Banewreaker (The Sundering, Book 1)
by Jacqueline Carey
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Read in March, 2007
This is a review for the series. The other book is godslayer.
If you hear "Jacqueline Carey" and think Kushiel's Dart, you may be mighty tempted to pick up this series based on that.
Don't.
There are no subby women with bottomless capacities for pain in this series. Heck, it isn't even D'angeline. Very little sex, in fact, and none of it kinky. Different uni...more
If you hear "Jacqueline Carey" and think Kushiel's Dart, you may be mighty tempted to pick up this series based on that.
Don't.
There are no subby women with bottomless capacities for pain in this series. Heck, it isn't even D'angeline. Very little sex, in fact, and none of it kinky. Different uni...more
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Read in March, 2008
recommends it for:
anybody with a pulse
(The date above applies to my most recent reading.)
If you're looking for epic battles, mighty and mysterious powers clashing in a fierce battle for survival, this book is a great place to look for that.
If you're looking for a battle with clear-cut, cleanly defined sides of good and evil. . .walk away. Run away. Fast.
This book and its companion, Godslayer, are the absolute greyest books I've ever read, by which I mean that the characters do not fall into such simple categori...more
If you're looking for epic battles, mighty and mysterious powers clashing in a fierce battle for survival, this book is a great place to look for that.
If you're looking for a battle with clear-cut, cleanly defined sides of good and evil. . .walk away. Run away. Fast.
This book and its companion, Godslayer, are the absolute greyest books I've ever read, by which I mean that the characters do not fall into such simple categori...more
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Read in August, 2007
recommends it for:
Anyone who likes fantasy
I picked up this book because I enjoy the author - Jacqueline Carey - and her other series, Kushiel's Dart. She is an extremely talented author and I have not yet read a book by her that has not been wonderful.
This book, of course, is no exception and has not failed the high standards I set when reading Carey for the first time. As far as I am concerned, she is one of the very best fantasy writers. In this book, she has embraced the all-too standard fantasy setting of heroes, magic, drago...more
This book, of course, is no exception and has not failed the high standards I set when reading Carey for the first time. As far as I am concerned, she is one of the very best fantasy writers. In this book, she has embraced the all-too standard fantasy setting of heroes, magic, drago...more
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Read in May, 2008
recommended to Tess by:
George RR Martinrecommends it for: epic fantasy lovers
I picked up this book because I loved Ms. Carey's books about Kushiel, and I read a review by the author George RR Martin.
This is very different from Kushiel's Dart, and a very good high-fantasy in the manner of Tolkien, Martin, and Eddings. As all the plot summaries and all the other reviews state, this is an epic fantasy told from more than just the "good" guys' perspective. It presents the shunned, hated, and slightly mad god (called a Shaper) as the one wronged at the cracking ...more
This is very different from Kushiel's Dart, and a very good high-fantasy in the manner of Tolkien, Martin, and Eddings. As all the plot summaries and all the other reviews state, this is an epic fantasy told from more than just the "good" guys' perspective. It presents the shunned, hated, and slightly mad god (called a Shaper) as the one wronged at the cracking ...more
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Jacqueline Carey constructs a classical fantasy setting here reminiscent of Norse myth and Tolkien, and gives equal validity to the point-of-view of the "evil" side in this world. However, the world-building is not as fully-realized and resonant as I would like, and I never connected as well with any of the characters as I did in Carey's Kushiel series.
