Customer Reviews

Belladonna (Ephemera, Book 2)

5 star:		(17)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

The Eater of Worlds is on the verge of being unleashed and drowning Ephemera in a soul killing darkness. The only ones who can stop him and reclaim their world for the Light are a trio of beings united in love; Glorianna Belladonna, the most powerful of all Landscapers who has cut herself off from her own kind, Michael the Magician who loves her, and his sister, Caitlin Marie, who has her own gifts. Meeting Glorianna and her incubus brother, Sebastian, opens a new perspective on the world to Michael. He discovers that he did not know half as much as he believed about even the most basic things. One of them must face the darkness head on if they are to achieve victory.

**** I'm sure that those who have read Book I in the series will find the action a bit easier to follow. Yet, despite the lack of information, the poetry built into the prose reaches out and grabs you. Ms. Bishop has a gift of language and creating beauty with her words that is easy to appreciate. The world is peopled with interesting characters who make the plot flow rapidly. ****

I read "Sebastian" when it first came out in hardcover and felt like I'd wasted my money, so this time around I checked out "Belladonna" from the library to decide whether it was worth the investment. It's not.

This is not to say it's terrible. The characterization that I found so annoying, even laughable, in "Sebastian" is much better here. Belladonna doesn't have the same Mary-Sue flavor that whatsername (sorry, she was that forgettable -- Sebastian's eventual wife) did in the last book; there's at least an attempt to make her a multifaceted character. Michael doesn't come off like a one-dimensional romance hero either, though unfortunately he's also a bit dull. The other characters are more iffy, and Bishop doesn't deliver on several developmental ideas that she introduces -- for example, Teaser yearns for the kind of love Sebastian has with whatsername, and Caitlin Marie devolves from a potential protagonist of her own into a sidekick for Belladonna. Even the Eater of the World, who gets some interesting (though far too late) development near the end of the book, gets left in the "what the heck was *that* all about?" bin.

There are three main problems with the story as I see it. One is the weak characterization noted above. Another is the weakness of the magic system. Having read most of Bishop's books now, I think she sometimes uses (and we the readers mistake) "confusion" for "complexity". That worked in the Black Jewels books because there was enough other interesting material around to distract us from the headscratchy bits. But in this story the confusion never clears up. Just when I thought I understood that there were Dark Guides (some containing light) and Light Guides (some containing dark) and Landscapers and Bridges and Wizards and Justice Makers, now we get Magicians and Anchors and Guardians and Borders and Boundaries and... ugh. My head hurts just thinking about it. And there's no internal consistency to any of it. In "Sebastian" it was established that Landscapers are female -- but along comes a male one in this book, and no one seems to find it strange that he exists. And so on.

The third problem is that the book is just plain *dull*. This story is probably 1/3 longer than it needs to be -- there are brief moments of agency among the characters interspersed with long stretches of what feels like weather reports. The Eater is strolling along through its landscapes being evil, tra la la. Belladonna is angsting because she's over 30 and doesn't have a man (::grinds teeth::), oh woe. Michael is yearning for Belladonna, sigh sigh sigh. Reader is falling asleep, yawn yawn yawn. Even the climactic ending is "not so much".

I can't tell if some of this is because there's another Ephemera book coming or not -- I can't see that there's anything left to resolve, but the author may surprise me. Anyway, if there is another book, I won't be buying that one either.

As the Eater of the World sets out to destroy the already-shattered world of Ephemera, the last-known Landscaper is also the most feared. Glorianna Belladonna is a woman who embraces both the Light and Dark currents through her landscapes [for a broader explanation of landscapes and Ephemera, please see my review for SEBASTIAN]. Shunned by those she must help, she is determined to save the world, for she understands that she is the only hope.

In another place, far away, the people know of nations and countries. They are unaware of the shattered landscapes that surround the area where the Eater of the World was imprisoned long ago. This is where Michael the Magician plays his tin whistle to bring the land into balance, and his younger sister tends a garden that holds more meaning than either of them can imagine.

