Revelation

Rating:
Summary: Mixed Feelings
Review: I have real mixed feelings about _Revelation_. On the one hand, it is just as beautifully written as its predecessor. On the other, I thought it had a number of...not flaws, precisely, but there were things about it that made it less interesting to me than _Transformation._

The book deals mainly with Seyonne's difficulty in returning to his people and his life after sixteen years of slavery -- years which, in the eyes of Seyonne's race, make him irretrievably corrupt. Once a certain incident proves this corruption, Seyonne once again leaves Ezzaria on a mission which eventually leads him to try to solve the mystery of his people and their origins.

Berg deftly portrays Seyonne's increasing frustration with the ritualistic ways of the Ezzarians, as she does his pain at being shut out of the world he loves, his confusion at finding things are not as he has always believed and his urgency in bringing about change. IN a way, this book is more introspective than _Transformation_, dealing more with Seyonne's inner world than with his actions and experiences. While this inner world is depicted skillfully and in immense detail, at places I found that it bogged the story down. I had a hard time retaining interest in the chapters that took place within the demons' realm, for example. They seemed overly slow and I wondered if spending all that time on that part of the story was strictly necessary. It often seemed to me that the first third of the book had set up events to proceed a certain way and then those story elements were simply ignored as Seyonne went off on his inner quest. I did not always feel the connection between the two, and the explanation that Seyonne was enchanted to forget what had gone before did not really do it for me.

I was extremely irritated by Aleksander's behavior in the early parts of the book. I do not think the schism between him and Seyonne was strictly necessary to the story and the way it came about seemed contrived. I would have thought that anyone of Aleksander's discernment and intelligence would understand that a person serving in the role of a spy might be forced to commit certain crimes in order not to blow his cover. It amazed me that no one in the book seemed to understand this.

The ending seemed anti-climactic and, I thought, did not satisfactorily tie up the loose ends. We're told the demons return to Kir'Navarrin, but not what that meant or how that affected anything. I think perhaps this may be a topic for another book, but I would have liked to have seen a bit more resolution here.

However, setting these objections against the extreme beauty of the writing, the deftness of characterization and the complexity of the plot still makes Berg one of the finest writers of fantasy that I've read in a very long time. I've come to expect a lot from her and she does not disappoint.

Rating:
Summary: Fantastic companion to TRANSFORMATION!!
Review: I may not review books or movies for a living but I do a lot of reading. I love pure fantasy and sci/fi and I must say that Mrs. Berg has created a wonderful sequel to an already fantastic tale of myth and magick. Seyonne is a wonderful hero in that he doesn't really want to be one. His life is full of wonder and excitement, yet, unlike many other fantasy heros, I don't think anyone would want to be in his shoes. His journey in this book is even more intense and heart wrenching than in "Transformation." The way he comes to understand the relationship between Ezzarian and demon is incredible and I never would have guessed even half of the twists and turns that the plot took. The new characters are wonderfully developed and you can actually feel their emotional turmoil, especially Aleksander. I have read a few reviews that were dissapointed in Aleksander's role and behaviour in this book. I, however, was delighted. I don't like predictable, cardboard characters. Aleksander is very human and never fails to provide ample comparison between the two societies of Ezzarian and Derzhi. The land of the demons was as bleak and desolate as I could have imagined. Even more so, because I found myself feeling a great deal of pity for them even before I knew the entire story of how they came to be there. The weak attempts they made at constructing things of beauty and life showed how much a part of the human soul they truly were, and how much they needed their counterparts. I loved the ending even though it did leave me hanging a bit. I hope Mrs. Berg continues to write tales set in the world of the Ezzarians. She is a brilliant storyteller who has made a strong debut into the world of fantasy.

Rating:
Summary: Revelation
Review: I read Transformation about a year ago, and lent out the book to all my friends. i work at a book store and when i found out that there was a sequel to that book, i was so happy and ordered it immediately. I got the book and noticed it seemed quite larger than it's predicessor. it took me less than a day to finish revelation. it's a complex book, with a lot of twists and turns. It's a good book. and the characters are well developed, but it delves a lot more into religion than i'd like. and it leaves the history of the Ezzarians a little up in the air. Like what actually happened to cause the separation, and what the mosaic was all about. and the ending was just too up in the air. it'll need another sequel to appease the masses. it's good, read it. but i wouldnt give it 5 stars

Rating:
Summary: Adventure
Review: I was amazed at how well and bad things turn out for Seyonne, it was startling when he had met this kind demon, one not bent on destruction like all the others, his purpose is to learn of them and see how they work. Yet that was the source of all his trouble, first people don't believe him, then they say he corrupted, then he goes and get Aleksander mad at him so that not helping him out ether. So he needs to find out the answer to the demon and why he now has dreams about a castle and an ice tower. So he goes into the demon world to finds out the answer but that just turns into probable one of the worse mistakes he ever made, or so it turns out to be till the end. But even though he goes threw all of this he still has things he needs to learn...

