A solid book, decent by the standards of a lot of writers but not my favorite entry in the Beagle bibliography. Which feels weird to say, because I loA solid book, decent by the standards of a lot of writers but not my favorite entry in the Beagle bibliography. Which feels weird to say, because I love Beagle's work, and two of his novels (The Last Unicorn and The Innkeeper's Song) are in my list of All Time Favorites. But despite the interesting premise and thoughtfully-created characters, and an abundance of dragons (always a plus in my book), the writing itself left a little to be desired. There were times it was unclear, or relied too heavily on an abundance of adverbs, or tonally inconsistent. The villain seemed to come out of nowhere. And the fact that the title suggested a more comic approach made the sudden dive into shocking, traumatizing violence created a tonal clash I couldn't quite resolve. Overall, it felt like this book needed one more edit/polish to really smooth over some of the kinks.
Still, I liked the world and plot and characters! And the book definitely kept me reading to find out what happened next, so clearly Beagle was doing something right....more
So, I came at this from an interesting place: I'd read the original Seraphina, many many years ago, long enough to have forgotten much of it. I never So, I came at this from an interesting place: I'd read the original Seraphina, many many years ago, long enough to have forgotten much of it. I never got around to reading the sequel. I had assumed that this was an unrelated story set in the same world, a prequel perhaps, so I'd thought that having skipped a book wouldn't be an issue. Turns out, it's a sequel series so perhaps I should go back and read book 2!
That being said, the book--like its protagonist--is doing its own thing, even if it's coming hot off the heels of the book I skipped. There were some places where I was a little confused, but less than I'd feared. All you really need to know to understand Tess's journey, the emotional core of it, is in the book itself. And it is a very strong core. Hartman writes an emotionally nuanced and complex story with care and thoughtfulness. I admit I struggled at the beginning, because Tess's headspace was so bad that she acted spiteful, cruel, petty, and stupid. Not necessarily something I enjoy reading, so it was hard to empathize with her. But once she really started growing as a character, the story grew on me. I enjoyed watching how each encounter on the road shaped her and helped her grow. I appreciated what the book had to say about life and the nature of personal journeys. I loved many of the characters we met along the road, and I'm excited to see where this is going....more
Speaking as someone who's read a *lot* of dragon anthologies in her lifetime, this is a very solid entry! I particularly enjoyed "Judgment" by ElizabeSpeaking as someone who's read a *lot* of dragon anthologies in her lifetime, this is a very solid entry! I particularly enjoyed "Judgment" by Elizabeth Moon and "Joust" by Mercedes Lackey. Also, I was surprised by how much I liked "King Dragon" by Michael Swanwick. I remember reading his "The Iron Dragon's Daughter" novel back in Junior High, and I couldn't quite get through it. It was a bit too dark and erotic for my tastes at the time. But the world that he created in that book always stuck with me, blending the real world with brutal old-world fairy-tale fantasy tropes in a strange, surreal way. "King Dragon," set in the same universe, was enjoyable to read, but didn't overstay its welcome....more
A solid continuation of the Rain Wild Chronicles. While I felt that the first book dragged a little and took its time getting the main journey startedA solid continuation of the Rain Wild Chronicles. While I felt that the first book dragged a little and took its time getting the main journey started, the second volume definitely picked up the tension, with a strong adventure/survival plot forming the backbone of several characters' personal arcs bouncing off each other. This book kept things moving and kept me wanting to find out what happened. Can't wait to finish this off with Book 3!...more
So I'm a sucker for a good dragon book, and especially stories about the relationship between people and dragons. This was a solid story, with engaginSo I'm a sucker for a good dragon book, and especially stories about the relationship between people and dragons. This was a solid story, with engaging characters, and Hobb does a good job of showing people as three-dimensional. So characters like Sedric and Leftrin can have bad sides to them but you can still see where they're coming from and why they make the decisions that they do.
This book is set in Hobb's Liveship world, and I came into this book not having read anything else by her. So I did get the sense that there was a lot of world lore I didn't have the context for. But that being said, this story is very stand-alone, with older characters having only very small bit parts. It does well at making itself a good entry point into this world, for new fans.
