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Dragonclaw (The Witches of Eileanan #1)
by
Kate Forsyth (Goodreads Author)
Since the Day of Reckoning witches and magic have been outlawed on Eileanan. The great towers, once centres of learning, are now abandoned ruins. The penalty for practising witchcraft is death.
In a hidden valley deep in the mountains, in the shadow of the peak of Dragonclaw, Isabeau the foundling grows to womanhood in the care of Meghan, an old wood witch. But Isabeau's de...more
In a hidden valley deep in the mountains, in the shadow of the peak of Dragonclaw, Isabeau the foundling grows to womanhood in the care of Meghan, an old wood witch. But Isabeau's de...more
Paperback, 531 pages
Published
1997
by Arrow (Random House Australia Pty Ltd)
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A nice epic fantasy series. As usual for this genre, the first book is the best, and the quality wanes slowly over the course of the series. But the initial few are very good reads with lots of interesting ideas mixed in with the classic fantasy archetypes. (And they'll get you intrigued enough in the world that you'll probably want to read the last few as well, even though they're not as good).
The main characters can be grating and annoying at times but the support cast is full of lively and m...more
The main characters can be grating and annoying at times but the support cast is full of lively and m...more
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Originally posted on Under The Rafters on the 25th August 2012.
The first installment to one of my all time favourite series, The Witches Of Eileanan, is Dragonclaw.
With witchcraft and witch cunning being outlawed for sixteen years now and the Banrigh (the Eileanan version of the Queen) decreeing all magical creatures as uile-bheistean (monsters) and the need for them to be captured and executed, all the witches and witch-lovers of the land are growing restless. They wish for the old days to be b...more
The first installment to one of my all time favourite series, The Witches Of Eileanan, is Dragonclaw.
With witchcraft and witch cunning being outlawed for sixteen years now and the Banrigh (the Eileanan version of the Queen) decreeing all magical creatures as uile-bheistean (monsters) and the need for them to be captured and executed, all the witches and witch-lovers of the land are growing restless. They wish for the old days to be b...more
All magical creatures of Eileanan are persecuted by decree of Maya the Ensorcellor. Witches have gone into hiding, but a resistance exists, building their forces in secret. Isabeau, a young witch in training, knows very little of this. She is raised in the quiet wilderness by Megan, a old hermit witch, and despite her natural talent, taught only the rudimentary basics of witchcraft. After an attack on their home and sanctuary, they no longer can remain removed from the world. Alone and far from...more
this was an interesting world set up. i HATED reading the dialect. WHY??? there was no point to the dialect aside from me trying to figure out what "fairn" meant. and why drop the "t" at the end of "not"? it drove me nuts. i thought the plot was intriguing, but a bit slow moving. i also hate it when books don't end. even if it's a series, there should be some kind of resolution. this was a total cliffhanger. so while i enjoyed it, it had some hitches.
The basic plot was a good idea, but it was bogged down with a slow narrative and confusing dialect.
I could have done without the scottish dialect, at times it was just distracting and didn't do much to an already slow-paced book.
The chapters were overly long, when they could easily have been divided. And the constant change of perspective from each character in every chapter was frustrating and again, slowed down the pace.
It would also have been better to include the glossary at the end of the 1...more
I could have done without the scottish dialect, at times it was just distracting and didn't do much to an already slow-paced book.
The chapters were overly long, when they could easily have been divided. And the constant change of perspective from each character in every chapter was frustrating and again, slowed down the pace.
It would also have been better to include the glossary at the end of the 1...more
I hadn't read a fantasy book in ten years, when I came across this while browsing in the library. I couldn't put it down and was already looking for the second novel in the series before I was halfway through this one. I found the third and fourth novels in the series hardwork to get through, but really enjoyed the second, fifth & sixth.
Not too bad a read. I did find myself irritated by being told everything instead of shown, but that is a common problem in fantasy books and I'm rather used to it. My enjoyment otherwise was sadly overshadowed by the fact that every single facet of the Scottish accent which every single character has was written out in EVERY SINGLE THING THEY SAID. We get it! They're Scottish! If everyone has the same accent, the accent is no longer a point of differentiation. I don't mind the odd Scottish word...more
Okay ... so I couldn't finish reading this book because I became very uninterested in it - almost right from the beginning. I usually wait until the first 100-200 pages to determine if a book is "worth the read" or not, & I made my decision shortly after 50 pages. I hate reading books that are difficult to read - either because of the dialogue or the author's writing style. In this case, it was mainly the dialogue between the characters, which was in a Scottish language ... I'm sorry but if...more
The storytelling of this high fantasy novel is first class. A spectacular debut novel from this poet turned author (who this month published her 25th novel!).
