Rating: 
Summary: Great Read!
Review: This was an excellent novel. I saw this listed on one of the numerous "lists" Amazon offers and was intrigued. It grabbed my attention right from the beginning. I could not wait to get home from work each evening to jump on the couch and escape into it. Tonight I start book 2. The characters are fully developed, the plot fast-paced and interesting, and most importantly I really cared what happened to these characters. After reading other ho-hum fantasy type novels, this was a great surprise. Read it, you will love it!
Rating:
Summary: Every time I re-read it I love it even more
Review: I just finished re-reading this book and was completely blown away again by how much I love it. This is one of those rare books in the fantasy genre which make you want to not stop reading. I have found it exceedingly difficult to find new books to read, in fact only a handful of authors spring to my mind when thinking of excellent fantasy which makes me want to turn the page. And I find this very sad.
When I read this though, I can't put it down and simply have to finish it. I love the characters of Alec and Seregil, as well as the wizard Nysander, and even Thero(he is rather amusing). Of course Seregil is the favourite, with his humourous personality and love of life.
If you like novels with excellent characters, a solid plot, humour, action and friendship then I can not recommend this book enough. The next 2 books in the series are just as excellent, and are amoung my favourites on my bookshelf. Do yourself a favour and go and buy them, they will not disappoint!!
Rating:
Summary: A great story teller
Review: This author is a great story teller. I hope to be able to read this continuing story for a very long time in many books to come. Don't stop at one. Get them all. You won't be disappointed. The characters are well defined and the story line complex but plausible. Most of all it's just good reading. You really care about the characters and their problems and find yourself forgetting this is a fantasy.
Rating:
Summary: An appropriate title.
Review: I don't remember how i found this book, but i feel very lucky to have happened upon it in the great heap of fantasy novels on most bookstore shelves today.Flewelling's gifts for character development and the interrelation of the characters are astounding. The tension that Alec and Seregil feel as their relationship ripens is real and approachable. She also surprises you with great imagery that sneaks up on you now and then and makes you stop and appreciate where she has taken you. The characters other than the two that would be considered the 'main characters' are exciting and easily hold their own in the stories unfolding. Flewelling seems to be able to introduce you to a new character with one defining scene. I am glad that i found these books after 3 had been written, and i look forward to more books in this series.
Rating:
Summary: Terrific Sword and Sorcery
Review: This novel and the 2 following it are terrific examples of this genre. The 3 books present good mystery, lots of action, and a tremendous love story. These books are not perfect but the faults I find are miniscule. I have high hopes that the author will give readers like me more of these characters in the near future.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully Vivid
Review: This is one of those books that sucks you in and doesn't let go. After finishing reading this book I felt like I kept waiting for the characters to walk through the door they were so real. Most fantasy books are about an evil person or country doing bad things and the main characters must stop them. This has elements of that but is also about a hick kid who gets adopted by a thief and taught how to navigate around the city and the tricks of the trade. Spiced with a bit of romance, trickery, queens, war and wizards this book is a must read.
Rating:
Summary: Five full stars, no less, here's why...
Review: I chose to give this book a rank of five stars for one reason, and one reason only. It's an excellent book. Some authors do not put in place all of their main characters until book two or three even. Flewelling does not waste the reader's time in such a way. The main characters are there since the very beginning. Instead of wearing both characters out with repetition, as many authors do, Flewelling starts out with three dimensional characters and adds not only depth and life to them, but also tells of each one's turmoils and developments. The plot is centered around Alec and Seregil of course, but at the same time, there are many interesting matrices are woven around them as well. Flewelling adds not only different groups of people, but different INDIVIDUALS--this is not a "cookie-cutter-book" with ginger-bread men for people. No. This book is as detailed as a DVD and fairly fast-paced. That's why I loveit; because while most authors can make their main characters take on 3-D shapes, they often neglect the minor characters. In Luck in the Shadows, everyone is different. Each character is brought to the reader's attention at various points throughout the book, and done so in such a way as to be memorable for the reader; sometimes subtle, othertimes much more boldly so. This book is not just a "good book," it's an excellent one. There is such rich culture. I've been to five countries, stayed with locals, and I yet there were many foods and clothes in Luck in the Shadows which I've never thought of or could've possibly imagined in my life! There are many witty tricks and new skills that Alec and Seregil pick up or try out. There are very humorous situations embedded too. I didn't fence before I read this book, but with the descriptions of swordplay, it's not hard to imagine-which hand is out, which hand is back, how the shoulders should be positioned, etc. is all described in a detailed yet concise manner. I never knew that Uni was sea urchin roe until I read this book and realized from the descriptions inside that "Hey, that's the stuff they serve at the sashimi place!" It's great when a book ties into real life and has some practical application. Those are but a few of Flewelling's carefully tucked tidbits. There are so many more, but it'd take much longer for me to describe, and I'm not nearly as tallented as she is with writing. This novel is deliciously fluid and the author so generous with details, that you needn't try hard at all for the tale to spring to life, like a movie screen before your eyes. Seriously, this book is definately worth the time. Whether you buy it, borrow it, beg for it off a friend, or whatever, it's an excellent read. Note:
Some have commented upon the love beteween Seregil and Alec. The novel's focus is not on the romance between these two; it is on their job as spies. If however, you are extremely anti-gay or feel very uneasy reading about such things, you might want to borrow this book instead of buying it first. See if you can get over the romance part, and still enjoy the novel. If so, then proceed with the next book. If not, then you have lost nothing by trying. If anything, it will broaden your view of the world. Seriously, though, the book DOES NOT focus on the relationship between Alec and Seregil.
Rating:
Summary: You'll read until your eyes bleed
Review: I have to say that by looking at the cover of this book in the bookstore, I had no interest in it. I skipped right over it several times. Then I read the reviews here, and I figured, what the heck, and picked it up, holding on to the receipt just in case. I threw that receipt away a long time ago. I loved this book, loved all three in the series (as Mrs. Flewelling adamantly objects to it being called a trilogy). Some of the descriptions got kind of long and hindered the story a bit, but she was building her world for us, and a rich world it is. I really, really liked Seregil and his sharp wit, and the bit on the ship with Captain Rhal was exquisitely hilarious! (you'll know it when you see it. I don't believe in spoilers) Okay, Mrs. Flewelling, come with it! You said yourself this is a SERIES, not a trilogy, and this humble reader is waiting patiently for the fourth book. And the fifth. And the sixth, seventh, eighth . . . well, you get the picture.
Rating:
Summary: A Thoroughly Engrossing & Enjoyable Read
Review: Lynn Flewelling has an elegant writing style, and through it she has brought to life some of the most life-like, likeable, and intriguing characters I have ever "met." The plot leaves nothing to be desired either. A tale of loss and isolation, loyalty and love. Oh yeah, not to mention the whole saving-the-world business! Seregil and Alec are characters you won't soon forget. I finished this book in 24 hours, at which point I desperately sought the sequels. My husband, who hasn't picked up a fiction book of his own free will in years, is 3/4 of the way through it now... a most impressively well-wrought fantasy novel, involving true human beings. Thanks to Tracy for recommending me this book.
Rating:
Summary: I've read it Four Times in the Last Year
Review: I love this book. The pacing, the characters, the description--everything about it is tight and enthralling. I was in tears from the first page wishing that I could write as well. The thing that truly sets LUCK IN THE SHADOWS apart are the well-rounded character portrayals. No one is static here. Everyone grows and changes. The action flows beautifully and logically from start to finish, and leaves you wanting more. Luckily, I had STALKING DARKNESS on hand so that I could go right into the next book. I highly recommend it--and have done so more times than I can count!
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