The Abhorsen Trilogy Box Set Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Garth Nix delves into the dark heart of high fantasy in the Abhorsen Trilogy, three interconnected fantasies about a family of necromancers who lay the dead -- and forces of evil -- to rest. Humour, detailed writing and deep characters, along with a richly-realize world, make this a classic-in-the-making.

"Sabriel" is the story of a teenage girl living happily at a girl's school, while her necromancer father (the Abhorsen) roams around putting the dead to rest. All that changes when a sending brings her father's sword and bells, meaning that he is dead or incapacitated. So Sabriel takes on her father's duties, accompanied by a Free Magic cat and a mysterious young prince, and battles the specter of a horrible evil creature that is reaching out from death to snare her.

"Lirael" takes us to the cold citadel of the Clayr, a race of seers. Young Lirael is depressed because she doesn't have the gift of Sight yet, even though everybody else her age does. But things take a sinister turn when she sets a horrifying, bloodthirsty creature loose, and must work -- with the help of the mysterious Disreputable Dog -- to get rid of it. But what Lirael doesn't know is that the outside world is in danger too, from a sinister new enemy.

"Abhorsen" brings the series to an explosive conclusion. Lirael and her nephew Sameth -- along with "cat" Mogget and the Disreputable Dog -- are in danger from the Dead. What's more, the Destroyer Orannis has escaped from his prison and is being assisted by an evil necromancer and the Dead called Chlorr -- and an unfortunate pal of Sameth's. Now Lirael must call on her destiny as the future Abhorsen, and kill the Destroyer.

Garth Nix had only written a couple of books, one of which was an "X-Files" novelization, when the first Abhorsen book burst onto the fantasy scene. Now he's one of the most respected, prolific and well-liked fantasy writers in years, with his single books in print and two hit series for younger readers. But despite his newer works, his tales of the Old Kingdom are still his best.

The Abhorsen Trilogy is a perfect example of dark fantasy, with its grotesque dead zombies that occasionally lurch out to attack the heroes, magical bells, and shadowy beasties that can (sometimes) be restrained. It takes the trappings of high fantasy and lets us see them through a mirror darkly. Not to mention the brilliant concept of the Abhorsen necromancers, who have power over dead and/or magical creatures, and bind them with Charter marks and bells.

Virtually all of Nix's characters are likable -- especially the gutsy Sabriel and nervous teenage Sameth -- and the acid-tongued animals and black humor add a wry spin to the fantastical stories. It takes a bit longer to warm up to Lirael, since she spends several chapters in the same-named book feeling sorry for herself, but once she gets moving she's unstoppable -- and very likable.

Garth Nix gave high fantasy a dark twist in the Abhorsen Trilogy. Full of magic, darkness, death and beauty, this is a classic in the making.

Click Here to see more reviews about: The Abhorsen Trilogy Box Set


To preserve life,the Abhorsen must enter Death

Get 32% OFF

Click here for more information about The Abhorsen Trilogy Box Set

Read More...

A Wizard of Earthsea (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 1) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Ursula Le Guin is the daughter of Alfred Kroeber, an anthropologist, and Theodora Kroeber, a psychologist and writer. It's easy and accurate to say that her parents' interests inform her brilliant writing, and that cultural anthrpology and Jungian psychology are at the core of Wizard of Earthsea and its three sequels.
But the book isn't a treatise. It's a wonderful, well-told story of a young man, Ged, coming of age in a world where words can have the power of magic and dragons are as real as earthquakes. There is nothing didactic about this story; Le Guin's writing is compelling and her characters are vivid: Ogion, the Mage of Silence, whose word had stilled an earthquake; Vetch, who helps Ged on a deadly quest for no reason but friendship; Murre, Vetch's sister; Yevaud, the dragon of Pendor; and Skiorh, possessed by a gebbeth.
Earthsea doesn't exist in a vacuum. Le Guin constructs a deep and textured history, and her characters act in ways that are consistent with that world. She manages the trick of writing a mythic tale without falling into the traps and foibles of sounding like you are trying.
The climax is straight from Carl Jung, but you don't need to know Carl Jung from Steve Young to appreciate it.
From time to time, religious groups call for this book to be banned from school libraries, claiming it promotes witchcraft. Nonsense. This is a book every teenager should read. It speaks to self-understanding, nothing more.
And some feminists criticize Le Guin because Ged is a male character. Again, nonsense, Ged is an archetype, and his gender matters not at all.
This is an important book. It's also terrific fun. Highly recommended.

