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ihlonial's review
5.0
Up to this point in the series I was uncertain how I felt about the Green Rider series. It was magical and each novel felt like an episodic adventure with Karrigan that is slowly leading her towards a larger story, but everything felt very insular and sterile and I wasn't sure if I wanted to keep going if that was going to be the tone throughout the rest of the series.
This is the story that finally convinced me that I'm committed to this series. With all of the different POVs that are happening, Britain is weaving a complex, but compelling story that I'm hoping will lead to an epic conclusion.
Karrigan is one of my favorite characters, she's clearly not one who asked to be given the gifts or talents she has and she's committed to doing her job honorably.
Now I just need her to kiss the king and all will be well.
This is the story that finally convinced me that I'm committed to this series. With all of the different POVs that are happening, Britain is weaving a complex, but compelling story that I'm hoping will lead to an epic conclusion.
Karrigan is one of my favorite characters, she's clearly not one who asked to be given the gifts or talents she has and she's committed to doing her job honorably.
Now I just need her to kiss the king and all will be well.
ravage's review against another edition
5.0
Je pensais que mes sentiments pour ce livre allait changer au bout d'autant de temps mais p**** qu'est ce que c'est trop bien
eleanorhall's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
mxsallybend's review
4.0
As much as I crave the adrenaline rush of advance reviews, the thrill of being first to read a new fantasy saga, there is something to be said for being able to binge through an author's world. Sometimes there are books that just slip my initial notice. Other times there are just too many books hitting the shelves at once, and not enough time to read them all. Then there are those sagas that are so widely spaced, you just lose track of them.
Such is the case with the Green Rider saga, and I'm genuinely glad it fell off my radar after that first book, Green Rider. I've been catching up with Kristen Britain's world since September. I'm enjoying the experience so much that, as quickly as I've been consuming the books, I'm actually dreading the moment when I finally get caught up.
Blackveil is the fourth book of the saga, a meaty 700-page paperback that feels as comfortable in the hand as the story does in the head. At this point, I've become accustomed to the style and structure of Britain's writing, the way she balances the big story with the little stories, and how she keeps Karigan G'ladheon at the forefront of it all, yet never allows her to dominate the book.
There are a number of interwoven stories and relationships here. The book opens with Karigan trying to pry answers out of her father, learning secrets about her mother, and discovering their shared connection with the Eletians. There is an amusing subplot involving Lord Amberhill, the should-be-dead pirates from the last book, and the saga's first journey out to sea. The continued struggle to understand, protect, and repair the wall goes in a few interesting directions, and the arrival of Karigan best friend introduces some relationship tension. There is an assassination attempt on the King that has some interesting consequences, and which further exposes the triangle between King, Lady, and Rider. Finally, there is the expedition into the Blackveil forest itself, where Britain's talent for both grandeur and decay shines brightest . . . with the darkest shadows.
I keep seeing critics complain about the pacing of these stories, accusing Britain of padding the book with unnecessary scenes, but I feel like they're missing the point. When you've got a solid storyteller, with well-rounded characters, a building mythology, layers of intrigue, and as much entertainment as conflict, you want to spend time with them, and you want to extend your stay in the world. Besides, everything that happens either serves to set up a conflict later in the book, expose new facets of a character, or deepen the overall story. Having finished the book last night, and having thought about it all day today, I can honestly say there's nothing I would cut.
Is the ending problematic? Sure, but at this point there's a pattern to things, a history that defines Karigan's struggle as much as her character. Magical weapons, immortal powers, and divine intervention are a staple of epic fantasy, and not at all out of place here. She suffers through every book, fights her way through every story, and (in my opinion) has been established as a pivotal character upon whom otherworldly forces must pivot. That's not a flaw, and it's not a cheat, it's a callback to some of our oldest mythological fantasies.
When you come to the end of a book, only one question matters - how badly do you need to read the next book? The answer here, of course, is GIVE IT TO ME NOW, which brings me back to the joy of binge reading. Whereas many readers had an agonizing 3-year wait for Mirror Sight to be published, it's sitting right beside me, and the longest wait I'll have to endure is another month before Firebrand hits mass market paperback as well.
