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katmarhan's review
4.0
9/10
A Time of Exile begins a new arc in the Deverry Cylce while carrying forward the main story of Rhodry and Jill. Most of the book is devoted to the story of Aderyn, apprentice to Nevyn and dweomermaster or a Wise One to the elves. It takes place with earlier incarnations of some familiar characters, filling in some of the history of Deverry, Eldidd, and the Westlands..
A Time of Exile begins a new arc in the Deverry Cylce while carrying forward the main story of Rhodry and Jill. Most of the book is devoted to the story of Aderyn, apprentice to Nevyn and dweomermaster or a Wise One to the elves. It takes place with earlier incarnations of some familiar characters, filling in some of the history of Deverry, Eldidd, and the Westlands..
angrywombat's review
3.0
Ahh, its a comfort coming back to the world of Deverry and the style of Ms Kerr.
This book, like many of the "dagger*" series is composed of different timelines - this time the 'present' is somme 40 years later when Rhodry is regretting his elvish heritage (and so is his son, waiting for his father to die off so he can inherit). The other timelines mainly follow Adeyrn and the an ill fated uprising which cause the Maelwaedd family (Rhodry's family) to come to power.
This book focussed much more on the Westfolk - the elves of this world, and their mysterious Guardians. Honestly the spirit/otherworldly bits are a bit tiring for me, and I don't yet see their significance, although I am sure I will later in this series. But I really enjoy reading more about the convoluted human politics of how the various families vie for power - and how it all looks so ridiculous to the Westfolk.
Also this book ends on an awesome cliffhanger, where we finally find out what the mysterious silver ring is all about!
This book, like many of the "dagger*" series is composed of different timelines - this time the 'present' is somme 40 years later when Rhodry is regretting his elvish heritage (and so is his son, waiting for his father to die off so he can inherit). The other timelines mainly follow Adeyrn and the an ill fated uprising which cause the Maelwaedd family (Rhodry's family) to come to power.
This book focussed much more on the Westfolk - the elves of this world, and their mysterious Guardians. Honestly the spirit/otherworldly bits are a bit tiring for me, and I don't yet see their significance, although I am sure I will later in this series. But I really enjoy reading more about the convoluted human politics of how the various families vie for power - and how it all looks so ridiculous to the Westfolk.
Also this book ends on an awesome cliffhanger, where we finally find out what the mysterious silver ring is all about!
vaderbird's review
3.0
5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
wordnerdy's review
4.0
https://wordnerdy.blogspot.com/2022/02/2022-book-31.html
The second set of books in the Deverry Cycle looks like it’ll be delving into Elven history and lore, and I am psyched! It starts off thirty years after the first series, though there are plenty of familiar faces (Jill and Rhodry are both still central characters). Most of the story in this one, though, is the backstory of the OTHER immortal old magician, which I was hoping would be revealed eventually. So I thoroughly enjoyed this volume. A/A-.
The second set of books in the Deverry Cycle looks like it’ll be delving into Elven history and lore, and I am psyched! It starts off thirty years after the first series, though there are plenty of familiar faces (Jill and Rhodry are both still central characters). Most of the story in this one, though, is the backstory of the OTHER immortal old magician, which I was hoping would be revealed eventually. So I thoroughly enjoyed this volume. A/A-.
februaryfox's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
kw518's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
evakristin's review against another edition
3.0
Not at all a bad book, but still my least favourite in the series this far. I guess Aderyn's story just doesn't interest me that much. I enjoyed all the aspects of Celtic superstitions Kerr uses, like the land of the fey and the banshee, but it's not very original. I also missed more about Aderyn's son, Loddlaen, who I remember as the bad guy from the first book. It would have been interesting to get to know him better. I did like reading about the rise of the Maelwaedds, and the political chronology in the appendix was almost my favourite part of the book!
snaomiscott's review against another edition
4.0
There are some fantasy writers who don’t seem to get the recognition they deserve, and for my money Katharine Kerr is definitely one of them. Despite a writing career stretching back over thirty years few people outside her circle of fans have heard of her sprawling, fifteen book fantasy series (soon to be sixteen), and honestly, they really don’t know what they’re missing out on.
A Time of Exile is the first book of the Westlands Cycle, and the fifth book overall in the massive epic that is the Deverry Cycle. I’d say you don’t need to have read the previous books to be able to enjoy this new tetralogy, but it does add to the experience if you have. However, if you’re new to Deverry then a quick outline may be in order.
