The Serpent Gift

The Shamer Chronicles #3

by Lene Kaaberbøl

Has Dina inherited another dangerous ability--this time from the father she's never met?

A watching face in a market crowd, a mist-shrouded figure on the moor, a haunting presence seen only when he wants to be seen--Sezuan, possessor of the Serpent Gift for lie and illusion, is a chilling and ambiguous figure at the best of times.

He is also Dina's father.

And when he comes to claim the daughter he has never seen, the Shamer and her family are catapulted into reckless flight and danger. With nowhere else to turn, Dina must learn to see through her father's deceit and use her own powers to her advantage.

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Danish, Fiction, Magic, Childrens, Middle Grade

377 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Jeg kom til verden på Rigshospitalet i København d. 24.3.1960. Overlægen var i kjole og hvidt - han var blevet afbrudt midt i en gallamiddag - men min søster siger, at det er da ikke noget, hendes fødselslæge var i islandsk nationaldragt. Nogen vil mene at det således allerede fra starten var klart at jeg var et ganske særligt barn. Andre vil sikkert påstå at min mor bare var god til at skabe pludselige gynækologiske kriser.

Jeg blev altså født i København, men det må nok betragtes som en fejl, for min forældre er jyske, min opvækst foregik i Jylland (mestendels i Malling ved Århus), og jeg betragter mig i dag som eksil-jyde på Frederiksberg, på det mine jyske venner omtaler som Djævleøen (Sjælland).

Jeg har skrevet altid, eller i hvert fald lige siden jeg nåede ud over »Ole så en so«-stadiet. Som hestetosset teenager skrev jeg bøgerne om Tina og hestene (de to første udkom da jeg var femten, den fjerde og sidste da jeg var sytten). Som 18-årig opdagede jeg Tolkien og Ringenes herre, og derefter Ursula K. LeGuins trilogi om Jordhavet, og lige siden har mit bog-hjerte banket for eventyr og drageblod og verdener, der ligger mindst tre skridt til højre for regnbuen eller Mælkevejen, og under alle omstændigheder et pænt stykke fra den asfalterede danske virkelighed.

I dag, cirka 30 bøger senere, er jeg stadig lige så håbløst vild med at skrive som jeg altid har været. Og selv om jeg har været en lille smuttur i krimi-land og skrevet en kriminalroman for voksne - læs mere på ninaborg.dk hvis du har lyst - så er jeg bestemt stadig børnebogsforfatter og har stadig hang til magiske momenter!

Personal
Name Lene Kaaberbøl
Born 1960, in Copenhagen, Denmark. Education: Århus University, degree (English, drama). Hobbies and other interests: Playing pentanque.

Addresses
Office—Phabel & Plott ApS, Laksegade 12, St.th, DK-1063 Copenhagen K, Denmark.

Career
Novelist. Formerly worked as a high school teacher, copy writer, publishing company editor, cleaning assistant, and riding teacher. Phabel & Plott ApS, Copenhagen, Denmark, owner and writer.

Honors Awards
Best Disney Novel Writer of the Year award, Disney Worldwide Artist Convention, 2001, for five "W.I.T.C.H." series novels.

Associated Names:
* Lene Kaaberbol (English)

Reviews

[X_stephen_x · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed "The Shamer's Daughter", but was greatly disappointed by it's sequel, "The Shamer's Signet" for it's uninteresting plot, the introduction of Davin as narrator, who I found quite annoying, and the fact Nico, the male lead of the first book, was completely ignored. This third in the series is a vast improvement over the second, and exceeds the first in terms of both plot, characterisation and writing. The character of Davin really matures through this book, and I found many of the story ideas interesting, although I think more could have been made of certain elements like the Foundation and the Sagisburg.
I think you could easily skip the second book if reading the series, as I found it really quite boring, and only one plot point is carried over into "The Serpent Gift" which is explained anyway. I look forward to the conclusion of the series in "The Shamer's War", but hope that it ties up the story, rather than just being a self-contained story like the two sequels so far.

[thelastword · Rating 2 out of 5]

Blame the blurb writer. Really.

First off, it's the third book in a series, and that's not written anywhere on the book, so innocent one-story lambs like myself are thrown into already formed worlds and known characters and future books. Listen, I have no time to search the earth for sequels and prequels. If you want a long-term relationship, tell me on the cover, so that I can walk away.

