Rating: 
Summary: Comfort food with major flaws
Review: "Threshold" is a freestanding work by the Australian novelist, Sara Douglass, author of the popular "Wayfarer Redemption and "Troy Game" series. It takes place in an imaginary version of the Biblical kingdom of Ashdod, with elements of Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia thrown in. Its main character, Tirzah, a talented glass worker is sold into slavery and forced to work on a monstrous project-Threshold, a pyramid whose mathematically-based magic will (they think) propel its builders into Infinity. But Tirzah, no mere glass worker, can communicate with the glass, and she senses something profoundly evil in the project. The first half of the story concerns her and her friends' attempts to disrupt the construction and her growing but uneasy relationship with her master, the great Magus Boaz. The second half follows the groups' attempts to fight the evil unleashed by Threshold and the love story between Tirzah and a changed Boaz.For me, "Threshold" is one of those books that I both love and hate-I couldn't stop reading it even though parts of it just didn't work and at times felt downright hokey. The idea of a mystical pyramid, for example, seemed a bit much to me, although the author uses it as an allegory about the dangers of knowledge without wisdom and the need for humility in approaching the unknown. Many of the characters were well drawn-Tirzah and Isphet particularly. Others were less so-Yaqob, for instance, was supposed to be Tirzah's first love, but he didn't seem particularly lovable or even much more than a cardboard character. The Soulenai, the supernatural beings guiding the group seemed more like spiritual big brothers than powerful beings worthy of worship. As for Boaz, his rapid transformation from hateful Magus to loving hero was just too rapid, and Tirzah's immediate forgiveness of his abuses makes no pyschological sense. He destroys her womb so she won't conceive and later has her thrown into a cell to die without food or water. And she still loves him? Yeah, right. Douglass may have drawn a strong female character here, but she undermines Tirzah's strength by placing her into the standard "love your abuser 'cause it's not really his fault" position. Nonethless, after alI was said and done, I enjoyed reading "Threshold." Unrealistic though it was, I found the romance between Tirzah and Boaz to be one of the best things about the book. Many of the plot twists were interesting, as were many of Douglass's descriptions. For me "Threshold" belongs on that shelf where I keep other guilty reading pleasures-books that I know aren't particularly well-written but are easy to read and easy to enjoy-the literary version of comfort food.
Rating: 
Summary: Bleeeecch!!!
Review: A friend recommended this book to me. It was not until later that I discovered he had the author confused with someone else. What bad writing! The positive reviews here show me that either fantasy is in a worse state than I realized, or people are just not demanding enough of their authors. I find Ms. Douglass to be somewhat more competent here than she was in her awful Wayfarers Redemption, but that's not saying much. The second star is for what I grudgingly admit is an original take on a standard plot, but the writing itself is so bad that it makes the teeth hurt.
Rating:
Summary: Totally Sucked In
Review: As with some of Sara's other novels, I was very much sucked in to this book from beginning to end. I found it very rich in detail and was quite happy that I was not able to deduce the ending from the beginning. My one remark is that this book is suspiciously like a Pokemon movie I saw with my Kids months ago.
Rating: 
Summary: Just read this
Review: I had an extreme liking to this book, for it's beautiful details on life and surrounding landscape and buildings, and also the strong female lead. Some people might think that at some places in the book, Tirzah's not strong enough, but hey considering what she went through, she is far stronger than most could ever be, at least not too much self-pitying to tire the readers. About the complains for Boaz being torturing... well, in the setting he as the slave master, it would seem fake enough if he wasn't. Besides, his transformation/transition was well portrayed enough in the story. The grim aspects of slavery was detailed, but never overly done. Other characters such as Zahbre and Isphet are also well developed. Although the plot does dragged at some places, the story kept at a pleasant pace that keeps the pages turning. All the loose ends were well-tied in the conclusion and all questions well answered. I guess the only complain I could have was that this book read more as a romance in fantasy setting instead of a fantasy in which a romance took place... but that depends too. the world-building was convinsing and quite a few suprising twists.