My main quibble with this book is the very slow pacing. I thought that the majority of this book would be about the journey, but I was about two thirds of the way through the book before all the POV characters were finally in place to start the journey at all. There's so much time spent with the characters inside their own heads, as they ruminate on all their problems and various tragic backstories, and it eventually felt repetitive. And it ends at a very awkward point.
(And I should point out, though this has nothing to do with the author and everything to do with the decisions of the publishing house, but for some reason, they decided to include a preview of Book 3 at the end of Book 1, which is a very odd choice!)
That being said, a friend lent me books 1 and 2, so I might as well pick up book 2 right away. It feels like one very long book anyway! And the characters and plot are intriguing, despite the slow pacing. I'm curious to see where it goes!...more
This is a delightful tale that is sweetly illustrated, about a young blacksmith's apprentice who learns about the care and study of tea dragons. And tThis is a delightful tale that is sweetly illustrated, about a young blacksmith's apprentice who learns about the care and study of tea dragons. And through her learning, she makes some very interesting friends in her local village. A good story for kids and grown-ups alike, though parents should be warned that there is some blood and fantasy violence in a flashback scene. But it's a great story about showing the value of community and empathy....more
A really solid, excellent read. The world is crafted with a lot of great detail which puts you firmly in the dragon aeries and how they work. And whilA really solid, excellent read. The world is crafted with a lot of great detail which puts you firmly in the dragon aeries and how they work. And while the book didn't go in quite the direction I expected, it was nonetheless great at what it did! I was expecting more of an adventure that would travel farther afield, but what I got was a drama tightly-focused on a single family and the dragon aerie they call home. It is also a story about the nature of faith and its ability to either direct us towards something greater or imprison us in dogma. And it is also about a woman trying to define herself and her story, while others try to define it for her. The evil monster race that needs to be fought off is pretty par for the course for this type of story, but Lockwood knows to use them judiciously for greater impact. The more dangerous antagonists for our heroine are fellow humans....more
**spoiler alert** When I picked this up at the Confluence freebie table, several of my friends remarked that it was a good book, so I had high hopes. **spoiler alert** When I picked this up at the Confluence freebie table, several of my friends remarked that it was a good book, so I had high hopes. The book was (mostly) enjoyable, but I ran into some things that didn't quite come together for me.
First off, I will say I enjoyed the different take on dragons: they are viewed as wild animals, and the main character ends up raising a baby dragon, a species of which we have little knowledge or understanding. So there's a lot of new-"mom" troubles (sleepless nights, details about how the dragon is fed and bathed and carried, etc.) as well as a lot of info about how the Smokehill Dragon Preserve is run, and the protagonist learning more about this species than has ever been known. I liked how the dragons' ultimate level of intelligence, as well as the nature of their "telepathy", is left vague; and how their "telepathy" is truly alien to human minds (definitely a response to stories like the Dragonriders of Pern, where human and dragon minds integrate seamlessly). So there are a lot of cool ideas going on in this book.
The main issue I had with this book was that...I just got *tired* of listening to the protagonist. The book, although ostensibly being "written" by our snarky 14-year-old-boy protagonist, comes off as more rambling stream-of-consciousness. With asides, weird jokes, clarifications and back-tracking, it takes him forever to say *anything.* And then we reach the climax and there are...about a hundred more pages to go. Seriously. If that first climax was not intended to be THE climax, the book needed to be structured differently. If that first climax WAS supposed to be what we were building to, the 100 pages of epilogue could've been summed up.
tl;dr The book had some neat concepts, but overstayed its welcome....more
So I got a copy of this book at Confluence when Mary Soon Lee was doing a signing. It was an enjoyable read, in large part because it told me the storSo I got a copy of this book at Confluence when Mary Soon Lee was doing a signing. It was an enjoyable read, in large part because it told me the story of this world and this king in a deftly condensed manner. Lee captures moments, brief flashes of character, and all those moments and flashes are strung together like beads on a necklace to form the larger picture.
It reminds me of a technique I sometimes see in anime or indie films, and which I enjoy when it's done well: the camera shows a series of separate static images, and lets the viewer fill in the blanks that connect those images. The full scene is put together in the viewer's mind, like pieces of a puzzle fit together to create a whole. That's what this book reminds me of, and I can't think of any other book I've read that has done something similar.
