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bluebeereads's review
2.0
Review is also posted on my blog: Bookaddict Bieke.
2.5 stars
Well, this was different. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either. The Toy Sorcerer is an original story that has a Alice in Wonderland-vibe to it. Too bad I was never a fan of that story, but I kind of liked this version of it. The story is well-crafted and it's written pretty good too, but I had a hard time getting through it. I had to force myself to continue reading the book. Once I was reading I got through it pretty quick but I don't like it when I have to force myself to read it. I read it because I had to finish it. I postponed reading it a lot and that's never good.
What I liked:
The plot is pretty original. I loved the characters. Especially Shammy. He's so fun! I also liked the world the writer has created in this book. The Dream Realms are exciting and scary at the same time.
What I didn't like:
Well... the fact that I didn't want to read it further and had to force myself doing so, can be because this just isn't my cup of tea. That doesn't mean this story is bad, because it isn't. It's pretty good, but not everybody likes the same things. Something that really annoyed me throughout the book are the occasional spelling and grammar errors I found. And the fact that a girl from Belgium, who's native language isn't English but Dutch, can find these errors, isn't a good sign. So, yeah. That annoyed me. xD
My conclusion:
Although it's not one of my favorites, once I was reading I enjoyed reading it. I wasn't hooked to the story, so yeah. I will be reading the sequel, maybe the things I didn't like in this part, will be better in the next. I have to read 3 other books first, but I will get to it soon enough.
2.5 stars
Well, this was different. I didn't hate it, but I didn't love it either. The Toy Sorcerer is an original story that has a Alice in Wonderland-vibe to it. Too bad I was never a fan of that story, but I kind of liked this version of it. The story is well-crafted and it's written pretty good too, but I had a hard time getting through it. I had to force myself to continue reading the book. Once I was reading I got through it pretty quick but I don't like it when I have to force myself to read it. I read it because I had to finish it. I postponed reading it a lot and that's never good.
What I liked:
The plot is pretty original. I loved the characters. Especially Shammy. He's so fun! I also liked the world the writer has created in this book. The Dream Realms are exciting and scary at the same time.
What I didn't like:
Well... the fact that I didn't want to read it further and had to force myself doing so, can be because this just isn't my cup of tea. That doesn't mean this story is bad, because it isn't. It's pretty good, but not everybody likes the same things. Something that really annoyed me throughout the book are the occasional spelling and grammar errors I found. And the fact that a girl from Belgium, who's native language isn't English but Dutch, can find these errors, isn't a good sign. So, yeah. That annoyed me. xD
My conclusion:
Although it's not one of my favorites, once I was reading I enjoyed reading it. I wasn't hooked to the story, so yeah. I will be reading the sequel, maybe the things I didn't like in this part, will be better in the next. I have to read 3 other books first, but I will get to it soon enough.
aashkevr's review
4.0
The first and best word I can think of to describe this book: epic.
When authors attempt to self-identify as writers of "epic fantasy" I generally scoff - but this book succeeded. I enjoyed it quite a bit.
This read like a mixture of Alice in Wonderland and the Chronicles of Narnia, with some heavy archetypes, some wonderfully bizarre and original characters and a moving plot that, you know, mattered.
It was refreshing to read a book where the "love" was understated and tentative, but still obviously sincere. Also, where love did not equal triangle. It was nice to see that the epic-level of the plot was not made to bow to some cheesy, too-quickly fashioned obsession. It was cute without being THE THING THE BOOK WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR. Because we've had enough of that lately. I mean, we lose sight of plot implications debating Gale vs. Peeta. This was a refreshing change.
The first 2/3 of the book went quite quickly. I could see from the numbers on my kindle that the book was "long" but it didn't "feel" long. The story was engaging, the characters interesting, the writing beautiful - and I am always into a good traditional pagan story with witchcraft that hasn't become all stupidly twisted by modern paranormal obsession.
Shammy. Loved Shammy. Just. Loved. Shammy.
And Merlin. Wasn't sure, but then it grew on me. It's always tough to bring in so many archetypal ideas - the representations of Goddesses, Magic, Dreams. These are hard things to mess with and still be successful. But Hart manages, with gusto.
The dreams. The dream realms were interesting, but the dream segments that occur later were just beautiful. I was really impressed with the way they remained relevant, thought-provoking and engaging. I loved that there wasn't a single answer curled into each scenario, but rather a multitude of threads that helped spell out Truth.