Rating:
Summary: enjoyable read
Review: I had an extreme liking to this book, for it's beautiful details on life and surrounding landscape and buildings, and also the strong female lead. Some people might think that at some places in the book, Tirzah's not strong enough, but hey considering what she went through, she is far stronger than most could ever be, at least not too much self-pitying to tire the readers. About the complains for Boaz being torturing... well, in the setting he as the slave master, it would seem fake enough if he wasn't. Besides, his transformation/transition was well portrayed enough in the story. The grim aspects of slavery was detailed, but never overly done. Other characters such as Zahbre and Isphet are also well developed. Although the plot does dragged at some places, the story kept at a pleasant pace that keeps the pages turning. All the loose ends were well-tied in the conclusion and all questions well answered. I guess the only complain I could have was that this book read more as a romance in fantasy setting instead of a fantasy in which a romance took place... but that depends too. the world-building was convinsing and quite a few suprising twists.
Rating:
Summary: strong stand-alone fantasy
Review: In the cold regions of the North known as Vinland lives Tirzah and her father who create beautiful glass objects. They are contented until Druse gambles away everything they earned, leaving them deeply in dept. To wipe out their arrears, they are sold into slavery and travel by boat to Ashdod in the South. There, Tirzah shows the Master of the Magi Boaz her unusual skill as a glassmaker. Boaz sends her and her father to Grensholme, the slave city that lies in the shadow of Threshold, a pyramid structure that has taken eight generations to create. All that is left to do is put the finishing touches of glass where needed which is why Tirzah and other master glassmakers are desperately needed. When Tirzah meets other of her kind, she learns she is an Elemental magician and that is why she can hear the glass chatter. Her magic is forbidden in Ashdod where the state religion is the power of the One. When Boaz takes over the working of Threshold he forces her into his bed. Over time, Tirzah realizes that the Mage is fighting his own nature and when he lets his mask slip can be very loving and tender. On the day Threshold is finished, a creature from the Vale enters the world and takes over the minds of everyone in the area. Tirzah and Boaz along with several other elementals are able to escape to a place where they can learn to use their powers to send the evil creature back into Infinity before he destroys the world. This stand-alone novel from the creator of The Wayfarer Redemption series is epic in scope and brilliant in world building. There is enough action to satisfy sword and sorcery fans and enough romance to satisfy fans of that genre. The metamorphosis of Boaz from a cold and rigid master to a warm and caring elemental necromancer is totally believable because the character slowly changes by events that affect him personally. Tirzah is no whimpering lass who submits to slavery but a warrior magician who fights to save herself and her loved ones from the affect of the creature of the Vale. She loves strongly and it is the strength of her caring that allows Boaz to lower his guard around her so that when the time comes he is at her side, fighting to undo the damage he and other magi have caused. Although their goal was not evil, they played around with forces without considering the consequences because in their arrogance, they thought there would be none. They paid a huge price for their presumption and the reader will feel satisfied and more by their ultimate fate. Ultimately it is Boaz who makes the biggest sacrifice but his bond with Tirzah is so strong it overcomes time and space. The audience will want to see the further adventures of Tirzah and Boaz because these two are not the type of characters that will be content to rest on their laurels. Harriet Klausner
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting Story
Review: In the opening pages of this book, the young woman who narrates it and her father are sold into slavery. As skilled glass workers, they ultimately wind up in a distant kingdom called Ashdod, where the woman is given the name Tirzah and both are put to work building a vast pyramid called Threshold which is being constructed by the Magi, the priest class of Ashdod, for the power they believe it will bring them when complete. Tirzah soon discovers she has magical abilities to communicate with the soul of glass objects, but the possession or use of such abilities is regarded by the Magi as a capital crime.