Dragon Claw introduces us to the world of Eileanan, Megan of the Beasts and her apprentice Isabeau, and to the havoc caused by Maya The Ensourcellor.
If you loved Lord of the Rings, but wished there were more strong female characters, this is a book for you.
History buffs will revel in the medieval politics of the series and wish that humans,...more
Dragon Claw introduces us to the world of Eileanan, Megan of the Beasts and her apprentice Isabeau, and to the havoc caused by Maya The Ensourcellor.
If you loved Lord of the Rings, but wished there were more strong female characters, this is a book for you.
History buffs will revel in the medieval politics of the series and wish that humans,...more
Review originally posted on The Oaken Bookcase on July 9, 2012 as part of the Discover Australian Fantasy feature.
Written in the grand tradition of Epic Fantasy, Dragonclaw is the first in Kate Forsyth’s series about the Witches of Eileanan.
Witchcraft has been outlawed for sixteen years now, and the new Queen, or Banrigh, has decreed that all magical creatures be killed or captured. Many of the original Coven of Witches died at the time of the Day of Reckoning but there are a few remaining, stok...more
Written in the grand tradition of Epic Fantasy, Dragonclaw is the first in Kate Forsyth’s series about the Witches of Eileanan.
Witchcraft has been outlawed for sixteen years now, and the new Queen, or Banrigh, has decreed that all magical creatures be killed or captured. Many of the original Coven of Witches died at the time of the Day of Reckoning but there are a few remaining, stok...more
Irritating characters, repetitive dialogue, and a very slow pace combine to make this novel painful to read. It starts out interestingly enough with the main character Isabeau taking tests and learning of the imminent danger the world is facing. The witches present at her testing part ways and we get to meet some unfriendly dragons. After that it's self centered, headstrong, do-no-wrong Isabeau walking through the forest encountering characters for a few pages, and then walking through the woods...more
Love love love. I love this series.
Great characters, great story. It's simple. I read a lot of this genre and these books stand out as some of all time faves! I wish that Kate would have just kept going after book 6! Always a great (and awful) thing when you really don't want a series to end!
Worth the time. For. Sure.
This book can apparently also be found as "Dragonclaw" in a earlier edition.?.? Looking it up, it appears to be the exact same book - text wise.
Great characters, great story. It's simple. I read a lot of this genre and these books stand out as some of all time faves! I wish that Kate would have just kept going after book 6! Always a great (and awful) thing when you really don't want a series to end!
Worth the time. For. Sure.
This book can apparently also be found as "Dragonclaw" in a earlier edition.?.? Looking it up, it appears to be the exact same book - text wise.
This book was highly recommended to me, but I found it a little droll and boring. This is not the author's fault, I am just really tired of magical type fantasy. The writing was great, though, it was just a clashing of interest for me. I did manage to finish it, which says a lot because I rarely finish books I don't engage with.
Although, I did find the main character in this book a little tiresome and irritating.
Although, I did find the main character in this book a little tiresome and irritating.
It took me most of the book to get into the story. I also wish that the author had done a prologue about the humans opening a gate in Scotland and moving to a new planet. I spent the first few chapters being annoyed at the use of plaid and the brogue until they finally slipped that little jewel in. It's just one of my pet peeves when that sort of thing isn't explained out right in the very beginning.
really like this series as i found it light and easy to read because it is interesting and different and not heavy and hard going like a lot of fantasy books are where the authors get too tangled up in inventing as weird as possible and hard to read names and place names. i loved the cahracters and cant wait to get into the second series.
Love,love,love,love Very well written. they all have realistic human ways to where I even got really mad at some of the good guys lol. I read and reread this series all the time. When I first got into it I had to actually hunt for some of the books to various book stores.But at last I found all of them and was able finish the series.
