Interestingly, I appear to be one of a tiny majority of people who enjoyed Metro 2034 more than the first book in the series. While the first book didInterestingly, I appear to be one of a tiny majority of people who enjoyed Metro 2034 more than the first book in the series. While the first book did admittedly do more in terms of setting up the environment and the psychological horror aspect of the series, the sequel/spin-off in the following year explores the wider philosophical themes of life in the Moscow Metro.
Homer with his musings is one of the best characters in the series by far, and Hunter makes a welcome return.
The series as a whole, books and games, remains a somewhat hidden gem....more
What happens to the human life that survives beyond the destruction of the world?
In the ruins of what was oThis is essentially a book about knowledge.
What happens to the human life that survives beyond the destruction of the world?
In the ruins of what was once the United States of America, the Order of Saint Leibowitz works relentlessly to discover and preserve bits and pieces of knowledge from the time prior to the Flame Deluge. And when Brother Francis of Utah stumbles across a series of ancient writings by the holy Leibowitz himself, the discovery starts a chain of events that spans centuries of the creation and life of a new world…
A Canticle for Leibowitz is divided into three parts. The first follows the desperate search for the knowledge of a lost world. The second follows the rise and expansion of new kingdoms in a world coming out of the dark ages. The third takes mankind to the brink of annihilation once more. Again, it is more than anything a book about knowledge. It follows the gathering and the use of knowledge after it has been lost. It explores the themes of truth, science, thought and religion, and in doing so becomes a postapocalyptic masterpiece.
And finally, Walter J. Miller’s description of the apocalypse must be the most gorgeous account of any horrible event ever written:
And the prince smote the cities of his enemies with the new fire, and for three days and nights did his great catapults and metal birds rain wrath upon them. Over each city a sun appeared and was brighter than the sun of heaven, and immediately that city withered and melted as wax under the torch, and the people thereof did stop in the streets and their skins smoked and they became as fagots thrown on the coals. And when the fury of the sun had faded, the city was in flames; and a great thunder came out of the sky, like the great battering-ram PIK-A-DON, to crush it utterly. Poisonous fumes fell over all the land, and the land was aglow by night with the afterfire and the curse of the afterfire which caused a scurf on the skin and made the hair to fall and the blood to die in the veins....more
The world is in ruins. The vampire plague has claimed all human life. Except for Robert Neville; mankind's lone survivor.
This is a classic hard-hittinThe world is in ruins. The vampire plague has claimed all human life. Except for Robert Neville; mankind's lone survivor.
This is a classic hard-hitting case of "it's not you, it's me." I'll have to apologise to the book after gathering my thoughts.
In hindsight, I Am Legend is an astounding work of dystopian fiction, a classic example of a tale of post-apocalyptic survival in a grim and horrifying future. I wish I realised that while I was reading it. Unfortunately, I could never get into it. It took me what seemed like an eternity just to creep slowly toward the half-way point. I just never appreciated the story or the characters (well, to be fair, there is mostly just one character) as much as I probably should have.
Then the last few chapters were so astoundingly good that I feel like I have to read the entire thing again to give it the love it probably deserves. The haunting ending alone is enough to warrant a re-read.
I am unfortunately forced to put this book on hold.
I'm not quite sure why. There was a point where I just lost interest entirely. It's not bad, far frI am unfortunately forced to put this book on hold.
I'm not quite sure why. There was a point where I just lost interest entirely. It's not bad, far from it. The opening chapters were very interesting, and made the promise of a fascinating postapocalyptic setting in the Moscow metro. However, I just lost the thread at some point. I started reading other books on the side, and eventually I was no longer interested in picking this one back up. I tried a few times, but could never find the desire to read more in it.
“When we're all gone at last then there'll be nobody here but death and his days will be numbered too. He'll be out in the road there with nothing “When we're all gone at last then there'll be nobody here but death and his days will be numbered too. He'll be out in the road there with nothing to do and nobody to do it to. He'll say: where did everybody go? And that's how it will be."
A masterpiece. Short, but resounding.
The Road is overall one of the most haunting, chilling books I have ever read. It did not exactly get me into a festive mood for Christmas, but it was an amazing little book nonetheless....more
“Fire is catching! And if we burn, you burn with us!”
War has returned to Panem. The downtrodden districts are in open rebellion against the power of t“Fire is catching! And if we burn, you burn with us!”
War has returned to Panem. The downtrodden districts are in open rebellion against the power of the Capitol. The revolution has come. And at its head is Katniss Everdeen, the girl on fire and the victor of the Hunger Games. The Mockingjay.
Mockingjay is in my opinion a better book than Catching Fire, perhaps as good as the first book in the trilogy. So why have I given it two stars? Because it simply isn't enough. The Hunger Games, while not being particularly well-written, still set a high standard and raised a lot of questions that were my main motivation for continuing reading the series. The way Suzanne Collins has adressed those questions is my main issue with this trilogy.
