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Jan 10, 2008

Julie rated it:

Halfway through, I'm surprised by this book. It felt like it was going to head one direction, then it fooled me and went another direction entirely. I'm glad, since the first direction wasn't the way I wanted to head.

This is only the second series I've read by Briggs. Like her Mercy Thompson books, this has some wonderful characterization and very smooth writing. The setting is a much more traditional fantasy one, though.

I'm enjoying it a lot.

Now that I've More...

0 comments like (4 people liked it)

Dec 31, 2008

Mel rated it:

I was expecting another fantasy coming-of-age novel, but that's not what this is. It turned out to be quite different. There were a lot of unexpected little twists and turns. I think some aspects of the plot could have been more fully explained, but that might have slowed down the story. It was nice to have a story with a family full of characters, rather than a single main character seeking his/her fortune. The number of characters left me wanting a more focused story on each one, but over More...

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Aug 30, 2011

Chris rated it:

Overall, this story doesn't match the quality of world building and story depth the same author created for the Mercy series.
Bottom Line: Try before you buy
I've read all of the book in the Mercy series by Briggs. So, I ordered this book, along with Briggs 'Steal the Dragon' because I figure you find an author you like, order their other works...can't go wrong, right?
Wrong. I found the quality of writing and quality of story somewhat lacking in this series, compared directly to the More...

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Jul 30, 2011

Canary rated it:

Raven's Shadow takes a different, epic approach to fantasy, following characters over the course of years. Seraph is a Raven mage, one of the few who are born to fight against the dark remnants of an apocalypse long ago. Instead, she falls in love with Tier, a soldier, and settles down--something unheard of among her ("Traveler") kin. But when, years later, Tier is killed, Seraph is forced to face what she is to protect her children.

Though Raven's Shadow is also told in third More...

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Jun 23, 2011

Lilli rated it:

I found this to be good fantasy, but I wouldn't call it brain-scorchingly great fantasy. I actually started reading it three separate times, but the first two I ended up putting it aside for something more intriguing. I am glad that this third time I stuck with it through the whole ride. I am already into the first pages of book two.

This is written in third person point of view, following the lives of mainly one family, though there are sections from others. This is not my favori More...

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Dec 30, 2010

Karissa rated it:

This is the first book in the Raven Duology by Patricia Briggs. It was an okay book. I liked the world and the magic system but thought that the pacing throughout the book was a bit erratic. I have also read Briggs Mercy Thompson series (which I thought was okay, but lacking in character development); this series is much different from the Mercy Thompson series. This series is written in a more traditional fantasy style, with less humor, and a slower pace.

Seraph is the last of her Trav More...

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Oct 21, 2009

Phoebe rated it:

Raven's Shadow presents an interesting cast of fantasy characters in its central family of magic-touched farmers. The heroes are middle-aged parents and spouses rather than single twenty-somethings, a unique choice an epic fantasy, but a wise one: it's the relationship between Seraph and Tier that really carries the narrative. In fact, I found the novel's first third, which is concerned with their earlier meeting and union, to be the most compelling part of the book.

Seraph, a Travele More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Mar 14, 2011

Jennifer rated it:

This was so good! I wasn't really sure what to expect. I have read Briggs' later, urban fantasy series Mercy Thompson - and loved it - but this was my first of her fantasy novels. I should have known it would be characterized by her strengths - primarily amazing characters. In this story, Seraph, a teenage orphan mage from a tribe of gypsy-like people called the Travelers, is rescued by a young soldier returning home from war. They marry and fall in love, have children, who all grow up... and th More...

1 comment like

Jan 28, 2009

Tracy rated it:

I devoured this book - it was absolutely great and so much fun to read. Engaging characters, solid world building and just a good story. The kind of book that makes me excited about fantasy.

It's the first of two books, but tells a self-contained story - refreshing in this age of epic series that never end and trilogies that leave you hanging.

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Nov 04, 2010

Gina rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Sep 08, 2011

Dan rated it:

Raven's Shadow is clearly not up to the standard of Briggs' later works. She was still coming into her own as a writer when this was written, and it shows. Also, it suffers from a severe lack of proofreading or editing. I certainly hope it's not anyone's introduction to the fantasy genre...

