Rating: Summary: A book that can easily become one you can't put down Review: This book happened to be one that I grabbed off of the shelf, not knowing a lot about either the author or the series. Little did I know that I would soon be going out scouring bookstores in order to finish my collection!The thing that really grabbed me about this series was the characters. Green does a wonderful job developing each and every one of them as well as their connections to each other. Yes, the style of writing can get a little repetitive (it shifts between the main characters' points of view), but all you have to do is get through the first couple of chapters and it doesn't matter! The writing style even becomes refreshing because it allows you to see how the different characters deal with ideas and problems differently, adding a great deal of intrigue to the story. I consistently found myself reading on and on through the series just to find out what happened to everyone! It is one of those books that you just can't put down after you start! The story is about five strangers, Lorand, Tamrissa, Vallant, Rion, and Jovvi, each with a different, but strong, magical gift (earth, fire, water, air, and spirit), who live in a world where everyone has their own magic. The five meet and "converge" in this book, and then Green begins to masterfully weave her characters and story with romance, suspense, and action. I don't want to give anything away, but I can tell you that each book is a cliffhanger, so you shouldn't wait to get the next one so that you have it on hand when you finish the first!
Rating: Summary: I Starting Reading it Only Becasuse... Review: ...she has the same last name as me. I made sure to only check out the 1st three, just in case I didn't like the first one and if I did I would have enough to read before I got the last two. It was very hard at first to start reading...and she kept switching between the main charaters. I didn't like that at first but I guess you needed to see 'how' that person completed their tasks, and to understand where their talents lay. I think the hardest part was trying to believe the primise behind the story; but after you meet all of them Fire, Air, Water, Earth & Sprit you do begin to believe in her story of this world based on magic. I also felt that some of the problems that they faced reminded me of some things we all 'might' face in our lives: self-doubt, being in small places, criticism, unloved, abandonedment. I will say one thing for sure the 'evil' people started to make me want to screem after awhile. "If you don't do something I will..." That all said, I did enjoy reading the 1st three, in four days, so I went back for the other two. Now, I'm on the hunt for the next set...Enjoy!!
Rating: Summary: A decent fantasy series, with an intruiging idea for a world Review: Imagine a world where everyone had at least a little magic. This is what Sharon Green has done with her "Blending" series, a five-book series following the lives of Tamrissa, Jovi, Clarion, Lorand, and Vallant. Touched and able to manipulate the elements of Fire, Spirit, Air, Earth and Water respectfully, the five are likely the most powerful wielders of this elemental magic seen in a very long time - but are they the five spoken of in a long-ago prophecy? The characters themselves keep this book going. The writing style itself can get a little clunky, and there's a real sense of repetition to the book as each character has to undergo the same events before they meet - and even after - that sometimes gets a little bit frustrating. The characters themselves, however, especially the women of the story, are really a worthy read. What is also interesting to explore is a society that thrives with magic. When you have people with Earth magic capable of Encouraging a crop to grow, and people with Fire magic to defend your borders, and people with Spirit magic to soothe and calm the agitated, the world of technology becomes less and less likely. What Green has put together for this world as a setting was very interesting in and of itself. As the series progresses, in the original five books, it gets better. It's worth struggling through the flat and/or repetitious parts in this book to go further. 'Nathan
Rating: Summary: Good story Review: Altogether, I loved this book, and it made me want to continue reading the series. The characters were very well-developed, and the plot was very creative and interesting. The problem is the writing. The author switches between five points of view. This would be fine, except that one of the points of view is in first person, while the rest are in third person. Secondly, they are not arranged in any order: they begin in one order, and end up in a completely different order. Finally, the first person point of view character began some of the chapters, with a little bit in italics. The writing in these was not very good, and definitely detracted from the rest of the book. I finally got used to it, though, and as I said, greatly enjoyed it. When I read the second book, this style no longer bothered me. If you can get past it, it's definitely worth the read.
