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August 16, 2008
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Venture_Africa
added:
I, Zombie (Paperback)
by
Curt Selby
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my rating:
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Venture_Africa
added:
My Friend Flicka (Paperback)
by
Mary O'Hara
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my rating:
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Venture_Africa
gave  to:
Sinister Landscapes (Paperback)
by
Alan Draven
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February 10, 2008
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Venture_Africa
gave to:
My Sister's Keeper (Paperback)
by
Jodi Picoult
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my rating:
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January 26, 2008
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Venture_Africa
gave to:
The Toonies Invade Silicon Valley (Paperback)
by
Betty Dravis (Goodreads author)
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my rating:
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Venture_Africa
added:
Dead Sea (Mass Market Paperback)
by
Brian Keene
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my rating:
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Venture_Africa
gave  to:
The Rising (Mass Market Paperback)
by
Brian Keene
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my rating:
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Venture_Africa
gave  to:
Kendermore (Dragonlance: Preludes, #2)
by
Mary Kirchoff
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my rating:
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Venture_Africa
gave to:
Dragons of Autumn Twilight (Dragonlance: Chronicles, #1)
by
Margaret Weis
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my rating:
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recommended for: Anyone who loves the best in fantasy literature.
read in January, 2007
Venture_Africa said:
"They never expected to become heroes, never desired the war that brought them together, only to shape their lives forevermore, destroying some, elevating others, but nevertheless, mercilessly changing all. It is autumn in the city of Solace. A time w...more
They never expected to become heroes, never desired the war that brought them together, only to shape their lives forevermore, destroying some, elevating others, but nevertheless, mercilessly changing all. It is autumn in the city of Solace. A time when old friends seek to reunite, a time for love and joy, tenderness and care, a time to celebrate the future and ignore the regrets of the past. Only, these typical pleasantries are remiss from the formerly cheerful town of Solace for war is in the air. There is talk of strong and dangerous armies amassing in the north, talk of monsters and ancient beasts arising from their centuries long sleep ready for destruction and vengeance. And, trapped within these turbulent times, are our confused heroes striving to the very last moment to save their beleaguered realm from the evil that is to come; the evil that will usher in the legendary War of the Lance. Strum, a noble Solamnic Knight; Tanis, a dejected half-elf; Tasslehoff, a happy go lucky kender; Flint, a grumpy old dwarf; Caramon, a strong and valiant warrior; Raistlin, a frail yet powerful mage with hidden depths that will one day erupt; Goldmoon, bearer of a healing staff, daughter of Chieftain; Riverwind, Goldmoon's devoted paramour: this is our band of unlikely heroes. Together, these valiant warriors must struggle in a world gone awry, must fight not only the ensuing mayhem but their all too human frailties as well. This then is there story.
Easily acclaimed as one of the greatest modern fantasy epics, Dragon's of Autumn Twilight is well worth the title. Few books there are that can rival it in style, eloquence, depth of characters, and good old fashioned story telling. This is the kind of tale to share with friends and family around the cozy glow of a camp fire, the kind of drama suitable to pass on to one's children and one's children's children. Indeed, the realm of Krynn itself seems to truly exist as if for no other reason than the reader's devoted belief. Whether you, the avid bibliophile, are drawn to fantasy literature or not, Dragon's of Autumn Twilight cannot but captivate and enthrall leading the reader on an adventure that not only spans the narrow gulf of reality, but that of time and space as well taking the reader on delightful adventures filled with lovable characters that soon initiate themselves as one of the family.
Complimented with an imaginative setting filled with myriad fantasy creatures both expected and original, the tale starts as it means to go on allowing the action to take place almost immediately. The reader is never once bored or distracted rather the story works like one of Raistlin's elusive spells, enthralling and captivating the reader to the exclusion of all else. So addictive is the tale, so unique is the drama, and so effecting are the characters that the reader soon forgets all other aspects of life and fully enters into the realm of Krynn battling beside the valiant warriors, suffering when they suffer, rejoicing when they rejoice, and never once forgetting the stakes of the battle for all Krynn hangs in the balance. Will evil triumph or will good conquer?
Provided with a likable cast, the reader soon finds it amazing that half elves, kender, and dwarves, are equally sympathetic as the human characters. Also, the "good" protagonists are never burdened with that sickeningly perfect aura usually subscribed to fantasy warriors. Rather, each character is fleshed out as it they were real allowing that with their strengths weakness also follow making a cast of un-human characters bear the burdens of human emotions. Likewise, the villains are also fulfilled with realistic personalities effectively imbuing them with a more chilling aura. Classic characterization at its finest.
As with all truly good tales, the writing style employed also boasts of perfection. Each sentence is erudite yet easy to understand neither speaking down to the reader nor becoming burdened with unnecessary simplicity but instead choosing to fall in the middle where perfection lies.
The conclusion was shocking, dramatic and intriguing instantly leading the addicted reader onto the second Dragonlance drama, Dragons of Winter Night where the Chronicles series continues to build in suspense and complexity leading the reader on a wondrous journey into the fantastic realm of Krynn where anything is possible.
Final Thoughts: Dragons of Autumn Twilight is a novel not to be missed. Filled with fantastic wonders, epic battles, shattering sorrow and insurmountable joy, it contains everything that makes a novel truly perfect. And, when finished, the joy is further enhanced by even more epic dramas from the realm of Krynn. Highly recommended!
