Rating: 
Summary: Wings of Merlin review
Review: It allways stayed on the point.There wasn't any skipping around. The characters didn't just say they wanted to go some where and where there. T.A.Barron told how they got there. The book is about Merlin,how he got to the Forgotten island ,the battle to save Finkayra and how he saved the forgotten wings. A old rivel who goes by Slayer, who is out to kill Merlin. And he can back fire Merlins magic. If Merlin turns into deer so does Slayer. Merlins father Stangmar who escaped from his dungen in the hills. And is after Merlins mother Elane. evil Rhita Gwar the war lord god. who is trying to attack Finkayra with a army of spirets. The Wings of Fincayra and the story of thier banashment. and its know longer forgoten aperence. This is a compelling novel in the lost years of Merlin eppic. It is about hate and fear, joy and piece, good and evil but most of all love and self sacrifice.
Rating:
Summary: The Final Book
Review: T.A. Barron first brought this new and original concept of Merlin to life in THE LOST YEARS OF MERLIN. That book was a wonderful read that brought new views and old themes into a retelling of the timeless legend. The books that followed definitely kept the reader involved, although the plots themselves became pointless at times, and some of the minor characters were just stupid. Still, the final book in this epic is written with personality and tells a very worthwhile story with a minimum of the meaningless tangents that were seen in some of the other books. I do not mean to criticize this series too much. I enjoyed it very much and I think that Mr. Barron created an excellent conclusion. This book certainly matched the first one in the level of excitement that passes through our young wizard into every reader's imagination. This is definitely worthwhile, especially if you have read the previous books.p.s. The similarities to the Star Wars films that were found in the first book are definitely not present in the final book.
Rating: 
Summary: All right, but not Barron's Best
Review: T.A. Barron has superb story telling skills--there's just a lot of great magic in his books, and a lot of depth. I remember reading the Lost Years of Merlin, and being absolutely enchanted with Fincayra, the characters, and the wisdom. I love T.A. Barron's words, like "stories dwell in sacred time, which flow in a circle," and "a kingdom banished form the land may yet find a home in the heart." Rarely do you find an author with that kind of depth, and a magic with putting them. I also really liked his characters. Elen, especially! I've read all 5 books, and was eagerly awaiting several of them when they hadn't come out yet. T.A. Barron has vivid description that just makes you think you're there, watching everything happen. He's got great character and character development. But T.A. Barron, in my opinion does have several flaws and things he could have done better at. Books 1 and 2 were exceptional--the flaws with those were only tiny. Like the fact that the Speaking Shells is supposed to be extremely hard to find, and Merlin just finds it all of a sudden--seems like suspense is falsely built up, but these are only small problems, and the goods far outweigh the bads. 1 and 2 were my favorite in the series. I liked the characters of Rhia, Elen, and Caipre. In Book 3, those three showed up less, which I missed a lot--T.A. Barron ought to have kept them in the story more, in my opinion, but that's just personal preference. I think Book 3 wasn't one of his best books--it had a weak ending. Same great description, but the ending was terribly weak. Yes, it made sense. Yes, it tied things together, but it was really weak--T.A. Barron could have been a lot more creative and powerful with the ending. That was one of the big negatives, in my opinion. Plus, the fact that Elen and Caipre fell in love. I don't know, I always saw a teacher student relationship between them. Yeah, Stangmar, Merlin's father, did a nearly inforgivable thing. But who did he do it for? It was terrible what he did, and Fincayra might not forgive him, but Merlin's mother, Elen, being Stangmar's wife, and knowing he loved her so much, she have found forgiveness. Stangmar didn't intend for Fincayra to come to ruin; it was a horrible mistake, and Rhita Gawr was the main cause of it. I always really liked the character of Elen for wisdom and personality, and her kindness towards Rhia and Merlin, but I couldn't help thinking she could have been more understanding. Even if she didn't reconcile, I think she should have felt a loyalty to Stangmar to not fall in love with anyone, because she did love him a lot. Caipre had always been her teacher! I was shocked to find them in love. Book 4 was pretty nice, in general. Great idea about truest mirrors being deep down inside yoursef, great symbolism, and the same great description. Nice humor woven into the part when Merlin is in the future, and the ballymag. Book 5 is all right--you have Barron's wonderful description and everything, but it is a little to predictable--like with the Lost Island returning to the shore, for example. Then, add to that there seems to be too much "false" suspense. Like you have Caipre and Stangmar dying--it seems as if Barron wants to make you feel sad, but you're suposed to feel naturally sad. And when Merlin leaves his home--it seems too "fake." It's a nice tying up of things, though. Barron has brought the original characters all back, practically, which is nice.
