A Conspiracy of Kings (Queen's Thief, book 4), by Megan Whalen Turner; young adult, fantasy; 316 pages
While I enjoyed this book, I have to agree with Patrick that it wasn't quite as good as the previous three. I attribute that to the small amount of page-time the Gen, the main character of the first three books, gets here. Still, I had a lot of fun with it, and was especially pleased to see that Turner continues to end on a neat twist that nicely ties up loose ends from previous books. Turner could stop here, but I sincerely hope that there's another book in the works, as I'm getting very attached to this world and its characters.
Showing posts with label Character: Eugenides. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Character: Eugenides. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Monday, September 27, 2010
The King of Attolia/Megan Whalen Turner
The King of Attolia (Queen's Thief, book 3), by Megan Whalen Turner; young adult, fantasy; 387 pages
Patrick already beat me to posting about this book, but I'll expand a little on what he wrote. While The Queen of Attolia was a fairly political novel, this one is more focused on the characters, which I loved. The point of view this time is from Costis, a palace guard in Attolia. Having read the first two books, we know that Gen is more than he appears, so the fun is in waiting to see when the other characters (our narrator included) will figure it out. Lots of fun--I wish it had been longer! I listened to the audio version of this and, like the other entries in this series, it was great.
Patrick already beat me to posting about this book, but I'll expand a little on what he wrote. While The Queen of Attolia was a fairly political novel, this one is more focused on the characters, which I loved. The point of view this time is from Costis, a palace guard in Attolia. Having read the first two books, we know that Gen is more than he appears, so the fun is in waiting to see when the other characters (our narrator included) will figure it out. Lots of fun--I wish it had been longer! I listened to the audio version of this and, like the other entries in this series, it was great.
A Conspiracy of Kings by Megan Whalen Turner
A Conspiracy of Kings by Megan Whalen Turner, 316 pages, YA Fantasy
The fourth book in the series. This one is from the point of view of a character whe had met in the first book, Sophos. He is a less engaging narrator and to me, a less engaging character than Eugenidies had been in the previous books. All of the characters still hold their cards close, not letting the reader or the other characters know their true intentions until the end. The books starts with Sophos realizing that he is about to become King of Sounis, and then everything goes horribly wrong, with kidnappings, escapes, treachery and looming war. Eugenidies, Attolia and Eddis all join in the plotting and the fun. It is a good book, but not the best of the series.
The fourth book in the series. This one is from the point of view of a character whe had met in the first book, Sophos. He is a less engaging narrator and to me, a less engaging character than Eugenidies had been in the previous books. All of the characters still hold their cards close, not letting the reader or the other characters know their true intentions until the end. The books starts with Sophos realizing that he is about to become King of Sounis, and then everything goes horribly wrong, with kidnappings, escapes, treachery and looming war. Eugenidies, Attolia and Eddis all join in the plotting and the fun. It is a good book, but not the best of the series.
The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner
The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner, 387 pages, YA Fantasy
The third book following Eugenidies and, I think, the best one so far. Knowing what the title of this book was should have clued me in to how the third one ended, but luckily I wasn't paying that much attention. Eugenidies, now King, continues to let everyone underestimate him in order to get things to go his way. I found myself thinking that he let it all go on too long, but the ending made it all worthwhile.
The third book following Eugenidies and, I think, the best one so far. Knowing what the title of this book was should have clued me in to how the third one ended, but luckily I wasn't paying that much attention. Eugenidies, now King, continues to let everyone underestimate him in order to get things to go his way. I found myself thinking that he let it all go on too long, but the ending made it all worthwhile.
The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner
The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner, 287 pages, YA Fantasy
Eugenidies returns, this time showing his true colors as the Thief of Eddis. He wandering into the kingdom of Attolia, brings him face to face with the Queen, seemingly fierce and remorseless. Eugenides has but always with the confidence that the gods are on his side. What will he do if they turn away though? A very well-written and exciting read, though somewhat darker in tone than the first book.
Eugenidies returns, this time showing his true colors as the Thief of Eddis. He wandering into the kingdom of Attolia, brings him face to face with the Queen, seemingly fierce and remorseless. Eugenides has but always with the confidence that the gods are on his side. What will he do if they turn away though? A very well-written and exciting read, though somewhat darker in tone than the first book.
