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- Book written by Robin Hobb
- Published in 2011
- Part 3 of The Rain Wild Chronicles
In part three of The Rain Wild Chronicles, the Dragons, their keepers, and the rest of the crew of the Tarman have finally found the legendary city of Kelsingra. Captain Leftrin has returned to the city of Cassarick to collect their rewards. Meanwhile, Elderlings Malta and Reyn Khuprus are expecting a child, but Cassarick isn’t as safe for those with scales as it once was.
After two installments where little of note happens, I was glad to see that City of Dragons brings back both some plot as well as beloved characters from the Liveship Traders trilogy.
I found this book significantly easier to get through, and I listened to the audiobook, so that’s saying something (not sure what though, perhaps just how much of a drag Dragon Haven was, or else that I’m glad that this book was much shorter).
Malta is one of my favourite Robin Hobb characters of all time, so I was absolutely delighted to see her return to star in this book.
This book features significantly less of the dragons, as the story is spread out over more characters, both because the characters are in different places, but also because Hobb brings back characters from previous books (in particular Malta and Reyn, and Alise’s husband Hest). It also means we spend less time with individual characters, which was quite a relief after the last book, which at times felt more like a reality TV show than a novel.
Tagged:
- Book written by Robin Hobb
- Published in 2010
- Part 2 of The Rain Wild Chronicles
In the second installment of the Rain Wild Chronicles, we follow the dragon keepers, their dragons, and the rest of the expedition on their search for the ancient City of Kelsingra, where Dragons and Elderlings once lived in harmony. As they journey on, romances develop and plots thicken as the Chalcedeans need Dragon parts to cure their dying Duke.
This is the second part of the Rain Wild Chronicles, and honesty: not a lot happens. That is not to say that I did not enjoy the book, however. Sometimes a book can be more of a companion than something you get drawn into completely – I suppose it helped that I listened to the audiobook of Dragon Haven, meaning that the time I spent on it felt less precious than it might have had I read the physical book.
This book is very clearly a leadup to the following two books in the series. Very little of consequence happens.
Standout characters were Carson the hunter and Sedric. I find that Hobb writes very good redemption arcs, giving obnoxious characters growth that turns them into my favourites (like Malta in the Liveship Traders). However, her main characters in this series bore me. Alise in particular has little to nothing going on in this book, and Thymara’s entire story focuses on how all the Dragon Keeper boys want her so, so badly. Everyone in this book just wants to get it on, and I honestly feel like this novel could have been a lot shorter, and better, if this had been largely condensed.
I still enjoyed it! Hobb’s style flows nicely and I am intrigued by what the rest of the series will bring.
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Tagged:
- Book written by Robin Hobb
- Published in 2009
- Part 1 of The Rain Wild Chronicles
Dragons have hatched in the Rain Wilds, and they are nothing like the elegant creatures the Rain Wilders expected to crawl from the cocoons they had tended for so long. The Rain Wilds Council decides that they have to be escorted somewhere they can thrive. The destination is the legendary City of Kelsingra, where Dragons once lived in harmony with the Elderlings, who groomed and praised them.
Among the travelers we find Thymara, a young girl who is recruited to care for the Dragon Sintara, as well as Alise Finbok, a wealthy woman stuck in an unhappy marriage to a cruel man. Their journey is just beginning, and many hardships lie on the road ahead.
I am a big fan of Robin Hobb’s characters and style of storytelling. This book, however, is a little slower than her previous trilogies. I’ll admit I wasn’t a huge fan of the characters. Alise is a little annoying, and the Dragon Keepers are all basically children so that gets a little exhausting after a while. However, Hobb’s style of writing is pleasant, and the investment I have already made in her world by reading the last nine books made me more willing to invest my time in this series.
I would absolutely recommend starting The Rain Wilds Chronicles if you are a big fan of Robin Hobb’s books and have read the previous trilogies. In this book we get another glimpse of parts of Hobb’s world that we have not seen before, and the series will likely shed some light on its history, which I find really exciting.
However, if you have never read a book by Robin Hobb, I’d strongly recommend you start by reading Assassin’s Apprentice.
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- Book written by Becky Chambers
- Published in 2018
- Part 3 of the Wayfarers series
“From the ground, we stand. From our ships, we live. By the stars, we hope.”
When the Earth became uninhabitable, what was left of humanity sought refuge on the ships of the Exodus Fleet and left their solar system behind. Hundreds of years later, many of those humans and their descendants have settled on different planets throughout the galaxy and live there alongside other sentient species.
But some have remained on the Exodus Fleet, choosing to spend their life in space rather than on a planet. As more and more people decide to leave the fleet, the people who are left behind will have to decide what it means to them to live their life as part of this community.
