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3.8 AVERAGE
3.8 AVERAGE
Excellent! I don't know why I haven't read this book earlier. I think Fallon has a real talent for writing very good fantasy stories which aren't cheasy or cliche. I was slightly put off by the presence of cat and dog/human hybrids. The last book I read with those in them (Green, Jay Lake) was really kinky in a freaky way. I did not enjoy it. Luckily, however she stayed away from the pseudo-bestiality thing. The beginning was a little slow, but I realize that's because we had to have the exposition, which is always my least favorite part of a book. On to the next!
Please please please look at trigger warnings before reading coz there will be a lot.
I definitely enjoyed Arkady and Cayal's POVs. Interested to see where it goes.
I definitely enjoyed Arkady and Cayal's POVs. Interested to see where it goes.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Death, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment
Moderate: Genocide, Gore, Homophobia, Infidelity, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Blood, Murder, War, Classism
the immortal prince is very good but not a stand alone story. with relatable realistic, no matter how surreal, characters it deals in the difference between life and living. between good, evil, indifference, and instinct. it is a well written, well told 500 page setup novel. the dumas of high fantasy.
solid read. Good enough that I ordered the rest from our local library.
Good characters, a touch Mary Sue, and I suspect immoral, immortal, and unable to die is going to get irritating in the next book or so. But this was a worthy summer read.
Good characters, a touch Mary Sue, and I suspect immoral, immortal, and unable to die is going to get irritating in the next book or so. But this was a worthy summer read.
adventurous
emotional
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love this world. With magic hidden beneath the surface that can only be accessed with the swelling of the tide. The different lands and the creatures that live in them.
What do you do when you are an immortal that is sick of living? How far will you go to try and die?
What do you do when you are an immortal that is sick of living? How far will you go to try and die?
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Very enjoyable read and a promising start to a new series.
The basic premise is distinctive and alone carried the first quarter of the book. Arkady Desean, a scholar and the Duchess of the second most important region in the kingdom, is tasked with proving that Cayal is not the immortal god-like being he claims to be. For a variety of reasons, possibly true possibly manufactured by Cayal, proving that is not as straightforward as it would seem.
The book is populated with interesting and multi-dimensional characters and is set against a 8,000+ year mythology. Told from multiple perspectives, what could be distracting or even a failure in a less gifted writers hands the voices and thoughts of the characters are always so distinctive you know whose eyes you're looking through.
Eagerly awaiting getting my hands on book 2.
The basic premise is distinctive and alone carried the first quarter of the book. Arkady Desean, a scholar and the Duchess of the second most important region in the kingdom, is tasked with proving that Cayal is not the immortal god-like being he claims to be. For a variety of reasons, possibly true possibly manufactured by Cayal, proving that is not as straightforward as it would seem.
The book is populated with interesting and multi-dimensional characters and is set against a 8,000+ year mythology. Told from multiple perspectives, what could be distracting or even a failure in a less gifted writers hands the voices and thoughts of the characters are always so distinctive you know whose eyes you're looking through.
Eagerly awaiting getting my hands on book 2.
Okay, this book was recommended to me a while back by someone on Twitter (sorry I have forgotten who but I am very grateful) and I picked up the audiobook with the intention of getting to it at some point. I ended up getting to it sooner than expected as I hit a bit of a reading lull and wanted to try someone new and see if I would get into their work, and I ended up completely hooked into this story from the first few chapters and desperate to find out what will happen next.
First up, trigger warnings... There is rape, abuse, genocide, slavery and more in this story so it is not one for the faint-of-heart or anyone who is unable to deal with these sorts of topics, however, I think the author handles most of these topics very well and I enjoyed reading about them.
There is also a gay romance as a part of this story. I won't go so far as to say it's a great portrayal becuase the world is very much anti-gay relationships and the characters involved aren't completely 'nice' but the fact that it's there and it's something that some of the characters openly accept and think nothing of was nice to see.