Those few questions who are actually answered, are answered in the worst ways possible. That is, being briefly mentioned by one of the characters in a conversation. But that was mostly an issue with the second book. In this third instalment, on the other hand, those questions aren't answered at all. The book just ends. There is no information about the origins of Panem, about the Dark Days and the rebellion against the Capitol, or about the character and motivation of the ridiculously interesting President Snow. With that man, Collins created a character with tremendous amounts of potential, and then chose to throw it all away.
So to turn the question around, why did I give it two stars and not one? Well, because it was a somewhat okay book. Unanswered questions and atrocious writing aside, the story is compelling and the characters are interesting. Unlike the last book, this one didn't feel like it had chapters added just to fill the pages. And impressively enough, one particular plot twist actually surprised me.
“Destroying things is much easier than making them.”
This quote is actually from the first book in the trilogy, but it fit too well here to not include it. I believe Collins did a good job of portraying the new rebellion as a revolutionary movement should be portrayed, and thus showing the audience the true dangers of revolution. Tyranny in danger of being replaced by tyranny. Liberated people turned mad by a lust for retribution and blood. This was particularly well done in a single scene almost at the end of the book, which caused me to absolutely hate both the series' protagonist and my personal favourite character.
In the end, I'm glad to have read these books. They did not impress me, but they were entertaining, and I did like them. If there are still people who have not read these books and find that they are interested in doing so, I would definitely recommend it. Just don't expect literary quality of any kind....more
"For seven hundred years, my people have been enslaved without voice, without hope. Now I am their sword. And I do not forgive. I do not forget. So le"For seven hundred years, my people have been enslaved without voice, without hope. Now I am their sword. And I do not forgive. I do not forget. So let him lead me onto his shuttle. Let him think he owns me. Let him welcome me into his house, so I might burn it down."
The life of Darrow au Andromedus is a charade. To the eyes of the world, he is a Gold, a member of the proud and wicked master race in full control of the Society. In secret, he is a Red, a slave from the depths of Mars sent by the Sons of Ares to infiltrate the halls of power and prepare the revolution...
From what I would consider the most overrated book I have read in quite a while to one of the best dystopian novels I have ever read, the transition from Red Rising to Golden Son is, to use a common metaphor, like the transition from night to day. Whereas the first book in the series was amazingly disappointing, the second takes a great step in correcting all its flaws. I do not recall having ever experienced a second book in a series which is so much better than the first.
The writing seems to have improved quite a bit, and even the story is a lot more engaging. The Institute is replaced by the Academy, and war games for children are replaced by full-scale battles in the skies of the solar system. The conflict between the rival Martian houses of Augustus and Bellona escalates, and the Sovereign herself, Octavia au Lune, starts plotting against her vassals. Darrow's mission becomes more dangerous than ever, but while the stakes are raised, the ultimate goal looms ever closer.
But the characters are what truly made this book memorable. Sevro returns, as cranky as ever. My personal favourite, Mustang, turns into an even greater character as she tries her hand in the games of power on Luna itself. Even Darrow seems to have improved, from being the worst and least engaging protagonist I have encountered recently to becoming a rather interesting character, though still not someone it is easy to relate to.
Then there are a few additions who are almost to good to be true. First and foremost of those is Lorn au Arcos, the renowned Rage Knight himself. For a Gold, he is a bastion of honour and principle, a champion of justice who refuses to be anyone's pawn, and so much of a living legend you can frighten off a bunch of Peerless Scarred by just mentioning you've been training with him. It's like Pierce Brown designed him to be the perfect knight, and mostly succeeded.
The book also includes one hell of an example of astounding character development in Nero au Augustus. The ArchGovernor starts out as a cruel and sadistic man with no desires beyond increasing his own power and that of his family. And in the end he is one of the greatest characters in dystopian fiction.
Golden Son is a fantastic novel. There, I said it. Red Rising was borderline disastrous, Golden Son is excellent. It is far from a perfect book, and I may be too generous in giving it such a high rating, but there were times while reading when I actually considered giving it five solid stars. This series is not, nor will it likely ever be, a favourite of mine. But since I outright love some of these characters (and hate others), and the story was interesting enough to make me desperate to know what happens, I think it is fair to say that Pierce Brown has redeemed himself in my eyes....more
“I would have lived in peace. But my enemies brought me war. I watch twelve hundred of their strongest sons and daughters. Listening to a pitiless Gold“I would have lived in peace. But my enemies brought me war. I watch twelve hundred of their strongest sons and daughters. Listening to a pitiless Golden man speak between great marble pillars. Listening to the beast who brought the flame that gnaws at my heart.”
Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest and poorest caste living under the tyranny of the Society. His miserable life is spent as a Helldiver with the miners in the depths of Mars. The Reds live without freedom, without future and without even the slightest breath of hope. But Darrow's life is turned on its head when a walk to a forbidden area and a public whipping change everything...
