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re_stearns's review
5.0
Michael Stackpole really thinks about his characters and his plots, and it shows in this book. He's created a fascinating and complicated world, and the adventures within are suspenseful and unusual! I recommend it to anyone who enjoys fantasy fiction.
catcrowcandle's review
1.0
fantasy trash. the first of a trilogy, I was completely done when they brutally murdered the only interesting (and only female) character with an overly thorough and purposely vague description.
pogue's review
3.0
I gave this book three stars when I wanted to give it just a little bit more than that. I did “really” like the book at least two-thirds of it. Then I would get to the part where the Princes were and my brain would glaze over. Each chapter of the book it about a different character and that makes reading the book very easy.
The book follows the story of a family of cartographers and as in any fantasy book the start of their adventures. Keles, Nirati, and Jorim Anturasi all set out on different adventures. Keles across the land sent out to find someone something possibly death. Nirati is looking for her talent. Jorim is out charting the seas and coasts unexplored. This is the part of the story that I like the adventure.
There are Nine Princes who rule this part of the world, and the two that the book is following just bore me. I am not sure if it is all the politics or if it is all the pomp that is written into the chapters. What I mean by the pomp is the holding of bows to the proper length of time, colors of cloths that match rank. I found that all rather annoying.
I did like that a few of the what I thought were going to be minor characters look like in the next book are going to have a bigger role. I am going to be reading the next two books, just because I want to see what happens to Keles, Jorim and a few others.
The other thing that set funny with me was that the characters had a most European feel to them but very Asian customs. I would get deep into the story of what I was reading and then one of the Asian customs would pop up and break me out of my reading “zone”.
Edited because I wrote this half asleep and when I reread it I found many speeling errors.
The book follows the story of a family of cartographers and as in any fantasy book the start of their adventures. Keles, Nirati, and Jorim Anturasi all set out on different adventures. Keles across the land sent out to find someone something possibly death. Nirati is looking for her talent. Jorim is out charting the seas and coasts unexplored. This is the part of the story that I like the adventure.
There are Nine Princes who rule this part of the world, and the two that the book is following just bore me. I am not sure if it is all the politics or if it is all the pomp that is written into the chapters. What I mean by the pomp is the holding of bows to the proper length of time, colors of cloths that match rank. I found that all rather annoying.
I did like that a few of the what I thought were going to be minor characters look like in the next book are going to have a bigger role. I am going to be reading the next two books, just because I want to see what happens to Keles, Jorim and a few others.
The other thing that set funny with me was that the characters had a most European feel to them but very Asian customs. I would get deep into the story of what I was reading and then one of the Asian customs would pop up and break me out of my reading “zone”.
Edited because I wrote this half asleep and when I reread it I found many speeling errors.
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