Bujold, Lois McMaster. The Sharing Knife: Beguilement.The first half of the book was OK. There was some mystery, some excitement. About half way through, however, the book slowed down and took a more romantic turn. This complication dragged on until the end. Blah, blah, blah.
Not even the first section had me invested, but at least it moved quickly. The Sharing Knife is the first in a series, but since the characters didn't appeal to me and never seemed to come off the page, and I'm not sure there was a plot, it will be the last for me. Fawn & Dag can ride off into the Lakewalker sunset, and I'll trouble them no more.
I looked at the Amazon reviews when I finished writing this. I agree with those who rated it 1 or 2, but the majority of the reviews were positive... So remember Bujold fans, my reviews are just my opinion, and we all have different preferences in books.
Fiction. Fantasy. 2006. 372 pages.
Hmmmm I know. Too many books, and fantasy books in particular, leave me with the "so what" feeling. That's why its so great when one does find a worthwhile read.
ReplyDeleteDo you think those Amazon reviews are by real people? I mean - real readers as opposed to people selling books? :D
I'm not a huge fantasy fan and this cover isn't particularly calling to me, so I'm probably on no danger of having almost read this one.
ReplyDeleteWhile I'm here. I gave you an award. You can see it here: http://www.linussblanket.com/2009/04/ive-been-awarded-the-premio-dardos-award/
That's too bad. I don't think this one would appeal to me either even taking into account the positive reviews.
ReplyDeleteyou hit the nail on the head. It's always a gamble what attracts us and what keeps us in a book. I always worry that someone will buy a book i read and then not like it. none of us can afford to spend money and not enjoy the result of it.
ReplyDeleteMasha - :) I don't know about Amazon's reviews. I love fantasy, but agree that many leave you with the "so what" feeling. There are the great ones, though, that keep you searching for more.
ReplyDeleteNicole - The covers of fantasy are rarely appealing to me, and I'll pass on some based on the covers alone. Thanks for the award!
LF - Bujold has a lot of fans, but we all like different kinds of fantasy. Interesting that some of her fans didn't like this one...
DesLily - I try to read most of my fantasy from the library for that reason, but these were on last year's list, and I went ahead and ordered them. Will have to have a give-a-way soon.