Red Rising is being advertised as being the new Hunger Games in dystopia. I do not normally like reading dystopian fiction, but I do see many similarities between the two, especially when the plot actually gets moving. It is obvious that Pierce Brown was heavily influenced by Suzanne Collins. Still, he also adds a lot of new elements that made the book interesting to read, at least occasionally.
But I had expected a lot more than this. I have been seeing five-star ratings and raving reviews here for quite some time, and even though I was hesitant when it came to actually reading it in the first place, I still had expected to be able to enjoy it a lot more than I did.
I found the first part of the book, almost the whole first half of it actually, to be terrible. I know I have several huge fans among my friends here, so I'm sorry about saying that, but for me it is the simple truth. The first paragraph or so was really well written, but after that the book was boring with a flavour of depressing too. Either nothing happened (most of the time), or tragedy happened.
And the protagonist Darrow, hailed by critics as the new Ender or Katniss (I have no idea why), was one of the greatest downsides of the book. There were times when he really shone, times when I cheered for him, but mostly it was impossible to see him as anything but an irrational, obstinate child who becomes exactly what he despises in more ways than one.
I did not quite like the setting either. The Society and the colour-based caste system did not really interest me in any way, and despite the fact that I enjoy Greek and Roman culture and mythology, it seems that it has for some reason become very fashionable for dystopia authors to use them excessively.
The writing originally appeared to me to be Brown's greatest strength. In the beginning of the book there were many lines that were worthy of highlighting and quoting. Further into the book, however, the same lines and expressions are used over and over again, and it was easy to notice that while the language used was not bad, it was not exactly impressive either. And the use of the first person present tense narrative, which I love to hate, didn't exactly help. Still, the writing was probably the aspect of the book that was least worthy of criticism on my behalf.
In the second half of the book, however, I did feel that things got better. I will not go into any detail about the plot or the character development, but the introduction of characters like Mustang, Sevro and the Jackal did really improve things. And while the ending was not exactly spectacular, the last 10-15% was the best part of the book by quite a distance.
So while I didn't really like this book that much, I didn't hate it either. It had some good parts. I do not understand all the fuss about it, but there are definitely questions raised that I would like answers to, and so I will give the series another chance after all.
If you are a fan of dystopia or similar genres, I would recommend giving it a try. You might like it a lot more than I did for all I know. Just do not expect too much, and you'll be fine....more
"The bird, the pin, the song, the berries, the watch, the cracker, the dress that burst into flames. I am the mockingjay. The one that survived despit"The bird, the pin, the song, the berries, the watch, the cracker, the dress that burst into flames. I am the mockingjay. The one that survived despite the Capitol's plans. The symbol of the rebellion."
After winning the 74th annual Hunger Games through very special circumstances, Katniss Everdeen returns to the poverty of District 12, only now she gets to live a comfortable life with her family in the luxurious houses reserved for victors. But everything changes when the Victory Tour begins. Threatened by the Capitol and the President himself, Katniss has to be very careful while touring the Districts. For even the smallest spark of rebellion may ignite a revolution...
Initially, this was a great follow-up book to the events described in The Hunger Games. From the changes in District 12 to the spectacular shows of the Victory Tour, it was easy to see that something great was brewing. Unfortunately, everything went downhill in the second half of the book, and while the first half was arguably the best part of the series so far, the second was definitely the worst.
There is little more to say about the writing and the characters than what I wrote in my review of the first book, so I will stick to my opinion about the plot in this review. Catching Fire is shaped by two very different pieces of news. The first of those is that while planning the 75th version of the Hunger Games, a so-called Quarter Quell, the Capitol decides to call previous winners back into the arena to fight for their lives once more. The second is that they're might be something hidden in the ruins of the infamous District 13, the district that led the rebellion against the Capitol and was subsequently annihilated.
The introduction of the Quarter Quell is terrible. It is certainly logical for the Capitol to introduce them, but it was a terrible decision from Suzanne Collins. It seems like she just needed some excitement to fill the rest of the book before writing about something that would actually advance the plot, and chose to just throw in a new gladiator fight because it excited people so much in the first book. It could have been a masterstroke, but the way it was executed made it a huge disappointment. Since there is really no question about if the protagonists will survive or not either, it was also quite boring, and made me sit there hoping it would just end as soon as possible.
The second part was worse. District 13 was to me, and still is, one of the most interesting topics in this series. It is brought up quite early on, but the only thing you learn about it in the book is idle speculation, and then in the end it iss just revealed casually in a conversation like it doesn't really matter at all. I almost rated the book one star because of that, but I realised it would probably be best to be rational about it.
In my opinion, this book should have been a lot better. It built my excitement and made me so interested I almost couldn't put it down, and then not only crushed all of that, but almost made me want to give up the series entirely. Still, if the third book is as good as the first and the first half of the second, there might be hope for me still....more
In the ruins of what was once North America, the cruel and tyrannic empire of Panem is preparing for the 74th ann“May the odds be ever in your favor!”
