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Rift Runners #1
The Undivided
From one of Voyager's bestselling authors comes an outstanding new epic fantasy trilogy ... taking us through the Rift where the Druids survived the Roman invasion of Britain to become the most powerful magical force on Earth ...
the Undivided are divided. the psychic twins Rónán and Darragh have been separated by a traitor Druid, Amergin,
who has thrown Rónán through a rift into another reality. Now time is running out for Darragh. If Rónán isn't found soon, they will both die.
Meanwhile, Ren Kavanagh has no notion of where he comes from and is plagued by mysterious injuries. then he meets the enticing and mysterious trása ...
Ren's life is about to become more bizarre and dangerous than he could ever have imagined.
PRAISE FOR JENNIFER FALLON
'a multi-hued tapestry of myth, deceit and ambition' Publishers Weekly 'intrigue and conspiracy ... and fast repartee' Book News'characters are dynamic and engaging, her plots are intricate and detailed' Good Reading
the Undivided are divided. the psychic twins Rónán and Darragh have been separated by a traitor Druid, Amergin,
who has thrown Rónán through a rift into another reality. Now time is running out for Darragh. If Rónán isn't found soon, they will both die.
Meanwhile, Ren Kavanagh has no notion of where he comes from and is plagued by mysterious injuries. then he meets the enticing and mysterious trása ...
Ren's life is about to become more bizarre and dangerous than he could ever have imagined.
PRAISE FOR JENNIFER FALLON
'a multi-hued tapestry of myth, deceit and ambition' Publishers Weekly 'intrigue and conspiracy ... and fast repartee' Book News'characters are dynamic and engaging, her plots are intricate and detailed' Good Reading
506 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2011
79 people are currently reading
1492 people want to read
About the author
Jennifer Fallon
64 books1,121 followersFallon is the author of 17 full-length bestselling novels and a number of published short stories in genres ranging from horror to science fiction.
In addition to 4 complete fantasy series - The Demon Child trilogy, The Hythrun Chronicles, the Second Sons Trilogy,The Tide Lords Quadrilogy and the Rift Runners series - Fallon has written both a tie-novel and short fiction for the TV series, Stargate SG1, an official Zorro story, a novella for the Legends of Australian Fantasy Anthology and has a superhero - The Violet Valet (CHICKS IN CAPES).
Fallon has a Masters Degree from the Creative Arts faculty of QUT. A computer trainer and application specialist, Fallon currently works in the IT industry and spends at least a month each year working at Scott Base in Antarctica.
In addition to 4 complete fantasy series - The Demon Child trilogy, The Hythrun Chronicles, the Second Sons Trilogy,The Tide Lords Quadrilogy and the Rift Runners series - Fallon has written both a tie-novel and short fiction for the TV series, Stargate SG1, an official Zorro story, a novella for the Legends of Australian Fantasy Anthology and has a superhero - The Violet Valet (CHICKS IN CAPES).
Fallon has a Masters Degree from the Creative Arts faculty of QUT. A computer trainer and application specialist, Fallon currently works in the IT industry and spends at least a month each year working at Scott Base in Antarctica.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
November 12, 2022
💀 DNF at 51%.
Actual rating: 2.5 stars.
I very recently rated a 2012 UF story four bloody shrimping stars. And now I'm rating a Jennifer-Fallon-Never-Disappoints book two despicably miserable little stars. This can only mean one thing: the end is nigh and stuff.
P.S. At the moment of writing this non-review, this book still hadn't decided if it wanted to be Fantasy or UF, adult or YA. The poor thing sort of went into shock went it discovered its, um, interesting cover, you see, and has had trouble focusing on its slightly inconsistent content since then.
March 12, 2011
The Undivided is the first book in a new series called "Riftrunners" by one of my favorite authors, Jennifer Fallon. And, true to form, this book does not dissappoint. Far from it, in fact! This book follows the lives of a pair of psychically connected twins, born in an alternate reality where the Romans were beaten back from their conquering rampage of Britain, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. How they were beaten back forms the foundations of this alternate reality.
The Sidhe (and for once, there is no division of the Seelie vs. the Unseelie that so many authors deem necessary), the elven race whose very being is merged with the force of magic that saturated the world when natural resources dominated man-made ones, foresaw that with the advent of Roman civilization, magic would be cut off from their world, and they would die a slow death. To prevent this catastrophe, in this alternate reality, they come up with a simple solution. The Druids, who are the ruling faction of the Isles during the Roman incursion, are given conditional access to the magic of Tir nA nOg - the condition being that the magic can only be shared through the medium of psychically paired twins.
Believing the high improbability of finding such twins to succeed each time, the Sidhe believed that the sharing of magic would soon come to an end. The Druids however, through methods only known to them, have somehow ensured that 6 succeeding pairs have been found. This is where our twins enter the storyline. Durragh and Ronan are the latest in the Undivided to grace the halls of the Druids. Something about this pair causes great unrest among the Djinni and one Sidhe in particular, Marcroy Tarth, who is the Sidhe ambassador in the Druidic court. Believing that a future which holds this Undivided undivided will cause some great rupture (which we are not privy to), they decide on a course which, with the help of a Druid traitor, separates the twins when they are 3 years old. Ronan is sent to a reality much closer to ours where technology, and not magic, rules; where the Romans invaded successfully; where the precious natural resources whose breath fuels the magic of Tir nA nOg are close to annihilation; and where any full Sidhe would die on entering. In this world, with a great deal of confusion, Ronan, as Ren, grows up. Confusion fills his life, as his link to Durragh is not severed even with this strain on it. Cuts and bruises, poisoning, and assasination attempts faced by Durragh are mirrored on Ren's body, leading his foster mother to believe that he cuts himself in a measure to seek attention.
Fallon does a brilliant job of bringing an entirely new world to life in vibrant technicolor. The characters step out of the page and quietly nestle themselves into a corner of our brains where their story whispers in 3D across our eyes. The story of how the two factions are locked in a struggle, one to keep Ronan away from the Druidic reality, and the other to bring him back, revolve around a half-Sidhe character named Trasa whose mix of naivete and unformed morality leave you not knowing whether to cry for her or yell at her. The best friend, played by a Hayley, in Ronan's world, is another character whose very realism leaves a warm-bodied feeling around you making you turn to see if she might actually be in the vicinity. There are no 2 dimensional, evil/good characters in this book. There is a very quirky philosophical current that one so minded can follow throughout the book, that displays a highly pragmatic quality where good and evil are bed-mates and if yin exists, thus does yang, else will either?
If you like fantasy, if you are an avid Tolkien reader, if you just want a book that will take you places you never thought to go before, step into Fallon's web and immerse yourself.
The Sidhe (and for once, there is no division of the Seelie vs. the Unseelie that so many authors deem necessary), the elven race whose very being is merged with the force of magic that saturated the world when natural resources dominated man-made ones, foresaw that with the advent of Roman civilization, magic would be cut off from their world, and they would die a slow death. To prevent this catastrophe, in this alternate reality, they come up with a simple solution. The Druids, who are the ruling faction of the Isles during the Roman incursion, are given conditional access to the magic of Tir nA nOg - the condition being that the magic can only be shared through the medium of psychically paired twins.
