8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
"Venom & Song", June 21, 2010
This review is from: Venom and Song: The Berinfell Prophecies Series - Book Two (Hardcover)
"Venom & Song"
By: Wayne Thomas Batson & Christopher Hopper
While being trapped in a strange 'new' world, the seven Royal Elf lords have struggles to gain control over their new powers. Dealing with traitors and the Spider King chasing after them,they must conquer the legendary Rainsong mystery, before the "Elven" race is forever destroyed! But, standing in their way, is a very dangerous secret, a trap-filled fortress, and extremely unusual and dangerous creatures! Dig your heels in deep to find out if the prophecies come true, or if the Spider King will win once again!!!
I was pleasantly surprised with this "young-teen" reader. It kept me on the edge for most of the story, and wanting to finish it in one day! I enjoyed it enough to even visit the book series website, very intriguing indeed! My teenage son also is looking forward to reading it next over the summer, after seeing and hearing how much I enjoyed the book!
As per FTC guidelines, I must state that I received a complimentary copy of the book "Venom & Song", to read for review. My opinions are expressly my own and are in no way influenced positively or negatively, due to receiving this review copy.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Great story, but so many characters, September 27, 2010
This review is from: Venom and Song: The Berinfell Prophecies Series - Book Two (Hardcover)
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
(Please don't read my review below unless you have already read the first book in The Berinfell Prophecies series.)
In the first book in The Berinfell Prophecies, seven Earth kids discover they are actually elves. Each one has a different power: Autumn has the power of incredible speed, athletic Jett has healing powers, Jimmy can see the future, Johnny generates flames, blue-skinned Kat can read minds, Kiri Lee walks on air, and Tommy is an excellent marksman with a bow and arrow. But now, their talents are starting to mature, leading to new abilities . . .
In this, the second book, the teenagers are in the land of their birth, a type of parallel universe of elves, gnomes, and other creatures. Siblings Autumn and Johnny have unwittingly left something important back on Earth that must be retrieved. Meanwhile, Mr. Wallace, Kat's former teacher, seems bent on killing the children. He's actually a wisp, a frightening creature that can take on any form. He gets discovered by Kat, disappears, and quickly begins plans for a more subtle attack, only to return when you will least expect it!
The teens all are in need of fine-tuning of their developing skills if they're to save the world from the evil Spider King. They begin training at Whitehall by military commander Grimwarden, who wants to demonstrate not only that each skill is important, but also that the skills can be combined together to be even more effective.
The first book was largely about each teen finding out his or her true identity. _Venom and Song_ now has them all together, and they begin to learn more about one another and how to work together. I found myself regularly needing to refer to a list I'd written out of their various powers and personalities (there's also a helpful list in the beginning of the book), and wishing I could find out a bit more about what the characters were thinking as individuals. With seven main characters, it's difficult to connect with any one specifically, to realize him or her as a three-dimensional character, and to keep each character straight.
For example, in one section of the book, the teens are told by Grimwarden that they have to maneuver an obstacle course together, and each one is given a specific limitation that, if broken, will result in the entire team not getting fed. Jimmy is told that he can only say the words "yes" and "no" (p. 138). This happens along for several pages and does add to the excitement of the action. However, by p. 145, while still on the task, Jimmy begins talking, just as if this rule didn't exist. Another teen breaks her Grimwarden-given limitation near the end of the task as well. I don't want to ruin the ending, but neither of these experiences causes the task to be lost or is referred to as something that broke the rules. In another instance, Tommy and Kat communicate on p. 44 in a manner that they don't learn how to do until p. 169! I wondered if the authors also, at times, had a difficult time keeping the characters straight.
Despite the difficulty in following along at times, I mostly enjoyed this continuation of the first book. My hope is that in the future the teens will break into smaller groups (as in Tolkien) so that we readers will be able to get to know them better. Due to the continuity errors and difficulty in following it, I have to rate _Venom and Song_ with only three stars, while still having high hopes for the next volume.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Venom and Song, July 8, 2010
This review is from: Venom and Song: The Berinfell Prophecies Series - Book Two (Hardcover)
Venom and Song by Wayne Batson and Christopher Hopper
This is my first Booksneeze review. I had the opportunity to read this epic tale of seven teenagers who are destined for greatness in another realm. It was an adventurous mix of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe and Lord of the Rings. At first, I felt lost because I had not read the first book in the series. However, I very quickly gained familiarity with the characters. The book moved very quickly and had few slow moments. For parents, I would say that this book is for older teens because of a few graphic scenes of violence at the very beginning and end of the book. If you would not let your kids watch Lord of the Rings extended editions and all the battle scenes, you should probably screen this book first. It was enjoyable to me to follow the characters growth through trial after trial. Uniting and depending on a higher power was the main message I got from the story. The strength to make wise choices as a team was another theme that I felt ran through the book. I would recommend this book to others and older teens. If you enjoyed the Lord of the Ring series or the Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe series, I think you would like this series.
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