Second, the blurb itself:

In front of us, less than three oars' lengths from the boat, rose a scaly grey head. It kept rising, on a neck like a ... a tree. Or something bigger still. A cloud column. The neck of a tornado. Something too big to be alive.

But it was alive. The Wyrm

Guess what? In the book? That was the only time the 'wyrm' made an appearance. For like five seconds. And then it floats away or something.

Then the blurb mentions the protagonist having to have to use the 'Shamer's gift' to save her brother. Except in this installment she doesn't have this gift - only her mother does. And it's either a pretty under-utilized gift or I missed some rules governing it - I mean, you can make people do what you want, force people to confess their crimes, etc. You should basically be ruling the world with it, not running from the authorities.

(Also, the author's name is not spelt properly on the copy I read. That slash through the 'O' looks important and mine didn't have it.)

So the blurb threw me off. It should have read:

"Having lost her gift of Shaming, Dina meets her father, who did not read the book on 'Boundaries to keep between father and daughter', or 'How not to make custodian rights a messy business'. Her irresponsible mother, who didn't read important books like 'How not to make your child feel bad about their loser father', 'How to use your gift that can control the world to actually control the world' and other such material, continuously throws her brood in danger with splendidly stupid decisions. Watch how things fall apart - but not too closely, because this is just another set-up book for the next one."

Hhhmm... guess I really would not have borrowed it then.

(There's a character called 'Black-Arse'? Do I even want to know how...)

[Mar]

2024: Jeg blir veldig rørt. Jeg har jo lest den mange ganger før, men det er fremdeles sterkt. Dina er av de karakterene som bare alltid vil være i hjertet mitt. Det er mye fra Davin sitt synspunkt i denne boka, og selv om han frustrerer meg, så er han også en veldig realistisk 15/16 år gammel gutt. Synes ikke stemmen hans i denne boka passer like bra som i den forrige. Mari Maurstad som Dina gjør som alltid en suveren jobb!

[Kenneth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fin forsættelse og bare god fantasy som det skal være. Dog lidt tung handling og trist undervejs, men gennemført godt som altid fra Lene Kaaberbøl. Kan kun anbefales

[Nadia Hansen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Et kompliceret forhold til sin far? Relaterbart.
Kalder den her bog 'Davin der langsomt lære empati'
Den her bogserie er så fed og jeg er så underholdt, og den her er nok min yndlings indtil videre!

[Emma *insert corn here* · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think this book made me realize how my taste in books has changed since I was younger.

When I read this at eleven, I found the parts in the Sagis castle long, unnecessary and extremely boring. Now, I saw how they contributed to Davin's character development.

I'll get back to that later, though, as I still feel I should start with Dina. After all, it's her story. She didn't have a lot of agency in the previous book, which mostly consisted of Davin coming to save her, so it was fun to see the situation reversed in this book, with her having to save Davin instead. It was also interesting to see her changing feelings for her father during the book, especially that she clearly knew he wasn't a good person, but still felt some kind of grief when he died. Speaking of her father, I think the book did a good job of showing that you can care for someone, despite feeling like they don't deserve it.

Okay, then there's Davin. I hoped for some character development when reading the previous book, as he was mostly just whining, and this time, he got it. It took a lot of time, that's for sure, and he spent a good deal of his time complaining about Nico (the guy has PTSD, for fuck's sake, leave him alone!), but when he finally seemed to start understanding things, I started appreciating him more. I still think Dina is the more mature one of them, but at least Davin isn't that annoying anymore.

Also, Davin and Nico finally seem to become friends? I'm Here For That™

Small thing, but in all the books up until now there have been mentions of things that have to do with the Roman Empire, and at first I thought it was just small mistakes, but now I'm starting to think it's on purpose? Which leaves me wondering exactly how this world fits into our own. Interesting.

[Stephen Winter · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is excellent. It does have a few flaws, hence the 4/5 rating, but overall it was very good.
I highly recommend it for readers who like fantasy. I liked the running for your life aspect of it. The book is very entertaining, though it can get really slow in certain spots. Make it through those spots, and you are in for a ride. The storyline is good, although there is room for improvement. The ending is a little rushed, compared to the rest of the story, so I do warn you of that. As for the age group, I recommend it to middle-aged people. It is too complicated for small children, but too simple for full-grown adults. So if you like fantasy, and you can endure some of those small parts, this book is for you. It will fascinate you.