Believing the high improbability of finding such twins to succeed each time, the Sidhe believed that the sharing of magic would soon come to an end. The Druids however, through methods only known to them, have somehow ensured that 6 succeeding pairs have been found. This is where our twins enter the storyline. Durragh and Ronan are the latest in the Undivided to grace the halls of the Druids. Something about this pair causes great unrest among the Djinni and one Sidhe in particular, Marcroy Tarth, who is the Sidhe ambassador in the Druidic court. Believing that a future which holds this Undivided undivided will cause some great rupture (which we are not privy to), they decide on a course which, with the help of a Druid traitor, separates the twins when they are 3 years old. Ronan is sent to a reality much closer to ours where technology, and not magic, rules; where the Romans invaded successfully; where the precious natural resources whose breath fuels the magic of Tir nA nOg are close to annihilation; and where any full Sidhe would die on entering. In this world, with a great deal of confusion, Ronan, as Ren, grows up. Confusion fills his life, as his link to Durragh is not severed even with this strain on it. Cuts and bruises, poisoning, and assasination attempts faced by Durragh are mirrored on Ren's body, leading his foster mother to believe that he cuts himself in a measure to seek attention.
Fallon does a brilliant job of bringing an entirely new world to life in vibrant technicolor. The characters step out of the page and quietly nestle themselves into a corner of our brains where their story whispers in 3D across our eyes. The story of how the two factions are locked in a struggle, one to keep Ronan away from the Druidic reality, and the other to bring him back, revolve around a half-Sidhe character named Trasa whose mix of naivete and unformed morality leave you not knowing whether to cry for her or yell at her. The best friend, played by a Hayley, in Ronan's world, is another character whose very realism leaves a warm-bodied feeling around you making you turn to see if she might actually be in the vicinity. There are no 2 dimensional, evil/good characters in this book. There is a very quirky philosophical current that one so minded can follow throughout the book, that displays a highly pragmatic quality where good and evil are bed-mates and if yin exists, thus does yang, else will either?
If you like fantasy, if you are an avid Tolkien reader, if you just want a book that will take you places you never thought to go before, step into Fallon's web and immerse yourself.
September 18, 2011
I hate it when fantasy authors merge the real, modern world with fantasy worlds in their book. It stops you from being able to get into their book because you can't quiet that "that's so unreal!" sense. The plot and characterisation in this book were simply awful and it seemed like Jennifer (whose work I ordinarily LOVE) just wanted to tie all this Gaelic mythology and Gaelic names into a book and forgot that about the plot.
Mind you, the Ancient Future by Traci Harding managed to merge the real world with an ancient British world with more success, but in general I think it's near impossible to pull off!
Mind you, the Ancient Future by Traci Harding managed to merge the real world with an ancient British world with more success, but in general I think it's near impossible to pull off!
June 11, 2018
My first thought upon finishing this was "Wait what? Is that it?" The story just stopped. I would even go so far as to say it's the dreaded....CLIFFHANGER. Consider this your warning, which I wish I'd had before starting this.
That said, I did find this a very enjoyable read. Although the "portal to another universe" is horribly cliched, this one did quite well with that, with the differences between the worlds being due to different historical choices - the effects were well explained and logical. It also hit that sweet spot where the plot was just complicated enough to keep me thinking and on my toes, but not so complicated that I was struggling or *coughs* Ian Banks *cough* just gave up trying to follow.
I found the main characters RonanDarragh (their names are supposed to be written like that, by the way) quite interesting and likeable, but ultimately a bit forgettable - too much like every other male MC ever written.
The big thing that kept me from rating this more highly - other than the cliffhanger ending which always knocks at least a star off for me - was that the writing style was a bit simplistic for the intended audience. I would recommend it for high-school students whose reading level is decent but not stellar. But for someone like me who wants to savour exquisite wordcraft, it fell flat. Definitely not the writing style I expected from Fallon, who came highly recommended.
Not sure at this stage whether I'll bother with the next one.
That said, I did find this a very enjoyable read. Although the "portal to another universe" is horribly cliched, this one did quite well with that, with the differences between the worlds being due to different historical choices - the effects were well explained and logical. It also hit that sweet spot where the plot was just complicated enough to keep me thinking and on my toes, but not so complicated that I was struggling or *coughs* Ian Banks *cough* just gave up trying to follow.
I found the main characters RonanDarragh (their names are supposed to be written like that, by the way) quite interesting and likeable, but ultimately a bit forgettable - too much like every other male MC ever written.
The big thing that kept me from rating this more highly - other than the cliffhanger ending which always knocks at least a star off for me - was that the writing style was a bit simplistic for the intended audience. I would recommend it for high-school students whose reading level is decent but not stellar. But for someone like me who wants to savour exquisite wordcraft, it fell flat. Definitely not the writing style I expected from Fallon, who came highly recommended.
Not sure at this stage whether I'll bother with the next one.
March 23, 2015
If I can sum this up in one word? Disappointing.
The book is semi-rooted in the myth of the Tuatha De Danaan and the druids. Semi- in that it doesn't actually give the full myth but works on the idea that the Romans had never conquered the world so everybody is still kicking it in Ireland and the Tuatha have given the druids access to magic via a treaty involving psychically linked twin boys, one of whom is missing. Unfortunately, it's just not that interesting.
In large, this is because it's at times tragically YA. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy YA... when it's done well. That means, not feeling like the language is in any way dumbed down and not getting overwhelmed by teen DRAH-MAH. Both happen here. There're no lengthy descriptions and nothing particularly unexpected or challenging, which actually works in the author's favour. Despite sitting at just over 500 pages, it never felt stodgy. It is the definition of an easy read, the kind where you can gloss over paragraphs and not miss anything (this is never good). Unfortunately it meant that when I did get bored just over the halfway point, it was because I was actually bored.
There's also this unfortunate curse on YA where either your characters are so intolerably self-involved that you roll your eyes at everything they say...
...or they speak so eloquently and beyond their years that you roll your eyes at everything they say (TFIOS, anybody?). Fallon somehow manages both at different points in the book.
The thing is, I wouldn't necessarily recommend this to anybody under 17-18. So who's the audience meant to be? Beats me. Then again I wouldn't recommend this to anybody - there are better YA novels and much better fantasy novels. #spoiledbysanderson
It's a rare occurrence to find a crossover between "our" 21st Century and any sort of magical or historical realm that doesn't look like this...
...only reversed. It's just a very difficult thing to pull off and Fallon doesn't achieve it either.
It doesn't help that I got the impression the author doesn't really know what the youth of today are all about. Despite being published in 2011, Hayley - who is 17 - owns and uses a walkman. For the curious, the iPod was launched in 2001 and sales peaked in 2008. Another character, who is in the entertainment industry, asks if she's listening to Lady Marmalade (the popular Moulin Rouge cover she's presumably referring to, also came out in 2001). It's the little things that drag you out of the world and make you audibly groan.
I could take or leave the little bits of Gaelic. I was fortunately already familiar enough that I wasn't stopping over every word, it just feels a little pointless for words that have an English equivalent if entire blocks of dialogue are being translated anyway.
There was one glaringinconsistency complete and total error that rubbed me the wrong way: Lughnasadh. It's not, as Fallon repeats multiple times, the Autumnal Equinox. It actually occurs six weeks prior to the Autumnal Equinox (Mabon) and signals the start of the harvest. For those of you familiar with the Wheel of the Year, Fallon actually rotates the entire thing 45° so that all the Sabbats now have the names of the Equinoxes. Why? Your guess is as good as mine. Assuming she did her research (and this is pretty basic, unobscure, well documented, still observed stuff), all I can think is that she liked the names better.
It's not bad, it just lacks a lot of depth and variety. The writing is easy enough and there's enough of a cliffhanger that I may continue with the trilogy (even though I'm pretty sure I'm not going to be particularly shocked or intrigued along the way), I'm just not about to push anybody else to do the same.
The book is semi-rooted in the myth of the Tuatha De Danaan and the druids. Semi- in that it doesn't actually give the full myth but works on the idea that the Romans had never conquered the world so everybody is still kicking it in Ireland and the Tuatha have given the druids access to magic via a treaty involving psychically linked twin boys, one of whom is missing. Unfortunately, it's just not that interesting.
