This mythical series opener abounds in vivid characters and crisp details.
In Anderson’s fantasy debut, a queen-to-be braves a harrowing journey across worlds to pull her people out of exile.
Tchardin, the youngest of five sisters, is one of the kandar—a “guardian race” meant to guide humans on the nine Earths. But for several generations, the kandar have been exiled to their planet Derkra. Tchardin will soon be Derkra’s queen, but she questions her ability to effectively rule; during this exile, no kandar has been able to travel to any of the Earths to fulfill the Purpose their Creator gave them. Tchardin differs from her sisters in her curious nature: “The longing for something beyond had come to her early in life, but it had been easy to ignore until lately. Now the feeling pressured her almost constantly.” She indulges her hunger for the unknown by answering a mysterious call while traveling toward the kandars’ long-abandoned city of origin. Surprises ensue, including the rediscovery of the kandars’ ability to “shift” between worlds. An unexpected foe whose nefarious plan involves starting a war pulls Tchardin to one of the Earths. To get back to Derkra, she must traverse the nine Earths—all while fighting an enemy’s interplanetary influence and menacing presence. This epic novel, which launches a prospective series, excels at worldbuilding; in particular, Anderson evocatively describes the planet Derkra, covered by an empty, desolate, seemingly infinite ocean that the kandar appear to fear. The story takes full advantage of its length, fleshing out its characters and ever changing locales. While the cast includes plenty of Derkra’s inhabitants (as well as some humans), the empathetic Tchardin and her multilayered sisters bask in the brightest spotlight. As the author has sequels planned, myriad questions linger, from the fates of various individuals to the particulars of Derkra’s past, including the kandaran war and resultant exile.
This mythical series opener abounds in vivid characters and crisp details.Pub Date: May 1, 2023
ISBN: 9781778288135
Page Count: 640
Publisher: Root of the World Publishing
Review Posted Online: March 3, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2023
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Unrelenting, and not in a good way.
A young Navarrian woman faces even greater challenges in her second year at dragon-riding school.
Violet Sorrengail did all the normal things one would do as a first-year student at Basgiath War College: made new friends, fell in love, and survived multiple assassination attempts. She was also the first rider to ever bond with two dragons: Tairn, a powerful black dragon with a distinguished battle history, and Andarna, a baby dragon too young to carry a rider. At the end of Fourth Wing (2023), Violet and her lover, Xaden Riorson, discovered that Navarre is under attack from wyvern, evil two-legged dragons, and venin, soulless monsters that harvest energy from the ground. Navarrians had always been told that these were monsters of legend and myth, not real creatures dangerously close to breaking through Navarre’s wards and attacking civilian populations. In this overly long sequel, Violet, Xaden, and their dragons are determined to find a way to protect Navarre, despite the fact that the army and government hid the truth about these creatures. Due to the machinations of several traitorous instructors at Basgiath, Xaden and Violet are separated for most of the book—he’s stationed at a distant outpost, leaving her to handle the treacherous, cutthroat world of the war college on her own. Violet is repeatedly threatened by her new vice commandant, a brutal man who wants to silence her. Although Violet and her dragons continue to model extreme bravery, the novel feels repetitive and more than a little sloppy, leaving obvious questions about the world unanswered. The book is full of action and just as full of plot holes, including scenes that are illogical or disconnected from the main narrative. Secondary characters are ignored until a scene requires them to assist Violet or to be killed in the endless violence that plagues their school.
Unrelenting, and not in a good way.Pub Date: Nov. 7, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374172
Page Count: 640
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 20, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.
On the orders of her mother, a woman goes to dragon-riding school.
Even though her mother is a general in Navarre’s army, 20-year-old Violet Sorrengail was raised by her father to follow his path as a scribe. After his death, though, Violet's mother shocks her by forcing her to enter the elite and deadly dragon rider academy at Basgiath War College. Most students die at the War College: during training sessions, at the hands of their classmates, or by the very dragons they hope to one day be paired with. From Day One, Violet is targeted by her classmates, some because they hate her mother, others because they think she’s too physically frail to succeed. She must survive a daily gauntlet of physical challenges and the deadly attacks of classmates, which she does with the help of secret knowledge handed down by her two older siblings, who'd been students there before her. Violet is at the mercy of the plot rather than being in charge of it, hurtling through one obstacle after another. As a result, the story is action-packed and fast-paced, but Violet is a strange mix of pure competence and total passivity, always managing to come out on the winning side. The book is categorized as romantasy, with Violet pulled between the comforting love she feels from her childhood best friend, Dain Aetos, and the incendiary attraction she feels for family enemy Xaden Riorson. However, the way Dain constantly undermines Violet's abilities and his lack of character development make this an unconvincing storyline. The plots and subplots aren’t well-integrated, with the first half purely focused on Violet’s training, followed by a brief detour for romance, and then a final focus on outside threats.
Read this for the action-packed plot, not character development or worldbuilding.Pub Date: May 2, 2023
ISBN: 9781649374042
Page Count: 528
Publisher: Red Tower
Review Posted Online: Jan. 12, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
BOOK TO SCREEN
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