Customer Reviews

The Shadowmask: Stone of Tymora, Book II

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

 

 

Sadly, like its predecessor The Stowaway, The Shadowmask read like fan fiction. However, where the Stowaway read like halfway decent fanfic that had ok plot and character cohesion with the exception of the brick wall ending... Well, I guess something broke when this reader crashed into the end of the first book. It picks up exactly where the last book left off, causing me to once again curse a blue streak over the terrible transitioning. My swearing swiftly morphed into multiple facepalms. To save the remnants of my sanity, I decided to treat it with all the respect I would give to a fan fiction story. Suffice to say, it did not fare well.

Most of the first third of book book felt like a romp of "how many characters from The Halfling's Gem can we string together at once?" There didn't seem to be much in the way of plot or character development aside from a few minor points. Those were swiftly drowned out by ten chapters of running amok with next to no plan. It was not particularly interesting to slog though, particularly since it began to chip at my suspension of disbelief in the characters.

The storyline is best described as "silly knees bent running about advancing behavior." I would have wished for the plot to even itself out at some point, but it never really did until the last eight chapters or so. By then, it was starting to resemble swiss cheese. Melted swiss cheese at that. Perhaps the original idea was to show exactly how big a role luck played in Maimun's life, but my patience with the character thinned more and more as the story progressed. Most of the plot felt haphazard, as if situations were thrown at the characters with the sole purpose to see what would happen and little regard for solving the problems the characters had. The framing story was just as silly as it was the first time around, providing a frame but little else of interest. Also, before I get lost in a mire of ranting, the book has the same "I ran into a brick wall" feeling that The Stowaway had. I am pretty sure that this should have been a two book series.

Quite a bit of my frustration stemmed from the first person narrative voice this book adheres to. Don't get me wrong, I love it when it is done well and I find character studies fascinating... assuming there is something interesting to them to begin with. The first book had enough contemplation and story logic that the inner voice wasn't annoying nor did it feel particularly limiting. However, with the Shadowmask the action seemed to crowd out most things character related. Then time spent alone with Maimun's thoughts frequently turned to blaming other people for his misfortunes and misconceptions. This would be ok if he snapped and asked someone in the know about what was going on once in a while (and maybe advance the plot progression past randomness), but he seemed stuck in this "I know everything" phase that began to grate on me. I started to look forwards to Robillard and Duedermont attempting to apply some semblance of common sense and discipline to Maimun. For someone spending a lot of time on a ship, the kid sure had a fuzzy concept of how ship discipline works. Asbeel was an absent menace most of the time and was not fleshed out further. Maimun was his own worst enemy.

The other thing that bothered me with this style of first person voice was the use of description. I'm used to it being extremely visceral, regardless of what age level the book is geared for. It felt dry and empty, lacking of any but the most intense of emotions and even those seemed flat. I started to long for perspectives from the other characters because Maimun just wasn't holding my attention the way that a first person narration should. everyone else was more interesting and more active than he was.

There were aspects of the book that I did like. Robillard made me happy every time he showed up. I was completely sympathetic with Duedermont's take on Maimun, since it so closely resembled my own. I was a bit happier through the last few chapters of the book because at that point something plot-like had begun to creep back from wherever it had wandered off to. It was frustrating to finally feel like the narrative was moving again only to have the book end.

There wasn't much to this book and it really didn't seem to advance the overall plot as well as it could have. Coupled with the issues I had with the narration and the ugly transitioning between this book and the last, I can't say that I hold out much hope for the final installment.

The story of a boy's adventure is the only thing keeping
him alive. A pirate that will kill him if he doesn't tell
his tale has captured Maimun. So he tells his story about
how he travels with a mystical cloak and sword to find a
stone that made him very lucky. Secretly, as he tells the
story, he plans an escape and hopes he can make it out
alive.

The Shadowmask is a very suspenseful book.
Though Maimun is currently trapped by a killer pirate his
story is enough to keep him alive. I can't wait to read
the next book when he has the stone that he was literally
aching to get back. Anyone who enjoys adventure and
suspense will eat this book up.

Reviewed by a young adult student reviewer
Flamingnet Book Reviews
Teen books reviewed by teen reviewers

my 11 yr old son loves this story and i am a big fan of ra salvatore so im glad i was able to introduce him to this new world that i love so much, in a way that he can comprehend without feeling overwhelmed

The Shadowmask is the second book in the Stone of Tymora trilogy by R.A. and Geno Salvatore. The first book is The Stowaway and the third is The Sentinels due out in September 2010.

The Shadowmask begins right were The Stowaway left off finishing the cliff hanger from that book. It also continues the plot of Maimun telling his tale to a pirate who has captured him and through continuing the telling of his tale is keeping him alive. Once Maimun's predicament is resolved at the beginning, he continues on his journey now to be rid of the stone he possesses. An unfortunate incident happens and he aligns himself once again with Captain Deudermont and the Sea Sprite crew to chase pirates and retrieves what he has lost. Yet again there are special appearances by Drizzt and company and the reader is given a clue as to the timeline of this story which takes place during and after events in The Halfling's Gem from The Icewind Dale Trilogy. A couple subplots spring up in this one with Maimun's infatuation with a certain girl, the ambitions of a pirate captain, a woman wearing a shadowmask who can turn into a raven, and the mystery of an island.

This story moves much better than the first. There was more mystery involved and so help my interest much more. There wasn't as much of a need for character introductions so the story moved along nicely. Once again, this one is a fast read with short chapters and large print. This makes it ideal for a younger audience to read. The character development is done very well. A couple of the characters grow in ways that make sense and continues to define their growth. There is even a special appearance from one of the past characters, but to refrain from spoilers I won't say who. I feel this is a good bridge novel and I am looking forward to continuing this story. Geno Salvatore is doing a wonderful job and I am impressed with the improvement of his writing. The details and depictions of battles are just about as good as his fathers. It flows wonderfully and the pacing keeps the reader turning the pages.

Some criticisms:

1. Like the fist book, this one is written in the first person POV. I have never been a fan of this POV, but have make exceptions in the past and have read some good books utilizing this style, however, for this series, I believe a third person POV would have made the story much better.

2. Maimun's constant blaming of others or circumstances gets old. Instead of learning more about some situations it just continues to be the blame game over and over.

3. As with the first book, this one also has a cliff hanger ending, albeit, this time at least there is more of an actual ending and the cliff hanger leads more into the next book. At least this time he didn't end the book in the middle of a battle.

Some positives:

1. To me, the writing was much better and the action sequences are fantastic. The wording is not over done for the young adult audience it is geared towards.

2. Also set up for a younger audience is the length of the short chapters. It helps to five the YA reader a feeling of accomplishment while enjoying a well told story.

3. There is more of a mystery set up with this one and the way it plays out is excellent. Though there are still some things left out, I still enjoyed the read. I hope more is explained in the final book.
Overall, I had a good time reading this one. It was far better paced than the first and once again, the characters used from his father's books only enhanced the adventure and were not a focal point. Mr. Salvatore did a good job of making his characters the main part of the book. I really am looking forward to the conclusion in The Sentinels.

Happy reading

-Dimndbangr

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