In the ruins of what was once North America, the cruel and tyrannic empire of Panem is preparing for the 74th annual Hunger Games, gladiatorial fights where youths from all twelve outlying districts are forced into killing each other in an arena, as punishment for a forgotten rebellion.
There is something strangely compelling about the tale of Katniss Everdeen, a poor girl from the poorest of the twelve district, and her journey to the Capitol as a tribute for the Hunger Games. After volunteering for the games to save her younger sister, she embarks on a journey that will take her through the constant fear of death and the fiery passion of love both wrapped around each other. This is one of the most famous tales of our time, and to some extent there is a reason for it.
But I have a confession to make here. Sometimes, you have to go against your most established principles even though you would prefer to stick with them. I have been thinking about this since I was in the middle of reading The Hunger Games, and I am still not sure about it, but I am going to say it anyway: the movie was better than the book.
Still, I cannot escape the notion that this opinion was caused by the terrible decision to watch the movie without having read the book first. This is something I would only have done if I had no intentions of reading the book at all, and to be honest, that was the case here. I had written off this series completely, and I did not think I would ever end up reading it. So when I came home late from work one night and noticed that the movie would be shown on TV in 30 minutes, I thought "Why not watch it? It's not like I'll ever read the book." So I ended up watching the whole thing, enjoyed it a lot more than I had expected, and after that experience decided to give the books a chance after all.
This is definitely a plot-driven novel, and that made it a rather disappointing experience to read while knowing practically everything about the plot. Plot-wise, there are very few differences between the book and the movie, those few being relatively unimportant scenes from the book which have been cut in the movie.
The other aspects of the book are not particularly impressive. The writing is mediocre, with a present tense first person narrative which was not good at all. The characters are interesting enough, but suffers from comparison with the brilliant acting in the movie, where in my opinion the characters were actually heavily improved. Because of all this, I get the feeling that the book relies on the plot as its only major strength, and that the same plot is amazing enough to take the reader's attention away from the book's flaws.
The only reason why I am giving this three stars is because it seems unfair to rate it based on a comparison with the movie adaptation, while praising that movie to the skies (I would probably give it five stars). Suzanne Collins has done a brilliant job of creating a captivating tale in a really interesting dystopian setting. So I will stick with this rating even though I am a bit disappointed, and instead expect more from the next couple of books.
That said, I also feel the need to state that I did enjoy the book too. It is an astonishing novel which has put its mark on fictional literature, and I do not regret having read it. It also raises a lot of questions that I would really like to find the answers to, and I can only hope that Collins has managed to complete that task in the sequels.
If you are one of the 17 people who have not yet read this book, I would definitely recommend it, but I would also urge you to read it before watching the movie. If you have already watched the movie, skip it....more
In 2036, on a day known to posterity as Black Sunday, the Earth was completely ravaged by solar storms and humanity reduced to a shadow of it3.5 stars
In 2036, on a day known to posterity as Black Sunday, the Earth was completely ravaged by solar storms and humanity reduced to a shadow of its former self. Those who survived the cataclysm shut themselves inside huge domes constructed on all continents, under the watchful eye of the SUN council. But unbeknownst to the denizens of the domes, there are still survivors in the wasteland outside, desperately clinging to life by staying underground...
Compile: Quest is mostly split into two parts, or settings. Inside the African dome, where denizens have all they need and live under the illusion of freedom. And outside the dome, where the diggers of the lost colonies struggle to get by every single day. One is a utopian prison, the other a ruthless military dictatorship. That these two settings were different in almost every way gave the book and its storyline a considerable advantage.
The book is also made unique by the fact that it is set in a post-apocalyptic South Africa. With a few notable exceptions, all the works of postapocalyptic fiction I have experienced have been set in North America. And while this setting isn't really that different (everything lies in ruins after all), getting a new perspective on the world after the apocalypse is interesting.
The characters were unfortunately a downside for me. I failed to connect to any of them, and I have to admit I looked upon most of them as vile and depraved. The interestingly named protagonist Peppermint was not my kind of character, and while there were a few interesting ones, that is also true about most of the others. I wouldn't say that they were badly written, but my enjoyment of the book suffered since I didn't like them much.
That said, reading this book was mostly an enjoyable experience. I had issues with several aspects of it, but that might be attributed to my personal opinion of dystopian and postapocalyptic fiction, and does not necessarily indicate flaws with the book itself. And l would say that this book, a debut novel, is every bit as good as some of the most famous series written in the mentioned genres, if not even better. So if you think you're a bigger fan of dystopia or postapocalyptic fiction than I am, then I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this book....more
Stories within stories, appropriately recited around campfires on dark and treacherous nights by the gunslinger RolaA captivating ode to storytelling.
Stories within stories, appropriately recited around campfires on dark and treacherous nights by the gunslinger Roland of Gilead. Told in different times, to different audiences, and by a different Roland.
