Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.66 AVERAGE
3.66 AVERAGE
The first part of the book dragged on, making it difficult to stay engaged. The pacing felt sluggish, with long stretches of explanation and contemplation that didn't seem to advance the plot or develop the characters' plights in meaningful ways. These lackluster moments killed the momentum of, what promised to be, a war-packed action story.
The assassination, which should have been a pivotal moment in the entire series, felt anti-climactic. The build-up to this event has been rather lengthy, but the actual execution lacked tension and was executed in a way that felt flat and unbelievable. It felt like a missed opportunity to create a truly memorable and impactful scene for Achmed.
Even the conclusion of the war left much to be desired. Despite the numerous sacrifices made by the characters, it seemed like no one truly learned any lessons or gained anything meaningful from their experiences. The resolution felt too neat and tidy, without the emotional depth and complexity that usually marks Hayden's storytelling style.
Although most loose ends were tied up, the happily-ever-after felt forced. It wasn't the kind of realistic ending where not everything turns out perfectly, but rather a rushed attempt to wrap everything up. I ended up questioning whether all the plot points had actually been resolved. The relationships between characters, which is the foundation of the story in all her previous books, felt underdeveloped and lacking in the genuine connection we've come to expect from the Three.
Overall, "The Hollow Queen" fell short of the high standards set by the previous books in the series. While it did provide closure, it lacked the depth and excitement that we have come to expect from this saga. The story did not leave a lasting impact. As an avid reader who has followed the series from the beginning, this installment felt like a disappointing conclusion to an otherwise earth-rattling adventure. I can't, in good conscious, rate it higher than 3 stars simply for the fact that, for a story I have loved my entire life, I am already forgetting the ending.
The few moments of real drama largely felt unearned.
Spoiler
For example, Grunthor gets injured but his condition is introduced and cured in the same chapter so that doesn't really count. Anborn's death was highly disappointing for me-I always felt like he had more depth than Ashe, and I wish that Rhapsody would have chosen him. Finally, Rhapsody's change of character due to the fact that she leaves her true name, and thus part of her identity, with Meridion so that she can be a real warrior is underplayed. Warrior Rhapsody is hugely effective, but she only gets credit for it from Achmed. Everyone else is scared of her and/or wishing that she would go back to being full of sweetness and light, and much ado was made about the fact that her hair is still short (she cut it off and gave it to Witheragh in the last book). I don't like to be the feminist police but it sucked that everyone seemed to want Rhapsody to be beautiful and pleasant more than they wanted to, you know, save the world. *SIGH*I appreciate that the ending did not leave us with yet another cliffhanger. This honestly could have been the final volume in the series and I would be okay with it. So many plot threads have gone unresolved for so long that at this point my expectations are lowered. It seems like the next volume, Dirge, will have a significant time jump so I'm hoping that the characters will have matured and broken some of their patterns. I hope that it explains Meridion's role and all of the alternate pasts and futures that have been referenced throughout the series.
Graphic: Rape, Sexual violence, Violence, Murder
First of all let's talk about the cover art. I just had to buy the hardcover addition to adorn my shelf. This has to be my favorite cover of all the books in the Symphony of Ages series. The violet scale in the background, the gold lettering and Rhonwyn's compass all come together so beautifully.
The story starts us off in the forges of Canrif with Grunthor singing one of his hilarious songs. Next we check in with Achmed, Ashe, Dranth, Faron (some of these guys multiple times) before we get to see the hollow Queen herself. I remember complaining that I was past chapter ten and I still hadn't seen Rhapsody yet. Patience is not my strong suit, I'm afraid. The first half of the book didn't have a lot of action, but I FINALLY had my biggest question answered, what happened to Elynsynos the dragon? I've been worried about her for years! The Merchant Emperor teased with a trip to her lair only to leave us hanging with no real answers.
