Hi all:
Today I'm continuing on the CSFF blog tour of Karen Hancock's "Legends of the Guardian King" series, which consists of four titles:
- The Light of Eidon
- The Shadow Within
- Shadow Over Kiriath
- Return of the Guardian-King
Yesterday I posted a review of Book One. Now it's on to my review of Book Two: The Shadow Within, which first appeared at SFReader:
Karen Hancock's Legends of the Guardian-King series is fantasy writing at its best. I give it my highest recommendation for characterization, story, descriptions, locations, and theme.
Picking up where The Light of Eidon left off (yet easily enjoyed by readers who haven't read this first volume), The Shadow Within begins with Abramm Kalladorne sailing home to claim his rightful place as King of Kiriath.
It doesn't go smoothly, of course, and before he even reaches shore he has to confront a leviathan-like beast called a kraggin, which may have been created by wicked mystics bent on destroying the kingdom. Then he has to confront his younger brother, Gillard, who has been running the country into the ground.And that's just the beginning.
Once he's on the throne, the problems continue. His troubles range from learning the latest dance step to pacify palace gossips and minimize royal intrigue to evading assassination attempts to facing another malevolent being called a morwhol, which was created specifically to kill Abramm and all his kin.
Not to mention handling a busybody second daughter from a neighboring kingdom, who repeatedly sticks her nose in where it doesn't belong-except that her insights and pronouncements turn out to be very helpful indeed.
Elsewhere, Abramm's estranged and formerly beloved sister, Carissa, hides in the hinterlands from her sadistic husband. When she hears that Abramm is back in the kingdom, she refuses to go down and meet him until she is forced into the treacherous journey by dire circumstances.
Whew! The pacing of these varied plots is masterfully handled. Each thread builds its own inner tensions, and the strands come together in surprising and satisfying ways.The ultimate climax of the story is breathtaking, unpredictable, and gratifying while still leaving loose ends to be picked up by the next volume:
- Will Gillard survive?
- Where is Carissa's husband now?
- Will the budding romance between Abramm and the plain-looking, plainspoken second daughter develop into something that could threaten relations with Kiriath's neighbors?
- When will the Armies of the Black Moon attack?
If this peaks your interest, and you're interested in reading what others have to say about the series, check out these other bloggers, who will be writing about "Legends of the Guardian King" April 16, 17, and 18:
Nissa Annakindt
Wayne Thomas Batson
Jim Black
Jackie Castle
Valerie Comer
Karri Compton
Frank Creed
CSFF Blog Tour
Gene Curtis
D. G. D. Davidson
Chris Deanne
Janey DeMeo
April Erwin
Kameron M. Franklin
Beth Goddard
Marcus Goodyear
Andrea Graham
Katie Hart
Sherrie Hibbs
Sharon Hinck
Christopher Hopper
Heather R. Hunt
Becca Johnson
Jason Joyner
Karen
Tina Kulesa
Lost Genre Guild
Kevin Lucia and The Bookshelf Reviews 2.0 - The Compendium
Rachel Marks
Rebecca LuElla Miller
Shannon McNear
Caleb Newell
Eve Nielsen
John W. Otte
Robin Parrish
Rachelle
Cheryl Russel
Hanna Sandvig
Chawna Schroeder
Mirtika Schultz
James Somers
Tsaba House Authors
Steve Trower
Speculative Faith
Daniel I. Weaver
Dawn King
Rebecca Grabill
Jill Hart
Enjoy a whole new world of adventure with Karen Hancock's series!
hrh
4 comments:
The third book will BLOW YOU AWAY. It really will.
Yep, I just said at someone else's site, I think book 3 is my favorite still.
Becky
I've got to read the other books in this series.
Hello everyone:
Yep, I agree, read the whole series if you can! It's a great experience.
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