Customer Reviews

Gold Falcon

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

 

 

As noted in the other review, this is the least complex and challenging of the Deverry series to date. The ongoing story of Nevyn and Jill is resolved, almost too easily, given the tangled paths these characters have had in past books.

The setup, however, gives promise for the next volumes in the series, and we still have Rhodry as a dragon and Dallandra to provide the connecting threads. Not the best Deverry to start on, as it would be very difficult to follow without knowing the backstory.

Keep 'em coming Kit!

This book made my fingers hover over the rating... it's probably 4.5 stars.

I read the original novel in this series when it first came out in, what, the 80s? early 90s? I must have re-read it a dozen times in the years since then, because Kerr did such a wonderful job of world building. Her main characters span multiple lifetimes, and usually they do not remember what they did in an earlier incarnation. I was absolutely charmed, because the system of magic was consistent; the characters were well drawn (in an Arthurian "honor matters!" way); and it was not a predictable "oh you know how it'll end" tale.

The first several books were great, and I highly recommend that you start with Daggerspell. But the later series somehow tired me for reasons I never did figure out.

I'm happy to report that this new trilogy (one presumes?) has brought back the original magic from the first books. Nevyn and Jill do get together (yay!, after only what, 600 years) and it's fun to see the two dweomer-masters as teenagers dealing with the "but who was I? am I still that person?" identity crisis. There is humor, compassion, honor... and none of it gets in the way of telling a good story.

I absolutely adore this series and am sad to see it coming to an end. It was horrible to wait this entire time for this book (if you followed it and saw all the pushbacks like I did), but it was well worth it. It doesn't really answer questions but it definitely sets up the next two books to tie everything together. This book, unlike the others, only stays in one timeline choosing to tell the past by using small character flashbacks that are actually told to other characters instead of that character being in that time. A definite must for any follower of the series.

I am a little ambvivalent towards this review. This book is simple in structure compared to many others in the series but it begins to tie together all the loose ends and prepares beautifully for the final part in an epic saga that spans 12 books (this is the 10:th in the series).

It appears that the particular love drama of this book resolves itself rather easily. That's a bit annoying concidering this particular drama has been the underlying theme for the entire series. The conflict in this book is a cakewalk and the enemy offers little in resistance but it looks like this conflict will lead to a serious challenge ahead.

In short this story is not the best in the ongoing saga but it promises like no other. A cruel way to treat the reader. Call me kinky but I love it.

Ms. Kerr finally drops this in our lap. I must say it was an enjoyable read, if a bit callow at times. Think of how Tolkien started "The Hobbit" as a child's book. "The Fellowship of the Ring" was light and airy, and each subsequent book gets more and more "dark" and "adult". Katharine Kerr writes backwards. Her books started out "dark" and "adult" and now seem airy and breezy.

One big annoyance is she has a terrible habit of turning a phrase and sticking with it continuously. All her characters "tossed his head like an angry horse" SO often that I wonder just what kind of world she's from where people actually do this. It happens - literally - on almost every page. The characters that have depth and strengths in other books in this one seem shallow and weak.

I did enjoy reading, but I felt she was just throwing us a bone.

Let's hope we don't have to wait a very long time for the continuation of this series! As with every time I pick up a Katharine Kerr book, I can't put it down. I stay up late at night fighting the sleep dweomer and end up late for work! It's well worth it!

If I had dweomer powers I would hurry up Katharine to finish the next book!

In the meantime, maybe I will re-read the whole saga since it's been years since I read the first book.