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errantdreams's review against another edition
5.0
There’s so much going on in this book that I don’t know how to condense it down. The plot and characters are portrayed intimately with the perfect balance of narrative and exposition. Discoveries and epiphanies don’t bog down the narrative–they keep up with the heart-pounding pace. Most books that rely on this much revelation get bogged down at some point by exposition. Not so in The Madness Season–they’re woven into the narrative so skillfully that they add rather than detracting.
Characters have so much depth to them. From the scientists who pretend to be doing research (but are really retreading old science to keep from giving the Tyr ideas), to several individual Marra each playing their own role, to the cat-like creatures who serve as guards for the Tyr, there’s a hugely complex ecosystem in place that balances precariously on certain pieces of knowledge (or lack thereof). They change and grow over the course of the book. In particular, the relationship between Daetrin and Kiri ensnared me. The depiction showed great subtlety. Both of the characters learn so very much about themselves over the course of the book that their relationship can’t help but evolve with them.
Lest I give you the wrong impression, let me assure you that there’s also plenty of action. Bloody fights abound and many people die. It’s never gratuitous, however. It always furthers the story and the characters.
Time for me to go catch up on further books by Friedman!
Original review posted on my site: http://www.errantdreams.com/2016/03/review-the-madness-season-c-s-friedman/
Characters have so much depth to them. From the scientists who pretend to be doing research (but are really retreading old science to keep from giving the Tyr ideas), to several individual Marra each playing their own role, to the cat-like creatures who serve as guards for the Tyr, there’s a hugely complex ecosystem in place that balances precariously on certain pieces of knowledge (or lack thereof). They change and grow over the course of the book. In particular, the relationship between Daetrin and Kiri ensnared me. The depiction showed great subtlety. Both of the characters learn so very much about themselves over the course of the book that their relationship can’t help but evolve with them.
Lest I give you the wrong impression, let me assure you that there’s also plenty of action. Bloody fights abound and many people die. It’s never gratuitous, however. It always furthers the story and the characters.
Time for me to go catch up on further books by Friedman!
Original review posted on my site: http://www.errantdreams.com/2016/03/review-the-madness-season-c-s-friedman/
raerei's review against another edition
5.0
What can I say about a vampire book where the one and only time the word "Vampire" is used is on page 157. This is one of my all-time favorite books in the SF-Vampire category.
jshaden's review against another edition
5.0
This book was an interesting look at what it meant to be "human" or an individual. Word of warning of you get the e-book edition - the version I got through Amazon appeared to be a very poorly checked optical character recognition scan of a physical document, with incorrect letters and whole words throughout.
revslick's review against another edition
4.0
Coming-of-Age vampire novel (in space) exploring issues of identity, culture, memory, and ultimately what it is to be human. Friedman's words are filled with beautiful world building, characterization, and a powerful imagination. I would so love for this to be picked up as a serial by HBO.
nomad_scry's review against another edition
4.0
Overly simplified, the core idea of this book is silly. So I prefer not to simplify or spoil this one and simply say, "Read it."
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