Belladonna and Michael are thrown together by chance when the Eater appears in Michael's part of the world. Together, and with help from powerful family members and friends, they must piece together the puzzle that will allow them to defeat an evil darker than their worst nightmares. If they fail, it will be the end of all good things. Forever.

In the sequel to the stunning novel SEBASTIAN, BELLADONNA brings readers back into a world that has learned to cope with its shattered nature. Ephemera itself is semi-sentient, relying on heart wishes and desires to know how to shape its many landscapes. For readers who take the time to read and understand the nature of this world, there is a great deal they will find to like. There are more characters in this novel, but they seem to blend in to the preexisting cast quite well.

A few minor hitches and childish family banter might be a bit of a turnoff, but this truly is fascinating. This will appeal more to those who enjoy romance, but other fantasy fans are likely to enjoy this novel, as well.

Bishop's imaginary world of Ephemera is full of beauty and horror. With a few touches of needed humor, she presents an adventure unlike any you have ever experienced.

I highly recommend reading SEBASTIAN first. Sebastian (Ephemera)

Reviewed by Christina Wantz Fixemer
04/02/2007

4.5-Books on WUAT = 5-Stars on Amazon

From other reviews you can easily get the basic concept of the plot so I'm not going to repeat the plot summary here. Anne Bishop is one of my favorite authors and, in my opinion, one of her greatest strengths is making her characters 'real'. The heroes have flaws that only make the characters more believable.

Unfortunately the Ephemera duology does not live up to Ms. Bishop's usual standard. The banter between family members was often too immature for their ages. I have to admit to similar banter, but we grew out of it well before we reached the ages of the main characters in Belladonna. It was initially somewhat amusing, but quickly became a bit annoying. This seemed to sum up many aspects of 'Belladonna'. A good concepts were either never fully developed or fell flat.

So how do I rate a book like 'Belladonna'? I had to think - if this was not an 'Anne Bishop' book would I have liked it? Yes, I think I would have. The universe was interesting and although it seems to have confused some, I didn't have this particular problem. If this book had been from another author, I would have suggested improvement and felt that reading other books by the same author would be well worth my time. I would have wanted to see a book of short stories to tie up some of the loose ends that weren't covered in the main plot. As a book by Anne Bishop, I was disappointed because she is not a new author and I expected better. I would have rated this book as a 3.5 given more freedom. It was better than average - but not much.

I'm a fan of Anne Bishop, especially her Black Jewels 'verse. Sebastian - the first book in this set - was lukewarm, but I've noticed that about the first book in a Bishop series. The book tends to be lots of explication, without much in the way of action, with main characters having only cameos or minor characters trying to carry the plot.

I was looking forward to Belladonna....and to be honest, I'm still waiting. The plot was as thin as mist, the characters were static and didn't react well with one another, almost like they were in the same book only by happenstance.

The ending came out of nowhere. The story trudged along for a while, then WHAM and the reader is left asking 'did you get the number of that bus that just hit me?'

I love the Black Jewels 'verse, and the second and third books in the Tir Alain series, but Belladonna and Sebastian should definetly have been sent back for re-writes.

I truly enjoyed Sebastian (Ephemera, Book 1), but forgot about this sequel since it came out a year after I finished book one. I finally picked it up and found it to be just as good, and I'm sorry I waited so long to read it. Though another book is expected, Bridge of Dreams in March 2012, this book provides enough closure that the series could end here (but I am glad it doesn't!).

A few reviewers felt that Sebastian was more paranormal romance than fantasy. I disagreed. However, I do feel that this sequel does fall more firmly into that genre. And it is extremely well done, with a richly detailed plot and world-building that the genre sometimes lacks. Paranormal romance can be more than vampires and werewolves, as exemplified here. Belladonna knows that she alone must fight the Eater of the World. Yet, her heart longs for love and companionship. What happens when Ephemera manifests her heart's desire right before she may die to save her world? The aspect I enjoyed most about this series is the strong family Bishop has created with Belladonna, her cousin Sebastian, her brother Lee and her strong-willed mother Nadia. They are so alive and real that I was caught up in their lives, and the fantasy and magic was just a bonus. Each character is well defined, and the extended supporting characters add to the fullness. The world-building is expanded upon, as Belladonna discovers parts of Ephemera that are not as broken and where Landscapers are reviled as "magicians." The story is fast paced, and the final battle is cleverly managed.

