The White Tribunal

Rating:
Summary: "Where's the Beef?"
Review: A sorry cliche for a sorry novel. The White Tribunal fails to live up to the standard Ms. Volsky first introduced with Illusion. Lis Folaze is a world not realized by the author, and therefore not realized by the reader--being neither connected to her previous world of Illusion, The Wolf of Winter and the Gates of Twilight, nor being fully realized as a World unto itself. To replace the abysmal lack of the first necessity to Pure Fantasy (i.e. worldbuilding), Ms. Volsky supplies graphic horror. This bloodiness is indeed inventive, but does not further either the characters or the plot. The enemies are to be pitied, the heroes not well loved. Were the sense of place and objective better, the involuted character play would have been more apropos and intriguing--as it is, the obscurity bogs down the entire work. Ms. Volsky also enlightens us further to her "planar" concept of God, or gods, or Higher Astral Beings, or higher astral excrement as the case may be. This too is disturbing and distasteful. The love between the two main characters is superficial, the dialogue is heavy, the action skittish. Ms. Volsky has "sold out."--Emily C. A. Snyder

Rating:
Summary: Redeeming because it was so creepy and full of horror...
Review: All of the other criticisms of this book are pretty much on target. The story _did_ have a skimpy sort of vagueness to it remarkably similar to the foggy description given to the city of Liz Folaze. There were some plot holes too. For example, how did Yarune the Bloodless become such a terror to behold when the amount of power given by Xyleel was so limited that Tradaine used it all up in a matter of weeks? And if magical items continue to consume power with each use (as did the Vigilance created by "Dr. Flambeska"), how did the enchanted projection of Autonn keep working a century after the sorceror's demise?

But these problems can be excused when considered against the sheer force of personality of the liGurvohl character (I was actually scared of him!), the vividness of the torture scenes (I could feel the heat of the cauldron and imagine the suffering), and the black mood the author conveyed with the surety of Tradaine's awaiting torment when the last grain of his power fell. The finitude of magic in this world was a nice touch, as it paved the way for a character forced to consider each move carefully, and who must be preoccupied by his own unavoidable personal hell. Anyone who has ever been bullied or impelled by circumstances beyond their control would appreciate a tale such as this, where a weaker character pays the ultimate cost for the mastery of his destiny, if only for a short while. While many of the deeper existential issues broached here are never really explored by the story itself, I continued to mull them long after I turned the last page. I'll remember this one for some time to come, and will try some of Volsky's other works.

Rating:
Summary: Redeeming because it was so creepy and full of horror...
Review: All of the other criticisms of this book are pretty much on target. The story _did_ have a skimpy sort of vagueness to it remarkably similar to the foggy description given to the city of Liz Folaze. There were some plot holes too. For example, how did Yarune the Bloodless become such a terror to behold when the amount of power given by Xyleel was so limited that Tradaine used it all up in a matter of weeks? And if magical items continue to consume power with each use (as did the Vigilance created by "Dr. Flambeska"), how did the enchanted projection of Autonn keep working a century after the sorceror's demise?

But these problems can be excused when considered against the sheer force of personality of the liGurvohl character (I was actually scared of him!), the vividness of the torture scenes (I could feel the heat of the cauldron and imagine the suffering), and the black mood the author conveyed with the surety of Tradaine's awaiting torment when the last grain of his power fell. The finitude of magic in this world was a nice touch, as it paved the way for a character forced to consider each move carefully, and who must be preoccupied by his own unavoidable personal hell. Anyone who has ever been bullied or impelled by circumstances beyond their control would appreciate a tale such as this, where a weaker character pays the ultimate cost for the mastery of his destiny, if only for a short while. While many of the deeper existential issues broached here are never really explored by the story itself, I continued to mull them long after I turned the last page. I'll remember this one for some time to come, and will try some of Volsky's other works.

Rating:
Summary: Better than I expected
Review: But my expectations were pretty low. Basically the Count of Monte Cristo vs. the Spanish Inquisition, "The White Tribunal" keeps a good pace and has some vivid scenes, although this is not the book for readers who like to explore unusual fantasy realms. (And I'm not one of those readers)

There's a problem when two of the three villains of the piece are more complex and compelling than the protagonist, and that the third (least interesting) villain is the most powerful. It also doesn't help that so much is predictable, such as the budding romance, or the manner in which Tradain's "soul" is saved. Still, it was a fun read, if a little slight, and went down smoothly.