In large, this is because it's at times tragically YA. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy YA... when it's done well. That means, not feeling like the language is in any way dumbed down and not getting overwhelmed by teen DRAH-MAH. Both happen here. There're no lengthy descriptions and nothing particularly unexpected or challenging, which actually works in the author's favour. Despite sitting at just over 500 pages, it never felt stodgy. It is the definition of an easy read, the kind where you can gloss over paragraphs and not miss anything (this is never good). Unfortunately it meant that when I did get bored just over the halfway point, it was because I was actually bored.
There's also this unfortunate curse on YA where either your characters are so intolerably self-involved that you roll your eyes at everything they say...
...or they speak so eloquently and beyond their years that you roll your eyes at everything they say (TFIOS, anybody?). Fallon somehow manages both at different points in the book.
The thing is, I wouldn't necessarily recommend this to anybody under 17-18. So who's the audience meant to be? Beats me. Then again I wouldn't recommend this to anybody - there are better YA novels and much better fantasy novels. #spoiledbysanderson
It's a rare occurrence to find a crossover between "our" 21st Century and any sort of magical or historical realm that doesn't look like this...
...only reversed. It's just a very difficult thing to pull off and Fallon doesn't achieve it either.
It doesn't help that I got the impression the author doesn't really know what the youth of today are all about. Despite being published in 2011, Hayley - who is 17 - owns and uses a walkman. For the curious, the iPod was launched in 2001 and sales peaked in 2008. Another character, who is in the entertainment industry, asks if she's listening to Lady Marmalade (the popular Moulin Rouge cover she's presumably referring to, also came out in 2001). It's the little things that drag you out of the world and make you audibly groan.
I could take or leave the little bits of Gaelic. I was fortunately already familiar enough that I wasn't stopping over every word, it just feels a little pointless for words that have an English equivalent if entire blocks of dialogue are being translated anyway.
There was one glaring
It's not bad, it just lacks a lot of depth and variety. The writing is easy enough and there's enough of a cliffhanger that I may continue with the trilogy (even though I'm pretty sure I'm not going to be particularly shocked or intrigued along the way), I'm just not about to push anybody else to do the same.
March 17, 2014
For more reviews, visit my blog Obsessive Compulsive Reader
Actual rating: 4.5/5
In recent weeks, it feels like I have not stopped talking about Jennifer Fallon. Of course, she is one of my favourite authors and when I stumbled across this trilogy in the library, I was super excited and grabbed them at once. They are quite thick volumes, each numbering over 500 pages, but once I started, I simply had to keep going. I finished all three books in succession over the span of roughly 48 hours.
Jennifer Fallon is known for her high fantasy sagas encompassing multiple characters, each with their own story line which weaves and intersects with one another, culminating in a climax with a hint of something more to come. There is a lot of politics thrown into the mix too, ensuring there is battle of wits as well as of the brawn. Her Hythrun chronicles, both the Demon Child trilogy and the Wolfblade trilogy, are some of my favourite high fantasy sagas to reread.
With the Rift Runners trilogy, Jennifer Fallon is taking a bold step away from high fantasy and has produced a work that is probably more suitably classified as urban fantasy. Or a mix, I'm not quite sure. Ronan and Darragh, the psychic twins currently designated as the Undivided, have been separated into different realities - with one stuck as a young man in a world of six billion people. From that number alone, it doesn't take a genius to work out that Fallon is writing about our reality. Darragh, on the other hand, is in a world filled with druid magic and an uneasy treaty between the magical folks and humans. Everyone has their own agenda and beneath the courteous smiles on the surface, schemes are brewing - for the Autumn Equinox is not that far away.
I really enjoyed this series. Although I'm a huge fan of high fantasy, I found myself enjoying the chapters set in our world a bit more. The characters, across all realities, are engaging and easy to relate to - even those that you dislike. It is interesting to see the struggle between the two camps, one keen on keeping Ronan locked away in a world without magic and another desperate to find him in time and bring him home. Both sides have their reasons for their goal. It is not a straight case of black versus white.
The Rift Runners series is probably targeted more towards a YA crowd. The style of writing is not as dense as her high fantasy sagas, which makes it easy for the reader to fly across the pages. The characters themselves, too, are a bit younger than some of Fallon's previous works, with most of the main characters teenagers or just above the legal age. The themes and plot lines, as well, are not as complicated and intricately set-up as the Tide Lord quartet or the Demon Child trilogy, but for a younger audience seeking to try out Jennifer Fallon, this is probably a great series to start with.
The ending, in typical Jennifer Fallon style, ties up things yet leaves the reader with questions about what happens next. Since Fallon's next project is apparently to revisit the Hythrun chronicles, I'm not sure if there will be a sequel in the future.
The Rift Runners series is probably going to be one of my favourite reads this year. It is entertaining, engaging and once I started, it was difficult for me to put the books down. While this series is probably more geared towards the YA market and more urban fantasy than high fantasy, it's still a really well-written trilogy with lots of actions and intricate story-lines. For YA-readers who don't mind the multiple characters and interwoven storylines that are key feature of Fallon's works, I'd highly recommend you to at least give this series a go.
Actual rating: 4.5/5
In recent weeks, it feels like I have not stopped talking about Jennifer Fallon. Of course, she is one of my favourite authors and when I stumbled across this trilogy in the library, I was super excited and grabbed them at once. They are quite thick volumes, each numbering over 500 pages, but once I started, I simply had to keep going. I finished all three books in succession over the span of roughly 48 hours.
Jennifer Fallon is known for her high fantasy sagas encompassing multiple characters, each with their own story line which weaves and intersects with one another, culminating in a climax with a hint of something more to come. There is a lot of politics thrown into the mix too, ensuring there is battle of wits as well as of the brawn. Her Hythrun chronicles, both the Demon Child trilogy and the Wolfblade trilogy, are some of my favourite high fantasy sagas to reread.
With the Rift Runners trilogy, Jennifer Fallon is taking a bold step away from high fantasy and has produced a work that is probably more suitably classified as urban fantasy. Or a mix, I'm not quite sure. Ronan and Darragh, the psychic twins currently designated as the Undivided, have been separated into different realities - with one stuck as a young man in a world of six billion people. From that number alone, it doesn't take a genius to work out that Fallon is writing about our reality. Darragh, on the other hand, is in a world filled with druid magic and an uneasy treaty between the magical folks and humans. Everyone has their own agenda and beneath the courteous smiles on the surface, schemes are brewing - for the Autumn Equinox is not that far away.
I really enjoyed this series. Although I'm a huge fan of high fantasy, I found myself enjoying the chapters set in our world a bit more. The characters, across all realities, are engaging and easy to relate to - even those that you dislike. It is interesting to see the struggle between the two camps, one keen on keeping Ronan locked away in a world without magic and another desperate to find him in time and bring him home. Both sides have their reasons for their goal. It is not a straight case of black versus white.
The Rift Runners series is probably targeted more towards a YA crowd. The style of writing is not as dense as her high fantasy sagas, which makes it easy for the reader to fly across the pages. The characters themselves, too, are a bit younger than some of Fallon's previous works, with most of the main characters teenagers or just above the legal age. The themes and plot lines, as well, are not as complicated and intricately set-up as the Tide Lord quartet or the Demon Child trilogy, but for a younger audience seeking to try out Jennifer Fallon, this is probably a great series to start with.
The ending, in typical Jennifer Fallon style, ties up things yet leaves the reader with questions about what happens next. Since Fallon's next project is apparently to revisit the Hythrun chronicles, I'm not sure if there will be a sequel in the future.
