Songs of the Earth

Songs of the Earth: The Wild Hunt Book 1 is a book which says as much about the times in which we live as it does about the wonderfully-created imaginary world Gair lives in. I am always perplexed by readers who choose to focus on genre before even considering the quality of writing and plotting, because, for me, if the writing takes me into a world I can believe in, I don't mind which world it is that I'm reading about, because, for me, when I'm reading it, that world is real.

And this is what Elspeth Cooper does. She takes me, effortlessly, into a parallel universe, a universe of danger, of bigotism, of hypocritical organised religion, where anything which doesn't conform is frowned upon. There are many universal truths in here, and show more their strength lies in the fact that they come from the mouths of the characters, not from the narrator. And they're not just truths about politics or religion; they're about the pain and pleasure of love, the excitement of discovering new things, be they within us or in the world around us. And Cooper's world is a magical one.

Some passages left me breathless with their beauty, some breathless with sadness and regret; others just let me soar beyond troubles or cares. I can't wait to start the second part of this trilogy. show less

Songs of the Earth came out of no where. I added it to a to-read list simply because of its synopsis and a few reviews caught my eye. I thought, "why not?" So last night, at about 7pm, I flopped down onto my bed and began reading.

And I am so, so, so very glad I did.

It's hard to describe just what did it for me--as reading and what you like to read can be as personal and as differing as the reader itself. Was it Elspeth's perfect balance of just the right detail to make the reader see it--but not so much that there wasn't room for it to be interpreted by anyone? Was it the wonderful characteristics of each person in the book? The way she completely blind sided me (did not EXPECT That. Did NOT) by the end of the first book? Probably. show more All of that and more.

This is a coming-of-age story, done well. Handling the darker aspects with a grace of folding it in like an expert chef.

I can't wait to start the second book in this series and will no doubt devour it as quickly as I did the first. show less

I wish I could remember what led me to purchase Elspeth Cooper's "Songs of the Earth." If I could only remember, I'd try to make it happen again and see what really cool book I could wind up reading next. I just finished "Songs of the Earth," and perhaps the best way to describe how much I liked it was, I immediately started reading the sequel ("Trinity Rising").

The first chapter describes a frightful scene where a young man is about to be burned at the stake for being a "witch". At the last moment, he is spared but does not go entirely unpunished. Over most of the course of this novel we see this young man, Gair, taken on and trained by an order of magicians who are able to tap the "Song" to accomplish wondrous things.

After the first show more harrowing scene, I was a little disappointed that that was not a harbinger of things to come. But the further I got into the book, and the closer I came to the end, the more I realized that some Very Bad Things were going to happen before the end of the story. I found myself reading faster, and for longer periods, because I had to see what was going to happen next.

While I found some of Cooper's world-building to resonate too closely to what's familiar in our own world, I found her characterization splendid. Few if any of the players in this story were stereotyped. Each was interesting in his or her own way. Each displayed believable emotions and faced believable struggles.

I'm into the next book now, anxious to see where this is all going. show less

Religious persecution against those with magic. Yes that always brings forth emotions in me. They are the perfect baddies, sitting in their cold towers preaching about salvation and hunting innocents with magic in their blood, even if those loves the Goddess just as much as the rest.

We got Gair, our hero, who is being tortured because he has magic. A good hero who finds his own way, friends and love down the road that is this book. He never loses faith either, something that is not easy after what he has been through. But he does does wonder what he really is.

Still what I liked most was the story. We had our Spanish inquisition, they had theirs; going after those who heard the song. There are even fundamentalists in the desert that they show more are fighting. A world very true to our own in a way. In other ways not to much, they have a one true Goddess, they have magic, and they have a veil that separates other world from theirs. A veil that is breaking, and then all hell will break loose.

A church is always a good bad guy, because we as the reader know that Gair is good and it not to blame for hearing something that is in tune with the earth itself. And as the story progresses I learn more and I do want to read the next book because how can this end well when the world is caught up in their own madness?

Conclusion:
An interesting start to a new series. It is so familiar, yet so different from our own world and that makes it ring more true. I hope book 2 is just as exciting. show less

The book opens with Gair being brought to his trial for the offence of being a witch and using magic. Gair can't help it, the magic calls as a music to him and the song is compelling. He is rescued and finds himself on a trip that will lead him to a place of safety, but there are forces and plots and his life will never be the same again.

There were moments where it faltered but overall this story drew me in and compelled me to keep reading. I liked that the characters weren't safe, that there were consequences and that while Gair is very powerful, this isn't an easy ride for him, his life is not safe or sane. He has nightmares from the events of the opening chapters, nightmares that lessen but don't go away completely!

Sometimes the show more reasons for hostility aren't worked out enough and there were places where I felt it stretched things a bit too much but overall I really enjoyed this one and look forward to the next in the series (thankfully already out in print!) show less

I went into this book not knowing what to expect and found myself pleasantly surprised; though I did draw comparisons to a favorite book of mine, The Name of the Wind, though Songs was not as detailed as NotW.

I really like the main character Gair. Why did I like him? Hhmmm...first I guess because he was smart enough to know that his magic would get him in trouble so tried to keep it hidden but he still used it. Second, when confronted with a situation that made him uncomfortable or put him in peril, he may have tried to avoid it or reason his way out of it but in the end he would try to do the right thing. I liked the way the powers of people were explained and manifested as well. I'm looking forward to seeing how Cooper continues the show more story. show less

First book in 'The Wild Hunt' series. Novice Knight Gair can hear music no one else can, a powerful and beautiful but also terrible music. When he is found out, he is tortured as a witch and exiled. Starved, battered and bleeding he is helped by a mysterious savior who he finds is part of an ancient order of persecuted Guardians of the Veil who can all hear the song. The problem is that the Veil between the real world and a dark Hidden Kingdom is breaking down. Will Gair be able to master his exceptional skills in time to help save humankind?

In many ways a traditional fantasy novel. A bit clunky at times with abrupt scene movements and time changes but overall a good fantasy novel.