The Dark Tower series will always hold a special place for me. As a whole, it is a masterpiece of literary craftsmanship, but there are many low points. The high ones, to me, are the ones emphasising the reiteration of powerful stories through the memory of the series' terrifyingly fascinating protagonist. Like Wizard and Glass, and like The Wind Through the Keyhole.
Without thought, with the simple resolve that had made him the last of them all, the last to continue marching on and on long after Cuthbert and thWithout thought, with the simple resolve that had made him the last of them all, the last to continue marching on and on long after Cuthbert and the others had died or given up, committed suicide or treachery or simply recanted the whole idea of the Tower; with the single-minded and incurious resolve that had driven him across the desert and all the years before the desert in the wake of the man in black, the gunslinger stepped through the doorway.
The journey to the Dark Tower continues, and the gunslinger marches on. But the wonderful desert setting is gone, and so is the eerily mysterious man in black.
The Drawing of the Three feels like a spin-off. You realise while reading that the book has a purpose that fits into the overarching story of the series, but it feels like taking a break from the actually interesting part. Roland winds up on a beach in the middle of nowhere, and has to step through a doorway leading into the unknown, to find and recruit three rather unwilling companions for his journey.
I’ve read several reviews and opinions saying that The Gunslinger is a weak start to the series, and that this book takes it up to another level. And I couldn’t disagree more. I thought the first book was way better. Everything about it was much more interesting than this space-filler second volume.
The only thing that actually is better in my eyes, is the writing. Stephen King visibly improved between these two instalments, and some of his passages are a joy to read.
From the dead serious...
The sun was down. Darkness had come.
To the hilarious...
This screaming, writhing thing could not have just undergone inpromptu surgery by subway train half an hour ago.
In the end, this book was not particularly good. It added nothing, and it didn’t make me feel anything. I can't for the life of me understand why anyone would consider this outrageously boring side quest better than the adventures of Roland in the ruins of Midworld, but that's individual opinion for you. I am, however, looking very much forward to reading the next book in the series.
Onward to the Tower!
"We are going to go, Eddie. We are going to fight. We are going to be hurt. And in the end we will stand."
“Man is a gregarious, social animal, and eventually we'll get back together, if only so we can tell each other stories about how we survived the gr“Man is a gregarious, social animal, and eventually we'll get back together, if only so we can tell each other stories about how we survived the great plague.”
After having left it to dust off on my long list of future reading material for years, I deliberately picked the most appropriate time to read Stephen King’s The Stand. What better time to delve into a huge brick centred on the downfall of the human race through a pandemic, than when one is trapped at home under lockdown resulting from a pandemic?
It is, perhaps surprisingly, a novel idea. Post-apocalyptic stories in the entire post-war era have tended to base themselves on the idea of nuclear apocalypse, on mankind’s ultimate bout of self-annihilation, creating a radioactive world of mutations and grey-green colours. Or, in the case of more absurd and low-form iterations, some form of zombie transformation. The concept of the practically instant removal of 99,4% of humanity, leaving the material world in preserved stasis, breaks with the whole post-apocalyptic feeling (although similar works have admittedly been written before; I am Legend comes to mind).
That being said, the similarities with post-apocalyptic stories which do base themselves on the nuclear explanation is easy to see. The Stand is one of the most influential works of the genre, and it struck me more than a few times how the developers of Fallout: New Vegas must have both read, loved and been forever shaped by the experience of reading this book. Here are mentions of the rise of new dictators, ‘little caesars’, the formation of depraved communities in the desert surrounding Las Vegas, crucifixion of the dissenters and so forth.
While the formation of such tropes is interesting enough in itself, the true beauty of the book lies in the exploration of humanity’s reaction to near-annihilation, sometimes expressed through the analytical monologues of sociologist Glen Bateman, but more frequently through the inner musings of various characters in doubt about their own situation. How are the advances of technology, including innovations of gender, politics and education, dealt with in a time when the advances that made them possible are now longer present? What happens to social values we have taken for granted in our post-industrial world? How does mankind reassemble and what types of communities are formed?
The exploration of these questions also inevitably means that the development of certain characters is going to be incredibly interesting. The tragic and doubt-ridden journey of the almost archetypal “disgruntled young man” Harold Lauder is one such. The life and time of the supernaturally endowed centenarian Mother Abagail equally so. As the survivors emerge from the ashes of human civilisation, so too do their stories, their motives and their dreams.
Problematically, it is very evident that King spent so long crafting, building and setting things up, that he forgot to plan for an ending. The last section of the book feels extremely rushed, far too convenient, and fails to do any sort of justice to the first 80%. It falls miserably short of the expectations formed by simply going through the book up until the end, and it takes a significant amount of willpower to not let the final disappointment be the main takeaway.