The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner
The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner, 280 pages, YA Fantasy
A young braggart, going by the name of Gen, released from the dungeons of the King of Sounis is forced to join an expedition to steal the Hamiathie's Gift. This is a stone, reputedly given by one of the gods that when given, confers the right to rule the neighboring kingdom of Eddis. It seems that the King of Sounis has designs on both the kingdom of Eddis and on its queen. A well-written story with plenty of duplicity on the part of the characters, and clever plot twists on the part of the author. Set in a fictional late-medieval Mediterranean area, this is the first book in an award winning YA series.- Patrick
A young braggart, going by the name of Gen, released from the dungeons of the King of Sounis is forced to join an expedition to steal the Hamiathie's Gift. This is a stone, reputedly given by one of the gods that when given, confers the right to rule the neighboring kingdom of Eddis. It seems that the King of Sounis has designs on both the kingdom of Eddis and on its queen. A well-written story with plenty of duplicity on the part of the characters, and clever plot twists on the part of the author. Set in a fictional late-medieval Mediterranean area, this is the first book in an award winning YA series.- Patrick
Monday, September 13, 2010
The Queen of Attolia/Megan Whalen Turner
The Queen of Attolia (Queen's Thief, book 2), by Megan Whalen Turner; young adult, fantasy; 368 pages
I loved this book every bit as much as the first one, which comes as no surprise, given this series' reputation. I can't go into too many details about the plot here without giving away the twist at the end of the The Thief, so I'll settle for talking about the wonderful writing, the character drama, and the sort of intrigue and plotting one would expect in a book about a thief. This volume isn't narrated by Gen, but told from a third person point of view. At first, I missed Gen's voice, but I quickly realized that limiting the story to Gen's perspective would have kept us from knowing vital information. Overall, I really, really enjoyed this book. I listened to it on CD in my car, which lead me to spend Saturday driving around on invented errands, just so I could find out what happened. Highly recommended.
I loved this book every bit as much as the first one, which comes as no surprise, given this series' reputation. I can't go into too many details about the plot here without giving away the twist at the end of the The Thief, so I'll settle for talking about the wonderful writing, the character drama, and the sort of intrigue and plotting one would expect in a book about a thief. This volume isn't narrated by Gen, but told from a third person point of view. At first, I missed Gen's voice, but I quickly realized that limiting the story to Gen's perspective would have kept us from knowing vital information. Overall, I really, really enjoyed this book. I listened to it on CD in my car, which lead me to spend Saturday driving around on invented errands, just so I could find out what happened. Highly recommended.
Monday, August 30, 2010
The Thief/ Megan Whalen Turner
The Thief (Queen Thief, book 1), by Megan Whalen Turner; young adult, fantasy; 304 pages (about 7 hours on audio)
I've had about six people recommend this series to me, but I hadn't read it. But with the unexpected outcome of the YA Fantasy Showdown a few weeks ago, I finally decided to see what all the fuss was about. Now I understand! This is the story of Gen, who claims to be the world's greatest thief: he does successfully steal the king's own seal ring, but then brags to the wrong person and winds up in the king's prison. A royal adviser offers him freedom if he joins them on a treasure hunt in enemy territory--because of course they'll need a skilled thief. Gen's the ultimate in unreliable narrators, so the whole book is filled with moments of Gen pulling one over on the reader (right up to the end!). The audiobook was addicting, and I finished it in record time.
I've had about six people recommend this series to me, but I hadn't read it. But with the unexpected outcome of the YA Fantasy Showdown a few weeks ago, I finally decided to see what all the fuss was about. Now I understand! This is the story of Gen, who claims to be the world's greatest thief: he does successfully steal the king's own seal ring, but then brags to the wrong person and winds up in the king's prison. A royal adviser offers him freedom if he joins them on a treasure hunt in enemy territory--because of course they'll need a skilled thief. Gen's the ultimate in unreliable narrators, so the whole book is filled with moments of Gen pulling one over on the reader (right up to the end!). The audiobook was addicting, and I finished it in record time.
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