fantasy book reviews science fiction book reviewsbook review Lois McMaster Bujold The Sharing Knife LegacyLegacy by Lois McMaster Bujold

It sincerely hurts me to give Lois McMaster Bujold the “DNF,” but I didn’t get very far into The Sharing Knife: Legacy before giving up. It tried it on audio, with the same reader who read Beguilement (see above).

The first scene was a sex scene: Dag (who’s 55 years old) and Fawn (who’s 19) on their wedding night. I rolled my eyes through most of it, and when Fawn started chatting about her family’s propensity to produce twins and other unsuitable topics for a wedding night scene (this is during the act, mind you), I had had enough of Fawn.

Part of the problem is the audiobook reader’s voice — so naive and hickish sounding (though Fawn is actually quite bright) that it grates on my nerves. I thought to myself, “I can’t listen to hours of this,” so I deleted it off my MP3 player and opened the book instead. It was better in print than on audio, but after reading the cover blurbs and flipping through a bit, I realized that again, the focus would be on the romance and Dag’s family’s rejection or acceptance of Fawn. I just didn’t want to go through that again.

Bujold is one of my favorite fantasy authors, but I read her for her lovely writing and amazingly creative magic, not her romance. If you want to read a romance novel, I recommend this series. If not, I don’t.

The Sharing Knife — (2006-2009) Publisher: Troubled young Fawn Bluefield seeks a life beyond her family’s farm. But en route to the city, she encounters a patrol of Lakewalkers, nomadic soldier–sorcerers from the northern woodlands. Feared necromancers armed with mysterious knives made of human bone, they wage a secret, ongoing war against the scourge of the “malices,” immortal entities that draw the life out of their victims, enslaving human and animal alike. It is Dag — a Lakewalker patroller weighed down by past sorrows and onerous present responsibilities — who must come to Fawn’s aid when she is taken captive by a malice. They prevail at a devastating cost — unexpectedly binding their fates as they embark upon a remarkable journey into danger and delight, prejudice and partnership… and perhaps even love.

Lois McMaster Bujold The Sharing Knife 1. Beguilement 2. Legacy 3. Passage 4. Horizon Lois McMaster Bujold The Sharing Knife 1. Beguilement 2. Legacy 3. Passage 4. Horizon Lois McMaster Bujold The Sharing Knife 1. Beguilement 2. Legacy 3. Passage 4. Horizon Lois McMaster Bujold The Sharing Knife 1. Beguilement 2. Legacy 3. Passage 4. Horizon

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  • Katherine Hooper

    KAT HOOPER, who started this site in June 2007, earned a Ph.D. in neuroscience and psychology at Indiana University (Bloomington) and now teaches and conducts brain research at the University of North Florida. When she reads fiction, she wants to encounter new ideas and lots of imagination. She wants to view the world in a different way. She wants to have her mind blown. She loves beautiful language and has no patience for dull prose, vapid romance, or cheesy dialogue. She prefers complex characterization, intriguing plots, and plenty of action. Favorite authors are Jack Vance, Robin Hobb, Kage Baker, William Gibson, Gene Wolfe, Richard Matheson, and C.S. Lewis.

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