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Rating: 
Summary: definitely worth it!
Review: I read Lavondyss out of order, picking it up a year or so before I ever got a copy of Mythago Wood. Lavondyss was a heavy read, definitely not a "casual" novel, but absolutely worth the time and concentration you put into it. No, it's not a simple, linear story like most mass market fiction these days - there's a lot to digest and comprehend. It makes you think. In contrast, Mythago Wood was very easy to read and understand, and I think had I read it first, I would have had less trouble with Lavondyss. The plot of Lavondyss involves a young girl who enters and loses herself in an old-growth forest, where human minds create "mythagos," physical manifestations of primal legendary heros and villains. It's innovative fiction, in my opimion, but slightly hints of being an epic, similar to older "legend" novels like Beowulf. This story appealed to the romantic in me, and I even cried a little at the end. :) I can highly recommend both Mythago Wood and its sequel, Lavondyss.
Rating:
Summary: definitely worth it!
Review: I read Lavondyss out of order, picking it up a year or so before I ever got a copy of Mythago Wood. Lavondyss was a heavy read, definitely not a "casual" novel, but absolutely worth the time and concentration you put into it. No, it's not a simple, linear story like most mass market fiction these days - there's a lot to digest and comprehend. It makes you think. In contrast, Mythago Wood was very easy to read and understand, and I think had I read it first, I would have had less trouble with Lavondyss. The plot of Lavondyss involves a young girl who enters and loses herself in an old-growth forest, where human minds create "mythagos," physical manifestations of primal legendary heros and villains. It's innovative fiction, in my opimion, but slightly hints of being an epic, similar to older "legend" novels like Beowulf. This story appealed to the romantic in me, and I even cried a little at the end. :) I can highly recommend both Mythago Wood and its sequel, Lavondyss.
Rating: 
Summary: Spellbinding
Review: If you're one of these readers who have just dropped in and have read the other reviews then stop...Lavondyss isn't like the previous book 'Mythago Wood'its better, much , much better. This is an author who went for years with little or no recognition and then he writes a book based on English mythology and he hits paydirt. What would you do? Write another clone. No, Robert Holdstock fired by his success with 'Mythago Wood' writes the novel of a lifetime. A book he always wanted. Lavondyss is steeped in mythology. A different story occurs almost every page and all from the mind of the author but based on the form of the myth. All of them are brilliant and engrossing, terrifying even because this is not the myth of Tolkien(another scholar of mythology) but a myth based on the great stories of Irish and English Mythology where terrible and amazing things happen. You know its a story but it touches you all the same. He has the capacity to tell a story and leave you thinking Bl**dy Hell! Its long..yes, I'll grant you that but you don't want to leave his world and it has a structure so tightly bound that everything you read leads towards the ending. Maybe you Americans have an adversion to stories that have a unsettled ending but the truth is.. its life . That's the way things are and this book had a great effect on me. If you're tired of Sub-Tolkien stories about elves and fairies then get into the real thing. Robert Holdstock is a genius writer who has been ignored for far too long.
Rating:
Summary: Haunting
Review: Lavondyss is not as accessible as Mythago Wood; however, for me, it was even more rewarding. It's best if you read it slow, savoring the detail, the imagery and the incredible scope. I've read it several times. Each time, after finishing, it tends to haunt me for days and days. I also find it to be profoundly sad, but not in a bad way. I STRONGLY recommend Lavondyss.
Rating: 
Summary: Good for a While
Review: This book was good... For some time. But after about 100 pages it falls apart. The intro. Is great, and is one of the best beginings I ever read! Its about a guy talking to a ghost. But then it loses it compleatly. Stick to Mythago Wood.
Rating: 
Summary: A disappointment after Mythago Wood
Review: This story started out pretty cool, but the second half turned into the typical muddled time-travel story that's so riddled with logical gaps and implausibilities and "why didn't they just..." scenarios that I finished the book a very upset reader. Stay away from this one.
Rating:
Summary: strong coming of age horror fantasy tale
Review: When she was five her grandfather gave her his greatest possession his book of myths accompanied by a letter containing hints about her missing older sibling Harry. Over the next eight years, Tallis turns into a believer in the shadows of the supernatural and magical realms that surround her home. Tallis also remains steadfast that her missing older brother Harry still lives, but somehow lost his way in the mystical Ryhope Wood. Now thirteen, she feels obsessed to help Harry, who she senses is in danger, but not sure from what.
Taking the magic that her grandfather left her and using the clues in his letter, Tallis, frightened by the unknown she ventures towards, follows Harry trail into the Otherworld until the ancient forest turns into the horrific realm of Lavondyss. If she survives the early tests, there the Mythagos will confront the teen. Soon she will know that her goal is not just to try to save Harry, but to survive her ordeal.
LAVONDYSS is a strong coming of age horror tale that teens and adult will enjoy. The story line is action-packed once Tallis takes that first step out of her haven into the realm of deadly mythos. The Mythagos is an intriguing creature created by the "physical manifestations of the legends of humanity's collective unconscious" of which Tallis' fears and courage surely adds layers. The story line never slows down as this sequel to the wonderful MYTHAGOS WOOD is a delightful stand alone tale that readers will shiver and appreciate as they join Tallis on her mission into the dangerous unknown.
Harriet Klausner
Rating:
Summary: An enriching journey
Review: With patience and dedication, this is a weird and wonderful book.Lavondyss delves deeper into myth than Mythago Wood dared go, illuminates intriguing areas left dark, but on the flip side, Lavondyss isn't as exciting, as fast paced, as the first book. I felt that as an embellishment and continuation of Mythago Wood, Lavondyss is definitely deserving of 5 stars, but as a stand-alone it's only worth 4. I would recommend Mythago Wood first, but if after that book you're intrigued at all, then this book is the answer. (An answer that leaves more questions than before, but isn't that like all the best answers?)
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