Strong fantasy novel, the second half of Shadowbridge. Satisfying if bittersweet ending. Full review of both books here. ( )

Summary: In this sequel to Shadowbridge, Gregory Frost returns to his world of giant bridges spanning endless swaths of ocean. He returns to the story of Leodora, a young orphan following in her father's footsteps and earning her fame as greatest living shadow puppeteer and storyteller since her father, Bardsham. He even returns to the exact moment where Shadowbridge ends, with Leodora taken to Edgeworld, the realm of the gods.

For Leodora and her companions have traveled to Colemaigne, a span that years ago hosted her father. However, it was on Colemaigne that Bardsham so angered the god Lord Tophet that he blighted the entire city and the people who dwelt there. However, as Leodora returns to the span and her fame begins to grow, she begins to attract the attention of Tophet… and while all interactions with the gods have their price, the attentions of an angry and vengeful god are no small matter.

Review: I really don't understand the decision to make this novel a separate book from its predecessor. While I understand that publishers and booksellers are not crazy about the fat fantasy novel that is as wide as it is tall, when a single novel is broken into multiple parts, it becomes very important that each novel can stand at least somewhat on its own. Story arcs and character development can carry across a series, of course, but I still expect each of the pieces to have its own plot -- complete with beginning, middle, and end. That, I think, is where Shadowbridge and Lord Tophet break down… the first book gets all of the character development and world building, while the second gets the plot.

However, Lord Tophet doesn't get to the plot for a while. It becomes obvious relatively early on in Shadowbridge that the real mystery, the crux of the story, is the story of the past, the story of what happened to Leodora's parents. However, it's never as straightforward as that; most of the story focuses on Leodora and Diverus's adventures, with a liberal helping of the myths and legends of the spans that Leodora collects and performs. All of this is interesting and well-told, as Frost definitely has an active imagination and a knack for working very disparate elements into a richly textured world. Unfortunately, its shine started to wear off after a while, and I started to wish it would hurry up and get to the main plot that had been hinted at since the beginning of the first book. Amidst all of the tangents, we don't really get any answers until the last fifth of the book, with the result that it comes out feeling somewhat abrupt.

Lauren Davis did another fine job with the narration; she still sounds too young to me to be reading adult fiction, but by the time I got to Lord Tophet, I'd settled in and accepted her as the voice of Leodora.

Overall, while I had some problems with the pacing and structure of this book, I did enjoy listening to it, and will certainly look for more of Gregory Frost's work in the future. 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Recommendation: While I felt that it didn't quite live up to what I was expecting after listening to Shadowbridge, it was still an interesting read. One caveat, however: while Shadowbridge and Lord Tophet are sold as two separate books, they are really two halves to the same story, and neither one is a stand-alone -- so make sure you have them both on hand before starting.

This review is also published at SFsite.com. ( )

No, I don’t know why Gregory Frost made Shadowbridge and Lord Tophet into two books instead of one big one, either, but I do know that I enjoyed them both. These New Weird tales of a puppet mistress and her travels in the mysterious world of Shadowbridge have both plot and ambience going for them (though I stand by my theory that New Weird novels have their essence in place rather than plot). Frost creates complex, believable characters and puts them in complicated, magical situations that are unlike any I’ve read about elsewhere in fantasy. He is also a genuine wordsmith. The first sentence of the first novel will capture you: “The first time Leodora spoke to a god, she had climbed to the top of the bridge tower and she was masked.” How can you not keep reading? ( )

http://martlet-blog.blogspot.com/2009... ( )

I finally managed to get my hands on a copy of Lord Tophet, the second book in Gregory Frost's wonderful Shadowbridge duology. It took me a bit of extra effort to find, but it was more than worth it. I very much enjoyed the first book, Shadowbridge which end with a cliff-hanger of the worst kind. The two books should really be read one after the other and it's unfortunate that I had to wait so long to read Lord Tophet (not to mention all of the books I managed to work in in between the two) and I do think I lost some of the nuances.

Lord Tophet picks up immediately, and I do mean immediately, after Shadowbridge. Leodora and her small troupe (consisting of Soter, her guardian and manager, and Diverus, her musician) have made their way to Colemaigne, a span that was cursed and partially destroyed after the world-renowned puppet-matster and story-teller Bardsham fled it, pursued by Lord Tophet the Destroyer. Leodora's fame continues to grow--her performances as Jax are said to rival that of Bardsham, her father. But with her quick rise to prominence she has caught the attention of Lord Tophet who is determined that all connected to Bardsham will suffer his wrath due to the past transgression. Soter knows of the danger and tries to keep the troupe hidden and on the move; a task that is becoming increasingly difficult with Jax's continued success. To complicate things even further, Diverus and Leodora being to understand how much they mean to one another and just how much they are willing to risk for the other.

I enjoyed both Shadowbridge novels immensely. I particularly loved the interplay between the stories, the storytelling, and the storyteller--the interconnectedness of everything was beautifully executed. The ending of Lord Tophet seemed to come rather abruptly, but it was entirely appropriate and extremely fitting (the last couple of twists in the plot and the ending were perfect for this story). I did find Lord Tophet to be a bit more shaky in its point of view than Shadowbridge was. But, we do get a lot more answers than questions, and Frost manages to maintain a strong sense of mystery and wonder even when all is revealed.

Frost draws from numerous folklore traditions, both original and established. The Shadowbridge novels give a delightful feeling of vertigo because they seem vaguely familiar--it's like being reminded of a story you only half remember but know you've never heard before. However, the books are strongest in their marvelous world-building. While the story of Leodora, Diverus, Soter, and Lord Tophet has been concluded, Frost does have a third Shadobride book planned. I look forward to entering into that world again, and in the meantime have no problem recommending Shadowbridge and Lord Tophet as one of the most original and delightful fantasies I've read in quite a while.

Experiments in Reading ( )