Customer Reviews

The Barbed Coil

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I enjoyed this book quite a bit. It kept me interested and going. It explored a new form of magic. I had as of yet to see drawing as an active form of magic. We have read books were drawing was used for binding or warding or gaurding, but to see it used to manipulate and controll in real time was refreshing.

The story is your basic high fantasy with the cross world twist. (Someday I would love to read that cross over where the characters actually want to get back) Where a wall flower with a disability moves to a magical realm where she is powerful beautiful and everything else. Complete with her knight in shining armour or in this case black leather. As a result you know the ending and are not expecting any great earth shattering revalations about looking at our society.

The story was good and i would recommend it to anyone. But it is predictable with basic fantasy characters and a very distinct sense of black and white. So kick back sip hot cocoa pet you cat and read this book. If you want to look at our world differently then find another writer who will paint interesting perspecitives.

Despite other reviews posted here, I didn't think this book was all that bad. It is certainly not overwhelming in its brilliancy, but it's not hideously bad either. Basically, this is a competent and average work of fantasy.

I found the use of illuminations as a conduit for magic to be truly fascinating and a very clever idea. As for Tessa's hasty acceptance of her transition from her world to another, I actually appreciated this. Nothing bores me more than page after page of a transplanted character in such situations droning on about "This isn't happening to me" and "I can't believe this, I must be dreaming" etc. etc. Zzzzzzzzzzzz....

It is true, however, that this novel could have had a couple of hundred pages shaved off it in the course of editing , but over-all this work isn't half bad. An interesting and diverting read.

The idea of a person from our world travelling to a fantasy world suits fairie tales better and it bothered me all the way through the book. There wasn't really a reason why Tessa had to be from our world. She began as a shallow person and remained that way. Ravis with his Scar was The Mysterious Hero With A Dark Past. Not much character there. However, some of the characters showed a glimpse of the nice work Jones did with The Book of Words.

Basically, what we have here is a simple book that strangely reminds me of stories of my own I used to write some years ago when I was about 15 years old. Barbed Coil feels a bit rushed, it doesn't have enough meat over the characters' bones and aside from the well done scribing parts it lacks the feel of a good book.

As simple as its plot is, it's still too large for one book. Lack of details is clear. And if it had to be one book only, then the plot should have been less grand and more compressed.

Even with all this whining, I kinda liked the book as long as I didn't really concentrate on it. Even all these faults can't hide the fact that Jones is a pretty good writer and if it hadn't been for that, Barbed Coil would have been a complete failure. I hope the next trilogy from her follows Book of Words' footsteps. This was a halfhearted attempt and I have a feeling that it was written because the writer wanted to try out the dimension travelling character and the rather nice concept of illumination magic. However, it's as if she had gotten bored with everything in the book and rushed it to an (overly) happy end.

You can see from my title that I'm not overly impressed with this book. I found the concept of a person mysteriously being translated from the "real world" to J.V.Jones' fantasy world old -- it impressed me when Stephen R. Donaldson did it in the Chronicles of Thomas Covenant 23 years ago. It didn't impress me here.

In this book Ms. Jones asks us to accept Tessa as our heroine. Does she (Tessa) show a noble character? No. Does she seem like she gives a darn about being caught up in the workings of this world she finds herself in? No -- but eventually as the plot mandates she does get with the program. Rather, I find her childish and stereotypically Hollywoodish in her character. At times I felt that I was reading about a catty-impish-pouting brat that Ms. Jones wanted me to embrace, to put my hopes in. No, I never bought the character.

Ravis is a walking cliche. His history fails to support his personality.

Cameron is also not sufficiently developed to justify the transition he undergoes throughout the novel.

The Harras is interesting and the development of this type of creature is well done however. One good point Ms. Jones.

The character we are to hate (I've forgotten his name -- a testament to the fact that this character was also very poorly developed) is unexplainable shallow, sadistic, and has mood swings that are mildly explained.

Circumstances are amazingly & coincendentially provided for by the lackluster imagination of the author. Please don't put "just the right tool" in "just the right place" at "just the right time" especially if it is totally out of place in the world / location you place it just to justify a poorly planned world & plot.

Ms. Jones repeatedly tries to develop a cheap harlequin type romance between Tessa and Ravis -- at times I nearly put the book in the trash during these chapters. Romance? I love it if written with talent. Ms. Jones lacks this talent (in this novel at least).

So, bottom line: * The plot was poorly planned with numerous "coincendences" necessary to bring the novel to completion. Closure of the book should come as a logical manipulation of a believable world in the context of one living in that world. * The Characters were shallow and sterotypical. This is the worst of the taste this book left in my mouth. * The book as one other reviewer wrote is clearly far too long for the context contained therein. Perhaps 200-300 pages would be sufficient for what this book is.

Will I read anything else that Ms. Jones has written? Not likely for at least 10 years. She needs to have time to develop her talent -- talent that clearly 'could' be developed if she has piers and editors that care enough about her to help her grow.

The Barbed Coil is a stand-alone novel telling the story of Tessa McCamfrey, a young woman from san Diego.

One day, to flee her responsibilities, she takes her yellow Honda Civic and drives without stopping until she comes to a clearing in the Cleveland National Forest. There among the trees are piles of safe deposit boxes, and a intricate, mysterious golden ring. As she puts it on, she's transported into another, exotic world.

More exactly in Bay'Zell, a port city of the province of Rhaize. Bay'Zell is a dangerous place for a young woman on her own and soon she finds herself harassed by two rogues. Fortunately, a piratical but handsone man named Ravis comes to her rescue and decides to take her under his wing.

