Rating: 
Summary: Very satisfying!
Review: After waiting anxiously for these past many weeks, I was able to obtain a copy of Lady Pain just yesterday, and I devoured it in one sitting. While honesty prompts me to admit that the work is likely not a good candidate to read if you have not read the first two in the series (Lady in Gil and Scion's Lady), it is nevertheless a satisfying conclusion to those works. The story touches intermittently on the twenty-year gap between the events of the first two books and the current events, but for the most part, leaves that for the reader's imagination (and those of us who still like to indulge our imaginations might appreciate that). There are an amazing number of the original cast of characters still around, but the character focus shifts to the younger generation--particularly, Tigrallef's son and daughter. This is somewhat disconcerting and disappointing at first, for anyone who has come to know and love Tig (and Shree and Chasco and Calla). Still, in the end, I was more than happy to know that the world moves on, with the next generation. I strongly recommend the series, and by all means, start at the beginning!
Rating:
Summary: A new twist on a wonderful series
Review: I bought this book because I loved the first two. I began reading it right away and once again became very angry at the author (as I was at the end of the first book). The first two books were writen from Tig's point of veiw and this book is from his son's! I almost stopped reading right there. But I am so glad that I didn't!!!! I have read other series were the sequel is told from the point of veiw of a different character and what I have found is that the old characters are completely different from a new point of veiw. Not so with this book. Rebecca Bradley does not change the personality of the characters. I was so afraid that the characters I loved would be utterly ruined but I found them to be just as wonderful as before. It was very refreshing (and also necessary to the plot) for this book to be told from the veiwpoint of Vero. I absolutely loved it. The ending is very satisfactory and exciting. Don't let a change of pace stop you from reading this book, you will regret it if you do.
Rating: 
Summary: Excellent Novel
Review: I have to be honest - I bought Lady Pain without being aware that it was part of a trilogy! However, this book can (and does)stand alone, in that it can be read in isolation, but the reader still understands the plot.Needless to say, I promptly got my hands on the others in the series. Lady Pain was well-written, with elements of humour, angst, action and excitement all thrown in for good measure... I especially enjoyed Vero's almost irreverent narrative style, and would highly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: A satisfying conclusion
Review: I really enjoyed this book. Bradley's characters are engaging, and the story moves along at a good pace. The imaginative setting is brought to life with economy and liveliness. Set twenty years after Scion's Lady, Tigrallef, accompanied by his family and friends, is still wandering the world, seeking a way to banish the Harashil. Facing a dead end in their quest, they travel to Gil, Tig's ancestral home - and doing so sets off a series of unforeseen and deadly dangerous events.
I did wish more time could have been devoted to Shree, Calla, and Chasco in this book, but I certainly did not feel short-changed by the new characters that appeared: Mallinna the beautiful memorian, Jonno the poetry-writing guardsman, and Tig's daughter Katla. The story is narrated by Vero, Tig's son, and Bradley conveys his devotion to duty, his growing despair, and his wish for something new in his life wonderfully. It was also good to see Tig's combination of intelligence and innocent stupidity through another's eyes.
What is particularly good about this book is that Bradley clearly worked out the whole story before she even wrote Lady in Gil. There is no sense that this book was written out of laziness or obligation, like so many fantasy series. It forms a coherent whole with the previous two books, and the ending is both appropriate, given all that has gone before, and satisfying. Lady Pain is a fascinating and truly enjoyable book. Make sure you read Bradley's previous books first so you appreciate it to the full.
Rating:
Summary: Why, Why Does it Have to End?
Review: If you haven't read Lady in Gil, read it. Then read Scion's Lady. Then you won't need to read any of these reviews, because you'll know how wonderful this series is, and you'll be scrambling to get a copy of Lady Pain as quickly as possible so you can finish the tale. This is the darkest of the three, but no less wonderful. It's actually the book that convinced me to try the first--I saw this for sale, it looked very engaging, but realising it was the third in the series I found Lady in Gil and sat down to read it, and seem to remember finishing it that evening as it was too wonderful for words. I love Connie Willis (well, her better work, at least), and I love Mervyn Peake. I love Jane Austen, and I love Robertson Davies, and I love Rebecca Bradley. We must have more from her. Read these books and you'll agree! 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.
