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Summary: A Journey you will never forget!
Review: I could not put this book down. First of all the series is just amazing. My whole life revolved around this series! The characters become apart of you, their emotions touch you, and their world engulfs you. Tad's style of writing is nicely androgynous where there isn't too much focus on love scenes and mushy stuff (*grin*) nor is it devoid of emotion. Each character you end up loving in some way. I must say that this was my favorite book out of the whole series. His portrayl of the magickal Sithi are amazing and beautiful. I can see a resemblance to the warrior race of the Tuatha de Danann (Irish Faerie Race). Thaleia6
Rating: 
Summary: A good read...
Review: While decidedly lacking in comparison to other fantasy series (namely "The Wheel of Time", "The Sword of Truth", the Shannara books, "A Song of Fire and Ice", and "The Deed of Paksenarrion") it is still deserving of being read. There is good description in this book and the characters are well developed. Even though I'm not a big fan of the first two books (and this one) the second part of the third book makes it all worthwhile.
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Summary: Great ending to a Great series
Review: This whole series is so amazing. Unlike some popular fantasy series out now like the Wheel of Time and Sword of Truth, Memory, Sorrow and Thorn never misses a step. Actually, throughout the series it just keeps picking up steam and getting better and better. The characters are so amazing and real. The world is fully realized and detailed. The plot has so many twists and turns yet you never get lost in the threads. In this the first part of the final book, you can see many of the threads that Williams has introduced begin to come together. Many fantasy books get bogged down with too much magic, too many superheroes, and too many unbelievable events and it starts to lose its authenticity. Not so with this series. When the fantasy elements are introduced, they are truly fantastic since they are not so commonplace you feel like you are playing D&D. Overall this is one of the greatest fantasy series ever written.
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Summary: A Humanized Tolkien
Review: I am trying to read the LOTR trilogy, but am finding it somewhat difficult because it is pure fantasy in the sense that it is about races other than our own: hobbits and dwarves and the like. It makes for entertaining read but I miss the shared involvement I got when reading these books by Tad Williams. I loved the Memory, Sorrow and Thorn trilogy because the writing was truly superb, and classical. The description of Osten Ard was real and provocative. When I think of To Green Angel Tower, I can feel the cold air of the unending winter brought upon by the Storm King, and I can see the delicately wrought Green Angel Tower, and the hidden halls that Maegwin discovered, and the ragged rebel army gathered on the Stone of Farewell, the parting place of the legendary Sithi and Norns, cheering and making merry for each small victory. I loved Tad Williams' characterizations most of all. Each of his characters were individuals, leaving a different imprint on mind and heart, and easily brought to life due to the excellency of its drawing. Scholarly, defeated Prince Joshua, not understood by his honest followers, with his odd sense of humor and his strong ethics. Simon the former scullion, still full of ideals and a strange mix of experience and unexpected-humble- wisdom. More than the usual "naive hero". But there are too many characters to get into detail. There is Miriamele, the runaway princess who has grown painfully during her adventures, Cadrach, her companion, a false monk who has connections to the League of the Scroll, and lost his faith in all, Binabik, a little mountain troll of surprising knowledge, who is utterly adorable and rides a tame wolf, Duke Isgrimnur, of a Viking-like clan, cutting off pagan oaths for his newer religion adopted when he served the great Prester John, Sithi Prince Jiriki and his sister Aditu, the young of an ancient fey, with a fascinatingly bizarre manner, and Tiamak, an educated, determined small swamp man who lives in the backwater marshes and holds a key to the Leagues' mystery, and Maegwin, struggling daughter of a dead cheiftain, ruler of a broken, noble people, and Vorsheva, a vivid, fiery, brave woman, and Elias, the weakened tyrant king, lost in his own sorrows, wanting desperately that which he has lost (his dead wife), slowly being ruined by his sorcerous, hairless, scarlet-robed advisor Pyrates. And of course many many more! If you want high fantasy, a richly detailed world with a history that incorporates our legends, and a magic that is not raw power blazing out of finger tips, but a mystic touch and a boundless imagination, then you really must read these books. It starts with the Dragonbone Chair, goes on with the Stone of Farewell and ends here, To Green Angel Tower. If you have already read the other books then read this one too, and don't let the huge size stop you! Unlike Robert Jordan and sadly many other fantasy authors, Tad Williams is forever going forwards, maturing his characters and covering vast chapters of quest, making his every word worthwhile (and this is the biggest book he has written yet). So don't hesitate if you want something classical, but full of human emotions, and delight in a finely crafted tale.
