Customer Reviews

The Second Summoning (The Keeper's Chronicles, No 2)

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I suppose you could think of "The Second Summoning" as a fairy grandmother coming of age story. Except that Claire Hansen should have come of age some time ago, she is hardly a grandmother, and rather than being a fairy, she's a Keeper (pardon the inadvertent pun). For those of you who haven't read "Summon the Keeper," this makes her a sort of badness fixer par excellence - a bona fide Karmic mechanic.

Other key members of the cast are Diana, Claire's younger (and more powerful) sister; Dean, who Diana nearly sacrificed in the previous book; and, finally, Austin, the ineffable talking cat. There are many others who provide delightful bit parts, but it is Claire and Dean, with some considerable help from Diana, who manage who nearly manage to disrupt the world. Austin, as always, provides running commentary and never misses a straight line.

What did they do? Well, after a short, disastrous separation Claire and Dean return to each other with such carnal enthusiasm that they generate a huge amount of positive feelings. This would be fine, but Diana has built an unauthorized, huge happiness intensifying snowflake as a decoration for her high school Xmas party. The resulting feedback loop unleashes a giand goodness bubble that falls under the influence of Lena, one of Claire's friends. Lena just happens to be trying to manifest an angel in her bedroom at that precise moment. What does she get? No surprise here, she materializes an angel - with spiky hair, and, unexpectedly, an impressive set of, you know, things - male things.

If having to clean up after an impossible angel isn't enough; Claire, Diana and the rest of the crew soon have even worse to deal with. Newton's Third Law of Metaphysical Dynamics - for any flow of wonderful good that materializes in the world there is an equally awful flow of nastiness - comes into play. In a backyard in rural Canada a demon makes her appearance, complete with a really impressive set of, er, you know, female things.

In no time at all Toronto is a shambles and the world is headed for Armageddon. Claire and Diana to the rescue. Or they would be if they would ever stop bickering.

Tanya Huff is one of those rare authors who defy classification into a specific genre. Most noted for serious fantasy and an excellent vampire series, she shows in the Keeper series that she has a real flair for light fantasy as well.

In many ways Huff's style for these books is quite reminiscent of Terry Prattchett. Certainly, her characters are every bit as quirky and charming. And she has the same ability to navigate the thin line between humorous and silly. Hopefully, Ms. Huff will continue to write this well for many novels to come!

She is a Keeper, a guardian on Earth, insuring the metaphysical balance stays intact. Whenever Claire Hansen is Summoned, she ventures to a spot where an opening from Hell requires closing by her. Since her last assignment, Dean a non-magical Bystander accompanies Claire even knowing what she does for a living. While they finally come together to make love, the power released is so powerful that a nearby teenager is able to brings forth the angel Samuel. He cannot return to the light because he has no earthly idea why he was called.

An unattended opening in remote Woverton grows until a female demon exits it on the mortal side and begins spreading chaos. Apparently, Byleth is Samuel's counterpart with both behaving like teens filled with flaming hormones and neither feel saintly or devilishly. The demon must return to Hell, but that cannot happen until the angel returns to Heaven. Keeper Diana, Claire's sister refuses to send back the supernatural being Samuel and wants him to stay in a place where he does not belong-or does he?.

THE SECOND SUMMONING is much lighter in tone than the first book in this series (see SUMMON THE KEEPER) as the novel is a witty parody of its predecessor. The romance between Claire and Dean makes a great subplot while Diana's hijinks intrigue the audience, especially the parental and grandparental boomers caught by moral dilemmas caused by someone on the side of the light. The angel-demon arc is an evolving satire different than anything the popular Tanya Huff has done before. Fantasy readers will enjoy this tale and feel summoned by Ms. Huff to become a series regular.

Harriet Klausner

Unlike some other reviewers, I found this book to be just as witty as the first. In some cases, the humour is a little more obvious, as there is some . . . well, the verbal equivalent of slapstick. Maybe there isn't a talking Elvis, or much of a hole to Hell, but there ARE teenagers . . . Speaking as a teenager, which I should think I'm certified to do, the teenagers in this book are frighteningly accurate. Diana's speech, that of her schoolmates, their phrases and pet words . . . Too close to the real thing. I mean, I didn't even know what the phrase "going commando" meant until about three weeks ago . . . So in brief: it's a week after the end of Summon the Keeper. Stuff may or not be happening. What with and all that, problems arise with teenagers, cats, and the Word of God. I can't get any more specific, lest I give away major plot points. Good things: More Diana. I thought she was amusing last time around. If you hated her, well, then . . . And there's still a good deal of Dean and his unmistakeable Newfoundland turns of phrase. There are also more Canadian/American jokes (which I guess you have to live close to the border to get) and hockey references. *I* know the difference between icing and offsides, thank you very much! Bad things: the plot doesn't make as much sense. If you miss one little thing, well, then, you're kind of messed up for the rest of the book. And things that seem incidental, aren't. Vice versa occasionally. I still think it's worth five stars. I annoyed all and sundry by reading the funny bits aloud -- which amounted to enough of the book that I didn't have to re-explain who everyone was by the end. So, in summation, it's definitely a worthy successor to Summon the Keeper. Get it!! :)

