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3.82 AVERAGE
3.82 AVERAGE
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Things I didn't like:
- The universe was made to feel tiny as everywhere the protagonist, Martinez, went he ran into someone he met previously.
- Too much focus on his relationship.
- Martinez and Caroline doing exceptionally stupid things that were out of character so the author could write some inner city resistance story that was beyond his ability.
- Poor use of the word alien considering the setting. The book isn't old enough to get away with being so simplistic.
Small things, I know.
Things I did like:
- It finished. Eventually.
- The universe was made to feel tiny as everywhere the protagonist, Martinez, went he ran into someone he met previously.
- Too much focus on his relationship.
- Martinez and Caroline doing exceptionally stupid things that were out of character so the author could write some inner city resistance story that was beyond his ability.
- Poor use of the word alien considering the setting. The book isn't old enough to get away with being so simplistic.
Small things, I know.
Things I did like:
- It finished. Eventually.
Williams, Walter Jon. The Sundering. Dread Empire’s Fall No. 2. HarperTorch, 2003.
In this second installment of Dread Empire’s Fall, there are bigger battles and more intense romantic passions. The battle descriptions are as good as anything in Honor Harrington novels, and the romance is less PG than we in Bujold’s worlds. We can see how much Williams wants to complicate the politics and species diversity of his empire. Again, we are kept moving through the story by our interest in our protagonists, Lady Sula and Gareth Martinez. Each character, for different reasons, has trouble figuring out where they stand in the new dispensation and with each other. Don’t expect all the issues to be resolved yet, but don’t let that deter you from enjoying their uncertainty. This is good space opera.
In this second installment of Dread Empire’s Fall, there are bigger battles and more intense romantic passions. The battle descriptions are as good as anything in Honor Harrington novels, and the romance is less PG than we in Bujold’s worlds. We can see how much Williams wants to complicate the politics and species diversity of his empire. Again, we are kept moving through the story by our interest in our protagonists, Lady Sula and Gareth Martinez. Each character, for different reasons, has trouble figuring out where they stand in the new dispensation and with each other. Don’t expect all the issues to be resolved yet, but don’t let that deter you from enjoying their uncertainty. This is good space opera.
Didn't have my heart pounding like the first book. I enjoyed the action and even the very calculated separation of our male and female heroes. Husband has misplaced the third book -- aaugh!
Straight continuation of the first book, but what was missing or wrong in the first one wasn't fixed in this one.
The Sula origin plot is still as dumb as before and honestly I was actually hoping the book moved past that. As it is it's just an artificial issue for the romance between MC and Sula. It reminds me of the same stupidity in Honorverse with Hamish Alexander.
I also think it's a problem with some of the new POVs because the don't have a voice distinct enough.
This book also highlights a big plot hole: The Shaa are these masterful rules because they ruled a huge empire and had a military that was ceremonial. They didn't need the military to put revolts down because they had no revolts (or at least none in the near past). But they also allowed a corrupt organization like the Peers to not only exist but to essentially govern. To me it doesn't compute.
In terms of plot this book also presents little as most of the time is spent on the romantic aspirations of the MC and his sisters. After the previous book where we had the death of the last Shaa and the start of the civil war here we have only two small skirmishes and a failed terrorist attack. Overall not very much progress. Hopefully it picks up.
The Sula origin plot is still as dumb as before and honestly I was actually hoping the book moved past that. As it is it's just an artificial issue for the romance between MC and Sula. It reminds me of the same stupidity in Honorverse with Hamish Alexander.
I also think it's a problem with some of the new POVs because the don't have a voice distinct enough.
This book also highlights a big plot hole: The Shaa are these masterful rules because they ruled a huge empire and had a military that was ceremonial. They didn't need the military to put revolts down because they had no revolts (or at least none in the near past). But they also allowed a corrupt organization like the Peers to not only exist but to essentially govern. To me it doesn't compute.
In terms of plot this book also presents little as most of the time is spent on the romantic aspirations of the MC and his sisters. After the previous book where we had the death of the last Shaa and the start of the civil war here we have only two small skirmishes and a failed terrorist attack. Overall not very much progress. Hopefully it picks up.
This suffers from middle book syndrome majorily. It is a military heavy scifi that spent almost half the book with regency romance storylines. It dragged and I was disappointed after the amazing first book.
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Flaws of characters a main focus:
N/A
adventurous
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Vol 2 of entertaining space opera. Not sure why the heroine isn't the hero.