Scan barcode
csdaley's review
4.0
I am going to say that this book isn’t for everyone. Hell, it wasn’t for me the first two times I tried to read it. This time though I plowed through it. It is not a fast paced book and spends a lot of time in philosophy and world building. I think the pace was what through me the first couple of times but for some reason I was in the right frame of mind and could not put it down.
momogajo's review
adventurous
mysterious
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? It's complicated
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail
jugglebird's review
3.0
Decent fantasy novel. In general, Modesitt is a good world builder. The society is as strong a character in this novel as the main character and the evolving story of them both is engaging. He also does a good job with balanced male and female characters.
craftingrama's review
3.0
A narrator can make or break a book and this one William Dufris damn near ruined the book. If it hadn't been for the fact that I was fed up looking for decent sci fi books with the atrocisous selection I had I would have given up practically from page one but I persevered and made it to the end. The book wasn't bad but I highly recommend either a different narrator or a different form
pepsipepe's review
informative
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
2.75
saraishelafs's review
4.0
A young portrait painter discovers that he can produce things simply by thinking . He must go to school to learn to image correctly and safely
gfaichney's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
mandygris's review
3.0
I bought this entire 11 book series when it was on sale. I'll probably come back and re-rate the books depending on how the entire series plays out. I was a bit wary about book 1, because it didn't seem like it'd pass the Bechdel test or that women would be anything more than plot devices to help the male protagonist along. It definitely is a man's world and the amount of notable women featured isn't huge, but they ones that do are interesting secondary characters with developed personalities and have some agency. They still kind of seem to exist in book 2 for the sake of being useful to the protagonist, but book 3 is expanding more on the agency and ideas of the women he knows.
Some of the societal settings, naming, and family set-up remind me of ancient Rome in terms of a "woman's place" though it's a bit more progressive and diverse with a variety of cultural interactions and beliefs, I think that is why we don't end up seeing a ton of women workers or women-to-women conversations unless there are multiple ladies in a household. Book 1 can also be forgiven for the lack of ladies, as it's a story about a young man who is fairly cloistered off for most of that book. As he gets older, the amount of people he gets to interact with increases.
Again, I will reserve full judgement until I finish the series.
Some of the societal settings, naming, and family set-up remind me of ancient Rome in terms of a "woman's place" though it's a bit more progressive and diverse with a variety of cultural interactions and beliefs, I think that is why we don't end up seeing a ton of women workers or women-to-women conversations unless there are multiple ladies in a household. Book 1 can also be forgiven for the lack of ladies, as it's a story about a young man who is fairly cloistered off for most of that book. As he gets older, the amount of people he gets to interact with increases.
Again, I will reserve full judgement until I finish the series.
kellyann_'s review
4.0
This is clearly going to be a classic long-winded and lengthy plot building fantasy series. None the less, it was great! Really enjoyed the world building and the characters. Looking forward to seeing how this plot develops.