Customer Reviews

Deepwood: Karavans #2

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I gave the book 4 stars instead of three because while I still enjoyed the story and the last two pages made my evening, in all honesty the book is unsatisfying. Most of it feels just like a gigantic explanation of the Karavan world, that is useful but would be better explained through action than constant lecture. The amount of storyline progressed is limited and unfortunately Deepwood suffers the same timeline/distance inconsistencies as the first novel (I am of the firm opinion that as a reader I shouldn't be jarred out of reading because one character's week is the same as another's day).

Overall solid, but if you can wait until the third book is released, I'd recommend that.

I really liked this book. As far as sequels go, it wasn't a lot of rehashing of the first book. The author summed it up neatly, and continued with what is turning out to be a fantastic story. Very well written, and I highly recommend this.

As a 40-something male, I am clearly not in the target demographic for Jennifer Roberson's DEEPWOOD. In contrast to other reviewers, I found DEEPWOOD even slower and even more disappointing than KARAVANS. Readers who just want to know what happens after the end of KARAVANS should consider a quick skim in the bookstore.

Those who read KARAVANS will recall that Audrun and her characterless children have become trapped in wondrous, dangerous Alisanos. What happens? They run around panicking, they say and do stupid things, and they get knocked around a bit. What do we learn about Alisanos beyond what we already knew in the first few pages of KARAVANS? We learn a little about its gods, we learn that it has dryads and dragons, and that's about it. (I don't want to knock the gods' part too much--that's one of the more interesting bits of the novel.)

Ilona, the most appealing character in KARAVANS, gets relatively scant attention in DEEPWOOD. I think that's a mistake. She comes back into the story at the end in a big way, but that doesn't make up for her limited role early on. Rhuan, the demigod who likes humans, gets plenty of play, but there's little character development; in fact, his strong-but-sensitive guy act becomes even more generic here. Brodhi, Rhuan's disdainful cousin, thankfully does develop a little, displaying a little more compassion and fellow-feeling than he had in the past--not that he would admit feeling it.

The book also follows the efforts, led by brave courier Bethid, to rebuild a settlement thrown into chaos by the movement of Alisanos and by the Hecari's earlier decimation of the population. While Bethid's efforts are admirable, it's hard to see this part of the story as anything but a sideshow.

I don't think that Roberson is necessarily a bad writer, and if she had an incentive to do so, she could probably have written a book that was twice as good and half as long. I think market demands for long series of long books is as least as responsible for the tediousness of DEEPWOOD as are Roberson's skills, inclinations, and imagination. Nevertheless, it is what it is, and I do not recommend it.

Once again Jennifer has drawn me into the world of her characters and made them real for me.
From the first pages the story grabbed me and kept me glued to find out what happened next. Unlike other books I didn't find myself guessing what was going to happen next and having that happen. She kept me guessing and not already knowing what would be next.
My only complaint....Now I have to wait for the next one!

Deepwood (2007) is the second fantasy novel in the Karavans series, following Karavans. In the previous volume, the Hecari decimated the farewell camp. They killed one out of ten people and burned a like number of tents. The survivors gathered the dead and prepared them for burial.

Then Alisanos expanded within a half mile of the karavan tent town. A massive storm preceded its move, devastating trees and structures as well as killing many people. Rhuan anticipated the change and passed the news to the town leaders to warn the people.

In this novel, Rhuan remains within the Deepwood with Audrun and her newborn baby. The demons and other monsters have caught the smell of the newborn and they want her. Rhuan takes on the manner of his father and commands them to leave. They slink off, but some will think more about it and come back.

Ilona is dazed from the fall off Jorda's draft horse and has a broken arm. While Jorda is preparing to set the arm, he sends Bethid to make a fire for willow tea. The branches and twigs broken off the trees by the storm are too watersoaked to catch fire. Jorda tells her use the dry rune sticks. Bethid is reluctant to destroy the sticks, but they do need a fire right now.

