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literarylauraj's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed this book. However, you get started in a modern day plot that’s very interesting and then you jump back in time for the entire book and never return to the modern day until the epilogue. The book is definitely written by a man… Overall not bad, an enjoyable audiobook for a long drive. Gets too into history at times and brings in new characters that really don’t add to the plot
fantasmariana's review against another edition
3.0
The Last Days of Magic by Mark Tompkins seemed like the kind of book that had all of the elements that I really enjoy reading. As a huge fan of Irish folklore, I was very excited to get into it.
The story is mainly set in the 1300s, however there are a couple of leaps to the present day that at first, I thought would be very relevant to the plot but sadly ended up feeling odd and unnecessary.
In this book, we follow a vast amount of characters. Arguably, the main character might be Aisling, one of the human reincarnations of the triple goddess Morrigna. She's the one that's supposed to unite Celts and Sidhes (faeries and magical beings), and to guarantee a peaceful coexistence among these races. However, when something happens that jeopardizes this alliance, some of the Sidhes take advantage of the willingness of the Vatican and England to invade Ireland to start a war.
The author has an incredible knowledge of history and folklore. However, this doesn't translate well to the story. He's so interested in explaining historical events or rites, that sometimes the story becomes very slowpaced and even boring. The huge amount of characters can be somewhat confusing, and some of them just seem to be there to fit an immediate necessity but then vanish (like Ty and some of the witches) and end up not having a real repercussion in the story.
For example, the whole storyline about the witches had so much potential and -in my opinion- ended up very badly.
I think that the main problem I had with this book is that it was full of great ideas, but there were so many of them that they were eclipsed by each other. Character development wasn't particularly good either, since there were so many of them.
Connecting the Irish myths with the Christian tradition was something that the author really nailed (even when I had a little trouble following up everything) and as I said before, the research and historical knowledge of Tompkins is amazing.
Hopefully for his following books the author will learn that less is more.
Note: I received an e-galley of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Viking Books and Edelweiss.
The story is mainly set in the 1300s, however there are a couple of leaps to the present day that at first, I thought would be very relevant to the plot but sadly ended up feeling odd and unnecessary.
In this book, we follow a vast amount of characters. Arguably, the main character might be Aisling, one of the human reincarnations of the triple goddess Morrigna. She's the one that's supposed to unite Celts and Sidhes (faeries and magical beings), and to guarantee a peaceful coexistence among these races. However, when something happens that jeopardizes this alliance, some of the Sidhes take advantage of the willingness of the Vatican and England to invade Ireland to start a war.
The author has an incredible knowledge of history and folklore. However, this doesn't translate well to the story. He's so interested in explaining historical events or rites, that sometimes the story becomes very slowpaced and even boring. The huge amount of characters can be somewhat confusing, and some of them just seem to be there to fit an immediate necessity but then vanish (like Ty and some of the witches) and end up not having a real repercussion in the story.
For example, the whole storyline about the witches had so much potential and -in my opinion- ended up very badly.
I think that the main problem I had with this book is that it was full of great ideas, but there were so many of them that they were eclipsed by each other. Character development wasn't particularly good either, since there were so many of them.
Connecting the Irish myths with the Christian tradition was something that the author really nailed (even when I had a little trouble following up everything) and as I said before, the research and historical knowledge of Tompkins is amazing.
Hopefully for his following books the author will learn that less is more.
Note: I received an e-galley of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thanks to Viking Books and Edelweiss.
analyndagrace's review against another edition
2.0
I didn't hate this book, its rated a 2 purely because it's not my type of book that I enjoy. I'm not really a fan of historical fiction. I would have preferred a story that followed the current theme that it started off with, or at least a trickle of present woven with past. If you like a historical fiction then this is your book, I just prefer a more present day fiction, so I really struggled to finish this book.
mandykins007's review against another edition
4.0
Slow to Start great finish
I had a bit of trouble with starting momentum for this novel but once it picks up it keeps moving. I often found myself white knuckled gripping the seat as I read with anticipation for the characters that became so beloved. I absolutely cried during some parts of this and had a few aha! moments as well. Really really enjoyed the myths and legends told in this regarding the old gods and the new! Looking forward to any and all work to come from mister Tompkins in the future.
I had a bit of trouble with starting momentum for this novel but once it picks up it keeps moving. I often found myself white knuckled gripping the seat as I read with anticipation for the characters that became so beloved. I absolutely cried during some parts of this and had a few aha! moments as well. Really really enjoyed the myths and legends told in this regarding the old gods and the new! Looking forward to any and all work to come from mister Tompkins in the future.
rebekah27's review against another edition
5.0
I read this book a few years ago and it was SOOOO GOOD!!! I’m very sad that there isn’t a sequel. I loved the characters and the storyline. This book is definitely one that will make you forget that you’re reading. The magical system was amazing. I absolutely loved the mythology in it!! Everyone needs to read this book
momster13's review against another edition
3.0
I really enjoyed this book. More than I expected to. The magic and historical fiction painted a picture of the 1300s. Although, the prologue and epilogue made me curious about the events in the present day and I want to know what happens next.
napkins's review against another edition
3.0
A really solid 3.5, but I'm rounding down for the clumsy exposition, of which there is a lot.