I am a big fan of all of Becky Chambers’ books, but this one might be my favourite so far. As with the second book in this series, it is not a sequel to one of the earlier books, but it takes place in the same world and features one or two cameo’s from characters from the earlier books. It is similar in tone to the first two, but the narrative is very different.
Like all of Chambers’ works, this book considers the question of what it means to be human, while showing a deep belief in the ultimate good of humanity. Record of a Spaceborn Few looks at the traditions and beliefs that constitute a community and what these mean to the people in that community. It features a range of fantastic characters, whose experiences complement each other to form a picture of life on the Exodus fleet. The book is very wholesome while also managing to make you think. Definitely one to (re)read on a day when you’re feeling a bit down.
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- Book written by Christopher Paolini
- Published in 2020
- Stand-alone
During her work as an exobiologist on a newly colonised planet, Kira Navárez makes a discovery which accidentally sets off an interplanetary war. This is the beginning of a long journey for Kira as she desperately tries to minimise the damage her actions have unintentionally caused.
On the whole I quite enjoyed this book: it is pretty fast-paced and it has a cast of likable characters. However, there were a number of areas where the book fell short for me. None of the characters (except Gregorovich) are very original and the story on the whole did not particularly stand out to me either. With 800+ pages, it went on a lot longer than I felt it needed to. Especially the ending was drawn out far too much, becoming overly sentimental in places.
Pick this up if you feel like reading something engaging and easy to read (despite its length), but don’t expect too much from it. That said, Jennifer Hale does a very good job narrating the audiobook, with an impressive range of voices for the different characters. I would definitely recommend going for the audio version if that is something you enjoy.
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- Book written by Maggie Stiefvater
- Published in 2012
- Part 1 of The Raven Cycle
Every year on St. Mark’s Eve, Blue Sargant accompanies her clairvoyant mother to a graveyard outside their town to watch a yearly procession of spirits. Since Blue is not clairvoyant herself, she normally cannot see these spirits. But this year is different. When a boy that appears to her in spirit-form turns out to be a student from a nearby private school, she cannot stop her curiosity to find out more about him. But the spirit’s appearance on St. Mark’s Eve is only the first in a long list of increasingly strange occurances, and Blue is determined to find out the reason behind them.
I am often a little weary of books in the Young Adult category, because endlessly reading about teenagers and their romantic drama tends to get a little old once you have outgrown the age to be it’s intended audience. While the books of The Raven Cycle definitely fall in this category, I still found myself enjoying them a lot more than I expected going in. The main characters are well-written and all have their own stuff going on apart from the main plot of the books, which allows for an impressive amount of character growth. One character whom I did not care for at all in the beginning even managed to become my favourite by the end of the series. The paranormal events which play a large role in the books give the series a very mysterious, slightly ominous atmosphere which I really enjoyed.
The four books in the series are a continuation of the same story, so they cannot really be read on their own. While I enjoyed the first book, the story does get better and picks up speed as you get to know the characters and get deeper into the plot. The books are also relatively short compared to most fantasy books, so reading all four is not the massive time investment it might seem. If you can overlook a bit of teenage drama, I would recommend this series even for a more mature audience. I also especially recommend listening to the audiobooks performed by Will Patton.
See also:
Review: City of Dragons – Robin Hobb
Book 3 of The Rain Wild Chronicles – The legendary city of Kelsingra has been found, and captain Leftrin has returned to the Rain wilds to claim their reward. Meanwhile, Malta and Reyn Khuprus are expecting a child…
Review: Dragon Haven – Robin Hobb
Book 2 of The Rain Wild Chronicles – A group of travellers must guide a band of malformed, newly-hatched dragons to a mythical city. As they travel, we see companionships develop, and the dragons keep growing…
Review: The Dragon Keeper – Robin Hobb
Book 1 of The Rain Wild Chronicles – A group of travellers must guide a band of malformed, newly-hatched dragons to a mythical city. Will the Dragon Keepers be able to provide for their charges, or will they become the prey?
Review: Record of a Spaceborn Few – Becky Chambers
Part 3 of the Wayfarer Series – When the Earth became uninhabitable, what was left of humanity sought refuge on the ships of the Exodus Fleet. Born and raised in space, their descendants are having to face difficult choices in their turn.
Review: To Sleep in a Sea of Stars – Christopher Paolini
During her work as an exobiologist on a newly colonised planet, Kira Navárez makes a discovery which accidentally sets off an interplanetary war.
Review: The Raven Boys – Maggie Stiefvater
Part 1 of the Raven Cycle – Every year on St. Mark’s Eve, Blue Sargant accompanies her clairvoyant mother to a graveyard outside their town to watch a yearly procession of spirits. Since Blue is not clairvoyant herself, she normally cannot see these spirits. But this year is different.
