ssjonoyoung's review against another edition
4.0
These books are so short and fun they make just brilliant reads. Following on from The Fall Castle follows Milla and Tal as they make their way back to the Castle and Tal's family. Only there are forces in the castle that are none to happy about Tal's return.
There is a whole lot of mystery in this series and it's fascinating. Because not only do we have Sushin and his ulterior motives but the idea of missing people plagues the story. Rerem is missing but we get little hints that he is not as lost as first seemed. Not only that but the Empress herself is a figure of intrigue because we know so little about her.
Tal in this book is slowly toughening up a bit which he needed. He's used to luxury and struggling is not part of that. So when they are climbing the Mountain of Light it is hard for him whilst Milla is like cool whatever. Milla on the other hand is letting go of some of her prejudices and ideas about the Chosen and the shadows. Which is helpful because at the end they enter Aenir and the world is gonna go a bit more crazy from there onwards.
I cannot though praise Tal and Milla's fun progression without mentioning the funniest character in the book Uncle Ebbitt. He's eccentric and a little loony but he is so wise and so helpful to Tal. He provides him with the knowledge to escape the Pit and aids him throughout the book so much. With out Rerem around he is providing Tal with the guidance he needs to uncover the issues in the Castle. And there are a lot of them; for instance throwing a child in a dark pit. Which is very Keys to the Kingdom but in reality that came after and the escape with the stairs is like the Improbable stairs. Reading this it is occasionally amusing how clearly some ideas he used in this were rehashed and explored differently in Keys to the Kingdom. But I suppose if you are using your own ideas it's not really ripping off anyone....
The Nightmares thing though is dark, the guy doing it is creepy and the idea of someone entering your dreams and fucking with them is unpleasant. But it did provide us with a chance to see the Crones magic. Because it is hinted to exist, most prominently by the Shield Maiden Crone Mother? If that's her full title. But in the dreams Milla calls to them and they aid her in defeating him, temporarily I assume by his hurry to his superiors, giving Tal and Ebbitt a chance to spring her from the globe prison thing.
The Sunstone magic system is still fascinating and the use of light for the magic is incredibly original to me. The way it is woven and the power in the stones is outstanding but the deeper working of Aenir I presume will be explored in the next book. We left our young heroes in a precarious situation in Aenir after they take an oath to aid one another in combat/magic. It's a great ending point and I cannot wait to read the next book.
There is a whole lot of mystery in this series and it's fascinating. Because not only do we have Sushin and his ulterior motives but the idea of missing people plagues the story. Rerem is missing but we get little hints that he is not as lost as first seemed. Not only that but the Empress herself is a figure of intrigue because we know so little about her.
Tal in this book is slowly toughening up a bit which he needed. He's used to luxury and struggling is not part of that. So when they are climbing the Mountain of Light it is hard for him whilst Milla is like cool whatever. Milla on the other hand is letting go of some of her prejudices and ideas about the Chosen and the shadows. Which is helpful because at the end they enter Aenir and the world is gonna go a bit more crazy from there onwards.
I cannot though praise Tal and Milla's fun progression without mentioning the funniest character in the book Uncle Ebbitt. He's eccentric and a little loony but he is so wise and so helpful to Tal. He provides him with the knowledge to escape the Pit and aids him throughout the book so much. With out Rerem around he is providing Tal with the guidance he needs to uncover the issues in the Castle. And there are a lot of them; for instance throwing a child in a dark pit. Which is very Keys to the Kingdom but in reality that came after and the escape with the stairs is like the Improbable stairs. Reading this it is occasionally amusing how clearly some ideas he used in this were rehashed and explored differently in Keys to the Kingdom. But I suppose if you are using your own ideas it's not really ripping off anyone....
The Nightmares thing though is dark, the guy doing it is creepy and the idea of someone entering your dreams and fucking with them is unpleasant. But it did provide us with a chance to see the Crones magic. Because it is hinted to exist, most prominently by the Shield Maiden Crone Mother? If that's her full title. But in the dreams Milla calls to them and they aid her in defeating him, temporarily I assume by his hurry to his superiors, giving Tal and Ebbitt a chance to spring her from the globe prison thing.
The Sunstone magic system is still fascinating and the use of light for the magic is incredibly original to me. The way it is woven and the power in the stones is outstanding but the deeper working of Aenir I presume will be explored in the next book. We left our young heroes in a precarious situation in Aenir after they take an oath to aid one another in combat/magic. It's a great ending point and I cannot wait to read the next book.
scostanzo42's review
4.0
Enjoyed the second part of this story. Tal and Milla are great, but Ebbin is my favorite!
imyerhero's review
3.0
I went into this sequel with the characters and storyline a little stale in my memory, having shoved a 650 page work of “feminist” literature into my brain between the first and the second of the series. But Nix was quite gracious in recapping everything important from the first book in a short page. I was glad to find out a little more about Uncle Ebbitt, a character whom I enjoy. However, his character seemed a bit less put together than in the first book. I am pretty sure I’ll have to have a little more experience with him before I understand if this is something Nix has put in purposely or if it’s just a fluke. I was very impressed with the Hall of Nightmares scenes, but other scenes (mostly involving the royal guard) seemed a bit cartoonish. Overall, I think this was the second installment of “story set up” books in the series. Hopefully, the third will move on a little more.
gouricanread's review
3.0
Not a fan!I didn't understand much since I read from the middle of a small series.The writing's pretty good though.
benjfleck's review
3.0
The book is an easy read with a unique and creative world. However, everything moves at rapid pace and little explanation is given. I found myself scratching my head and trying to remember what happened in the first book and who was who. I do not understand the concept of "Aenir" and I have no idea what everything is building too. Also, have no idea how the magic system works and there are a lot of "deus ex machina" moments. This is definitely not a standalone book and I guess I will read the next one to see if it all eventually makes sense.
woolfardis's review against another edition
2.0
[Short and quick review from memory before I re-read and re-review at a later date:
No memory of this book or the series, but maybe some snippets. Definite re-read and read of the rest of the series as a whole.]
No memory of this book or the series, but maybe some snippets. Definite re-read and read of the rest of the series as a whole.]