Such is the case with the Green Rider saga, and I'm genuinely glad it fell off my radar after that first book, Green Rider. I've been catching up with Kristen Britain's world since September. I'm enjoying the experience so much that, as quickly as I've been consuming the books, I'm actually dreading the moment when I finally get caught up.
Blackveil is the fourth book of the saga, a meaty 700-page paperback that feels as comfortable in the hand as the story does in the head. At this point, I've become accustomed to the style and structure of Britain's writing, the way she balances the big story with the little stories, and how she keeps Karigan G'ladheon at the forefront of it all, yet never allows her to dominate the book.
There are a number of interwoven stories and relationships here. The book opens with Karigan trying to pry answers out of her father, learning secrets about her mother, and discovering their shared connection with the Eletians. There is an amusing subplot involving Lord Amberhill, the should-be-dead pirates from the last book, and the saga's first journey out to sea. The continued struggle to understand, protect, and repair the wall goes in a few interesting directions, and the arrival of Karigan best friend introduces some relationship tension. There is an assassination attempt on the King that has some interesting consequences, and which further exposes the triangle between King, Lady, and Rider. Finally, there is the expedition into the Blackveil forest itself, where Britain's talent for both grandeur and decay shines brightest . . . with the darkest shadows.
I keep seeing critics complain about the pacing of these stories, accusing Britain of padding the book with unnecessary scenes, but I feel like they're missing the point. When you've got a solid storyteller, with well-rounded characters, a building mythology, layers of intrigue, and as much entertainment as conflict, you want to spend time with them, and you want to extend your stay in the world. Besides, everything that happens either serves to set up a conflict later in the book, expose new facets of a character, or deepen the overall story. Having finished the book last night, and having thought about it all day today, I can honestly say there's nothing I would cut.
Is the ending problematic? Sure, but at this point there's a pattern to things, a history that defines Karigan's struggle as much as her character. Magical weapons, immortal powers, and divine intervention are a staple of epic fantasy, and not at all out of place here. She suffers through every book, fights her way through every story, and (in my opinion) has been established as a pivotal character upon whom otherworldly forces must pivot. That's not a flaw, and it's not a cheat, it's a callback to some of our oldest mythological fantasies.
When you come to the end of a book, only one question matters - how badly do you need to read the next book? The answer here, of course, is GIVE IT TO ME NOW, which brings me back to the joy of binge reading. Whereas many readers had an agonizing 3-year wait for Mirror Sight to be published, it's sitting right beside me, and the longest wait I'll have to endure is another month before Firebrand hits mass market paperback as well.
galigaes's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
blodeuedd's review against another edition
3.0
Do you know what the most horrible part was? Knowing that it might take years before book 5 comes out! Yes I do mean years because book 1 came out in 1998..do the math. The other books have all ended well, even if the doom is out there, but this one, no of course it did not end like that. It ended with one huge cliffie, a true evil cliffie in every sense of the word. I despair...I must know! But no, it will take a few years.
As has been said before the second Empire still wants to take over the country. Grandmother, that evil witch is up to her old tricks. A truly well made evil baddie. She thinks she is good, while she certainly is the opposite. But she is not the only evil one, back at court we have someone else who is wolf among sheep. I thought he was bad in book 3, but here, oh that man needs to be stopped.
The good guys then. Alton is trying to fix the wall, King Zachary is still brooding over Karigan. Karigan is being sent to the Blackveil (and is brooding too), Lord Amberhill who showed up in book 3 has a bigger part all the sudden and I can't put my finger on it. Does Britain mean Karigan to end up with him? But then he did flirt with the future queen too. Anyway he has a destiny. And Estora, well she is all nice (too nice), and things happens, she deals well with them, but at one time I just wanted her to say stop because it was shameful. I can't say what happened, but at least for medical reasons she should have known better. So yes I do not like her. And not only cos I want Karigan and Zachary to be happy. Which they never will be, and I really do not know how Britain will fix this. Amberhill? But I do not want that to happen. Oh the romance drama is so non-existing in a way and yet so very delicious.
Going into the Blackveil means danger, and a lot of it. Secrets, blood and more is promised in this exciting new part of the Green Rider series.
