The War of the Flowers

Rating:
Summary: about 400 pages too long
Review: I have never struggled to get through a book as much as I did with this one. I wondered how you could make a book that contained magic, fairies, goblins, brownies, and just about every other fantasy cliche so boring, but I think that this author has managed to do that. The book was also way too long, with the author describing things in metaphors and similes to the point of exhaustion. It seemed like he couldn't get through one description of scenery or a character's reaction or action without referencing it to something in the mundane "real" world. I have nothing against an author being descriptive if it's part of keeping the story flowing at a good pace, but in this book the over-wordy descriptions really slowed down the pace of the book and painfully dragged it out. Rather than torture yourself with this book, I would recommend his To Green Angel Tower books instead. They are much more exciting, faster-paced, and shorter.

Rating:
Summary: Thoroughly entertaining
Review: Tad is definitely in my top ten list of authors. The Otherworld series is possibly the best fiction I have ever read. This book is not so revolutionary or unique in terms of subject matter but it was very entertaining. I read it in about 2 days. Couldn't put it down.

Rating:
Summary: Few original ideas...
Review: Tad Williams is a decent writer. I, like many others, greatly enjoyed the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn books. "The War of the Flowers," however, is not nearly so interesting or well done.

Tad Williams relies on a number of cliches in this book, from the plot to the characters, and it eventually begins to weigh down the sense of wonder and awe a reader should feel when reading a fantasy. There is absolutely no nuance to the characters in this book. The bad guys are almost insane, the good guys are small (in stature or ability,) but have giant hearts. Nothing ever happens that surprises you, and you know that when someone "dies," they are going to reappear only a few chapters on in the book.

The lead character, Theo Vilmos, is irritating. He is constantly whining, and displays an unbelievable range of emotion that tends to distance the reader from the character. He is always either terrified, too tired to stand, or heartsick with loss, or something else equally grand. The problem is that he is not sympathetic enough to care about, and this merely gets annoying.

There is an incredible amount of exposition in this story, and that is by far the worst part of this book. Tad Williams no doubt put quite a bit of thought into this world, and seems intent on bludgeoning the reader over the head with it. One particularly annoying method is having Theo always asking, "What's is THAT?" or "Who were THOSE guys?" at which point one of his companions can launch into a couple of pages of exposition. Theo seems overly dense for just this purpose, adding to the annoyance of his character.

Finally, a subjective complaint. Tad Williams chose to model Fairie on our own modern world, so there are buses, elevators, cars, dance clubs, guns, etc. This is hardly a fantasy. It's merely a setting in which Mr. Williams can break the rules that dont suit his plot, and throw in some imaginative props. Just on feeling alone, this is much closer to science fiction than it is to fantasy.

The good? Well, the writing and plot are okay enough that you will actually want to finish the book, and Tad WIlliams is certainly able to build impressive scenes and turn a funny phrase or two.

All in all, however, this isn't a very good book. It's about 300 pages longer than it should be, but I guess that's what we fantasy fans have come to expect. Go and read "The Knight," by Gene Wolfe if you are looking for a great fantasy book in this vein. You will be much happier.

Rating:
Summary: A return to his roots.
Review: The War of the Flowers is a good adult fantasy. With adult fantasy being the key word. Written with the same flare as the author's Memomry, Sorrow, and Thorn series, It provides a great escape on a cold winter's day. I am not usually fond of cross-over books (someone from our world going to a different world), yet I found myself enjoying this book. The characters have some dimension to them. The description of Fairy is consistent. Theo remains at a total loss throughout the book of how things work in Fairy. I did, however, become annoyed with Theo. He `s a bit of a whiner (IMHO), most readers will not identify with his situation. (How many of us are going to warp into a society with pooka's, nixies, and doonies to name just a few?) Applecore ( a sprite, with tons of attitude) and Cumber (a ferisher, that does what needs to be done without whining. He could have replaced Theo as a reluctant hero) are both well written and a much needed addition to Theo. This book follows the standard good vs. evil. However, the evil is not clear, the reader doesn't find himself hoping Theo overcomes all odds to stop the "bad guy". Hellebore, is bad but the reader really doesn't get a clear picture on how evil he really is. He is going to release a "terrible child" on our world, but this is almost taken as a "oh, that's not good." Also where most books of the fantasy genre are loaded with subplots or quest, this book has none. Theo is concerned with going home. He wonders why the residents of Fairy are so interested in him, but he is willing to dismiss all and return home as soon as possible. If you are looking for a book that is entertaining, The War of the Flowers would make a very good choice.


Rating:
Summary: A Crossworld fantasy worth reading.
Review: Tad Williams is one of the most gifted writers in Fantasy today. I normally don't like the crossworld fantasy genre (Someone goes from our world to a fantasy world of some sort) but this book was fantastic. Williams' extrapolated Fairy world complete with magic powered technology was great, and totally unique in my experience with this fantasy subgenre.

Williams is a true wordsmith, a writer to be respected for his writing as well as his storytelling and this is another beautiful example. He manages to deal with real issues and use real "flawed" people without giving into the modern literati's moralless relativity. Will Tad make you think about what is right and what isn't? Yes, absolutely. Does he abandon it, or equate one to the other, or dismiss it all as coming from your point of view? ABSOLUTELY not. And this is good.