-Stephen

[Anne Glania · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a beautiful book. And yes, I know this is meant for the younger reader, but seriously, this is something to enjoy up until late teens. It's so powerful. The daughter father relationship, just breaks my heart. I even cried at the end. The story just captures you form the the first page and carries you throughout the entire book, and leaves you wanting more. Lucky for me there is one more book in the series!

[Lambros Fouloulis · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had read this as a child and I couldn't even remember the name of the book,much more the plot.
(If I hadn't seen the cover randomly,I would have never found it.)
I do remember though my excitement and enthousiasm about it,so i'll rate it 5 stars until I get to re-read it.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lene Kaaberbol gets better with each book! This one builds on the foundation of the other two (which were fun, thoughtful fantasy adventures) to create a haunting story that will stay with me.

[Miriam · Rating 5 out of 5]

For en bok! For en serie! Og for en utmerket måte å lære nynorsk på! Jeg gleder meg til jeg en gang får barn og kan lese denne for dem (og jeg liker ikke egentlig barn).

[Derpa · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this one someone from the mother's past shows up and threatens the peace the family managed to find in the Highlands. After this point the description of the plot part of the review will be one big spoiler. You learn real fast who this stranger is, but I know some of you are super sensitive to such things.

So Dina's dad is finally with us, yay. Now up until this point we ave been introduced to some small mentions and such of magic. Of course dragons too. But we weren't told about whole different branches of it. Now of course I had a feeling Dina's dad was going to be someone, as they never even mentioned him, really and it was quite obvious.
Here he turns out to be a Blackmaster, someone who is able to create illusions, to make people see things not there, to bring them dreams with his magical flute. It's made obvious his whole family is something big and important and in their own field they are big ones, though we never get to meet them. Something I find interesting is that... I feel there is a bit of an issue with how Mellussina sees him and how he behaves. Not sure if this is an intentional artistic choice by the author, but it never gets properly explained.
Meanwhile the family gets in trouble and Nice and Davin even end up in prison. Now this was so far the most dark thing in the books. I still think it's perfectly appropriate for children and I would even recommend it to them, but yeah. Some messed up shit happens.

Here is the thing with this series. I like the books. Duh. I like the individual stories. But this is book 3 in a 4 book series. You know when people say something is greater than the sum of its parts? I think in this case it's the exact opposite.
I am having a blast every single time I am reading a new book of this. But. I think the series as a whole could do much more with its interesting concepts. There is just so many questions and so much left to discover. It's almost like these small stories are just picked out little bits of a huge, epic saga.
Jim Butcher keeps talking about how he is going to write a YA companion series to his Dresden Files with Maggie, a child character and her dog being the protagonists. This series feels like that. Like there is something, big things going on outside the limited bubble of Dina's immediate circle and I would kill to be able to read that one as well. Now it's possible I'm just old. But even for a children's book, there could have been much more... I guess, opening up the world.
I'm still giving it a high rating, because the book itself if really nice. It's well-written, it's fun, the characters are good, the concepts are stellar. Maybe if there more book, maybe if the individual volumes were longer.
I don't feel the author treats the reader as stupid (Which is an issue with some children's books), more like we are only scratching the surface.

I would still recommend this to kids or adults who enjoy middle grade. I am definitely going to read the last book ,but I will forever wish it was more than this.

[Katerina · Rating 5 out of 5]

Βρίσκομαι σχεδόν στο τέλος αυτής της ιστορίας και μπορώ να πω ότι νιώθω μεγαλο ενθουσιασμό για το τελευταίο βιβλίο.
Αυτό το βιβλίο με στιγμάτισε μερικές φορές τόσο πολύ που έπρεπε να το κλείσω, να κάνω μικρό διάλειμμα και να συνεχίσω. Έχουμε τόσες πολλές αναποδιές σε αυτόν τον τόμο που ήταν περίεργο που είχαμε καλό τέλος. Ο Νταβιν και ο Νικος είναι πιο πολύ πρωταγωνιστές εξαιτίας όλων των φρικτων πραγμάτων που τους τυχαίνουν. Προφανώς η Ντινα μας δεν περνάει καλά εφόσον ένα άτομο έρχεται στην ζωή της που δεν περίμενε (το λέει ο πρόλογος αλλά προτείνω να μην το διαβάσετε, το build up και το μυστήριο στην αρχή ήταν πολύ καλό) . Παρόλο που είχα αγωνία για τους πρωταγωνιστές μας, προφανώς υπήρχαν στιγμές που έκαναν πράγματα για να συνεχίσει το σενάριο και πόσο βολικά ήταν μερικά πράγματα, επειδή το είχα συνηθίσει από τα άλλα δύο βιβλία δεν έδωσα πολύ σημασία εφόσον ειναι εφηβική λογοτεχνία είναι κάπως αναμενόμενο. Νιώθω ένα κόμπο κάθε φορά που σκέφτομαι αυτό το βιβλίο, μου έμειναν τόσα πολλά άλλα οι σχέσεις ανάμεσα στον Νικο και τον Νταβιν ήταν ότι καλύτερο, το πόσο καταλαβαίνουν επιτέλους ο ένας τον άλλον και ο Νταβιν βάζει το ρημάδι μυαλό του να δουλέψει. Θέλω λίγο χρόνο για να συνεχίσω κ το 4ο βιβλίο αλλά πραγματικά ανυπομονώ.

