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A review by crazycatgeek
The Sapphire Rose by David Eddings
4.0
Things I loved about the Elenium trilogy were the characters and their relationships. As in every book of Eddings I have read so far, the characters each have their own, distinct personality that distinguishes them from the others, but they are almost all likable in a way. The characters in the Elenium are less stereotypical than the ones in the Belgariad, which is also a positive point in my opinion, even though I didn't mind it too much in the Belgariad. Some of the villains are still just evil because they are simply evil, but some of them had layers this time, too. Sparhawk himself, as well as Talen, Sephrenia, and Flute, were favourites of mine.
As for the character relationships - some were predictable, but not in a way that annoyed me, and others were quite surprising. I'll again mention Flute here for reasons that will be obvious once you have read this book. There were some romantic relationships, but I also really liked the portrayal of the friendships between the knights and the parent-childlike relationships between some of the other characters.
The plot is not particularly strong, although I do still have a weakness for quest stories. That aspect of the plot was good. The story in itself is a little thin, but again, not to the point where I minded very much because everything else was worked out so well. The descriptions of people and places were sometimes a little too long and dry, causing me to skim over them rather than read them attentively, which disrupted the flow of the story a little.
One thing I noticed about this series compared to the Belgariad and the Malloreon that I didn't like as much was the violence. Of course there will be violence in epic fantasy stories and I don't mind that at all. I was rooting for the good guys in their quest and their fights with the bad guys and the fights were sometimes interesting to read, too. However, what bothered me was the sometimes almost indifferent attitude of the main characters (who are generally good, noble, and likable characters) towards matters such as the murder of innocent men (as opposed to the 'real' bad guys) or the rape of women. In some cases, their distaste for such things was shown; but in others, they seemed to hardly care or at the very least dismiss it under the guise of things needing to happen for the greater good or things being normal in times of war. Those latter cases didn't sit well with me.
Overall, the Elenium is a very good series that held my interest and drew me into the painted world with its cities, landscapes, and characters, with all their problems and relationships. There were some things that bothered me or that I didn't like as much, but that generally didn't disrupt my enjoyment of the story. I do think I will be reading more from Eddings.
As for the character relationships - some were predictable, but not in a way that annoyed me, and others were quite surprising. I'll again mention Flute here for reasons that will be obvious once you have read this book. There were some romantic relationships, but I also really liked the portrayal of the friendships between the knights and the parent-childlike relationships between some of the other characters.
The plot is not particularly strong, although I do still have a weakness for quest stories. That aspect of the plot was good. The story in itself is a little thin, but again, not to the point where I minded very much because everything else was worked out so well. The descriptions of people and places were sometimes a little too long and dry, causing me to skim over them rather than read them attentively, which disrupted the flow of the story a little.
One thing I noticed about this series compared to the Belgariad and the Malloreon that I didn't like as much was the violence. Of course there will be violence in epic fantasy stories and I don't mind that at all. I was rooting for the good guys in their quest and their fights with the bad guys and the fights were sometimes interesting to read, too. However, what bothered me was the sometimes almost indifferent attitude of the main characters (who are generally good, noble, and likable characters) towards matters such as the murder of innocent men (as opposed to the 'real' bad guys) or the rape of women. In some cases, their distaste for such things was shown; but in others, they seemed to hardly care or at the very least dismiss it under the guise of things needing to happen for the greater good or things being normal in times of war. Those latter cases didn't sit well with me.
Overall, the Elenium is a very good series that held my interest and drew me into the painted world with its cities, landscapes, and characters, with all their problems and relationships. There were some things that bothered me or that I didn't like as much, but that generally didn't disrupt my enjoyment of the story. I do think I will be reading more from Eddings.