Click Here to see more reviews about: A Wizard of Earthsea (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 1)

Ged was the greatest sorcerer in all Earthsea, but once he was called Sparrowhawk, a reckless youth, hungry for power and knowledge, who tampered with long-held secrets and loosed a terrible shadow upon the world. This is the tale of his testing, how he mastered the mighty words of power, tamed an ancient dragon, and crossed death's threshold to restore the balance.From the Paperback edition.

Click here for more information about A Wizard of Earthsea (The Earthsea Cycle, Book 1)

Read More...

A Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire: Book One Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)First off, I'm a heavy duty fan of GRRM. I've read over a 100 different fantasy authors in my time (started at 12; I'm now 32). Took about 5 years off from the genre b/c I felt it was all getting too formulaic and cliched.
So, when I came back to fantasy at the end of 1999, I read the usual: Goodkind, Jordan, etc. and then someone told me about GRRM and man, that was the kicker!
Here are the reasons to choose GRRM. I've also listed the reasons not to choose him to make it fair b/c I know their are certain personalities who won't like this series:
WHY TO READ GRRM
(1) YOU ARE TIRED OF FORMULAIC FANTASY: good lad beats the dark lord against impossible odds; boy is the epitome of good; he and all his friends never die even though they go through great dangers . . . the good and noble king; the beautiful princess who falls in love with the commoner boy even though their stations are drastically different . . . you get the idea. After reading this over and over, it gets old.
(2) YOU ARE TIRED OF ALL THE HEROES STAYING ALIVE EVEN THOUGH THEY ARE UNDER CONSTANT DANGER: this gets even worse where the author kills a main hero off but that person comes back later in the story. Or, a hero does die but magic brings him back.
This sometimes carries to minor characters where even they may not die, but most fantasy authors like to kill them off to show that some risked the adventure and perished.
(3) YOU ARE A MEDIEVAL HISTORY BUFF: this story was influenced by the WARS OF THE ROSES and THE HUNDRED YEARS WAR.
(4) YOU LOVE SERIOUS INTRIGUE WITHOUT STUPID OPPONENTS: lots of layering; lots of intrigue; lots of clever players in the game of thrones. Unlike other fantasy novels, one side, usually the villain, is stupid or not too bright.
(5) YOU ARE INTERESTED IN BIASED OPINIONS AND DIFFERENT TRUTHS: GRRM has set this up where each chapter has the title of one character and the whole chapter is through their viewpoint. Interesting tidbit is that you get their perception of events or truths. But, if you pay attention, someone else will mention a different angle of truth in the story that we rarely see in other novels. Lastly and most importantly, GRRM doesn't try to tell us which person is right in their perception. He purposelly leaves it vague so that we are kept guessing.
(6) LEGENDS: some of the most interesting characters are those who are long gone or dead. We never get the entire story but only bits and pieces; something that other fantasy authors could learn from to heighten suspense. Additionally, b/c the points of views are not congruent, we sometimes get different opinions.
(7) WORDPLAY: if you're big on metaphors and description, GRRM is your guy. Almost flawless flow.
(8) LOTS OF CONFLICT: all types, too; not just fighting but between characters through threats and intrigue.
(9) MULTILAYERED PLOTTING; SUB PLOTS GALORE: each character has their own separate storyline; especially as the story continues and everyone gets scattered. This is one of the reasons why each novel is between 700-900 pages.
(10) SUPERLATIVE VARIED CHARACTERS: not the typical archetypes that we are used to in most fantasy; some are gritty; few are totally evil or good; GRRM does a great job of changing our opinions of characters as the series progress. This is especially true of Jaime in book three.
(11) REALISTIC MEDIEVAL DIALOGUE: not to the point that we can't understand it but well done.
(12) HEAPS OF SYMOBLISM AND PROPHECY: if you're big on that.
(13) EXCELLENT MYSTERIES: very hard to figure out the culprits; GRRM must have read a lot of mystery novels.
(14) RICHLY TEXTURED FEMALE CHARACTERS: best male author on female characters I have read; realistic on how women think, too.
(15) LOW MAGIC WORLD: magic is low key; not over the top so heroes can't get out of jams with it.
REASON TO NOT READ GRRM
(1) YOU LIKE YOUR MAIN CHARACTERS: GRRM does a good job of creating more likeable characters after a few die. But, if that isn't your style, you shouldn't be reading it. He kills off several, not just one, so be warned.
(2) DO NOT CARE FOR GRITTY GRAY CHARACTERS: if you like more white and gray characters, this may unsettle you. I suggest Feist or Goodkind or Dragonlance if you want a more straight forward story with strong archetypes.
(3) MULTIPLE POINTS OF VIEWS TURN YOU OFF: if you prefer that the POVS only go to a few characters, this might be confusing for you.
(4) SWEARING, SEX: there's a lot of it in this book just as there is in real life.
(5) YOU DEMAND CLOSURE AT THE END OF EVERY BOOK: this isn't the case for all stories in the series. Some are still going on; some have been resolved; others have been created and are moving on.
(6) IF YOU WANT A TARGET OR SOMEONE TO BLAME: this can be done to some extent but not as much. This is b/c he doesn't try to make anyone necessarily good or evil.
(7) ARCHETYPES: some readers like archetypal characters because it's comfortable; we like the good young hero (sort of like Pug in Feist's THE RIFTWAR SAGA); it's familiar and we sometimes like to pretend we're this upcoming, great hero. You wont' get much of this in GRRM with the exception of one or two characters.
(8) LENGTH: you don't want to get into a long fantasy epic series. In that case, look for shorters works as this is biiig.
(9) PATRIARCHY: men are most of the main characters with lots of power (one female exception). ....