Now moving on to what this book is really about. We follow a couple of different viewpoints, our main two being Arkady Desean who is a Duchess and Cayal who is the 'Immortal Prince'. We do get other viewpoints from time to time including Arkady's husband who is the Duke, Jackson who is the master of the Crasii in their Duchy, and the King's spy-master. However, I would say Arkady and Cayal are the key characters for most of this book at least.
What I like about Arkady is that she reminded me a little of Lady Trent from Marie Brennan's series of books in that she is a historian and a woman who is rather ahead of her time. She is determined to be looked up to by others, and hopes that her scientific and historic outlook and discoveries will achieve this for her, but in a time where men still dominate society she knows it's an uphill battle. Her marriage to the Duke is one more of convenience than anything else, so she is rather pragmatic and happy to ally herself with those who will give her a platform, but she also is able to stand tall and make her own decisions and calls based on what she thinks is right. This made her both refreshing and innovative as a female in fantasy, and I respected that.
Cayal is another enigma of a character because he claims from the start that he is immortal and when his death at the start of the book doesn't quite happen people begin to question just how he's fooled them and what he is. Cayal claims he is a Tide Lord, someone able to wield Tide magic when the Tide has risen, but currently it's low Tide and he has a hard time proving he is who he says he is. I found Cayal to be a fairly typical fantasy character, he has conflicted morals, he has done many terrible things, and yet he's likeable and fun to read about and you can sympathise with his story.
The world we're following is a fascinating one because although it has evolved much like our own there are all manner of new races which have been created, namely half-animal-half-human cross-overs such as the Canine and Feline Crasii. These races are basically enslaved by humans at this point in history, but it is believed that they were created by the Tide Lords and that they are compelled to serve their masters should they ever return.
We also have the Tide magic to play with, and as we unfold more of the story of Cayal's life we learn a lot about how the Immortals were created and what they have done with their magic as times have gone by. Being immortal tends to get a little tedious after many long years so fighting by moving seas and killing off thousands seems like a standard past-time for some...
There's also a lot of politics to contend with in this world. We have the King, who is related to the Duke and who is looking to marry is son off, we have the Immortals who are constantly warring and we have the Crasii society and their own hidden off-shoots which are working undercover. There are plenty of layers that get revealed as the book goes on, and I loved seeing how people and creatures were linked and how the world has been shaped up to this point.
Overall I was utterly enthralled by this story and I am keen to find out what happens next and amazed that this series is not more popular. I look forward to being able to follow the rest of the adventure in the next few books very soon and I am happy that it's a complete series (I think?) for me to whizz through! 4.5*s
First up, trigger warnings... There is rape, abuse, genocide, slavery and more in this story so it is not one for the faint-of-heart or anyone who is unable to deal with these sorts of topics, however, I think the author handles most of these topics very well and I enjoyed reading about them.
There is also a gay romance as a part of this story. I won't go so far as to say it's a great portrayal becuase the world is very much anti-gay relationships and the characters involved aren't completely 'nice' but the fact that it's there and it's something that some of the characters openly accept and think nothing of was nice to see.
Now moving on to what this book is really about. We follow a couple of different viewpoints, our main two being Arkady Desean who is a Duchess and Cayal who is the 'Immortal Prince'. We do get other viewpoints from time to time including Arkady's husband who is the Duke, Jackson who is the master of the Crasii in their Duchy, and the King's spy-master. However, I would say Arkady and Cayal are the key characters for most of this book at least.
What I like about Arkady is that she reminded me a little of Lady Trent from Marie Brennan's series of books in that she is a historian and a woman who is rather ahead of her time. She is determined to be looked up to by others, and hopes that her scientific and historic outlook and discoveries will achieve this for her, but in a time where men still dominate society she knows it's an uphill battle. Her marriage to the Duke is one more of convenience than anything else, so she is rather pragmatic and happy to ally herself with those who will give her a platform, but she also is able to stand tall and make her own decisions and calls based on what she thinks is right. This made her both refreshing and innovative as a female in fantasy, and I respected that.
