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86th out of 92 books
—
58 voters
The White Tree (The Cycle of Arawn #1)
by
Edward W. Robertson (Goodreads Author)
Secrets don't like to stay hidden. In the kingdom of Mallon, all knowledge of the death god Arawn has been brutally quashed--but a teen named Dante has just found the dark god's holiest book.
Within days, Dante's attacked in the streets. Not by the city guard. By Arawn's own servants, long-hidden. Two things save his life: a big-mouthed bodyguard named Blays, and his own gr...more
Within days, Dante's attacked in the streets. Not by the city guard. By Arawn's own servants, long-hidden. Two things save his life: a big-mouthed bodyguard named Blays, and his own gr...more
Kindle Edition, 428 pages
Published
February 15th 2011
by Broke Robot Books
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Overall Feedback: Robertson has woven a masterpiece! This is an astounding adventure fantasy that will have you hooked from the get go. "Nether" will be oozing from your brain by time you are finished and you will have two more heros to line up on your shelves. Robertson has made a story that shows not all heros have to always do the right thing to do the right thing. If you like fantasy, adventure and well just about anything else pick this one up fast.
Point of View: The viewpoint only adds to...more
Point of View: The viewpoint only adds to...more
A more accurate rating would be 2.5 stars.
Fantasy is usually some sort of struggle between good and evil. But there is no good in this book--only evil and slightly less evil. This made it impossible to cheer for any of the characters in any way and kept me removed from them and the story. Only the fact that it is relatively well-written redeems it at all.
I am no stranger to dark fantasy and I have some a like. But the characters are then flawed characters trying to do good even if it often goes...more
Fantasy is usually some sort of struggle between good and evil. But there is no good in this book--only evil and slightly less evil. This made it impossible to cheer for any of the characters in any way and kept me removed from them and the story. Only the fact that it is relatively well-written redeems it at all.
I am no stranger to dark fantasy and I have some a like. But the characters are then flawed characters trying to do good even if it often goes...more
This fantasy novel had a tenable enough sword-and-sorcery cosmology, and might be of interest to those who like tales that brood over the dark side (bringing dead rats to life to torment people, forbidden cultists who worship a Death God fighting among themselves--that sort of thing). The ending was a disappointment after so much build up.
Although the plot was tolerable and at times entertaining, the dialogues were poorly written, so there was little evidence of characters undergoing relationsh...more
Although the plot was tolerable and at times entertaining, the dialogues were poorly written, so there was little evidence of characters undergoing relationsh...more
This book was okay, but it didn't have that something that makes a book like this really excellent. It is a fantasy adventure as two teenagers, one a promising swordsman and the other a magician/wizard with more power than he knows how to deal with, set out to avenge the destruction of their homeland by assassinating the the high priestess of the god Arawn. The reviews that I read of the book before I started it were rather polarized: it seemed most people either really liked or really didn't. A...more
This series of books truly started a bit slow. I see some are stating that it was easy to put down, did not want to finish reading it etc but what I say to that is read the next book. I gotta say it doesn't have the typical good versus evil (which is OK!) its about war, and if we are honest what is ever good about war? They make the choices they have to. Overall a great read if a bit slow on the first book. The second book was much much faster paced and easier to read! I CAN NOT wait for the nex...more
This book was disappointing. It started off really well: boy sees someone raise a dead dog back to life. Decides he needs to learn how to do that, so he finds out everything he can including stealing a book. It goes downhill from there.
First of all, there is only one female character in the entire book. She's not in much of it either. Robertson could've easily changed several of the characters' gender without losing much.
The second problem was the fact that it just got boring after a while. Mos...more
First of all, there is only one female character in the entire book. She's not in much of it either. Robertson could've easily changed several of the characters' gender without losing much.
The second problem was the fact that it just got boring after a while. Mos...more
Edward Robertson has created a world with a rich mythological background that has led to the worship of Arawn being outlawed. He brings Dante a 16 year old boy on an adventure that crosses thousands of miles in the search for knowledge after finding a book about the forbidden God. While reading the book Dante begins to discover that he can use "nether" for powerful magic. After someone tries to kill Dante to get this book he decides to hire a bodyguard, but since he does not have much money he e...more
I was pleasantly surprised. I found myself enraptured by the tale of Dante and Blays. Though it is a dark story, no one aver said good and evil were black and white. there is a little of both in everyone. This book is no different.There have been complaints about the witty banter, but as the characters are sixteen, they speak like teenagers. I was fine with it.
Hmmm, where to start with this book? The premise is a good one, the ingredients are mostly there but somehow it just never held my interest or hooked me in. I have read this book and still feel slightly puzzled over where, if anywhere, this story is going. Two teenagers, one with some training in swords and one with, well basically nothing apart from the ability to kill and steal. The relationship between the two is probably the best part of the story. The story is quite dull and convoluted and...more
PROS: I really enjoyed the two main characters, despite the rather "cookie cutter" personalities. They amused me, and I felt their friendship. Clever when it came to the magical aspects of the story (utilizing the nether,re-animation, etc.).
CONS: ONE active female characters, and she was "evil" and targeted for assassination by "the good guys"; writing is adequate, but author tries TOO hard for witty, clever repartee, and uses out-of-place modern phrases ("haul ass" - REALLY?); lots of blood and...more
CONS: ONE active female characters, and she was "evil" and targeted for assassination by "the good guys"; writing is adequate, but author tries TOO hard for witty, clever repartee, and uses out-of-place modern phrases ("haul ass" - REALLY?); lots of blood and...more
Great adventure story. The only thing even remotely negative I have to say is that it was hard to remember how young Dante and Blays really are as all their actions, speech and motivations were those of grown and seasoned men. But overall, a great read and I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the trilogy.
Two teenagers--a budding magic user with more power than he's completely capable of handling and a kid with more swash than buckle--battle their way into the north to stop a war devastating their home country, neither sure they're making the right choices along the way. It's a nicely-handled coming of age story with plenty of action. Recommended.
With well-drawn, unique, likable characters, a compelling situation and plot, and an interesting conclusion, there's little else to say beyond expressing my anticipation of reading the next book!
Hard to get into but overall decent story line. Would say the characters aren't very lovable and probably wouldn't recommend this book to anyone in the future.
May 03, 2013
Adriana
marked it as purchased
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marked it as on-kindle-not-read
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marked it as have-not-read
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marked it as e-books-i-own-but-havent-read
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marked it as to-read
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marked it as to-read
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Ed
marked it as to-read
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Ed is the author of the post-apocalyptic Breakers series and the epic fantasy series The Cycle of Arawn. A former New Yorker and Idaho-guy, he currently lives in the LA area. His short fiction has appeared in a whole bunch of magazines and anthologies.
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“The mind is a vast place and its hungers far sharper than the body's”
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Apr 30, 2012 08:47am