zenithharpink's review against another edition
5.0
4.5 stars. This book was so much fun, one of my favorites in the series. I loved that the villain was a bit different. I loved the quest/riddle/Redwall lore. I loved that this was wholly centered on Redwall. The characters were fun, adventurous and charming. Only half a star deducted because the confrontation wasn't the battle royale, or even the direct conflict & confrontation that I would have preferred.
I recommend this to both fans of the series, and fans of adventure reads.
I recommend this to both fans of the series, and fans of adventure reads.
aarmstrong37's review against another edition
4.0
Brian Jacques fro years now has enticed readers with amazing stories from the world of Redwall. Telling history to future, and everything in-between. Doomwyte is yet another tale which follows those from Redwall as the search on a great journey to find stolen artifacts and rescue pleasant beasts. What strikes me as different in this book is the lack of outright violence and war.
Do not get me wrong, some of the great things about Redwall happen during sieges and war. Multiple times Jacques teaches about compassion and peace int solving issues, but this book shows a calmer side of Mossflower. The book does still contain battle and death, but in the long run it seems he creates a smaller death toll in this book than others I have read.
However, along with the lack of battles, the plot does seem a little bit more simplistic. Honestly there is nothing wrong with that at all, it rather suits this story well. It speaks much to the overpowering of our inner demons and how simplistic it is to fight our demons. This is paralleled rather well through the story as multiple characters fight off their preconceived notions and deepest desires.
Along the way we also get the lovely puzzling adventures of yet another Jacques riddled treasure hunt. These are always some of my favorite parts of his books, and what keeps me coming back for more. It’s fun to try and guess where everything is headed, even after reading many of his books he still seems to always be one step ahead of you.
This book is definitely worth the read, or in my case the listen. I find listening to his books is one of the most enjoyable experiences. He not only narrates it himself, and his family, but he also buts music to his lovely lyrics and poems as well. Making this book an enjoyable experience or the ears and mind!
Do not get me wrong, some of the great things about Redwall happen during sieges and war. Multiple times Jacques teaches about compassion and peace int solving issues, but this book shows a calmer side of Mossflower. The book does still contain battle and death, but in the long run it seems he creates a smaller death toll in this book than others I have read.
However, along with the lack of battles, the plot does seem a little bit more simplistic. Honestly there is nothing wrong with that at all, it rather suits this story well. It speaks much to the overpowering of our inner demons and how simplistic it is to fight our demons. This is paralleled rather well through the story as multiple characters fight off their preconceived notions and deepest desires.
Along the way we also get the lovely puzzling adventures of yet another Jacques riddled treasure hunt. These are always some of my favorite parts of his books, and what keeps me coming back for more. It’s fun to try and guess where everything is headed, even after reading many of his books he still seems to always be one step ahead of you.
This book is definitely worth the read, or in my case the listen. I find listening to his books is one of the most enjoyable experiences. He not only narrates it himself, and his family, but he also buts music to his lovely lyrics and poems as well. Making this book an enjoyable experience or the ears and mind!
meecespieces's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
medium-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? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death
Minor: Violence
bookycnidaria's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Injury/Injury detail, and Violence
kailey_luminouslibro's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
The good creatures of Redwall discover a riddle that could lead to the lost treasure of Gonff, the Prince of Mousethieves. Hundreds of generations ago, Gonff stole four beautiful jewels from the Doomwyte caves, and hid them somewhere in Redwall Abbey. Now a new generation of young creatures are following the clues to find the priceless jewels.
I didn't care for this book as much as other books in this series. First of all, I can't stand snakes, and there are a lot of snakes in this story. Also, I just didn't connect to the characters as much as I usually do. The characters are fun, and the plot is interesting, but I guess I wasn't in the right mood or something.
The plot was going in a bunch of different directions, with dozens of characters doing different things. I prefer a more linear story that focuses on one group of main characters. I skipped most of the scenes that follow the villains. I just didn't want to hear about their nasty squabbling and killing.
There are a lot of grisly deaths in this book, which is true of most Redwall books, but it just seemed like a bit too much in this one.
There are a few characters that I really liked though. I liked Bisky, the young mouse who starts the whole adventure by relating the tale of Gonff the Mousethief to the Abbey babes at bedtime. I liked the voracious hare, Laird Bosie, who eats everything sight and never backs down from a fight. And I liked Samolus, the old mouse who first discovered the legend of Gonff and the hidden jewels. And I loved Abbot Glisam, who leads the Abbey with wisdom and kindness.