I loved how Tad has worked allusions to the literature of our world throughout this book, as well as alluding on several occasions to different rock bands. The use of literary allusions added depth for the reader without the pretentious reference that loses the average reader. I loved how he used both Eliot's Wasteland, Shakespeare, and the Inferno. I remember in one short passage a reference to the wasteland followed shortly to an allusion to Mick Jagger and Keith Richards. Such a molding of pop and "high" culture was a declicious combination.

This world deals with magic as a subtle and understated effect that is simply present and part of the world of fairy. It is the unseen power on which Fairy runs, hence things do not so much use magic, as they are magical.

The plot works. A surviving in Fairy as a believable world, and many times the main character is left without his guides to the world and thus the reader is left to experience the foreignness and familiarness of this funhouse mirror version of not only earth, but any other "world of fairy" that you've encountered before. Theo is a believably flawed but likeable and basically good protagonist who legitimately grows and changes in believable ways instead of arbitrary or stereotyped ones. By the time the end rolled around I felt I had thoroughly explored a wondrous new world, and at the same time I wanted to go back and start again, to see if I couldn't piece together a few more answers about the world of fairy. given the opportunity I would return with great joy to Williams' world of the War of the Flowers.


Rating:
Summary: Very Impressive Fantasy Novel
Review: Having just finished Tad Williams' Otherland series, I was immediately drawn to this stand-alone fantasy. I was slightly skeptical at first, because the idea of a human being trapped in a fairy world sounded cliched and slightly corny. Despite this reluctance, I trusted my established opinion from reading the Otherland books that Tad Williams is a talented author well-capable of writing a stellar story. From the first chapter, I knew that The War of the Flowers was going to be an entertaining, satisfying read.

The novel is 800 pages long, but certainly doesn't seem like it. Fans/readers of Tad Williams know that he is notorious for long books that generally don't feel long. I think that he accomplishes this best by never really straying from the storyline. He doesn't go off on tangents, he doesn't go into boring, overly-detailed description, and consistently keeps the plot flowing smoothly and briskly. However, he does this seamlessly and unpredictably, so that the reader isn't exactly sure of where they're being taken, but when they finally get there, they're surprised and can't help but marvel at how well Tad Williams combines every element of the story into a coherent whole.

The War of the Flowers works brilliantly as a stand-alone novel, because there are no loose ends left unaccounted for, come the end of the book. Those who have read Otherland should know that even though things may seem simple and somewhat straight-forward, even close to resolved, Tad Williams always throws in a few curve balls towards the end that make everything that came before seem that much more interesting. It's difficult to make references to the novel without giving anything away.

The book is separated into various stages of complexity, as most novels logically are. The first 100 pages is character introduction and background, showing us what Theo Vilmos is like in the mortal world. There are some interesting relationship nuances and conflicts that we get to watch unfold, as well as some decisions that define Theo as a person. This part of the novel was very well-written, and surprisingly engaging for a part of the book lacking in any real plot.

The majority of the book (the middle four or five hundred pages) is what I like to think of as world development. After the reader is introduced to Theo, and Theo has been introduced to the world of Faerie, the world of Faeries must then be developed and substantiated for the reader in order for it to seem real and interesting. Tad Williams does a fine job of this, while forwarding the plot subtly, but letting it take somewhat of a backseat to the addition of various characters and background/history of the world. There is nothing boring about this middle section, it simply doesn't do a whole lot with the plot that is unpredictable. That comes in the final section.

The last 200 pages or so of the novel are chock-full of interesting revelations and turns of events which lead to the mostly-satisfying climax. This is the part of the novel that every reader will be waiting for, because it is very addictive and one can't help but marvel at its cleverness. I was surprised when the previously-simple plot began to complicate itself exponentially in just a few chapters. A few very interesting plot-elements, namely concerning the realities of Eamonn Dowd, make for a startling conclusion.

I would rate this book 4 and a half stars if it were possible, but I rounded down, because to me, 5 stars is a bona fide classic, a title which The War of the Flowers doesn't quite live up to. It would be within its reach, if not for a few significant (though hardly condemning) flaws. First and foremost, Theo, as a main character, can get a bit annoying. He seems to always say stupid things at the worst of times, which can be humorous, but definitely grows old. He is realistic in some aspects, in that he reacts to conflict and adversity the way a human being in his situation would. However, he is unrealistic in that he is somewhat two-dimensional, and seems to have no personality traits that aren't openly obvious to anyone who spends a half an hour with him. He still works alright as a character, but I would've rather had a more interesting protagonist.

As readers of Tad Williams probably know, the view point is always third-person, but the point of view is always filtered in some way to give an understanding of what the character sees and feels. In other novels with multiple protagonists, this works out well, but seeing as most chapters in The War of the Flowers are following Theo around, we see the world somewhat through his corny, two-dimensional way of thinking. It isn't a blaring flaw--it's very subtle, in fact--but Tad Williams' writing style makes Theo's character flaws affect the reader's enjoyment of the novel, slightly.

All this being said, the book is well-crafted and thoroughly enjoyable. I managed to finish it in four days, which alone should be testament to its quality.