Firebird

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Summary: Wonderful Fairytale
Review: After growing up listening to fairytales about damsels in distress and frog princes, it was refreshing to read a fairytale written about the life of a young tsar living in medievel Russia and the mythical creatures said to dwell there. If you enjoy stories like Anastasia or Sleeping Beauty, then I am sure you will like this.

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Summary: Wonderful Retelling of a Midaevil Tale for Modern Readers
Review: Although not usually a fan of Lackey, this book held my attention from one page turning moment to the next. I lost sleep to finish it. Lackey skillfully brings the world of mideavil Russia and its spirits to life in a way that makes the modern day reader almost wonder if Russia's "wee folk" of this book have simply not gone into hiding. She never takes the easy way out in plot devices and, in true Russian fashion, certianlly never gives the hero an easy time of it either! Bravo for a truely gripping and refreshing book!

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Summary: Only the cover intrigued me! An 'okay' book
Review: As a long time Mercedes fan, I picked up this book because usually her writings are wonderful. The cover really intrigued me, but that's it! I first started the book excited because It was the first Mercedes Lackey book I had boughten in a long time. I read and read but there was no justification to what I was reading. I kept reading hoping to find something more exciting, but there wasn't. It's mainly about family feuds, not alot about the firebird! Oh well I got a really pretty cover though. Maybe if I re read it there might be something that I mised that will make me like the book more...hopefully

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Summary: Mercedes Lackey spews out yet another excellent novel...
Review: Being the ballet fanatic that I am, I expected the story of the Firebird to be similar to that of the ballet, and recieved a pleasant surprise when I found that there were several very interesting deviations. For example, they made it much more difficult from Ilya to get to the magician's soul (in this case his heart) which definitely made it more interesting. The beginning dragged a little, but as Ilya left his home and went out on his own, the story took on a completely new atmosphere, and it picked up from there. I definitely would recommened this to anyone looking for a good fantasy book to drown themselves in.

Rating:
Summary: A Book for Everyone
Review: Everything you could possibly want in a book is in this one. Legends, adventure, magic spells, romance, lovable characters...even one who is not a fan of fantasy novels would like this, I think. This was the first fantasy type novel I read, and I've been hooked ever since. If you enjoy this, you might also check out 'The Fire Rose.'

Rating:
Summary: Better than SERRAted Edge
Review: Firebird is a wonderful book. The second one I ever read by Lackey. It's a retelling of an old fairytale that has been brought to a new generation. Though most versions of this story say that the central character was named 'Ivan', Lackey has him as an 'Ilya'. The integration of real cultural traits into this story is flawless for anyone but those who have lived in the country (not me- though research does help). The episode with the cherries, and mocking insanity was truly imaginative. The heart-inside-the-duck-inside-the-.... whatever-that-other-thing-was was interesting. Sounded very original, though other versions have it inside other items. As with a lot of Lackey's other books, this one contains some sparing... shall we say 'sexual humor'? Not explicit. (If you want THAT, try Lisanne Norman's Sholan Alliance Novels. Not the newest one, though.) The Firebird a slightly under-developed character, but Ilya was just marvelous. The brothers were funny too. Try 'Fire Rose' before this one, if you want Lackey's true writing voice.

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Summary: Lack-luster Lackey
Review: For all you Mercedes Lackey lovers out there this book won't be a waste of time for you... if you start on page 90 and read quickly. The story does go by easily, but that's because it is simply writen with no depth what-so-ever. The characters and scenery are beautifly portrayed, but there is so much more that should have been done with the tale itself. The book is an interpretation of a Russian folk tale, which probably didn't give Lackey much room to manipulate the simplistic plotline. It then doesn't seem like what she usually writes because she didn't develop the idea. The main dissapointment is that the entire plotline is revealed by the picture on the cover of the book; usually there are many twists and turns in the story that make it a true pleasure to read, as in her "Fire Rose." The reason I recomend skimming the first 90 pages is because all that is contained there are siblings squables and politics of the Tsar's household that, while somewhat amusing, provide no meaningful knowledge to the reader that will impact the tale. This is certainly not the Lackey that readers are used to.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderfully Written!
Review: I always love mythological and fantasy-based books, and this on e really stands out because very few have Russian Mythology ( or firebirds, for that matter) as the main subject. I reccomend it to all people, but kids at least 12 and up.

Rating:
Summary: Jus wonderful
Review: I completely loved this book. It was humorous, adventurous, and jus a well thought out tale. It was the feel good movie of the year, only in a written form. I laughed and cryed, but mostly enjoyed. Execelent.

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Summary: What happened to the rest of the characters?
Review: I enjoyed this book, my first by Lackey. But with more than half the book detailing his family life and our emotional investment in Father Mikhail,Ruslan etc. as well as our hatred of most of the rest, I was left wanting more. Although one of Ilya's brothers got his comeuppance, I wanted to find out about the rest. Other than that, a very fun read.