The Farthest Shore by Ursula Le Guin
The Farthest Shore is the third book in Ursula Le Guin’s Earthsea series, and the concluding one for several decades. Since it’s highly recommended to have read the first two, I’ll work on the assumption that the reader has. If book one, Wizard of Earthsea has the most action/magic and book two, Tombs of Atuan, is the slowest and most introspective of the opening trilogy, then The Farthest Shore is a nicely-balanced blending of the styles.
January 28th, 2008. Bill Capossere and Rebecca Fisher´s rating: 4, 5 | Ursula K. Le-Guin | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
With New Spring, Robert Jordan offers himself up to two major criticisms up front. One is for releasing a prequel when you haven’t finished the first series yet and the other is for trying to grab a quick book by just padding out an already published first story. With regard to the first, I think it’s pretty silly to complain about an author’s choice of subject — perhaps he became inspired with something in terms of the back story and is excited to write it,
January 26th, 2008. Bill Capossere and Rob Rhodes´s rating: 3.5 | Brandon Sanderson, Robert Jordan | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Naked Empire by Terry Goodkind
The Sword of Truth, though a bit derivative, started off well and, while it has had its stops and starts, it has generally been well-worth reading.
Sadly, Naked Empire fails even the minimal standard of “if it’s in a series, you’ve gotta read it if only to know what happens.” So little of import happens here, and it’s so painful to get to what little does, that it simply isn’t worth it. The book is preachy, talkative, dogmatic, repetitive, one-sided, and simplistic,
January 25th, 2008. Bill Capossere´s rating: 1 | Terry Goodkind | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Gregor and the Code of Claw by Suzanne Collins
This is the fifth and series-ending (I shy from ever using the word “final” with regard to fantasy nowadays) book in the Gregor series, one of the most original and powerful young adult fantasy series now in recent years. It is not a standalone book, so if you haven’t read the first four, you should start. Assuming you have, however, how does Code stack up?
I have to admit to some disappointment. While much of what has made Gregor such a strong series can be found here: strongly distinct characters,
January 14th, 2008. Bill Capossere´s rating: 3 | Suzanne Collins | Children | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Akhenaten Adventure by P.B. Kerr
The adventure in The Akhenaten Adventures involves a pair of twins, 12-yr-old John and Philippa Gaunt, who discover after a series of odd events that they are not simple upper-class adolescents as they’ve always though but a pair of djinns (“genie” is considered vulgar) about to come into their own powers. Soon they’re off to London and the tutelage of their Uncle Nimrod. It turns out, however, that they need to learn their powers quickly, for Nimrod is involved in a dangerous quest to prevent the head of an evil djinn tribe from finding a source of great power,
January 6th, 2008. Bill Capossere´s rating: 3 | P.B. Kerr | Children | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Greenstone Grail by Amanda Hemingway
If one has to accept the fact that almost all fantasy books are now the beginning of a series (and we’re just about to that point), then at least Amanda Hemingway’s The Greenstone Grail is a compelling enough beginning to leave the reader wanting more while still resolving at least this portion of the story. Grail opens nicely with a bit of suspense and mystery as Annie Ward, carrying her infant son, is chased/herded, down a dark unfamiliar road by things dark and barely seen.
January 3rd, 2008. Bill Capossere´s rating: 4 | Amanda Hemingway | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The good news about Chainfire is that it is a much better than book than the previous one, Naked Empire. The bad news is that Naked Empire set such a low standard that this isn’t saying much. Chainfire isn’t awful, like Naked Empire. It isn’t even all that bad (except in parts). But it also isn’t all that good. Mostly it’s a serviceable novel moving us toward the series’
December 5th, 2007. Bill Capossere´s rating: 2.5 | Terry Goodkind | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Charlie Bone and the Time Twister by Jenny Nimmo
The first Charlie Bone book had lots of basic flaws in it: lack of story or character development, a sense of arbitrariness, an overly familiar feel to it, etc., but the premise was just interesting enough, and the characters’ magical “endowments” just quirky enough that one hoped Jenny Nimmo could improve in book two and start putting together a worthwhile series. Sadly, based on this second effort, that hope isn’t borne out.
First, Charlie Bone and the Time Twister simply has a careless feel to it.
December 4th, 2007. Bill Capossere´s rating: 2 | Jenny Nimmo | Children | SFF Reviews | no comments |
The Wounded Hawk by Sara Douglass
Set amid the drama and cast of the 100 Years War (though more parallel than true history), this sequel to The Nameless Day continues the story of Thomas Neville, former cleric returned to his noble life, as he tries to complete the quest given him by archangel Michael — to retrieve a mysterious casket that will allow him to send back to hell the demons that now roam the world. As readers of the first book know (and only readers of the first one should read this),
December 2nd, 2007. Bill Capossere and Kelly Lasiter´s rating: 3 | Sara Douglass | SFF Reviews | no comments |
Gifts of the Unmage & Spellspam by Alma Alexander
Despite some rough spots, Alma Alexander’s Worldweavers series is an intriguing new entry in YA fantasy. At least based on the first two books in the series: Gift of the Unmage and Spellspam. The series is set in a world roughly akin and contemporaneous with our own, save that people can use magic and there are other “polities” such as dwarves, Alphiri and the Faele. Into this world a little over a decade ago is born with lots of fanfare and media coverage,
December 2nd, 2007. Bill Capossere´s rating: 3.5 | Alma Alexander | Young Adult | SFF Reviews | no comments |
It's hardly a private conversation, Becky. You're welcome to add your 2 cents anytime!
If the state of the arts puzzles you, and you wonder why so many novels are "retellings" and formulaic rework,…
I picked my copy up last week and I can't wait to finish my current book and get started! I…
Gentlemen, I concur! (Forgive me for jumping into your convo)
The cover is amazing. I love how the graphic novel (and the review!) hewed close to the theme of "good…