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sandymaple's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I docked half a star for the one scene that is directly from Lord of the Rings (trust me, you'll know which one I mean!), but otherwise I literally couldn't put this book down.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, War, Alcoholism, Violence, Blood, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, Death, and Gore
Moderate: Medical content, Fire/Fire injury, Rape, and Sexual content
Minor: Animal death
cosette1996's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
emdowd's review against another edition
3.0
Fairly run of the mill fantasy but mixed with decently researched historical fiction (...ish). I like that the author includes so many female characters (and interesting ones in positions of power! I especially like Aryn.).
ashleylm's review against another edition
2.0
To be fair, I bailed on this somewhere near the beginning, but (in terms of pages read) would be definitely the middle of most books ... this book is long.
Too long, as it turns out, as it just feels stretched out and sloggy. There are a few decent/interesting moments, and then everything crashes to earth again as uninteresting people do expected-fantasy-trope things. It may very well get better near the end, or in book two, or four, but I'm not going to wait for that any more (this year I've really taken "life is short" seriously ... my Dad died, and I'm feeling mortal, and my worst fear is that I'll die some day without having read all my favourite undiscovered books ... and time spent on a book that definitely won't be a fave is time wasted. So I bail).
The beginning is a bit Stephen King-ish, and then the just-past-beginning is a bit Donaldson-ish (i.e. Thomas Covenant), and as I've said neither is very grabby. Still, others have liked it--if you're a huge fan of slow set-up, little explanation, and travelling in woods, go for it. If you're after a lesser-known, fun, fantasy series from a few decades ago, I'd read Duncan's Magic Casement series instead.
(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s).
Too long, as it turns out, as it just feels stretched out and sloggy. There are a few decent/interesting moments, and then everything crashes to earth again as uninteresting people do expected-fantasy-trope things. It may very well get better near the end, or in book two, or four, but I'm not going to wait for that any more (this year I've really taken "life is short" seriously ... my Dad died, and I'm feeling mortal, and my worst fear is that I'll die some day without having read all my favourite undiscovered books ... and time spent on a book that definitely won't be a fave is time wasted. So I bail).
The beginning is a bit Stephen King-ish, and then the just-past-beginning is a bit Donaldson-ish (i.e. Thomas Covenant), and as I've said neither is very grabby. Still, others have liked it--if you're a huge fan of slow set-up, little explanation, and travelling in woods, go for it. If you're after a lesser-known, fun, fantasy series from a few decades ago, I'd read Duncan's Magic Casement series instead.
(Note: 5 stars = amazing, wonderful, 4 = very good book, 3 = decent read, 2 = disappointing, 1 = awful, just awful. I'm fairly good at picking for myself so end up with a lot of 4s).
poetic_liz's review against another edition
5.0
Screaming, crying, throwing up.
Wonderfully written, enchanting fantasy. I loved every character with all my heart, chuckled more than once at perfectly delivered humour and I just felt home in the story from second one. Those characters feel so real and human and loveable and I want to kiss them right now.
Wonderfully written, enchanting fantasy. I loved every character with all my heart, chuckled more than once at perfectly delivered humour and I just felt home in the story from second one. Those characters feel so real and human and loveable and I want to kiss them right now.
bookfairy99's review against another edition
2.0
As much as I liked the premise of this book (and I really, really did - it reminded me a little of War Of The Flowers, which is one of my favorite fantasy novels), I struggled with Beyond The Pale. I found the writing interesting in parts, but too flowery and description heavy to hold my interest for long, so I ended up taking frequent breaks as I read. I also thought the dialogue was stilted and unbelievable, not at all like "real" people speak. I found the main characters irritating, particularly Travis who was so passive and frightened of everything that I just couldn't take him seriously as a supposed hero. The author had some interesting ideas, and the book is fluffy and light...but even so I didn't find this to be a fast read at all. I will not be continuing with this series.
bookbrig's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? Yes
3.5
I decided this is a good year to reread this whole series. I've read it a zillion times over the years, but it's been probably ten years since I've read it beginning to end. I'm curious to see if I love it quite as much as I did when I first got my hands on it.
radioactve_piano's review against another edition
3.0
Strong writing, strong characters, compelling plot. I'm not sure why I didn't "really like it", quite honestly. I'm hoping it's because I've read his later work and that I know his potential -- and will see it when I pick up the next installment.
faysal's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Then, with stiff movements, he knelt in the snow at Travis’s feet.
“Return to us,” the knight said.
They’re my family you guys. The whole middle aged lot of them. They’re my everything.
“Return to us,” the knight said.
They’re my family you guys. The whole middle aged lot of them. They’re my everything.