theaudioauditor's review
adventurous
challenging
funny
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-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? Yes
5.0
thehamsterreads's review against another edition
5.0
This was a really good story! It’s full of non stop action and adventure! Finn Featherstone is an unlikely hero, but he’s a good person at heart and does his best. I like how the story combines dinosaurs and fantasy as well! The Bizarre Blades are fascinating weapons, each with their own unique power that only certain people might master. I also loved the humour throughout the book! Definitely laughed out loud a few times!
briarrose1021's review
5.0
Finn Featherstone is not a Champion; he is a painter. That does not stop him from dreaming of one day becoming a Champion. In service to that dream, Finn knows everything there is to know about each named blade that has been discovered, as well as the individual who wields it. He has even drawn himself as a Champion. But he is not a Champion.
So I'm sure you can imagine his surprise when, on the day after rescuing a young girl, he finds himself face-to-face with his idol, none other than the sword-wielding Champion Bryce. He is even more surprised to learn that he is being drafted as a foot soldier. While not an ideal situation, Finn does make a friend pretty quickly - Saul - and tries to make the best of the situation. Finn didn't know that his time as a foot soldier would be very short, for it is only a few days later when the army caravan of which he is a part is attacked by a pack of smilodons - sabertooth tigers. The attack takes place near a bridge over an icy river, and during the attack, Finn falls into the icy waters.
Near to dying, Finn doesn't realize that he has discovered a named blade of his own. He also discovers, once he is nursed back to health, that though the blade has claimed Finn, another person had already claimed the blade - and he is not happy about Finn having it. Suddenly thrust into training to become a Champion - Finn finally gets to be a Champion! - Finn has to quickly master the new skills and gain the trust of his new blade - a stubborn blade with strong opinions - so he can battle the prehistoric creatures that roam the surrounding lands and defend his newfound friends and allies from the traitor in their midst.
In The Jigsaw Blade, Collier creates a vivid world in which humans live a Medieval-era type of life while dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals roam the lands. The world has two main kingdoms which are starkly different, not only in their weather but also in the way they treat those who live within the borders. In addition, the concept of the named Bizarre Blades, as well as the magic that helps discovers them, is very interesting, and I look forward to learning more about the various blades and what kind of powers they have. I don't know that I will end up being as big of a fan as Finn is, but I definitely want to learn at least a little bit about them all.
While there is a relatively large cast of characters, the majority of the book focuses on three: Finn, Jade, and Ariel. Oh, yeah. And Obsidian. As the protagonist, Finn obviously gets the most "screen time" and character development. He starts off as a young painter who works with his father - his mother died when Finn was small - though his relationship with his father is strained. They live in the frozen kingdom of Shimoshimo, a kingdom that does not treat its people well and treats the animals as tools to be used. Finn has an affinity with animals and can sense their feelings; Finn has a big heart and is often the target of bullies as a result. Overall, Finn has a fairly miserable life to start, often not realizing his own strength and ability, so it was nice to see Finn grow over the course of the book.
The characters of Jade and Ariel are...interesting, and they allow for some great interactions and experiences throughout the book. Jade is the one who was supposed to get the named blade that Finn claimed, and he doesn't hold back his anger at Finn for having "stolen" it from him, frequently vocalizing his desire for Finn to go away so he can finally get "his" blade. Ariel is a healer who speaks of herself in the third person. She frequently ends up being the peacemaker between Finn and Jade, especially once Finn starts standing up to Jade's bullying behavior. Though I normally don't like characters who speak of themselves in the third person, Collier makes it work for Ariel. I'm still not sure how or why, and I admit that my opinion may change as I continue the series, but I rather enjoyed her character here.
Finally, there's Obsidian, who is a somewhat domesticated microraptor. Due in part to Finn's empathic connection with animals, he and Obsidian develop a connection that was wonderful to read. That doesn't mean that Obsidian didn't get into trouble - or get Finn and the others into trouble - but some of the things Obsidian does certainly makes up for that. I definitely look forward to seeing Obisidion more in the next book.
For this book, I listened to the audiobook, which was narrated by Kevin Kemp. Kemp did a great job with the narration, and I definitely look forward to listening to him narrate other books in the series.
So I'm sure you can imagine his surprise when, on the day after rescuing a young girl, he finds himself face-to-face with his idol, none other than the sword-wielding Champion Bryce. He is even more surprised to learn that he is being drafted as a foot soldier. While not an ideal situation, Finn does make a friend pretty quickly - Saul - and tries to make the best of the situation. Finn didn't know that his time as a foot soldier would be very short, for it is only a few days later when the army caravan of which he is a part is attacked by a pack of smilodons - sabertooth tigers. The attack takes place near a bridge over an icy river, and during the attack, Finn falls into the icy waters.
Near to dying, Finn doesn't realize that he has discovered a named blade of his own. He also discovers, once he is nursed back to health, that though the blade has claimed Finn, another person had already claimed the blade - and he is not happy about Finn having it. Suddenly thrust into training to become a Champion - Finn finally gets to be a Champion! - Finn has to quickly master the new skills and gain the trust of his new blade - a stubborn blade with strong opinions - so he can battle the prehistoric creatures that roam the surrounding lands and defend his newfound friends and allies from the traitor in their midst.
