Rating: Summary: Good. Review: There are a lot of negative comments about this book - it being an overused plot, using characters that are not rich and bein just plain boring. Let me expel these myths - the characters in this book are as good as in any book and as well developed with as many if not more internal issues than actual people. This book is not boring and is full intricate details and strange, mystic characters. I will admit that this plot was an overused one - seemingly for the first part (300 pages) to be a Camelot type story, but after part 1 the book is original and fascinating. This is a definate, solid read for any fantasy or military history fan.
Rating: Summary: John Marco's The Eyes Of God Review: This book is superb i read it in only three days even though i'm in third grade. This book has lots of historical detail although it is in a different world. I am looking forward to the next book and am wondering when it will come out! :)
Rating: Summary: Incredibly awsome book. Review: This is one of the best books ever written. It has everything that makes a good story: war, magic, love, betrayel, and incredible places such as Grimhold, a place where people with something wrong with them go and recieve a sort of magic that helps them do things that they would not be able to do normally, like blind can see or the deaf can hear. All in all this is a great book that has plenty of twists and turns that makes the book exciting. I eagerly await The Devils Armor that should be coming out in the begining of November.
Rating: Summary: uh.. camelot? Review: This isn't long but I had to post this. The first part of hte book is a huge rip off of the Arthurian legend. i felt like i was reading The Once and Future King all over again. Akeela/Arthur, Lukien/Lancelot, Cassandra/Guenevere. Prized knight falls in loves with new king's queen. queen loves him back. blah blah blah. Its slightly different but the characters seem to have no static traits and their actions are totally unpredictable and out of character. its interesting to read about Gilwyn and theres a few good parts but overall its pretty stupid. the only reason im still reading it is because I can't leave a book unfinished. this makes Terry Goodkind look like a good author.
Rating: Summary: Tried for too much ended up with too little Review: This wasn't a very good book. The characters were too flat for the story. Parts of the story were too easily solved or dismissed. And the book tries to be too many stories in one. Is it a story of betrayal between brothers? Not when one brother disappears for a quarter of the book and the main character shifts from one of the brothers to someone else not involved and SPOILER one of the brothers goes mad, not from being betrayed but because he kills a man. Or is it a story of a story of a place of magic and "disabled monsters" against a mad king and his brutal general? If so then what's with the first half to two-thirds of the book. Etc. etc. The theme was too heavy for the characters. Betrayal and jealousy enough to drive men mad require more than paper thin characters and more time and interaction between those characters than occurred. If the author had stuck with one major theme or more time developing and resolving each theme and character this could have been a good book. Or if he had taken a lighter touch and let it be a straight fantasy adventure it could have worked too. He didn't so I give this book a D.
Rating: Summary: Seen this before Review: To give John Marco credit, he writes well in the fantasy genre. But this latest offering doesn't show any startling originality. The type of fantasy sub-genre he has adhered to has characters that can loosely be split into two types: The rags to riches crowd or the Kings and Queens who save their land crowd. This is an example of the latter. The story makes use of the well-known 'love triangle' plot with Cassandra, Akeela and Lukien - some may draw parallels with King Arthur - and within 100 pages you're thinking, haven't I seen all this before, but slightly better in Feist's Silverthorn? Which in itself goes right back the Sleeping Beauty myth. The speed and alacrity with which Cassandra falls for Lukien is also a bit too fast to be entirely believable, unless Marco is implying she's incredibly shallow? What did surprise me is that a 'medieval-esque' society had clear knowledge of the physiology and diseases that we've only come to know about in the twentieth century. The depiction of other countries also tended to follow previous books of the sub-genre. Marco's characters are well drawn, the narrative flows well and the action is precise. It's just a case of nothing new plot-wise. You seen it all before. However, the author has immense potential and writing ability so there will, no doubt, come a truly original fantasy series from the pen of this talented writer.
Rating: Summary: tough book to review [no spoilers] Review: While at a bookstore, I found the sequel "The Devil's Armor" intriguing and noticed a prior book and bought it first. I didn't know what I'd get myself into. The first third of the novel aggravated me because of decisions made by certain characters. When I recognized similarities to Arthurian legends, I became even further frustrated. However one or two characters kept me reading. At the end, I sat down and digested what I had finished. There is a lot more to the story than what the book cover offers. The writing is fairly decent and the author doesn't pull punches with regards to character development, which can be fairly sinister. I felt I could identify with someone then pages later find myself thinking a decision made was no where near what I would do or hope I would have done. Other authors might gloss over an indiscretion, but this author delves into the cause and affects to help the reader understand the action had a serious consequence. The great imagery of some people shattered by deranged acts made me feel as if I had done the damage personally and had to live with the results. I am hoping this will be a foundation for a great second and maybe future books. I don't think most friends who read the fantasy genre would care for this book, but I'd call it an acquired taste and if you don't mind brutal developments you'll be able to read it. It's deep in friendship and love and will make a person think about how your behavior affects those in your circle. Thank you.
Rating: Summary: tough book to review [no spoilers] Review: While at a bookstore, I found the sequel "The Devil's Armor" intriguing and noticed a prior book and bought it first. I didn't know what I'd get myself into. The first third of the novel aggravated me because of decisions made by certain characters. When I recognized similarities to Arthurian legends, I became even further frustrated. However one or two characters kept me reading. At the end, I sat down and digested what I had finished. There is a lot more to the story than what the book cover offers. The writing is fairly decent and the author doesn't pull punches with regards to character development, which can be fairly sinister. I felt I could identify with someone then pages later find myself thinking a decision made was no where near what I would do or hope I would have done. Other authors might gloss over an indiscretion, but this author delves into the cause and affects to help the reader understand the action had a serious consequence. The great imagery of some people shattered by deranged acts made me feel as if I had done the damage personally and had to live with the results. I am hoping this will be a foundation for a great second and maybe future books. I don't think most friends who read the fantasy genre would care for this book, but I'd call it an acquired taste and if you don't mind brutal developments you'll be able to read it. It's deep in friendship and love and will make a person think about how your behavior affects those in your circle. Thank you.
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