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A review by hoperu
The Bone Queen by Alison Croggon
4.0
This is a prequel to the Pellinor series and concerns Cadvan and the rising of the Dark that is the main foe of that series. I really enjoyed returning to the world of the Bards, and seeing more of Cadvan, although I do miss Maerad (since this takes place about 50 years before she is born). I appreciate how Croggon works in details and people from the full series without seeming too obvious about it - there is a bit of retconning, mostly with the cosmology of the world, but otherwise, the world is the one we know already.
My quibble with other reviews and blurbs about the main series stands for this book: this world is often compared to that of Tolkien's, in what is supposed to be a compliment about its richness and complexity, and I guess that as much as any modern fantasy novel owes a debt to Tolkien, that is true. But I still argue, as I did in my review of The Naming, that such a comparison does a disservice to its originality and richness of the characters. If you like Tolkien, you will probably like this; if you don't like Tolkien, don't let that comparison scare you away.
You can probably read this without having read the series and not be too lost, although Cadvan and his backstory might not hold your interesting as much. As someone who has read and thoroughly enjoyed the other books, I was very happy with this addition.
My quibble with other reviews and blurbs about the main series stands for this book: this world is often compared to that of Tolkien's, in what is supposed to be a compliment about its richness and complexity, and I guess that as much as any modern fantasy novel owes a debt to Tolkien, that is true. But I still argue, as I did in my review of The Naming, that such a comparison does a disservice to its originality and richness of the characters. If you like Tolkien, you will probably like this; if you don't like Tolkien, don't let that comparison scare you away.
You can probably read this without having read the series and not be too lost, although Cadvan and his backstory might not hold your interesting as much. As someone who has read and thoroughly enjoyed the other books, I was very happy with this addition.