The Rift Runners series is probably going to be one of my favourite reads this year. It is entertaining, engaging and once I started, it was difficult for me to put the books down. While this series is probably more geared towards the YA market and more urban fantasy than high fantasy, it's still a really well-written trilogy with lots of actions and intricate story-lines. For YA-readers who don't mind the multiple characters and interwoven storylines that are key feature of Fallon's works, I'd highly recommend you to at least give this series a go.
October 25, 2013
I'm here to announce that I was the lucky duck this month. I know, you're all jealous. Jennifer Fallon (or JJ Fallon) was a favorite author of mine as a teen. Due to her publishing in Australia and me reading in the US and all the crazy production schedules I lost track of her. So when I found out that there was review copies of The Undivided to be had I camped out in the e-queue and held out. I got one. Huzzah! So obviously this is a copy provided by the publisher for an honest review. Definitely honest and hopefully still readable.
Onto the book. As you may have guessed this fantasy world is fraught with dissension. At the middle of it stands Darragh and Ronan, a pair of psychically linked twins living in different realities. One reality is a take on a druid based Ireland/England. The other is a reflection of our own. One of the things that makes the fantasy reality awesome is a unique take on the fey. They're mostly antagonist due to their opposing motives to the Druids and Darragh but that doesn’t make them cartoonish, only dangerous. In both realities there are threats to the boys. In the fantasy world their way of life is threatened on all sides as everyone tries to use an uneasy peace as a means to domination of their kingdom/species. In the “real” reality Ronan has no knowledge of his true birth and no way to protect himself from people wanting to use him. I was really invested in the fantasy world due to Fallon's awesome world building. I was a little less attached to the real world reality but I liked the portrayal of fame shown through Ronan's adopted mother Kyra the movie star.
Here's what I really loved. The characters were fabulous. Within pages of walking on they were vivid and real in my mind. Despite her limited screen time Brydie is my favorite. She's female in a culture that highly values her uterus. Not that that’s stopping her. My favorite moment of hers is when another character asks whose side she's on. "I'm on my side." Gotta love it. Like her the other minor characters aren’t cardboard cutouts there to say yes and no the plot. Sometimes I wanted to smack them and tell them to do what the main character tells them to, proving that Fallon wrote them awesomely. Feminist moment: I liked that all the female characters were just as interesting, if not more so (bias speaking!), then their male counterparts. Even when they were unlikeable they were always themselves.
The plot was both my love and my hate. I loved how all the twists and turns left me unsure of the ending. I hated how I never really felt the stakes of the story. While I had a fuzzy idea of what failure meant I was never sure what the twins success would look like. There was so much time spent flipping in between realities I never understood the fantasy reality as well as I wanted to. Considering that all of the plot movement was coming from the fantasy world that might be where I felt the lack. My other frustration is the frequency that different characters were written about. The characters that I fell for in the very beginning of the book were mostly sidelined for large chunks of the story. Characters from the “real” reality were written about the most and I just found that plot line less interesting and was itching to get back to the fantasy one. I'm a huge urban fantasy fan so I don't think that feeling comes from a preference for the fantastical. As Ronan was in the dark so was I the reader. When I knew there were answers elsewhere it was really tempting to skip ahead.
Thanks again to Jennifer Fallon and her publisher for giving me the opportunity to read The Undivided.
Onto the book. As you may have guessed this fantasy world is fraught with dissension. At the middle of it stands Darragh and Ronan, a pair of psychically linked twins living in different realities. One reality is a take on a druid based Ireland/England. The other is a reflection of our own. One of the things that makes the fantasy reality awesome is a unique take on the fey. They're mostly antagonist due to their opposing motives to the Druids and Darragh but that doesn’t make them cartoonish, only dangerous. In both realities there are threats to the boys. In the fantasy world their way of life is threatened on all sides as everyone tries to use an uneasy peace as a means to domination of their kingdom/species. In the “real” reality Ronan has no knowledge of his true birth and no way to protect himself from people wanting to use him. I was really invested in the fantasy world due to Fallon's awesome world building. I was a little less attached to the real world reality but I liked the portrayal of fame shown through Ronan's adopted mother Kyra the movie star.
Here's what I really loved. The characters were fabulous. Within pages of walking on they were vivid and real in my mind. Despite her limited screen time Brydie is my favorite. She's female in a culture that highly values her uterus. Not that that’s stopping her. My favorite moment of hers is when another character asks whose side she's on. "I'm on my side." Gotta love it. Like her the other minor characters aren’t cardboard cutouts there to say yes and no the plot. Sometimes I wanted to smack them and tell them to do what the main character tells them to, proving that Fallon wrote them awesomely. Feminist moment: I liked that all the female characters were just as interesting, if not more so (bias speaking!), then their male counterparts. Even when they were unlikeable they were always themselves.
The plot was both my love and my hate. I loved how all the twists and turns left me unsure of the ending. I hated how I never really felt the stakes of the story. While I had a fuzzy idea of what failure meant I was never sure what the twins success would look like. There was so much time spent flipping in between realities I never understood the fantasy reality as well as I wanted to. Considering that all of the plot movement was coming from the fantasy world that might be where I felt the lack. My other frustration is the frequency that different characters were written about. The characters that I fell for in the very beginning of the book were mostly sidelined for large chunks of the story. Characters from the “real” reality were written about the most and I just found that plot line less interesting and was itching to get back to the fantasy one. I'm a huge urban fantasy fan so I don't think that feeling comes from a preference for the fantastical. As Ronan was in the dark so was I the reader. When I knew there were answers elsewhere it was really tempting to skip ahead.
Thanks again to Jennifer Fallon and her publisher for giving me the opportunity to read The Undivided.
December 26, 2012
3.5
I enjoyed this a bit too much, partly because of the sci-fi/fantasy, and also because it was set in a sort-of quasi-Ancient-Ireland (or rather, Ireland sans the Roman Invasion). It was entertaining, but kind of artificial, when her characters spoke Gaelic, but she'd (obviously) have to write it in English for her readers, but then she'd add a Gaelic word or two into the sentence, even when there were English equivalents - but hey, it meant I learnt a few new words.
It wasn't very in-depth, or complex, but the fact that the characters were more grey than good OR evil redeems it.
And I don't know what this book is trying to do, in that, considering the writing style and storyline, it is clearly ajuvie Young Adult book, but one of the twins (albeit he's 18) drops quite a few F-Bombs in the book, which amused me, but I wonder if she is thus limiting her readership to a slightly-older audience. Except the writing seems to make it clearly intended for young adults...
[Edit:] but then again, I have noticed quite a few juvie books as of late where there are quite a few f-bombs dropped...hrmm...a change in the times? Maybe it will be the c-word next. I guess George R. R. Martin beat them all to it.
But maaaaan the twins *droools*. I'd put them on lay-by. But they're legal anyway. THAT ACCENT.
I enjoyed this a bit too much, partly because of the sci-fi/fantasy, and also because it was set in a sort-of quasi-Ancient-Ireland (or rather, Ireland sans the Roman Invasion). It was entertaining, but kind of artificial, when her characters spoke Gaelic, but she'd (obviously) have to write it in English for her readers, but then she'd add a Gaelic word or two into the sentence, even when there were English equivalents - but hey, it meant I learnt a few new words.
It wasn't very in-depth, or complex, but the fact that the characters were more grey than good OR evil redeems it.
And I don't know what this book is trying to do, in that, considering the writing style and storyline, it is clearly a
[Edit:] but then again, I have noticed quite a few juvie books as of late where there are quite a few f-bombs dropped...hrmm...a change in the times? Maybe it will be the c-word next. I guess George R. R. Martin beat them all to it.
But maaaaan the twins *droools*. I'd put them on lay-by. But they're legal anyway. THAT ACCENT.