In the long days of quarantine, however, I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the book. It is a flawed work, and the fact that I read the uncut edition meant that I had to endure origin stories for the characters which were significantly longer than they needed to be to get on with the actual plot. But invariably sitting and lying down in a variety of spots in my small London apartment, I had a great time delving through The Stand, sometimes reading it as pure entertainment, sometimes nitpicking and critically analysing the more scientific and sociological aspects of it, sometimes following the characters’ lives and sometimes being annoyed by them.
All in all, reading it was like living with it, accentuated by the situation in the real world....more
This is the beginning of Stephen King's famous magnum opus, the Dark Tower. This is where the master of horror writes his great work of fantasy based This is the beginning of Stephen King's famous magnum opus, the Dark Tower. This is where the master of horror writes his great work of fantasy based on a combination of The Lord of the Rings and The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.
"The man in black fled across the desert, and the gunslinger followed."
This simple and beautiful sentence is the opening line, the trademark and even the summary of The Gunslinger. In most ways, this single sentence is what defines this book.
For that is how it all begins. The man in black flees across the desert, and the gunslinger follows. In the beginning, the reader has no idea who the man in black is, or even who the gunslinger is. You don't know where this desert is. You don't know why the gunslinger is following the man in black. And you don't know to what end they go. All you know when you start reading this book, is that he does follow him.
This is one of those books where you don't get to know anything about anything when you start reading. The characters go by illusive names like 'the man in black' and 'the gunslinger'. The setting is... a desert. Nothing more. This had both a positive and a negative effect on my experience with the book. The negative thing is the fact that in the beginning, I understood absolutely nothing of what was going on, and didn't care at all about what happened to the characters. Why should I, when there was no way to tell who was the good guy, and who was the bad guy (except maybe the title of the book), and no characters had any relations to any other characters or places? The positive thing is that the book gets better and better the more you actually get to know. Eventually, you learn who the characters are, what secrets are hidden in their past, and where this dramatic chase is actually taking place.
Thus arises one of the saving graces of this book: its main character. Roland Deschain, Roland of Gilead. Roland is one of those determined and silent protagonists allowing his guns to speak for him instead of his mouth. In most ways, he is reminiscent of Clint Eastwoods character in the famous Dollars trilogy, the Man With No Name (which is actually the author's intention).
The writing is... strange. Yes, I think that would be the best way of describing it. King seems to switch constantly between simplicity and complexity when constructing his sentences, making some strange combinatory lines of long and impressive words and then irritating sounds like "Yar". That does not mean that the writing is bad, only perhaps that the style does not suit my tastes completely.
Despite all that, I would say that I thoroughly enjoyed the experience of reading this book. The story of the Dark Tower series definitely appears to be quite interesting. It is hard to say anything more about it without including spoilers, but once I got to know a bit of what was happening, I was hooked. Also, since what irritated me the most was that I was thrown into the book without any kind of background knowledge (and didn't start to get it until I was halfway through), I think I might enjoy the the rest of the series more, when I've gotten to know the world in which the story takes place, and the characters featured in it.
I will definitely continue reading this series. Whether or not I would recommend either the book or the series is too early to say. This book does absolutely not do as a standalone, and so I must take the next few books into account before I might say anything about that. But since I've repeatedly heard that this book is a lot weaker than its sequels, I'm obviously excited and quite optimistic about reading them.
In the end, The Gunslinger unfortunately did not meet my expectations. That might say something about the book, or it might say something about my expectations. Both options are possible. It's certainly not a bad book, but there's no possibility of it becoming a favourite of mine either. I only hope that the Dark Tower series as a whole is as good as the legend says.
"The warrior rides a black stallion. Smoke shrouds the castle ruins behind him and the wind gives only glimpses of the corpse-choked gap between high "The warrior rides a black stallion. Smoke shrouds the castle ruins behind him and the wind gives only glimpses of the corpse-choked gap between high and broken walls. That same wind streams long dark hair across his shoulders, like a pennant, and flutters the remnants of his cloak. To his left and right more riders emerge from the fog of war, warriors all, their armour dented, torn, smeared with soot and blood."
Honourous Jorg Ancrath, the Prince of Thorns, has become a king in his own right, and from the fortress of the Haunt, he rules the Renar highlands. But the crown is a heavy weight to bear for the eighteen-year old king.
His life at the Haunt is plagued by nightmares of the atrocities he has committed, he finds the diaries of Katherine of Scorron, the only woman he truly wants, and the raging pain of his dark past is almost overwhelming. At the same time, young king Jorg faces his greatest adversary yet; Orrin, the Prince of Arrow, who has united six kingdoms beneath his dragon banner and who is preparing to make a bid for the throne of the Broken Empire itself...
Originally, I was going to give this book three stars, as it started out really slowly. Jorg had apparently become full of doubt and regrets, and didn't seem like the brutal, care-free antihero of the first book. The story also lacked a lot of the drive, and I began to think that the magic Mark Lawrence worked in Prince of Thorns was ebbing out of the story. I'm happy to say I was wrong.
