Home :: Books :: Science Fiction & Fantasy  

Arts & Photography
Audio CDs
Audiocassettes
Biographies & Memoirs
Business & Investing
Children's Books
Christianity
Comics & Graphic Novels
Computers & Internet
Cooking, Food & Wine
Entertainment
Gay & Lesbian
Health, Mind & Body
History
Home & Garden
Horror
Literature & Fiction
Mystery & Thrillers
Nonfiction
Outdoors & Nature
Parenting & Families
Professional & Technical
Reference
Religion & Spirituality
Romance
Science
Science Fiction & Fantasy

Sports
Teens
Travel
Women's Fiction
Sheepfarmer's Daughter (Deed of Paksenarrion, Book 1)

Sheepfarmer's Daughter (Deed of Paksenarrion, Book 1)

List Price: $5.99
Your Price:
Product Info Reviews

<< 1 2 3 >>

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great fantasy...
Review: Although I have read most of the great fantasy writers as Tolkien, Jordan, Eddings, Brooks etc. I consider this series one of the best

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Surprised there isn't more...
Review: As my rating suggests, I thought this was an excellent book, But I'm completely suprised that there aren't more reviews. Has no one read it?? The entire series is by far the best fantasy series I've ever encountered. The only book I've found better than the tales of Paksenarrion is Ender's Game. This entire series sucked me in and wouldn't let me go until I had finished. It was well written with great attention to detail. I've never been in military service, but after reading these books I feel as if I almost know what it's like. Throughout the books, the reader is made to care deeply for the characters and their plights.

I highly recommend this book to *ANYONE* looking to not only read, but experience a great fantasy story.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: Great start to a classic fantasy trilogy
Review: Considering the title, you would expect another standard "poor boy/girl becomes prince/hero/wizard" fantasy novel, but thankfully Moon avoids this trap by quickly moving her heroine Paksenarrion (or Paks for short) from humble beginnings to enlistment in a mercenary company.

Paks runs away from home to avoid the arranged marriage that her father set up, and enlists in the mercenary army of Duke Phelan. A large part of this novel gives a semi-realistic portrayal of the life of a grunt in a medieval army - including weapon drills, digging jacks, and the thrill of the first battle. Meanwhile, the fantasy world starts to flesh out with its own geography, history and mythology. The novel finishes with a satisfying conflict that will want you to get part 2 of "The Deed of Paksenarrion" as soon as you can.

If you enjoy good fantasy, you will probably enjoy this novel. If you enjoyed "Ash: A Secret History" by Mary Gentle and "The Black Company" by Glen Cook, you absolutely have to buy this book.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: I don't get it..I thought it was awful...
Review: I absolutely do not understand how anyone could like this book. I HATED it. I was unable to finish it. I found it to be plodding, jerky, and unpolished. The main character just went from one battle to another, and none of the battles she fought seemed to me to have any exciting characteristics to differentiate them. Also, some of the fantasy language was just ridiculous! For example, and I still laugh about this to myself sometimes, having read this book two years ago (Well, part of it, I really couldn't finish it.), an officer asks her if she's a lesbian, he says: "Are you a sisli?" It's little things, like using silly sounding words, tht make or break a fantasy book for me, and to be honest, The Deed of Paksennarion really didn't cut it for me. I really just found the whole book to be a ridiculous, and ridiculously boring affair.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: The start of one of the best fantasy series of all time
Review: I don't care for many of Moon's later works, but it is obvious she poured her heart and soul into her first fantasy trilogy known as The Deed of Paksenarrion. This book (along with the two that follow in the trilogy) were so good that I had a hard time reading any other books for a while afterwards. I had a hard time finding another book that lived up to the high standard this one set. Moon has been compared to Tolkien (what decent fantasy writer hasn't been?), but she builds her world on the small details instead of the broad strokes of Tolkien. It is those small details that bring Moon's characters and world alive like no other fantasy world I've read about. Moon is also a master manipulator of emotions. She will have you laughing throughout one chapter and crying throughout the next. Moon has no aversion to dealing with the death of characters you grow to love which makes it all the more real.That it features a strong and intelligent female lead that doesn't get all goofy over some cliched heroic male is also refreshing.I just wish Moon would get back to her roots and write more books about this great heroine.

Rating: 1 stars
Summary: This book was blah.
Review: I hated this book. It was boring as hell. By the time I got to the umpteenth battle scene about halfway through, I was still looking for a reason to continue reading and finally just put the book down. The plot is mundane and supporting characters are fustratingly killed off just when you think it might get interesting. I think the writer tried too hard to make this a realistic representation of mercenary life instead of a fantasy book. All the main character does is march, fight, eat, sleep, spend her mercenary money, and use the latrine. This is only the second book in my life I've ever started and couldn't finish.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: WOW!
Review: I have read this author before, but I have not been so rivitted to a book since Dragonriders of Pern. I could not put this down. I finished this book in 2 days and started the second one right away. The characters are well written but a little hard to follow, which will just make me read it again. Thanks for the enjoyment.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of the best
Review: I have recommended this book to many many people and every one has enjoyed it (except for one who thought is was just a "so so" book). The story is about what it takes to make a "hero." You litteraly start in the trenches and see the life of a "common soldier." Book two moves on to the next step as Paks (the hero) becomes a "soldier for good." The final step in the trilogy shows you the cost that it takes to earn the title "hero." I would warn you that these books are hard to put down and the characters are hard to forget.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: One of the best
Review: I have recommended this book to many many people and every one has enjoyed it (except for one who thought is was just a "so so" book). The story is about what it takes to make a "hero." You litteraly start in the trenches and see the life of a "common soldier." Book two moves on to the next step as Paks (the hero) becomes a "soldier for good." The final step in the trilogy shows you the cost that it takes to earn the title "hero." I would warn you that these books are hard to put down and the characters are hard to forget.

Rating: 4 stars
Summary: One of the grittier SF to come around in a long time.
Review: I really enjoyed this book as demonstrated by the mark that I gave it. One of the main features that I found most endearing was the fact that there was a realism found in few other books. When Elizabeth Moon describes camp chores or marching along a trail you do not have this smoothing over of the aches and pains. In one instance you have "Paks" in the front of the column dreaming of marching into battle and as soon as the column rotates so she is eating everybody's dust you can tell that she quickly tires of the monotony. I enjoyed the way that this portrays the battles. As a lowly private, a character would rarely know what is going on beyond her small section of it. This was successfully incorporated into the novel which again points to the realism of it. And the most important....People actually die in this book. This has been an area which irratates me the most. When I read other books you have a bunch of sub-characters that die off leaving the main characters to sail off into the suset. Elizabeth Moon does not do this. She has characters that she develops and then die with all the attendant shock one would have if a person were to die in real life...questioning god, doubting yourself, and questioning your motivation of this particular kind of work...All in all a very well done piece


<< 1 2 3 >>

© 2004, ReviewFocus or its affiliates