Sara's review
The Elder Gods (The Dreamers, Book 1) by David Eddings
I hate myself for saying this, but here goes. Boo! Boo, boo, boo.
I am one of many, many long-time Eddings fans and maybe that's the problem. I was thrilled to pick up a minty fresh Eddings saga, but by halfway through this first book I felt like I could recite it before I'd even read it. Far past just being stylistically recognizable, it's nearly an exact replica of every other Eddings series without any of their creative surprise goodness.
The plot is beyond familiar: good gods with basically good followers prepare to battle their bad brother god and his nasty, barely human (or non-human) horde. Of course there are mysterious objects and fantastical journeys. Hijinks ensue.
The characters: wow, do you know these people. This group has a Barak and a Silk and child-god/ess, a Sparhawk and a Polgara and all the rest. They are snarky and clever and say things like, "Oh, I hadn't thought of that" and "Does bouncing count?" and they repeat themselves ...more
I am one of many, many long-time Eddings fans and maybe that's the problem. I was thrilled to pick up a minty fresh Eddings saga, but by halfway through this first book I felt like I could recite it before I'd even read it. Far past just being stylistically recognizable, it's nearly an exact replica of every other Eddings series without any of their creative surprise goodness.
The plot is beyond familiar: good gods with basically good followers prepare to battle their bad brother god and his nasty, barely human (or non-human) horde. Of course there are mysterious objects and fantastical journeys. Hijinks ensue.
The characters: wow, do you know these people. This group has a Barak and a Silk and child-god/ess, a Sparhawk and a Polgara and all the rest. They are snarky and clever and say things like, "Oh, I hadn't thought of that" and "Does bouncing count?" and they repeat themselves ...more