Brodhi has been deserted by Ferize, his demon paramour. When he returns to the farewell camp, he finds battered wagons and trees and scattered tents and livestock. He comes upon Bethid trying to make a fire, but having little luck. Brodhi lets a drop of his own blood fall upon the wood and it bursts into flames.

Davyn recovers his senses near his broken wagon. He is alone, so he follows the path that Rhuan had taken with his wife and children. He finds that the Deepwood has grown across the way. In his pain and grief, Davyn blames Rhuan for the loss of his family.

Torvic and Megritte come out of the crevice in which they have taken shelter. Then they hear a high-pitched, inhuman scream and clamber back into the crevice. After a while, a woman about the same age of their mother finds them and invites them to come home with her.

Ellica awakens to find grass penetrating her clothes and skin. She tears herself away from the sharp blades and painfully rises to her feet. As she walks forward, branches reach out toward her and roots wind themselves around her ankles. Finally, she leaps onto a boulder and finds some temporary safety.

Gillan is also struggling through the underbrush when his left leg falls through a hole into boiling liquid. His leg is burning. Gillan jerks his leg out of the liquid and pulls himself forward. He screams and screams and screams.

In this story, Audrun encounters a winged demon within Alisanos while Rhuan is away gathering food and water. Rhuan returns to fight the demon and is severely wounded. The demon grabs the newborn girl and flies away with her.

At the farewell camp, Jorda and Mikal organize the survivors into groups and have them straighten out the mess. Unlike the old tent ground, the newly rebuilt settlement is shaped in concentric circles around the central firepit. Naturally, Mikal's tent is the meeting place for the town leaders.

Bethid sends Brodhi to Cardatha to report the relocation of Alisanos to the Hecari Warlord. After his interrogation by the warlord, Brodhi goes to the Courier Guild to report these changes to the Guildmaster. He leaves some preliminary maps of the new boundaries before returning to farewell camp with four Hecari warriors.

Davyn comes back to farewell camp and accuses Rhuan of luring his family into the dangers of Alisanos. He looks for Rhuan to force the guide to take him through the Deepwood to his loved ones. But Rhuan is nowhere to be found within the camp.

Then Ilona encounters Alario -- Rhuan's father -- outside the Deepwood and learns about the identity and purpose of Rhuan and Brodhi. Later she reads Davyn's hand and sees that Brodhi is the key to recovering the farmsteader's family. Brodhi refuses to go into the Deepwood to recover the family, but does go to warn his sire about Alario's plans.

This tale starts the recovery of the settlers and karavaners at farewell camp. Since Alisanos now blocks their paths out of Sancorra, the survivors have nowhere else to go. They start building a permanent town on the site. The Hecari are not likely to permit the settlement, so the survivors also prepare for another attempt to decimate their population.

The story continues to build upon the first volume, but introduces enough new material to maintain the reader's interest. Yet it leaves enough unresolved storylines for the sequel. The series is beginning to look like a very pleasurable read. It may be even better than the Tiger and Del series. Enjoy!

Highly recommended for Roberson fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of exotic magic, disaster survivors, and a touch of romance.

-Arthur W. Jordin

This is book 2 of the series. It shipped fast, arrived in excellent condition. If you like fantasy fiction, I recommend Jennifer Roberson's series, from the Tiger and Del series to the Karavan series, by way of the Cheysuli series. They are all great storylines by a very talented writer.

I could not wait to get this book. Even bought it in hard cover to get it as soon as I could. I found the work spellbind and could not hardly put it down. Eagerly awaiting the third installment.

Super addition to the series! I enjoyed the first one, and the second didn't disappoint.

Jennifer Robinson comes through again. A very good book, follows the plot of the first book. I look forward to the next one.

This book was an awesome sequel to Karavans! I was riveted from beginning to end and can't wait for the next book in this series. The main characters were well developed and the storyline was excellent.