Category Archives: Fantasy

Review: By Darkness Hid by Jill Williamson

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By Darkness Hid by Jill Williamson

By Darkness Hid
Jill Williamson
Marcher Lord Press
Published April 1, 2009

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About By Darkness Hid

Achan has known nothing but the life of a stray, lower even than that of a slave. When a mysterious knight, rumored to have once been a stray himself, makes an offer to Achan to train him as his squire, despite laws that should prevent it, Achan finds himself trapped between two lives. In this midst of this, a strange gift seems to wake inside him. But isn’t bloodvoicing just a myth?

When an evil prince seeks her hand in marriage, Vrell hides behind the orange tunic of a stray and masquerades as a boy to conceal her identity. At the same time, her own newly discovered gift brings her to the attention of those in power despite her disguise. As they seek to exploit her gift, they draw dangerously close to uncovering her secret. As the prince’s coronation approaches, Achan and Vrell’s troubles only increase. Will Achan’s gift uncover his true identity? Can Vrell quell her gift to protect hers?

My Review

BY DARKNESS HID, the first novel in Jill Williamson’s Blood of Kings trilogy, is fast-paced, intriguing, and full of clever characters. I loved both Achan and Vrell (though their names are a little tough to say) and the story world contains some really different elements. I’m always a sucker for political intrigue, and By Darkness Hid had a little bit of that happening, too, which kept me guessing. This is one of those books you need to own two copies of: one for yourself and one to lend out to others. Great summer read!

Content Notes for By Darkness Hid

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
Er’Rets is a kingdom half in darknes. The people worship many gods, but some believe there is one god, Arman, the creator, above all others.

Violence
Some battle scenes, but gore is minimal.

Drug Content
None.

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Review: Brisingr by Christopher Paolini

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , , , , , ,

Brisingr
Christopher Paolini
Alfred A Knopf Books
Published September 20, 2008

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After a crushing defeat at the hand of an unexpected enemy, Eragon and Saphira’s confidence in their abilities remains deeply shaken. They desperately need more training, but first, Eragon must fulfill his promise to his cousin Roran. He must rescue Roran’s beloved from the evil and creepy Ra’Zac.

Immediately upon their return to the rebel camp, both Eragon and Saphira must help protect the troops from Galbatorix’s seemingly invincible armies and the unbelievable strength of the magic supporting them. Eragon and Saphira must uncover the mystery of Galbatorix’s might and come up with a plan to stop him before his power grows too vast to challenge.

I was really excited to learn who Eragon’s father is. It made a lot of sense, and it’s a character that I liked anyway. The dragon Glaedr was another unexpected favorite character for me. Again, the story world is highly developed. The large cast of characters gives Brisingr a definite epic fantasy feel. Some of the battle scenes are more intense than in other books as the war between Eragon and Galbatorix heats up further.

I’ve invested a lot in the series, so I definitely need to read the fourth book, but I still wish each one was shorter and the descriptions of things were reigned in a bit more.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Sexual Content
A girl discovers she’s pregnant, and a wedding for her and her lover is quickly arranged.

Spiritual Content
There is a lot of magic/sorcery-type content as well as telepathy, etc. Obviously the story contains dragons portrayed as thinking, feeling, benevolent creatures.

Violence
Some battle sequences and creepy villain characters. Light to moderate gore with battle injuries.

Drug Content
None.

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Review: Eldest by Christopher Paolini

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , ,

Eldest
Christopher Paolini
Knopf Books for Young Readers
Published March 13, 2007

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Eldest is the continuation of Paolini’s Inheritance Trilogy, in which Dragon Rider, Eragon journeys to the Elves’ home deep in the forest to train under a new mentor whom he at first knows as The Cripple Who Is Whole. Eragon struggles with his physical weakness resulting from a battle wound and his growing attraction to the elf-maiden, Arya. Meanwhile, in his hometown of Carvahall, Eragon’s cousin Roran fights another battle. The evil Ra’zac return, threatening to destroy the village in their search for Roran, who must take command of the panicked villagers and keep them safe, no matter what the cost.

The history and culture details spread throughout the portions of the novel depicting Eragon’s stay with the elves and further training are stunning and well-developed. I thought it was equally as engaging as its predecessor, Eragon. I enjoyed getting to see more of the story-world and the heightening tension between Eragon and his enemies.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Sexuality
None.

Spiritual Content
There is a lot of magic/sorcery-type content as well as telepathy, etc. Obviously the story contains dragons, which are portrayed as thinking, feeling, benevolent creatures.

