Customer Reviews

Shifting Plains (Sons of Destiny)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is my first time to review a book but I could not let the other review stand. Yes, this book is very different from the Sons of Destiny; however, I think it makes a strong standing on its own.

There is a skillful job of setting up the new world and shifterai culture. The heroine is mistrustful of her natural father's people because of the misuse of her mother. She has hidden her shapechanging skills her entire lifetime and has no use for the Shifterai men who rescued her from her neighbors who were trying to steal her land and home after her adopted father's death. The author uses this mistrust and the heroine's introduction to this culture to explain her new world. It is a little slow in parts but well worth the read and I love the hero and his patience with the heroine. I can't wait until the next book in this series.

Johnson does a fairly good job creating a male hero that does everything perfect as far as females go. He's always madly wanted by all women, has an incredible body, is a perfect gentleman in public and private, and of course makes mad love. Of course it's great reading about it regardless how hard it would be to believe in real life. Unfortunately, she does not make a very endearing heroine. They are either annoying as all heck, stuck up, or simply too perfect. Perfect men are great for woman to read about, but women don't want to hear about a perfect woman. Tava was a bit too perfect.

My second problem was the descriptions of every little insignificant thing Johnson could think of drag out in overly detailed and boring descriptions. I really don't care how to make a grass logs. I don't need 8 pages front and back on exact step-by-step instructions. Is how to make grass logs significant to the story line? NO! This is just one example. She does this for everything (arrow heads, clothing, oh, and the really, really big one, the TENT!) I think she had to describe how it was made, built, redone, created, who did the creating, augh!) It drove me nuts and literally put me to sleep.

Johnson...think short summaries for unimportant information.

Tava Ell Var has known violence all her life as the offspring of a human female raped by seventeen were-tigers. Her adoptive father, a gentle scribe, showed her kindness while aising her, but marauding bandits murdered him; leaving her alone especially in light of people she has known for years rejecting her. Tava vows vengeance for the only person whoever cared about her.

However, before she can stalk her adversaries, a Shifterai warband led by Kodan Sin Siin kill the outlaws and offer Tava sanctuary with Clan Cat as she is a shapeshifter too. She hesitates well aware of the raping of her mom. She is given no choice as she can be a slave or a free member.

The prequel to the Sons of Destiny saga is an enjoyable romantic fantasy as fans of the series will enjoy the tale of love between shapeshifters. Although not as dramatic as the Sons of Destiny with sudden leaps in the story line, Jean Johnson provides an enjoyable tale in which the romance supersedes the fantasy elements even with a potential she-Tiger who may prove genuine or die as the first female royal shifter in ages.

Harriet Klausner

I must be using a double standard. At least half of the Sons of Destiny book covers potrayed the main character bare chested, and that didn't bother me. Same here, but it looks a bit racier when the hero is a female with rather large breasts displayed.

Once I got past the cover, I enjoyed the story and characters as much as I had Ms Johnson's earlier books.No reading this one in public,though. A major plot thread was left dangling. Surely at least one more follow up book is planned to expose the evil band of shapeshifters who captured ,tortured, and raped the heroine's mother. I'm not sure Tava really wants to find her father, but I suspect her husband wants to make his father-in law's acquaintence at least briefly. I'll be watching for that story. I do;however, hope this series will be considerably less than 8 books long.

I have enjoyed reading Jean Johnson's novels for awhile now, she wrote The Sons of Destiny, a series of eight books, set in the same world as 'Shifting Plains'. 'Shifting Plains' is actually supposed to be a prequel set a long time before The Sons. Anyway...I love Jean Johnson's other work so I was super excited when I went to the book store to pick this book up. It didn't take me long to read it at all, it was pretty compelling from page one, I read about 150 pages into it before I realized it was lunch time...and for those who read my interviews...know that food is one of favorite things, just after books. I enjoyed the characters in this book...Kodan is a very compelling male and lead character, he grabs your attention and hold it, as does Tava. I would have liked to see a longer courtship for them though, a month seems like a short time to pick your life mare. They are both strong willed and pretty perfect for each other though...so who knows. The story itself was good, but to me seemed like just a story, I didn't really get a sense of urgency, like oh, the climax of is coming up, you know where you do the chair wiggle to get more compfy in order to keep reading longer. It seemed more like a story you would tell your friend about what you saw at the mall today. I am not however complaining about the quality of the story told, it was good, and it was very compelling, I had a hard time actually putting the book down...so its a story your friend tells you about the mall that involved awesome an awesome shoe sale. I really enjoyed it...but by the ending and some questions left unanswered, there will be another book after this one, oh darn!

