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4.29 AVERAGE
4.29 AVERAGE
8 stars An exceptional, astonishing debut novel
Measured out, shaken down and filled to overflowing with an intricately woven tapestry of dark colours.
Presented in the format of a biography written by a scribe who believes he has every reason to hate him, the chronicle of Vaelin al Sorna begins in his childhood, when his father abandons him outside the imposing gates of the Sixth Order.
What follows is an AMAZING mix of the best aspects of any story. Harsh military training, coming-of-age, friendship, courage, strength of character, love, the lies told by manipulative leaders in the pursuits of obscure agendas with scant regard for the cost in human life, and, towards the end, an unexpected and staggering personal sacrifice for a young man who finds no glory in what he does.
At 591 pages, this is a long and pretty intense read. Be prepared for a lot of violence (after all, this is pretty much a story about war), none of which is the gratuitous and sickening violence presented by Quentin Tarantino and Andy Remic (which causes one to wonder at the nature of their minds!). Rather, war is portrayed as the harsh reality that it is, without the frills of propagandist glorying. Best of all, no words are wasted on sordid pseudo-pornographic sex scenes which have become so prevalent in stories these days.
Measured out, shaken down and filled to overflowing with an intricately woven tapestry of dark colours.
Presented in the format of a biography written by a scribe who believes he has every reason to hate him, the chronicle of Vaelin al Sorna begins in his childhood, when his father abandons him outside the imposing gates of the Sixth Order.
What follows is an AMAZING mix of the best aspects of any story. Harsh military training, coming-of-age, friendship, courage, strength of character, love, the lies told by manipulative leaders in the pursuits of obscure agendas with scant regard for the cost in human life, and, towards the end, an unexpected and staggering personal sacrifice for a young man who finds no glory in what he does.
At 591 pages, this is a long and pretty intense read. Be prepared for a lot of violence (after all, this is pretty much a story about war), none of which is the gratuitous and sickening violence presented by Quentin Tarantino and Andy Remic (which causes one to wonder at the nature of their minds!). Rather, war is portrayed as the harsh reality that it is, without the frills of propagandist glorying. Best of all, no words are wasted on sordid pseudo-pornographic sex scenes which have become so prevalent in stories these days.
Primo capitolo della trilogia molto forte, con un protagonista che deve scoprire il suo passato, gli intrighi di corte e destreggiarsi con tutto questo. Gli stereotipi ci sono, tanti, ma non mi hanno disturbato così tanto.
Il rapporto con Sherin però non mi è piaciuto, amore nato e sviluppato sul nulla.
Avendo anche già letto il secondo volume, non posso fare altro che confermare che il Canto del Sangue sia decisamente superiore.
Il rapporto con Sherin però non mi è piaciuto, amore nato e sviluppato sul nulla.
Avendo anche già letto il secondo volume, non posso fare altro che confermare che il Canto del Sangue sia decisamente superiore.
I debated on the right word to use to describe what I loved most about this book. In the end, I decided on REALISM. Some might call it gritty. Whatever you call it, I love Ryan's writing style. His use of language is among the most enjoyable I've ever read. I actually liked Ryan's style better than Rothfuss, who I felt was amazing. I felt like I was right there with the characters, experiencing their emotions, thinking their thoughts, struggling with their choices, etc. 5 stars for that more than anything. The pacing was a bit hit and miss for me; for the most part the story progressed quite nicely with the right level of pacing. However, the last few chapters seemed oddly out of place with the rest of the book. It's as if the publisher told him to change things up and he scrambled to incorporate their input or something similar.
Final thoughts, THOROUGHLY enjoyed this book and highly recommend to fans of Gemmell and Rothfuss. I will certainly be reading Ryan's other books.
For readers who like to know the content they're getting into like myself: very minimal sexual content and what's there is generic and kid-friendly, in my opinion. Violence can be a bit brutal but nothing feels overly graphic. Does contain some language but it's sparse and definitely the exception.
Final thoughts, THOROUGHLY enjoyed this book and highly recommend to fans of Gemmell and Rothfuss. I will certainly be reading Ryan's other books.
For readers who like to know the content they're getting into like myself: very minimal sexual content and what's there is generic and kid-friendly, in my opinion. Violence can be a bit brutal but nothing feels overly graphic. Does contain some language but it's sparse and definitely the exception.
I thought this would be your typical coming of age sword and board type fantasy novel, but boy was I wrong. This one has equal measures Rothfuss (character) and Abercrombie (dark grttiness) that makes you yearn for the next installment. Well done initial effort.
I recognize why people like this and it's not written without skill, but it's not written for me. This was grimdark without the levity of Abercrombie, in a tough guy world full of tough guys that are tough all the time, except for when they are SUPER TOUGH. I liked a lot of the world building, I liked some of the supporting cast, I listened to this as an audiobook and loved the narrator, but the supreme machismo made it impossible for me to really enjoy.
Bu kitabı çok sevdim. Hikâyesini, geçtiği dünyayı, karakterlerini... Her şeyi çok sevdim. Bazı kitaplar vardır, okurken doğal bir şekilde akar gider ya hani, bence bu kitap onlardan. Başından sonuna kadar aktı desem yeridir.
Vaelin ve arkadaşlarının arasındaki bağın gittikçe güçlenmesini, yıllar içinde büyüyüp gelişmelerini izlemek eğlenceliydi, çocukluktan itibaren bir karakteri okumak sanırım onunla ve çevresiyle bağ kurmayı kolaylaştırıyor.
Kısımların başlarına serpiştirilen Verniers'in Kaleminden bölümleriyse geçmişle bugün arasına inanılmaz köprüler kurup işlerin gizemini daha da arttırıyor.
Eh, yalnız söylemeden geçemeyeceğim, benzer bir yapısı olduğu için kitabın sonuna geldiğimde Patrick Rothfus'a hadi yaz şu kitabı arkadaş ya dedim içimden. Bu arada benzerlik derken hikayenin anlatılış biçimini kastediyorum, hikayelerini alakası yok birbirleriyle.
Dediğim gibi, bu kitabı çok sevdim. Daha önce bayağı olumsuz yorumlar okumuştum seri hakkında ama başladım, memnunum. Diğer kitaplar nasılmış bakalım...
Vaelin ve arkadaşlarının arasındaki bağın gittikçe güçlenmesini, yıllar içinde büyüyüp gelişmelerini izlemek eğlenceliydi, çocukluktan itibaren bir karakteri okumak sanırım onunla ve çevresiyle bağ kurmayı kolaylaştırıyor.
Kısımların başlarına serpiştirilen Verniers'in Kaleminden bölümleriyse geçmişle bugün arasına inanılmaz köprüler kurup işlerin gizemini daha da arttırıyor.
Eh, yalnız söylemeden geçemeyeceğim, benzer bir yapısı olduğu için kitabın sonuna geldiğimde Patrick Rothfus'a hadi yaz şu kitabı arkadaş ya dedim içimden. Bu arada benzerlik derken hikayenin anlatılış biçimini kastediyorum, hikayelerini alakası yok birbirleriyle.
Dediğim gibi, bu kitabı çok sevdim. Daha önce bayağı olumsuz yorumlar okumuştum seri hakkında ama başladım, memnunum. Diğer kitaplar nasılmış bakalım...
Enjoyed this little diddy. Only issue was that almost everything V did was pointless in the end.
Another great fantasy read. Well paced with excellent characterisation, it's one of those novels you feel a little sad to have finished - always a sign of a good read. I'm off to find the sequel.
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Can't wait to read the rest of this trilogy. Although there were minor grammatical errors, that didn't stop me from loving this story. I just hope the following two have a better editor. ;)