August 27, 2011
I am only giving this book 3 stars because I finished it. I tried really hard to like it because I LOVED Jennifer's Tide Lords series. Unfortunately nothing in this book grabbed me at all. I kept on hoping for something interesting, and to like the characters but I never did. I feel like this series is aimed at twilight fans/teenagers. Maybe I have read too many stories about the fae, but I will definitely not be reading the next book in this series. Disappointing!
July 25, 2014
Gosh dang I'm loving reading this book. I love when I read it but when I put it down I've got the story in my head and the urge to go back and keep reading. I'm usually a really slow reader and I'm already a 1/3 of the way through in the last 2 days.
September 23, 2013
That was a disturbing turn of events. I'm glad the series is finished, and I can proceed to book 2.
July 11, 2018
It's possibly a 3.5 because I did really enjoy this one, although it was a bit meandering at times.
May 27, 2019
Das Buch / die Reihe wollte ich schon eine ganze Weile lesen und nun war es endlich so weit.
Generell wusste ich nicht viel, was mich erwarten würde, aber das macht nichts.
Generell geht es um Zwillinge die in jungen Jahren getrennt wurden und einer von beiden in eine andere Realität (der "normalen" Erde) geschickt wurde, während sein Bruder in einem magischen Abbild der Welt lebt und dort als Druide aufgewachsen ist. Generell ist diese Parallelwelt durchzogen von Magie, und es wird viel mit gälischen Begrifflichkeiten gearbeitet.
Um das Schicksal zu erfüllen, versucht Darragh seinen verschollenen Bruder Rónan (auf der Erde Ren genannt) zu finden um ihre Macht wieder herzustellen.
Nur Ren lebt auf der Erde auf der es keinerlei Magie gibt.
Normalerweise schreibt Jennifer Fallon, die Autorin, ja hauptsächlich Fantasy, hier ist es nun eine Mischung aus High Fantasy und Urban Fantasy angesiedelt im Reich der Druiden und keltischen Bräuche/Sagen von Irland bzw. Schottland. Definitiv eine interessante Mischung.
Wie in früheren Reihen wechseln sich die Charaktere aus deren Perpektive erzählt wird mit jedem Kapitel ab, so dass es nie langweilig wird. Schnell sind Lieblingscharaktere gefunden bzw. Antipathien vergeben für suspekte Gestalten.
Etwas schwer war der Einstieg in die Geschichte dennoch, da viele gälische Begrifflichkeiten verwendet werden bzw. die Charaktere vom Namen her auch einen gälischen Ursprung haben, was es nicht einfacher macht. Am Ende des Buches gibt es zwar eine Art Personenregister und Erklärungen für einige Worte, aber im eBook ist es etwas umständlich ständig vor und zurück zu springen. Da würde sich eine gedruckte Ausgabe besser machen.
Generell hat mir das Buch dennoch gut gefallen, vorallem nun da der erste Band mit einem großen Cliffhanger endet, der mich teilweise sprachlos zurück gelassen hat, da die Unzertrennlichen (die Undivided) wiedermal getrennt wurden und nun wieder einen Weg finden müssen zusammen zukommen.
Es bleibt definitv spannend.
Generell wusste ich nicht viel, was mich erwarten würde, aber das macht nichts.
Generell geht es um Zwillinge die in jungen Jahren getrennt wurden und einer von beiden in eine andere Realität (der "normalen" Erde) geschickt wurde, während sein Bruder in einem magischen Abbild der Welt lebt und dort als Druide aufgewachsen ist. Generell ist diese Parallelwelt durchzogen von Magie, und es wird viel mit gälischen Begrifflichkeiten gearbeitet.
Um das Schicksal zu erfüllen, versucht Darragh seinen verschollenen Bruder Rónan (auf der Erde Ren genannt) zu finden um ihre Macht wieder herzustellen.
Nur Ren lebt auf der Erde auf der es keinerlei Magie gibt.
Normalerweise schreibt Jennifer Fallon, die Autorin, ja hauptsächlich Fantasy, hier ist es nun eine Mischung aus High Fantasy und Urban Fantasy angesiedelt im Reich der Druiden und keltischen Bräuche/Sagen von Irland bzw. Schottland. Definitiv eine interessante Mischung.
Wie in früheren Reihen wechseln sich die Charaktere aus deren Perpektive erzählt wird mit jedem Kapitel ab, so dass es nie langweilig wird. Schnell sind Lieblingscharaktere gefunden bzw. Antipathien vergeben für suspekte Gestalten.
Etwas schwer war der Einstieg in die Geschichte dennoch, da viele gälische Begrifflichkeiten verwendet werden bzw. die Charaktere vom Namen her auch einen gälischen Ursprung haben, was es nicht einfacher macht. Am Ende des Buches gibt es zwar eine Art Personenregister und Erklärungen für einige Worte, aber im eBook ist es etwas umständlich ständig vor und zurück zu springen. Da würde sich eine gedruckte Ausgabe besser machen.
Generell hat mir das Buch dennoch gut gefallen, vorallem nun da der erste Band mit einem großen Cliffhanger endet, der mich teilweise sprachlos zurück gelassen hat, da die Unzertrennlichen (die Undivided) wiedermal getrennt wurden und nun wieder einen Weg finden müssen zusammen zukommen.
Es bleibt definitv spannend.
January 8, 2025
It always feels like there's an agenda to Jennifer Fallon's novels, neither social nor political, but one staking out a niche that fantasy authors have not explored. In the Tide Lords, it was writing immortals that are actually immortal: in Second Sons, which I'm planning to read soon, Fallon discusses writing an epic fantasy novel that doesn't have magic at all. In the Rift Runners trilogy, it's one where she asks what a portal fantasy set equally on Earth and a fantasy world would look like.
We have some contemporary examples, like The Magicians, although that one doesn't seem quite as balanced. Unlike The Magicians, this series is fun. The characters and plot lines are about as goofy and silly as you can imagine without reaching comic or urban fantasy territory. The book is straightforwardly and almost rudimentarily written, and it is full of Marvel-esque banter that's actually done quite well.
This book took me a long time to get through, because the premise and characters in the parallel worlds are complicated, and the sort of gestalt of the book doesn't really make itself clear until about 60% through. I took about a six-month break around that mark but was very much rewarded by the end.
This is by far Fallon's least popular series and I can see why. It's in a weird place between YA and adult where the premise of fantasy characters coming to our world and vice versa sort of makes it far too silly compared to most adult fiction. But it's not really YA, to be honest, mostly for thematic reasons. If you like Tide Lords, you'll probably like this, but be warned it's even more over the top. I'm looking forward to reading the next two soon.
We have some contemporary examples, like The Magicians, although that one doesn't seem quite as balanced. Unlike The Magicians, this series is fun. The characters and plot lines are about as goofy and silly as you can imagine without reaching comic or urban fantasy territory. The book is straightforwardly and almost rudimentarily written, and it is full of Marvel-esque banter that's actually done quite well.
This book took me a long time to get through, because the premise and characters in the parallel worlds are complicated, and the sort of gestalt of the book doesn't really make itself clear until about 60% through. I took about a six-month break around that mark but was very much rewarded by the end.
This is by far Fallon's least popular series and I can see why. It's in a weird place between YA and adult where the premise of fantasy characters coming to our world and vice versa sort of makes it far too silly compared to most adult fiction. But it's not really YA, to be honest, mostly for thematic reasons. If you like Tide Lords, you'll probably like this, but be warned it's even more over the top. I'm looking forward to reading the next two soon.
April 16, 2025
Magic. When used to explain mystery, seems to describe our stage magicians and their slight of hand. Removing this concept, when starting this book has been hard.
