Rating: 
Summary: An interesting approach of magic.
Review: The Barbed Coil is a stand-alone novel telling the story of Tessa McCamfrey, a young woman from san Diego.One day, to flee her responsibilities, she takes her yellow Honda Civic and drives without stopping until she comes to a clearing in the Cleveland National Forest. There among the trees are piles of safe deposit boxes, and a intricate, mysterious golden ring. As she puts it on, she's transported into another, exotic world. More exactly in Bay'Zell, a port city of the province of Rhaize. Bay'Zell is a dangerous place for a young woman on her own and soon she finds herself harassed by two rogues. Fortunately, a piratical but handsone man named Ravis comes to her rescue and decides to take her under his wing. Quickly she learns more about the continent on which she's just landed: Izgard of Garizon, the bearer of the Coil, is about to invade Rhaize to gain access to the sea. With the help of his monstruous horde of Harras, he's slaughtering all who stand in his path to quench the Barbed Coil's thirst for blood. And so Berick of Thorn, who conquered Garizon fifty years ago, is slain. His son Camron will hire Ravis to get revenge and assassinate Izgard. Tessa finds herself caught up in these events. Taking refuge in Emith and his mother's cosy cottage, she'll soon realise she also has a part to play. Emith, who was Deveric, the late king's counselor and scribe's devoted assistant before he too was murdered, starts teaching her the art of painting illuminations, as patterns are the catalyst of this world's magic. But his skills are limited, and he sends her to the Annointed Ilse, where his former master Avaccus lives. The Barbed Coil is a good, fast-paced adventure novel. I was a bit skeptical at first, but as the story flowed, I started to grow fonder of the characters, particularly of Emith and his mother, and of Angeline too, Izgard's courageous young wife. J. V. Jones's elaborate decriptions of the use of pigments and vellums are passionating and the gathering of momentum at the end is most suspenseful. I even caught myself holding my breath as I ploughed through the last pages.
Rating: 
Summary: Yes, it WAS wonderful
Review: This book has so much packed into it that you need to read it more than once to catch all the details. I loved this book! The story is rich, dynamic, thought-provoking and the characters have more than just the author's story to tell - they have pasts, they aren't perfect, they have been manipulated for years by a scribe who knew their meeting was imperative. I have already read this book twice and know I will read it again someday.
Rating:
Summary: J.V. Jones writes an interesting story
Review: This book took me a while but after reading it. I found out that it was well worth the time put into it. Tessa and Ravis make up very interesting characters in a tale about mystery and murder. Tessa from the future is pulled back into time to fulfill a density which is to free the barbed coil from its slavery under Izgard of Garizon. My only complaint about this book is the length. She could have cut out about 100 pages here or there and it would have held together even better. But I will definitely read The Book of Words series eventually when I get to it.
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