Rating: 
Summary: Bloodwinter
Review: I'm not usually a fantasy reader, preferring Asimov and Ellison to Tolkien. Deitz's books in the past have been entertaining, however I've mostly read them because I wanted to support a fellow UGA alum and to see if I recognized characters/places. Bloodwinter is terrific on its own. From the beginning the story takes a hold of the imagination and keeps it to the last page. It's not often that a book grips you so that you stay up 'til 1 AM to finish it (and risk your boss's wrath in sneaking a few pages here and there at work.) Three days after finishing the book I was wishing I was reading more of the story.
Rating: 
Summary: Pretty Good
Review: It took me almost seven weeks to finish this book. I liked it, but in some parts it is so boring that you just have to skip the chapter. Sometimes you can read forever and understand practically nothing about what is going on. Others, however, can be very exciting and well worth the read. I think there are too many characters, though. Sometimes you have no idea who is talking, and it can get rather confusing. I found no point in the prologue. The characters in that chapter never returned again and you don't know who else dies, or what happens to them. After that chapter it goes straight into the main story, with totally new characters. I thought it was a good plot though, and can not wait to get a hold of the second book.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty Good
Review: It took me almost seven weeks to finish this book. I liked it, but in some parts it is so boring that you just have to skip the chapter. Sometimes you can read forever and understand practically nothing about what is going on. Others, however, can be very exciting and well worth the read. I think there are too many characters, though. Sometimes you have no idea who is talking, and it can get rather confusing. I found no point in the prologue. The characters in that chapter never returned again and you don't know who else dies, or what happens to them. After that chapter it goes straight into the main story, with totally new characters. I thought it was a good plot though, and can not wait to get a hold of the second book.
Rating: 
Summary: Good story but....
Review: Pros: Intruiging story, unique characters, some page turning action.Cons: Characters are inconsistent in behaviour and emotions in a clumsy way that doesn't support the storyline. Plot seems to have trouble finding the right gear and shifts back and forth willy nilly. My number one pet peeve:The author spends a lot of time telling the reader things directly rather than showing them through the story and the characters behaviour. I know this is standard stuff in this genre, but it's the one thing that separates the really good writers from the so so ones. This author takes it to new limits resulting in a herky jerky read where the plot is moving along nicely then it stops (often in the middle of great action) to go into a long rambling section, apparently designed to show this characters motivation in the scene they are in. This authors editor let him down or they were desparate to fill out the page requirements. The author did not do his research when it comes to trees or surviving in the wild and made many glaring mistakes. Despite all this I still enjoyed the story due to his great ideas, (maybe he should partner with a more experienced author) and would purchase the rest as they come out with the thought that the author will undoubtedly get better at his craft or if the book is popular the publisher will assign a better editor.
Rating:
Summary: Good story but....
Review: Pros: Intruiging story, unique characters, some page turning action. Cons: Characters are inconsistent in behaviour and emotions in a clumsy way that doesn't support the storyline. Plot seems to have trouble finding the right gear and shifts back and forth willy nilly. My number one pet peeve:The author spends a lot of time telling the reader things directly rather than showing them through the story and the characters behaviour. I know this is standard stuff in this genre, but it's the one thing that separates the really good writers from the so so ones. This author takes it to new limits resulting in a herky jerky read where the plot is moving along nicely then it stops (often in the middle of great action) to go into a long rambling section, apparently designed to show this characters motivation in the scene they are in. This authors editor let him down or they were desparate to fill out the page requirements. The author did not do his research when it comes to trees or surviving in the wild and made many glaring mistakes. Despite all this I still enjoyed the story due to his great ideas, (maybe he should partner with a more experienced author) and would purchase the rest as they come out with the thought that the author will undoubtedly get better at his craft or if the book is popular the publisher will assign a better editor.
