Rating: 
Summary: Hints of Greatness
Review: Okay, I have read a few of the reviews about this book, and I am going to try and put them all together to paint a more complete picture of this book. I read this book last night, and although impressed wouldn't be the word I would use, there was certainly something to his writing that drew me in. I have read a lot of good fantasy and a lot of bad fantasy, and this is far from the worst I have read; and I really feel with a little work and maturity on the part of the author, this could be part of the better fantasy out there. I will qualify my opinion and say that I have read Goodkind, Jordan, Hobb, Feist, Haydon, Modessit, and many other notable fantasy authors. The main appeal to these books wasthe scope and grandeaur of worlds they created. Hobbs Buckeep comes alive during the reading, Haydons characters are so well developed they could be living next door to you, the vastness of Jordans world (politics, war, intrigue, history) are unmatchable, and on and on for each of these authors. The main thing that I think Newcomb succeeded at was his creation of a unique fantasy "idea". Not often do authors these days come out with something new on the age old fantasy spin. (I personally think the last one was David Farlands Runelord idea with which I am really impressed); and I think that Newcomb should be congratulated for that. The idea of magic in his book was intersting, and kept me entertained, as well as the created of a dark history (as so many authors before him have used for effect: Jordan, Goodkind, Hobb, Feist, etc.) Having said that, and complimenting Newcomb on these few promising story threads, i think he does need to do some work to make this book similar in caliber to the authors I have mentioned before. The plot falls short, sure, it is is entertaining and fast moving, but needs more substance and depth to it. (think politics) The characters are abominable. (Although an interesting thing to note would be the almost complete role reversal from Jordans simpering males and femdom culture) The women are not developed well at all, and I immediately didn't agree with his description of "male and female, light and dark"; you can't do that; you will lose all of the women as your audience. The wizards are the same as they are in any book, stodgey, old, and know it alls. (I would like to see something different at some point). The main character (Tristan) develops through th book, and I don't have a lot of issue with that. So in summation, I think this book was an enjoyable read. Certainly not the best book I read, butI really feel there are a lot of things the author can do to make the next books better. Hopefully by the 10th or 11th book (as most modern fantasy authors are won't to do) his writing will have gotten better.
Rating: 
Summary: Perfect is in the Eye of the Beholder
Review: I have read the first hundred pages of the book titled "The Fifth Sorceress", and this novel deserves as much hype as Terry Goodkind and Robert Jordan if not more. His writing is compelling and the action is involving. This book is sort of a mix of Wizard's First Rule (because of its epic-scope) and A Game of Thrones (For its gritty realism) with air of richness carried about it throughout. Pay no heed to the hundreds of haters with reviews stacked pages below mine. They are only followers, who follow the opinion of many. Rather than going into the book with pre-judgement (which is a common trend among people these days), go in to new things with an open mind and then come out with your own opinion and not some poor excuse of lackey "put down". Also, there is no perfect, one book that everyone on the entire planet will automatically like, even the Bible has its despisers, so don't be easily swayed by other peoples opinions, not even mine.
It is understandable that the book may be put down for the controversial theme: Men as the good guys and the Women as the bad...uh...women. But before you jump on the band wagon and start calling Mr. Newcomb a sexist, consider this, how is it sexist when women are portrayed as evil and not sexist when men are portrayed as evil. Lets face it, in almost every story in the history of man, the bad guy is a man(...).
Rating: 
Summary: Bad
Review: Really bad writing. If this book was $1, it would still be a waste of money. Seriously, it is probably one of the worst books I have ever read.
Rating:
Summary: Stinker
Review: Well, I normally try to be patient with new writers/new books. However, this book has pushed even my liberal limits. It is obviously a poor product of really reallllly bad editing, and an immature writing style. Newcomb incorporates, randomly and inappropriately, over used/ under thought clichés from our times, such as "take only memories, leave only footprints" or the 2nd grade classic "your village needs it's village idiot" joke. His editors should be beaten with sticks because of the glaring "splice" errors. Newcomb seems to mix up his timing of events by a few paragraphs, making the clear impression that he was attempting to be better, but was too lazy/absent minded to re-read his own work. His characters remain shallow, and rather static in their growth. He starts out with good characters, but the fails to make the change or grow in his story. The fact that all the women in his book are portrayed as sexual deviants, evil, insane, or weak and rather dumb (the hero's sister), brings additional negative attention to him as a writer. As far as keeping the plot moving, well, he does that, but it is sporadic, sometimes amazingly redundant and long winded, and other times moving fast, as if he can't wait to get his ideas on paper.