I didn't care for this book as much as other books in this series. First of all, I can't stand snakes, and there are a lot of snakes in this story. Also, I just didn't connect to the characters as much as I usually do. The characters are fun, and the plot is interesting, but I guess I wasn't in the right mood or something.
The plot was going in a bunch of different directions, with dozens of characters doing different things. I prefer a more linear story that focuses on one group of main characters. I skipped most of the scenes that follow the villains. I just didn't want to hear about their nasty squabbling and killing.
There are a lot of grisly deaths in this book, which is true of most Redwall books, but it just seemed like a bit too much in this one.
There are a few characters that I really liked though. I liked Bisky, the young mouse who starts the whole adventure by relating the tale of Gonff the Mousethief to the Abbey babes at bedtime. I liked the voracious hare, Laird Bosie, who eats everything sight and never backs down from a fight. And I liked Samolus, the old mouse who first discovered the legend of Gonff and the hidden jewels. And I loved Abbot Glisam, who leads the Abbey with wisdom and kindness.
caffeineauthor's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
corbad's review against another edition
2.0
Fails to provide a unique protagonist or an involved antagonist, instead unwinding an only marginally engaging tale that is spread across a number of individual narratives. A few casually gruesome deaths and surprisingly poor grammar are the only truly negative elements of an otherwise decent, but unremarkable, tale.
pirogoeth's review against another edition
4.0
I just finished Doomwyte, the twentieth book in the Redwall series. Right now it’s the only one I don’t own. Obviously I love the series. Every book follows a simliar formula, but is always a great story.
This time the Redwallers and the evil don’t have much to do with each other for a while. Korvus Skurr, leader of the Doomwytes, wants to restore the eyes to the Doomwyte idol and lead his flock of carrion birds into a great new age. A passing bird evesdrops and hears a story told by a young Redwaller, Bisky, regarding the jewel eyes. This starts everything into motion.
Skurr tries to find out information by trying to have a Redwaller kidnapped. The stupid birds try to take a Dibbun (basically a toddler) who wouldn’t know anything of the story. Without knowing that someone else is interested in the jewels, a small group starts to work on finding them. From there more adventures ensue, friends and enemies are met, and finally the final confrontation occurs with… no, I won’t spill the ending. ;)
It is a wonderful book as usual. It’s interesting to see how many little changes have occured over the series. For a while there was at least one character that was around in the previous book. Now we’re lucky to get a name mentioned in passing. This one deals with a character from way back in the beginning of the history of Redwall Abbey. Other little differences are there, but make sense as many seasons have passed since the first Redwall book was written. It’s still as good as ever and I am really looking forward to the next book!
This time the Redwallers and the evil don’t have much to do with each other for a while. Korvus Skurr, leader of the Doomwytes, wants to restore the eyes to the Doomwyte idol and lead his flock of carrion birds into a great new age. A passing bird evesdrops and hears a story told by a young Redwaller, Bisky, regarding the jewel eyes. This starts everything into motion.
Skurr tries to find out information by trying to have a Redwaller kidnapped. The stupid birds try to take a Dibbun (basically a toddler) who wouldn’t know anything of the story. Without knowing that someone else is interested in the jewels, a small group starts to work on finding them. From there more adventures ensue, friends and enemies are met, and finally the final confrontation occurs with… no, I won’t spill the ending. ;)
It is a wonderful book as usual. It’s interesting to see how many little changes have occured over the series. For a while there was at least one character that was around in the previous book. Now we’re lucky to get a name mentioned in passing. This one deals with a character from way back in the beginning of the history of Redwall Abbey. Other little differences are there, but make sense as many seasons have passed since the first Redwall book was written. It’s still as good as ever and I am really looking forward to the next book!
nerfherder86's review against another edition
5.0
I love the Redwall series. It's always fun to dip into the Mossflower Woods and spend some time with the mice, shrews, hares and otters of the Redwall Abbey, and to read some exciting battle scenes with the "vermin" characters of rats, snakes, ravens, and so forth. I listened to this full cast audio recording and boy was it entertaining. The author narrates, in his loovly Liverpudlian accent, and the actors who play all the parts all have the right accents for the moles and other animals. Plus there are songs sung, which really adds to the character. In this volume, Redwall mouse Bisky and squirrel Dwink get caught up in a quest for rubies and emeralds (the stolen eyes of the Doomwyte statue), while the evil Korvus Skurr, raven leader of the Wytes gang, also seeks the gems--and he's got a giant nasty serpent to help him! (shiver)