From the Bookshelf of Sword & Sorcery: "An earthier sort of fantasy"…
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February - March Groupreads - Anthologies
By Stephen · 11 posts · 44 views
By Stephen · 11 posts · 44 views
last updated Mar 27, 2023 09:03PM
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December Groupreads - Conan - Blood Of The Serpent
By Stephen · 30 posts · 54 views
By Stephen · 30 posts · 54 views
last updated Dec 26, 2022 08:20AM
What Members Thought
A beautifully crafted book. The action is subtle and in the hands of a less - skilled writer might have been slogging and boring, but is instead captivating. It was a wonderful change of pace to read a fantasy book that dealt with the day to day practical mechinations of an Empire, something usually left behind the scenes. And it was a relief to read a book set during a peaceful time in a peaceful place and not on the field of battle or in the midst of war. The conflict in The Goblin Emperor is
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I wanted to give this five stars, but I just can't. The protagonist was constantly ashamed/embarrassed/terrified or some other variation of the same throughout the story. I understand he's inexperienced and out of his depth, but it becomes tiresome when you come across evidence of his ineptitude after every few pages. Furthermore, he was often prone to dramatic exclamations - which he regretted immediately. It was a recurring mistake, one that the protagonist seemed unable to prevent throughout
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A refreshing new fantasy novel: not grimdark, no humans, no epic quests. Who could have thought that Byzantine court politics could be so much fun?
My main gripe: the numerous names were already hard enough to keep track of, adding all the weird titles for functions for which there are perfectly normal names (why maza for mage/wizard for example) made it not easier.
Sometimes I just read on instead of checking the character list at the end, hoping that the character that was mentioned was the one ...more
My main gripe: the numerous names were already hard enough to keep track of, adding all the weird titles for functions for which there are perfectly normal names (why maza for mage/wizard for example) made it not easier.
Sometimes I just read on instead of checking the character list at the end, hoping that the character that was mentioned was the one ...more
Really enjoyed this! A very immersive world. Wondered a bit about the anthropology - basically, elves, goblins, some mention of ogres back in the mountains, and then folk in the plains who aren't elves... a part of me wondered about racial politics, but mostly set that aside to enjoy the internal politics of the court. I did find myself lost a few times in the names (and there are places where the glossary at the front of the book could have been more inclusive--the term the author uses for homo
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Fabulous and Intricate World-Building
I put off reading this for a while after I purchased this book. Yes, it had great reviews, but that doesn’t always mean a book is worth the acclaim.
Well, in this case, the acclaim is well-deserved!
In fact I haven’t encountered a fantasy both as well-written, beautifully developed, and detailed in ages. Ms. Addison has created a unique world of Goblins and Elves. Though there are no humans directly featured in the novel, I imagine they would be the nomadic Ba ...more
I put off reading this for a while after I purchased this book. Yes, it had great reviews, but that doesn’t always mean a book is worth the acclaim.
Well, in this case, the acclaim is well-deserved!
In fact I haven’t encountered a fantasy both as well-written, beautifully developed, and detailed in ages. Ms. Addison has created a unique world of Goblins and Elves. Though there are no humans directly featured in the novel, I imagine they would be the nomadic Ba ...more
At first I wasn't sure that I liked this book at all. As I progressed through the story, I did find myself grudgingly enjoying it. I never loved it, though. It's just too. . . naive. . . polite. . . shallow. . . This isn't a tale of murder and revenge. It's not an epic quest. It's a somewhat charming, gentle political drama that breaks away from the edgy, cynical tone that is so prevalent lately. It's like a fantasy(ish) version of "Mr. Smith Goes to Washington" (something I very much needed aft
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Oct 28, 2014
Lambros Fouloulis
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