Violence
Some battle sequences and creepy villain characters. Light to moderate gore with battle injuries.

Drug Content
None.

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Review: Eragon by Christopher Paolini

Book Review and Content, Fantasy, Young Adult/Teen 12-18, , , , ,

Eragon
Christopher Paolini
Knopf Books for Young Readers
Published April 2005 (Orig. published 2002)

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Eragon is the first novel in the Inheritance Cycle and tells the story of a boy who finds a mysterious “stone” which later hatches a dragon, Saphira. Together they embark on a quest to avenge the death of a family member and through this become involved in the dangerous politics of his homeland, Alagaesia. They must choose to side with the evil King Galbatorix or escape his agents, risk their lives and fight for freedom.

If you saw the movie Eragon a couple years back but didn’t read the book, you missed out on a real adventure. While I loved the characters– especially Saphira and Eragon’s mentor– some of the descriptive passages move a bit slowly. The entire novel is a lot for readers to chew at over 500 pages. I would have enjoyed it more, I think, at 100 pages shorter.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None.

Sexuality
None.

Spiritual Content
There is a lot of magic/sorcery-type content as well as telepathy, etc. Obviously the story contains dragons, which are portrayed as thinking, feeling, benevolent creatures.

Violence
Some battle sequences and creepy villain characters. Light to moderate gore with battle injuries.

Drug Content
None.

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Review: Once Upon a Marigold by Jean Ferris

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Once Upon a Marigold
Jean Ferris
HMH Books for Young Readers
Published October 1, 2002

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Christian is a young inventor living in the forest with his foster father, a troll named Ed. Life is pretty sweet until the day Christian discovers the lonely Princess Marigold and decides to send her a message via carrier pigeon (p-mail). To Christian’s surprise, the princess replies to his message and the two become best friends.

When Christian uncovers a vicious plot to kill Marigold, he can’t sit by and do nothing. But how can a commoner do anything to save the princess?

Once Upon a Marigold is a spunky, cute fairy tale type story about having courage to do what’s right to protect the people important to you and the meaning of true friendship. The characters are sometimes goofy and silly – Christian’s guardian is a troll who often mixes up common sayings. Marigold’s father reminded me a little bit of the king in The Princess Bride – he’s very gentle and sweet. While anyone would probably enjoy this story, it really is perfect for middle elementary aged readers. My daughter and I have read it together more than once as well as having read the subsequent Marigold books.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
None

Sexual Content
None.

Spiritual Content
The princess is under a curse of uncertain origin: when someone touches her, she knows their thoughts. She and Christian briefly discuss their astrological signs, and the fact that they share the same sign is viewed as a confirmation of their relationship.

Violent Content
A flying machine crashes, causing some minor injuries. A character is struck with an arrow that must be removed. Nothing graphic.

Drug Content
None

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So Yesterday by Scott Westerfeld

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So Yesterday
Scott Westerfeld
Razorbill
Published January 1, 2004

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When Hunter meets a girl with a whole different way of doing her shoelaces, he has no idea the strange adventure that’s about to begin. Through her, he winds up invited to a secret meeting at which he stumbles onto a pair of amazing shoes, and the possibility that his cool-hunting boss has been kidnapped. Hunter and his new friend pursue the shoemakers, trying to discover what’s become of his boss, Mandy. Full of quirky characters and with Hunter’s off-the-wall sense of humor and irony, So Yesterday was a worthy read. Go Hunter, the Mighty Penguin!

This was such a fun story. I read and loved the Uglies series by Westerfeld, and when I saw this, I had to pick it up. So Yesterday is a lot lighter than Uglies, but still packs great characters and a thought-provoking message about trends and how sometimes we get used by companies in their pursuit of a bottom line.

The more I read by Scott Westerfeld, the more respect I have for him. I guess I’m a little old-fashioned, but I like YA that is cleaner, at least that doesn’t brazenly plaster sexual situations across its pages. Scott Westerfeld handles these situations elegantly, acknowledging them without overstating them. I like that and really enjoy knowing I can recommend these stories to younger teens with confidence.

Profanity/Crude Language Content
Mild profanity.

Sexual Content
While Hunter is attracted to a girl, not much happens between them physically through the course of the story.

Spiritual Content
None

Violence
Very light– some scuffles between good guys and bad guys.

Drug Content
Alcohol is served to guests at a product launch party. Underage characters drink juice cocktails– it’s not totally clear whether they expected the juice to be spiked, but hard to believe it came as a surprise. There’s not really any clear remorse for consuming alcohol under age.

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