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Seregil of Rhiminee

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THE READER’S VOICE

Book Reviews

Seregil of Rhiminee’s own thoughts on books they have read. These are reader-written book reviews, separate from Risingshadow’s editorial reviews.

260 book reviews
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Tome of the Undergates

BOOK REVIEW

Tome of the Undergates

Sam Sykes

6/10Written Apr 22, 2010Edited Apr 22, 2010

Tome of the Undergates was an interesting and readable debut book, but in my opinion it wasn't an excellent book.

I both liked and didn't like this book. This book contained interesting things, but unfortunately the author could've written certain scenes better. Fortunately towards the end the book became more interesting and I liked it more than during the first pages.

I think that Sam Sykes has potential. I hope that he's able to improve his writing style.

Shadowrise

BOOK REVIEW

Shadowrise

Tad Williams

10/10Written Mar 9, 2010Edited Mar 9, 2010

Tad Williams' Shadowmarch series has been a pleasant surprise. This series is well written epic fantasy - the story is good and the characters are interesting.

Shadowrise contains good synopses of Shadowmarch and Shadowplay. I think it's great that this book contains synopses of the previous books, because they give the reader a chance to recollect what happened before.

Shadowrise is as good and entertaining as Shadowmarch and Shadowplay. It was worth waiting for, because the story is good. The only bad thing is that you have to wait a couple of months before you can read how the story ends.

In my opinion Shadowrise is excellent entertainment for fantasy readers. If you've read the previous books, you'll like this book. I'm looking forward to reading the final book, Shadowheart.

The Steel Remains

BOOK REVIEW

The Steel Remains

Richard K. Morgan

8/10Written Feb 13, 2010Edited Feb 13, 2010

Richard Morgan's The Steel Remains is an interesting and well written fantasy book, but in my opinion it isn't an exceptionally good book, because it doesn't bring anything new to the fantasy genre.

Some people have said that this book contains lots of explicit sex and violence and that's why it's different from other fantasy books. This is true, but experienced fantasy readers have read about sex and violence before, so they're used to it. Readers who have read only basic epic fantasy may think this book is a bit shocking, but experienced readers will probably think it's just a normal modern fantasy book.

The Steel Remains is an enjoyable and entertaining fantasy book for adults, but it isn't a perfect book. It's worth reading, because the story is good and the characters are interesting, but it could be a bit better.

Dreamsongs: A RRetrospective

BOOK REVIEW

Dreamsongs: A RRetrospective

George R. R. Martin

10/10Written Feb 9, 2010Edited Feb 9, 2010

Dreamsongs is an excellent collection of George R.R. Martin's short stories. This collection contains several fantastic, fascinating and well written stories. I think that this collection is a great example of Martin's writing skills.

This collection contains such stories as A Song for Lya, Sandkings, The Ice Dragon, The Hedge Knight and Meathouse Man. All these stories are worth reading and so are the other stories.

I highly recommend Dreamsongs to all fantasy and science fiction readers. If you've never read any of George R.R. Martin's novellas, you should buy this collection. When you'll read it, you'll soon find out why readers praise Martin.

The Price of Spring

BOOK REVIEW

The Price of Spring

Daniel Abraham

10/10Written Feb 9, 2010Edited Feb 9, 2010

I think that Daniel Abraham's The Long Price Quartet is one of the best fantasy series ever written. He writes good and fluent prose. Each new book in this series has been better than the previous book, which is quite an achievement.

In my opinion The Price of Spring is an amazingly good and well written book. It's a perfect and interesting end to an original fantasy series. I liked the story and I enjoyed reading about the characters.

The Price of Spring is a great book. I can recommend it to readers who have read the previous books. I'm sure that you won't regret reading this book.

The Spirit Lens

BOOK REVIEW

The Spirit Lens

Carol Berg

8/10Written Jan 20, 2010Edited Jan 20, 2010

Carol Berg has been one of my favourite fantasy authors for a long time. She's always been a good writer, because her books are entertaining and addictive. In my opinion The Spirit Lens is a great example of how well she can write entertaining and addictive fantasy books.

The Spirit Lens is an entertaining fantasy book, because the characters are fascinating (I liked the main character very much) and the story is simply fantastic (it was a pleasure to read Berg's lush descriptions). This book combines fantasy and mystery elements in a perfect way - once you start reading this book, you won't stop until you've reached the final page.

The Spirit Lens is a perfect book for readers who enjoy reading entertaining fantasy books. This book is so good that it causes sleep deprivation (if you start reading this book in the evening, you'll read it all through the night). ;)

Arms-Commander

BOOK REVIEW

Arms-Commander

L. E. Modesitt, Jr.

8/10Written Jan 14, 2010Edited Jan 14, 2010

Arms-Commander was an interesting Recluce book. I've enjoyed reading all the previous Recluce books and I also enjoyed reading this new book (I have to confess that I'm a Recluce fan).

