Tyrant's Blood (Valisar Trilogy Book Two)

Title: Tyrant's Blood
Author: Fiona McIntosh
Series: Valisar Trilogy
Preceded by: Royal Exile
Succeeded by: King's Wrath

Ratings:

Rating: 8/10
How likely I am to read the next book: Very Likely

Review

Regular readers of this blog will realise that some stuff I normally put around this review is missing (such as a picture of the cover). This will be corrected later today. They may also notice that there was no posts last week.The reason for both is that I have been summoned to sit on a jury - while in the house moving process and don't have the time to read as much. But I expect to review regularly from now on, but it'll generally be on the bus - so less info for a week or two. Anyway - the book:

I was worried when I started reading this to be honest. It had been over a year since I read the fieat in the trilogy, and there was a curious message at the beginning almost apologising for the story, and that it was written without prior planning. But McIntosh is one of my favourite authors so I read one.

And if I'm honest, that directionless style is quite clear in the plot - but surpised me by being interesting. At the end of book one, the position was clear. King Leo wanted his throne back from the invader. But by the end of this one I'm losing track of who the bad guys are, and I have no idea what's going to happen in book three. However, there are a couple of downfalls of the aimlessness I think. One character from the previous book doesn't appear until near the end of the book, and happens to chance upon an event, taking something which makes half the planning in the book seem a bit pointless. But for the most part I enjoyed the story.

Transformation (Rai-Kirah Trilogy Book One)

Title: Transformation
Author: Carol Berg
Series: Rai-Kirah Trilogy
Succeeded By: Revelation

Ratings

Score: 10/10
Chart Entry Point: 3
How likely I am to read the next in the Series: Definite!

Review

Transformation is a fairly old book by now, written at the turn of the millenium, but it's been amongst my favourites since I first read it shortly after it came out. This first book is an incredible story by itself, and the subsequent two books serve to add depth and an extra layer of complexity to the world that Berg creates.

There are two main characters in this book. Seyonne - the main character, and Aleksander, the initial antagonist. Seyonne is a highly secretive character, and so everything that we learn about him is an exciting moment. And since we learn a lot about him through his actions, we come to feel like we know him - a lot more than some books allow you to know their characters. By contrast, Aleksander seems like a less private person - yet his actions are often surprising. He can change moods almost instantly, and so while we find out more and more about him, it's often very difficult to predict his next move. The relationship between the two characters is perhaps the most interesting aspect of the two characters. It's constantly changing - one of the most dynamic relationships I've seen in a fantasy novel.

Code Lightfall and the Robot King

Title: Code Lightfall and the Robot King
Author: Daniel H.Wilson

Ratings

Score: 5/10
Chart Entry Point:


Review

I often say that books aimed primarily at younger readers can also be enjoyed by adults. Having read this one, I'm not so sure. The reason is simply because the story is childish. It's not a particularly simple story, and it does have an interesting twist at the end, but the plot has a lot of things that a child might find exciting, or realistic, that an Adult probably wouldn't. Of course, it's aimed at children - so if you're looking for a book for your kids, then this could be a good one for you.