The Prince of Dreams (Seven Brothers) [Hardcover]

Curt Benjamin (Author)

Book Description

Series: Seven Brothers | Publication Date: September 3, 2002

Here is Volume Two of Seven Brothers-a magnificent fantasy saga of kingdoms lost, nobles enslaved, families reunited, and gods reborn.

Llesho has succeeded in finding several of his brothers and winning the aid of allies such as the trickster god, the emperor, two gladiators, a young witch and a goddess.

But can he discover the truth about his own identity?

Can he harness his powers?

And can he survive the ultimate masters of evil?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this sequel to The Prince of Shadow (2001), Benjamin provides plenty of rousing fantasy adventure rooted in the traditions and philosophies of East Asia. Llesho, the prince who escaped from slavery in the first book, is on a quest to find his four (out of six) older brothers still missing, raise an army and free his homeland, Thebin. Master Den the trickster God, the Emperor Shou, Adar (the first of his two brothers with whom he's been reunited) and a host of others accompany our hero on his mission. When the enemy Harn who haunt his dreams capture his companions, two of his brothers whisk him away to assist the dream readers of Ahkenbad, who are dying from drought. Aided by Pig, a Jinn in the dream world, he is able to secure a water supply, but his old enemy, the magician Markko, murders the dream readers. When the good magician Habiba arrives, the two of them attempt to free Llesho's friends and the emperor from the Harn. Joining forces with the Southern Khan, Llesho takes instruction with their shaman to learn to master the dream world and change shape. While many characters are little more than names, Benjamin is adept at blending the various fantasy elements into a vivid, richly detailed narrative. Those who haven't read The Prince of Shadow may have trouble getting their bearings at first, but once they do, they'll enjoy the pell-mell ride as much as existing fans.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Enslaved, along with his brothers, by the invading Harn, Llesho finds his way to freedom and embarks on a quest to find and free his brothers and liberate his conquered homeland of Thebin. Accompanied by a strange group of companions, including a trickster god, a youthful witch and her father, and a pair of his brothers, Llesho travels from country to country in search of a way to control his strange dream magic and use it to attain his seemingly unreachable goal. Set in a world that resembles a fantasy version of medieval China, this sequel to The Prince of Shadow features a cast of intriguing characters and a fluid approach to magic that is reminiscent of Asian folk tales. A good choice for most fantasy collections.
Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 464 pages
• Publisher: DAW Hardcover; 1 edition (September 3, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0756400899
• ISBN-13: 978-0756400897
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,007,109 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Throughly enjoyable!, November 3, 2003

By 

Alanna (Alberta, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Prince of Dreams (Seven Brothers, Book 2) (Paperback)

I really loved how the author focused all his narrating on the one main character, Llesho. I often find that when the author attempts to have a thousand different stories going on within the novel, that the book loses my attention. The author's style of writing was descriptive, & still flowed nicely. All 512 pages of this book are packed full of imagination, and adventure. A great fantasy that will keep you turning the pages well into the night.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Pity the writing is so poor., April 30, 2004

By 

Rachel Reeves - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Prince of Dreams (Seven Brothers, Book 2) (Paperback)

I'm just finishing reading The Prince of Dreams, the second in the Seven Brothers trilogy. I bought books one and two not knowing how good of a writer Benjamin was, and unfortunately I have been very disappointed on that score.

The author has obviously researched ancient Chinese history extensively and has crafted an interesting, vivid story. The problem is his writing abilities do not live up to the story he is telling. Often I am reading and find myself asking "WHO is he talking about?" "That statement makes NO sense", "WHY is he telling something that he's already told us twice before?" etc. His writing is stilted, forced and confusing in many places in the book.

A pity. With more honed writing skills, this book could have been a huge winner. As it stands now, unfortunately I doubt I'll buy the third in the series.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars First book was good, the 2nd lost me...., July 29, 2006

By 

Eltex (TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Prince of Dreams (Seven Brothers, Book 2) (Paperback)

I really enjoyed the first book by CB in this series, however, the 2nd novel could not keep my attention. I have always been a very earnest reader, often finishing the book in about a week. After two months, I still had to labor to even read a chapter here. I can't explain what was wrong, other than it bored me to death...imho.