Customer Reviews

Silver Princess, Golden Knight

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

 

 

This is one of the two opening volumes in a group of five books. Sharon Green initially started with the intention of writing two individual novels, of which this was one, but the tale grew in the writing into an unusual double trilogy.

Green herself described it in the afterword to the final book as an "odd series" organised into "two crossed trilogies in the form of an X."

One trilogy tells the story of the sorceress Chalaine and the sorcerer-prince Bariden. That trilogy starts with "The Hidden Realms", shares the middle book "Dark Mirror, Dark Dreams" with the second trilogy, and is concluded in the final book of the quintet, the appropriately named "Game's End.

However, "Silver Princess, Golden Knight," kicks off another trilogy within the same broader canvass, telling the story of Princess Alexia and the mercenary captain Tiran d'Iste, both of whom are shapeshifters. Their adventure, which includes both a romance and a quest for a kingdom, starts here, and continues as the two stories come together in "Dark Mirror, Dark Dreams", which is the middle book of both trilogies. The story of Alexia and Tiran is sort-of concluded in the fourth book in the quintet, "Wind Whispers, Shadow Shouts". The double titles denote this second trilogy.

The linkages between the two stories are clearest in the middle book, where all four characters work together, and at the conclusion of "Dark Mirror, Dark Dreams" each of the two couples become the rightful King and Queen of their own Kingdom. In the final two books, each couple has to defend their newly-gained realm and its' people against attack by powerful evil from beyond the worlds.

If you are going to read this series, it helps to read each trilogy in order and to read "Game's End" last. Hence the sequence is

1) and 2) "The Hidden Realms" & "Silver Princess, Golden Knight"
(Either can be read first)

3) "Dark Mirror, Dark Dreams"

4) "Wind Whispers, Shadow Shouts"

5) "Game's End"

This quintet of fantasy novels, written between 1993 and 1996, is rather more mainstream than some of the author's earlier works. Sharon Green has put a lot of effort into creating the personalities and magic powers of the heroes and heroines, and some of the other major characters. The plots - in both senses of the word - are also quite intricate.

Rather less effort appears to have been put into creating the worlds where the stories take place, the minor characters or most of the villains, who tend to be fairly two-dimensional and thinly sketched out - to such an extent that many of the places in the stories and many of the characters do not even have names. In places there is good use of humour but there could be rather more.

Overall as fantasy novels go this is average, by which I do not mean to damn the book with faint praise. It's not the best fantasy story you will ever come accross, but it's not the worst either.

The main thing going for this series is that it is such an unusual way to build a story as to make it interesting to see how Sharon Green put it together.

I always remember this book everytime I yearn for a good read! The male character, Tristan d'Iste, is the perfect, fantastic conjuring of beauty and power that would satisfy the sappy female reader. The character Alexis is the Xena for those females that love to daydream, and the perfect woman for the man who isn't afraid to handle a strong woman. The story is rich with imagination and enough action to keep the reader interested. The fire and dialogue between the two characters is hot enough to make us stop and wish we ( females, at least) could climb into the book. All in all, this book is for the ones who want to escape from the humdrum reality of hard labor and lackluster love lives. We're all free to dream, aren't we?

I picked this book out because I tend to like fantasy/science fiction with a good romance. I was quickly disappointed. The storyline, disguised as fantasy, quickly devolved into obviously sexist and remarkably uninteresting quasi-romantic blather. The "strong" female character was irritating and the male characters (father and male lead) always knew best. The heroine was eventually bent to the will of the men and decided that she liked it. The occasional sex scenes were uninspiring. Ugh.

This series was not the first I'd read of Sharon Green's work but showed her abilites well. The blend of a good storyline, the two couples with special abilities and their internal and external battles was very well done. The magic and shape shifting was well done. A little too much internal consternation and self-doubts for the females, but it fits the story nicely. In my opinion, this series is only exceeded by her "Blending" series. A good read!

I fell in love with Princess Alexia, the main character, from the start, and was delighted by her spirit and determination. I also appreciated the romance in the book, with its emphasis on partnership. This book has just the right blend of magic, adventure, humor, and love.

Great for fantasy readers, with just enough romance to make it interesting. One of the greatest sci-fi romances I've ever read.