Another flaw was that the "good" guys seemed more misled than really good. Satoris himself, the "evil" god, s...more
Another flaw was that the "good" guys seemed more misled than really good. Satoris himself, the "evil" god, s...more
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Read in January, 2006
Of Carey's Kushiel books, I read Kushiel's Dart and Kushiel's Chosen. They're well written, but generally not my personal taste. I read Banewreaker (and before that, Godslayer) after reading a recommendation by George R.R. Martin, and ended up really captivated by the story. Carey's world is typically fantasy - containing the usual humans, elves, dwarves, trolls, and gods. But she tells both sides of the story and blurs the line between good and evil so sucessfully that you realize you can't ...more
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Read in August, 2008
I think this has the potential to earn more stars, depending on the second book in the series. This one was mostly set up for the confrontation to occur (I presume) in the next book. While it has been fun to see the parallels with LoTR (which I assume are intentional), I'm just not as intrigued and into this world as I am her other two series. I think as an author she does better with a single viewpoint character. I understand that that wouldn't have worked with what she's trying to do here--cre...more
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Read in March, 2008
I'm really in love with the concept of this book. It's a tragic take on Lord of the Rings told from the "bad guys" perspective. It doesn't revel in sinister imagery or "evil" but presents, very sympathetically, the plight of the other side of the traditional fantasy/black & white dichotomy. It doesn't do it, however, in a way that is unsympathetic to the "good" side either. What results is an...more
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I guess a lot of her normal fans didn't like this, as it's a definite departure from the Kushiel's Legacy series. I enjoyed it. It's essentially 'what if we told the fantasy epic from the bad guys' point of view?' If you found the hobbits tooth-achingly twee and if you like characters to have more complex motivations and the potential to evolve, you might like this. It doesn't wind up going exactly where you think it might, and it's a little scattershot in the adventuring department -- but i...more
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Read in March, 2007
recommends it for:
Tolkein fans
I have to admit, I did not love this book. I would have only given 2.5 stars, but they can't be divided and I generously "gave" the extra .5 to make it 3. The premise of this story is well thought out and could work well, however the characters didn't move me at all. I found the story dragging and had to actually force myself to finish this one. I really REALLY wanted to like this since I am a fan of other works by this writer. Unfortunately, it just didn't happen and I seriously ...more
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Read in February, 2005
This was a very weak, generic epic fantasy that really disappointed me. After reading and loving her Kushiel Trilogy, I was expecting nothing but greatness from Jacqueline Carey. This book, however, felt like every recycled Lord of the Rings rip-off, with only mildly interesting characters to spice it up a bit. The writing also felt a lot weaker than her Kushiel books, as if she just didn't try as hard.
I can't imagine bothering with the sequel to this.
I can't imagine bothering with the sequel to this.
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Classic fantasy and rather derivative, but very strong characters. I really enjoyed that it is written from the point of view of the villain, so to speak. I rated the first book higher because the end (meaning the end of the 2nd book) was not... well, it ended badly for the side I was rooting for. I guess in that sense maybe it maybe reads as more realist than fantasy books generally do.
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Read in September, 2008
If I hadn't known better, I would have thought this to be Carey's first book. Definitely nothing like the Kushiel series. It took me a bit to get into it, but eventually I did grow to like the characters. And the book was good enough that I want to read the others in the series. It also didn't have a definitive ending like her other books, so the story did leave me hanging.
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Read in July, 2006
recommends it for:
people who want to subvert lord of the rings
This book is not my usual kind of favorite, but I think the author does a brilliant job of telling a story from an unusual perpective. Of course this story is the quintissential lord of the rings group adventure story, but the perspective is from the dark side. She gives this classic epic a great deal of depth and complexity. I love the second one too.
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Written by Jacqueline Carey, author of 'Kushiel's Dart' and it's sequels. I liked that novel but my interest waned in the subsequent installments, primarily because what fascinated me about the first novel turned more towards politics in the later books. Still, Carey's writing style is interesting and I'm interested to see how this turns out.
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Maybe I'll finish this somewhat disappointing book at some point in the future, when I have nothing else to read.
While Carey still displays good form in the realms of language and its usage, this one just came across as rather flat, character-wise. Sad, given that she's known for crafting interesting, three-dimensional characters.
While Carey still displays good form in the realms of language and its usage, this one just came across as rather flat, character-wise. Sad, given that she's known for crafting interesting, three-dimensional characters.
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I am torn. I want to give the book 1 star, but I really liked several of the characters. If you are a LotR fan you will probably not want to read this because it is basically the same scenario. Carey's diction and descriptions are really good though so if you like language it is a good read. I was disappointed.
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Read in January, 2006
Picked this up because I love the Kushiel books so much. It was enjoyable, but not enough for me to pick up the rest of the series. I found this book to be fairly generic new god/old god fiction, which surprised me given how interesting and unique the Kushiel world is.
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Takes the basic LOTR story, but plays it with a twist. The elves and humans serve the evil God, yet the world believes the evil God to be good, and vice -versa. The author makes a case for relativism against absolutism, and does so in a thoroughly intriguing manner.
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I really did not like this book. I actually did not finish. I had a hard time separating this story from the inspiration, The Lord of the Rings. I got annoyed with the characters and just gave up. If you like Jacqueline Carey, stick with the Kushiel series.
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