Rating:
Summary: A fitting finale
Review: T.A. Barron is probably the freshest, most outstanding voice in fantasy and Arthurian literature in... well, a very, very long time. His "Lost Years of Merlin" series is clearly destined to be a modern classic, an exquisitely-written epic saga that reinvents the legendary Merlin. "Wings of Merlin" is no exception -- it's a fitting end to a wonderful five-book trilogy. Merlin and his beloved Hallia are enjoying the peace after "Mirror of Merlin," shapeshifting into deer and romping under the amused gaze of Merlin's sister Rhia. But Merlin's powers aren't quite what they could be. And their peace is shattered by a vision of the Dagda, in which he warns Merlin that the battle against Rhita Gawr is about to come to a head. Dagda can't attack Rhita Gawr directly without unbalancing the world, and so it's up to a wizard -- Merlin -- to rally Fincayra's weird and wonderful array of races against Rhita Gawr. Merlin meets up with his old friend Shim the Giant, and receives terrible news: His father, the evil Stangmar, has escaped his prison and is going after Merlin's mother Elen of the Sapphire Eyes. To make things worse, a sinister masked man with swords instead of arms is killing children -- and Merlin's spells don't work against him. Merlin must rally together the giants, the dwarves, the marsh ghouls, and everyone else in Fincayra -- but it may not be enough. Until T.A. Barron's "Merlin" series, there were very few satisfying books about Merlin's early life. Spinning off from his amazing "Merlin Effect," this series managed to take elements of folklore (primarily Celtic) and rework them into something sparkling, magical, and entirely his own. The story of the old couple turned into trees is written exquisitely. In my local bookstores, this series is frequently misshelved with the adult books, which speaks of its universal appeal (the mark of a classic). Barron's writing is lush and descriptive, especially when the characters are in natural surroundings -- skies, trees, oceans, sights, sounds, smells, no detail is left unnoticed. You can really feel as if you're there. The dialogue isn't modern-feeling, but isn't the painful "ye olde" dialogue that so many fantasy writers use. And Barron proves that he doesn't do plot elements at random: the man with sword-arms has a specific reason to be mad at Merlin, and readers may be shocked when they find out who he is. The battle against Rhita Gawr somehow elevates itself above the usual fantasy cliches of the good guys versus the evil Dark Lord; Barron knows how to write his villains. Merlin has changed a lot from the insecure, slightly whiny boy of the first book, who didn't want magic and barely knew how to use it. But Barron doesn't make him all-powerful; he still has doubts, worries, and there are things he hasn't figured out how to do. Rhia is funny and mischievous (and so is the little creature in her pocket). Returning characters like Shim, Elen, Cairpre (who doesn't love Cairpre?) and others are almost as good. And while there is a bittersweetness to leaving the magical Fincayra (good and bad) and the story of Merlin, readers can content themselves with the knowledge that Barron is publishing a sequel trilogy with some returning characters. Brilliantly written, wonderfully thought out, and a fitting finale.
Rating:
Summary: All Good Things Must Come to an End
Review: T.A. Barron's final book in the Lost Years series is indeed one of his best. Barron manages to tie up all the loose ends for readers by bringing back the important characters from the past, including a surprise visit from someone you'd least expect.What makes the ending so satisfying for those diehard fans of Arthurian legend is the way the book transitions into the stories that we are all familiar with. It is well done and seamless in its connection. A word of warning: Though none of this series is for young readers, the final book has Merlin a bit more grown up than in the past. He has a serious relationship with Halia that is the center of much of the book, and some close and important characters do not survive. Still, for those who have followed Merlin through his lost years, the book is a must read. Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: One for kids & their parents.....
