Customer Reviews

The Singing: The Fourth Book of Pellinor (Pellinor Series)

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Young adult fantasy writers of today often shy away from the complicated, Old World, epic writing introduced to readers as a genre with Lord of the Rings. Alison Croggon, however, has captured my full attention in this stunning, post-Tolkien, fantasy that does draw elements from Middle Earth, but twists them uniquely to create something wholly different and equally as enthralling. The similarities are evident; Croggon's Hulls bear an amazing resemblance to the renowned Ring Wraiths, and there are only a certain number of ways you can convey an epic good-versus-evil fantasy battle sequence. However, when you put the similarities aside and focus solely on Croggon's abilities as a fantasy novelist, you find yourself fully engrossed in the captivating tale relayed in the Pellinor series.

Book 2, The Riddle, left us wondering what was to become of Maerad and Cadvan, and Book 3, The Crow opened with Hem-- and continued to track his exploits. That said, it was an immense relief to get back to Maerad's story and the opening battle of Innail does not fall shy of the appropriate amount action for a story line this epic. The novel's center is almost primarily devoted to Hem and his rather unfortunate trials-- a risky move for the plot, considering the weight and anticipation surrounding Maerad's quest--which, although they are entertaining, should not be as much a focal point of the book as they are.

Croggon tries very hard to make this novel deeper than the others, and achieves this somewhat with pages of Maerad's emotional and mental struggles with herself, her powers, and everyone who tries to get into her head. The absence of dialogue is pleasant and poetic, and Croggon uses her talents as a poet to their full extent in clever passages, songs, and snippets of Bardic lore.

The novel satisfies the major plot elements of its predecessors, but leaves the reader, without a doubt, wanting more. We have only been with Maerad for a year of her life, after all, and the ways of Bards seem only touched upon in this four-book series. Hopefully we will hear more about the Seven Kingdoms in the future, an I personally cannot wait for more writers to step out from under Tolkien's shadow and explore this genre further.

I fell in love with The Naming and all the characters left me breathless. Alison created such a wonderful and real world that it really was wonderful to read. The Riddle was a great sequal and I liked the Crow though that was my least favorite because I missed Maerad and Cadvan's point of view.

Now The Singing: The writing was superb. The first half of the book I loved the battles and catching up with Hem, Saliman, and meeting Hekibel was a treat.
The second half I was a LITTLE disappointed with. I felt Maerad became all powerful and I wanted a big fight. Kind of Lord of the Rings style stunning battle...but that's ok. I felt too much time was devoted to Hem and Saliman and not enough to Maerad and Cadvan. Also I didn't like how Cadvan took a back seat. I wanted to see him and saliman fight the Hulls and not having Maerad take a deep breath thus destroying them...sigh. The time that we did have with Cadvan and Maerad they were always arguing and that was frustrating to read after awhile. I wanted them to be married like Saliman and Hekibel. I felt the ending left me wanting just a little more closure. And I wanted to see them KISS! Not reading it in her memory.

But believe it or not those complaints didn't turn me away from the novel. Those are more like minor annoyances ;-). There were many parts I did love. I love the fact that Maerad and Cadvan did get together and none of my favorite characters died *phew*. I loved getting to know Hekibel and Saliman some more. I loved the tension between Cadvan and Maerad well romantic tension. And again Alison's beautiful writing style just took my breath away! :-) Excellent series Alison look forward to your future writings! Get the Singing you won't regret it!

I reread the entire series before I picked up the newest book (yes, I know it's been out for a while, but I didn't have time to read it), and thoroughly enjoyed it. This final book didn't let me down. While it doesn't have the thrill of the first book, where Maerad was new to everything, it is still a wild ride. One thing I love about these books is how well Croggon writes, and this book is no exception. I love her language, and she makes an enjoyable plot that much better.

*SPOILER ALERT*

One thing I didn't like was that the romances in the book felt a bit contrived. I think most people who had read the books knew that Maerad and Cadvan would end up together, but it seemed just a little contrived. And the insertion of Hekibel into the plot as an interest for Saliman was just sort of "meh".

*END SPOILERS*

Otherwise, it was a fantastic ending to the series. This is definitely a quartet that I'm going to read again and again, and I look forward to seeing what else Croggon writes.

I thought this book was absolutely wonderful. Croggon's style has always captivated me, and I greatly respect her ability to write young adult fiction with such colorful, flowing language and attention to detail. While this book is not necessarily perfect what with the sometimes dragging pace and Maerad's characters shifts and mood swings which at times could seem a bit unbelievable, overall, I fell in love with this book. Croggon's style is poetic and, even if her books lend themselves to a slower pace, they are absolutely lovely.

Despite its flaws, if you enjoy a solid, beautifully written book with a touch of poetic language and engaging characters, I highly recommend Croggon's wonderful series.

I found this book to be a wonderful conclusion to a great series. We revisit old friends and find new feelings for them. The story is fast paced and the growth of both Maerad and her brother Hem make the story. The singing is a wonderful analogy that what is broken can be mended.

Maerad is still traveling with Cadvan. Hem and Saliman are searching for them as they search for Hem and Saliman. She doesn't know if he escaped the violence in Turbansk. When they meet they find that each holds a part of the treesong. Somehow they must find where and how to rejoin the two parts togather.

In the end they must find where the treesong was split and go there. When the song is sung nothing will ever be the same.

I encourage you to get the final book in the series. It was well worth waiting for.

The problem with this book is that in the end, it's too pat. It concludes with little real conflict and the mystery of the Treesong, it's nature, and how Sharma could take advantage of it to achieve immortality, is never revealed. It's almost as if the author grew tired of the whole project and decided to bring it all to an "appropriate" ending.

It wasn't bad, but the whole quest seemed more of an excuse to write a Tolkien ripoff than a real, original story.

I enjoyed the final book in the Pellinor Series and was not dissapointed at the ending. I'm surprised that I had not heard more about these books before I started reading them. It is a great series and one that I think different age groups could enjoy!

This series is one of my favorite. (place of honor on my bookshelf) The character depth and plot lines are weaved into an incredible tapestry. Maerad is a true heroine whom you can't help but love. I found myself in tears at the conclusion of the series- especially that they were done. (highest honor) I find myself looking for any additional work from this amazing author- can't wait for her next project!! (have read the series twice) A must read.

Loved it! It was a great ending to the series! Kept me on my toes the whole time, and had a great ending!

The Singing is the best book I have ever read! I can't stop reading it; I've read it seven times-and counting, and I can't even read another book with it. I have sooooo much of it half-memorized. I love it (I even read the discussion questions), and my friends love it! It is my favorite of the books, although, I found the appendices a little offensive (I want to rebind the books and leave them out). I would reccomend this book to anyone who is a Lord of the Rings fan, as Alison's Croggan inspiration is Tolkien's books. I spent at least the whole of ten minutes making connections between the two series.