Rating: Summary: Where's all the action!!!!! Review: A massive disapointment! The fact that none of the main characters were safe from Lynn's overkill habit, meant that I could not settle in to the story. The whole book is a huge build up to something you expect to a a massive climax. There is almost no action through out, and the final struggle seems nothing more than a skirmish. Sorry, but I need action in my heroic fantasy.
Rating: Summary: The Greatest Review: As soon as I read it, Dragon's Winter became my favorite book. The characters are so real and the story is so compelling. This is one of the only novels I've read where I've actually loved the characters and felt their emotions. I also like the way the villain's opinion was expressed a little so it didn't seem like he was just an awful traitor. I love Elizabeth A. Lynn's style of writing. It is one that you can never get bored of and one that keeps your attention throughout the entire novel.
Rating: Summary: Splendid Tale of a World with Dragons Review: Elizabeth Lynn succeeds on three levels in this wonderful novel. First, the world she evokes is tangible in its detail, neither contrived nor a cookie-cutter medieval setting. The dragons receive an unusual take on their role in society, one which incorporates other magical beings as well.Second, the characters are compelling and interesting all, from the brothers around whom the story revolves, to the other changelings Wolf, Hawk, and Bear, to the soldiers, merchants, and even despicable henchmen. A large cast of characters is rendered so that one can distinguish between them, a trait not shared by all fantasy novels. Finally, Lynn plots and paces the novel well, revealing the world she so carefully created without bogging the story down with lots of exposition and description. Most of the details about the world are presented appropriately from the characters' perspectives, and not forced upon the reader.
Rating: Summary: Elizabeth Lynn at her best Review: For years I have been wondering when Elizabeth Lynn would start writing again. Her prose style is the best in her genre. She manages to say more with a few words than other writers can say in pages. Her characters stay with you after the story is done. I hope there is more to come.
Rating: Summary: I found Dragon's Winter to be an entertaining book. Review: I decided to read this book as my book report. I found this book to be treat, but I could do without my favorite characters getting killed and tortured. I enjoyed how she gave all of the women in her book integrity and dignity. However, I think Lynn should show more of the main character's thoughts and reactions to various situations. I gave her a four because it held my interest.
Rating: Summary: Very good but not the best book I've ever read. Review: I enjoyed this book, but the characters lacked a little something (more details perhaps?) that would have put the book over the top. The plot and story were completely captivating and the fantasy involved was different enough from the normal genre to be interesting. A sequel would be very appriciated.
Rating: Summary: I belive this book is a great one Review: I fell this is a very chalenging book ecspecially for a first time reader. i'm 14 and my brother is 11 and he can't understand the first thing about the book, over all it is a very deep book . A excellent book one for the ages.
Rating: Summary: Not a Dancer book Review: I found Dragon's Winter beautiful but often hard to follow. The names and the places were hard to keep track of, although they were perfectly workable as feeling real and not fake. It was hard to tell which were the important ones to remember and which the ones just peppered in for the story. What killed the book for me was the amount of gore and the savagery, and the killing off of the most sympa characters, however, Lynn's skill with characterization and description is still there. I read her trilogy of northern something books some years ago and they were strange and different and good. This is not like them. I think this book would appeal to those who like their fantasy on the strong and unsweet side. Some might compare Lynn's bitter fantasy element with that of Sheri S. Tepper, but I would not. Those who like Tepper may or may not like this book. I think Tepper's work is more ultimately transcendental and heartening. Lynn does such a good job of creating unique and real characters though.
Rating: Summary: Not a Dancer book Review: I found Dragon's Winter beautiful but often hard to follow. The names and the places were hard to keep track of, although they were perfectly workable as feeling real and not fake. It was hard to tell which were the important ones to remember and which the ones just peppered in for the story. What killed the book for me was the amount of gore and the savagery, and the killing off of the most sympa characters, however, Lynn's skill with characterization and description is still there. I read her trilogy of northern something books some years ago and they were strange and different and good. This is not like them. I think this book would appeal to those who like their fantasy on the strong and unsweet side. Some might compare Lynn's bitter fantasy element with that of Sheri S. Tepper, but I would not. Those who like Tepper may or may not like this book. I think Tepper's work is more ultimately transcendental and heartening. Lynn does such a good job of creating unique and real characters though.
Rating: Summary: Lyrical high fantasy Review: I have long thought that there is a dearth of lyrical writers such as Patricia McKillip and Robin McKinley in the fantasy genre. It was with delight, then, that I discovered Elizabeth Lynn's _Dragon's Winter_. Her style of writing is beautiful and smooth, letting you flow from one page to the next. And although elements of the plot are familiar to any veteran reader--betrayal, shapechangers, kingship--they are pieced together in a compelling fashion. Characterization is subtle but definitely present. The major character, Karadur Atani, is a reserved man with a temper, yet it is easy to sympathize with his tragedy and urge him toward victory. Lynn devotes time to other characters, even the minor ones, as well, crafting them with an elegance that makes you mourn them when they pass out of sight. My main complaint here would be about the antagonist. There is only a pretense at offering a full-fledged motive for him, and all of the villains turn out flat. The other lack in this novel would be in the world-buildling. There are some details that are oversimplified, especially in contrast to the richness Lynn displays in other parts. Although the intensity of the latter is more than welcome, it seems to have drained careful consideration from some areas. Still, it's a worthwhile read. It's best to let the words wash over you, in the manner of music, and concentrate on enjoying what you can and overlooking what you can't. The ending may disappoint some, but a little thought can yield satisfaction with the conclusion.
|