(Υ. Σ. Σκέφτηκα ένα meme
Nico *I don't want to be the prince and the hero that dies in the end *
Also Nico * We need to free all these people from this damn castle and I don't hear another word *

[Jenn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dina and Dravin's world continues to become more complicated in this third volume in the series.

I love the translation on this series. It's so smooth I wouldn't know it was translated without looking it up. I'm also enjoying watching the stories get a little darker and less black and white. Now if only the last one would come up on Netgalley so I could find out how the series ends!

This is a really great series for anyone who enjoys fantasy.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jag gillar Dinas far, han är en fascinerande karaktär. Även i den här boken hamnar några av huvudpersonerna i fångenskap och blir psykologiskt torterade, men borgen och hela grejen kring hur de kontrollerar folk och hur känslolöshet och likformighet premieras är väldigt intressant. Överlag känns den här boken livligare och mer fantasifull, mörkret till trots, än sin föregångare.

[Ocean Lombardo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so much and the only thing I could of changed would be I’d seuzen didn’t die because he and Dina could of explored a lot of of possibilities of them using the serpent gift together to make it stronger for instance. Other that that the book was top notch

[Joy · Rating 3 out of 5]

7.5

[Moony (Captain Mischief) MeowPoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

I`m so very glad this series dosen`t dissapoint, yet again. I read it in the school library and now i`m so lucky to own the whole series.

[Emily · Rating 4 out of 5]

It may seem odd to write my first review of this series on the third novel, but I was trying to solidify my impressions before attempting to write my opinions for all the world to see. Now, however, I am starting to notice patterns in my own reactions and in Kaaberbol’s writing style, and I have been consistently impressed.

Kaaberbol is writing for a difficult age. So often novels aimed at younger teens wallow in dumbed-down prose and tame action. Many of these works are excellent for their age group but readers quickly grow out of them and realize the tired tropes and simplistic storylines that the author was using as they graduate to more mature stories. However, every once in a while an author manages to hit the sweet spot and write a story that is so engaging that it doesn’t matter what age you encounter it. Kaaberbol manages to transcend the limits of her chosen age group every time with such skill and great characterization that I was mesmerized throughout. I have rarely felt such tension in a novel when I fully believed that the author would make everything work out more or less; she masterfully guides the reader from set piece to set piece, making each individual setting intensely interesting even though the adventures in retrospect are often self-contained. It makes for a novel that is hard to put down; I was constantly telling myself that I would stop reading after they had resolved this next conflict, but of course Kaaberbol seamlessly linked each conflict to the next so that I was always engaged and interested. It is rare to have a novel with practically no slow bits, while also not feeling breathlessly out of pace. Kaaberbol, through some mysterious technique pertaining to master writers, balances the demands of her plot perfectly, allowing events to develop in a way that feels organic.

I am also a fan of her characterization. Her young protagonists are stretched and stressed, and they realistically bear the scars of their former adventures, but they are never broken and one finds more and more to admire in them throughout. I particularly like how the mother is kept in the story rather than being killed off as an excuse to throw even more responsibility on our protagonists. This is done so often in order to provide motivation for young heroes, as well as sever their ties to home so they can go off adventuring, but authors rarely show how traumatic this would actually be for kids. Kaaberbol instead keeps the mother in the story as a protecting and balancing influence which means that the children can suffer, doubt, and fear without overbalancing their psyches because they have a caring mother to pull them back from it. I can reasonably believe that these perils would be growing experiences for the kids rather than scars because of the mother’s presence, and Kaaberbol is creative enough to still sideline the mother enough for the kids to be an active presence. Dina, our MC who has inherited her mother’s shamer powers, is usually important due to her magical abilities, but her brother shares some of the spotlight by being the oldest male in the family and by being a reckless fifteen year old eager to prove himself. The other members of Dina’s found family are never simple stereotypes either but are imbued with careful nuance that rounds out Kaaberbol’s themes. The result is a beautiful story full of hair-raising escapes that confronts serious issues such as the use of violence, the role of genetics in determining fate, issues of trust, and how fear can warp minds. I have read each installment with increasing eagerness and have enjoyed watching how the characters grow. This is a lesser-known series, but it is a hidden gem.