The longer I got into the book, the better it turned out to be. The story was constantly improving, the supporting characters were way better than in the first book, and even though the story of King of Thorns is told in three different periods of time (making parts of it a bit confusing), the narrative is still remarkably well written. Then there is the ending, full of shocking twists and surprises, and the best part of the series so far. Ultimately, this is a solid sequel that truly lives up to the high standards set by Prince of Thorns, and skilfully sets the scene for the conclusion of the story....more
Jorg of Ancrath, the Prince of Thorns, the boy who would be emperor, is back at long last. Our malicious"Dark times call for dark choices. Choose me."
Jorg of Ancrath, the Prince of Thorns, the boy who would be emperor, is back at long last. Our maliciously fascinating antihero is finally on his way to the holy city of Vyene. Escorted by the legendary Gilden Guard, Jorg is ready to make his way to Congression, the gathering of all the Hundred taking place every four years where they come together in the emperor’s palace to choose who among them shall take up the ever vacant throne of the Broken Empire.
But as Jorg finds the achievement of his ultimate ambitions to be closer than ever before, new complications arise in the most distant corners of the Empire. In the sands of Liba on the coast of Afrique, the caliph is intent on murdering Jorg's family. And in the far north, on the Brettan Isles, the mysterious and ghostly character known as the Dead King has conquered everything with his horde of corpses from the Deadlands. All of the Hundred are his enemies, but the only one to truly catch his interest is Jorg Ancrath. In the end, all the threads are woven together at the Congression in Vyene.
"We have both walked black paths, lady. Don't think that mine leads back into the light. Of all those that tried to guide me, of my father, of the whispers from the thorn bush, of Corion's evil council, the darkest voice was ever mine."
Mr. Lawrence's writing continues to be every bit as good as it was in the two previous books of the series. The character of Jorg Ancrath, though, is not as appealing to me as he has been before. Several events occur in this book which make him falter at times, lighting sparks of goodness, fallibility and even uncertainty in this glorious villain. And while noone are really infallible, this does something to Jorg, and takes away some of what made this series so incredibly fascinating in the first place.
Just like in King of Thorns, the narrative of this book is divided into three parts. Firstly, of course, there's the tale of the present, of Jorg Ancrath en route to congression to claim the emperor's throne for himself. The second part takes place five years earlier, where Jorg has just uncovered the assassination attempt on his grandfather, and strives to bring vengeance upon those responsible, guided by the ghosts of the Builders themselves. There was in my opinion a bit too much of this part, taking away much of the focus from the main story. I understand that the reader needed to know more about Jorg's past to understand what drives his ambitions, but this part was at times a bit slow and overdone. The last part, though... was absolutely brilliant. The viewpoint of the necromancer Chella - aptly named 'Chella's story' - also takes place in the present, with Chella also on her way to Congression in Vyene as the representative of the dreaded Dead King, whose intentions and identity remain elusive even to her. Here we get a lot of insight into the main antagonists of the story, both Chella herself and her dark master.
Then there's the ending. The ending to King of Thorns was definitely the single greatest moment of this trilogy, and sadly I cannot say that the ending to Emperor of Thorns managed to live up to that. For one thing, it felt extremely rushed. The story in the first half of the book moved quite slowly, but in a good way, and at times I was wondering if this was indeed going to be a five-star book. But the book allows no more than around 80 pages for the events at Congression, and everything moved forward way too fast to be good. The scheming and political manipulation was limited to a small number of sentences. Only a handful of the Hundred were even mentioned by name, and the so-called 'hidden hands' behind the thrones were completely absent. I also have to say that mostly everything that happened within the walls of Vyene was quite predictable. But despite my issues, the ending itself was good enough and an absolutely worthy ending for a character like Jorg Ancrath.
I liked this book. Out of the three books of the Broken Empire trilogy, I would have to say this is number three in more than one way, but I still liked it. The final verdict from this humble reader is 3.5 stars, but the series as a whole quite certainly deserves four (hence the rating). For those of you who have already read the first and the second book and enjoyed them, you will enjoy this one as well, no matter if you share my opinion or not. For those of you who have not read any of them, it's time to do so. Lawrence's tale from the Broken Empire is something of a fresh breath of air into the fantasy genre, and it certainly deserves to be read. At least it has my recommendation.
"All of us have our lives. All of us our moment, or day, or year. And Jorg of Ancrath assuredly had his, and it has been my place to tell it."...more
Prince Honorous Jorg Ancrath, heir to the throne of his father's kingdom, was nine years old when the Count of"War, my friends, is a thing of beauty."
Prince Honorous Jorg Ancrath, heir to the throne of his father's kingdom, was nine years old when the Count of Renar's men ambushed the royal carriage, smashed his little brother's skull against a rock, and proceeded to rape and kill his mother. He himself was only saved by being thrown into a patch of hook-briars just moments before the attack. This episode is what turned him into the Prince of Thorns, and filled his existence with an insatiable lust for vengeance and violence.