Review: TA Barron does it again! Just when I thought everything was so wonderful in Fincarya - book #5 grabbed me, had me reading, not able to put it down just until I found out what was happening there. I was going to take my time and savor this book BUT, I read straight through it hardly able to keep myself from jumping ahead to find out how it was going to end! It was great to see some of my favorite and least favorite characters from the prior books. This book was great - a must read - especially if you have already read the other Lost Years of Merlin books. It was great reading these and discussing them with my kids and seeing them excited about reading. Magical, emotional, thought provoking and even possibly heart wrenching......read it and experience this book!
Rating: 
Summary: Wings of Merlin
Review: The ending is fairly easy to predict his choice if you have read "The Sword in the Stone". A great book however and plays on the other books in the series along with event in the story. Everything seems to all fit together and nothing seems out of place.The book shows his fears, how he faces some problems thrown at him and which ones he decides to deal with first and how. An interesting, i recommend it to Merlin fans.
Rating:
Summary: Wings on a Wizard!
Review: The Wings of Merlin is a fantastic fantasy book with amazing characters such as Merlin the wizard and Hallia of the deer people. We cannot forget the sister of Merlin, Rhia a girl destined to live among the trees. Merlin is the kind of guy that always saves the day, with a spot of clumsiness. He tries "hopelessly" with his magic so he can try to stop an evil army. Merlin and Rhia's parent were separated when Stang mar (Father) became an evil ruler and tried to kill him, his sister and mother (Elen). Thank God he has Dagda a spirit in the other world to forewarn him of the dangers ahead! But the real bad guy is Rita Gwar who wants to take over all of Finceria, and destroy that entire dimension! There are also some pretty crazy things in this story but some are pretty neat. Take Merlin's shadow for instance, it seems to me that he hates his owner and loves to dance in flames! Wouldn't it be awesome if trees grew as much good fruit as you needed? Well Merlin has a seed to such a tree and maybe he needs to plant it, the world may never know. Who could imagine a warrior with swards for arms? I probably couldn't! I suggest reading this fantastic fantasy I did and I enjoyed it!
Rating:
Summary: Wings on a Wizard!
Review: The Wings of Merlin is a fantastic fantasy book with amazing characters such as Merlin the wizard and Hallia of the deer people. We cannot forget the sister of Merlin, Rhia a girl destined to live among the trees. Merlin is the kind of guy that always saves the day, with a spot of clumsiness. He tries "hopelessly" with his magic so he can try to stop an evil army. Merlin and Rhia's parent were separated when Stang mar (Father) became an evil ruler and tried to kill him, his sister and mother (Elen). Thank God he has Dagda a spirit in the other world to forewarn him of the dangers ahead! But the real bad guy is Rita Gwar who wants to take over all of Finceria, and destroy that entire dimension! There are also some pretty crazy things in this story but some are pretty neat. Take Merlin's shadow for instance, it seems to me that he hates his owner and loves to dance in flames! Wouldn't it be awesome if trees grew as much good fruit as you needed? Well Merlin has a seed to such a tree and maybe he needs to plant it, the world may never know. Who could imagine a warrior with swards for arms? I probably couldn't! I suggest reading this fantastic fantasy I did and I enjoyed it!
Rating:
Summary: The Final Frontier
Review: The Wings of Merlin, the 5th and final installment in the Lost Years of Merlin Series, is fantastic. The imagery and emotion that the author is able to convey throughout this book, and all of the books for that matter, is simply amazing. In this book Merlin has to conquer his nemesis, Rhita Gawr, or suffer the destruction of his beloved homeland of Fincayra. But the only way to do this is to unite the people of his land who have been at each other for centuries. The mystery of the lost wings is revealed, and his destiny is chosen. T.A. Barron has done well with this last book. A great series for any fantasy lover.
|