Rating: 
Summary: Bloodwinter fails
Review: This book has some great ideas. It does not fall prey to the "I've read a million of these so mine will sound identical to ALL of them" phenomenon. But this book is fundamentally flawed. The characterization starts well, and the characters are consistent... until something happens. Anything. At the slightest influence of event, stress, or simply the introduction of a new character or item, the characters in this book re-write themselves to spice up the plot. Every time I thought I knew a character, they would turn into someone else in a page or two. The honest hero cheats and spys on his opponent in an honerable contest. His long suffering and completely noble wife steals away and breaks trust with her hero husband mere hours after he has revealed the 'gem' as a strange and dangerous secret. The nasty rapist antagonist has his moments of nobility to, after all, as his victim(s) regularly agree, 'he's not really such a bad person"... I finished the book. That was about all I could do. I just HAD to see how many different, inconsistent personalities one book and a few characters could actually encompass (I lost count). Despite the clumsy manipulation of characters to fit the plot, the author has good descriptive talent. He just doesn't seem to know who or what he wants to portray. He describes a foster brotherhood at the beginning of the book, only to surprise the reader that 'brotherhood' includes homosexuality. Not necessarily a bad thing in terms of plot, but it just happens without warning, and at odds with the scenario he started with. He seems to be experimenting with a variety of sexual themes in this way throughout the book. Again, not necessarily a bad thing for a novel, but none of the experimentation seems to be necessary or even relevant, and much of it flys in the face of the rest of the book. I won't move to the next book simply because of this inconsistency in character and focus. I think this author should have spent his time on an anthology of short stories to get all this out of his system, and THEN write his novel. Unfortunately, this offering will simply reinforce the shallow image this genre has gained.
Rating:
Summary: Bloodwinter fails
Review: This book has some great ideas. It does not fall prey to the "I've read a million of these so mine will sound identical to ALL of them" phenomenon. But this book is fundamentally flawed. The characterization starts well, and the characters are consistent... until something happens. Anything. At the slightest influence of event, stress, or simply the introduction of a new character or item, the characters in this book re-write themselves to spice up the plot. Every time I thought I knew a character, they would turn into someone else in a page or two. The honest hero cheats and spys on his opponent in an honerable contest. His long suffering and completely noble wife steals away and breaks trust with her hero husband mere hours after he has revealed the 'gem' as a strange and dangerous secret. The nasty rapist antagonist has his moments of nobility to, after all, as his victim(s) regularly agree, 'he's not really such a bad person"... I finished the book. That was about all I could do. I just HAD to see how many different, inconsistent personalities one book and a few characters could actually encompass (I lost count). Despite the clumsy manipulation of characters to fit the plot, the author has good descriptive talent. He just doesn't seem to know who or what he wants to portray. He describes a foster brotherhood at the beginning of the book, only to surprise the reader that 'brotherhood' includes homosexuality. Not necessarily a bad thing in terms of plot, but it just happens without warning, and at odds with the scenario he started with. He seems to be experimenting with a variety of sexual themes in this way throughout the book. Again, not necessarily a bad thing for a novel, but none of the experimentation seems to be necessary or even relevant, and much of it flys in the face of the rest of the book. I won't move to the next book simply because of this inconsistency in character and focus. I think this author should have spent his time on an anthology of short stories to get all this out of his system, and THEN write his novel. Unfortunately, this offering will simply reinforce the shallow image this genre has gained.
Rating:
Summary: Mostly on the mark
Review: Tom Deitz has created a very intriguing new world in that of Eron and Ixti. The characters are very realistic and easy to sympathize with. Although this book may start off somewhat slow, it eventually becomes so engaging that I personally could not put it down! I look forward to reading more of this strange and utterly different land.
Rating:
Summary: Very intriguing indeed!!!!!
Review: Tom Deitz has created a very intriguing new world in that of Eron and Ixti. The characters are very realistic and easy to sympathize with. Although this book may start off somewhat slow, it eventually becomes so engaging that I personally could not put it down! I look forward to reading more of this strange and utterly different land.
Rating:
Summary: outstanding!
Review: When I first saw this novel in Barnum Noble, I was not particularly impressed by the description on the back cover, and thus decided to wait for it to appear in the local library. When it did, I checked it out, and now, in retrospect, had wished I had bought it before. The Kirkus review adequately summarizes the plot, so I won't rehash the details. Suffice it to say that the story itself, while interesting, is not necessarily the strength of this work. What jumped out at me is the outstanding writing ability of the author, which is on a level of that of Tad Williams. Dietz has an ability for detail rarely found in the genre. His characterizations and world-building are outstanding as well. While this work may not appeal to all fantasy readers, especially those who enjoy authors who write books that are simplistic and are designed for adolescents (read: Terry Goodkind), I would heartily recommend this for anyone who needs a change of pace from the mediocrity that permeates the genre today.
| 
