Customer Reviews

Hecate's Glory

5 star:		(3)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

Hecate's Glory is stronger than Enemy Glory because Llewelyn completely comes into his own here. He is evil, but his chief attraction is his conflict with his inner goodness, which is more tragic and exciting here than in Enemy Glory because Michalson brings him out of Kursen Monastery and gives him a chance to make his own decisions in the world. He loves beautiful music and poetry so much he risks his own life to save an imprisoned musician (my favorite scene of many). My other favorite scene is when he helps his new companion, Aeren, kill the wizard Zelar, because it brings out a strange sensitivity in Llewelyn even while he is killing an enemy. That is why I love this character. He is not your usual villain. He is ruthless in his assessment of himself and other people - so ruthless I feel pity for him sometimes, even though he always makes me think. But in a way, that's the strength of this book. Michalson provides an intellectually challenging moral tale that asks hard philosophical questions, something you rarely find in a typical fantasy book. I highly recommend this series.

I found this as book as well as Enemy Glory fascinating. The intricate plot kept me deeply intrigued throughout. My favorite thing about these two books are the character development and the beautiful poetic writing style of Karen. I eagerly await more from Karen Michalson. Also----check out Lian Hearn

Karen Michalson has the unmatched ability of missing nothing in her plot or characters. The sheer complexity of the nuances begun in "Enemy Glory" and brought to a sharp conclusion in "Hecate's Glory" is award-worthy. To weave such an intricate plot as well as keep the writing stellar throughout is an uncommon talent amongst today's fantasy writers. The attentive reader will be well rewarded with many insights into universal truths, tidbits of occult wisdom, as well as humorous and astoundingly accurate insights into the character flaws of human beings, which Michalson states unabashedly. I have read this series 3 times over and find new insight each time I leaf through the pages.

A flawless read.

unless you own stock in Tylenol. The prose on the first page of this book is enough to make anyone with a modicum of literary awareness just wince. It's like reading the writing of a self-important fourteen year old who has decided he or she is an author. I can't imagine what anyone saw in this in the first place, but this book hit the wall shortly after I opened it as a gift. There is so much better available out there; don't be deceived by the modestly interesting cover. It's the only interesting thing about the book, and it will give you a headache if you read it.