Overall, a strong sequel that has me looking forward to the next book.

I think Anne Bishop is one of the finest and most creative authors, and I liked the first book, Sebastian. I just could not get into this-it didn't grab me like her other books. The closest I can come as to why I didn't like it is that it is boring. I will continue to buy and read her books.

Sad to say, this book was a bit of a disappointment to me. The first book, _Sebastian_, set up a somewhat interesting world that had been broken into bits in order to contain a creature that threatens all with destruction. The characters of Sebastian, finding his strength and battling his past, and Belladonna, the powerful magic user who is thought a dangerous renegade, were engaging. Here, we have the sequel... but the characters seem flat, their story, un-involving, and the battle against the nasty Eater of the World is anti-climatic.

I couldn't put this book down. I'm not going to say it's perfect but it certainly is a worthwhile read. I'm not going to get into the plot since many others already have and really, it's worth reading.

One of the things I've found interesting with Anne Bishop (as was very clearly seen in the Black Jewels Trilogy) is that she's good at giving you the information you need and not filling page after page with extra history the reader may or may not care about. She spends more time on the story and characters itself and giving you the history you need to know to make sense of what's happening. Sure, I would have liked more information on certain parts of this series and the Black Jewels Trilogy, but it's not needed exactly.

Pros:
- Kept my interest the whole way through and I could barely put it down and wouldn't have if it weren't for work.
- Character interaction is always a pleasure, though sometimes it can be a bit repetitive or silly but not often.
- Beautiful imagery throughout the entire story. Anne Bishop paints lovely pictures with her words and has always given me enough information to form my own pictures but stay within her vision. That's one of the things I love so much about her writing... how vivid it is.

Cons:
- Some parts I feel could have really been fleshed out more to bring the reader in more and give the reader more understanding. Some events seemed to loose their significance because of how they were mostly glossed over.
- In the first book, we really got to know Sebastian and in this one we got to know Belladonna and Michael more closely. Since Glorianna wasn't as focused of a character in the first book, we didn't really get to know her until this book and I didn't feel like I connected with her as much.

And no, come the end of the book, Lynnea wasn't pregnant though it was mentioned that they were working on it. I think it was mentioned before as more a way to scare the daylights out of Sebastian and keep him on his toes.

Glorianna Belladonna is happy for her Incubus cousin Sebastian who has found eternal love with his Lynnea. She feared for him when he challenged the Dark Guides, allies of the Eater of the World, but prayed that Lynnea's love would keep him safe, which it did (see SEBASTIAN). However, while he basks in the glow of love, she feels a deep boned loneliness that is almost as horrific as her doubts and fear of failure. Still she must overcome her concerns and qualms because she knows in spite of almost everyone considering her a troublesome rogue she must still face The Eater of the World before the darkness spreads fear across all of Ephemera.

However, Glorianna will soon learn that she is not alone. Somehow in her dreams, her needs have traversed Ephemera reaching the heart and soul of Michael the Musician. He knows he must find the sorceress who has haunted his fantasies as she needs his help while he needs her heart. At the same time his all alone sister Caitlin Marie has become the target of those who support the Eater of the World.

This is an extremely complex fantasy. Newcomers need to first read SEBASTIAN to understand all that is going on in this stupendous serpentine story line. Michael is an interesting hero as he finds himself increasingly caught in a Hobson's choice between caging the Eater of the World but by doing so killing his beloved. Anne Bishop writes an incredible epic romantic fantasy in which her heroes are humanoid even with magical skills and other inhuman traits as they fight against overwhelming odds in which any offense they take could mean death for their beloved.

Harriet Klausner