Reading Challenge - 40 to 44

40 - The Third by Ricardo Pinto
The Third God is the last book of the Stone Dance of the Chameleon, a much anticipated ending to the series. Although the wait for this third book has been long, it was worth it.

I loved reading this series, but, like it usually happens with good things, I'm sad that it came to an end. Different from most fantasy I've read, it evokes a vivid imagery every time I think about it. Not a fast or light read, but an immensely enjoyable one. I will probably do a re-read of the entire series in a near future.

[Full Review]

(4.5/5)

41 - Sense and Sensibility by Jane Austen
Now, this one was just boring.

I found the characters to have little depth, and the plot was hardly novel. Despite this, the characters (or at least Marianne) do evolve a bit to reach the unsurprising ending: they all make good marriages (makes me wonder if there is more to life than that).

Final opinion: watch the movies/mini-series and you'll be more entertained than with the book.

On another note, I'm not sure what Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters is about (I suppose there will be sea monsters in it, but after my experience with Pride and Prejudice and Zombies I am in no rush to find out), but if anyone wants to make a remake of this book in which little Margaret turns out to be an evil murderess possessed by the devil, killing everyone on revenge because they spend the entire book ignoring her, I'll read it. Because I'm not entirely sure why there was a need for a third sister if she is to be forgotten during most of the book.

(3/5)


42 - The Painted Man by Peter V. Brett

The Painted Man is hardly ground-breaking fantasy, but it has nice concepts and the action packed plot means it's an easy and fast read, and enjoyable enough. I will read the next one in the series, because I want to know what happens next, not because I loved this first book.

[Full Review]

(3.5/5)


43 - Perdido Street Station by China Miéville
Perdido Street Station comes highly recommended on the steampunk genre, and is the winner of various awards. I haven't read much of steampunk (if you consider Wells' The Time Machine steampunk, then that's all I've read), so I decided to give the genre a try. And I can say this will not be my last book (either on the genre or by China Miéville).

[Full Review]

(4.5/5)


44 - Brother Grimm by Craig Russell
Detective novels are not my thing, I like Fantasy and Science Fiction and weird stuff far better. I picked Brother Grimm because of its fairy tales connection, and didn't care that it was the second book on a series.

I liked the book well enough, a bit like CSI, but more focused on the detective part than on collecting the forensics. It is a fast read, and enjoyable. There is plenty of action and twisted murders, but there is still room for more deep musings about the significance of Fairy Tales, and especially of the Brothers Grimm task of collecting all the fairy tales through Germany, in a way of collecting the essence of the German People.

The one thing I have to point out is that there seemed to be much repetition of the characters descriptions (time and time again referring “the two Sex-Crime SoKo members, Petra Maas and Hans Rödger” as such every time they appear, especially when they didn't provide much to action. They were there but didn't do much).

I might read the first novel of the series if it comes my way.

(4/5)

The Third God by Ricardo Pinto

The Third God by Ricardo Pinto

The Third God is the last book of the Stone Dance of the Chameleon, a much anticipated ending to the series. Although the wait for this third book has been long, it was worth it.

At the end of The Standing Dead, the Ochre tribe has been massacred by Osidian, who becomes the most cruel and hateful person in the world in Carnelian's eyes. But there is also the threat of the Masters coming to Earthsky, putting the lives of Carnelian's loved ones in danger, so that he is forced to protect and ally with Osidian in order to save them.

The Third God tells of the return of Osidian and Carnelian to Osrakun, the war they wage against the Chosen that stay in their way and Osidian's revenge against his brother and mother.

I thought, when I bought the book, that the title was one "Big Spoiler". It is, and it isn't. In some sense it warns to the existence of another God, but its significance is really only learnt at the end of the book. There's a revelation that the title hints at, but only at the what, and not at the how.

Beautifully crafted in terms of world building, this book requires some time to read. Not only because of its size, but because of the pace of the action, that is not as fast as most fantasy, but takes time to describe both the beauty of the places and people, and the horror of war and human nature. Since the first book that I loved the Caste System that rules the Three Lands, the Masks and Costumes, the different people that inhabit it, and the sheer complexity of the politics and laws that make the world that is found in The Stone Dance of the Chameleon (I was really happy to find that there is a lot of extra material regarding the world building on the author's website).

I admit to being lost on some parts, when I couldn't remember exactly what happened in the previous books (after all, it has been some time since I read them), and when sometimes I couldn't see much sense to the characters actions. But when all the pieces finally were set in place, and the "secret" comes out, it makes so much sense, and it's perfect. That probably was what I loved the most in The Third God – the discovery of the founding stones of that society, the whys of the rules set in place. Much like in Tolkien's Silmarillion, I wanted to delve into the History of that fantasy world, that because of its complexity and level of detail, feels frighteningly real.

My favourite character from the beginning of the series was Osidian, and it was with some sadness that I came to realize that the story was not about him. It was with some apprehension that I continued reading, dreading what usually happens to characters that are evil in any way: their death. Osidian is not "The Evil One", although he is not a very pleasant fellow either. One of the strong points of The Stone Dance of the Chameleon is that it's ripe with morally grey characters, there is no black and white. Osidian is completely brutal and monstrous, but at the same time very much like a lost child in search of approval and love.

I loved reading this series, but, like it usually happens with good things, I'm sad that it came to an end. Different from most fantasy I've read, it evokes a vivid imagery every time I think about it. Not a fast or light read, but an immensely enjoyable one. I will probably do a re-read of the entire series in a near future.

(4.5/5)