I was a big fan of this portion of the book. I felt very moved, and I was impressed with the way the trials were laid out and the ability of the author to juggle a multitude of plot threads and characters and bring them all together in an (almost) seamless ending. The fact that I knew, at any point in the book, where every character was and what he/she was up to was *damned impressive*. There was clearly a lot of care taken with crafting the story.
The slow reveal! I am always impressed when authors write stories that unfold. I get very tired of reading like I'm eating a feast - a table of plot and detail laid out before me on shiny silver plates - VOILA! no mystery here! So far from that was this book. Hart managed to write a story that would have resisted such methods anyway, mostly due to complexity, but in addition (YAY!) she took pains to shape and tease the story. And it shows. The craftsmanship is impressive.
And then: ACK, WHAT KIND OF ENDING IS THAT?
OK, so I felt it was coming, but still. Boo! (but in a cheering kind of way). Hopefully more of the series is coming soon?
All in all, I was very impressed. That being said-
I think the end loses it a little bit. I may not have noticed except I had come to expect so much in terms of craft and reasoning, and then, there were a few disappointments.
Notably:
Certain moves on the parts of the villains seemed to be occurring for shock effect for the reader, and not as part of any great strategy. Ashabath kills a bunch of villagers as a reward for getting Alice's body. K. Makes sense. Why only some of the villagers, since they were all just meat to the slaughter, wandering out into the village green in their nighties? Maybe so Leona would have to go and provide ministrations? After all, she says that her sister knew this would be a necessity. OK. Then ... what? Nothing happens while Leona is in the village. So ... it was all a clever ploy to ... what, deprive her of a nap? It can't be just an anger thing - Leona is pissed already, and her affections for the animals much truer anyway. So, what's the point?
Little things like that. They don't really detract from the plot though, and they certainly don't lessen the power of the book. They just ... make me wonder. Maybe I missed something. I'm willing to believe it, because this is a well-put-together piece of writing.
Oh, but I do take issue with the rather limiting definition of "id". I thought it hurt one of the most interesting facets of the book to encompass such a complex idea into a single box. I know that "id" is still a pretty big box, but ... I felt dissatisfied.
These things I mention only because, THIS BOOK WAS AWESOME.
Fun, original, and with all the staples of a true EPIC.
When authors attempt to self-identify as writers of "epic fantasy" I generally scoff - but this book succeeded. I enjoyed it quite a bit.
This read like a mixture of Alice in Wonderland and the Chronicles of Narnia, with some heavy archetypes, some wonderfully bizarre and original characters and a moving plot that, you know, mattered.
It was refreshing to read a book where the "love" was understated and tentative, but still obviously sincere. Also, where love did not equal triangle. It was nice to see that the epic-level of the plot was not made to bow to some cheesy, too-quickly fashioned obsession. It was cute without being THE THING THE BOOK WILL BE REMEMBERED FOR. Because we've had enough of that lately. I mean, we lose sight of plot implications debating Gale vs. Peeta. This was a refreshing change.
The first 2/3 of the book went quite quickly. I could see from the numbers on my kindle that the book was "long" but it didn't "feel" long. The story was engaging, the characters interesting, the writing beautiful - and I am always into a good traditional pagan story with witchcraft that hasn't become all stupidly twisted by modern paranormal obsession.
Shammy. Loved Shammy. Just. Loved. Shammy.
And Merlin. Wasn't sure, but then it grew on me. It's always tough to bring in so many archetypal ideas - the representations of Goddesses, Magic, Dreams. These are hard things to mess with and still be successful. But Hart manages, with gusto.
The dreams. The dream realms were interesting, but the dream segments that occur later
Spoiler
when the Ancients are testing Magog and Alice and challenging them to confront their deepest selvesI was a big fan of this portion of the book. I felt very moved, and I was impressed with the way the trials were laid out and the ability of the author to juggle a multitude of plot threads and characters and bring them all together in an (almost) seamless ending. The fact that I knew, at any point in the book, where every character was and what he/she was up to was *damned impressive*. There was clearly a lot of care taken with crafting the story.
The slow reveal! I am always impressed when authors write stories that unfold. I get very tired of reading like I'm eating a feast - a table of plot and detail laid out before me on shiny silver plates - VOILA! no mystery here! So far from that was this book. Hart managed to write a story that would have resisted such methods anyway, mostly due to complexity, but in addition (YAY!) she took pains to shape and tease the story. And it shows. The craftsmanship is impressive.
And then: ACK, WHAT KIND OF ENDING IS THAT?