But, how will I survive until book 5? And how will Britain save this poor world? But then good always wins and I always doubt it. I do need more, and now.
As has been said before the second Empire still wants to take over the country. Grandmother, that evil witch is up to her old tricks. A truly well made evil baddie. She thinks she is good, while she certainly is the opposite. But she is not the only evil one, back at court we have someone else who is wolf among sheep. I thought he was bad in book 3, but here, oh that man needs to be stopped.
The good guys then. Alton is trying to fix the wall, King Zachary is still brooding over Karigan. Karigan is being sent to the Blackveil (and is brooding too), Lord Amberhill who showed up in book 3 has a bigger part all the sudden and I can't put my finger on it. Does Britain mean Karigan to end up with him? But then he did flirt with the future queen too. Anyway he has a destiny. And Estora, well she is all nice (too nice), and things happens, she deals well with them, but at one time I just wanted her to say stop because it was shameful. I can't say what happened, but at least for medical reasons she should have known better. So yes I do not like her. And not only cos I want Karigan and Zachary to be happy. Which they never will be, and I really do not know how Britain will fix this. Amberhill? But I do not want that to happen. Oh the romance drama is so non-existing in a way and yet so very delicious.
Going into the Blackveil means danger, and a lot of it. Secrets, blood and more is promised in this exciting new part of the Green Rider series.
But, how will I survive until book 5? And how will Britain save this poor world? But then good always wins and I always doubt it. I do need more, and now.
cornfieldchase's review
2.0
What the fuck?
Update: i read honest reviews by other readers of the next book and i have given all hopes on this author and this sorry ass of a series
The author dangles a ship of high potential, though the MCs zachary and kari barely interact the angst is there and i rooted for them but then our beloved author fucking sunk the ship irrevocably.
Not to mention the slow af pace
The first three books were all a nice enough read but the rest just further diminished my hope of finding a binge worthy fantasy romance series
Un-fucking-believable
Update: i read honest reviews by other readers of the next book and i have given all hopes on this author and this sorry ass of a series
The author dangles a ship of high potential, though the MCs zachary and kari barely interact the angst is there and i rooted for them but then our beloved author fucking sunk the ship irrevocably.
Not to mention the slow af pace
The first three books were all a nice enough read but the rest just further diminished my hope of finding a binge worthy fantasy romance series
Un-fucking-believable
coriandercake's review
1.0
I’m in a mood to be mean, so this review is going to be harsh, especially after reading Britain’s FAQ page.
King Zachary’s response to people rushing the marriage was completely overblown. He went on how his closest advisors should trust him, but he has proven to be incredibly resistant/not smart in terms of securing an heir through his hesitancy to get married. And he had never, at any point told his advisors what kind of choice he made and put in the box. Like of course they’re going to choose the known factor and not trust him.
Karigan went back to being a whine-y chosen one baby in this book. The way she treated Alton and her best friend was unacceptable. Like her friend even said she was being unreasonable thinking Alton would just wait around for her and being selfish because she didn’t even like Alton and I still got the sense we were supposed to side with Karigan on this. I also hated how insta-lovey everything was. I’m not a big fan of the “you have one true love” message anyway.
I honestly don’t know why Zachary and Karigan continue to have feelings for each other. They don’t TALK and they haven’t in several books.
Amberhill’s plot and character felt so tacked on. Also every time he described Karigan as “mysterious” or whatever I wanted to throw the book across the room. She’s the opposite of a mysterious character.
The second diatribe against prostitution was also out of place and not great. Why TF should Karigan get ANY details about her dad’s personal life, especially when she refuses to tell him anything about hers? She’s a shitty little hypocrite who runs off and sulks every time someone scolds her.
I’m pissed that Britain was a fucking coward and didn’t kill Zachary. That would have been fresh and interesting. Instead, we only get the very obviously foreshadowed death of Yates.
Once again, the ending felt very deus ex machina-y with the mask. The arrival of Mornhaven felt sudden and then completely inconsequential. There could have been some interesting buildup if Karigan had gotten the mask earlier (Maybe at the masquerade which was otherwise pointless?) and then have her struggle with no looking at it/not changing the past.
