The Witcher series, I must say off the bat, isn’t really sticking with me. I’m enough of a completist that I’m going to finish it (and I received the last book in the series as a gift from someone who didn’t know it was the last book in a series) but it’s not quite coming together in a way that has me very excited about the world or the characters. The first two books in the series were actually collections of short stories that were […]
A fantasy classic where the hero refers to monsters as “those guys”
Contains Nine Princes in Amber, The Guns of Avalon, Sign of the Unicorn, The Hand of Oberon, The Courts of Chaos I’ve given myself ample time to sit on this book (or collection of books?) and mull it over. Zelazny is one of the fantasy greats and this, my first exposure to him, is supposed to be a fine example of that greatness. I didn’t dislike The Chronicles of Amber, overall. There were parts of it I liked a lot. But the reading experience was […]
“We speak of stories ending, when in truth it is we who end. The stories go on and on.”
In a short time I’ve really become quite devoted to this series. As I’ve said in my earlier reviews of Kushiel’s Avatar‘s predecessors, these books encapsulate everything that I want in a fantasy series. Balanced on the shoulders of an incomparable heroine, the story is both epic and personal. With every installment, Carey takes the opportunity to expand the world building out into foreign countries that are recognizably rooted in real-life analogs. So far we’d seen Scotland, Scandanavia, Italy, and now this book gets into […]
“Privilege,” she said gently, “gives the crown its shine. Duty gives it its weight.”
4.5 stars Since I started reading romance, I’ve enjoyed many colors and stripes of them. But I have to say, I believe that possibly above all other romance sub-genres, I categorically enjoy fantasy/paranormal series that follow one couple and continue along a larger arc. I’m talking the “Fever” series, or the “Kate Daniels” series, and “Wraith Kings” certainly qualifies as well. I appreciate these longer takes for a lot of reasons: they frequently get to tease out the sexual tension over a longer period of […]
Almost Too Classic Fantasy
I usually avoid contemporary high fantasy that makes the best seller lists, but I needed travel reading. I gotta admit, I was pleasantly surprised. I actually liked The Elfstones of Shannara. The post technology and human domination seemed a little pointless as it went undeveloped which was too bad, but the traditional elf, human, troll, Druid, witches, magic, battle, journey elements were all well used. There are 2 basic plots. One is the quest undertaken by Wil Ohmsford and the elf princess Amberle. The interesting […]
Not bad for a new foray into epic fantasy
This book is pretty far outside of my comfort zone because I’ve been trying to experience new genres this year, but I think Kushiel’s Dart may have been the farthest I’ll delve into high fantasy. I did enjoy large parts of it, but I probably won’t be reading the sequels. Committing my time to this 901 page brick filled my epic fantasy quota for a few years. Kushiel’s Dart takes place in the land of Terre d’Ange, where all the descendents of angels live (making […]