Customer Reviews

The Weavers of Saramyr (The Braided Path series)

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

 

 

Imagine Obi Wan Kenobi and Qui Gon Jinn, and other Jedi pairs, as two twenty-something-year-old girls with powers like X-Men, sent on covert missions throughout their world. Imagine a place where an evil empire ravishes the land while a small rebel force fights skirmishes to oppose it. Imagine Anakin Skywalker dealing with the changes that take place within him as he becomes more powerful, especially regarding the decisions he has to make. Imagine these ideas set in a fuedal Japanese Amine cartoon. You now have a feel for this excellent series.

I was initially attracted to this book through the characters' unique use of magic; namely the power contained in certain masks and the inherant use of magic by certain outcasts. I'm an advocate of original concepts in fantasy (like unique forms of magic) or modern-themed fantasy (like George Martin and Steven Erikson), and I can vouch for "The Weavers of Saramyr (The Braided Path, Book 1)" as satisfying both criteria.

Despite the loose Star Wars connetations, Chris Wooding's aldult-fantasy debut is very enjoyable and unique. It describes a land with an oriental flavour in such a way that does not distract the reader like other fantasy stories that describe a familiar past (like Kay's 'Lions of Al-Rassan' or Carey's Kushiel series). These books in particular overdo the strict ethnicity, whereas Wooding uses it subtly in creating a more heterogeneous world.

"The Weavers of Saramyr" and its sequels "The Skein of Lament" and "The Ascendancy Veil", follow a number of story arcs involving the themes of the modern multicultural ideal of acceptance and tolerance of differences, how power is wielded in society by rulers and the ethics of sacrificing a few for the majority. Wooding handles these well by portraying both sides of the argument.

The land of Saramyr is ruled by an empress whose only heir is secretly an Aberrant (a mutant with special powers that is supposed to be put to death at birth). Just like the politicians in the X-Men series, the mask-wearing Weavers, advisers of the nobility, discriminate against all Aberrants, forcing them underground while the people are fed lies and propaganda. The plot enfolds nicely once it is set up with the second and third books exploding and revealing more just as a saga should.

I would only give George R R Martin and Steven Erikson 5 stars, hence the 4 stars here. So, overall it is a very enjoyable read which I felt also improved as the story progressed through the second and third books. I really like the characters and ideas presented by Wooding. This series should make him highly respected.

Finally, if you are looking for something original in fantasy - something aside from epic heroism, swords and magicians with pointy hats - give "The Weavers of Saramyr" a try. You'll find the themes refreshing and the plot revealing. A word of warning: this series includes implied child abuse and sexual scenes.

Chris Wooding's fully fledged trilogy opener, The Weavers of Saramyr, trumpets a stunning talent on the fantasy stage from a young author. It is a tale woven with skill and deft characterisation with its oriental backdrop of a emperor nation that lives on the fear of Abberrants so expertly controlled by the sickenly evil Weavers, represented by Vyrrch.

Whenever you start a new fantasy series you find out quite quickly which of the cliched magic conduits the author has settled on, whether it be a ring, a sword, a staff or simply the will and the word. In this case, Wooding has provided a new concept. Magic through masks, or True Masks. The older they are the more powerful they become as they steal the personalities and skills of their previous owners (unfortunately, an image of Jim Carrey cannot help but come to mind). Into this mix is the general populace fear of Aberrants (think X-Men) and a ripe political situation as the Empress Anais' daughter, Lucia, is discovered to be such an Aberrant. Whilst dynastic problems (and a boor of a husband) assail the Empress and we're on the cusp of civil war, a young woman named Kaiku is brought back from death by her maidservant Asara to find her family destroyed by Shin-Shin. With her own mask in hand (as her only family legacy) she eventually settles on the first stage of a personal quest to avenge her family journeying with Asara and the monk, Tane, to the hidden monastery where the witch stones that blight the land and give the weavers power are hidden. Her personal trials and epiphany are played against a backdrop of a group of Aberrants dedicated to encouraging the skills of those so gifted and eventually formulating a plan to kidnap the Heir-Empress to save her from those who would see her murdered.

Whilst Anais and her husband, Durun, deal with a rampaging capital city and civil war through their streets, the select band enter the city sewers to take the Heir-Empress as the ordered world of Blood Erinima collapses into civil strife. As both enemy and friend fall in the climatic chapters, Kaiku learns more of her destiny and Wooding achieves much in bringing a sense of hope and danger to a wrold shifting in its grap on power.

I found this a superb fantasy novel, if a trifle lacking in depth occasionally as the author forced plot upon us at a speed that seemed to not give the full consideration and build up it deserved. Several potential earth shattering revelations were thrown in glibly which could have benefited from a few more chapters built around them. Still, it did not detract too much as characterisation and descriptive acumen wove a tightly narrated tale that promised much and delivered often. For this reader, at least, the Skein of Lament will be eagerly sought after.