Rating: Summary: Ho hum.. Review: Five people {Tamrissa (fire), Vallant (water), Rion/Clarion (air), Lorand (earth), Jovvi (spirit)} are focus of the book. Each controls one of the five elements with amazing control. The enemies seem to fall into the sterotype and although the (for lack of better term) good guys have their faults and their emotional problems the characters seem to be a bit exaggerated for my likely. Some of the situations seemed to be less believable than others (such is Tamrissa's being beaten by her husband) and although the plot is quite strong it does seem to go downhill after the first book. Read with caution
Rating: Summary: Excellent... read in one week(fast for me)! Review: Wow... I'm astounded. For one who's picky about books, I was blown away. Great pacing, great characters.... great everything! My favorite was Lorand.I liked the Rashaman element to the first 10 chapters. Great book... stop browsing and buy THIS!
Rating: Summary: I didn't know writing that bad actually got published! Review: It isn't just the appalling repetition that makes this and the other four books the worst fiction I've ever had the misfortune to come across, it was also the incredibly heavy handed moralising and lecturing that drove me crazy. At times it read like a peer support manual for pre-teens - "he/she is the one with the problem, but you need to sort out your own feelings about it" etc (or words to that effect - it's been a while since I read them). I would dearly love to know exactly what age group Ms Green is aiming at, but she sure missed if it is meant to be the 13+ group. It is on the adult reading shelves of my library and bookshop but I think this is a serious mistake. The writing is very clunky - no flow and very unsophisticated. I read the Harry Potter books after this series and even though they are meant to be aimed at children, they have more intelligence and sophistication in any two sentences than the entire Blending series. If you like your fantasy fiction to have more brilliance than a five watt lightbulb, then I would seriously advise you to avoid the Blending series.
Rating: Summary: Fantasy romance title Review: I will never read a Harlequin romance novel and yet, somehow I got hooked on this novel which in many respects fits the romance category almost as strongly as the fantasy genre. In a nutshell, five talented individuals are brought together as applicants for high practitioner of their "aspect". An "aspect" is the area that an individual can influence through mental concentration. Convergeance introduces the 5 aspects of Earth, Air, Water, Fire, and Spirit. Each year, those individuals with strong affinities for an aspect are required to go to the capital to test their strength. Every 25 years, "blendings" of 5 talents can compete to become the rulers of the nation. No one really knows what happens to those who fail. Green introduces each character, brings them together for a chapter or two, and then describes their struggles and testing. While sometimes repetitive, I found Green's technique rather comfortable and enjoyable as I watched each character deal with the same types of problems in subtly different ways. Then she brings the characters back in touch with each other again so that they can compare notes and interact in friendship and intimacy. Quite an endearing book. You may want to make sure that you have the second novel handy as you near the end of Convergeance (Book 2 is called Competitions), because Green leaves you hanging.
Rating: Summary: SO many words can describe this book, as wordless as I am Review: This book is one of the most enhancing and creative books that I have read in years. I am being forced to buy the remaining four books because of the author. Her use of words is so great and descriptive, as well as smooth. It is one of the books that you can't put down easily. She takes you to each of the charectors going back into time a couple of times to introduce the dramatic difficulty that they had to go through. She thought of it all. Even if you go through the same period of time, each time it is a different story being told a different way. I am lift breathless and astonished by this book, it is almost as if the author speaks from experience. I am very excited about reading the others. To learn more about how Lorand overcomes his clastiphobia, and Tamrissa learns to control her temper, as well as Clarion new found man-hood and personality, to the perfect Jovi and her new found love, and Vallant, who's only problem seems to be that he has an ex and a crush. All of it is a mystery waiting to be solved.
Rating: Summary: Convergence: Book 1 of the Blending Review: I got this book from a friend for free and at first it did not look interesting, so I left it to the bottom of the pile. When I had finished reading the other books my friend gave me I decided I might as well try this one, so I picked it up and began reading. I thought it was great and could not wait to see what happened next. I have bought every book since and am looking forward to the next one coming out in April. Only complaint I have is that Ms. Green needs to write faster =)
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