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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Must-Have Book, October 31, 2006
This review is from: Valley of the Soul (Mass Market Paperback)
I was lucky enough to get my hands on an advanced reader copy of the book a month before it was scheduled to come out. Let me start off by saying that I used to read a lot. All the time, everywhere, and very quickly. And usually fantasy. Key words here are "used to." I don't anymore. Whether it's that my patience for books has lost out to other interests, or that they just don't make 'em like they used to, I don't read that much anymore. Fantasy books sound good on the back cover, but ultimately bore me into giving up by page ten. In a world of disappointment, Valley of the Soul does not fit in. It, like the other books in the Dubric series, towers over the majority of fantasy books being produced right now. I read this 450 book in two sittings in two days, so glued to the story that I could hardly force myself to stop in order to eat or sleep. I read until my eyes were so blurry I had trouble making out the words, NEEDING to find out what would happen next. While not as gruesome as the second book in the series, Threads of Malice (which I LOVED), it still had plenty of gruesome, creepy bits that made me shiver. The characters' stories were wonderful and in-depth (and you don't have to have read the other books to appreciate what was going on). The author doesn't pull any punches, whether it's with horrifying plot twists, or not being afraid to address the real issues bothering the characters. She delves right in--no beating around the bush or avoiding messy subjects. Between each character's story and the mystery unfolding, the book has a lot of threads running through it, but none of them are ever left hanging, and each one grips you and doesn't let go. If you're looking for a good fantasy novel, or a good mystery, with elements of horror blended with engaging characters and a story that won't let you put it down until the end, READ THIS BOOK.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Refreshing!, January 11, 2007
This review is from: Valley of the Soul (Mass Market Paperback)
I have read a lot of fantasy so it gets a little old with the same old plot twists. TSJ is a wonderfully refreshing author although her work is quite dark. This latest book Valley of the Soul, is in my opinion the best of the three so far. It has just the right balance of darkness, evil villains, plot twists and it answers some questions that were raised in the first two books of the series and also raises new and more intriging questions at the same time. I would recommend this series to anyone who enjoys mystery, fantasy and intrigue. Great work!
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
More Dubric & Co. investigations, January 1, 2007
This review is from: Valley of the Soul (Mass Market Paperback)
Dubric and his band of investigators are back in the third book of the series and it seems they have a full-fledged mage on the rampage. Now, for those who didn't read the previous books, mages are not gentle Gandalf-types around here. Think homicidal maniacs who torture for fun and combine psychopathic tendencies with extreme magical power. They sometimes ate small armies for breakfast, but they have mostly been wiped out decades ago. I can't think of a fantasy series that gives such a bleak, paranoid, and consistently negative assessment of all things magic. Maybe, but that doesn't mean they are similar, the Lovecraftian mythos. Dubric, who is now in his 60's was once one of the best mage killers around. Lots of Valley's pages are devoted to building up the world of Faldorrah's background, what the mages were like during the wars and why Dubric hates them. I sense that the author wants to expand on it in future books. Good, because the series is much more innovative than most current fantasy. Books 1 and 2 focused more on criminal investigations proper, with gruesome and gory details throughout. Thankfully, the bloodiness has been toned down, a bit. Gone too are the scenes from the killer's viewpoint, which didn't serve much purpose beyond being a gory tease. However, due to all the background info and character development, Valley sometimes strays too far from its murder mystery roots, which is why I give it 4 instead of 5 stars. Then again, the final battle with the mage is quite an impressive bit of action. Like its predecessors, Valley provides opportunity for the savvy reader to figure who did it, IF they are smart enough. At the end, you can kick yourself for not getting it (I am 0 for 3 so far), but you can also see the logic and the hints that you should have picked up. All in all, a good series for fans of murder mysteries and fantasy.
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