Click Here to see more reviews about: A Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire: Book One

Get 38% OFF

Click here for more information about A Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire: Book One

Read More...

George R. R. Martin's A Game of Thrones 4-Book Boxed Set: A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, and A Feast for Crows (A Song of Ice and Fire) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)I stumbled across this page and saw a handful of 1-star reviews that left me puzzled. Then I realized that all of them were regarding the supposedly-poor quality of the Kindle version. Well, I can't tell you anything about the Kindle version. I'm one of those old-school guys, so I bought the paperback set, and it's undoubtedly worth the money. Obviously, the content is 5-star worthy (see the reviews for each individual book), so I'm going to limit my review to the box set itself. This set contains each of the first four books in the Song of Ice and Fire Series (that's A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, and A Feast for Crows), with all-new cover artwork. Out of all the versions released, this is the most visually enrapturing artwork yet. The novels are brightly colored and contain designs that are brilliant in their simplicity. The outer box contains some high-quality shots from the upcoming HBO series.
Highly recommended for:
-Someone who's never read A Song of Ice and Fire. This is the place to start, and a great value too (4 loooong books for $23).
-Longtime fans whose old paperback copies are worn from reading and re-reading in anticipation of A Dance With Dragons.
-Hardcore series collectors who want to own the best versions.
I lent my older copies of this series to my ex-girlfriend, and since I never got them back, I decided that this box set was a worthy purchase. I'm so satisfied with it, I can honestly say that I don't miss the books I lost, not even one bit. I've posted some pictures of the box set so you can decide for yourself if you like its look enough to drop the money.

Click Here to see more reviews about: George R. R. Martin's A Game of Thrones 4-Book Boxed Set: A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, and A Feast for Crows (A Song of Ice and Fire)

George R. R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire series has become, in many ways, the gold standard for modern epic fantasy. Martin--dubbed the "American Tolkien" by Time magazine--has created a world that is as rich and vital as any piece of historical fiction, set in an age of knights and chivalry and filled with a plethora of fascinating, multidimensional characters that you love, hate to love, or love to hate as they struggle for control of a divided kingdom. It is this very vitality that has led it to be adapted as the HBO miniseries "Game of Thrones."This boxed set includes the following novels:A Game of ThronesA Clash of KingsA Storm of SwordsA Feast for Crows

Get 45% OFF

Click here for more information about George R. R. Martin's A Game of Thrones 4-Book Boxed Set: A Game of Thrones, A Clash of Kings, A Storm of Swords, and A Feast for Crows (A Song of Ice and Fire)

Read More...

Acadia, Book I: The Lost King and the Goddess of Time Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)How would you like being told your father had been dead hundreds of years? Damont, the main character, used to be just your average teen boy until he learns the truth of his ancestry. He is thrown into Haldina, where he is supposed to be king. He begins receiving visions of the future and has fears of whether or not he can live up to the prior kings. The reader will meet the two main secondary characters when Damont is sent off on a quest. Amber, a hot-headed sorceress and Virden, a warrior make for good secondary characters; the reader will enjoy getting to know their quirks and dark pasts. A quality of note, the author skillfully crafts the setting and the language behind this book-the reader will be convinced he/she is in Haldina and can picture the landscape and people easily. This novel is fast-paced and fun to read, a read that some readers may finish in one sitting. This novel is recommended for young adults/teens who enjoy a fun character and a little magic in their reads.


