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A review by veronica87
The Burning Stone by Kate Elliott
4.0
3.75 rounding up, thanks to Part 2
The Burning Stone is the third book in the Crown of Stars fantasy series and this is the tale of two parts. While I was glad to be back in this medieval themed world, it got off to a rather questionable start with me. The book is divided into two rather equal parts and Part One was not going down especially well as far as I was concerned. There was too much of a focus on the romance between Liath and Sanglant, a pairing that has always felt flat to me to begin with, and the theatrics of it (thanks to Mayim for using such an accurate description) caused me to roll my eyes on more than one occasion. This is already a slower paced book so the parts dedicated to these two were hard for me to muddle though. Thankfully, the cloying couple settle down somewhat in Part Two and I ended up enjoying the back half of the book much better.
This installment continues the practice of a leisurely paced story in which the intrigue and scheming is slowly and methodically brought to a slow boil, in which the political landscape can change so slowly that the characters don’t fully realize their peril until it’s too late. We catch up with our tentpole characters of Alain, Liath, Sanglant, Hanna, Rosvita, and Ivar, and discover that the sands are shifting under their feet. This is very much a story of changing fortunes and not a single character is left untouched by the realization that their world, everything they know, can turn on a dime.
Lady Fortune only waits to spin her wheel.
It seems that a theme of this particular addition to the series mirrors the old saying, be careful what you wish for because you just might get it. Alain, my personal favorite, has gotten something he’s been wanting but the reality doesn’t match his fantasy at all. Liath gets her own opportunities but finds the price may be too high. Both are moved by forces much larger than themselves and while Liath finds herself cast in a much larger role than she ever could have imagined or thought possible, Alain finds himself struggling to cling to everything he’s gained.
It’s a topsy turvy world, for sure, but it’s not only our heroes who are feeling the effects of the changing tides. Hugh is still lurking around and finding ways to take advantage wherever he can. And ol’ Antonia, while not a big player in this book, seems poised to re-enter the fray to cause more trouble down the line. And let’s not forget Princess Sabella, Henry’s scheming half-sister who fomented civil war in the first book. Since no one in this entire series seems capable of properly dispatching an enemy (seriously, what is up with that?!), it means that Sabella can’t be counted out of the intrigue and, in fact, she’s not wholly without allies.
At times the world seems to shift and invert: inside turns out, and outside turns in; dreams become waking, and waking becomes a dream.
There is a lot of light shed on family trees in this book and the ramifications this has, and will continue to have, on the lives of the affected characters - not to mention the political landscape of the kingdom - can’t be stressed enough. Shifting sands, indeed. And in the background, there is a prophecy of sorts involving the return of the Aoi, the Lost Ones, that portends a potentially cataclysmic event in five years time. Obviously this series is playing a long game here and aiming for the fences. But this isn’t a series that takes short-cuts so I have every confidence that the path to our destination, while perhaps winding and twisting, will nevertheless skillfully cover all the necessary ground.
While this book answered many questions, the ending left me with several new ones. It also left several of the characters in interesting and/or precarious situations so I’m definitely anxious to see how they all fare in the next book. And, again, the second half of the book saved the story for me proving that the whole is surely better than the sum of its parts.
It is not in victory that you learn how strong you truly are.
The Burning Stone is the third book in the Crown of Stars fantasy series and this is the tale of two parts. While I was glad to be back in this medieval themed world, it got off to a rather questionable start with me. The book is divided into two rather equal parts and Part One was not going down especially well as far as I was concerned. There was too much of a focus on the romance between Liath and Sanglant, a pairing that has always felt flat to me to begin with, and the theatrics of it (thanks to Mayim for using such an accurate description) caused me to roll my eyes on more than one occasion. This is already a slower paced book so the parts dedicated to these two were hard for me to muddle though. Thankfully, the cloying couple settle down somewhat in Part Two and I ended up enjoying the back half of the book much better.
This installment continues the practice of a leisurely paced story in which the intrigue and scheming is slowly and methodically brought to a slow boil, in which the political landscape can change so slowly that the characters don’t fully realize their peril until it’s too late. We catch up with our tentpole characters of Alain, Liath, Sanglant, Hanna, Rosvita, and Ivar, and discover that the sands are shifting under their feet. This is very much a story of changing fortunes and not a single character is left untouched by the realization that their world, everything they know, can turn on a dime.
Lady Fortune only waits to spin her wheel.
It seems that a theme of this particular addition to the series mirrors the old saying, be careful what you wish for because you just might get it. Alain, my personal favorite, has gotten something he’s been wanting but the reality doesn’t match his fantasy at all. Liath gets her own opportunities but finds the price may be too high. Both are moved by forces much larger than themselves and while Liath finds herself cast in a much larger role than she ever could have imagined or thought possible, Alain finds himself struggling to cling to everything he’s gained.
It’s a topsy turvy world, for sure, but it’s not only our heroes who are feeling the effects of the changing tides. Hugh is still lurking around and finding ways to take advantage wherever he can. And ol’ Antonia, while not a big player in this book, seems poised to re-enter the fray to cause more trouble down the line. And let’s not forget Princess Sabella, Henry’s scheming half-sister who fomented civil war in the first book. Since no one in this entire series seems capable of properly dispatching an enemy (seriously, what is up with that?!), it means that Sabella can’t be counted out of the intrigue and, in fact, she’s not wholly without allies.
At times the world seems to shift and invert: inside turns out, and outside turns in; dreams become waking, and waking becomes a dream.
There is a lot of light shed on family trees in this book and the ramifications this has, and will continue to have, on the lives of the affected characters - not to mention the political landscape of the kingdom - can’t be stressed enough. Shifting sands, indeed. And in the background, there is a prophecy of sorts involving the return of the Aoi, the Lost Ones, that portends a potentially cataclysmic event in five years time. Obviously this series is playing a long game here and aiming for the fences. But this isn’t a series that takes short-cuts so I have every confidence that the path to our destination, while perhaps winding and twisting, will nevertheless skillfully cover all the necessary ground.
While this book answered many questions, the ending left me with several new ones. It also left several of the characters in interesting and/or precarious situations so I’m definitely anxious to see how they all fare in the next book. And, again, the second half of the book saved the story for me proving that the whole is surely better than the sum of its parts.
It is not in victory that you learn how strong you truly are.