What do I read first?

[Lacedaemonian]

I am not interested in her Sci fi works as I hate sci fi. Which of her fantasy works are worth reading?

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Well then, you'd probably want to begin with King's Dragon, as that's the first book in her Crown of Stars (fantasy) series.

 

[Lacedaemonian]

How do you rate her compared to the best known fantasy writers? ie Feist, Gemmell, Martin, Eddings, Jordan etc etc

 

[Rahl Windsong]

I found her books to be quite good though the story is set deeply into religion and this may make it hard for some to get into the books. I personally loved the religious aspects to her stories and I do not consider myself a religious person. Crown of Stars shows us all how powerful the church was in medieval times and also how, in some cases, absolute power corrupts absolutely.

Comparring her to Fiest, Gemmell, Martin, Eddings, and Jordan I would say that her work is as heart felt as those writers with the exception of Eddings, I think Kate's work far exceeds his, and Jordan's last two books have been the worst of his career.

Rahl

 

[Lacedaemonian]

Look at you quoting Acton. That is one of my favourite quotes of all time btw.

I'll buy her first book and see how it goes.

 

[Alia]

Lacey, this story is very intriguing. She has a main character that no one has figured out who he is yet...
I actually think that if you read these books you would be the one to figure out what he is. Besides it may be interesting to see what your theories are concerning him.
I personally recommend these books. They are worth the read, I don't think you will be disappointed at all.

 

[Lacedaemonian]

Sounds interesting. I am always on the look out for new authors to read. Or at least ones I aint discovered yet.

 

[Alia]

I don't think you'll be disappointed... I was reading Robert Jordan when I found my self bored and without his book. Was recommended The King's Dragon, read the whole series and have yet to go back to Robert Jordan.

 

[Lacedaemonian]

I am downloading the Kings Dragon, if it starts good I will buy it tomorrow.

 

[Rahl Windsong]

Alain and Liath are my favortie characters, here is a short review of these characters, I cut this from the article so there would be no spoilers posted to this thread.

Quoted form the review, link to the review below.
"Think about a magical Germany one-hundred years after the death of Charlemagne and you're on the right track. A world where the church is a powerful force, but noble family ties are even more important. A time when nations are carved out of political struggles, and the wrath of the Northmen are far more terrible than it ever was in our world. Combine this with believable and interesting characters, nicely interlaced magical elements and good writing and you get a very good book, the promising start of a new series in the heroic fantasy tradition. When I read a book like this, I can't help thinking that this is a great age for fantasy lovers. In the wake of writers like Robert Jordan and Tad Williams, dozens of writers are taking new steps forward, exploring new historical situations, inducing character depth and human drama into a genre once concentrating on magical wonders and sword-fighting. Alain and Liath very much remind me of people I know and care about, which gives the book yet another dimension, underlining the impression that this is real, the suspense of disbelief I find so essential in good fantasy writing."

Link to the entire review: http://www.hoh.se/fantasyfinder/elliott1.html

Rahl

 

[Lacedaemonian]

Sounds like my cup of tea.

 

[Lacedaemonian]

I just went and bought Prince of Dogs by mistake. I am a total loser.

 

[Alia]

I would start with King's Dragon, Lacey! But, at least you have the second book for when you finish the first...

 

[Lacedaemonian]

What if I hate the first book, now I am lumbered with the second one as well. I just bought £80.00 worth of books though so I am sure I will survive.

 

[Rahl Windsong]

I would not worry too much, I think you will enjoy this story. In fact I am considering driving 100 klicks today to go buy the rest of this series. I live in a small town with no book store so its a bit of a drive to find one. I just wish, after a series is out for a while like this one, that I could still find the hardcover editions I would rather purchase them.

Rahl

 

[Lacedaemonian]

Ebay? I will have to purchase the first book now.

 

[Alia]

Lacey, Do you like battles? Intrigue? Beautiful women?

 

[Lacedaemonian]

Battles and Beautiful Women yes.

I have bought the first book now, so I have part one and two. I will leave some feedback as I am working my way through them.

 

[GOLLUM]

Battles and Beautiful Women yes.

I have bought the first book now, so I have part one and two. I will leave some feedback as I am working my way through them.

We look forward to your feedback on this excellent series. To answer a previous enqiuiry, for me Crown Of Stars is on a similar level to Tad William's Memory, Sorrow and Thorn trilogy, Greg Keyes Kingdoms Of Thorn and Bone quartet and possibly JV Jones current Sword Of Shadows trilogy although I think it may be better than that. So you're talking a fairly high standard here IMHO.

 

[Culhwch]

Okay, I recently started reading King's Dragon after seeing the praise here, and here is my question to you: Does it get any better?

At the moment I am maybe thirty or forty pages in and I have stalled. I'm tossing up whether or not to press on in the hopes the series gets better, but at the moment I dread the thought of wasting any more time on it. The writing is average to less-than-average (some of the dialogue so far has been woeful, to say the least), the story is not in the least engaging, to me, anyway - it seems a little overwrought and slightly cliched. A stranger, a prophecy, a king's *******, swirling mist, shadowy string-pullers, a death-sentence. An orphan boy, dreaming of adventure and excitement, instead stuck in a drudge of an existance, just waiting for fate to deliver all those things he longed for...

I don't know. It just doesn't seem to be for me. Try and convince me otherwise, if you feel the need. I have gotten the feeling lately, in my search for a fresh, exciting new fantasy writer to devour, that I have been ruined by the likes of Martin, Gaiman, Pratchett, Cornwell, and even Williams - writers gifted in both technical artistry and imagination - so that now the run-of-mill blandness that so chokes the fantasy market holds no attraction for me. Or maybe I'm just being overly dramatic....