so-soI enjoyed the bulk of this series very much, but it came apart for me as its conclusion lost the all-important balance between the mythic and the personal. What started out as a lived-in story with intriguing, nuanced characters became a heavily mythic, unsatisfying story about archetypes who make Prophetic Choices. It didn‘t help that the ending has strong ties to a particular well known and poorly regarded fantasy (☠️⬇️). I‘m disappointed.
Thanks for the #ThemedThursday tag, @dabbe ! Last night I started CRUSADER, the third book in a trilogy where several characters seek redemption (and many others really should). This sequel series has also redeemed my opinion of Sara Douglass, who rather disappointed me with her original Tencendor trilogy. These ones aren‘t perfect either, but I‘ve still found them really enjoyable, with much more interesting characters and conflicts.
I stopped off at McDonald‘s on my bike ride for a wee reading break and to use up some points that were about to expire. PILGRIM ain‘t perfect—it‘s a 90s epic fantasy, with all that implies—but it‘s definitely my favourite Sara Douglass to date. I hope I can find enough time to finish it tonight.
I normally eat my palak paneer with naan, but my mum gave me a couple of Yorkshire puddings so I figured I‘d take a fusion approach. Naan definitely wins the mouth feel contest, but the dish was still tasty.
Now I‘m ready to read another chunk of PILGRIM, which is my current in-between book. I‘m still interested in the overarching story and still frustrated with the late-90s dickery. Boo to both Axis and Azhure. What shitty, shitty parents.
Yesterday‘s cheap coffee & book break. I liked the first hundred pages of SINNER better than the last two books in the series. There‘re some interesting conflicts in play and an intriguing SFnal origin for the magic system.
That said, I‘m VERY aware of how these books date from a time when fantasy characters were dicks by default. That‘s given me an excuse to reflect on that trend and how it played into Teenage Me‘s opinion of humanity.
Breakfast with Sara Douglass. I‘ve made STARMAN my in-between book—meaning I read a hundred pages every time I finish another novel—and honestly, I‘m more or less sloppily speed-reading each chunk. I do want to see how the series reaches the conclusion its sequel-trilogy‘s jacket copy spoiled for me (ugh!), but this is definitely something I would‘ve enjoyed more in the late 90s, before I was fully saturated with Chosen Ones and Destined Fates.
My uncle‘s puppy is here for one night only, and she‘s managed to have the most dramatic, TMI bathroom incident of any puppy, ever. I‘m sitting up with her so I can rush her outside if it happens again.
I‘m also chipping away at ENCHANTER, which I‘m sorry to say feels pretty obvious and corny. I had similar issues with BATTLEAXE, but it had enough good bits to see me through. I ain‘t sure if this one does. 😔
Charlie‘s fast asleep in front of my wee book stack. She snores like you wouldn‘t believe. Seriously, this dog sounds like a very small train.
pickAbsolutely loved this book (and series). I read it in middle school, and read the paperback so many times that the front cover actually fell off. I recently got the hardback version within the last year (to replace the paperback), and have reread it again. It‘s still one of my favorites, and is one of the books that sparked my interest in writing.
