A review by mdpenguin
Camber of Culdi by Katherine Kurtz

adventurous tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

This was a really good story and was richly told. But the dialogue was rather unpleasantly affected and made some of the more intimate scenes come across as unbelievable. The villains were also a little flat: there were moments where they seemed to have a bit more potential but those were fleeting and came to nothing. I think that this story could have been developed over two volumes and had the villains more fleshed out along with some of the aspects of Cinhil's development that happened off-stage, but I don't know that the writing style wouldn't leave something like that a bit too plodding. Overall, it definitely worked as it is and was an enjoyable read.

 

I didn't get much from the short story "Bethane" that was included at the end of this edition. It seems to be related to the first published trilogy in this series, which I haven't read, and I think it needed more context for me to care about it.