Rating:
Summary: Thin plot--superficial characters
Review: Having read "Illusions", I was unprepared for the lack of substance in this book. The city and culture of Lis Folaze never comes across. The only characters that are truly fleshed out are the antagonists. One fails to find sympathy with the protaginist. His need for revenge, while justified comes across more as a child with a tantrum. The character of Glennian is cardboard. Her offering to the presence Xyleel is ludicrous and poorly written. Likewise is the "love" that wilts between the two.

Oddly, the best written scenes are those of the torture. They come to life in shocking vividness. While it is the best part of the novel (as far as believability) it is out of place in the vagueness that composes the rest of the novel.

Rating:
Summary: Thin plot--superficial characters
Review: Having read "Illusions", I was unprepared for the lack of substance in this book. The city and culture of Lis Folaze never comes across. The only characters that are truly fleshed out are the antagonists. One fails to find sympathy with the protaginist. His need for revenge, while justified comes across more as a child with a tantrum. The character of Glennian is cardboard. Her offering to the presence Xyleel is ludicrous and poorly written. Likewise is the "love" that wilts between the two.

Oddly, the best written scenes are those of the torture. They come to life in shocking vividness. While it is the best part of the novel (as far as believability) it is out of place in the vagueness that composes the rest of the novel.

Rating:
Summary: on characters
Review: i feel like all of the people who said that the characters are flat weren't thinking of real people.

One problem I have is that Tradain sort of *is* the book. We get a veiw of thrid person limited from the antagonists almost soley when we are watching his magic. I think that if there were atleast a prologue building Gnaus as a character, and highlighting his break from liMarchborg and liTarngrav that would have improved out sense of the character. More history on how and why the witch-hunts grew so visious, and why people were so afraid to come out against them might have been nice too. Maybe she was afraid of ripping off illusion.

As far as complaints about Tradain.... what kind of character would you expect after what he goes through? I'm familiar (to a degree) with the psych of trauma. He shows some of the traits beautifully.

The person who suggested that reading the Compte of Monet Crisco may have been right that you need some sort of background that most people don't have to appreciate this book.

As far as Glennian goes I don't attribute her offer to Xyleel to the budding romance... I attributed it to her ideals, and her demonstrated impulsitivity.
That she doesn't, on her own, recognize Kwieseldt for the treachery he committed makes sense based on numerous theories across various feilds of psych and soc. Even if she did think about it she would probably just have assumed that he agreed with someone else's statement to avoid getting himself thrown in the pot-- much against his will. Some fuel for his paranoia did included that he had been among the most loyal of servants.

I think people didn't like this book because it didn't have a happy ending.

All that aside, I just plain LIKE the book, though i would have given it a 4 if there weren't so many horribly negative reviews.

Rating:
Summary: Not as good as I had hoped
Review: I have read, and liked, Paula Volsky's other books, so I couldn't help but be disappointed after I read the White Tribunal. The whole story seemed to lack the depth and feeling that I have found in her writing before. To me it felt like Volsky just took basic elements that you usually find in a good story and mixed them together to form a book that leaves you asking "Is that all?" Even the love between Tradain and Glennean felt like it was added on as an afterthought. I recommend that before you read this book you try some of Volsky's other works.

Rating:
Summary: Graphic torture and disgusting prose
Review: I put this book down after the first fifty pages due to the gratuitous torture scenes and disgusting descriptions of prison work. I didn't know enough about the characters to care about why all this misfortune was occurring, or to hope for a triumphant resolution. Other authors have put their characters through some Very Bad Times, but done it in a less graphic way. Avoid it.

Rating:
Summary: A shallow book? Nah.
Review: If you haven't read Alexandre Dumas's novel, "Le Comte de Monte Cristo", this book will seem like a fairy tale with a shallow plot and a cliched moral. If you haven't read it. Paula Volsky has retold the tale that Dumas wrote just after the Napoleanic era of France, once again putting it in a fantasy setting. And she does it with panache, if at times degenerating into young adult novelhood. On the whole, I really liked this book, but then again, I adored "The Count of Monte Cristo".