P.S. There is an ample amount of steam in those pages, enough to need potholders while reading.

If you are a fan of the Sons of Destiny series by Johnson, like me, then this a great book for you. This is a prequel to her other series so if you haven't had the opportunity to check that out then you would be fine starting with this one. If you are a fan of the previous novels then it is very exciting to read more about the Shifterai culture.

Tava has never really fit in in her small valley village. She is too outspoken and intelligent for the male dominant society. Tava also has the secret that she is a shapeshifter. When her stepfather is killed her entire world is turned upside down. The corrupt leaders of her village are going to take all of her possessions and make her a servant. When Shifterai warband leader Kodan sees the cruel way that the men are treating Tava he barters for her. Tava though, does not see this a freedom, because she is terrified of the shapeshifters because a group of them raped her mother, resulting in her conception. Tava views being sold to these murdering rapists her worst nightmare. But soon Tava realizes that all of her preconceptions about these men are way off.

Pros...
The love story between Tava and Kodan is one of my favorites. These two characters have so much in common and they really let their love grow into something strong and genuine. I also really enjoyed learning about the shifterai and life on the shifting plains.

Cons...
If you have read Johnson's other work then you know she loves her descriptions, and this book is no different. Sometimes 2 or 3 pages are devoted to describing things like log weaving, tents, and clothes. There were also something like 4-5 tales told(none relevant to the story) that were multiple pages long. I found myself skimming these pages on almost every occasion.

Overall I would rate this book a 4.5 because the story was very interesting and well written. I enjoyed the characters immensely and can't wait for the next installment!!!

This was my first time finishing a Jean Johnson book. Although I found the other "Sons of Destiny" books to be a bit slow, Shifting Plains was "Excellent". From the onset it was a good; I loved that "Tava(Atava)" could shift into so many forms. As to not spoil the plot for others this will end my review. I look forward to the next installment.

i have read every "sons of destiny" book about 10x each and about to read them again... so its hard to jump from loving that to this expecially since the book jumps around and doesnt finish the mini stories in the book itself but its great to be back in that world

I absolutely devourerd the Sons Of Destiny books (The Sword-The Mage), but I have to echo another reviewer on Shifting Plains. I ordered this book when it came out and have yet to finish it. That is really, really rare for me. Also like the other reviewer, I was totally turned off by the PAGES of descriptions of building things, the hierarchy (could have been much more condensed), grass logs and such. It is a shame because the characters themselves are interesting enough, but this book just doesn't have the flow of her first books. I feel the same way around Jean Johnson's Bedtime Stories-I just couldn't NOT put it down, thought its premise is interesting, the characters fail to grab me. I'd love to see Jean Johnson go back to her original characters, or at least their desecdants, and to focus on the characters and not how to build a grass log. Don't get me wrong Jean, I haven't given up faith in you,I just ordered Finding Destiny! I have hope it will be as satisfying as the first books...regardless of the reviews.

Jean Johnson's Shifting Plains takes place in another part of the same world as her Sons of Destiny series. Much like those books, it luxuriates in a level of world-building few authors investigate. Because of this, the pace is slower than that of an action-oriented novel. Personally I love it, but I mention it as a matter of taste.

I truly love Jean's books. Her characters have plenty of depth and personality. Her tone is playful, and her sizzling-hot sex scenes are inventive and fun. I don't recommend her books for prudes--they're for folks who can laugh in the bedroom and enjoy their sexuality.

As always, her world-building is truly delightful. I adore the exploration of Shifterai culture and its contrast with its neighbors. Everything gets a seat at the table, from courtship customs to leadership roles. It helps that Tava is such a curious, questioning character, willing to ask about anything she doesn't understand. She's also a delightfully strong woman paired with a handsome and caring man, and it's always hard to resist such a combination.

If you want to try out Jean's novels but don't want to dive straight into the long Sons series, Shifting Plains would make a great way to dip your feet in the water. I think it would give you a lovely feel for her style and world.


[NOTE: review book provided by publisher]