Good series - strong female leads and heroes with flaws and villians with redeeming qualities. This is a magical world struggling to survive. The whole series is an entertaining read - although at points it drags on needlessely on detail and the dialogue had me grinding my teech by the end "obh Obh Obh ...I ken"
I was actually dubious about starting to read this series, mainly because I hadn't read any Kate Forsyth before, and now I'm addicted, although I found the story line a little slow in some parts this first book laid a solid foundation for the following books and really grabbed me the the more i read.
I loved, loved the beginning of this book. Secret hide-away in a hidden forest, tree home with nestled rooms. Witches, and magic, and lessons! I was a bit sad when this gave way to a bigger chase and more details. But I enjoyed the additional characters so this was fine. This is a rare book that was able to bounce me from character to character without me developing favorites and growing resentful when I was not allowed to finish their story. I loved the creativity and original ideas and new cre...more
This was the sort of novel that immediately draws you into it's world. With tand lore that you learn more about as the story progresses.
There are any characters, all different and unique, that draw you in our their journey.
The book definitely left me wanting more.
There are any characters, all different and unique, that draw you in our their journey.
The book definitely left me wanting more.
This book was alright. It was certainly slow in some parts, and there was a lot of history introduced through dialogue, which could get tiresome to read. But once the story began to pick up, I was decently intrigued. It's a good fantasy story, and different than others I've read.
Im not one for heroine lead characters, its just never sits right with me when I visualise sword swinging neck breaking female characters… however, much to my trepidation I found this first book absolutely thrilling and engaging. I have become an instant fan of Kate and look forward to seeing what unfolds in the next hopeful page-turner.
I like about the book that it is written in a very traditional way and that the twins are two very different characters and still they are so often the same. I just started to re-read the series and I still find myself surprised by the book.
Witches? Celtic-inspired lands? Magic? Female protagonist? Yes, yes, yes, and yes. This is a great book, not the best, but enjoyable nonetheless. A good read for people that are veterans to epic fantasy, but I wouldn't recommend this to newcomers.
This book took a little while to get into, due to the dialect, but once I got used to it I couldn't put it down. The same holds true for the entire series.
It is an engrossing tale of magic and politics in the fictional Eileanan.
It is an engrossing tale of magic and politics in the fictional Eileanan.
First "adult" book I've read in a while. Thanks to the co-worker who convinced me to read it! Really good high fantasy. I think I liked it better than Goodkind's Sword of Truth but maybe not more than Jordan's Wheel of Time.
Feb 12, 2010
Kate Forsyth
rated it
5 of 5 stars
· (Review from the author)
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
fantasy
I wrote it, so I have to say it was amazing! Besides, it changed my life. I went from starving wanna-be-writer to internationally bestselling author practically overnight. You've got to find that amazing!
14 likes · like · see review
It was quite interesting. It took a while to get used to the different language, but the plot was interesting and it did not get boring for long periods of time. All in all, a good book.
I adore this book. I really, really loved Isabeau. She's fantastic.
Scottish was a wee bit hard to read but it was a great book otherwise--I finished it in about 2 1/2 hours.
Scottish was a wee bit hard to read but it was a great book otherwise--I finished it in about 2 1/2 hours.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and the series it belongs to. The characters had a gorgeous flow as they developed throughout the stroy. The scenery was described beautifully and I always found myself in the story and seeing the characters. There are elements of surprise, where you aren't sure how all of it will piece together, but when it starts clicking you find yourself wanting to see more and more. It is highly possible to enjoy one part of the story more then others as it does split...more
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Kate Forsyth is the award-winning author of more than 20 books for both adults and children.
Her books for adults include 'Bitter Greens', a retelling of the Rapunzel fairytale, and the bestselling fantasy series 'Witches of Eileanan' and 'Rhiannon's Ride'. Her books for children include 'The Gypsy Crown', 'The Puzzle Ring', and 'The Starkin Crown'
She had also published a collection of poetry cal...more
More about Kate Forsyth...
Her books for adults include 'Bitter Greens', a retelling of the Rapunzel fairytale, and the bestselling fantasy series 'Witches of Eileanan' and 'Rhiannon's Ride'. Her books for children include 'The Gypsy Crown', 'The Puzzle Ring', and 'The Starkin Crown'
She had also published a collection of poetry cal...more
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