Rue is a young woman coming of age in a struggling mountain village. Her race, the insect-like aemets, are passive folk who fear the strangely aggressive forest wolves. But Rue is through praying and hoping for luck. She resolves to search out a solution in the forest — and she'll need help from Felixi, a reclusive dragon who knows more about the wolf attacks than he's willing to share.
When I first started reading Render, I was a little lost. It was difficult for me to follow the story because I couldn't imagine the characters. Clumsy of me suddenly realized that I was reading the 3rd book of the stories of Aligare. It was obvious that I had missed the explanation of this new world.
As I went on with my reading, I slowly got the hang of it. I started to appreciate the place, the characters, the plot and the author's way of writing. One of my favorite things was the scenario, it kept me in a magical, mystical world (the kind I enjoy to read).
In this book, it talks about a girl named Rue, that moves into a new town along with her mother that's called Aloftway. The people here are generous, have a talent for growing plants (magically), they are good to each other, they are vegetarian and respect all living things. I find that beautiful. It's amazing how a society can be built that way. But, of course there has to be a problem. There is danger all around Aloftway and it's starting to kill the residents. Rue is the one to come up with a way to solve this since everyone believes she was born lucky. She couldn't do this alone, so she requires the help of friends, one in particular is the one who helps solve the problem although he hides behind a truth...
All in all, I think this was a nice read because there's always something exciting about meeting a new world. However, I do feel that I needed to read the first two books to get to enjoy the book more.
I received a free copy of Aligare in exchange of an honest review. You can alfo find it at The Reader and the Chef
Heidi C. Vlach’s writing is magical. There’s an innocence and tone to her authorial voice that feels fresh and young. I haven’t read an author like her, and to me – that’s a good thing as it doesn’t feel like she’s been influenced by any of her favourite writers and instead has developed her own voice and style.
The story is excellent. Fantasy is inundated with sword wielding humans, and Heidi has thrown the usual fantasy tropes away to create a world richly imagined and well laid out. Slightly reminiscent of Adrian Tchaikovsky, we follow Rue’s story and grow with her.
I loved the fact this was a standalone book. Sometimes I don’t have the time to invest in a series, and reading the last page of this I was satisfied. While I did crave more, I’m glad to read that there will be more stories in the world Heidi has created and I know I’ll be back for me.
Lovers of traditional orc and elf heavy fantasy with strong human protagonists might not like this – but those that enjoy fantasy in the ilk of Karen Miller, Adrian Tchaikovsky, and even a hint of China Mieville (in style) will love it.
Heidi C. Vlach’s Render (A Story of Aligare) is OK.
However, it started off in a slow, dragging pace. The words somehow depicted a heavy, somber tone. It made me feel a little lost as I try to decipher the images and relevance of the characters, its motives, its meaning. There were some dialogues that the story can do away with to make the plot tighter, more effective. (I received a free copy of this book from the author as a LibraryThing giveaway that I won. I have written my honest opinion about the book.)