[Marie-Louise Persson · Rating 4 out of 5]

.... yes.. fine... just rip out my heart and break it into million of pieces, and then put it back in...
Best book in the series so far.
I only gave in 4 stars because I think Dina does not reflect enough on the things happening to her. I would like to see more growth.

[Felicia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Definitely the best one so far.

[Jonas Carlsson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jeg havde set filmen, før jeg begyndte på bogen, og hold da fest, hvor er det to forskellige oplevelser! Det eneste, der er ens, er handlingen i grove træk: Dinas far, sortemesteren Sezuan, dukker pludselig op i hendes liv igen, familien tvinges på flugt, Davin og Nico tages til fange, og Dina må modvilligt alliere sig med Sezuan for at befri dem - og måske lære, om hun har sin fars evner eller ej. Udover den ens handling er "Slangens gave" i bogform nemlig meget mere mørk og kompleks, og den fortsætter den eminente worldbuilding, Lene Kaaberbøl begyndte på i "Skammerens Datter". Umiddelbart kan jeg godt lide Dinas situatuon i bogen. Hun er stadig mærket af begivenhederne i "Skammertegnet", hvilket giver hende et incitament til at lære at bruge slangens gave. Hun har også mange gode interaktioner med sin far Sezuan, og det er spændende at følge hendes indre konflikt - hun både hader sin far for at bryde ind i hendes liv og frygter over alt i verden at have arvet hans sortemesterkræfter, men på den anden side er hun også glad for endelig at have sin far i sit liv. Davin er endnu engang interessant at følge og sættes hårdt på prøve, og Nico køres mere i spil til at lede oprøret mod Drakan, hvad end han vil det eller ej. Jeg er vild med, hvor meget vi får at vide om Nico ud fra Davins synspunkt - at han er en "tøsedreng", der aldrig igen vil røre et sværd, men at han aldrig ville bukke under for pres og tyranni. Meget af Davin og Nicos dele af historien foregår i Sagisloc og på Sagis-Borgen, som herskes over af den tyranniske fyrst Arthos. Kaaberbøl beskriver håbløsheden og brutaliteten under Arthos ufattelig godt, og selvom der også har været uhyggelige ting i de to sidste bøger, er det her noget helt andet - måske netop fordi alt virker så håbløst og dystert. Hele den sidste del af bogen er neglebiddende spændende, og slutningen er bittersød, tragisk og ufatteligt rørende. Jeg har kun én kæmpe anke ved denne her bog, og det er dens længde. Den er 412 sider lang - dobbelt så lang som "Skammerens Datter" og 100 sider længere end de to resterende bøger i serien, og det kan man godt mærke. Der er 70 sider i bogen, hvor figurerne bosætter sig i Loclain, men bliver drevet videre, da de bliver beskyldt for at stjæle. Denne del viser fordommene mod og hadet til skammere, hvilket var fint at få Dina og Melussina involveret i, men man kunne sagtens skippe denne del og lade dem komme direkte til Sagisloc, så historien kunne begynde for alvor lidt tidligere. Det er ikke i sig selv, fordi 400 sider er langt for en bog, og det her er nok den mest amitiøse og komplekse bog i serien indtil videre. Det er dog stadig en børne-/ungdomsbog, og hvis jeg som 23-årig kan synes, den er lidt tung, ville en 13-årig nok også synes det. Der er dog scener og øjeblikke i "Slangens gave", der er de bedste i hele serien, og jeg glæder mig meget til at tage hul på "Skammerkrigen".

[Eskana · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good continuation of the "Shamer" series that takes a new turn to introduce a new type of magic, the so-called "serpent gift" and introduces one of the best characters of the series while developing some who've been missed lately...