Click Here to see more reviews about: Acadia, Book I: The Lost King and the Goddess of Time

It was only a nightmare at first, but Damont soon realizes that he can see into the future--a curse he has to live with for being the only son of a king dead for a thousand years, with a mother who is the goddess of time.A man in black armor with a face as obscure as the shadows mantling him laughs wickedly. Who is he and why does he continue to haunt me, Damont wonders. Appearing only in his dreams, the man in the black armor stands alone and laughs high as if to mock him while the world around him burns to cinder. "They are not dreams, my son," a voice calls out to him in a vision after the many nightmares--claiming to be his mother whom abandoned him when he was but a child. "They are shards of a broken world to come if you so take the path of your father." If such a path does lie ahead beyond a throne that sits vacant for centuries, with an empire in the east growling for war, then Damont Langörn realizes he has but one choice: follow the visions and seek out the truth lost to both him and the world behind his lineage--but will he be strong enough to face such a malevolent foe of his nightmares?With a vampire and a sorceress at his side, Damont begins his journey, but such a road is not an easy one to take if the gods themselves do not wish for his return as the king who would unite the world against their existence and bring demise to their very doorstep.

Click here for more information about Acadia, Book I: The Lost King and the Goddess of Time

Read More...

The Return of the Ancient Ones Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)Return of the Ancient Ones is a page turner! I could not put this book down and when I read a fiction tale - that's exactly what I'm looking for!
If you are looking to be transported away to a land of dragon elves and Green-Skinned Urshkaar and follow the hero Gideon as he uses the Sword of Order in the battle against the Lord of Chaos (I know a couple of those...)to save his beloved Illúmaril, then this is the book for you.
Caplan's tale is an epic fantasy of the same caliber as Star Wars. I highly recommend this imaginative tale of sorcery and magic!

Click Here to see more reviews about: The Return of the Ancient Ones

The Return of the Ancient Ones was awarded WINNER status for the Fantasy Category in the 2011 National Indie Excellence Awards.http://indieexcellence.com/indie-results-2011.htmThe 2011 International Book Awards have been announced and The Return of The Ancient Ones has been honored as a "Finalist" in the "Fiction:Fantasy/Sci-Fi" category.Extended Description:Second in The Chronicles of Illúmaril series, author Gary Caplan's The Return of the Ancient Ones is a distinct tale that illustrates how one's fiercest enemy can become one's most aggressive ally. As dramatic as it is playful and sublime, Caplan has a knack at weaving the enchanted world of fantasy into the tension of a good old-fashioned cloak and dagger thriller. His incredible instinct for action rests on a spellbinding prose, yet what distinguishes his work in this genre is his ability to consider an otherworld culture as it reaches its pinnacle, rather than upon its downfall. In thirty-one chapters with titles like "Tyl University and the Academy of Spellweaving Arts," "Back to the Order of the Platinum Griffon and Duty," and "End Game," readers are reintroduced to Illúmaril, a land that patiently awaits its heir apparent. Once hidden on Earth, Gideon Finelen, as a birthright, holds the legacy that he and his ancestors are the only ones who can use the Sword of Order. Gideon's advisors, Tauri Ragan and Lord Talmor, hold great hope in Gideon and his Companions of the Sword of Order, but it is their enemy's enemy that first instigates a bold move. And while the Darkspawn have no intention of giving up their power, the return of Thatos and his twelve evil sorceror generals from their ancient, watery graves disperses Darkspawn's allegiance to temporarily help the armies of the Free Peoples against Thatos, his mercenaries, and other chaos warriors. For Gideon, the quixotic irony in all of this is that Darkspawn leadership is just as fixed on revenge as it is with maintaining its stronghold over Illúmaril. As he pits foe against foe to claim Illúmaril, the Sword of Order has a chance to triumph over Chaos.

Click here for more information about The Return of the Ancient Ones

Read More...

Harry Potter Paperback Box Set (Books 1-6) Review

Average Reviews:

(More customer reviews)My problem was that these books were missing chunks of pages! We didn't notice it until book 4 of 6, but 80+ pages were gone! Now, Amazon was great about replacing the set adn paying for me to return the messed-up set. This is just a warning to check your boxed set when it gets in for missing chunks of pages!
Of course, the Harry Potter series is great, adn we love having them in paperback.

Click Here to see more reviews about: Harry Potter Paperback Box Set (Books 1-6)

Follow Harry from his first days at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, through his many adventures with Hermione and Ron, to his confrontations with rival Draco Malfoy and the dreaded Professor Snape. From a dangerous descent into the Chamber of Secrets to the Triwizard Tournament to the return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, each adventure is more riveting and exhilarating than its predecessor, and now all six books are available together for the first time in an elegant paperback boxed set.

Click here for more information about Harry Potter Paperback Box Set (Books 1-6)

Read More...