Customer Reviews

Path of Honor (Path of Fate)

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

 

 

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 [unnecessary extra detail] Why has the Lady withdrawn her presence from Kodu Riik?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.

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.

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.

After finishing Path of Fate, I was pretty excited to see where Path of Honor would go. I was ready for the magic, the excitement, the battles and.... no. After running out to get Honor, I made it 100 pages into the book, and set it down in frustration. Everything just became so convoluted, it was annoying. People who you thought were friends, weren't, everyone hates her; it's the incessant struggle that really permeates the whole book. So I set down the book and didn't pick it up for two years, when I just came across it the other day. And while I did end up finishing it, perhaps it was out of desperation for something to read. I will say that I didn't mind the introduction of new characters, as they actually had life and were worth getting to know. Just too many secrets/plot lines running around the book.
Overall, the book was okay. I would definitely say it is an emergency back up read, but not one I would go out of my way to purchase. I will probably end up purchasing Blood, but more out of stupid determination to see how the trilogy ends.

"Path of Honor" has some darker and more disturbing elements that aren't really found in the first book, "Path of Fate". And the political and religious significances found here may not be suitable for some fantasy fans, but I enjoyed reading about the world that Diana Pharoah Francis has created.

The characters (Reisil, Kebonsat, Metyein, Emelovi, etc.) are what make this book. The author has created some distinctive personalities, which makes this a fun read. However, I did have a problem with Yohuac. It's not the Native American similarity (I'm fascinated with Native American culture), it's the excessive ale and the wine that ruins the image for me. Francis should've went past that stererotype. But anyway, Sodur keeps getting more mysterious than ever, and that's what makes the suspense tight and overwhelming. The bonds that the Alahad-Kaaslane have with their animals are still made with interest.

Aside from Yohuac's drinking, I also had problems with the names of places and people. Most seem to have hard pronunciation, like Juhrnus and Patasverme and ahalad-kasslane. And there is one point in the middle of the book where various characters are introduced all at the same time. One might get confused in which one is which at that point, but later on, it all makes more sense.

As I said in my review for "Path of Fate" this isn't an excellent fantasy tale, and the cliches and formulaic structures are prevalent. But the characters and their dialogue are the strongest points in the books. And I enjoyed the "stubborn" personality of Reisil: she's not the typical femme fatale found in other fantasy stories. So hopefully, the conclusion fo the "Path" trilogy will be worthwhile.

B+

After reading "Path of Fate," this book answered my need for more of Resil. I loved this book as much as I loved the first one.

The continuation of the characters and their growth was exciting. The information about the sorcerers and Resil's struggle with evil was exciting! I would read this book again even if the author decided to put more information in it to make the pages twice as long. Usually the quality of detail is only necessary but it takes a GREAT author to write a both qualitative and quantitative, exciting novel.

Each book is different but it all ties together to form a wonderfully written trilogy.

This is a true Science Fiction/Fantasy novel and a series that I will re-read again.

This book was some amazing fantasy. You MUST read "Path of Fate" first or you'll definitely be lost though.

It started out slow at first and I had to re-orient myself with the characters, but after the first few chapters the storyline became clearer and I really got into it.

There are some graphic torture scenes and therefore I would not call this a child's fantasy book. On the other hand, the characters are memorable, likeable (or detestable), and extremely believeable. I'm very excited to read the third book in the series.

I basically just copied the same review for all three books in this series

What can I say, five stars says it all. I bought this book more than three times then traded it at a used book store. This time I got all three of the series and then started at the beginning and read them from first to last. Then I placed them on the bottom of all my books, I got to quit wasting my money rebuying this series so I'll just keep them this time.

This one progressed well from the first and the sinister side of political intrigue reared it's ugly head. She has several unpleasant choices ahead of her and ultimately works it out. Great read and a good plot.

**A book I would also recommend is The Unsuspecting Mage by Brian S. Pratt. This, the first installment of The Morcyth Saga is a great beginning for a new author. Battles, magic, gods, secret passages and intrigue, all the elements of a classic epic fantasy! Any fantasy reader will enjoy it