Plot Synopsis (no spoilers, just overview): The plot once again mainly follows Dina, the Shamer's Daughter, and her brother Davin, switching between their perspectives. Dina's family has been in hiding since the first book, but have settled into the Highland area of this world. However, when she runs into her father- whom she's never met or heard of- her mother the Shamer forces them all to abandon their new home and take to the road to hide from him, without explaining why. It becomes clear that he has something called "the serpent gift," and wishes to know if Dina has it as well.
The family manages to shake him, but is unable to make a new home- first they are chased away as witches and then they become embroiled in a society where the homeless are given food, shelter, and clothing- at a price. Meanwhile, Davin and Nico are faced with the horrors of the Dragon Lord's new regime. And Dina meets her father...

The Good: The change of pace was interesting, and definitely helped this book continue the series instead of just being a filler. I enjoyed the new focus on Nico and the introduction of Sezuan (once you get to know him), as well as the new perspective on the Dragon Lord. The previous book was rather typical, this has some nice elements to it.

The Meh: I'd have to say that although she's okay, Dina is still the least interesting of the characters. Davin was also okay, although this time around it felt like the entire purpose of his perspective was to focus on Nico, not on Davin. While Davin did go through important character development, I felt like he was there so we could see Nico go through it as well.
The serpent gift itself was interesting, and although I get it, I don't understand really why everyone in the book freaks out about it... I guess they are especially anti-magic in this world. Very few people seem to have it, and maybe that's why. I also felt that the "serpent gift" was very underused- there is a large portion of the book that we spend with Dina and Sezuan, and they use the gift extremely rarely.
Like I said above, I really liked Sezuan. But he was very underused. He should have been developed MUCH more- he had a very interesting background to him that was introduced but left hanging. Especially since he died. Hated that. What a waste of a character, opportunity.

Verdict: Definitely worth it if you're reading the series, otherwise go back and start it! It's a decent read. Not fantastic, but definitely above the average.

[Theediscerning · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's been a repeating quirk of this series so far, in that our heroine and her family keep gaining subsidiary characters, sidekicks and friends, who get attached to the group as the fantasy saga goes on, and tend to stick around. But at the start of this book – the third of four – it's someone who's noted by his absence who latches on to the collective. Yes, it's our Shamer's Daughter's father. Forced to flee him due to slightly unspecified reasons, our lot end up in a village where they eventually face a witch-hunt, only to move to a real dystopia, where every fascistic societal control is in action.

All of which is fine, but you miss the main thrust of the books, which should be the growth in the powers of the heroine, the title character of book one and a new Shamer in making, and the revenge she needs against the Big Bad of the series opener. Shamers, before you ask, can stare at you and force your mind to give up all its secrets, so they can be very useful in judicial situations, but give many innocents the willies, as they seem too close to witches. This book, however, has taken away the burgeoning powers of our heroine, and indeed much of her presence, in favour of her older brother, whose narrative didn't really float my boat last time.

But it soon did here. In splitting the narrative almost equally, and taking us away from Dina and her father and all that that entails for such large chunks, we get to see the lad's life in a lot more close-up, and its portrayal of a draconian prison system is excellent. But what I really rated about this was the nature of the split narrative. Yes, there are countless books where we skip from one plot to another, but they are all so obviously on tracks that appear parallel yet are clearly destined to meet at Happy Conclusion Station. I can't remember a novel where the two strands of the story diverge so much, and have such a habit of apparently hindering the other's ending. I guess this is important with this, the longest of the series so far by a long distance, but hardly any of this felt like filler that was unnecessary and just there to keep the tracks from meeting.

In the end, then, this book still has some of the slight naivety of the others – children running pell mell towards danger, and here a reliance on a very foreseeable twist that actually is used more than once – but comes out in the finish as being really very good indeed. I like the way everyone is shown the consequences of their decisions and actions and yet nothing is forced into a tidy moral. And even though the ending is once again a little on the blunt side, I would stick my (wyrm-length) neck out and say junior fantasy seldom betters this. A very strong four stars.

[Samantha (A Dream of Books) · Rating 4 out of 5]

'The Serpent Gift' was another riveting instalment of this wonderful series which is just getting better and better. I think this was my favourite book so far. The plot was packed full of action and adventure, the characters are maturing and becoming like old friends and there was also a lot of powerful and emotional moments in the story.

