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lian_tanner's review against another edition
4.0
I am enjoying this series so much! Great characters and a gripping, highly original story. Glenda Larke has just joined my list of favourite authors.
spikeabell's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
ireadthebooks's review
3.0
I found Gilfeather much harder to get into than The Aware. Larke’s trilogy isn’t about Blaze, although she’s present for all of it so far, but rather about the Isles of Glory and their seemingly t00-fantastic-too-be-real past, so I understand why she used different narrators for each installment (Ruarth in the next book). Still, I found Gilfeather himself rather dull. He doesn’t believe in magic and Blaze and Flame don’t spend too much time trying to wear him down about this, since they know they’re right.
“There had to be a rational explanation. The world was a truly wonderous place-I knew that just from living on the Sky Plains-but it was the mystique of Creation that made it that way, not spells. To explain the wondrous, it was just a matter of finding the logic behind all the small miracles that made up our lives.
“Still, it was a long time before I fell asleep.” – pg 130
After a while, Larke brings back Blaze as an alternate point-of-view, which was helpful in moving the story along and keeping it interesting. Blaze is just inherently a more interesting character than Gilfeather. As they travel, Flame’s dunmagic infection becomes worse and worse, and her personality swings dramatically from the Flame we got to know in The Aware, to a darker, more tainted dunmagicker. Gilfeather believes dunmagick is a disease, and hopes to cure it through his medical knowledge and research. Blaze and Ruarth know better, and their love and worry for Flame keep them going through all the obstacles, even when Flame isn’t particularly loveable anymore.
I was very surprised by the ending, which I will of course not spoil for you. While part of the ending was expected, Larke was very clever and ruthless in bringing it about. Larke’s writing is part of why I really have enjoyed this series so far. She’s writing fantasy books where magic and weapons are common, and she’s not afraid to hurt her characters, even people that you really like, because that’s what would happen in a world that was really like this. Your favorite people do not always escape unscathed just because you like them. People get maimed, or killed, or heartbroken, or just simply vanish.
Overall, it was an excellent sequel. I’m excited to read the final installment, The Tainted. I wish this series had been available on Kindle but I was able to get them from Amazon sellers fairly easily.
“There had to be a rational explanation. The world was a truly wonderous place-I knew that just from living on the Sky Plains-but it was the mystique of Creation that made it that way, not spells. To explain the wondrous, it was just a matter of finding the logic behind all the small miracles that made up our lives.
“Still, it was a long time before I fell asleep.” – pg 130
After a while, Larke brings back Blaze as an alternate point-of-view, which was helpful in moving the story along and keeping it interesting. Blaze is just inherently a more interesting character than Gilfeather. As they travel, Flame’s dunmagic infection becomes worse and worse, and her personality swings dramatically from the Flame we got to know in The Aware, to a darker, more tainted dunmagicker. Gilfeather believes dunmagick is a disease, and hopes to cure it through his medical knowledge and research. Blaze and Ruarth know better, and their love and worry for Flame keep them going through all the obstacles, even when Flame isn’t particularly loveable anymore.
I was very surprised by the ending, which I will of course not spoil for you. While part of the ending was expected, Larke was very clever and ruthless in bringing it about. Larke’s writing is part of why I really have enjoyed this series so far. She’s writing fantasy books where magic and weapons are common, and she’s not afraid to hurt her characters, even people that you really like, because that’s what would happen in a world that was really like this. Your favorite people do not always escape unscathed just because you like them. People get maimed, or killed, or heartbroken, or just simply vanish.
Overall, it was an excellent sequel. I’m excited to read the final installment, The Tainted. I wish this series had been available on Kindle but I was able to get them from Amazon sellers fairly easily.
marktimmony's review
4.0
The second book in the Isles of Glory Trilogy continues Blaze Halfbreed and Flame Windrider's dangerous quest to rid the Isles of the evil dunmaster Morthred.
Picking up where we left off in The Aware, Larke introduces us to a new character, Kelwyn Gilfeather, whose remarkable gifts in sensing both Sylv and Dun magic make him as impervious to both as one of the Aware folk.
In this book, Larke reveals more of the Isles unique and treacherous beauty, while the sharp prose and witty dialogue creates a steady pace that moves this unique story along without a hitch. This is a great series and quite different to your run-of-the-mill quest Fantasy.
Picking up where we left off in The Aware, Larke introduces us to a new character, Kelwyn Gilfeather, whose remarkable gifts in sensing both Sylv and Dun magic make him as impervious to both as one of the Aware folk.
In this book, Larke reveals more of the Isles unique and treacherous beauty, while the sharp prose and witty dialogue creates a steady pace that moves this unique story along without a hitch. This is a great series and quite different to your run-of-the-mill quest Fantasy.
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