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mrsdragon's review against another edition
4.0
2023: I learned midway through rereading the series that this book was originally written first, and published in the 80s. It was then re-released as part of the series. This makes sense because the writing in this book is considerably less polished than in book #3. The story is there, and fine, but the dialog is a bit clunky and there is a lot of "he said". It's also wild to me that the plot of books 1-3 is basically just info dumped at the end of this book as an explainer and yet it took so long for there to be a series relaying those stories. Books 1 and 3 are my favorites. 1 because Cimorine is so classic. 3 because Morwen is my favorite, and because it's the best written of the series.
Anyway, it's worth reading to finish the series out (and, as a kid, I didn't notice the shift at all) and see what happens to various characters.
2012 Review: Daystar has grown up to be severely polite and obedient. And yet he's still a sweet kid and the story is endearing. The tone is a bit saccharine for what, in a high fantasy novel would be "TEH DRAMA", but it's a quick, fun read.
Anyway, it's worth reading to finish the series out (and, as a kid, I didn't notice the shift at all) and see what happens to various characters.
2012 Review: Daystar has grown up to be severely polite and obedient. And yet he's still a sweet kid and the story is endearing. The tone is a bit saccharine for what, in a high fantasy novel would be "TEH DRAMA", but it's a quick, fun read.
lizlbarrett's review against another edition
4.0
I love this series but I do think this one is the weakest of the four, although it being written first and seeing where all the plot threads came from is well worth reading it
agentbird's review against another edition
3.0
This was a wonderful conclusion to this adorable series. I think it was my favorite of the bunch.
thecontrarybookworm's review against another edition
1.0
The Enchanted Forest Chronicles is one of the most beloved fantasy series for children, written by Patricia C. Wrede. The first book in the series, Dealing with Dragons, is told from Princess Cimorene’s perspective as she goes to live with a dragon, which is customary in her world. The next book, Searching for Dragons, is told from the perspective of King Mendanbar (her future husband) as he and Cimorene go on a quest to save a dragon. The book after that, Calling on Dragons, is told from the perspective of Morwen, a witch who is friends with both Cimorene and Mendanbar, as they go on a quest to retrieve a lost sword. The final book, Talking to Dragons, is in the perspective of Cimorene and Menanbar’s son, Daystar, as he tries to break a sixteen-year-old curse on his father.
I can’t even express how much I hated this series. Princess Cimorene runs away in the first place not to get married, only to end up getting married in the next book! Not only that, but she wasn’t even in love with the king of the Enchanted Forest! It was more like, “I’m a girl, and you’re a guy, and we’ve known each other for about a month, so let’s get married!”
The characters were so simple and one-dimensional. Even Daystar, whose story is told in first person, you know nothing about by the end. There were were many side characters that added nothing to the plotline whatsoever. Come to think of it, none of the characters added anything to the plotline. None of the events or places added anything to the plotline! There wasn’t even a plotline. It was just a bunch of random jumbled events with a couple of halfhearted attempts at conflict, but the whole thing was so boring, the conflict didn’t stick out any more than anything else in the plot. The writing was very clunky, and there were hardly any descriptions (at least, ones that made sense), so it was like walking into the world blind. There was dialogue, but it managed to go on for a long time without getting anywhere, so it was extremely pointless. On top of that, there were certain characters who didn’t even understand each other, so it created an unnecessary confusing dynamic that the reader doesn’t want to deal with.
Also, what do dragons have to do with anything, anyway, and why are they in all of the titles? Dragons aren’t prominent in the books! The reason for this is awful editing, I’m guessing.
Additionally, the author wrote the first three books after the last book, so it’s something like a three-part prequel. Some things in the first books (like Cimorene’s and Mendanbar’s marriage) are extremely forced and out-of-nowhere, but they have to occur to make sense in the last book. There are also random characters that show up in the first books, but never show up in the last one. The last book is arguably the worst, having read the three before it, because the main character is clueless to the plot that you are already aware of, and the whole book is a bunch of random occurences that aren’t explained to him until the end, but you knew the whole time.
I have zero idea how these books got published or if they were even edited at all. I am outraged that pieces of writing this horrendous became so liked and popular. Don’t read the Enchanted Forest Chronicles unless you want to see for yourself how terrible the books really are.
Ages: 8 + (But let’s be real – no ages at all should read this!)
Rating: 1 star
I can’t even express how much I hated this series. Princess Cimorene runs away in the first place not to get married, only to end up getting married in the next book! Not only that, but she wasn’t even in love with the king of the Enchanted Forest! It was more like, “I’m a girl, and you’re a guy, and we’ve known each other for about a month, so let’s get married!”
The characters were so simple and one-dimensional. Even Daystar, whose story is told in first person, you know nothing about by the end. There were were many side characters that added nothing to the plotline whatsoever. Come to think of it, none of the characters added anything to the plotline. None of the events or places added anything to the plotline! There wasn’t even a plotline. It was just a bunch of random jumbled events with a couple of halfhearted attempts at conflict, but the whole thing was so boring, the conflict didn’t stick out any more than anything else in the plot. The writing was very clunky, and there were hardly any descriptions (at least, ones that made sense), so it was like walking into the world blind. There was dialogue, but it managed to go on for a long time without getting anywhere, so it was extremely pointless. On top of that, there were certain characters who didn’t even understand each other, so it created an unnecessary confusing dynamic that the reader doesn’t want to deal with.
Also, what do dragons have to do with anything, anyway, and why are they in all of the titles? Dragons aren’t prominent in the books! The reason for this is awful editing, I’m guessing.
Additionally, the author wrote the first three books after the last book, so it’s something like a three-part prequel. Some things in the first books (like Cimorene’s and Mendanbar’s marriage) are extremely forced and out-of-nowhere, but they have to occur to make sense in the last book. There are also random characters that show up in the first books, but never show up in the last one. The last book is arguably the worst, having read the three before it, because the main character is clueless to the plot that you are already aware of, and the whole book is a bunch of random occurences that aren’t explained to him until the end, but you knew the whole time.
I have zero idea how these books got published or if they were even edited at all. I am outraged that pieces of writing this horrendous became so liked and popular. Don’t read the Enchanted Forest Chronicles unless you want to see for yourself how terrible the books really are.
Ages: 8 + (But let’s be real – no ages at all should read this!)
Rating: 1 star
thecorioliseffect's review against another edition
I've finished another series I started in my childhood!!! Fun, cute little series. I definitely have outgrown it, but I'm glad to have gone back and finished a series I started as a kid!
rainmisoa's review against another edition
5.0
katlovestea's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
the_bookworm_escapism's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
grid's review against another edition
4.0
I loved this series, and felt like this book, while it had some issues, was better than the previous one, which was (for me) the weakest of them.
I do think maybe Daystar was too rational and logical to be an actual teenage boy. I still liked him though, even if he felt a little wooden at times. The fire witch was the standout character, imo.
I do think maybe Daystar was too rational and logical to be an actual teenage boy. I still liked him though, even if he felt a little wooden at times. The fire witch was the standout character, imo.
lissajean7's review against another edition
3.0
I enjoyed it. It wasn't as great as the first one, but fun.