I was surprised to find that The Second Summoning was just as good as Summon the Keeper, which is often unusual. It was great to see some of the characters from the first book back, and some new ones as well. Where as in the first book, Claire had to face Hell itself in a major battle, the enemies were a bit less intimidating in the Second Summoning. I think Austin is simply hilarious, even more so in the Second Summoning than Summon the Keeper. Byleth and Samuel both add more comedy to the story than before as well. Another good thing about this book is that Diana, Claire's younger sister, plays a larger role. She is really funny, and adds new twists into the story. The Second Summoning is a great read, I would recommend it to anyone who enjoyed Summon the Keeper, or Tanya Huff's other works. If you are expecting a more 'fantasyish' type of fantasy, like Huff's Sing the Four Quarters books, you might be disapointed.

"The Second Summoning" is one of those books that would be utterly wonderful if it didn't have such a smashing predecessor to live up to. This book still has a number of laugh-out-loud moments, but not as many as "Summon the Keeper." What it does have, however, is a lot more of Diana (Claire's teenage sister) and her parents. Cameos from other classic characters lend a feeling of nostalgia and continuity that the book would not be complete without. I was disappointed by the change in the dynamic between Dean (still as charming as ever, bless his tidy little soul) and Claire, but I know some other readers will appreciate it. The new characters are, for the most part, perfectly written and integrated.

The only caution I have about this book is the innuendo level. If you were at all bothered by the suggestive nature of "Summon the Keeper," stay away from the sequel. The comments here are more constant and often more blatant.

All things considered, "The Second Summoning" shows a lot of promise, and I'm fairly confident that Tanya Huff can make it work as part of a series.

Claire Hanson is a Keeper---basically acting as a fulcrom to balance good and evil wherever she is summoned. She's accompanied by Austin, a senior citizen--who coincidentally is feline. In the first of the book, she's reunited with a former companion, Dean, a Bystander who she parted with when she realized that the life of a Keeper wasn't safe for 'bystanders.' The subsequent good feelings of their reunion creates an angel who is brought to Earth---without a summons to fulfill.

All things having to be equal, Chaos spits out a demon in female form who is Samuel's counterpart. Add to the complexity, Diana who is Claire's more powerful younger sister, and you have a whole lot of tension going on.

Huff is not known for her humor, but I think she should be. Of the three books (Summon the Keeper, Second Summoning and Long Hot Summoning) this book strikes the best balance between humor and plot.

All in all, the whole series is a keeper.

This sequel was well written with just the right amount of light-heartedness to be funny and entertaining, but serious enough to make you think--what if? I laughed and I cried, but finished the book wanting more.

The first book was intriguing, kept you wondering would they get together, would the world be safe from dangers of the supernatural, the second lets you know with a thundering lightening bolt, yes they will and no we won't always be. The characters are amusing and lovable. Austin, though only a very old and grumpy cat, one that talks, makes the whole thing come together. Austin ensures that Claire stays focused on her task of saving the world order with his wit and sharp tongue. Will Austin have a side-kick? an adversary? Hopefully, we will all know soon. You will never look at a cat the same way again.

Tanya Huff is a very talented writer and this is definetely one book all fans of the supernatural should purchase, you won't regret it. But, read Summon The Keeper first to get the most out of the story. Please, another book soon!

Hooray!! Tanya Huff continues the story of Claire Hansen, a Keeper in 'The Second Summoning'. For those of you that haven't read 'Summon the Keeper', GO read that one first.. This is absolutely the best read that I've had in a long time. It doesn't help that my daughter kept asking what I was laughing so hard at. Wonderful in depth characters, right on story line, this is the kind of stuff that you start reading and don't stop. This is a MUST READ for a fantasy fan.

When Claire and Dean finally consumate their relationship heaven and hell break loose, almost quite litrely, with a litte help from Claire's sister Diana.

This leads to both Claire and Diana (and Dean and Austin pulled along for the ride) having to run around Canada in hip deep snow trying to clean up the mess at Christmas.

This book made me laugh out loud, and made me have to contain my snickers while going on the train to work in the morning.(shades of the Toronto underground!) You gotta love the Cat Austin - he really brings this book to life and it's his mission in life to keep the soppy moments in perspective and himself fed:)

For a good laugh this is highly reccomended, but read "summon the keeper" by the same author to get the most out of it.

Summon the Keeper is one of those rare books which makes me giggle every time I read it. Naturally, I was eagerly looking forward to the sequel and it was enjoyable. I thought it lacked the constant witticsms of the first book (never thought I'd miss Hell quite so much) but it is a fun read.