Banewreaker (The Sundering, Book 1)

Rating:
Summary: No real characters
Review: After throroughly enjoying the Kusheil series, especially because of the strong character development, and the focus on the characters interacting, and the tension between good and evil presented in a complex, rich, living texture, this Banewreaker book was a letdown. Stuck with it out of some blind sense of duty to an author I'd previously enjoyed. It's a too complex world, and there isn't one character who actually draws you in. It's all battles and politics-without richness. Just structure. No heart. what happened to this author?

Rating:
Summary: Derivative but gripping
Review: Carey's Kushiel trilogy was exciting in that it was wholly original and beautifully written. While her writing remains powerful, the plot here is clearly derived from many different fantasty sources, not the least of which is the Lord of the Rings. Nevertheless, she weaves the borrowed elements seamlessly, and this seems a more subtle story than her previous novels. As the first in the series, this is definitely worth reading, and I expect the second novel to show more of Carey's sublime imagination.

Rating:
Summary: Fascinating
Review: I finally got to read this. I had a hint of some negative reviews, so I was a bit nervous, but, surprise! I like it a lot!
It's completely different from the Kushiel series, and I can see how some fans of that would be disappointed -- no sex here, for starters -- but it's a fascinating book. Basically Carey took The Lord of the Rings and recast it, telling it now from the other side's point of view. The suspense of course, is that we all know that that story ended badly for the Dark side; can it be otherwise in this world?
Some character quibbles: It's too bad that we only get into Sartoris head during the prologue, and Cerelinde is annoyingly slap-worthy. Tanaros, Lilias and Ushasin are all strong, interesting characters. Can't wait for the sequel.


Rating:
Summary: Unique Concept and Fair Book
Review: I like how she has the view point from the losing side but I would not call the losing side Evil. It is more from the side of a Shaper who said no to remove his gift from men for the 1st born Shaper causing this 1st born Shaper to try and desroy this Shaper. Since the introduction to the book says this is the story of the Evil side & they must lose - you can kind of figure what's going to take place. I'm sure it will be a nice twist based on my reading books from Jacquline in the past.

It's a Fantasy book so most fantasy books are about alternative worlds with different kinds of creatures like men and at times can have dragons and magic. Also, there are fights between good and evil in some fantasy books. Maybe this is what people mean when they compare the book to Lord of the Rings? Other than that I do not see it being a rip off of Lord of the Rings. It is a very unique book and in a class to itself.

The Kushiel trilogy was possibly my favorite story that I have read and so I wanted to give this book a chance. I gave the book 3 stars because I do love the concept of the book; however, this is a book that I can put down at long lengths of time without missing it. I'm only half way through the book so maybe that will change when I get 3/4's into the book. I'm finding myself reading short stories and other books while reading this book so it's not a real attention grabber. But at the same time it is not a horrible book. It does keep my attention enough to want to know how things will end up by the end of this book.

Jacqueline Carey is a wonderful writer and I do enjoy her style of writing but I just cannot get fully into this story line. I love how she updates her website http://www.jacquelinecarey.com/ & keeps her fans up to date. I'm going to finish reading this book & then I'm going to look forward to her new series that is a continuation from her Kushiel trilogy. I do miss reading about Phedre and her friends/associates.


Rating:
Summary: Banewreaker
Review: I think the system ate my last review, so, trying again...

I really enjoyed this book. To me, the strong similarities to Tolkien, particularly the similarity to the mythic part of the SILMARILLION, and the overall familiar multi-species fantasy setting work well here -- because I think that without the familiar setting, the turnaround that Carey is doing would be lost on many readers. She's writing here from the point of view of the "dark" side, throwing down a gauntlet of challenge to the good-versus-evil oversimplification that has become the fantasy standard. Some neat worldbuilding elements, like an immortal wound eternally bleeding ichor and the world seen fragmented and flying through ravens' eyes, do sneak in as well.

As well as being thematically interesting, BANEWREAKER is a good story. I found myself drawn in to the characters and their plight. The book avoids generalizations -- it's not just "the bad guys are good guys", it's "there are no easy choices," and for me that helped keep things interesting. The writing is workmanlike rather than artistic and the characterization fairly broad, but it kept me interested and engaged. I look forward to the sequels.

Rating:
Summary: Change is good
Review: I've been a fan of Carey all along, and I grabbed this as soon as I could. Yes, the beginning was kind of slow, and I had to read it twice to be sure who was who in the world, but I enjoyed this book, and I don't understand everyone's complaints. If you wanted another Kushiel, go read that trilogy again. This is completely different, and I loved it. It showed all the sides and keeps you guessing on who's good or bad, which is nice, because you get the chance to fall in love with all the characters, then hate them later if you must. It's a good fantasy read. Carey still has the magic to keep her readers going. I can't wait for the sequel, because just like the Kushiel series, at the end, you still want more.

Rating:
Summary: Excellent premise, good characters, annoying paradigm
Review: Like most of the reviewers, I loved the Kushiel series, and leaped eagerly on a new Jacqueline Carey book. Also like most of the reviewers, I was more than a bit taken aback at what I found.

After getting 50 pages in and letting the book sit for several weeks (shocking enough by itself, for me) I finally finished it today. It took longer than it should have to draw me in, but it finally did so, although never completely.

