Scan barcode
A review by ketreads
The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams
adventurous
hopeful
mysterious
4.5
This was such a fantastic start to a classic fantasy adventure!
The Dragonbone Chair is a book I've heard many things about, including it being a big inspiration for a lot of modern fantasy authors, and have had the whole series on my shelf for over a year! (I found them all on Vinted for a steal!!)
In this book we follow our main character of Simon (and a few other PoVs sprinkled in), a castle-born kitchen boy with very little adventure in his life. Through him we are introduced to the world of The Dragonbone Chair, it's politics, secret societies, world history, and a foretold war to come.
The book itself starts out slow, taking us through Simons day-to-day life and his wanting for more out of his life. As the chapters continue, we get more and more hints of something deeper going on within the castle itself while our fear for Simon and those around him increase. Tad Williams did a fantastic job of giving us time to truly get to know Simon so we could really appreciate the changes the boy goes through. Once the adventure kicks-off, it does not stop! Williams is somehow able to not only continue the momentum of his own story, but add to the underlying anxiety and fear we have for the characters we come to love. My favourites of which are, obviously, Binabik and Maegwin who I hope to see more of in the coming books!
The pacing, other than the very slow beginning, felt remarkably well done and our ending truly latched me onto the series. I can see how many authors were inspired by The Dragonbone Chair but cannot believe this book isn't more talked about. The world feels similar to others we've read before, but also distinguishes itself enough to feel mysteriously fascinating. Every new chapter, especially nearing the end, added more mystery and depth to the world that made it feel so real. The characters, even side characters, made realistically driven decisions that made sorrow and loss even more impactful. I highly recommend this book, even with it's slow start.
I can't wait to continue the series!
The Dragonbone Chair is a book I've heard many things about, including it being a big inspiration for a lot of modern fantasy authors, and have had the whole series on my shelf for over a year! (I found them all on Vinted for a steal!!)
In this book we follow our main character of Simon (and a few other PoVs sprinkled in), a castle-born kitchen boy with very little adventure in his life. Through him we are introduced to the world of The Dragonbone Chair, it's politics, secret societies, world history, and a foretold war to come.
The book itself starts out slow, taking us through Simons day-to-day life and his wanting for more out of his life. As the chapters continue, we get more and more hints of something deeper going on within the castle itself while our fear for Simon and those around him increase. Tad Williams did a fantastic job of giving us time to truly get to know Simon so we could really appreciate the changes the boy goes through. Once the adventure kicks-off, it does not stop! Williams is somehow able to not only continue the momentum of his own story, but add to the underlying anxiety and fear we have for the characters we come to love. My favourites of which are, obviously, Binabik and Maegwin who I hope to see more of in the coming books!
The pacing, other than the very slow beginning, felt remarkably well done and our ending truly latched me onto the series. I can see how many authors were inspired by The Dragonbone Chair but cannot believe this book isn't more talked about. The world feels similar to others we've read before, but also distinguishes itself enough to feel mysteriously fascinating. Every new chapter, especially nearing the end, added more mystery and depth to the world that made it feel so real. The characters, even side characters, made realistically driven decisions that made sorrow and loss even more impactful. I highly recommend this book, even with it's slow start.
I can't wait to continue the series!