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auntie_terror's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
dan_at's review against another edition
slow-paced
2.0
There are some passages/chapters that are magical but most of it is just so slow and boring. If I did not read this as part of a buddy read, I would have dnfed that early. I wished I had.
eestellar's review against another edition
I only started reading it for my mom and while I was told it was boring at first it's not worth it to try
dragool's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
lpickett47's review against another edition
5.0
One of the most exceptional works of fantasy I have ever read.
This book is definitely a slow-burner. So don't go into it expecting action and sorcery within the first 100 pages, because you will not get that. While some people see this as a sign of a bad book, I would have to respectfully disagree. Once the story picks up and things are revealed, the first 150 pages of the book are some of the most important in terms of character development and world building. Without the time Williams took to reveal to the reader what was really going on outside of Simon's little world in the Hayholt, the suspenseful parts of the book would not have been as impactful.
George R.R. Martin has stated that this series is one that inspired him to write A Song of Ice and Fire, but do not go into this series thinking they are the same. There are definite similarities (looking at you, Qantaqa, the O.G. direwolf) but they are not cut from the same cloth. Where Martin puts emphasis on the politics of the realm, Williams emphasizes Simon's coming-of-age and the politics are put on the back burner until Stone of Farewell (where it really still is an adventure story, there isn't too much wine-induced intrigue like in ASOIAF.)
Williams excels in his descriptive language, which can be a downer for so many readers but it really enhances the experience. If you don't skim (which I recommend not doing, you miss so much when you do that), you can really get an idea of where Simon is and how Osten Ard feels. He also excels in his character development, mostly shown through Simon's inner thoughts and (to many people's dismay) his complaints. Simon does not want to be on this adventure, but he is. He acts like any 15 year old would in his shoes and Williams does a great job in showing Simon's internal frustrations, especially concerning girls, without it seeming too much like a sappy young adult novel.
The Dragonbone Chair is the first installment in a wonderful fantasy series that I encourage any fan of fantasy to read. When the book seems to get boring, take a break but do not give up. It is so worth it in the end.
This book is definitely a slow-burner. So don't go into it expecting action and sorcery within the first 100 pages, because you will not get that. While some people see this as a sign of a bad book, I would have to respectfully disagree. Once the story picks up and things are revealed, the first 150 pages of the book are some of the most important in terms of character development and world building. Without the time Williams took to reveal to the reader what was really going on outside of Simon's little world in the Hayholt, the suspenseful parts of the book would not have been as impactful.
George R.R. Martin has stated that this series is one that inspired him to write A Song of Ice and Fire, but do not go into this series thinking they are the same. There are definite similarities (looking at you, Qantaqa, the O.G. direwolf) but they are not cut from the same cloth. Where Martin puts emphasis on the politics of the realm, Williams emphasizes Simon's coming-of-age and the politics are put on the back burner until Stone of Farewell (where it really still is an adventure story, there isn't too much wine-induced intrigue like in ASOIAF.)
Williams excels in his descriptive language, which can be a downer for so many readers but it really enhances the experience. If you don't skim (which I recommend not doing, you miss so much when you do that), you can really get an idea of where Simon is and how Osten Ard feels. He also excels in his character development, mostly shown through Simon's inner thoughts and (to many people's dismay) his complaints. Simon does not want to be on this adventure, but he is. He acts like any 15 year old would in his shoes and Williams does a great job in showing Simon's internal frustrations, especially concerning girls, without it seeming too much like a sappy young adult novel.
The Dragonbone Chair is the first installment in a wonderful fantasy series that I encourage any fan of fantasy to read. When the book seems to get boring, take a break but do not give up. It is so worth it in the end.
veraann's review against another edition
3.0
Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn Series Book 1
This is the first of a trilogy. Each book is very thick. This is an epic fantasy written in the late 80s. It is going to start out very slow. There is going to be the "on the road traveling" sections that can be slow to mildly interesting since this is where we see character, relationship and world building. It is going to be an indepth wonderful world full of all different kinds of characters. There is magic, dragons, fighting, adventure. There are parts where the pace picks up lots of speed and moments of whoa! (Think Tolkien, Eddings, Jordan... or more recent Paolini, Martin, Rothfuss)
This particular book does start out slow. A young boy of 14, a kitchen boy, where all he knows is the castle life. He is taken on as an apprentice of a wizard, Doctor Morgenes. An evil is brewing and events lead Simon out into the world where he meets a band of characters. Simon is whiny and surrounded by people smarter and stronger then himself. Yet he finds himself in the middle of an adventure, wishing all the while for things to be how they always were in the castle.