The main problem, I think, is that she elected to work out her ideas about the polarization of good and evil in a mishmash of every High Fantasy world that's been created in the last 100 years. You'd have to be stone blind to miss the Tolkienisms, and another reader noted the significant similarity to Eddings' books. She admits in her own website blog that she did this deliberately, which mollified some of my pique - she wasn't just being oblivious or stupid. However, the fact that she used this *very* heavily-traveled structure is the thing that seems to irritate us the most. Her ideas are great, and I'm particularly drawn to the idea that "evil" is often a necessary reaction against the velvet tyranny of "good". However, she could have worked this out in a number of different models that all would have met with less resistance from readers.

The number of characters complaint surprised me - every single Kushiel book throws new people at you by the dozen. I think the difference is that she paints her people less vividly in this world - her whole style, including the third-person perspective, is much more stark and clipped than the lush vividness of Terre d'Ange through Phedre's eyes. The characters take longer to come to life, and therefore it's much harder to keep track of who everyone is and why they're important. Tanaros is the only one who came alive for me immediately; even Satoris is more absent than present, for all that it's really his story!

When all is said and done, though, Carey writes better than most and her work is still solidly enjoyable. I admire her greatly for doing what she's done here - she could have cranked out a dozen Terre d'Ange books to the same roaring acclaim that the first three produced before attempting to explore a different direction. It took a lot of courage to follow her own ideas, in a direction I'm sure she knew would not be as well-received, so soon after her initial triumph.

The first book in the Imriel trilogy is done, and we'll get that one in early 2006, according to her website. I know they will have a different flavor, but I have little doubt that they will be just as spectacular as the Phedre books - she has set up a whole host of interesting and thorny issues to play out, and Imriel is already a magnificent character. For all of us Terre d'Ange junkies, that will keep us going. In the meantime, I'll look forward to Godslayer so I can at least see what happens in this story, and I'll continue to look forward to any of Jacqueline Carey's work.

Rating:
Summary: Challenging
Review: Most of the previous reviews emphasize the differences between this book and the Kushiel trilogy, but I think I would have recognized them as products of the same author without Jacqueline Carey's name on the cover. She has a gift for crafting stories with complicated, ambiguous characters who challenge our moral presumptions and steering our loyalties in unexpected directions. While I loved the intricacy of the plot in the Kushiel trilogy, the violent sex seemed kind of gimmicky to me; I was very glad to see that Carey could write an interesting book without using such a device again.

Rating:
Summary: This isn't a Comic Book
Review: Nor is this Tolkein...The closest book to this one I can think of is "The Mermaid's Children". This is not a simple book.. and will take a lot of thought to get through.. GREAT!!!(personal opinion). I don't know how this series will turn out.. but book one of this series would be the LAST book in many other series where all the gods/heros/champions/librarians fight to the bitter end (example CS Lewis's The Last Battle). And while while Major characters are killed in an almost 'Ringo' like blitheness (How could you!!!! pg 312 HB) Spme faint hope appears hear and there.


This is NOT a simple Fantasy...its complex and as messy as real life. only more so. In the end.. I was left rooting for characters.. not sides.

Rating:
Summary: Two sides to every story
Review: This is a truly original work, and it is a truly great novel. We're all familiar with the myriad variations of what boils down to a Tolkien-esque story: The good guys, comprised of many races and nations, rouse themselves to defeat the bad guys. Tolkien created this genre, or at least, he set the standard. It's unfair to judge an author on her fourth novel by comparing her to the great Tolkien and pronouncing that "she has come up short". Or even to compare this novel to her earlier ones and say that she's "not up to par". This novel, for one thing, is a departure from her Kushiel Trilogy. That Trilogy is OVER. Carey is no David Eddings, to continue going over the same ground. And Carey's goal never was to compete with Tolkien. What Carey has done with this book is show us that the "bad guys" aren't necessarily all that bad.

It's a fact of human nature that when two people disagree with one another, each will believe they are right and the other is wrong. What makes this novel so intriguing is that we are comfortably familiar with the "company of good guys" out to "defeat the evil monster". And the reason for this is that the Tolkien-esque plot has been done over, and over, and over. What HASN'T been done is sharing the story of the "bad guy". As I read this novel, I was forced to ponder why I identified so strongly with the players who were "supposed" to be bad. They were noble. They were loyal. They believed they were right. Imagine Sauron, from the Lord of the Rings, as just a normal guy who can't figure out why his neighbors keep starting fights with him when all he wants is to be left alone. He isn't out to conquer the world; he just wants to defend his small corner of it. He defends himself from their attacks, and then watches as they dust themselves off and try again. If they would just leave him alone, he'd be glad to do the same.

Of course, a major difference between the minions of Sauron and the followers of Satoris, in Banewreaker, are that the Fjelltrolls are not malicious and wicked slayers of innocents. They do what they're forced to, by circumstances, but they don't mount raiding parties for no better reason than "they like it"-unlike Tolkien's orcs. They are actually quite capable of demonstrating kindness and loyalty and brotherhood.

The man who serves Satoris as his general is a person every bit as noble and honorable and intelligent as any "Aragorn", even though his master is supposed to be a monster. The man who serves Satoris' foe, Haomane, in a Gandalf-esqe role, is every bit as powerful and cunning as Gandalf was, but seen from "the other side", he's also a bit of a jerk, who is not above tricking or bullying others to get his way.

It makes you realize that while the Alliance of men and ellylon (elves) are convinced they are right, when you watch the story unfold from the point of view of the "other guy", they begin to come off not as heroes, but as bullies. Not so much faithful as misguided. And the "bad guys" start to look pretty good in comparison.

After reading this novel, you'll have a whole new perspective, and appreciation, for the inescapable fact that there are always at least two sides to any story.