The Forbidden Land

Rating:
Summary: Adventure, here we come
Review: I think it may be easier to read this book now, when they are all available than when anxious readers were awaiting publication. Now you can enjoy this for what it is and not be upset that you'll have to wait again to hear news of Isabeau.

The Forbidden Land is a fresh, compelling book in the middle of a series. Forsyth switches the perspective and action to center around Finn, the banpronnsa of the MacRuriach clan. Finn was introduced in book two, the Pool of Two Moons, as a street child and accomplished thief. Discovered to be the long-lost daughter of the Prionnsa of Rurach, stolen by the former Banrigh Maya to ensure the loyalty of the clan, she is taken back to her ancestral home to be united with her family.

But a girl raised on the streets, living by her witts, who has even played an important role in the rebellion, finds the constraints of court life rather tame. So she is more than happy to leave when the Righ's spies, travelling in their guise of a caravan of entertainers, ask for her help with a secret mission. All she has to do is sail to an enemy country, through the sea which is infested with sea-serpents and the sea race of Fairgean that wants all humans dead, climb hundreds of feet up an impregnable fortress, rescue an old, frail, maimed prophet, and sail back. Maybe not the easiest thing in the world, but it apparently beats embroidery.

Lachlan's plans to restore the banprionnsa Efrida to her throne continue, and I think this is the book where I started to feel real respect for him.
The war with the Bright Soldiers from Tirsollier continues, but is beginning to turn. The Tirsollierian people are ruled by a theocracy which enforces belief in their religion, expects its people to worship multiple times each day, and to dress in somber colors, without ornamentation, despite the predeliction of its aristocracy to array themselves in gaudy clothing and jewels.

While the politics of the Tirsollierian are undoubtably meant to make us think of Christianity, what's refreshing about Forsyth is that she doesn't demonize them. The Coven, and all the people of Eileanan who revere Ea, Who is in all things, believe fervently that everyone should be free to make their own choices and to have beliefs that they may not share. This makes them seem so much more noble than when authors hiss and spit and rail at the oppression of the Church.

This fourth book, though a departure of sorts, was so compelling that I almost couldn't put it down and read through it much faster than any of the others. Also, just because it's about Finn, and not about Isabeau, does not mean that you can skip it. The story definately progresses through this book to the next, the Skull of the World.

Rating:
Summary: A departure of sorts, but a pleasant one...
Review: I think it may be easier to read this book now, when they are all available than when anxious readers were awaiting publication. Now you can enjoy this for what it is and not be upset that you'll have to wait again to hear news of Isabeau.

The Forbidden Land is a fresh, compelling book in the middle of a series. Forsyth switches the perspective and action to center around Finn, the banpronnsa of the MacRuriach clan. Finn was introduced in book two, the Pool of Two Moons, as a street child and accomplished thief. Discovered to be the long-lost daughter of the Prionnsa of Rurach, stolen by the former Banrigh Maya to ensure the loyalty of the clan, she is taken back to her ancestral home to be united with her family.

But a girl raised on the streets, living by her witts, who has even played an important role in the rebellion, finds the constraints of court life rather tame. So she is more than happy to leave when the Righ's spies, travelling in their guise of a caravan of entertainers, ask for her help with a secret mission. All she has to do is sail to an enemy country, through the sea which is infested with sea-serpents and the sea race of Fairgean that wants all humans dead, climb hundreds of feet up an impregnable fortress, rescue an old, frail, maimed prophet, and sail back. Maybe not the easiest thing in the world, but it apparently beats embroidery.

Lachlan's plans to restore the banprionnsa Efrida to her throne continue, and I think this is the book where I started to feel real respect for him.
The war with the Bright Soldiers from Tirsollier continues, but is beginning to turn. The Tirsollierian people are ruled by a theocracy which enforces belief in their religion, expects its people to worship multiple times each day, and to dress in somber colors, without ornamentation, despite the predeliction of its aristocracy to array themselves in gaudy clothing and jewels.

While the politics of the Tirsollierian are undoubtably meant to make us think of Christianity, what's refreshing about Forsyth is that she doesn't demonize them. The Coven, and all the people of Eileanan who revere Ea, Who is in all things, believe fervently that everyone should be free to make their own choices and to have beliefs that they may not share. This makes them seem so much more noble than when authors hiss and spit and rail at the oppression of the Church.

This fourth book, though a departure of sorts, was so compelling that I almost couldn't put it down and read through it much faster than any of the others. Also, just because it's about Finn, and not about Isabeau, does not mean that you can skip it. The story definately progresses through this book to the next, the Skull of the World.