This book make you entwined with the characters and you feel bad, glad, sad, and all these other feelings, you don't want to put the book down or stop reading it sooo good and interesting with demons and a connection with humans and demons that a little startling, well I don't want to give too much away, you'll just to read the books.

Rating:
Summary: A very rewarding book
Review: I was thoroughly impressed with the first book Transformation, and I thought it couldn't get any better. Mrs. Berg has taken me above and beyond my expectations... and even then some. I was surprised at every turn. I had a very hard time putting this book down and I would have read it all night if I could have. You feel every emotion and take every painful step with the characters. A book worth reading over and over again.

Rating:
Summary: Just as messmerizing as her first book, "Transformation"
Review: I would have to agree with all the reviews that this follow-up to "Transformation" is brillant. Like the first book, I could not put this book down!! Am now looking forward to her 3rd book, "Resolution", which continues the story of Seyonne, Blaise, and Alexsander. Also, I would put her in the same league as Robin Hobb--both of these writers know how to ensnare the senses!!

Rating:
Summary: Yet more suffering for out hero and the reader...
Review: It's difficult to relate what I found unsatisifactory about this book without revealing more than I would care to know, prior to reading the book. I'll avoid spoilers by saying that the standard - 'protaginist, now restored, moves a step up from his former nature/life to better strenghth and wisdom before some terrible cliff-hanger happens' which is found in most series; is rather absent from this second book: Revalation. It's almost refreshing, really, in that this book doesn't follow a reader's anticipated patterns of character and story development. Unfortunatly with all of the mistakes, suffering, pain and torture (lots of the last three) stuffed in, reading the first two thirds of this book was like re-reading the first two thirds of the previous book (Transformation) most of which our hero spent enslaved. Again, there is great attention paid to depravation, humiliation and bleeding. This is without the "better make sure they'll read the next book" pay off at the end of the first book.

Carol Berg writes well. Her prose is good and her charaters draw one's attention. There is a good story here, which carried me as far as completing this volume, but I guess the 'revelation' for me is that I just can't enjoy where the author takes her charaters nor how long she leaves them there. When torture becomes boring it is decidedly overdone. Ultimatly, I found this book a slog and I won't be staying on for the third book, Restoration. If you choose to read beyond the first book, I hope that you can ride the story on without getting stuck in the muck. Perhaps the ending makes it worth all the pain. Good luck.

Rating:
Summary: fabulously written...
Review: Once I read Carol Berg's other book, Transformation, I knew I couldn't miss this one. And this book did not disappoint; it was just as hard to put down. The characters are believable and the storyline pulls you in, making the reader want to know what happens next.

Rating:
Summary: Demons aren't all they're cracked up to be!
Review: Our hero has made it back to his homeland. Fights demons all day. Makes love to his wife. Enjoys the homeland. Is pretty happy. Until he returns from a major fight, finds his pregnant girlfriend suddenly without child, looses a battle against a demon who's not all that bad and finds himself cast out of his homeland. So. Sadness all around. But our hero isn't all that depressed. Because he knows he needs to save the world. Save his son. Save his homeland. Even save some demons. So he starts to fight. And kick ass. Pretty impressive. All the way.

Not many people write like Carol Berg does. Highly addictive. Brilliant storytelling. And if the hero wasn't a Real Man, you'd never believe it... *grin*. Read. This. Book.


Rating:
Summary: Follow-up Too Similiar to Opener
Review: Plot synopsis: A magical slave (who is no longer a slave) in a surprising turn-of-events (is there another kind?) becomes a slave again, to a different master.

I enjoyed the first enough to turn to this second book in the series, a fairly well-wrought traditional secondary-world fantasy.

This is less interesting than the first, which benefited from a strongly delineated relationship between Seyonne and Alexander, who is all but absent from this volume. In this follow-up, Berg manipulates events to land our hero in the same situation as the first--again he is a slave, again he is tortured, and again he saves the day in exactly the same manner as in the first novel.

Like the first, it is unrelentingly serious, and the female characters are more compelling than the male, though less in the forefront. Both books are longer than need be; there is less plot than a book its size would warrant, and the writing is pleasant but not brilliant. (I think its size is a case of too many incidents to illustrate the same point).

Would you like it? It's certainly immersive, and if you read the first and very much enjoyed the protagonist, you may be inclined to continue his adventures. If you didn't really care for the first, well, this isn't a case of a stunning second novel marking a great advance upon a first, they're both of a piece.

Note: a 3 star ranking from me is actually pretty good; I reserve 4 stars for tremendously good works, and 5 only for the rare few that are or ought to be classic; unfortunately most books published are 2 or less.