Now, at last the Sun Sword has been delivered into the hands of its rightful owner, and the armies of the Dominion and the Empire are about to rendezvous for their final battle. But no one can know how the Lord of Night's daughter Kiriel will change both the nature and the course of the war. And no one can foresee whether mortals or the demon Kialli will prove the final victors.
Book Description
Special Offers and Product Promotions
- This item is eligible for our 4-for-3 promotion. Eligible products include select Books and Home & Garden items. Buy any 4 eligible items and get the lowest-priced item free. Here's how (restrictions apply)
Frequently Bought Together
Product Details
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
More About the Author
Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.
Customer Reviews
|
Share your thoughts with other customers:
|
||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
While not without flaws, a satisfying conclusion,
By debeehr "debeehr" (Illinois, USA) - See all my reviews
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: The Sun Sword (The Sun Sword, Book 6) (Mass Market Paperback)
This book is a satisfying conclusion to the Sun Sword series as it has been developed so far. Okay, there are some indications of fatigue on the author's part--West's prose style, while it can be dramatic and moving (check out the last scene with Diora at the end of Broken Crown) is often torturous and convoluted, and it wears a little thin by this point in the series. Also, some have complained that the battle between the forces of the North and the South seemed strangely anti-climactic, and I can see their point.*However.* The author's *strengths* in this part of the series are completely on display as well. I believe I've mentioned in other reviews of her work that Michelle West has a real gift for characterization. This is *certainly* the case here. Her characters are so well developed that they feel almost *four*-dimensional. Her themes of childhood and parenthood continue to be present in the work; in particular I was rocked by the line about Kiriel, something like: "Ashaf was the mother of her heart. But she had always had two." Without giving away spoilers I'll just say that for me, this line made a moment that could have come across as completely contrived and out of nowhere, not only suddenly make sense, but also carry significant emotional weight. Some have complained also because they feel the story was not finished, in particular that of Jewel and Avandar. I actually found that to be a *strength* of the series, as strange as it may sound. Perhaps it's because I came in not having read Hunter's Oath and Hunter's Death, so I wasn't getting the whole of Jewel's story to begin with, but it seemed to me that this ability to "let plot threads go" actually contributed to the feel of the series as a whole. I mean, heck, it was always clear that the main story of these books was that of Diora, Sendari, Teresa and Valedan; Jewel may have had a part to play, but this wasn't her story, and now that she's finished with that, having gone "south if south calls," it's time for her to go back to the cares of the rest of her life. Just like in the real world, there are no endings, because nothing ever really ends. The interplay of the two different cultures, South and North, both fully developed and contrasted with each other, is on display here as well, and Valedan's ability to draw on the strengths of both is fully realized. The meeting of Diora and Valedan and their slowly developing relationship is portrayed as only West could have done it, and Anya and Kiriel, Kiriel and Isladar, Kiriel and Ashaf's village, Elena and Telakar--wow. The only thing I can think of that would have made it better would have been if she had found a way to work the cradle song into the conclusion. While that is the only song in the series, in my opinion it represents the best use of poetry in a fantasy series since Tolkien, in that it encapsulates what I see as one of the primary themes of the entire series. Having begun more or less with the cradle song in the first hundred or so pages of the Broken Crown (and thus set the tone), I would have liked to see it show up at the conclusion as well to sort of "close the circle." But that's only a minor flaw. Particularly when so many fantasy authors seem to be writing "the series that does not end," West is able, all things considered, to pull off her final book superbly. All in all, I found this to be an excellent conclusion to an excellent series. If she writes a future series dealing with Jewel and her den (as some have commented she plans to do) I will certainly buy it and read it as well. Well done, Ms. West. Well done.
11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Stunning Conclusion to an Excellent Series,
By A Customer
This review is from: The Sun Sword (The Sun Sword, Book 6) (Mass Market Paperback)
A lot of people complained about the fact that Jewel's story wasn't finished. After all, Jewel has played a major part in the battle for the Dominion. However, not to worry. I read in her home page that Michelle West was writing a stand-alone novel called House War that is about Jewel, the house war, and the den.That aside, I would like to concentrate on the book. This is the conclusion to the series about the Southern war, and it was beautifully written. I thought that the character development with Diora and Kiriel was well done and believable. What truly touched me, however, was the new revelation about Auralis and Anya. By the end of the book, we see some changes in Auralis that are, I believe, for the better. What I liked about these books was the fact that the author doesn't put in a bunch of shabby sex scenes between characters that detract from the story. Instead of romantic relationships, we see more of parent-child relationships. Such relationships include Teresa-Diora, Isladar-Kiriel, Sendari-Diora, Alina-Valedan, and even, to a lesser extent, Isladar-Anya. I also enjoyed reading the first meeting between Valedan and Diora, and continuing to watch their slowly growing relationship. Some reviewers claimed that the final duel between Alesso di'Marente and Valedan kai di'Leonne was an anti-climax. I do not believe that this is entirely accurate, because it seemed to me that the real climax of the story was when Kiriel was battling the Great Beast on the battlefield, not when Alesso and Valedan dueled. I can also appreciate the fact that the author makes all of her characters seem real. Even the so-called bad guys made me want to cheer them on. Each character is not completely evil, not completely good. On both sides of the opposition, you see characters who are on a particular side for their own goals and values. No one character is black or white, but shades of gray instead. In the conclusion, no loose ends in the SOUTHERN WAR were left dangling. They were satisfactorily resolved. Jewel's story wasn't meant to be resolved in this book because her role in the southern war was finished. And I will repeat: Michelle West is writing another book for Jewel called House War. Just hang in there people!
11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Where is the rest of the story?????,
By
This review is from: The Sun Sword (The Sun Sword, Book 6) (Mass Market Paperback)
Yes, we found out what the kin planned all along, and why Kirel was born. She and Valadin fulfilled their promise, individually and collectively, and many southern threads were brought full circle. I loved the book, and devoured it. BUT - What about Jay?? and Adam?? and Margret?? the Den? Will Adam be able to heal na'Tere's gift? Will Kalatin be forgiven? Just who is Illaphraniel *really*? Will the Summer come? Will the Winter King survive/become the Summer King/ become part of Jay's Den? Just how will Avendar and Jay make peace? Is the hint in the last book of their making a separate peace going to happen, or was that just a way to end that scene? Will Havalena rise? *Please* don't leave us hanging with all these questions. I was realy hoping that Jewel and those following her would be woven back in somehow with the direction of the Road, but that just got glossed over. Why weren't they pulled in, along with the White Lady??? I know you are tired of writing this series, but... I'm not tired of reading about them!!
Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
|
|
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Tags Customers Associate with This Product(What's this?)Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
|
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
