Reviews

Okay, so I won this book on Goodreads and maybe I should have read the synopsis a bit more carefully. I didn't realize this was a prequel to a book series already in existent. So, I will give four stars based on that alone. It explains a lot of my confusion with this book and the way it ended, frustrated me more than anything. Now, it make sense.

I will just focus on the writing, which is beautiful. But I really hate long chapters. Well, actually this was in five parts instead of chapters and I just need an endpoint to a shorter chapter. Sorry, it's how I read and what I like. Sometimes, the author was repetitive on things, which got annoying. I don't know how many times I read, "so in so is master's brother, father, sister, kin." I get it, I really do. You can move on from that and just say the person's name. With that, his writing was good. I was in the story and wanted to know what happened. I do feel like the dragon should have been the real story/the ultimate climax, but I guess it had to set up the remaining series. His descriptions were intense and I felt like I was there fighting that dragon or fighting off bandits. I felt myself in the gardens.

I'm not sure to recommend this book, because I should have read the other books before this.

yggie's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

It was surprisingly hard for me to read this book. It’s very good ofc, Tad Williams is a master of his art - but being a prequel, I knew how it would end, and my heart ached the entire time. Damn Ineluki, the proud, stubborn, immature fool. I could feel my resentment building with every page.

Not a fun book for me, but definitely a good one!

felipeheld's review against another edition

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4.0

4.5 Stars
We finally get to meet Hakatri and his infamous brother Ineluki in this Novella.. We know from the beginning what will happen after their fate was retold in the original Dragonbonechair series. But even with all that knowledge it was very nice to hear the retelling of their story by Pamon Kes, the faithful servant of Hakatri!
I just love the world of Osten Ard and am looking forward to the next series in this world

caph808's review against another edition

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5.0

This Osten Ard novel by Tad Williams, who‘s fantasy novels I discovered in 2020‘s months of lockdown, is more than meets the eye. Beneath the prequel leitmotif of the great swords you will find a story of great sadness that surfaces at the end and is echoed by the author‘s dedication.

Edited:
Recently I learned of the untimely death of a friend of mine. She died of cancer and I remembered this book.

kruu_dao's review against another edition

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This came in a subscription box, which is the only reason I was going to read this prequel to a series I was unfamiliar with.

I do think it is probably possible to read this as a standalone, but about 15% in there was a flurry of new groups and names and I just lost my motivation.

I also think that reading the original series would help to understand why the mortals feel very Western Europe but the immortals loving in the same area were more Japanese inspired. It was a bit of a dinsonnnect for me that I would have only overcome for good characterisation. But while I liked the narrator, the others were a little flat. There is literally a bloodbath amongst the main group and I felt nothing about it, so it's a DNF for me, but I'm sure it would be great for those who love this world.

kylienoele's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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