As a young rabble raiser, fairy's had magic and used magic. It felt too simple, magic needs defining, it needs more. Maybe it is a element of the land that can be used.
OK OK, so I am still getting used to magic in the book.
Like the characters and the concept of humans not being able to use magic, unless there is ......
First book down, magic kinda accepted. Getting to know the twins and their different life styles.
Realms, a co-existing universe, maybe
As a young rabble raiser, fairy's had magic and used magic. It felt too simple, magic needs defining, it needs more. Maybe it is a element of the land that can be used.
OK OK, so I am still getting used to magic in the book.
Like the characters and the concept of humans not being able to use magic, unless there is ......
First book down, magic kinda accepted. Getting to know the twins and their different life styles.
Realms, a co-existing universe, maybe
December 2, 2017
A gentleman in the local library recommended this book and I’m glad he did. I read across most genres but a fantasy has to be very good to hold my attention. Unidivided is the first instalment of the riftrunners series. It took about 40 pages to really get my attention and then I found it hard to put down. A great read, now onto number two The Dark Divide 😉
February 8, 2025
I just couldn't get into this book. I really tried. I've loved Jennifer Fallon's other works. I just didn't care at all about the characters - most of them seemed like jerks. I was confused about who I was supposed to 'root for' in the story. A spoiled and rebellious teenager or a boring Lordling? The fae, who seemed to be a bit too disinterested to matter. What a shame.
September 20, 2021
The story starts in a typical fantasy world of druids, faeries and queens, but then we are also introduced to other realms, one of which is our modern world. It was fun having characters from one realm go to another. It is light hearted with a fun plot and characters.
July 10, 2017
Enjoyed the story but hate when authors leave you hanging. I refuse to be blackmailed into purchasing book 2 only to find it doesn't end either.
July 16, 2017
Not bad for a fantasy novel. However, be prepared for many typos and formatting errors. Interesting plot and ending concerning magic and alternate realities, enough to get me to start the sequel.
August 2, 2018
Good, book, enjoyed the characters and story throughout. Very
Good story 4/5
Good story 4/5
October 3, 2019
Great read. Explores the possibilities of how minor changes can have major impacts. Nuture vs nature. With in depth world building and believable characters
September 13, 2020
This reads like a young adult book - some of the link to Druids and Celts drew me in but the plot, which could have been great, was wish-washy and weak. I won't read the other books in this series.
March 8, 2017
This got better the further I got into it.
August 30, 2012
Jennifer Fallon's newest series follows psychically connected twins Darragh and Rónán who were separated as children and live in different realities: Darragh in an alternate reality where the Boadicea signed a magical treaty with the Sidhe and defeated the Romans, and Rónán (Ren) in our world where the Romans won. Fallon is able to examine a host of interesting issues by placing her two protagonists in such different worlds and weaves many complex story lines into a seamless whole.
In Darragh's world the Druids are able to wield the magic of the Sidhe through generations of psychic twins, but dissenting forces separated the twins at the age of three, in hopes of breaking or endangering the treaty. Brought up amongst the Druids and thrust into a leadership role at an early age, Darragh generally exhibits more maturity and presence of mind than his twin, who is a typical angst ridden teenager in our world. Neither has led a particularly easy life, and although they share mannerisms and view-points, the twins have vastly different personalities and I like them both for different reasons.
The characters in the book are nuanced and enjoyable to read – there are no absolute binarities in the story and every character is motivated by what they think is the right cause. Even Marcroy, who initially separated the twins, believes he saved the world by doing so. I liked Trása, who was sent by Marcroy to prevent Rónán from finding his way back to the world be was born in, even though she is more than a little naive and exasperated me a lot, because she has noble intentions and wants to help those around her. In contrast, Hayley, Rónán’s best friend, is really annoying, seeing all females as threats and acting irrationally jealous anytime there’s a girl around him.
The alternate reality offered by Fallon is mystical and well-imagined, portrayed through lush descriptions and attention to detail. It did remind me a little of Traci Harding’s world in The Ancient Future, but only because both books explore the branching off of English history around the time of Roman invasion. I love the inclusion of the Sidhe, and the treachery, magic and intrigue that accompanies them, especially the adorable but slightly creepy Leipreachán, Plunkett. The magic is neither overt nor distracting in the book and arises naturally as a vital component of the world. Fallon has integrated this magic seamlessly into her story, as is her trademark, and I will always admire the skill with which she achieves this.
Jennifer Fallon has given us another spell-binding story, and as usual I am left in awe of her writing. I highly recommend The Undivided to all fans of Fantasy, especially Australian Fantasy, and also to those looking for a story with a difference. As for me, I am greatly looking forward to reading the sequel, The Dark Divide, which was released earlier this year.
You can read more of my reviews at Speculating on SpecFic .
In Darragh's world the Druids are able to wield the magic of the Sidhe through generations of psychic twins, but dissenting forces separated the twins at the age of three, in hopes of breaking or endangering the treaty. Brought up amongst the Druids and thrust into a leadership role at an early age, Darragh generally exhibits more maturity and presence of mind than his twin, who is a typical angst ridden teenager in our world. Neither has led a particularly easy life, and although they share mannerisms and view-points, the twins have vastly different personalities and I like them both for different reasons.
The characters in the book are nuanced and enjoyable to read – there are no absolute binarities in the story and every character is motivated by what they think is the right cause. Even Marcroy, who initially separated the twins, believes he saved the world by doing so. I liked Trása, who was sent by Marcroy to prevent Rónán from finding his way back to the world be was born in, even though she is more than a little naive and exasperated me a lot, because she has noble intentions and wants to help those around her. In contrast, Hayley, Rónán’s best friend, is really annoying, seeing all females as threats and acting irrationally jealous anytime there’s a girl around him.
The alternate reality offered by Fallon is mystical and well-imagined, portrayed through lush descriptions and attention to detail. It did remind me a little of Traci Harding’s world in The Ancient Future, but only because both books explore the branching off of English history around the time of Roman invasion. I love the inclusion of the Sidhe, and the treachery, magic and intrigue that accompanies them, especially the adorable but slightly creepy Leipreachán, Plunkett. The magic is neither overt nor distracting in the book and arises naturally as a vital component of the world. Fallon has integrated this magic seamlessly into her story, as is her trademark, and I will always admire the skill with which she achieves this.
Jennifer Fallon has given us another spell-binding story, and as usual I am left in awe of her writing. I highly recommend The Undivided to all fans of Fantasy, especially Australian Fantasy, and also to those looking for a story with a difference. As for me, I am greatly looking forward to reading the sequel, The Dark Divide, which was released earlier this year.
You can read more of my reviews at Speculating on SpecFic .
December 30, 2012
Review originally posted at GoddessCarlie.com
There are no spoilers in this review, although I mention my impression of the ending (without saying what the ending is). Over all I thought this book was very readable, however I could not love it 100%, mainly because it felt like it was aiming at a younger audience than myself.
I give it three stars.
The Blurb
This is the first book in Jennifer Fallon's series The Rift Runners.
First Impression
I admit that this one didn't grab me completely at the start. Jennifer Fallon has writen a book about alternate relatities, which is the kind of story I really love, but I did have a bit of trouble getting into this one. It is based on celtic mythology, which I am interested in, but for some reason found it all a bit overwhelming. Strangely, I found the parts of the story set in our world more interesting. Usually it would be the other way around, I'm not so interested in Urban Fantasy.
My other impression of it was that it would perhaps be more enjoyable to an older Young Adult audience. I'm not 100% sure, but I think it had something to do with the themes in the story and the way the characters were portrayed, especially Ren. I love young adult books, don't get me wrong, but I guess I feel like I'm not getting swept away by the characters, I'm not identifying with the characters in the way I do with, say, The Hunger Games or the Obernewtyn Chronicles, and I believe it is just the way the main twins are portrayed.