I'm kind of in love with the alternate history presented here: a world where magic and who holds it is tied just as heavily into medieval politics as religion and the various churches are. All the lines of magic tie back to the Nephilim and thus Judeo-Christian mythology, which I side-eye a little, but faiths are left to have evolved and adapted on their own - it never comes to a "you're all originally this, come back to the One Church" or anything similar, thankfully. In fact, the Roman Catholic Church is actively hunting and extinguishing magic. Ireland is a last holdout in a world where the faerie lines have been whittled down, protected by the Sidhe and the Morrigna. But unrest abounds from within, with some of the Sidhe unhappy with the influx of Celts and Vikings. And so begins a political dance of factions trying to control or save Ireland.
The setting is lush and the characters are well-developed and presented, but events and especially backstory fall prey to exposition dumps. Events jump forward, backward, and sideways in terms of characters, times, and settings, making it a little hard to keep all the threads straight or keep a story flow going. Some events are presented dramatically, but others are flashed by and it takes a few chapters to realize, "wait, no, that was really important!"
The modern storyline could've been handled a lot better, in my mind, by leaving it entirely until the end; I'd forgotten most of what had even happened by the time we jumped back to it. The two chapters bookend the story, but the main story is so involved that by the time we see 2008 again, the jump feels jarring.
The fight has so many sides and grey moralities abound, which I really appreciate.
I'm kind of in love with the alternate history presented here: a world where magic and who holds it is tied just as heavily into medieval politics as religion and the various churches are. All the lines of magic tie back to the Nephilim and thus Judeo-Christian mythology, which I side-eye a little, but faiths are left to have evolved and adapted on their own - it never comes to a "you're all originally this, come back to the One Church" or anything similar, thankfully. In fact, the Roman Catholic Church is actively hunting and extinguishing magic. Ireland is a last holdout in a world where the faerie lines have been whittled down, protected by the Sidhe and the Morrigna. But unrest abounds from within, with some of the Sidhe unhappy with the influx of Celts and Vikings. And so begins a political dance of factions trying to control or save Ireland.
The setting is lush and the characters are well-developed and presented, but events and especially backstory fall prey to exposition dumps. Events jump forward, backward, and sideways in terms of characters, times, and settings, making it a little hard to keep all the threads straight or keep a story flow going. Some events are presented dramatically, but others are flashed by and it takes a few chapters to realize, "wait, no, that was really important!"
The modern storyline could've been handled a lot better, in my mind, by leaving it entirely until the end; I'd forgotten most of what had even happened by the time we jumped back to it. The two chapters bookend the story, but the main story is so involved that by the time we see 2008 again, the jump feels jarring.
The fight has so many sides and grey moralities abound, which I really appreciate.
cher_n_books's review against another edition
2.0
1.5 stars - I didn't like it.
Between the blurbs and the eye-catching cover, the publisher did a phenomenal effort with this novel. Few synopses have grabbed my attention and set off my "definitely want to read this" bells as much as this one. It has all the wonderful, fantastical things:
An epic novel of magic and mysticism, Celts and faeries, mad kings and druids, and the goddess struggling to reign over magic’s last outpost on the Earth.
Unfortunately, it all fell apart in execution. There was an overabundance of characters, yet a dearth of character development. The novel is plot driven, yet central plot points are rushed and undeveloped. The story unfolds in a non-linear manner, jumping abruptly forwards, sideways and backwards, but was done in a style that felt like an incohesive tangle of short vignettes. It comes across like writing geared towards a juvenile target audience, but with nonessential adult sexual situations randomly thrown in, as if to remind the reader that this book is for grown-ups.
The author had a brilliant idea and fascinating subject matter, but the writing style killed it all for me. Sadly deciding to DNF this one at 50%.
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First Sentence: When Sara Hill’s body washed up on shore, the police concluded—logically, given the lack of injuries—that she must have accidentally fallen overboard and drowned.
Between the blurbs and the eye-catching cover, the publisher did a phenomenal effort with this novel. Few synopses have grabbed my attention and set off my "definitely want to read this" bells as much as this one. It has all the wonderful, fantastical things:
An epic novel of magic and mysticism, Celts and faeries, mad kings and druids, and the goddess struggling to reign over magic’s last outpost on the Earth.
Unfortunately, it all fell apart in execution. There was an overabundance of characters, yet a dearth of character development. The novel is plot driven, yet central plot points are rushed and undeveloped. The story unfolds in a non-linear manner, jumping abruptly forwards, sideways and backwards, but was done in a style that felt like an incohesive tangle of short vignettes. It comes across like writing geared towards a juvenile target audience, but with nonessential adult sexual situations randomly thrown in, as if to remind the reader that this book is for grown-ups.
The author had a brilliant idea and fascinating subject matter, but the writing style killed it all for me. Sadly deciding to DNF this one at 50%.
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First Sentence: When Sara Hill’s body washed up on shore, the police concluded—logically, given the lack of injuries—that she must have accidentally fallen overboard and drowned.
sylectra's review against another edition
5.0
This one took a but longer to complete. There are many historical details which slowed me down, but the addition of Irish and Roman history ended up helping the story. It is the story of how most magic left Ireland when the English invaded, and what happened to the principal characters. I especially enjoyed the Sighe and their magic. Worth your time.