The series as a whole follows the lives of several groups of characters spread over a period of roughly five hundred years. The characters in each successive time period are generally reincarnations of the characters from the previous time period, with the main exception being the character of Nevyn, a powerful dweomermaster, or magician, who lives a single life through most of the events of the books. For the most part each book alternates between events in the current time frame and events from the characters’ past lives, eventually building up to reveal the sprawling history of the nation of Deverry. It may sound complicated, but Kerr’s amazing skill as a storyteller weaves it all together in a way that makes it not only easy to follow but an absolute pleasure to read.
This particular entry in the saga, A Time of Exile, moves the bulk of the action away from Deverry itself and focuses instead on the elven territories of the Westlands. The history of the elven people, briefly touched upon in the first tetralogy, is expanded upon here through the magically extended life of Nevyn’s former apprentice, Aderyn. Most of the narrative covers the roughly three hundred years of Aderyn’s life, how he came to be accepted as a Wise One by the nomadic elves and how his life was extended beyond human norms. This is framed by a prologue and epilogue set in the current time frame which cover the effective abdication of King Rhodry of Deverry, and his own connection to the elves.
The way Kerr weaves the two narratives together in this book is truly masterful. Through Aderyn’s eyes we get to see Rhodry’s past lives being drawn along by their Wyrd, their fate. While this is definitely a book written to set up what’s to come next, it still manages to tell an engaging story that plays with the reader’s emotions in so many ways. Aderyn’s doomed love of the elven dweomermaster Dallandra echoes the relationship between Rhodry and Jill from the first tetralogy and adds an almost palpable purpose to Aderyn’s efforts to save Rhodry’s life at the end of the novel.
All in all I enjoyed this one at least as much as I enjoyed the previous four, and my enjoyment hasn’t waned in the twenty-something years between the first reading and this most recent one. With the news that the author has a new Deverry book coming out next February I’m pretty certain I’m going to be spending a lot of time in Deverry over the next few months, and I really hope you’ll join me there and give these books a read. If you like your fantasy to be truly epic then I’m pretty sure you’ll not be disappointed.
A Time of Exile is the first book of the Westlands Cycle, and the fifth book overall in the massive epic that is the Deverry Cycle. I’d say you don’t need to have read the previous books to be able to enjoy this new tetralogy, but it does add to the experience if you have. However, if you’re new to Deverry then a quick outline may be in order.
The series as a whole follows the lives of several groups of characters spread over a period of roughly five hundred years. The characters in each successive time period are generally reincarnations of the characters from the previous time period, with the main exception being the character of Nevyn, a powerful dweomermaster, or magician, who lives a single life through most of the events of the books. For the most part each book alternates between events in the current time frame and events from the characters’ past lives, eventually building up to reveal the sprawling history of the nation of Deverry. It may sound complicated, but Kerr’s amazing skill as a storyteller weaves it all together in a way that makes it not only easy to follow but an absolute pleasure to read.
This particular entry in the saga, A Time of Exile, moves the bulk of the action away from Deverry itself and focuses instead on the elven territories of the Westlands. The history of the elven people, briefly touched upon in the first tetralogy, is expanded upon here through the magically extended life of Nevyn’s former apprentice, Aderyn. Most of the narrative covers the roughly three hundred years of Aderyn’s life, how he came to be accepted as a Wise One by the nomadic elves and how his life was extended beyond human norms. This is framed by a prologue and epilogue set in the current time frame which cover the effective abdication of King Rhodry of Deverry, and his own connection to the elves.
The way Kerr weaves the two narratives together in this book is truly masterful. Through Aderyn’s eyes we get to see Rhodry’s past lives being drawn along by their Wyrd, their fate. While this is definitely a book written to set up what’s to come next, it still manages to tell an engaging story that plays with the reader’s emotions in so many ways. Aderyn’s doomed love of the elven dweomermaster Dallandra echoes the relationship between Rhodry and Jill from the first tetralogy and adds an almost palpable purpose to Aderyn’s efforts to save Rhodry’s life at the end of the novel.
All in all I enjoyed this one at least as much as I enjoyed the previous four, and my enjoyment hasn’t waned in the twenty-something years between the first reading and this most recent one. With the news that the author has a new Deverry book coming out next February I’m pretty certain I’m going to be spending a lot of time in Deverry over the next few months, and I really hope you’ll join me there and give these books a read. If you like your fantasy to be truly epic then I’m pretty sure you’ll not be disappointed.
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