Conclusion
The book was easy to read despite the Gaelic. The ending just reconfirmed my thoughts that this is aimed at a younger audience than myself. I will continue reading this story, but I am not so caught up in the story that I MUST READ NOW, like most books I read.
There are no spoilers in this review, although I mention my impression of the ending (without saying what the ending is). Over all I thought this book was very readable, however I could not love it 100%, mainly because it felt like it was aiming at a younger audience than myself.
I give it three stars.
The Blurb
This is the first book in Jennifer Fallon's series The Rift Runners.
An exciting contemporary fantasy, spanning different realities and alternate worlds, THE UNDIVIDED takes us into the heart of family, loyalty and the choice between good and evil. The Undivided are divided. The psychic twins, Ronan and Darragh, have been separated by the traitor Druid, Amergin, who has thrown Ronan through a rift into another reality. Now time is running out for Darragh. If Ronan isn't found soon, they will both die. Meanwhile, Ren Kavanagh has no notion of where he comes from and is plagued by mysterious injuries. Then he meets the enticing and mysterious Trasa, and before he can figure out how it happened, he is in serious trouble ... Ren's life is about to become more bizarre and dangerous than he could ever have imagined.
First Impression
I admit that this one didn't grab me completely at the start. Jennifer Fallon has writen a book about alternate relatities, which is the kind of story I really love, but I did have a bit of trouble getting into this one. It is based on celtic mythology, which I am interested in, but for some reason found it all a bit overwhelming. Strangely, I found the parts of the story set in our world more interesting. Usually it would be the other way around, I'm not so interested in Urban Fantasy.
My other impression of it was that it would perhaps be more enjoyable to an older Young Adult audience. I'm not 100% sure, but I think it had something to do with the themes in the story and the way the characters were portrayed, especially Ren. I love young adult books, don't get me wrong, but I guess I feel like I'm not getting swept away by the characters, I'm not identifying with the characters in the way I do with, say, The Hunger Games or the Obernewtyn Chronicles, and I believe it is just the way the main twins are portrayed.
Conclusion
The book was easy to read despite the Gaelic. The ending just reconfirmed my thoughts that this is aimed at a younger audience than myself. I will continue reading this story, but I am not so caught up in the story that I MUST READ NOW, like most books I read.
January 20, 2012
In an alternate pagan Ireland, fairies and magic play an integral role in the life of the people. Humans can wield magic due to a deal with the fairies through twins with a psychic link called the Undivided. However the current Undivided Rónán and Darragh were divided years ago when a traitor threw one of the twins Rónán through a rift into another world. Now the people are tiring of the divided, hoping to replace them which means death for both of the twins.
In our Ireland, Ren Kavanagh has been waking up to stab wounds, poisonings and numerous other mysterious injuries. When Ren meets a beautiful girl Trása, his neighbor's granddaughter Ren's world begins to unravel, leading him down a dangerous path.
Thoughts:
When I first opened the book, I was disappointed that Fallon was not world crafting to the same degree as she did in Tide Lords, which I believe is one of her great strengths. However this disappointment was not long lasting.
The highlights of The Undivided are that the story is driven strongly by the politics of Darragh's world, that the characters are charismatic, flawed and on occasion cunning and Fallon writes with great self awareness, with her humor used sparingly but appropriately.
The pacing was a little haphazard on occasion, but that is to be expected when swapping between characters and settings.
The one thing I had difficulty with while reading this (And I shall be showing my age and upbringing by saying it) was the sex scenes, there was only one or two, but I found them uncomfortable and for the most part unnecessary and I found myself scan reading those sections hoping that they pass quickly
I was plagued with the feeling throughout the novel that I would be enjoying it far more if I knew anything about Gaelic mythology. For instance I spend the entire novel reading Beansidhe as Beanside, rather than Ban-Shee. Which in retrospect some parts of the novel makes a lot more sense now that I know how to read the Gaelic words. Fortunately there is a pronunciation guide at the back of the book, however it is also a guide to names, and may give some character related spoilers.
I would definitely recommend this novel to fans of Parallel World Fantasy, Political Fantasy and Gaelic mythology.
However, I don't feel it is appropriate for a young audience, perhaps those 17 and above would enjoy it.
At the moment I'd give it 3 1/2 out of 5 as a stand alone book, although with the upcoming sequel some of my qualms with the book might have been negated, in which case I'll reconsider my rating.
In our Ireland, Ren Kavanagh has been waking up to stab wounds, poisonings and numerous other mysterious injuries. When Ren meets a beautiful girl Trása, his neighbor's granddaughter Ren's world begins to unravel, leading him down a dangerous path.
Thoughts:
When I first opened the book, I was disappointed that Fallon was not world crafting to the same degree as she did in Tide Lords, which I believe is one of her great strengths. However this disappointment was not long lasting.
The highlights of The Undivided are that the story is driven strongly by the politics of Darragh's world, that the characters are charismatic, flawed and on occasion cunning and Fallon writes with great self awareness, with her humor used sparingly but appropriately.
The pacing was a little haphazard on occasion, but that is to be expected when swapping between characters and settings.
The one thing I had difficulty with while reading this (And I shall be showing my age and upbringing by saying it) was the sex scenes, there was only one or two, but I found them uncomfortable and for the most part unnecessary and I found myself scan reading those sections hoping that they pass quickly
I was plagued with the feeling throughout the novel that I would be enjoying it far more if I knew anything about Gaelic mythology. For instance I spend the entire novel reading Beansidhe as Beanside, rather than Ban-Shee. Which in retrospect some parts of the novel makes a lot more sense now that I know how to read the Gaelic words. Fortunately there is a pronunciation guide at the back of the book, however it is also a guide to names, and may give some character related spoilers.
I would definitely recommend this novel to fans of Parallel World Fantasy, Political Fantasy and Gaelic mythology.
However, I don't feel it is appropriate for a young audience, perhaps those 17 and above would enjoy it.
At the moment I'd give it 3 1/2 out of 5 as a stand alone book, although with the upcoming sequel some of my qualms with the book might have been negated, in which case I'll reconsider my rating.
October 24, 2013
How do you fairly review a book you did not like when the reason is not based on the quality of writing, characterization, worldbuilding or plot? No, the reason why I did not like the book is simple. I do not like mixing our world with alternate worlds. I read to escape this world, I do not like visiting it in my fantasy reads.
So was there anything I did like? Well, actually, yes. I loved everything that had to do with the alternate reality. The worldbuilding was exceptional. I loved the politics, I loved the magic system and I loved the various characters I met there. I feel very comfortable saying that if this entire story had taken place in the alternate, technology free world, I would have been ecstatic. Fae of all kinds, leprechauns, druids, werewolves, shapeshifters, magic and mayhem, backstabbing politics and even a Djinni! This was a rich, vibrant, world with great characters to love and hate. The alternate world gave my fantasy loving heart all I could wish for and in spades.
So what didn't I like? The portions of the book that took place in our world. But, I want to clarify that. My dislike had nothing to do with how the "real" world scenes were written. If you like that sort of thing I'd say they were written extremely well. A bit too well for my tastes. Everything I dislike about how our world functions is portrayed in loving detail. There are prime examples of lack of accountability, over dependence on technology, not to mention the inclusion of rabid hordes of media hounds that make even werewolves look tame. And the worse part? In most fantasy stories you can kill the werewolves without going to jail. You can't even slap the media.