In The Jigsaw Blade, Collier creates a vivid world in which humans live a Medieval-era type of life while dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals roam the lands. The world has two main kingdoms which are starkly different, not only in their weather but also in the way they treat those who live within the borders. In addition, the concept of the named Bizarre Blades, as well as the magic that helps discovers them, is very interesting, and I look forward to learning more about the various blades and what kind of powers they have. I don't know that I will end up being as big of a fan as Finn is, but I definitely want to learn at least a little bit about them all.
While there is a relatively large cast of characters, the majority of the book focuses on three: Finn, Jade, and Ariel. Oh, yeah. And Obsidian. As the protagonist, Finn obviously gets the most "screen time" and character development. He starts off as a young painter who works with his father - his mother died when Finn was small - though his relationship with his father is strained. They live in the frozen kingdom of Shimoshimo, a kingdom that does not treat its people well and treats the animals as tools to be used. Finn has an affinity with animals and can sense their feelings; Finn has a big heart and is often the target of bullies as a result. Overall, Finn has a fairly miserable life to start, often not realizing his own strength and ability, so it was nice to see Finn grow over the course of the book.
The characters of Jade and Ariel are...interesting, and they allow for some great interactions and experiences throughout the book. Jade is the one who was supposed to get the named blade that Finn claimed, and he doesn't hold back his anger at Finn for having "stolen" it from him, frequently vocalizing his desire for Finn to go away so he can finally get "his" blade. Ariel is a healer who speaks of herself in the third person. She frequently ends up being the peacemaker between Finn and Jade, especially once Finn starts standing up to Jade's bullying behavior. Though I normally don't like characters who speak of themselves in the third person, Collier makes it work for Ariel. I'm still not sure how or why, and I admit that my opinion may change as I continue the series, but I rather enjoyed her character here.
Finally, there's Obsidian, who is a somewhat domesticated microraptor. Due in part to Finn's empathic connection with animals, he and Obsidian develop a connection that was wonderful to read. That doesn't mean that Obsidian didn't get into trouble - or get Finn and the others into trouble - but some of the things Obsidian does certainly makes up for that. I definitely look forward to seeing Obisidion more in the next book.
For this book, I listened to the audiobook, which was narrated by Kevin Kemp. Kemp did a great job with the narration, and I definitely look forward to listening to him narrate other books in the series.
secre's review against another edition
3.0
I'm truly intrigued by this series and will have to pick up the next one at least to see how it goes on. It's an interesting mix of fantasy and paleantology, in a world made up of prehistoric creatures of various shapes and sizes. Having just started researching dinosaurs I found this a really interesting premise and am keen to see more, and I hope Collier delves more deeply into the evolutionary trees and social behaviour of these extinct animals as well as his characters. It is a fascinating period of history, and I'm intrigued as to how the various creatures from different periods within the Mesozaic Era will be handled.
The plot is perhaps weaker than the setting but kicks along at a fast enough pace that you can often forget this and the characters stand out. I struggled at times with puerile humour more befitting of a twelve year old than the eighteen year old lead we are actually following, but whilst this occurred too many times for my comfort, it only tarnishes instead of marring the experience. The characters seem to go from one catastrophe to another and their reactions to these events make up much of the novel. I'd have liked to see more connection to the events, but I suspect much will come together in the next novel.
I did enjoy how the characters interacted with each other and how the relationships change and grow throughout. I felt more attached to some of the secondary characters than the lead, but this again perhaps comes down to some of the puerile humour displayed from his perspective. There is however a great deal of potential here and the characters really have started to build a life of their own.
So, I'm intrigued and I hope the series will only improve from this point onwards. I hope to see more of the prehistoric animals and various aspects joining together.
The plot is perhaps weaker than the setting but kicks along at a fast enough pace that you can often forget this and the characters stand out. I struggled at times with puerile humour more befitting of a twelve year old than the eighteen year old lead we are actually following, but whilst this occurred too many times for my comfort, it only tarnishes instead of marring the experience. The characters seem to go from one catastrophe to another and their reactions to these events make up much of the novel. I'd have liked to see more connection to the events, but I suspect much will come together in the next novel.
I did enjoy how the characters interacted with each other and how the relationships change and grow throughout. I felt more attached to some of the secondary characters than the lead, but this again perhaps comes down to some of the puerile humour displayed from his perspective. There is however a great deal of potential here and the characters really have started to build a life of their own.
So, I'm intrigued and I hope the series will only improve from this point onwards. I hope to see more of the prehistoric animals and various aspects joining together.
reaper_hound's review against another edition
4.0
In this book we follow Finn Featherstone and how he ended up with a "Bizzare Blade" , Swords of Magical power that can transform it's user and give them different kinds of abilities depending on the blade.
Now the setting of this world is that of Medieval Europe but with Dinosaurs, yeah literally dinosaurs.
The Writing Style of the Author is pretty simple and Straightforward. The author really makes as laugh and stay hooked to the story till the end with its action packed sword fight scenes to dinosaur chasing scenes to making us laugh with weird situations and Character interaction and the character banter inside your head.