OK, so I felt it was coming, but still. Boo! (but in a cheering kind of way). Hopefully more of the series is coming soon?
All in all, I was very impressed. That being said-
I think the end loses it a little bit. I may not have noticed except I had come to expect so much in terms of craft and reasoning, and then, there were a few disappointments.
Notably:
Spoiler
Certain moves on the parts of the villains seemed to be occurring for shock effect for the reader, and not as part of any great strategy. Ashabath kills a bunch of villagers as a reward for getting Alice's body. K. Makes sense. Why only some of the villagers, since they were all just meat to the slaughter, wandering out into the village green in their nighties? Maybe so Leona would have to go and provide ministrations? After all, she says that her sister knew this would be a necessity. OK. Then ... what? Nothing happens while Leona is in the village. So ... it was all a clever ploy to ... what, deprive her of a nap? It can't be just an anger thing - Leona is pissed already, and her affections for the animals much truer anyway. So, what's the point?
Little things like that. They don't really detract from the plot though, and they certainly don't lessen the power of the book. They just ... make me wonder. Maybe I missed something. I'm willing to believe it, because this is a well-put-together piece of writing.
Oh, but I do take issue with the rather limiting definition of "id". I thought it hurt one of the most interesting facets of the book to encompass such a complex idea into a single box. I know that "id" is still a pretty big box, but ... I felt dissatisfied.
These things I mention only because, THIS BOOK WAS AWESOME.
Fun, original, and with all the staples of a true EPIC.
jrbee's review
4.0
This book contains spells, potions, incantations, gods, goddesses, elementals, talking animals, flying horses, witches and, of course, witchcraft; the religious sort of witchcraft with gods and elementals, not the fantasy sort of witchcraft with wands and brooms.
There are so many aspects to the book that it’s a wonder that the author managed to stitch it all together. But she did, and she did it well.
As a result it took me a while to write an adequate review of this book.
The main thing that struck me about The Toy Sorcerer was how beautifully written it is. It’s what attracted me to it in the first place. The use of language and imagery really sucks you into the story, at times it’s as if she is painting with words.
Laura also has a knack of making you really feel for and care about the characters, which makes you really root for them.
There are many characters woven into this tale, some of them are from Myth, some are from the Wiccan religion and some are masterful creations of the authors very own.
The author is very adept at inventing worlds for these characters as well as describing the world around her.
The real world is painted so vividly as ordinary that is seems a very strange to have something as extraordinary as a fully fledged witch and her familiar running around, fighting demons and casting spells.
On the flip side the dream realms allow you to encounter strange lands and even stranger locals that at times seem more real than the real world.
This is a steadily paced, well thought out book that I would recommend to anyone. Although there are a few minor expletives so perhaps not for very young children, unless parents are prepared to edit.
The only fault in this book that occasionally jarred me from the story are the interactions between the characters. At times mannerisms and turns of phrase tend to swap characters. Some of the conversations between characters felt also felt a little too ‘nice’ or contrived at times.
But I have to say that this is me nit picking. I found this book to be extremely well written, gritty and imaginative with well thought out twists and turns, complete with characters that suck you into the story and make you root for them.
There are so many aspects to the book that it’s a wonder that the author managed to stitch it all together. But she did, and she did it well.
As a result it took me a while to write an adequate review of this book.
The main thing that struck me about The Toy Sorcerer was how beautifully written it is. It’s what attracted me to it in the first place. The use of language and imagery really sucks you into the story, at times it’s as if she is painting with words.
Laura also has a knack of making you really feel for and care about the characters, which makes you really root for them.
There are many characters woven into this tale, some of them are from Myth, some are from the Wiccan religion and some are masterful creations of the authors very own.
The author is very adept at inventing worlds for these characters as well as describing the world around her.
The real world is painted so vividly as ordinary that is seems a very strange to have something as extraordinary as a fully fledged witch and her familiar running around, fighting demons and casting spells.
On the flip side the dream realms allow you to encounter strange lands and even stranger locals that at times seem more real than the real world.
This is a steadily paced, well thought out book that I would recommend to anyone. Although there are a few minor expletives so perhaps not for very young children, unless parents are prepared to edit.
The only fault in this book that occasionally jarred me from the story are the interactions between the characters. At times mannerisms and turns of phrase tend to swap characters. Some of the conversations between characters felt also felt a little too ‘nice’ or contrived at times.
But I have to say that this is me nit picking. I found this book to be extremely well written, gritty and imaginative with well thought out twists and turns, complete with characters that suck you into the story and make you root for them.
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