Shane's review

[close]

blog this review

Copy/paste the text below into your blog.

<a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/68427.Elantris?utm_medium=api&amp;utm_source=blog_review" style="float: left; padding-right: 20px"><img alt="Elantris" border="0" src="http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170690753m/68427.jpg" /></a> <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/68427.Elantris?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">Elantris</a> by <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/38550.Brandon_Sanderson">Brandon Sanderson</a><br/><br/>
  <a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/33047974?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review"><h3>My review</h3></a>
  rating: 3 of 5 stars<br/>So this may sound confusing but I have to say I was both impressed and dissappointed with this book.  I really like the fact that it's a one shot. I hate having to worry about the commitment of reading a bunch of books just because one looks good. I was also very impressed with the plot not being a "quest plot" instead it was very original and left out many of the trappings of "high fantasy" (elves, dwarves, orcs, magical items etc...)  The writing was competent/good - no gaffs but nothing that really stuck out as especially memorable. Characters were likeable, if a little shallow for 600 pages. I'm very over the "tough princess" stereotype but I think it's really hard to make female heroes NOT fall into that category.
<br/>
<br/>My biggest problem is that I wanted it to be darker and more mature. The dark part happened a bit in the last 100 pages and it was very cool. But for the other 500 pages I got the feeling that I was 12 again, reading Xanth or Terry Brooks books where sex can only be hinted at vaguely and real adult conflicts don't exist.  It was just too "lite" for me. I found myself wanting to read some Tanith Lee afterwords just to balance things out.
<br/>
<br/>In the end I guess I would definitely recommend this book to teens looking for something that's not typical "high fantasy".
  <br/><br/><a href="http://www.goodreads.com/review/list/81463?utm_medium=api&utm_source=blog_review">View all my reviews.</a>

Shane's review
rating:

bookshelves: fantasy, read-in-2008
recommended for: Teens looking for original fantasy
status: Read in October, 2008

So this may sound confusing but I have to say I was both impressed and dissappointed with this book. I really like the fact that it's a one shot. I hate having to worry about the commitment of reading a bunch of books just because one looks good. I was also very impressed with the plot not being a "quest plot" instead it was very original and left out many of the trappings of "high fantasy" (elves, dwarves, orcs, magical items etc...) The writing was competent/good - no gaffs but nothing that really stuck out as especially memorable. Characters were likeable, if a little shallow for 600 pages. I'm very over the "tough princess" stereotype but I think it's really hard to make female heroes NOT fall into that category.

My biggest problem is that I wanted it to be darker and more mature. The dark part happened a bit in the last 100 pages and it was very cool. But for the other 500 pages I got the feeling that I was 12 again, reading Xanth or Terry Brooks...more

Like this review? yes flag

comments (showing 0-0 of 0)

newest »

date

all Shane's books »