Do I recommend it? Absolutely! But only to readers who enjoy books which cross the boundaries between our world and alternate magical worlds. I know there are alot of you out there and I am confident that you will love everything about this tale. For folks like me who do not like crossovers, I highly recommend Jennifer Fallon's previous series as they rank high on my favorites list. So much so that I have worn out copies and had to buy new ones. As for me, I am hoping that someday she returns to this interesting celtic based world, only without the crossover into ours.
Read Full Review @ Old Bat's Belfry
So was there anything I did like? Well, actually, yes. I loved everything that had to do with the alternate reality. The worldbuilding was exceptional. I loved the politics, I loved the magic system and I loved the various characters I met there. I feel very comfortable saying that if this entire story had taken place in the alternate, technology free world, I would have been ecstatic. Fae of all kinds, leprechauns, druids, werewolves, shapeshifters, magic and mayhem, backstabbing politics and even a Djinni! This was a rich, vibrant, world with great characters to love and hate. The alternate world gave my fantasy loving heart all I could wish for and in spades.
So what didn't I like? The portions of the book that took place in our world. But, I want to clarify that. My dislike had nothing to do with how the "real" world scenes were written. If you like that sort of thing I'd say they were written extremely well. A bit too well for my tastes. Everything I dislike about how our world functions is portrayed in loving detail. There are prime examples of lack of accountability, over dependence on technology, not to mention the inclusion of rabid hordes of media hounds that make even werewolves look tame. And the worse part? In most fantasy stories you can kill the werewolves without going to jail. You can't even slap the media.
Do I recommend it? Absolutely! But only to readers who enjoy books which cross the boundaries between our world and alternate magical worlds. I know there are alot of you out there and I am confident that you will love everything about this tale. For folks like me who do not like crossovers, I highly recommend Jennifer Fallon's previous series as they rank high on my favorites list. So much so that I have worn out copies and had to buy new ones. As for me, I am hoping that someday she returns to this interesting celtic based world, only without the crossover into ours.
Read Full Review @ Old Bat's Belfry
October 14, 2013
A number of years ago I grabbed a hardcover Wolfblade from a bargain bin in Borders. I didn't know of the author, but for $3 I was willing to give it a shot. Once I finally got around to reading it, I think I read the book in two sittings. Jennifer Fallon became one of my favorite authors and I began collecting her other works. Since she was published in Australia, not all of them were originally available in the Kindle US store. For a while I'd been hearing about this series, the Rift Runners, and wanting to give it a try. So when it finally became available I jumped at.
From the first moments I remembered why I enjoyed Fallon's style so much. It reads so easily and pulls me along with first class storytelling. Rift Runners is an unusual series. The book takes place between two parallel versions of Earth--our Earth, and an Earth in which Rome failed to take Britain. This happened because the Druids in that world made an alliance with the Faeries, who gave them magic. Because the Druids won, magic remained in that world, and druidic society has persisted to modern times, with little technological advancements.
The druids are ruled by two psychically linked twins, one of which, Ren, was thrown through a rift to our world as a baby. Both his brother and his adversaries are searching for him, the former to return him to his Earth, and the latter to ensure he never finds his way back. The political atmosphere is a lot more complicated than that, of course, and I won't spoil the details of the treaty between the druids and the Faeries. I will say, though, that the Faeries are unable to break the treaty, but use all their tricks to try to get the humans to violate it, so they can withdraw their magical powers from mankind.
It all sounds pretty weird, but, as usual, I found it really hard to put down.
On a negative side, the formatting for the ebook was really poor. A few errors or typos don't bother me, but this had frequent missing letters, paragraph breaks in the wrong place, and a recurrence of special characters in the wrong place--things blatant enough no one must have proofread the ebook or checked for errors. It was enough to disrupt my reading experience, and that's saying something. I'm disappointed with HarperVoyager for the shoddy ebook conversion. This captivating story deserved better work from the publisher.
Nevertheless, I still recommend it to fans of fantasy and Celtic mythology.
From the first moments I remembered why I enjoyed Fallon's style so much. It reads so easily and pulls me along with first class storytelling. Rift Runners is an unusual series. The book takes place between two parallel versions of Earth--our Earth, and an Earth in which Rome failed to take Britain. This happened because the Druids in that world made an alliance with the Faeries, who gave them magic. Because the Druids won, magic remained in that world, and druidic society has persisted to modern times, with little technological advancements.
The druids are ruled by two psychically linked twins, one of which, Ren, was thrown through a rift to our world as a baby. Both his brother and his adversaries are searching for him, the former to return him to his Earth, and the latter to ensure he never finds his way back. The political atmosphere is a lot more complicated than that, of course, and I won't spoil the details of the treaty between the druids and the Faeries. I will say, though, that the Faeries are unable to break the treaty, but use all their tricks to try to get the humans to violate it, so they can withdraw their magical powers from mankind.
It all sounds pretty weird, but, as usual, I found it really hard to put down.
On a negative side, the formatting for the ebook was really poor. A few errors or typos don't bother me, but this had frequent missing letters, paragraph breaks in the wrong place, and a recurrence of special characters in the wrong place--things blatant enough no one must have proofread the ebook or checked for errors. It was enough to disrupt my reading experience, and that's saying something. I'm disappointed with HarperVoyager for the shoddy ebook conversion. This captivating story deserved better work from the publisher.
Nevertheless, I still recommend it to fans of fantasy and Celtic mythology.
November 22, 2013
It only took 5 hours for me to finish this book. Fast-paced, addictive, particularly due to Jennifer Fallon's classical witty dialogue. It was not hard to get a grasp of what the story was on about. However, I have an unfortunate inkling that this story will fall short of my expectations of it, as the Demon Child Trilogy and the Tide Lords series did.
It is not easy to put Jennifer Fallon books down once you have started reading it but if you do manage to do so, it is relatively easy to forget. One reason is due to characterizations. In the hoola beluga of complicated plot twists and trying to have too many events occur in one book, leaves the characters vague, challenged and not distinct.
I finished reading the book feeling a little bit empty inside, frustrated and disappointed.
Empty:- b/c not as many things happened in this book as I expected it too. :1 But I guess that is always how it is for the first book of an expected trilogy. The second book better pick up the pace.
Frustrated:- at how little we learn of the characters. The characters were shallow.
Disappointed:- sigh. Okay. Let's see, instead of being logical and doing the following:
i) Be patient and analyse the situation they could get themselves into by travelling to the human world to kidnap a person.
ii)Researching the identity of the girl they are about to drag from the human world to their faerie/druid world. Did they forget the risk of dragging an 'eifelem' back?
iii) Atleast set up some form of anti-magic security for the sole rift runner who would need open the portal for them to get back.
But NO. None of that happens. Instead it is one rash decision after the other. Why do I sense a downhill slope from here?
It is not easy to put Jennifer Fallon books down once you have started reading it but if you do manage to do so, it is relatively easy to forget. One reason is due to characterizations. In the hoola beluga of complicated plot twists and trying to have too many events occur in one book, leaves the characters vague, challenged and not distinct.
I finished reading the book feeling a little bit empty inside, frustrated and disappointed.
Empty:- b/c not as many things happened in this book as I expected it too. :1 But I guess that is always how it is for the first book of an expected trilogy. The second book better pick up the pace.
Frustrated:- at how little we learn of the characters. The characters were shallow.
Disappointed:- sigh. Okay. Let's see, instead of being logical and doing the following:
i) Be patient and analyse the situation they could get themselves into by travelling to the human world to kidnap a person.
ii)Researching the identity of the girl they are about to drag from the human world to their faerie/druid world. Did they forget the risk of dragging an 'eifelem' back?
iii) Atleast set up some form of anti-magic security for the sole rift runner who would need open the portal for them to get back.
But NO. None of that happens. Instead it is one rash decision after the other. Why do I sense a downhill slope from here?
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