It is not a the book with most complex characters it's not a book with immense world building or it's not a book with philosophy or that makes you think a lot this book is just pure fun with likeable characters and some heartfelt moments.
Now the setting of this world is that of Medieval Europe but with Dinosaurs, yeah literally dinosaurs.
The Writing Style of the Author is pretty simple and Straightforward. The author really makes as laugh and stay hooked to the story till the end with its action packed sword fight scenes to dinosaur chasing scenes to making us laugh with weird situations and Character interaction and the character banter inside your head.
It is not a the book with most complex characters it's not a book with immense world building or it's not a book with philosophy or that makes you think a lot this book is just pure fun with likeable characters and some heartfelt moments.
vidbaz's review against another edition
4.0
Whow that was one great ride.
First i will start with what i didn't like and that is first part of the book around 30% it was not bad it was too fast and not paced correctly for me, one thing happen with Fin then another and so on it felt rushed its 30 % of the book but it still felt rushed .
But all of that changed after that story started to get interesting, pacing was top notch, Fin got more fleshed out i will not spoil who his companions where because for the better part of first half of the book its only Fin alone.
So lets start:
World-building : First this world has dinosaurs and yeh they are great i love that Stevie Collier
did his research about them and added feathers to them. World is wast we seen two kingdoms so far but there are more of them . Both of them are really different one is harsh and cold so people are harsh and well indifferent to one another and they use dinosaurs as tools , second kingdom is worm and feels eastern and they are kind to dinosaurs that they use .
Characters: So Finn Featherstone is our main hero he is a painter living in ShimoShimo the cold country and he dose not like it how people are treated and well basically he is a nice guy but weak and small one thing lets to another and he goes on journey that end disastrously and all changes for him.Then without spoiling we have a angry companion he dose not like our Fin for various and obvious reasons and then we have intelligent but not all in the head kindhearted but cold oh i dont know how to describe second companion but you will love him/her :)
Last we have bizzarre blades first hey are awesome second we dont know much about them but that they intelligent kinda and they have different ability's like one blade called Combustion blade well blades abilities are combustion.... yeh combustion it can combust anything even his owner if you annoy it .
Overall i really like it but just for begging i cant give this book 5 starts, but the rest of the book is 5 star material its fun its action packed it has great characterization you will love champions and blade interactions the new abilities that are introduced and new challenges that Fin has to overtake. I will wait for the second book and will drop all that i am reading to read a squeal.
First i will start with what i didn't like and that is first part of the book around 30% it was not bad it was too fast and not paced correctly for me, one thing happen with Fin then another and so on it felt rushed its 30 % of the book but it still felt rushed .
But all of that changed after that story started to get interesting, pacing was top notch, Fin got more fleshed out i will not spoil who his companions where because for the better part of first half of the book its only Fin alone.
So lets start:
World-building : First this world has dinosaurs and yeh they are great i love that Stevie Collier
did his research about them and added feathers to them. World is wast we seen two kingdoms so far but there are more of them . Both of them are really different one is harsh and cold so people are harsh and well indifferent to one another and they use dinosaurs as tools , second kingdom is worm and feels eastern and they are kind to dinosaurs that they use .
Characters: So Finn Featherstone is our main hero he is a painter living in ShimoShimo the cold country and he dose not like it how people are treated and well basically he is a nice guy but weak and small one thing lets to another and he goes on journey that end disastrously and all changes for him.Then without spoiling we have a angry companion he dose not like our Fin for various and obvious reasons and then we have intelligent but not all in the head kindhearted but cold oh i dont know how to describe second companion but you will love him/her :)
Last we have bizzarre blades first hey are awesome second we dont know much about them but that they intelligent kinda and they have different ability's like one blade called Combustion blade well blades abilities are combustion.... yeh combustion it can combust anything even his owner if you annoy it .
Overall i really like it but just for begging i cant give this book 5 starts, but the rest of the book is 5 star material its fun its action packed it has great characterization you will love champions and blade interactions the new abilities that are introduced and new challenges that Fin has to overtake. I will wait for the second book and will drop all that i am reading to read a squeal.
aconitecafe's review against another edition
2.0
This book was a hard read. About 1/3 of the way through I realized that this is really written for more of a middle grade audience. When looking at like that it's an okay book. It recaps the whole book in the last chapters as a reflection, this is a great middle grade writing technique. The swords & base story/world was fun.
The main character is immature. I'd age him at 12 - 14. Poop / Dick jokes, lots of 'coming into puberty' type content. Not for me, but could see this being a very popular middle grade book.
People who enjoy books by David Soren and Dav Pilkey will enjoy this book.
The main character is immature. I'd age him at 12 - 14. Poop / Dick jokes, lots of 'coming into puberty' type content. Not for me, but could see this being a very popular middle grade book.
People who enjoy books by David Soren and Dav Pilkey will enjoy this book.
amia's review
4.0
The Jigsaw Blade is an action-packed adventure with elements of humor and fantasy liberally sprinkled throughout. I highly recommend it and plan to read book 2 very soon. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
Read via Kindle Unlimited
Read via Kindle Unlimited
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