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Covenants

Covenants

List Price: $7.50
Your Price: $6.75
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: very enjoyable
Review: A truly enjoyable read. The heroes are good the bad guys are bad and the story moves quickly. If you enjoy Eddings, Fiest, or Salvatore buy this book.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Fantastic book - fascinating characters and very funny
Review: Covenants is a terrific book on many levels. The protagonist, Rabbit, is well drawn, likeable and sometimes downright hilarious in regards to the smarmy comments he interjects into various situations -- he reminds me of Miles Vorkosigan or Naga Teot at times. The plot, while somewhat familar in that it follows the journey of a "chosen one" as he grows into his power and responsibilities, is exciting and fast paced. The author avoids infodumping and lets us discover aspects of Iverterre, Turalian & Border culture along with the characters. I dislike books that provide the reader with too much information and the characters with too little, leaving the reader frustrated with the seeming stupidity of the characters. Freeman avoids this pitfall while many other contemporary fantasy authors have not.

My favorite part of the novel (along with Rabbit's sense of humor) is the characterization. All too often, fantasy novels feature a cast of thousands among which only a few have any relevance to the story or are discussed in detail. In contrast, every main and supporting character in Covenants comes alive. Even those with "bit parts" are described in such a way that you can picture them clearly and understand their relationship to the story. The people that surround Rabbit have their own lives and stories to tell and don't just exist to move him from point A to B. Indeed, most of the story consists of Rabbit being swept along by other's desires and agendas. However, he never becomes a puppet of other wills and always retains his honor and sense of self. I definitely recomend this book to anyone who enjoys strong characterization, humor and lots of intrigue as well as to those who appreciate a novel that wraps up loose ends by the last page.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: A brilliant, fast-paced book
Review: Covenants is a wonderful book by a new author - with twists and turns of plot, a glowing backdrop of politics and fantasy, and a likeable, flawed main character with a dozen or more strong secondary characters behind him. This is, I think, one of the best new fantasy novels to be printed in several years. The book was immediately engaging, had a fast, labrynthine plot, and the characters are all incredibly intriguing. This is the kind of book where each new main character seems to deserve an entire novel in his or her own right, and they come together for a story that is unpredictable, enthralling, and gorgeously told. Obviously, I cannot reccomend it enough, or indeed, stop babbling about it.
If you are fond of fantasy, you must read this book. If you're not a fan of the fantasy genre, read Covenants anyway and then see if you like fantasy.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The Man in the Middle
Review: Covenants is apparently the first novel in the Borderlands series. Long ago, the land belonged to the Elves and other magicals. Then humans came from the sea to take it, piece by piece, until all the magicals had been driven over the Border. The leader of the invading humans, and the first king, was named Iver, so the new kingdom was called Iversterre (probably meaning "Iver's Land").

Once the humans of Iversterre also tried to take the Borderlands, but were repelled in one stupefying counterattack by the Borderers. Lately the Border has been disturbed by runners from Iversterre, who raid for spritewood, dragonhides and other body parts of thinking beings and sell them in Iversterre and Tural. There is a strong inclination among some of the Borderers to invade Iversterre and take back what was once theirs.

In this novel, Rabbit is lost. His troop rode out on a routine patrol and now can't find their way back to the post. Since Rabbit is a Borderer, Captain Suidan sends him out to find the right path, so he rides up a trail taken many times before to the crest of a hill to observe the surrounding terrain. There he finds a mountain cat, standing on his hind paws and carrying a big stick, who offers him a honeycake and eats one himself. They have just finished eating and introducing themselves when the rest of the troop arrive. Rabbit explains that he has just concluded a meal covenant with Lauren Faena and then the cat shows them their post just down the hills in plain sight.

The troop returns to the post and reports the situation to the Commander, who sends the troop back out the next day to track down the Faena. Rabbit is promoted to Lieutenant for the occasion. Lauren shows up at their first camp and explains that he is an embassy to King Jussan from the High Council of the Borderlands. Commander Ebner assigns two troops to accompany Lauren to the capital at Iversly under the command of Captain Suidan and Rabbit is designated as liaison with the Faena.

In this story, Rabbit's backstory slowly comes out as he is put under pressure. He is a runaway mage apprentice who is related to two great houses in Iversterre. He keeps saying that he is just a farmer's son, but he also keeps being targeted by assassins. In fact, his presence causes a conspiracy against the throne to act prematurely and in open rebellion.

Rabbit shows an amazing ability to see others clearly, but hides things from himself. He knows that he has talents and connections, but tries to blend in as an insignificant horse trooper. But neither his enemies nor his friends will let him sink into the obscurity that he desires.

This story moves rapidly and the plots takes some unforeseen twists and turns. Although there are times of introspection, most are interrupted by some unusual event and Rabbit is suddenly in trouble again. Overall, the story is fun to read and hard to put down.

Recommended for anyone who enjoys tales of adventure and intrigue within a fantasy setting.

-Arthur W. Jordin

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Well written and intense.
Review: I admit it, I'm a picky reader. I have a hard time reading badly written books regardless of how good the story is. Sadly it is hard to find books that are well written anymore, especially in the fantasy genre where story often takes precedence over grammar and expression. I am therefore thrilled to say that this book is both well written and FABULOUS! Ms. Freeman is a new author with a wonderful and complex imagination.

Covenants has an intricate plot and is at times very intense both emotionally and in the action occuring in the story. The surprises just keep rolling out and you can never be sure who to trust. The characters are engaging and very very well rounded, with the heroes hiding dark secrets and very human weaknesses, and the villain both constantly changing and having a variety of motivations.

The plot does get a bit intricate at times and I had to re read a few pages to make sure I caught all the nuances of the dialogue. But the author is pretty good about recapping in a way that does not make the reader feel stupid. All in all, I can't wait for the next book in the series, even though due to the success of Covenants it will most certainly be released in hardcover and be more expensive. In this case, it's worth every penny!

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Amazing-I was entranced.
Review: I borrowed this book from a friend and I have just purchased my own copy. I loved it so much I didnt want to give it back. You fall in love with Rabbit and friends so quickly. This story is beautiful and involving.

When its all over with you will find yourself frequenting the book stores and amazon for a release date on the next one.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Spellbinding
Review: I finally picked up this book willing to at least give it a try (I don't like fantasy). I finished it 48 hours later. What a great story; I had feelings for all of the characters, either good or bad. The story kept my attention all the way through the book, and that is unusual these days.
I will be looking forward to the next book from Borderland; hurry please.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Must Read by New Author
Review: I picked this up to kill some time and it did. Lost quite a few hours reading an enjoyable, quick paced story that begs for a sequel. New and different concepts in magic and human/animal relations in an enjoyable world. I can't wait for a follow up by this author.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Damn fine book....
Review: I rarely give out five stars but this book was a blast to read. From beginning to end. Surprised this only has 16 reviews.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Most fun I've had reading in ages
Review: I'm not a huge fan of traditional epic fantasy, I get bored by coming of age and lost heir stories and I hate talking animals, but I really enjoyed this book.

This is the sort of story you miss when you finish.

The only reason that I didn't give it five stars is that I found the ending a little cluttered and several places in the book, mostly early on, I found the writer's rotation of names and pronouns confusing. It was hard to tell who was speaking in conversations with more than three people. That's an editing error so it's an easy fix and I would never tell anyone to let that keep you away from such a wonderful story.

I'm looking forward to more adventures set in this universe.


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