There is a lot that is predictable to fantasy and now very cliche. It is all in here. There are many deaths expected, and some unexpected. By the end you wonder if anyone will survive what is happening. Then the end comes and you have to pick up Book 2.
This is the first of a trilogy. Each book is very thick. This is an epic fantasy written in the late 80s. It is going to start out very slow. There is going to be the "on the road traveling" sections that can be slow to mildly interesting since this is where we see character, relationship and world building. It is going to be an indepth wonderful world full of all different kinds of characters. There is magic, dragons, fighting, adventure. There are parts where the pace picks up lots of speed and moments of whoa! (Think Tolkien, Eddings, Jordan... or more recent Paolini, Martin, Rothfuss)
This particular book does start out slow. A young boy of 14, a kitchen boy, where all he knows is the castle life. He is taken on as an apprentice of a wizard, Doctor Morgenes. An evil is brewing and events lead Simon out into the world where he meets a band of characters. Simon is whiny and surrounded by people smarter and stronger then himself. Yet he finds himself in the middle of an adventure, wishing all the while for things to be how they always were in the castle.
There is a lot that is predictable to fantasy and now very cliche. It is all in here. There are many deaths expected, and some unexpected. By the end you wonder if anyone will survive what is happening. Then the end comes and you have to pick up Book 2.
jnelson12's review against another edition
Started promising had some good complex worldbuilding. Some great action happened that picked the pace up but then it plummeted and nothing seemed to happen which caused me to lose interest
outcolder's review against another edition
3.0
Satisfying: lots of full characters, magic has a terrible price, unusual monsters. The faeries are more Irish than Tolkein. It starts off like a lighter [b:Titus Groan|39063|Titus Groan (Gormenghast, #1)|Mervyn Peake|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1327871204s/39063.jpg|3250394] but after a hundred pages or so begins to go more high-fantasy epic. I like fantasy novels that make me want to work out more, and this isn't exactly Conan but there is more than enough physically demanding adventure. Female characters seldom appear and when they finally do, they tend to depart just as we were getting to know them. Another minus for me are the Rimmersmen, who are so damn Norse... he's got a lot of cultures and nations on his continent and it's all typical fantasy middle ages, and yeah, those guys are supposed to be like Italy or something, and others are harder to pin down exactly what inspired them, but the Rimmersmen are just so damn Viking... he could have made them a little more different.
The edition I read has a quote on the back from Xignals... the Waldenbooks advertorial for SF fans... wow. Remember hanging out in Waldenbooks and reading SF and fantasy for hours?
The main character is probably not going to prove to secretly be the rightful heir, I hope, and no one is calling him the chosen one or anything goofy like that, he doesn't appear in ancient prophecies... but we are constantly reminded that he has "been marked" and I fell like I have been marked... this freaking brick ate up weeks of my life. And now I have to read at least two more to find out how all it ends? Argh! Damn book marked me! Doomed to follow it to the end!
The edition I read has a quote on the back from Xignals... the Waldenbooks advertorial for SF fans... wow. Remember hanging out in Waldenbooks and reading SF and fantasy for hours?
The main character is probably not going to prove to secretly be the rightful heir, I hope, and no one is calling him the chosen one or anything goofy like that, he doesn't appear in ancient prophecies... but we are constantly reminded that he has "been marked" and I fell like I have been marked... this freaking brick ate up weeks of my life. And now I have to read at least two more to find out how all it ends? Argh! Damn book marked me! Doomed to follow it to the end!
etfairies's review against another edition
2.0
The book was a pleasure to read but I gave up after reading 40% because there wasn’t happening anything interesting.