m_j_webb's reviews
325 reviews

The real genius of Tolkien lies in his originality. I read LOTR some time ago and found myself slightly disappointed. I thought it hard going if truth be told. However, the brilliance of the concept and characters outweighed anything else for me and he is without doubt the Lord of all he surveys in the Fantasy Kingdom he quite rightly dominates. No author can pen a fantasy novel without being compared to him.
And yet... lesser mortals it seems are criticised for doing what Tolkien gets away with? In all his books there are long sections of 'telling and not showing', there are dialogues and narrative which are 'too wordy', characters which contradict themselves, inconsistencies, sentences which make no sense, repetition.....
Compared to LOTR, The Hobbit if far easier to read and the story flows nicely/at a good pace. It is meant as a children's book but I found that misleading as it is in parts both frightening and complicated? Or perhaps it's just me? The elves, goblins, eagles, spiders, dwarves, dragons, hobbits etc are wonderful creations which have elevated the author to unprecedented heights and immortality. Genius pure and simple. The start of a wonderful series.
To sum up... You may not think so given my earlier comments but I love Tolkien and thoroughly enjoyed all his books (once I persevered past certain sections and understood that one simply can't skip past those you don't like). I just don't subscribe to the theory that he is beyond reproach and can not be criticised. He is the best at what he does certainly, but he should be judged by the same criteria as everyone else, and other authors should be given a fair crack of the whip ( and I'm not talking about me). I believe there are plenty out there who reach the same standards in storytelling, but perhaps do not receive the recognition they deserve? Four stars for me as I believe there are more exciting stories out there, though this author set the benchmark and will always be the one to beat.

This book is so far away from my usual reading matter it's in another galaxy. And yet, I'll let you into a secret; I thoroughly enjoyed it. The author's writing style is so passionate and yet easy, that the story flows naturally from one high spot to another. Raven is a dreamer, but she is every girl I ever knew (or wanted to know) and more. It's easy to see why this author's works have been so successful.
So, why only four stars? I'm a man.
Seriously, it is as good as erotic/romance writing gets, but the genre is just not my thing.

Hyped beyond all belief, so I thought I'd ask my wife to read it and post her review;
She stopped just after half way and stated, 'it was rubbish'. She said she found the whole idea of a woman of today entering into a contract to be a sex slave totally unbelievable and degrading to women. She thought the story was reasonable but 'bored the pants off her', so in a way it had the same effect it had on a lot of her friends only for a different reason (her words not mine). Anyway, she won't be buying the sequels.

Kind of enjoyed the refreshing originality of this book, the tight narrative and editing, the descriptive language... But then, there were also a few negatives; occasional sections which seemed superfluous and did nothing to move the story along, the central theme of painting (which I'm sorry does nothing for me), and the land of Yod? (sorry, but it sounds like something from a cheap sci-fi/B movie).
First off, the idea of a letter as an intro was excellent. But then the first chapter or so became confusing, with too many names and dialogue which only added to my bewilderment. The story picked up however from there and I found myself appreciating the author's style, far more than I did the storyline unfortunately.
However, I would say that this book has plenty going for it and the writer is clearly talented. The series will hopefully be successful for him, it just was not my thing.