Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
On Fire's Wings a HOT must read!, July 20, 2004
On Fire's Wings, a fantasy by Christie Golden, is a tale that has everything a devotee of the genre could desire: a magical setting and culture that is unusual enough to catch your eye, yet so believably written you feel as if you know it after only the first three pages; a gutsy heroine that snares your heart the very first moment you meet her and holds it true as she grows into her destiny; not one but two heroes full of human flaws and the ability to rise above themselves in the moment; deadly enemies both open and hidden; and best of all, a mythos and a writing style that takes you away to this world and it's ways, making it impossible to put down.The story centers around the growth of a girl to woman, Kevla, who comes from the lowest of social lows in a culture that has a decided middle eastern flavor and exists in a desert rife with nomads, wealthy lords, oppulance and poverty, warring clans, intrigue within and without households, mythic deity and superstition, and the touch of magic. Kevla has no name and no caste, and yet she rises into a spectacular destiny that ultimately forces her to embrace her true self. She comes of age facing challenge after challenge, and you are with her for every single step in the sand thanks to the marvelous writing ability of this author.
Christie Golden balances description with action, dialogue with introspection, and creates realistic characters that leap from the page. The pacing is strong, and her story telling fluid. In addition to all of this, the writer fears not to take risks, and pushes boundaries in a way that will leave you breathless. The author has found that perfect blend of the elements of fiction that create reader nirvana, and she has mixed them up and dished them out for us between the pages of this book. My only warning: Kevla, her land, and its tale will leave you longing for more. Thankfully, Ms. Golden will oblige as there is a sequel in the works. Go ahead, indulge your taste for fantasy, adventure, and the magic of an excellent and engaging read!
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14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I couldn't put it down, July 23, 2004
This was an excellent novel! I devoured it in the span of one day, and I already can't wait for the sequel to come out! It's got a real winner of a concept -- the Dancers and the Lorekeepers are just fascinating to me -- and some really great worldbuilding. Too many fantasy novels use recycled, generic, vaguely European settings -- not Christie Golden! Arukan is a complex society with an original, fresh, vaguely Middle Eastern feel to it. This was not a world I've read about before; Arukan is someplace new.
Kevla is a wonderful character, a vivid, likeable human being. We watch her grow from a child to a woman, and we get completely involved in her life. We identify with her and want to see her succeed. All of this is perhaps why some of the psychological places that Golden takes this character (please excuse the vagueness, but I don't want to give anything away to people who haven't read the book for themselves yet) make us, the readers, so uneasy. Golden takes some real risks and isn't afraid of pushing the envelope. And, while it may have been uncomfortable to go there, it makes the book feel so much more real. Nothing is in here just for the shock value; it is all absolutely necessary to further the plot. The way Arkuan society was structured made the particular event I'm referring to (and once you've read the book, you'll know exactly what I mean) inevitable, but nonetheless shocking, horrible, and tragic -- but always, always, emotionally honest and real. All of the actions that Kevla and the other main characters take ring true. There's not one false note.
The bottom line: this book is fabulous, original, engrossing, and real. Buy it now!
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16 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The saga of the dance begins in this first book of a series, October 22, 2004
Courtesy of CK2S Kwips and Kritiques
The saga of the dance begins in this, the first book of a series.
Kevla Bai-Sha began her life as little more then a beggar, until fate brings her face to face with a new destiny. She meets the khashim, her father, though that detail of her parentage is as yet unknown to her, and he takes her away to his palace to be a servant. He has ever loved her mother, though she is forbidden to him, and swears that though he cannot openly acknowledge his daughter, he will ensure that she has a good life and never wants for anything.
Jashemi-kha-Tahmu, son and heir to his father's legacy, knows immediately Kevla is his sister. He may not be able to publicly recognize her as his blood relation, but he strikes up an illicit friendship with her that sets in motion a chain of events foreshadowed centuries ago, in the wake of great danger.
A powerful force, the looming Shadow, is upon the land of Arukan, and Kevla is the only one who can control the forces necessary to stop it. With Jashemi's help, she must remember her true heritage and enter the lair of the Great Dragon to find strength and be reborn in its flames. Thus begins the greatest battle of good vs. evil any of them have ever known.
Ms. Golden begins a powerful story with this novel. Her vivid prose details a grand world of desert sands and fiery mountains, a world the reader will fall in to and envision as if there with the characters. One will truly see the caverns of the Great House, the fantastic creatures, and of course, the fiery lair of the Great Dragon.
Kevla is a young girl thrust into a life she never dreamed or hoped could be hers, only to have it snatched away again. However, that only serves to open her to an even greater fate. When readers meet her, she is a shy, slightly frightened and very overwhelmed young girl, but grows strong in her new life. That gives her the ability to use, if not understand at first, the mystical powers she wields, all leading her to become the powerful woman she was meant to be, born anew On Fire's Wings. Her growth of character is central to the story, for without her there is no story.
This story will fascinate and intrigue readers, leaving them breathlessly awaiting the next fantasy in this new saga. This reviewer was captivated, and hopes she does not have a long wait for the next chapter to be released.
© Kelley A. Hartsell, July 2004. All rights reserved.
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