You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.
Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
I read this series for the first time in high school, and it still holds up for me on re-read. The best part is Tad Williams' world building. This series is a long read, but worth the time investment if you're a fantasy lit fan.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-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:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I'm so easily satisfied with books. Give me an amalgamation of the most common tropes in fantasy why not.
Jonas is really funny, I'm sorry
Jonas is really funny, I'm sorry
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It's an excellent story. From a big picture perspective, it's captivating. but the start is attrociously sluggish, and Williams can be painfully long-winded.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams
Quotes: "books are magic. That is the simple answer. And books are traps as well." "Magic? Traps?"
Books are a form of magic" .."--because they span time and distance more surely than any spell or charm."
"Nothing is without cost. There is a price to all power, and it is not always obvious. Promise me you will remember that."
"Honor is a wonderful thing, but it is a means, not an end. A man who starves with honor does not help his family. A king who falls on his sword with honor does not save his kingdom."
"From sorrow have you come," he said, "and sorrow you have brought with you. Sorrow shall be your name."
"As long as there is memory, Summer remains. And even Winter passes."
Review: If you're looking for a classic fantasy story, look no further. With very descriptive and flowery prose, Tad Williams is able to combine so many fantasy tropes and themes together to create a very epic tale.
The story is told mostly from the perspective of Simon. A castle servent. A king dies, and one of his two sons assumes the throne. Only he's been corrupted by an evil. Tales of magic, dragons, and very powerful swords that were believed to be just stories. Legends. Are real. Simon is guided on his journey by Binabik, a troll. Who's probably my favorite character in the book.
Two things I didn't love: The pacing of the story is slow for the most part, and there's so many characters and names that it was difficult for me to keep up. But I focused on the core characters. (203 names mentioned in this. Counted on the index in the back.) That was overwhelming to me.
You can see bits of Tolkien and Arthurian inspiration in the story. Among others. But in the best of ways. Overall, I really liked the story. Just know it has a slower pace in the first half. By the end, I was invested in what was going on.
The story is so vast, in a way. It was hard for me to review.
4 ⭐️
Quotes: "books are magic. That is the simple answer. And books are traps as well." "Magic? Traps?"
Books are a form of magic" .."--because they span time and distance more surely than any spell or charm."
"Nothing is without cost. There is a price to all power, and it is not always obvious. Promise me you will remember that."
"Honor is a wonderful thing, but it is a means, not an end. A man who starves with honor does not help his family. A king who falls on his sword with honor does not save his kingdom."
"From sorrow have you come," he said, "and sorrow you have brought with you. Sorrow shall be your name."
"As long as there is memory, Summer remains. And even Winter passes."
Review: If you're looking for a classic fantasy story, look no further. With very descriptive and flowery prose, Tad Williams is able to combine so many fantasy tropes and themes together to create a very epic tale.
The story is told mostly from the perspective of Simon. A castle servent. A king dies, and one of his two sons assumes the throne. Only he's been corrupted by an evil. Tales of magic, dragons, and very powerful swords that were believed to be just stories. Legends. Are real. Simon is guided on his journey by Binabik, a troll. Who's probably my favorite character in the book.
Two things I didn't love: The pacing of the story is slow for the most part, and there's so many characters and names that it was difficult for me to keep up. But I focused on the core characters. (203 names mentioned in this. Counted on the index in the back.) That was overwhelming to me.
You can see bits of Tolkien and Arthurian inspiration in the story. Among others. But in the best of ways. Overall, I really liked the story. Just know it has a slower pace in the first half. By the end, I was invested in what was going on.
The story is so vast, in a way. It was hard for me to review.
4 ⭐️
God I just love diving into a huge fantasy book when on holiday. I love poring over the maps and learning all of the geographical lore. It’s not something I’m really able to do as much when I’m just reading on my commute in 20 minute increments.
This one’s great as well. It’s my first proper fantasy novel since I finished Wheel of Time in late 2022 and I might even prefer it. It’s very similar to ASOIAF (which is my benchmark), which isn’t surprising as it was an inspiration for George R R Martin. It’s not quite as savage but it’s still a bit nittier and grittier than most fantasy - it certainly isn’t Sanderson - which is how I like the genre. Definitely gonna finish the trilogy.
This one’s great as well. It’s my first proper fantasy novel since I finished Wheel of Time in late 2022 and I might even prefer it. It’s very similar to ASOIAF (which is my benchmark), which isn’t surprising as it was an inspiration for George R R Martin. It’s not quite as savage but it’s still a bit nittier and grittier than most fantasy - it certainly isn’t Sanderson - which is how I like the genre. Definitely gonna finish the trilogy.
I first read this book sometime in the 80s. It made me a huge Tad Williams fan. I like the fact his books are BIG. The length of his books can be daunting, but well worth reading. I started rereading this series due to his new novels that began coming out recently. I wanted to be able to be refreshed on all the events. I am glad I did because I discovered again how much I liked this book. If you have never read his works this is a perfect start, but anything is recommended.
Much like what I have experienced with a lot of classic fantasy is that the first book tends to be the authors version of "the fellowship of the ring". You have the unsuspecting hero, who has lived a secluded and underprivileged life. They've never dreamed of much until a wizard comes into their life and thrusts them onto a path to save the world. Much like with Riftwar or Shannara I think it was interesting to see how the author approached this.
I liked the prose, I think it had a tone and use of language that we don't see a lot in classic fantasy, It also leaned into a form of description that works better for me than is usually associated with its contemporaries. I did struggle with the protagonist in this book. He is a very typical teenaged character and also felt mildly like a self insert type of character that I found difficult to engage with.
I think the good outweighed the bad and it ended in a way that set up for what was clearly set out to be an exciting and epic series.
I liked the prose, I think it had a tone and use of language that we don't see a lot in classic fantasy, It also leaned into a form of description that works better for me than is usually associated with its contemporaries. I did struggle with the protagonist in this book. He is a very typical teenaged character and also felt mildly like a self insert type of character that I found difficult to engage with.
I think the good outweighed the bad and it ended in a way that set up for what was clearly set out to be an exciting and epic series.