false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1172785760m/216849.jpg 216849 8 Sara Ash's <I>Lord of Snow and Shadows</I> is the promising opener to the Tears of Artamon series. The novel sets the stage in grand fashion as Ash deftly introduces the principal players in her well-realized fantasy realm. She begins with Gavril, a carefree portrait painter basking in the sunny climes of an irrelevant island republic. He soon discovers he is heir to a great and terrible legacy in the snowy wasteland of Azhkendir. Kidnapped by his murdered father's personal guard, he is both captive and the Drakhoan--ruler of Azhkendir. His inheritance turns out to be more than just a crown, however. A dark force of immeasurable power is growing inside him while he finds his realm under siege from within and without. <p> Ash masterfully avoids most of the usual fantasy memes--except, of course, the reluctant hero, Gavril--and imports a vast menagerie of technologies and culturally resonant magics into her world. Her conflicting armies wield magic, muskets, and heavy cannon alongside darker forces that are too delicious to mention here. Apart from a few niggling inconsistencies (Gavril's transformation from foppish artist to deft statesman, for one), Ash's novel is a frosty infusion of new air into a genre overrun with the usual maidens-with-broadswords clichés. <I>--Jeremy Pugh</I> 209942 2003 Lord of Snow and Shadows (Tears of Artamon, # 1) total:289|5:61|4:101|3:96|2:26|1:5| 289 1054 414 50 4 1 false false Sat Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 2003 Sun Feb 15 18:27:16 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 16 18:18:05 -0800 2009
But I read with one criterion in mind, and one criterion only: style. If Sa...more...]]> 4 1 false false Fri Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Jul 29 13:59:46 -0700 2008 Tue Aug 12 08:17:08 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 1 false false Wed Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004 Fri Aug 08 17:52:40 -0700 2008 Fri Aug 08 18:02:16 -0700 2008 more...]]> 2 1 false false Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Tue Nov 25 17:59:33 -0800 2008 Mon Dec 01 19:36:30 -0800 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false true Fri Jun 19 15:24:12 -0700 2009 Fri Jun 19 15:42:54 -0700 2009 Lord of Snow and Shadows begins quietly: a portraitist and his sitter, a conversation, a kiss. It is a fairy tale extended: archetypal love hampered by status and opposed by blueblood parents; a lowly painter, named Gavril, forbidden communication with the lovely, aristocratic Altessa Astasia who lo...more...]]> 1 0 false false Sat Feb 14 19:51:26 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 12 23:10:07 -0800 2009 Sat Feb 14 19:51:26 -0800 2009 more...]]> 3 1 false false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Fri Jan 30 09:38:16 -0800 2009 Sun Feb 01 20:30:30 -0800 2009 2 1 false false Sat Mar 29 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Wed Mar 26 11:18:28 -0700 2008 Tue Apr 01 08:59:55 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2005 Fri Jul 04 15:20:13 -0700 2008 Fri Jul 04 15:20:40 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2004 Wed Nov 28 14:20:53 -0800 2007 Wed Nov 28 14:21:34 -0800 2007 more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 2003 Mon Oct 26 16:12:46 -0700 2009 Wed Nov 11 20:38:23 -0800 2009 1 I was really intrigued by this book. I immediately loved her writing style, and loved the way she described the surroundings. She is great for placing you into the scene she is writing. I also loved the ch...more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Fri Jul 20 12:18:23 -0700 2007 Wed Jul 25 09:31:37 -0700 2007
What I liked the most - and what I always fear these days after reading the Quickening series by Fiona McIntosh - was that the characters didn't behave like fool...more...]]> 5 0 false false Thu Mar 19 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 12 09:58:10 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 19 09:35:16 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sun Jan 25 12:54:52 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 25 12:56:40 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Fri Jan 02 11:16:46 -0800 2009 Sun Dec 28 06:27:13 -0800 2008 Fri Jan 02 11:16:46 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Mon Aug 10 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 05 09:29:12 -0700 2009 Wed Aug 12 09:08:00 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Sun Jun 15 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sat Jun 14 07:48:32 -0700 2008 Wed Jun 25 14:33:26 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Feb 05 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 02 19:01:10 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 05 15:20:23 -0800 2009 1 0 false false Wed Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 30 19:11:49 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 30 19:12:33 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Sat Jan 17 20:42:10 -0800 2009 Thu Jan 15 18:49:56 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 17 20:42:10 -0800 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=216849