And then I don't know what happened...
This book just couldn't grab me.
I never could quite figure out how the magic system worked, which was important because the magic system was always being used. I just couldn't put together how it was described with how it worked. I guess I'm too used to the Sanderson style magic system, where things are a little more firm.
The characters started out very compelling, but as the story carried on they started doing more and more uncharacteristic things without any clear description on their thought process. At one point a character who is religiously for one side very suddenly changes sides without really describing what was going on, other than "loves!".
The author tries to spring some twists on you, but they're coming from characters that are minor and whose POV we've never seen, so it's less a foreshadowed twist and more something out of left field.
It was kind of confusing how the author would change POV without a page break or even a paragraph break. Who is this paragraph about! I found myself thinking that a lot.

Chris Wooding's first novel in the Braided Path series has a unique Oriental perspective that provides a refreshing departure from the European/Medieval theme found all too often in the fantasy genre. The land of Saramyr is built around a deep mythology and history that feeds the reader small surprises throughout the story by twisting fantasy staples - magic, kingdoms, monsters - and modifying them to work within the world. These revelations are delivered with a subtle nuance that reinforces the Oriental feel, yet the narrative still manages to deliver exciting moments of action and discovery.

The main plot of the novel takes the reader through an unpredictable and ultimately enjoyable journey. I particularly enjoyed the strange and sometimes horrifying creatures and demons that antagonize Kaiku, the main character. I did find that the narrative was occasionally bogged down by a complex political plot that, while important to the overall story, had me going back to double-check the names and relationships of some of the minor characters.

If you're a fan of the fantasy genre, then this is definitely a novel to check out. Although Wooding has written several Young Adult novels, I would recommend this series for ages 16 and up due to some fairly graphical sexual and violent content. I'm about halfway through "The Skein of Lament" - the second novel in the series - and I'm excited to see the world continue to evolve.

My review, that is.

Having read the entire trilogy I will simply say that you should read these books!

Are you a fan of fantasy, a good story, or perhaps you just enjoy good writing?

You'll find it all here.

If you require a more in depth review there are others here that will fulfill your need.

Found these books on a random bookshelf at a marinelab I was working at. I was delightfully surprised as the braided path trilogy was the best adult sci-fi fantasy books I've read to date. I highly recommend it.

The weavers of saramyr is a very descriptive and enchanting book,

when i started reading it i couldn't put it down,

The story of kaiku as she ttravels along, encouraged by and oath

she swore to Ocha, (emperor of the gods)

to avenge the people who killed her family

and learning to control her aberrant kana powers that dwell iside her,

it's a great book though i woudn't reccomend to anyone uinder a the very least 13,

i saw it and read it by accident but it's a great book

The book kept me interested from cover to cover. There are some in-consistencies in the narrative. The flow is, on the whole, good. There are some breaks that can jar.

The ideas are very fresh and strongly laid out. Weavers, Abberants and the weave are interesting concepts and I hope to learn more about them in the subsequent novels.

Very entertaining and would certainly recommend it (Worth the money :))

I picked this book up basically because of its cover, and I hadn't read any fantasy in a while. (Yes, I judged the book by its cover!)

The story is unique and written, although at a pretty base level, very well. I could hardly put it down. If you're looking for a good fantasy book that is different than others, this would be worth your time. The edition I got is in British English, but that doesn't detract too much from it. It is good enough to where I will be purchasing the next two books in the series.

There are a couple needlessly sexually explicit "Rated R" scenes in the book. As a parent you need to make that call forewarned. If you're a teen reading this, I hate to disappoint you... the scenes weren't that good or terribly true to life. Anyone with actual experience that reads the scenes will not find anything of interest in them. I truly wonder if they were added to increase the rating to "R" like in many movies.. they seem that fabricated and unnecessary to the plot.

All that said, I enjoyed the book. It had a couple of original concepts that were refreshing to see in a genre that often seems to regurgitate itself in different guises. The "oriental" setting was especially welcome. As an historian, I had some basic problems with how some of his characters and nations behave (by way of examples: any self-respecting-Eastern Empress would have arrested that Unter guy and had him killed immediately and the "people" would have expected and accepted it.. popular uprisings rarely rise far if at all. As for nations: the people of the Rift.. a population that large and disorganized would not only have problems concealing itself, they'd be calling in outside nations to help them fight thier internal enemies... think Renaissance Italy).

I chalk all this up to the relative youth of the author. I look forward to reading his work as he matures, as an author, a person and a scholar (he really does need to read some history just to make his work more realistic/believable). It was a fast/easy read, written at a level teens can read if not for the content... hence my disappointment that he didn't leave out the sex. Had it not been for these basic flaws, I would have easily have given the book 4 stars based on originality alone (I reserve 5 stars for books that are written at a higher reading level.) So I can easily recommend this book for any slightly forgiving reader in their twenties or older looking for an easy and entertaining read.