The first part of this book is very effective, with two striking villains: Boaz, the Magus who oversees construction and suspects Tirzah's magical skills, and Threshold itself, looming,threatening, and mysterious. As Boaz brings the pyramid closer to completion, Tirzah begins to discover and bring out a gentler side in him. Ultimately they fall in love and Boaz is transformed from the villain who will commit any cruelty to complete Threshold to a hero who will pay any price to destroy it, a transformation that I found unpersuasive. At the same time Threshold, once it comes to power, is certainly evil enough, but less mysterious and somehow less intriguing.
Thus the second half of the novel, the story of how Boaz, Tirzah, and their allies fight the evil entity who has entered the world through Threshold, was less successful for me than the first.
Still, the story does have some definite strengths. Tirzah is a strong and interesting protagonist and the writing is good. The section before Tirzah reaches Threshold, while quite brief, is vivid and excellent. The plot is fairly unpredictable, and takes several turns I wasn't expecting.
The Magi are mathematicians and scholars, and an implicit theme of the book seems to be that mathematics and technology are evil. Douglass certainly appears to subscribe to that belief herself; part of the plot hinges on the sequence of the earliest prime numbers which Douglass strangely believes to be 1, 3, 5, 7, 11.... Somehow, the book got into print without this incredibly obvious blunder being detected.
Rating:
Summary: Strong female leads
Review: It was interesting reading Threshold and seeing how the strong female leads in Wayfarer and Troy originally developed. Faraday, Azhure and Cornelia owe much to Tirzah. The story is creative and moves quickly. There are a few twists that keep you guessing but these eventually serve to round out the characters rather than give mystery. That, of course, is Sara Douglass's art and greatest strength; believeable characters who get you into their story not intricate plot twists, monsters or gagets. Great characters, great plot, great writing and a great look over the shoulder, so to speak, for all Sara Douglass fans.
Rating:
Summary: This is a great read
Review: Sold into slavery to pay debts, a glass worker with inherent magical powers ends up helping to build Threshold. Originally devised to tap the unlimited power of creation it is now seen as the gateway for evil entering into the natural world. The plot for THRESHOLD is new and interesting. Although it drags at times the story does come to a satisfactory conclusion at the end, something that should be remarked upon as it is so rarely found these days. Characters are for the most part reasonably well portrayed and fleshed out for a stand-alone novel. Although Tirzah's, the main character, falling in love with her torturing, raping master will undoubtedly give the Feministas' stomach pains if not outright heart attacks, it does work in this story. Boaz, the torturing master turned savior, is a well done character although he never achieves the level of `poor misunderstood boy,' at least from me, that Ms. Douglass seems to want to bestow on him. All in al THRESHOLD is a good story but not a great story. Worth reading, yes, but if it takes you a while to get around to it you won't have missed anything of immediate importance. On balance I would RECOMMEND it, but is a mild recommendation at best.
Rating:
Summary: GOOD BUT NOT GREAT
Review: Sold into slavery to pay debts, a glass worker with inherent magical powers ends up helping to build Threshold. Originally devised to tap the unlimited power of creation it is now seen as the gateway for evil entering into the natural world. The plot for THRESHOLD is new and interesting. Although it drags at times the story does come to a satisfactory conclusion at the end, something that should be remarked upon as it is so rarely found these days. Characters are for the most part reasonably well portrayed and fleshed out for a stand-alone novel. Although Tirzah's, the main character, falling in love with her torturing, raping master will undoubtedly give the Feministas' stomach pains if not outright heart attacks, it does work in this story. Boaz, the torturing master turned savior, is a well done character although he never achieves the level of 'poor misunderstood boy,' at least from me, that Ms. Douglass seems to want to bestow on him. All in al THRESHOLD is a good story but not a great story. Worth reading, yes, but if it takes you a while to get around to it you won't have missed anything of immediate importance. On balance I would RECOMMEND it, but is a mild recommendation at best.
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