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Summary: Green Angel Tower and Beyond...
Review: This book (and the others in the series) went far beyond my expectations. I have reccommended it to all my friends. The plot was... awesome, just when you think you have the answer Tad goes along and changes it all, putting twists in that you never expected. You grow with the characters and you feel their pain when they do something really stupid or embarrasing or painfull, and you just want to give them a big hug, Yes you get THAT into it. I could not put it down until I had finished it. Loving it and waiting for more.
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Summary: Tad Williams: The Best Fantasy Writer Alive?
Review: "To Green Angel Tower" is the culmination of what I consider the best fantasy series by a living author. He has created a world as fascinating and detailed as Tolkein's, blending European history and mythology into a seamless whole that creates a land both familiar and strange. His bad guys are every bit as creepy as anything I've read, and the hero has just the right blend of courage and confusion to make him utterly believable. If you haven't yet discovered Tad Williams, you owe it to yourself! One word of advice - buy the whole third book in the hardcover if you can - they had to split the paperback version up into two parts, which is awkward.
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Summary: To Green Angel Tower (Part 1)
Review: This novel is one of the best books I have read, and I have read many books, most of whichare fantasy and sci-fi. To Green Angel Tower is masterfully written, and Tad Williams has done an outstanding job of making 800 pages seem like maybe 100. Thoughit is definately the longest bokk in Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn, I think that it is the greatest among them!
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Summary: The Whole series is too long
Review: This is really a general review of the series as a whole. First of all, it is great! Any fan of fantasy will love these books. Unfortunately I can't give it five stars, because the leangth of the books is not justified.
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Summary: Why did it end so soon? :(
Review: Unoriginal, boring, long winded? Unfortunately, we live in an "instant" society, instant gratification, instant highs, instant food, if something lasts for longer than an instant, we've been trained to find it boring. Fashions come and go in a year, sales are always high as we strive to be "un-boring", movies must perpetually keep viewers on the edge of their seat... That's why I read. "The book is better than the movie" syndrome occurs around 85% of the time, usually because the story as presented in the book is too slow, can't be packed into 2 hours, etc. This gives the movie a rushed, unfinished and undetailed impression, in comparison to the book. If you prefer movies to books, then this series is not for you. Unfortunately, however, this "perpetual action" syndrome has crept into literature, fantasy being no exception. Writers must churn out one pulp novel per year, keeping books to a healthy length and be madly full of action at every turn to gratify the baser whims of the less sophisticated readers. Tad Williams put a lot into this trilogy, more than his publishers anticipated when the work ran sorely overtime, more than the readers expected when we hassled the local bookshop for news of release dates, all in the name of art. If you want heads rolling, magic flying, a formula being strictly adhered to and a stock-standard cast of non-complex characters wandering around aimlessly and killing trolls, then this series is not for you. Tolkien wrote of a dragon, elves, small men, trolls, treasure, magical artifacts, rites of passage and a journey - so did many other authors. Are all works of fantasy to be compared to his? Yes, he was brilliant! Yes, he was original, but are all works of fantasy to be labeled "unoriginal" because they use an element of his work? It is almost impossible to name five works of fantasy since that don't contain any common element with Tolkien. So too with all writers hence, must a new book necessarily be judged in the light of all works preceding it, some small-minded critic not tolerating a common element or two with another work? We might as well cease reading. "There is nothing new under the sun", but sometimes a great story rips us off our seats and plunges us into an intricate and ALIVE world, spun from the imagination and rhetoric of the author, history, previously read works, current affairs, dreams and aspirations. This is one such series, and I can not recommend it strongly enough to any who would appreciate what is one of the most intricately woven and spellbinding trilogies set in a fantasy world. The momentum of fifteen hundred pages of pure art sweeps the reader of their feet and carries them through to the spectacular ending. When I awoke from this saga, I felt as if I'd woken from a pleasant dream.
Rating:
Summary: Great conclusion to a series destined for greatness
Review: This has to be the best series i have ever read. Highly imaginitive cultures, well developed characters, legends within the story, tons of battles, interesting dialogue, and one of the best twist endings ever written. This was a series I could barely put down. I spent most of my waking hours either reading it or thinking about it, trying to figure out how it might turn out. I read it as fast as I could, because I couldnt wait to see how it ended, yet once I finished it I wished that there was more. It was probably the most unpredictable story I have ever read. I highly recommend the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn trilogy to anyone.
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