I liked the characters (Saryn was an interesting character) and I also liked the story. I think it's amazing that the author can still write good and interesting stories, because he's already written several Recluce books (not every author can write like this, but Modesitt can).

I think that Arms-Commander is a "must read" book for all Recluce fans. If you've read the previous books and enjoyed them, you'll like this book.

Promise of the Wolves

BOOK REVIEW

Promise of the Wolves

Dorothy Hearst

4/10Written Dec 16, 2009Edited Dec 16, 2009

Promise of the Wolves was a book which I wanted to like, because I enjoy reading animal fantasy books, but unfortunately it was a big disappointment.

When I read this book I couldn't help but wonder if the author had intended to write a young adult fantasy book for adults. This book reminded me too much of Richard Adams' Watership Down, but it lacked the depth and originality of Adams' charming and touching story.

I think that young adults will probably find this book interesting, but adults who have read Watership Down won't like it. In my opinion this book is too light for adults.

If you're looking for good animal fantasy, you should read Richard Adams' Watership Down or William Horwood's Duncton books (and also the two wolf books), because they're enjoyable books - they're much better than this book.

Vellum

BOOK REVIEW

Vellum

Hal Duncan

8/10Written Oct 23, 2009

When I read Vellum a couple of years ago, I had mixed feelings about it. After careful consideration and some digestion I decided to give Vellum four stars, because it's quite an interesting book.

Vellum is a challenging and different kind of book. It isn't a linear book, so it must be read with thought. That's why some readers will love this book and others will hate it. I personally like Vellum, because it's something different and it's quite an ambitious book (there aren't many writers who can write this kind of books).

I can recommend Vellum to readers, who enjoy reading challenging books. It's a unique reading experience, so don't be afraid to read it.

The Law of Nines

BOOK REVIEW

The Law of Nines

Terry Goodkind

2/10Written Oct 1, 2009Edited Oct 1, 2009

When I began to read The Law of Nines I was a bit worried about its quality, because I was very disappointed with the amount of philosophical preaching in the last Sword of Truth books. I hoped this book would be good and interesting, but unfortunately Terry Goodkind repeated the same old things and the book turned out to be a big disappointment.

The Law of Nines was basically a new and modernized version of Wizard's First Rule. The main characters were almost exactly like Richard and Kahlan and that was very annoying.

This book has been called "stunningly original", which is quite amazing, because in my opinion this book is "stunningly repetitive" (Goodkind recycles almost everything in this book). I also have to say that I wouldn't call this book thriller, because it's much nearer to urban fantasy than thriller genre.

I can't recommend this book to anybody, because there are much better urban fantasy writers (for example Rob Thurman and Jim Butcher write good urban fantasy books and they don't preach about certain things). I honestly hope that the author of this book will try to write something new and original in the near future, because I've had enough of this kind of books.

The Lord of the Rings

BOOK REVIEW

The Lord of the Rings

J. R. R. Tolkien

10/10Written Jul 14, 2009

This omnibus edition of The Lord of the Rings trilogy is an excellent fantasy book. It contains all three books (The Fellowship of the Ring, The Two Towers and The Return of the King), so the reader can easily read the whole trilogy from start to finish.

There are lots of omnibus editions of The Lord of the Rings trilogy. Some editions are illustrated, but others aren't. All editions are good books, but the best editions contain beautiful illustrations and paintings by Alan Lee. No matter which edition you read or buy, you can be sure that they're all worth reading.

The Lord of the Rings has always been one of my favourite fantasy books. It's a timeless classic, which hasn't lost its appeal over the years. The Lord of the Rings has had an enormous effect on the fantasy genre and many fantasy authors owe a lot to it, because it has inspired several authors to write their own fantasy books.

I think that every fantasy reader should read this book, because it's the cornerstone of traditional fantasy. Some readers, who are used to modern fantasy, may say that the story is too traditional, but in my opinion the story is very good and fascinating (I've always been fascinated by Tolkien's world and the history of Middle-earth). If you haven't read this book already, you should definitely read it.

Guilty Pleasures

BOOK REVIEW

Guilty Pleasures

Laurell K. Hamilton

6/10Written Jul 1, 2009

I decided to give Laurell K. Hamilton's Guilty Pleasures a try, because I read good reviews about it. I'm glad that I read it, because it turned to be an entertaining urban horror fantasy book.

Guilty Pleasures wasn't a perfect book (it was far from it), but it was nice and enjoyable entertainment for warm summer days. I don't normally read this kind of fantasy books, but they're good entertainment every once in a while.

The main character, Anita Blake, was interesting and the character development was okay (the character development could've been better, but it didn't bother me much). The plot was interesting and the writing style was quite good.

I can recommend this book to readers who like urban fantasy.