Path of Honor (Path of Fate) [Mass Market Paperback]

Diana Pharaoh Francis (Author)

Book Description

Series: Path of Fate | Publication Date: December 7, 2004

Two years after Reisil's arrival, Kodu Riik is decimated by plague and famine. And now a race of sorcerers is trying to take over. Reisil's power is feared by the nobility, others wish to exploit her, and her fellow ahalad-kaaslane begin to doubt her loyalty, as her healing magic fails to stem the rising plague. But Reisil will discover that although she has lost her power to heal, she now possesses a surging new ability-to destroy.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

This sequel to Path of Fate [BKL N 15 03] follows heroine Reisil into new, more serious perils. She has accepted her destiny as an ahalad-kaaslane of the lady she serves and, since an ahalad-kaaslane must bond with an animal companion, has truly bonded with the goshawk Saljane. But the others of her fellowship do not trust her. To them she seems to have too much in common with the wizards she destroyed. The nobles fear her power and her popularity with the commons. Meanwhile, plague and famine are devastating the land, and against them Reisil and everyone else is powerless. The tone of Path of Honor is darker than that of its predecessor, for the personal and political problems in it are much harder to fight against. But, well plotted and exhibiting superior characterization, it is definitely a worthy sequel that Path of Fate readers will want to read. Frieda Murray
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Review

"Plausible, engrossing characters, a well-designed world, and a well-realized plot."—Booklist



 

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Roc (December 7, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0451459911
• ISBN-13: 978-0451459916
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #347,996 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Diana Pharaoh Francis has written the fantasy novel trilogy that includes Path of Fate, Path of Honor and Path of Blood. Path of Fate was nominated for the Mary Roberts Rinehart Award. Her latest series is The Crosspointe Chronicles. They include The Cipher and The Black Ship. Her next book, The Turning Tide, will be available in May of 2009. Diana teaches at the University of Montana Western. For a lot more information including where to go to read her blog, maps of her worlds, updated news, and other odd and fun tidbits, go to www.dianapfrancis.com. Diana also keeps a regularly updated blog at http//difrancis.livejournal.com and also has a MySpace page at http://www.myspace.com/difrancis

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Too much unnecessary detail, January 26, 2005

By 

Fred the Oyster (Cambridge, UK) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Path of Honor (Path of Fate) (Mass Market Paperback)

After reading "Path of Fate", I had high hopes for this new book. "Path of Fate" presented a coherent picture of a well-created world. Sadly, in the new book, the author felt it necessary to introduce far too many new plot devices and too wide a range of new characters. Why did we need the other world, from which two of the characters come? Why a rift between two worlds? [done before, better] Where did the coal drake appear from? [seems to be a plot device to handle a couple of rough patches in the plot] Why introduce the land of Scallas and the sorcerers? [unnecessary extra detail] Why has the Lady withdrawn her presence from Kodu Riik? [given that her presence is vital to the concept of the ahalad-kaaslane] Why did we need the graphic descriptions of torture? [we certainly would have got the picture that the bad guy was bad without such extensive graphic descriptions] And why oh why are all the names so confusing? [I think especially that it was a mistake to use a term as convoluted and hard to pronounce as "ahalad-kaaslane" for the key concept]

The most distressing thing about the book is that it doesn't finish. It leaves you in mid-plot, with the promise of a new book to come out next year. I think a lot of extraneous material could have been excised from this book, the plot tightened up, and the story finished within the page count provided.

It is said that everyone has a book in them. For this author that book was "Path of Fate". To produce more than one good book requires a lot of work. I trust that the third book will be an improvement on this second one.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Complicated Path, February 14, 2005

By 

Sharman Horwood "sharmanh" (Seoul Korea (South)) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Path of Honor (Path of Fate) (Mass Market Paperback)

The problem in writing a trilogy is the second book. It is one that has to provide enough complications to warrant a third book, and yet do so without confusing the reader, at the same time as keeping the reader's interest. Some writers fail to do this well, which really indicates that the book should be in two parts, not three. (Sean Russell's recent trilogy really should have just been two books rather than three.)

However, Path of Honor manages to keep the reader's interest. It also provides enough intrigue to show that this story warrants three books, and will therefore make a strong trilogy. The characterisation could be made a little stronger, but overall this is a minor weakness in the novel.

The story IS complicated, but that is necessary in order to develop the entire tale.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars More than I'd expected, January 25, 2005

By 

S. O'connell "Shy Lightning" (Dillon, MT United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Path of Honor (Path of Fate) (Mass Market Paperback)

After reading Path of Fate, I half expected Path of Honor to follow along the same lines... a good, fast read, but relatively light in mood. Was I wrong. This book is considerably darker with a lot of fascinating political intrigue. Francis is a master of the natural world and her skill in "court" is equally involving. Some of the names and titles are a bit confusing at first, but once you get into the book, it gets easier. I'd love for her publishers to include some extra world info in the back... I want to know more about Kodu Riik, Patverseme and this newly introduced land, Scallas. Overall a good read. I recommend this book to any fan of fantasy.