Asaro brings yet another cast of characters to life. This is definitely a different world than that of the Skolian Empire and brings a unique perspective to "powers". As always with Asaro's books, this is well worth reading for its creativity and romance. I highly recommend it.
excellent book
Catherine Asaro has a good story to tell. Unfortunately her language choices hit the reader in the face like a wet towel, upon occasion. A good editor would have helped.
If you like angsty, whiny, confidentless characters, this book is for you.
While the story and mechanics could have been interesting [magic based upon colors and shapes], the utter shallowness of the characters ruined it all for me. From the hero and heroines who don't have a shred of confidence in themselves[to the point where you wonder how they even have the guts to eat] to the villian and his erstwhile allies, everybody is pathetic. Whaaa, whaaa, whaaa.
The last quarter of the book did redeem this from "utter waste of my time" to "meh, not to bad". Battle and characters growing up a wee bit.
Sadly, I found several holes in Asaro's "magic system" that I suspect she was just to lazy to think about, mainly in regards to the villain. Not deeply thought out. I will not be reading more from this author.
While the story and mechanics could have been interesting [magic based upon colors and shapes], the utter shallowness of the characters ruined it all for me. From the hero and heroines who don't have a shred of confidence in themselves[to the point where you wonder how they even have the guts to eat] to the villian and his erstwhile allies, everybody is pathetic. Whaaa, whaaa, whaaa.
The last quarter of the book did redeem this from "utter waste of my time" to "meh, not to bad". Battle and characters growing up a wee bit.
Sadly, I found several holes in Asaro's "magic system" that I suspect she was just to lazy to think about, mainly in regards to the villain. Not deeply thought out. I will not be reading more from this author.
A nice, light fantasy. The magical system of the world was unique.