That said, it is a good book. The story is interesting and well told, the characters... the characters I'm not sure about. I didn't feel particularly emotionally invested in them (about what you'd fe More...

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Dec 02, 2010

Anne rated it:

As a romance reader as well as a fantasy reader, I enjoyed the relationship between the main characters, Tier and Seraph; even though they spent most of the book apart, they were never far from each other's thoughts.

The overall interaction and relationships between the character was extremely well-written, and the world they were set in was detailed and interesting. While some secondary characters felt like name placeholders, the more important and frequently-seen were well fleshed-ou More...

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Jul 24, 2011

Peter rated it:

In a world full of natural and learned magic our anti-hero Tier is on his way home from war to resume his work in the family bakery. Under unusual circumstances the retired soldier meets a young traveller mage who he falls in love with, becomes farmer, father, prisoner of dark powers, leader and advisor of emperors in only a few hundred pages.

The story might start a bit slow but the steady pace gives you opportunity to accompany the development of the characters and their motives. Yo More...

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Jun 03, 2010

Marsha rated it:

Let me start by saying I'm a huge Patricia Briggs fan. She is a master weaver of strange/wondrous worlds and no one can script characters with such detail that they feel more like acquaintances than fiction. While I truly enjoyed Raven's Shadow, it was not my favorite of her novels. Don't get me wrong, the Raven's world and the characters were crafted with her usual beautiful style, this just wasn't 4 starts for me. I will go on to read Raven's Strike and the Dragon Bones series. However, before More...

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Dec 28, 2011

Jwales42 rated it:

I have read almost all of Patricia Briggs books. I was thoroughly surprised by this book. Many who have just read the Mercy Thompson books may not like these for the very reason most of us love the Mercy books.

This book does not offer the sexy sassy characters built around action and touching enough on romance to keep people clinging to the edge of their seats.

Instead it offers a family. A Warrior who is a husband and a father. A mother and wife who wields great magic. More...

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May 13, 2010

Aili rated it:

Patricia Briggs is my hero. I am constantly amazed at her characters and the relationships they have with each other. Briggs has a great, healthy perspective on individuality, love, family, and romance. Because her characters don't fit into the traditional fantasy mold, her plots can't be predictable. Have you ever read another book where the hero/heroine takes their whole family along for the adventure and each person's skills are necessary for the resolution? The cast of fully-developed charac More...

0 comments like (3 people liked it)

Jul 30, 2011

Tim added it

I do like this lady's writing. When I originally began the book I didn't like it as much as her books about Mercy but I think I know the reason. In the other series there is more time to develop each character, even giving entire books over to more character development, other that just Mercu so the entire universe become deeper and richer. With this series being just a duology character development gets a little in the way of the story and vice versa. Makes me wonder why not just make it a sing More...

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Jan 13, 2009

Yvette rated it:

I am a Patricia Briggs fan. I love her books because she always has strong female characters with realistic quirks. A fun read for a rainy day!

0 comments like (2 people liked it)

Jan 22, 2011

Jessica rated it:

I have put off reading this for a while. I really love Briggs but I'm not so into high fantasy and her early books looked very high fantasy. I was wrong though. Raven's Shadow is fantasy but not so intense that I don't like it. Her writing was solid and the story good. The thing I liked the most though was that a mother was the hero. She is a typically strong Brigg's character. What is interesting though is that, as I said, she's a mother. I really liked how that was done. I was on the fence abo More...

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Nov 11, 2010

~Megan~ rated it:

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here

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Feb 02, 2011

Irinak rated it:

I love Patricia Briggs writing and “Raven’s Shadow” did not disappoint. It’s very different from “Mercy Thompson” or “Alpha and Omega”; what similar is the way author develops her characters, their loving and believable personalities and well as their surrounding which is superb. Every time when you think that you know where the story is going there is twist and turn that keeps you hooked. There are parts of the book that quite slow, but like in most fantasy books it takes time to set up. Ov More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Feb 01, 2011

Alchemical Evelyn rated it:

I liked this book but I wasn't dying to read it. It was interesting but I finished it because I wanted to move on to another book. I have the next in the series as well but I think I'm going to hold off on reading it just yet.