Quickly she learns more about the continent on which she's just landed: Izgard of Garizon, the bearer of the Coil, is about to invade Rhaize to gain access to the sea. With the help of his monstruous horde of Harras, he's slaughtering all who stand in his path to quench the Barbed Coil's thirst for blood. And so Berick of Thorn, who conquered Garizon fifty years ago, is slain. His son Camron will hire Ravis to get revenge and assassinate Izgard.

Tessa finds herself caught up in these events. Taking refuge in Emith and his mother's cosy cottage, she'll soon realise she also has a part to play. Emith, who was Deveric, the late king's counselor and scribe's devoted assistant before he too was murdered, starts teaching her the art of painting illuminations, as patterns are the catalyst of this world's magic. But his skills are limited, and he sends her to the Annointed Ilse, where his former master Avaccus lives.

The Barbed Coil is a good, fast-paced adventure novel. I was a bit skeptical at first, but as the story flowed, I started to grow fonder of the characters, particularly of Emith and his mother, and of Angeline too, Izgard's courageous young wife. J. V. Jones's elaborate decriptions of the use of pigments and vellums are passionating and the gathering of momentum at the end is most suspenseful. I even caught myself holding my breath as I ploughed through the last pages.

I was really prepared to enjoy The Barbed Coil. I kept an open mind through the opening sequences which used the trite, overdone and lazy technique of transporting a character from the "real" world to one of the author's making, because I thought she might be able to carry off something unique with the paranoid obsessive-compulsive Tessa. Instead, Tessa, who is described as wearing a sweater on a hot day because she "felt too exposed with just a single layer..." adapts with astonishing ease to a world of filth, crime, magic and danger. That lack of consistency really bothered me. The method and reason for her transportation is only touched upon lightly and never really explored, either. The stock characters do their stock character things, nobody important gets killed off despite the *astonishing* amounts of damage they take, and the illuminations concept was interesting but rather tedious to read about. I really recommend reading the Book of Words series for a MUCH better example of this excellent author in full sway, with a mad king who isn't just randomly violent and then repentent, female characters with depth, and better motivations all around.

After having read The Book of Words trilogy and A Cavern of Black Ice, I could not wait for the next installment, so I enthusiastically picked up The Barbed Coil, expecting the high level of wit and action as displayed in J.V Jones first trilogy and A Cavern of Black Ice, which was a masterpiece. However I was bitterly disappointed! The character of Tessa does not invoke intrigue or sympathy, and doesn't compare to previous brilliant J.V Jones characters such as Jack, Raif, Melliandra etc.

Tessa's transition from her world to that of Bay'Zell is lethargically explained, with Tessa simply accepting this transition, without so much as a second glance back. The story meanders along providing the reader with little interest. However, I willed myself through the book, promising myself that it would get better! It didn't!

Amazingly little plot spread out over nearly 700 pages. Unlike the Baker Boy triology there is nobody to feel strongly about. The heros are bland and the changes they go though are not believable and the ending is just plain silly. At times her writting really shines like when she describes her unique system of magic or shows the connection the two male heros feel for each other. But most of the book is dull, dull, dull. Counting the number of times THE SCAR was mentioned was one of my few sources of amusement. Jones also writes vivid accounts of people being mutilated, murdered or otherwise abused. Like Baker's Boy she loves to torture her female characters, especially if they are old. She is very subtle about sexual relations between her characters unless of course the male is doing something depraved in which case she describes it in great detail I am always bewildered by the number of books that get 5 star ratings. Surely not every book is the best. For a new author I might have giving this 3 stars, my normally rating, but for an author like Jones who showed so much potential in her first works, this book is a poor follow-up.

J.V. Jones (like Robin Hobb) is incredibly skilled at writing detailed descriptions of setting, environment, and character.

Unfortunately, there should be a limit for everything and this book just goes on and on about the main characters' efforts to rid the world of the Barbed Coil, a powerful magical device which the rather boring villain uses to create powerful monsters who decimate everyone they meet - until they come into contact with our heroes, whereupon they become extremely ineffective.

At 300 pages, this probably could have been a crisp, entertaining read. At 700 it becomes a drag. Amazingly though, the author has to rush to tie all the threads together at the end and bring about a happy conclusion.

I've read 'The Barbed Coil' at least thrice - and I've even been magnanimous enough to loan it to all and sundry (well, those interested in fantasy, in any case!!!). In summary, it's brilliant! JV Jones's writing style is evocative, clear and detailed. Very quickly you find yourself immersed in the lives and events of the characters, and of the world that they're living in.
I have to say that Tess adjusted supremely well to her displacement from Earth, though, but while her lack of angst and relocation anxiety might be a problem for some, it didn't actually bother me all that much.

Also, the fight scenes in the book have made me look at battle-scenes from a very different perspective... JV Jones has done her research very well, and the employment of strategy, battle tactics, and sheer descriptive clarity can make one almost smell the carnage.

The Illumination - well, I've learned more about parchment-making and pigment-mixing than might be employed in my day-to-day existence, but hey, if I ever need a change of career, I think I'd be able to do scripts quite well (provided that actually DRAWING anything is not a basic requirement!). Actually, even though I was so involved in all aspects of the book, the description of the requirements for the illuminations and the magic surrounding the use thereof gripped me the most.

I could not put 'The Barbed Coil' down, and spent an entire day reading it the first time, so I would heartily recommend it. Don't approach it with preconceived notions of fantasy and what defines it - read it with an open mind and an open heart, and you will seriously gain great pleasure from it!!