Rhapsody is definitely very hollow in this book. Showing very little emotion throughout had me missing the old Rhaps. Seeing her with short hair, going pure warrior wielding Daystar Clarion and a dragon tongue whip was a very interesting change though.
Ashe was Ashe. I love Ashe, don't get me wrong, but I actually expected him to go full on dragon rampage and take out the continent. Couldn't he single-handedly end the war? Burn them all, I say! And what about the dragon, Witheragh? The world is in jeopardy, get up off your gem encrusted tail and do something! It's reminiscent of Gandalf waiting until they are two minutes from Mount Doom to call in the eagles for a lift, but I digress.
In between the war and battles there were bits of humor. My favorite part was Grunthor speaking fondly about his dear old mum, an "undefeated champion o' bloodsport," and how she took his dad as tribute in a surrender agreement and instead of eating him she decided to keep him and raise a family. The whole story made me laugh. I got another chuckle from Achmed crawling over a rock ledge attached to floating festival toys. And Grunthor's colorful songs are always a favorite of mine. How I've missed them.
The one major issue I had with this book was the loss of a beloved character. Elizabeth Haydon, my dear favorite author, who has made me laugh and cry and cheer for her characters decided to go all GRRM on a character and I may never forgive her. Scratch that! At least George Martin gives his characters a quick beheading, cut throat, arrows to the chest, the usual. It's fairly fast and over with and you can begin the mourning process. But not Elizabeth. No, she had to behead, trample, tear apart and basically obliterate one of my favorite characters to the point that there was nothing left for a burial but unrecognizable pieces, and for what? My day was ruined.
I felt like this book could very well have been the end of the series, only there are still a few questions here and there left unanswered. I'm not sure what Elizabeth has left to write since the War of the Known World is over but I'm very curious. Dirge, the title itself makes me worry, will be the end of the series. A dirge is a somber song usually played when in mourning or at a funeral. I'm already depressed.
Since Dirge will be the final book, I'm terrified that Elizabeth will decide to wake the sleeping child and allow it to devour the world or something equally horrifying! Tell me I'm just being overly dramatic. She wouldn't do that, would she? Would she? My poor little heart can't take it. Unless the next book ends with, "and they all lived happily ever after," I may choose to live in denial and pretend that this is the last book in the series. Despite some heart break, at least the Hollow Queen has an ending that I can live with. Crossing my fingers and hoping for a great ending with all our questions answered. *Eyes Elizabeth suspiciously*
Recommendation: This book is definitely for fans of the series! It is not a book you can just pick up if you've never read Rhapsody (book 1) through the Merchant Emperor (book 7) unless you enjoy being utterly lost and confused.
-SW
It's an infuriating mix of too much detail in conversations and actions, followed by lots of glossing over, as somebody gets where they should. A bunch of scenes very poorly connected.
Ashe's temper is what gets me. He comes in and makes ridiculous demands, then gets incredibly angry if anybody thinks about doing the same to him, even his wife - in the same scene! He and Rhapsody are both going around and talking to people saying "oh, of course you've been deceived" and then get pissed off when nobody believes them immediately. And oh, all of the consent issues.
Rhapsody and Ashe can't decide how severity works. We have tens of thousands dying in each (SUPER-SHORT) battle, but yes, let's take time to care about wartime atrocities. It'll totally be that easy to keep all of the men from raping/pillaging. Just because I said so. Yep.
Achmed had some cool action scenes. At least I've got that.
Part of the joy of the Rhapsody books is reading something tiny - a comment someone makes, a tiny gesture, a random gift that's brushed off, etc. - and then having it come back 100 pages/a book later and it turns out that thing set off this huge waterfall of events and was super important. You had to remember all those little details, because nothing could be taken at face value. Hardly any of that depth was found in The Hollow Queen. Crazy things happen, and everyone just....accepts it? That's not how the characters I've followed for 10+ years now would do, at least not in my head!
I did read the book, and I didn't hate it, but it also didn't add anything to the series for me.