It's not a bad book at all, I really like the way Patricia Briggs write. I was much more fascinated by her Mercy Thompson series but maybe because it was it was more of an Urban Fantasy/PNR. This book was a bit more medieval and though you could feel what Seraph More...

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Aug 22, 2011

Sbuchler rated it:

In the beginning Tier is a recently retired veteran heading back to his home in the hinterlands that he’d run away from many years ago. He runs into Seraph a barely adult Traveler (think gypsy) girl in serious danger of being burned at the stake. Of course he rescues her, and they travel together to his home. But home isn’t quite as accepting as Tier thought and he finds himself declaring that he’s married to her in order to protect her. After a couple more chapters they decide to make the ruse More...

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Jul 20, 2011

Amelia rated it:

Originally posted on The Authoress: Book Review and More.

I will forever be a fan of Patricia Briggs. It’s how she blends together all the critical elements of a story with her flawless writing and loveable characters. Her stories themselves are original and engaging. Her characters come alive and are presented so well that it’s perfect daydreaming material.

When the story first opened, I was confused because Seraph is presented as a child and I was like—Well how are th More...

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Jun 05, 2010

Bry rated it:

I loved the overall plot and the intricacies of the magic of the Travelers and the solsenti or regular humans. There were so many abilities, and various ways of doing magic. It was all extremely interesting and well thought out. I also loved Tier and the children's characters. They were all so loyal, protective, kind, and good that it was just heartwarming. Seraph took me a lot longer to like due to her coldness which was necessary to keep her magic in check, but thankfully she found a way More...

0 comments like (5 people liked it)

Aug 31, 2009

Allison rated it:

This is a solid, light fantasy such as I have come to expect from Patricia Briggs. This is the first of a two part series in which there are Travelers with magical properties who have the task of protecting the kingdom from an unknown evil that there ancestors accidentally created. The main character who is a Traveler Mage has her husband kidnapped by some evil mages and she and her children must go to rescue him, and thus action and adventure follows. It is a relatively fast read and suitable f More...

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Feb 19, 2010

Issam rated it:

This was given to me from a friend, and was my first Patricia Briggs novel. Before beginning, I had assumed that the universe that had been set up in here would be overly complicated and tied at length through several other books, but it wasn't, and I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to fall into the story, the characters, and the magical world of wizards, travelers, strange creatures, and the Ordered that Patrica Briggs had so believably, and creatively, embedded here in a realistic More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jun 05, 2010

Lady Danielle "The Book Huntress" rated it:

It's clear that Patricia Briggs can work the same magic for traditional fantasy that she does with her urban fantasy and werewolf stories for this reader. I loved this story. I must admit that there were parts that were slower and harder to read, and that's due to the intricacies of the worldbuilding (keep in mind, I don't read a lot of heavy-duty, traditional heroic fantasy--so keep the urge to sneer under wraps if you've read a lot of that and consider this book child's play). Having said t More...

18 comments like (17 people liked it)

Mar 21, 2011

Blodeuedd rated it:

I like the fact that this fantasy had a mature heroine. Seraph is a traveller and she is rescued but the soldier Tier. Travellers are not liked, they have magic, they are said to steal babies and all sorts of other stupid things. They are feared. Seraph and Tier gets married and 20 years later the real story starts.

A mature heroine with 3 kids, and a missing husband. Seraph was strong, and I liked her. Tier too, he was all nice. The kind you just want to hug.

I did get ang More...

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

Jul 21, 2010

Emily rated it:

A completely different world from Alpha&Omega and the Mercedes Thompson books but one I like just as much. I flew through this book as I do all of Patricia Briggs books. The writing flows smoothly, the story is interesting and active without being to convenient. The characters are well developed and varied. Generally a joy to read. I wish I could find more authors like her. I'm excited to find the sequel.
Definitely recommend reading this one.

0 comments like (1 person liked it)

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