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laurawil's review against another edition
adventurous
slow-paced
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
1.0
diesmali's review against another edition
4.0
Oddly paced, glossing over several days of action at times. Weird paragraphing, switching perspectives and making it difficult to follow sometimes.
But lovely world building and mostly well-balanced characters.
But lovely world building and mostly well-balanced characters.
katmarhan's review against another edition
3.0
6/10
This is book 1 in a tetralogy, so the author spends a lot of time on world-building and historical back-notes. Yet we do get to know the main characters, Llian and Karan, quite well. i thought all the major characters seem fairly nuanced--real people with flaws and strengths, warts and virtues.
I thought some of the interminable journeying could have been condensed, but the events in the escapes and chases did help develop the characters and their relationships with each other.
I certainly enjoyed this enough and am intrigued enough to continue the series.
This is book 1 in a tetralogy, so the author spends a lot of time on world-building and historical back-notes. Yet we do get to know the main characters, Llian and Karan, quite well. i thought all the major characters seem fairly nuanced--real people with flaws and strengths, warts and virtues.
I thought some of the interminable journeying could have been condensed, but the events in the escapes and chases did help develop the characters and their relationships with each other.
I certainly enjoyed this enough and am intrigued enough to continue the series.
ph230's review against another edition
4.0
A shadow on the glass is no easy book to read.
The story is tense, there are many many details and description, and the characters are full (and many).
I found the story so overwhleming!! (if I took so much time to read is because I misplaced my kindle :( )
The story is tense, there are many many details and description, and the characters are full (and many).
I found the story so overwhleming!! (if I took so much time to read is because I misplaced my kindle :( )
lewipoint's review against another edition
I thought that the beginning was very strong with the set-up for the world and lore. The two main characters were also quite interesting but then it turned into hundreds of pages of just walking to locations with not much interesting happening. One character is pursued the whole time by beings seemingly adept at tracking and yet she miraculously keeps giving them the slip while the other character seems incapable of doing much at all. I've been told its a good series overall and I like that the author is Australian but there just wasn't enough for me to push through.
murkymaster's review against another edition
5.0
think? THINK? I CAN'T THINK RIGHT NOW! major book hangover. will be back. oh my word... so damn good
thekarpuk's review against another edition
2.0
Ever have someone telling you a really interesting anecdote and someone else interrupts with a boring, only vaguely related story? That's how Ian Irvine writes.
It starts off with the main character telling a story about this fictional universe, which for me is tantamount to beginning a college lecture with a long, growling fart.
Of course it goes on to establish some interesting characters, some rather gripping descriptions, and a brisk, engaging pacing. But ever so often, sometimes without warning, there will be several dull pages explaining the history of their world.
Most of the modern sword n' horses fantasy we owe to one Mr. Tolkien, but they often forget the things he actually did right. Though functioning in an elaborate world, [b:the Lord of the Rings|34|The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings, #1)|J.R.R. Tolkien|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1298411339s/34.jpg|3204327] books never felt bogged down by history. All the characters functioned knowing their own history, and only explained something if someone else didn't already know that aspect of another character's culture. Those books are full of appendixes covering all the crap he didn't feel the need to discuss in the context of the story.
And that's fine, if you're so curious about a passing comment that you need to know more about elf history, go wild, but the rest of us don't care. Appendixes, like maps, are metadata I can accept in regards to fantasy, as it removes some of the burden from the story. A lot of Irvine's history explanations about the multiples races should have been cut out and moved.
But you know what it does have in the back? A glossary, my nemesis. And why you ask? Because it contains names like Llian and Yuggur, and suggests that the double consonants are said as two separate sounds. I don't know why you would do that.
The 2 stars is really for spite, because without the 20 or so pages of needless exposition it's really a solid 3.
It starts off with the main character telling a story about this fictional universe, which for me is tantamount to beginning a college lecture with a long, growling fart.
Of course it goes on to establish some interesting characters, some rather gripping descriptions, and a brisk, engaging pacing. But ever so often, sometimes without warning, there will be several dull pages explaining the history of their world.
Most of the modern sword n' horses fantasy we owe to one Mr. Tolkien, but they often forget the things he actually did right. Though functioning in an elaborate world, [b:the Lord of the Rings|34|The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings, #1)|J.R.R. Tolkien|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1298411339s/34.jpg|3204327] books never felt bogged down by history. All the characters functioned knowing their own history, and only explained something if someone else didn't already know that aspect of another character's culture. Those books are full of appendixes covering all the crap he didn't feel the need to discuss in the context of the story.
And that's fine, if you're so curious about a passing comment that you need to know more about elf history, go wild, but the rest of us don't care. Appendixes, like maps, are metadata I can accept in regards to fantasy, as it removes some of the burden from the story. A lot of Irvine's history explanations about the multiples races should have been cut out and moved.
But you know what it does have in the back? A glossary, my nemesis. And why you ask? Because it contains names like Llian and Yuggur, and suggests that the double consonants are said as two separate sounds. I don't know why you would do that.
The 2 stars is really for spite, because without the 20 or so pages of needless exposition it's really a solid 3.
janeywaneyb's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Fantastic epic fantasy novel that introduces you to Ian Irvine's books. I was hooked and wanted to read the other books to see what would happen. A strong cast of characters all flawed but with endearing features that keep you reading
mistborn_girl's review against another edition
DNF'd at 15%
I just could not keep going with this. Everything was just to convenient. Some things were explained too much and others not enough, I felt like I was told too much and not shown enough and I didn't care for the characters as they felt very 2 dimensional.
I think I may try this again at a later date as I do think it has potential but it has just put me into a big reading slump, so I've put it aside for now. It's a pity, as I was going to get to meet this author at Brisbane's Supanova next month which is why I picked this book up now (been wanting to read it for ages though).
I just could not keep going with this. Everything was just to convenient. Some things were explained too much and others not enough, I felt like I was told too much and not shown enough and I didn't care for the characters as they felt very 2 dimensional.
I think I may try this again at a later date as I do think it has potential but it has just put me into a big reading slump, so I've put it aside for now. It's a pity, as I was going to get to meet this author at Brisbane's Supanova next month which is why I picked this book up now (been wanting to read it for ages though).