Dina and Davin once again pick up the narrative reins, as the story begins in their Highland home. The local fair means a time of fun and celebration but all of that is ruined when Dina's long absent father unexpectedly appears. Dina's mother refuses to let him see his daughter and insists that her family leave immediately and secretively in order to escape him. I was very intrigued about Dina's father, Sezuan. We're told that he has the Serpent Gift but it's a little while into the story before it becomes clear what this is exactly. Sezuan wants to know if Dina has inherited his gift as well as her Shamer eyes. I found the father-daughter relationship in the book extremely well depicted and there were some particularly emotional and touching moments between the two. Dina doesn't know anything about her father and isn't sure if he can be trusted but I enjoyed seeing a fragile bond gradually begin to develop.

After having her gift abused in the previous book, Dina is also going through something of a crisis of faith. She has temporarily lost her Shamer ability and starts to question who she really is without it. Even though she may not be able to do what her mother can, she can always rely on her own courage and bravery to put her on the right path which is something I admire about her.

I loved the epic scope of the story and the scenes during the second half of the book which are set in the town of Sagisloc and the Sagisburg prison. Danger and desperation touches everything that befalls the characters and they are constantly having to find a way out of some very hazardous situations. Every chapter feels like it ends on some kind of cliff hanger.

Reading this series, almost feels like watching a big budget fantasy TV series unfold before my eyes. I started this book immediately after finishing the last one, so not having a break in the story has made me feel even more invested in the characters and what happens to them. If I had to be nit-pick anything, then it would just be that I'd like to have seen more of Nico. He is firmly entwined in Davin's storyline but I would even more of him because he's my absolute favourite.

[Mariana Arguello Galvez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Puntuación 4/5

Me ha encantado.

Las aventuras que tienen estos muchachos Son frustrantes (por la inocencia de la juventud) y a la vez satisfactorias.

Las dificultades que han atravesado los personajes de Davin y Dina, los ha llevado por senderos oscuros. Lo que sucedió con Davin y Nico en este libro, lo sentí muy crudo, por la forma en que intentan destruirles el alma y la voluntad.

Es muy ingenioso como expande tanto el contexto externo, como interno de forma paralela. Así como estan sucediendo situaciones para cada personaje, se hace una exploración del mundo en donde ellos residen, distintas culturas y en cada lugar hay una dinámica social muy variada.

Desde el primer libro que nos presenta la existencia de este grupo de personajes, se notan las diferencias que han atravesado al intentar encontrar un nuevo hogar en dónde desarrollarse y crear lazos. En el primer libro su existencia en los abedules más apacible hasta lo sucedido con Drakan, en el segundo libro que transcurrió en las tierras altas en dónde se escondieron por la persecución de Drakan, y en esta tercera entrega escapan de las tierras altas, por la persecución del padre de dina un hechicero negro, y son llevados a este reino en dónde hay una división social muy establecida, en dónde los nuevos son puestos al final de la pirámide, son tratados de esclavos y pasan cosas turbias.

La manera en que evoluciona la relación de Dina con su papá (Sezuan), que de tenerle un miedo, la llevo a tener cierta reserva con el, por la historia de el con sombra (un medio. Ahora el sacrificio de él es lo que hace que Dina continúe con vida, pero con la molestia de que también porta con el don de la serpiente.

Lo sucedido con Davin y Nico, que apresados por una situación injusta, se ven llevados a un límite mental, para enfrentarlos y que sobreviva el más fuerte.

En este libro se ve una evolución brusca de los personajes Nico, Davin y Dina. que seguro es para prepararlos para el enfrentamiento final con Drakan.

[Luckless · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was where I stopped reading this quartet; the first two books are fairly good and very interesting; the second one adds Dina's brother Davin as a POV character. What I found frustrating with this one is he is the ONLY POV character we have and clearly the author dislikes him.

Pros: At least there is finally an answer to; if there's a gift that makes people tell the truth, is there one for lying? Yes, there is. We get more insights on to people's characters and Nico finally contributes some more to this story.

Cons: Oh boy. Boy oh boy.

1. Character actions make zero sense; Dina does stupid things that seem WILDLY out of character for her arc that's been building for the past two books. Her mother of THREE CHILDREN adamantly refuses to communicate with them despite the fact that two have been involved in a war zone already and one's been abused about why they are doing things for no real reason beyond plot. There is no reason not to tell Dina and Davin information about Dina's father and even if she was afraid at first, this remains her line...FOR. MONTHS.

2. I have a serious issue with the way Davin's Learning Disorder is presented (I assumed it to be dyslexia, since he is one of the only characters who cannot read and why find out why in one of his POV chapters here). The way it is written basically shames him for not wanting to learn how to read and that his skills are worthless because he's not educated. Maybe not the Author's intent, but that is how it came across.

