful, and the next one can’t come too soon.

I consider The Fool’s Assassin a must-read for any fan of the series, but would strongly recommend that anyone new to Hobb’s work start with Assassin’s Apprentice, where all the magic began! It takes a while to fully appreciate the beauty of the story, but it is well worth the wait!

Other books you might like:

by Niki Hawkes