Shapechanger's Song (Chronicles of the Cheysuli, Omnibus 1)

Rating:
Summary: A Wonderful Experience
Review: Even if you hadn't read the books when they first came out, if you're a fantasy fan of such likes as JRR Tolkien or the Wheel of Time, you've found yourself a niche in this wonderful, emotional series by Jeniffer Roberson. Rarely is it that we find a series of books written with such devotion, love, and obvious caring for the characters, such maturity and lyrical prose. When a character dies....you FEEL it as though it were a friend of yours. Miss Roberson manages to convey in this wonderful world all the things we wish we could be and all the thing that should be said in today's society. Vivid, strong, confident and mesmerizing, the Chronicles of the Cheysuli should not be missed by anyone young or old.

Rating:
Summary: Lots of potential
Review: First of all, I'd like to say that I hate when reviewers tell others to ignore those reviews that disagree with them, as if only their own opinion is valid. I hope any who reads these reviews in order to decide whether it is a book they want to read will look at them all with an open mind. That said...

I loved the intricacy of the world, and became infatuated with the Cheysuli as a race. I had a bit of a love/hate relationship with the characters, however. The only characters I consistently liked were the Lir. Reasons: I got really tired of Alix's hypocrisy very quickly. Her cries against racial prejudice while possessing the same got old fast. I was relieved when she finally seemed to get over it, but I would have appreciated it never having been there to begin with, since it was an inconsistency in her character.

I also had a few problems with the Cheysuli. Their attitude toward women rather surprised me coming from a female author. They seem to place a woman's value ENTIRELY on her ability to bring children into the world. As if that isn't enough, Finn (who for some reason some reviewers are in love with) admits that he's willing to commit rape in order to try to replenish their dwindling numbers. I see no shame from him about this fact, and it wouldn't bother me if he was a villain. But Finn is a character I am expected to like. I am expected to like an unrepentant would-be rapist.

The author has an unhealthy love of adverbs as well. Candles should flicker, not glow flickeringly. People frown at other people. Don't stare frowningly, that sounds ridiculous. Her editor should be slapped for allowing such abuse of grammar. It comes across as incredibly unprofessional.

I will continue reading this series because the world has a lot of promise, and I'm going to hold onto some hope that these problems might be worked out and it might be improved upon. I'll cross my fingers.

Rating:
Summary: loved it..
Review: I absolutely love this series. I find the magical races of the Ihlini and Cheysuli fascinating and very imaginative. Rarely have I come across a fantasy novel that captured my interest and held it as this one has. It has been my observation that most novels are interesting to begin with, but then they become stale and boring. This, however, is truly captivating and beautifully written.

Rating:
Summary: Who isn't in love with Finn?
Review: I love this series of books. While I know that it's probably not the greatest series ever written, I fell in love with the characters and the world that was created in them. I first read them 10 years ago and I wasn't certain that they'd still be good now. However, the characters, the struggles, the magic, and the love are all still as real and important to me as they were before. And, I feel that I understand the intricacies of the relationships better now than I did before. Anyone who believes in magic and wishes they had another world to visit should go to Homana and visit with the Cheysuli. Shansu!!

Rating:
Summary: Who isn't in love with Finn?
Review: I love this series of books. While I know that it's probably not the greatest series ever written, I fell in love with the characters and the world that was created in them. I first read them 10 years ago and I wasn't certain that they'd still be good now. However, the characters, the struggles, the magic, and the love are all still as real and important to me as they were before. And, I feel that I understand the intricacies of the relationships better now than I did before. Anyone who believes in magic and wishes they had another world to visit should go to Homana and visit with the Cheysuli. Shansu!!

Rating:
Summary: Amazing!
Review: I loved this book. I read late into the night, only to pick it up again first thing in the morning. I literally couldn't put it down!

Rating:
Summary: Shapechanging magic
Review: I read the series out of order many years ago and had forgotten how she slowly built up this shared world and played in it. I can remember being lost by starting in the middle but it was definitely still a readable book. To start now at the beginning has been a much easier experience. You get a good taste of the world that she plays in for many generations of the family of Cheysuli. I'm thrilled to see it in print again after the last few have become impossible to find and they are definitely worth getting if you haven't read them before. Standing up well to the test of time and her writing ability, Jennifer Roberson is one of my favorite authors for a very fantasy and relationship driven book.

Rating:
Summary: A great book
Review: I thought that this book was very good. It has a little bit of everything. When I got to the end of the book I was mad that I didn't buy the other books. So I would recomend this book to anyone.

Rating:
Summary: A great book
Review: I thought that this book was very good. It has a little bit of everything. When I got to the end of the book I was mad that I didn't buy the other books. So I would recomend this book to anyone.

Rating:
Summary: I'm surprised at the rave reviews...
Review: I thought the characters were very shallow and uninteresting in the early part of the book when the story was told from a third person perspective. After a few hundred pages there was an unusual shift in the narrative to the first person perspective and the story improved somewhat (from 1 to 2 stars). Also, I found Shapechanger's Song to be an uninspiring and unbelievable read. I understand that it is intended to be fantasy, and I enjoy fantasy, but there are so many repetitive unbelievable scenes that they become anticlimactic after a while. For example, there are at least a dozen instances of the bad guy 'about' to slay the good guy, about to land the finishing blow, when another person/animal charges across the room/battle field to make a last second rescue. Also, the Cheysuli and Ihlini are far too powerful to be in the subservient positions they are in within the society - They would be ruling that world.

I'll give book two a try to see if the series can draw me in, but if it's of the same caliber as this one, I'll just accept that my view of this series is quite different from the majority of others.

Homerinvests