And that made me angry enough to not finish it. Because intentional or not, that is a shameful (ha) message to send anyone; that you can just 'get over' it. If it were explored deeper, maybe I'd forgive it but this book was one big mess.

[Trine · Rating 2 out of 5]

I remember reading this book when I was little and really loving it, but there's just something about it that I don't like and that I found really boring now.

I wish so much of the book wasn't from Davin's POV because he's a boring character, and I found myself disliking him more and more the more I read about him and the choices he makes. I also really hate the way he treats and talks to people, especially Dina.

Dina herself isn't a very interesting character. She feels really bland, and not that much of a character. I also found it interesting whenever she was talking about how you shouldn't misuse your shamer gift, and how her mother never misuses hers, and then we'll soon after read about how Melussina orders Dina around with the gift, which is clearly her misusing her gift since Dina can't say no. She also treats Sezuan horribly, all because of what her mother told her about him and his powers, and how his powers were pure evil, and never let his actions speak for themselves.

This book also really made me hate Melussina because of the aforementioned incidents, but also because she never really talks to her children. She just assumes that she knows best, and pretty much ends up making everything worse. I also really disliked her treatment of Sezuan, a character I found myself growing to love, just because of how his family treated her. She basically kidnapped their daughter from him and made sure that he couldn't find her, and then when he does end up finding them, she makes Dina hate him.

We also keep hearing about how evil Drakan is, but he really just stays as an Evil Just Because type of villain.

I really wish this book was more about Sezuan and his powers, because I found that more interesting than the rest of the book.

[June · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eg lurte kvifor den norske utgåva er på nynorsk, men no ser eg at det er fordi det er gitt ut av Samlaget. På den eine sida er dette fint sidan ei god bok kan motivere børn til å lese og øve sine nynorskkunnskapar. På den andre sida er dette synd, for nynorsk kan nettopp virke avskrekkande på mange mennesker. Personlig likte eg å lese nynorsk innmari godt, den ga teksten eit passande arkaisk preg.

Medan eg las denne boka, hugsa eg at i blurben til den litauiske utgåva av den fyrste boka står det at Dina kunne vore "den trassige veslesystera til Harry Potter". Er det kanskje difor eg likar denne serien så godt? Fordi eg trudde på det? Når sant skal seiast, har eg sett den nett same samanlikninga brukt i samband med fleire andre bøker – kan hende det er eit vanleg markedsføringsgreip i Litauen.

Men hvis Dina kunne vore veslesystera til Harry Potter, så minnar Slangens gåve meg faktisk litt om Ringenes Herre og. Særlig den delen som handlar om reise med ei Golum-liknende skapnad.

Slangens gåve likar eg kanskje best etter Skammarens datter. Spenninga byggast veldig fint opp, og finalen er utroleg sterk, selv om den kjem og ender bittelitt for brått. For meg, i alle fall. Eg skulle ønskje alle Skammar-bøkene var lengre, på omtrent 500 sider, og at lesaren fekk moglegheita til å fordjupe seg i karakterane. Fordi den fyrste boka er kanskje ei barnebok, men dei påfølgande bøkene er allereie YA. Det er som med Harry Potter, målgruppa blir eldre samtidig som hovedkarakterane blir eldre. Dette reflekteres nogenlunde i lengden til bøkene, men ikkje nok, imao.

Om eg kunne velje ei superkraft, ville eg valt å glemme kva som skjedde i mine elskade bøker sånn at eg kunne lese dem igjen og igjen. Berre en tanke.

[Book · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have enjoyed the first two books of this series. While this one seemed to go in a different direction than the first two, I was looking forward to seeing where Dina would end up. I'm a little disappointed in how the story turned out. I really ended up liking Sezuan. And I'm heartbroken with how his story turned out. But the rest of the characters, besides Nico, annoyed me and made reading this story miserable. I ended up really hating Dinas mom. All her talk about not abusing her Shamer gift and then went and did exactly that. After Seuzan came into the picture, she forced Dina to do what she said and refused to talk to her children about what was going on. Dina and Davin had already been through so much that the least Messulina could have done was actually speak to them. Davin is also a character that continued to annoy me, though he did end up better by the end of it. And him and Nico became friends. I'm not really sure what the point of this book actually is, but I'm not sure I really want to make the effort to finish the last one.