All and all the entire book is immature at best. I would give this book credit as it is if I were reading a first draft, but it is a ridiculous "final draft."
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I gave this book 258 pages of my reading time, and tried hard to warm to it. I bought it on the strength of the glowing reviews excerpted inside the front cover, so came expecting something good. Unfortunately, the writing is bad (he uses words which don't mean quite what he seems to think they mean), the editing is worse, a really lazy editor, and I got sick and tired of Wigg's "infamous" eyebrow! As well, there are inconsistencies that a bit of care should have picked up, the most glaring in the pages I read is the screaming harpy yanking Tristan's dirk from its eye, and then a page later, after it's dead, Wigg pulling the same dirk from the same eye. Yes, it's that basic! I lost patience, and I'm quite a forgiving reader if the story or characters grab me, but neither did, so it's off to the second hand bookstore with ya, Robert!!
Rating:
Summary: Scarcely worth the paper it's printed on
Review: I've read more books in this genre than I care to count. This book was terrible. I can only bring myself to waste enough of my time to say that Robert Newcomb personally owes me the $25.00 I spent on this door-stop.
Rating:
Summary: Ewwww
Review: If I have to hear about Wigg's "infamous eyebrow" one more time, I'll scream!! This book is a complete waste of time. I don't know how it got onto bookshelves, but hopefully he made some money, because he isn't gettting another dime of mine. Oh yeah..."What he saw would remain burned in his memory forever" should probably only be used once per book!
Rating: 
Summary: What are you people thinking?
Review: I honestly found this book to be really quite good. OK so there was a little much on the sex and violence thing, but the story was refreshing and it was a change from many of the "sanitized" authors out there today. It was somewhat refreshing. Anyways for those of you who really despise this book (see aforementioned reasons in previous reviews), I highly recommend you take a look at Robert Newcomb's Official website at www.chroniclesofbloodandstone.com and visit the Redoubt section. There is a particular thread concerning many of these same issues and I think you might find it helpful. Have a wonderful day, and please don't hate a book out of ignorance and close-mindedness; broaden your horizons and learn to love literature.
Rating:
Summary: The Success of Terry Goodkind Comes Home to Roost
Review: Several years ago, I predicted the success of authors such as Terry Goodkind and Robert Jordan would lead to a glut of bad fantasy novels, as young writers influenced by these successful books would seek to make their own mark on the genre. It didn't take long before I was proven correct, unfortunately. Robert Newcomb's Fifth Sorceress is the most obvious example of a new author trying to cash in on the "adult fantasy" genre that Goodkind more or less made popular. In an interview Newcomb gave shortly after the release of this novel, he revealed he hadn't even read fantasy until his wife turned him on to Terry Goodkind. Whether you are a fan of Goodkind or not, Newcomb's simplified knowledge of the genre will be painfully evident upon reading this novel. Good writers read voraciously as a rule; Newcomb...well, he doesn't read voraciously. You do the math. Fifth Sorceress is so sub-par, one wonders if it should have been marketed as a satire instead, a "Springtime for Hitler" of the fantasy genre. It is the clearest example of self-parody in a genre that is rife with unoriginality right now. If Fifth Sorceress was a high-school piece, I would be impressed. If it was a college composition I'd sit down with the author and have a long discussion on what went wrong. The fact that publishing houses apparently had a bidding war over this mess is a sad commentary on the state of the industry today.
Rating:
Summary: Save Your Money
Review: Is this adult fantasy or Harry Potter?? This debut novel is so amateurish it is embarrassing. The Prologue is really interesting and lulls the reader into a false sense that this book may actually be good. The main book starts like a Fairy Tale with a Prince wandering an enchanted wood with giant butterflies and giant mushrooms. It then decides that it is an adult fantasy with strong sexual and violent sections involving the Sorceresses. However, then the book turns into Harry Potter with the most embarrassing use of Magic I have read in a supposedly adult fantasy book. The Wizards and Sorceresses are virtual Gods - they can do ANYTHING. Make thins appear, disappear, control anything. They can destroy entire populations with a thought *YAWN*. This is so boring and destroys what could have been a good debut. I was so bad that I could not finish it, which is incredibly rare for me to find a book that offensive. Please do us all a favour and give up writing Newcomb - I feel sorry for all the unsuspecting people that will part with their cash for your work.....like me. Awful.
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