- Ravenova(less)
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Venture_Africa
gave to:
Deadlands (Paperback)
by
Scott A. Johnson
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my rating:
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recommended for: Anyone who likes good horror.
read in August, 2006
Venture_Africa said:
"The world has been decimated. Its cities laid waste in a mysterious and all consuming war. The remaining denizens of this charred hulk of Earth reside beneath its barren surface in primitive subterranean cities awaiting the day when they may re-conqu...more
The world has been decimated. Its cities laid waste in a mysterious and all consuming war. The remaining denizens of this charred hulk of Earth reside beneath its barren surface in primitive subterranean cities awaiting the day when they may re-conquer the world that was once their inheritance. However, on immerging from the depths of their earthen domiciles, they discover that the devastation from the long forgotten war was complete, the very air so contaminated by its remaining pollutants that they are forced to retreat. However, this hideous war that destroyed the earth's surface, leaving it barren of plant and animal life, also unleashed another devastating atrocity. The dead have arisen, have clawed their way from beneath the ruble of a once thriving civilization and are seeking to sate their never ending hunger on the few remaining citizens of this planet of horrors. Is this infestation of the living dead and their seemingly intelligent destruction of the subterranean cities merely an accident of nature, or is a greater force propelling their ceaseless destruction? Will the answer be unearthed in time, or will the world that was once so civilized, so highly advanced in its technological purists, succumb to the dark forces of the Deadlands? The battle for Earth begins . . .
The enshrouding atmosphere of this novel was perpetually vivid; the numerous descriptions of the barren and heat scorched Earth were astounding in their surrealistic quality and easily conveyed the nightmarish perception of our planet gone awry. Despite the heavily laden atmosphere of morbidity and impending doom, the author still persisted in maintaining an aura of hope causing the characters' struggles to be more realistic and their personal dilemmas more relevant. Each elegantly worded phrase, each smoothly flowing sentence, conveyed the utter horror of the situation whilst maintaining an underlying tone of hope despite circumstances that are seemingly devoid of sanguineness.
The author refrained from employing stereotypical good and evil characters. Rather, each vivid character presented in this book, both the heroes and the villains, were thoroughly brought to life and contained both good and evil attributes causing them to appear more realistic and thus enhancing my reading experience. Although this novel boasts no great length (190 pages) and the author continually presented the reader with fast paced events never allowing the story to be pulled into a quagmire of inertia, the characterization was astoundingly complex thus lending an air of reality to an otherwise fanciful adventure. Instead of focusing on inconsequential details of the character's lives and uneventful circumstances inherent in their daily routines, their raw emotions - - - the very souls of the characters - - - were exposed to the reader revealing deep heartfelt emotions and poignant events causing them to become instantly endearing. I was completely immersed in the story and was able to feel deep concern for the plights of the individual characters and to understand their various emotions and actions. The main villain was chilling in his aura of haughty contempt and malignant intent. His actions and emotions were well detailed, although only briefly described, allowing the readers insight into his motivations and his devious machinations concerning the destruction of the human race.
The action in this novel was thoroughly described and the ceaseless adventures of the brave Guardsmen, attempting to save their brethren from another unmerciful onslaught of the gruesome atrocities that shambled across the sun scorched landscape, proved most stimulating. The author refrained from allowing uninteresting respites of trivia and thus, although admittedly short, the story conveyed an immense amount of action and a stunning display of poignant scenes within its mere 190 pages. I was pleased to note that no lull in the story was ever present thus this mesmerizing tribute to the horror genre maintained my full dedication until the last powerful sentence.
Although this novel was not replete with gruesomeness, there were numerous scenes where zombies were attacked and graphically decapitated therefore, I recommend that those who boast little tolerance for gore proceed with caution. Overall, I did not feel that the gruesome sequences detracted from the novel, nor were they over dramatized. Rather, they caused the story to have a distinct feel of urgency easily transmitting the character's fear laden emotions and doom laden premonitions to the entranced reader.
The most outstanding attribute of this consuming story of horror and hope was the highly original ideas that permeated every elegantly written page. The author expertly combined the crucial elements of extreme action, devastating sadness, shocking horror, uplifting persistence, and science fiction to create an outstanding story with extreme scope. As can be ascertained by reading the story synopsis this is not a typical tale of woebegone zombies mercilessly creating unessential mayhem. Rather, the unique plot and unfolding drama proved to be completely original and not only entertained the reader, but also caused serious questions to arise about modern warfare and unethical scientific endeavors thus lending this novel a chilling air of foreboding for the future.
Due to the original aspects of the novel, and the author's skill, further development in the story was never predictable causing me to be continually shocked by unfolding events as well as the numerous unexpected deaths of many of the characters. Be warned, the author does not follow the typical practice of allowing favored characters to escape death's grasp. Rather, he presents this novel in a more true to life fashion where the rain falls on both the just and the unjust.
As can be ascertained through my lengthy attempt to convey the surrealistic atmosphere and thoroughly mesmerizing plot of this novel, I was completely entranced and entertained throughout this poignant dedication to a world gone awry and the desperate struggle of its unfortunate denizens to bring peace and life to a decimated planet. Each aspect of this novel wove together like a brightly colored tapestry of great value to reveal the intricacy of humanity and the never ending struggle to right the numerous transgression of a corrupted world. I highly recommend this novel to those who appreciate grand scope and an all encompassing read fraught with drama and chilling realism.
(A NOTE ON THE BINDING) Unlike most paperback editions, this novel, although paperback is almost the size of a hardcover.
Ravenova
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"Where is my love?
Far under the earth---
Crowned by the worms
The mold gives birth.
"Who is my love?
The scion of Death---
Whose kisses drown me
With sweet, cold breath."
(A quote from Ravenloft's novel "Tower of Doom" page 198 (less)
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