Rating:
Summary: As good as the others in this excellent series
Review: I was going to comment on the well done synthesis and development of culture and religion in this series, but I noticed that one Sistermoon has already mentioned it. Like Sistermoon, I am an anthropologist and semi-pagan, and I agree completely with her praise of this book and the others in the Eileanan series. I'm getting a bit tired of the accent (since the fairy races aren't originally from the Celtic lands of Earth, why would they have Scottish accents, too?), but it doesn't interfere with my enjoyment of a tale well told.

Rating:
Summary: As good as the others in this excellent series
Review: I was going to comment on the well done synthesis and development of culture and religion in this series, but I noticed that one Sistermoon has already mentioned it. Like Sistermoon, I am an anthropologist and semi-pagan, and I agree completely with her praise of this book and the others in the Eileanan series. I'm getting a bit tired of the accent (since the fairy races aren't originally from the Celtic lands of Earth, why would they have Scottish accents, too?), but it doesn't interfere with my enjoyment of a tale well told.

Rating:
Summary: The Cursed Towers
Review: I've been searching, trying to find out about the fourth (and supposedly final) book in The Witches of Eileanan series.
There IS a fourth but it is not about our cherished main characters at all. It's about Finn. I believe this book does not detract from but only enhances the book that follows.
I have also found there will be six books altogether. (A far cry from not knowing when I started my quest for knowledge whether the fourth book had even been written, to find the fifth available and the sixth on the way). I can't wait 'til tomorrow to purchase the rest.
The whole series has taken me on a deep, mystical adventure that I am loathe to let go of.

Rating:
Summary: Lively and exciting!
Review: I've read the previous books in the Eileanan series and liked them all. This one is just as good. Though the story line is not as broad as the others, I found this to be refreshing. The previous book, The Cursed Towers, was pretty serious so I really enjoyed Finn's fun and exciting adventures in The Forbidden Land. Finn is also a great central character. I hope we get to see more of her. Kate Forsyth is an excellent writer and I wish her next book, The Skull of the World, was out here in the US!

Rating:
Summary: Short and sweet and a rockling good time!
Review: If a book was a kiss, this would be a breif, unexpected peck on the lips with perfect timing that just leaves you perfectly content. 'The Forbidden Land', 4th book in The Witches of Eileanan Series by Kate Forsyth, proves to be more worthy of 5 stars than its prequel 'The Cursed Towers', even when the novel is lacking the main character of the series!! The Forbidden Land is mostly geared at Finn the Cat, who has grown up into an incredibley complex young woman starving for freedom from the dismal life of being a dowager banprionnsa of the MacRurach clan. Finn's seeking and climbing skills are desperatley needed by the Righ to recover a 'treasure' in the independent part of Eileanan known as The Bright Lands. A band of gypsy like people known as jongluers, who are close to the Righ, bring her to the task and set out to sea to seek the mysterious 'treasure'. At first I was a little skeptic about the novel being taken from the lesser characters' perspective, with a complete lacking of the heroine Isabeau. But by the first 3 chapters I pretty much forgot all about Isabeau being so consummed in Finn and the new story! It was a short novel, but captured a lot of Kate Forsyth's quality points in her writing skills, including how she can use words to show the reader and not just tell the reader. Her use of cultures (among other things) really bring this out. This is the first book in the series where you really get to know more about the Tirsoillerean people and their dogmatic ways. Understanding the enemy and having empathy for them is key to making a belivable enemy and such a good fantasy series and Kate Forsyth does this brilliantly. And what is an adventure at sea without some Fairgean, eh!? This new extension of the story cleans up some things and adds hope to the Fairgean wars. ~~Miranda

Rating:
Summary: Excellent!
Review: Kate Forsyth's The Forbidden Land was my favorite book in the series. The plot was interesting, and I was really glad that Finn the Cat was the main focus of this book. In the other books she has been a minor character, but I've always wanted to know more about her. At first, I was slightly upset about the exclusion of Isabeau, but I almost forgot about her by the end! I sincerely hope the author writes more books with Finn as a major character!

Rating:
Summary: Very good
Review: Nicely written and interesting series. It was a little disappointing not reading about Isabeau at the Spine of the World in this one, but reading about Finn's adventure was good too. It was better than I expected it to be, though I'm still looking forward to book 5 (the Skull of the World) to continue with Isabeau. It is probably best to begin at the start of the series, but it shouldn't be too confusing to start at The Forbidden Land.

The series is good for a pleasant read. Although it was originally mean to be a trilogy, it does not repeat ideas and get boring like other authors tend to do with longer series (ie. Robert Jordan).

ShatteredCrystalChalice

Rating:
Summary: Exciting, enthrilling and inspiring
Review: The Forbidden Land was exciting, enthrilling and inspiring. It was well written the plot takes many twists and turns whilst following the life of the main character Finn the Cat.

Having just read the fifth book, I am happy to know this series will not drag on forever and will be finishing with the sixth book.