All of the villains were so evil they were almost parodies of themselves. It wasn’t enough for Estora’s advisor to be greedy and a blackmailer, he also had to be pedophile. His entire monologue about “breaking” her was so over the top.
Karigan ends up in a box at the end, and I think I’m going to stop reading here because that’s a good place for her, trapped for eternity.
And then I read the FAQs. I didn’t realize Britain has no idea how many books are going to be in this series. It really explains why they’re written so badly. Just any idea she has gets vomited on the page with little further thought.
She doesn’t like fanfic? She should be honored if anyone found anything in this drivel inspiring enough to write about it. Hell, she should probably take some pointers from fanfic writers because she writes like the worst of them.
She’s upset that people only ask her about Zachary and Karigan? Well no shit. The relationships take up the majority of the books. Why the hell would anyone care about anything else?
Anyway, the FAQs just confirmed that this series is a self-insert rambling nightmare of a series and I’ll only continue if I’m in the mood for something REALLY bad.
This is the second worst fantasy series I have ever read.
Spoiler
Like the last book, the first half of this book was completely irrelevant to the plot. The entire masquerade ball sequence was just one cringe-y thing after another. Then the actual conflict at the end felt incredibly rushed. Britain definitely cannot write political intrigue (well, she can’t write anything, but especially political intrigue). Estora is blackmailed and then finds a solution literally within the next chapter and everything is solved.King Zachary’s response to people rushing the marriage was completely overblown. He went on how his closest advisors should trust him, but he has proven to be incredibly resistant/not smart in terms of securing an heir through his hesitancy to get married. And he had never, at any point told his advisors what kind of choice he made and put in the box. Like of course they’re going to choose the known factor and not trust him.
Karigan went back to being a whine-y chosen one baby in this book. The way she treated Alton and her best friend was unacceptable. Like her friend even said she was being unreasonable thinking Alton would just wait around for her and being selfish because she didn’t even like Alton and I still got the sense we were supposed to side with Karigan on this. I also hated how insta-lovey everything was. I’m not a big fan of the “you have one true love” message anyway.
I honestly don’t know why Zachary and Karigan continue to have feelings for each other. They don’t TALK and they haven’t in several books.
Amberhill’s plot and character felt so tacked on. Also every time he described Karigan as “mysterious” or whatever I wanted to throw the book across the room. She’s the opposite of a mysterious character.
The second diatribe against prostitution was also out of place and not great. Why TF should Karigan get ANY details about her dad’s personal life, especially when she refuses to tell him anything about hers? She’s a shitty little hypocrite who runs off and sulks every time someone scolds her.
I’m pissed that Britain was a fucking coward and didn’t kill Zachary. That would have been fresh and interesting. Instead, we only get the very obviously foreshadowed death of Yates.
Once again, the ending felt very deus ex machina-y with the mask. The arrival of Mornhaven felt sudden and then completely inconsequential. There could have been some interesting buildup if Karigan had gotten the mask earlier (Maybe at the masquerade which was otherwise pointless?) and then have her struggle with no looking at it/not changing the past.
All of the villains were so evil they were almost parodies of themselves. It wasn’t enough for Estora’s advisor to be greedy and a blackmailer, he also had to be pedophile. His entire monologue about “breaking” her was so over the top.
Karigan ends up in a box at the end, and I think I’m going to stop reading here because that’s a good place for her, trapped for eternity.
And then I read the FAQs. I didn’t realize Britain has no idea how many books are going to be in this series. It really explains why they’re written so badly. Just any idea she has gets vomited on the page with little further thought.
She doesn’t like fanfic? She should be honored if anyone found anything in this drivel inspiring enough to write about it. Hell, she should probably take some pointers from fanfic writers because she writes like the worst of them.
She’s upset that people only ask her about Zachary and Karigan? Well no shit. The relationships take up the majority of the books. Why the hell would anyone care about anything else?
Anyway, the FAQs just confirmed that this series is a self-insert rambling nightmare of a series and I’ll only continue if I’m in the mood for something REALLY bad.
This is the second worst fantasy series I have ever read.
dutchgreenrider's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5