Lee admits that King Xau is often criticized for being too perfect, and I admit that was the one downside I found to this book. Xau's continued insistence on being openly treated like everyone else around him, on removing the walls of privilege that separate him from his servants, strikes me as too modern a philosophy, and almost implausible after a while. Part of the tragedy of kingship is that wall of separation: one stops being a person and becomes a symbol, and that symbol must show strength even when the world is crumbling. I like seeing Xau struggle with that wall, and maintain his humble humanity among his closest servants and guards. But there is a scene where Xau is sitting in rough work clothes among a group of commoners, recovering from an injury and obviously looking the part of a pained convalescent. And all I could think was how his choice of humility would terrify me if I were a commoner in that crowd. Here was my hero, my divinely-ordained king, looking broken and mortal and awfully human. Such a sight might very well devastate me.
In a world such as the one in this book, the wall is there for a reason. But Xau tries to tear it down at every chance he can, and the masses react only with amazement and respect. He said to the dragon that he would give up his freedom to be king, and in some ways, he has. But in other ways, he never gave it up at all.
Still...that is really my only complaint in an otherwise solid read. If you are a fantasy reader looking for something different, or a writer who wants to see how simple human moments can be captured and crystallized, I recommend this book....more
So this book was...interesting. I think I get what the author was doing, but the lyrical-minimalist style just didn't work for me. The combination of So this book was...interesting. I think I get what the author was doing, but the lyrical-minimalist style just didn't work for me. The combination of everyone being vague and talking around situations while never explaining anything or going into detail; plus short scenes with minimal description and lots of floating dialogue, gave the impression of a bunch of scattered pieces of different puzzles that never quite came together into a coherent picture of what was going on and why. In the end, I walked away having enjoyed certain moments but generally unsatisfied, and so shut out of what was going on that I had difficulty caring.
I didn't have a bad time reading it. But it didn't really engage me like I wish it would have....more
My feelings on this book are rather mixed. The writing is solid, but overall I felt the book suffered from a weird tone shift that didn't quite work fMy feelings on this book are rather mixed. The writing is solid, but overall I felt the book suffered from a weird tone shift that didn't quite work for me. When the book started, it was all "well-meaning but frustrated low-power sorcerer with wisecracking bird companion dealing with crazy bureaucracy, who ends up in a backwater, backwards kingdom ruled by a bizarre royal family, dealing with political disasters." The tone and set-up, if not fully satirical, felt lighter--and I do love me some good light fantasy. So about 2/3 of the way through, when the tone shifts to something much darker, involving detailed descriptions of torture, violence, and gore, it was suddenly a book I was no longer enjoying. I mean, I'm kind of iffy on gore to begin with, but I can deal with it if I'm enjoying the story. But here, it felt too jarring--like I was advertised one type of story and was given another.
And then of course, because of everything that happens, the main character goes from frustrated woobie to wallowing, cynical penitent. And I realized...I really don't like being in Gerald Dunwoody's headspace. Reg started to grate on me too, especially with her hypocritical attitude, telling everybody to comport themselves better because "delicate political situation" while she just says whatever she wants, often ruining said "delicate political situation" herself. I did rather enjoy the side characters--Melissande, Rupert, & Monk were all fun to read about, and I would totally read a book from their point of view. But sometimes it felt like Reg would just...start talking because the author thought a conversation was going too well and needed a monkey wrench thrown in the works. A couple of plot holes also made me tilt my head.
I guess what it comes down to is, I don't think this is a GREAT book, but it's not a bad book, either. The writing is solid, the nutty side-characters are fun, the stakes are high, and the villain is compelling. I'm sure it'll be up someone's alley. Just be forewarned what to expect. ...more
I really enjoyed this book. It was a little slow going at first, but when I really started to sense the shape of the plot and get to know the characteI really enjoyed this book. It was a little slow going at first, but when I really started to sense the shape of the plot and get to know the characters, it really pulled me along. Hartman's world-building is also excellent.
I look forward to reading the sequel and spending more time with Seraphina :)...more
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