Upon his safe return to his father's castle, Jorg discovers that the king of Ancrath intends to take no action against the Count of Renar beyond accepting his ridiculously low indemnity payments for the murder. Jorg then decides to run away from everything along with a band of dangerous outlaws, originally intending to kill the Count of Renar, but ending up plundering and pillaging for years before returning...
"There’s a door to death, a veil between the worlds, and we push through when we die. But on the Day of a Thousand Suns so many people had to push through at once, they broke the door. The veils are thin now. It just takes a whisper and the right promise, and you can call the dead back."
The setting of Prince of Thorns is quite different from most fantasy worlds, though in the beginning it seems like something you've heard before. It consists of a feudal society with kingdoms and knights, and where the peasants are oppressed and exploited. At first sight it seems to be a world loosely based on medieval Europe, but that is only until one discovers that it actually is medieval Europe, more than a millennia into a postapocalyptic future.
Apparently, the old world was destroyed by a devastating apocalypse known as the Day of a Thousand Suns, of which noone knows anything about. But a lot of pieces of it still remain in Jorg Ancrath's bleak future, like metals and technology and, above all, philosophical literature.
"You can only win the game when you understand that it IS a game. Let a man play chess, and tell him that every pawn is his friend. Let him think both bishops holy. Let him remember happy days in the shadows of his castles. Let him love his queen. Watch him lose them all."
What did I think about the Prince of Thorns? It was awesome, obviously. It introduces a whole new aspect to the world of fantasy, and that aspect, while not always so pleasant to read about, is certainly interesting.
Lawrence's writing style is one of the best things about this book. It fits the story really well, and it managed to hold my attention for every single second while reading it. It's also refreshing to read a fantasy tale with a first-person narrative. In addition to that, the book is filled with a lot of fascinating details which all add to the overall experience, like that constant comparison to chess. Life is a game for Jorg, and one he intends to win. Thus he always goes around thinking about sacrificing knights, manipulating pawns and playing his pieces in the way from which he gains the most.
There are a lot of similarities here with George R.R. Martin and A Song of Ice and Fire. The setting and the characters. The power-play for gaining control of the Broken Empire (which is even called "the game of thrones" by a character). Prince of Thorns is actually strangely reminiscent of a story of Westeros written exclusively from the viewpoint of Joffrey Baratheon.
Were there aspects of Prince of Thorns that I did not like? Certainly. There always is. In my eyes, the fact that not only Jorg, but also everyone else only care about themselves all the time and that most characters are "one-dimensional", makes everything a little grey and boring. At the same time, I also think that the post-apocalyptic setting cheapens the books a bit, and makes it unable to live up to its true potential.
In the end though, those things don't matter. Prince of Thorns is a fascinating and interesting new fantasy tale, and an amazing debut novel. I would be happy to recommend this one to all fantasy readers out there....more
The Measure of the Magic begins exactly where Bearers of the Black Staff ended, which is basically where everything fell to pieces. The last descendanThe Measure of the Magic begins exactly where Bearers of the Black Staff ended, which is basically where everything fell to pieces. The last descendant of the Knights of the Word lies dead, fallen to the poison of a treacherous troll. Phryne Amarantyne has been imprisoned in Arborlon, framed for the murder of her own father. And the Drouj army stands on the doorstep of the valley, threatening to invade and conquer it all.
As it that was not enough, the first few chapters of the second book add a whole new set of factors to the excitement. The dragon returns, hunting for magic. Prue Liss suddenly disappears in a flash of light. And most important of all, an mysterious old man collecting rags appears outside the valley, seeking to enter.
All in all, this was another good Brooks novel. At some points it might feel a bit boring, but mostly it's a real pageturner. I think the Legends duology really stands out in the Shannara universe, as none of the earlier additions have been so fast-paced nor so filled with intrigue and deception as these two. That does not necessarily add to the quality, and I still haven't read anything from Brooks that surpasses the original Shannara trilogy, but it does contribute to making this book all the more interesting and exciting.
Also, it has a beautiful Elven princess and her magical stones riding the last of the dragons into battle. That alone made it worth reading....more
Bearers of the Black Staff is the book in which the world of the old Shannara classics truly begins to take shape after the destruction of the old worBearers of the Black Staff is the book in which the world of the old Shannara classics truly begins to take shape after the destruction of the old world in the Genesis trilogy. The protective mist created by the now mythical Hawk is beginning to fail, and the people of the valley cease to live in peaceful isolation from an outside world they know nothing about. Threats are mounting from the outside and the inside both, from vicious power struggles to an invading army, as men and elves struggle to save themselves and the valley that has been their home for five hundred years.
This was another enjoyable tale from the world of Shannara. I found it to be a little different from the earlier books as it was more action oriented and contained lots of twists and turns. But at the same time it's also a typical Terry Brooks novel, with the same character types and of course the same races and magical artifacts. It's certainly worth reading, but only for those who have read the Original Trilogy and preferably a few other Shannara novels as well....more
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