Rating:
Summary: Why, Why Does it Have to End?
Review: If you haven't read Lady in Gil, read it. Then read Scion's Lady. Then you won't need to read any of these reviews, because you'll know how wonderful this series is, and you'll be scrambling to get a copy of Lady Pain as quickly as possible so you can finish the tale. This is the darkest of the three, but no less wonderful. It's actually the book that convinced me to try the first--I saw this for sale, it looked very engaging, but realising it was the third in the series I found Lady in Gil and sat down to read it, and seem to remember finishing it that evening as it was too wonderful for words. I love Connie Willis (well, her better work, at least), and I love Mervyn Peake. I love Jane Austen, and I love Robertson Davies, and I love Rebecca Bradley. We must have more from her. Read these books and you'll agree! 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.
Rating:
Summary: This was great!
Review: Lady Pain successfully and with wry humor concludes the saga of Tig and his travails w/ the mystical force known originally as the Lady in Gil. But this time the story is told from someone else's viewpoint. This freshened the series up for me (not that I was bored w/ the first two books - I couldn't wait for the last in the series) but I really enjoyed Vero's take on life. Rebecca Bradley has created a believable and fantastic world that I enjoy visiting. I cared about what happened to her characters as well. I really liked Tig and Calla and the rest of their small band of wayfarers. Now that I've got all three books, I think I'll read them again, together. A good read for a rainy weekend!
Rating:
Summary: This was great!
Review: Lady Pain successfully and with wry humor concludes the saga of Tig and his travails w/ the mystical force known originally as the Lady in Gil. But this time the story is told from someone else's viewpoint. This freshened the series up for me (not that I was bored w/ the first two books - I couldn't wait for the last in the series) but I really enjoyed Vero's take on life. Rebecca Bradley has created a believable and fantastic world that I enjoy visiting. I cared about what happened to her characters as well. I really liked Tig and Calla and the rest of their small band of wayfarers. Now that I've got all three books, I think I'll read them again, together. A good read for a rainy weekend!
Rating:
Summary: A fitting conclusion to a well told and original series.
Review: Lady Pain takes place 25 years after the 2nd book in this series. Tig has held "the lady of gil" off destroying the world for all that time, while he and his family and friends sail the world, looking in old archives etc for the answer to Tig's problem. How to destroy the lady without destroying the world. In all that time Tig has not aged a day since he took on 'the pain' but he has become incresingly eccentric - and when he looses control vast amounts of people can easily die. This is not told from Tig's point of view but from the point of view of his son Vero. Finally, after all these years, Tig decides it's time to go back to Gil to find out if there are any answers there, as they can only find partial answers outside Gil. When they get to the island, things have changed Drastically. Not necessarily for the better. This book completes this story and ties up loose ends from books 1 & 2. Once again, the author has shown consistent good writing. This author is one to watch out for from now on.
Rating:
Summary: A fitting conclusion to a well told and original series.
Review: Lady Pain takes place 25 years after the 2nd book in this series. Tig has held "the lady of gil" off destroying the world for all that time, while he and his family and friends sail the world, looking in old archives etc for the answer to Tig's problem. How to destroy the lady without destroying the world. In all that time Tig has not aged a day since he took on 'the pain' but he has become incresingly eccentric - and when he looses control vast amounts of people can easily die. This is not told from Tig's point of view but from the point of view of his son Vero. Finally, after all these years, Tig decides it's time to go back to Gil to find out if there are any answers there, as they can only find partial answers outside Gil. When they get to the island, things have changed Drastically. Not necessarily for the better. This book completes this story and ties up loose ends from books 1 & 2. Once again, the author has shown consistent good writing. This author is one to watch out for from now on.
| 