Cayal is another enigma of a character because he claims from the start that he is immortal and when his death at the start of the book doesn't quite happen people begin to question just how he's fooled them and what he is. Cayal claims he is a Tide Lord, someone able to wield Tide magic when the Tide has risen, but currently it's low Tide and he has a hard time proving he is who he says he is. I found Cayal to be a fairly typical fantasy character, he has conflicted morals, he has done many terrible things, and yet he's likeable and fun to read about and you can sympathise with his story.
The world we're following is a fascinating one because although it has evolved much like our own there are all manner of new races which have been created, namely half-animal-half-human cross-overs such as the Canine and Feline Crasii. These races are basically enslaved by humans at this point in history, but it is believed that they were created by the Tide Lords and that they are compelled to serve their masters should they ever return.
We also have the Tide magic to play with, and as we unfold more of the story of Cayal's life we learn a lot about how the Immortals were created and what they have done with their magic as times have gone by. Being immortal tends to get a little tedious after many long years so fighting by moving seas and killing off thousands seems like a standard past-time for some...
There's also a lot of politics to contend with in this world. We have the King, who is related to the Duke and who is looking to marry is son off, we have the Immortals who are constantly warring and we have the Crasii society and their own hidden off-shoots which are working undercover. There are plenty of layers that get revealed as the book goes on, and I loved seeing how people and creatures were linked and how the world has been shaped up to this point.
Overall I was utterly enthralled by this story and I am keen to find out what happens next and amazed that this series is not more popular. I look forward to being able to follow the rest of the adventure in the next few books very soon and I am happy that it's a complete series (I think?) for me to whizz through! 4.5*s
It's nice when people can approach the idea of immortality without the inclusion of vampires. Most definitely an interesting concept. This book was a little too predictable; I got both the obvious and not so obvious hints. So the shock that you were supposed to figure out before you got there wasn't that shocking, and the actual shock that you weren't supposed to figure out 'til you got there wasn't very shocking either. However, I really liked this book. It isn't anything I really can put my finger on, like I said, it was very predictable, but I completely got sucked in. I even have tracked down an Aussie bookseller to send me the next books in the series instead of waiting for them to be released in the states. But let's face it, it's gratuitous, soap opera fantasy. I'm okay with that.
So, here's what happens:
Arkady is this duke's beard. But that's okay, she was abused as a child and isn't really that interested in the whole guy thing anyway. Her childhood friend, Declan, is the king's spymaster (who is also in love with her). When this dude they try to hang doesn't die, Declan asks her to prove that he is not one of the Tide Lord immortals, like he claims. Instead, she falls in love with him and frees him. Oddly, he falls in love with her too, something he says has never happened in his 8,000 year existence. Her husband's secret lover also turns out to be a Tide Lord, and his niece, who recently appeared on the doorstep is also an immortal. The niece marries the Prince. The lover stays behind. And Arkady and her husband take up the post at some backwoods ambassadorship. Cayal, the Immortal Prince, decides he's going to try to force Arkady to help him die.
So, here's what happens:
Arkady is this duke's beard. But that's okay, she was abused as a child and isn't really that interested in the whole guy thing anyway. Her childhood friend, Declan, is the king's spymaster (who is also in love with her). When this dude they try to hang doesn't die, Declan asks her to prove that he is not one of the Tide Lord immortals, like he claims. Instead, she falls in love with him and frees him. Oddly, he falls in love with her too, something he says has never happened in his 8,000 year existence. Her husband's secret lover also turns out to be a Tide Lord, and his niece, who recently appeared on the doorstep is also an immortal. The niece marries the Prince. The lover stays behind. And Arkady and her husband take up the post at some backwoods ambassadorship. Cayal, the Immortal Prince, decides he's going to try to force Arkady to help him die.