The Singer of All Songs

There seems to be a fad in YA fantasy these past years for magic to involve music and the rescued heroines to be the ones to save the world (unexpectedly, of course). Summarizing it like that makes me think "well, that's not really so new," because it's always the rescued hero(ine) who ends up saving the world, now isn't it? But I swear there's a new popular style thing going on, and The Singer of All Songs lands firmly in it.

It reminds me very strongly of the Pellinor series by Alison Croggon, where Maerad is taken from a distant, secluded place and introduced to the wider world, where it turns out her magical ability isn't as normal as she thought, and she's likely the one meant to save the world from some horrible thing. Calwyn is show more also taken from a distant, secluded place and introduced to the wider world, where it turns out her magical ability isn't as normal as the thought, and she's likely the one meant to save the world from some horrible thing.

In Tremaris, the world of The Singer of All Songs, the magic is split into types of chantments (note the pun!) that different societies have specialised in for centuries. Calwyn happens to come from the tradition of high-pitched ice chants, but there's also songs of iron, seeming, being, fire, and so on. Calwyn leaves her home when it is threatened by a chanter who has the power of many different kinds of songs, rather than just one - which is the way it usually is. She travels with Darrow, a chanter of iron, who has made it his quest to stop the evil chanter, and who apparently was the one who brought the evil chanter to Antaris in the first place.

Of course, because this is One Of Those Stories, it's obvious that Calwyn has a crush on Darrow and they might could fall in love. I can't stand that part of the story, and I hate it in all the fantasy books like this. The way I see it, he's the first man she's ever met who has the potential to be a romantic interest, so she fixates on him. It's totally awkward and weird, especially because (as near as I could tell), Calwyn is supposed to be about sixteen years old and Darrow is twice her age. Luckily, others join their traveling party and the reader isn't subjected to the weird UST all the time.

Despite the clichés and "haven't I read this before?" feeling of the book, I did like it a lot. Kate Constable seems to have given careful thought to the politics of the different factions as well as the way her type of magic would affect the characters and environment. It's always neat when that happens. Furthermore, the writing itself is engaging and the story never lost my interest.

Though this is the first book in a trilogy, it works as a stand-alone. There's no real threads left hanging at the end to require the reader to continue to the second in the series, but it's set up so that the plot could easily carry into a second book. show less

One of my favourite fantasies, the Chanters of Tremaris series is a traditional fantasy quest with magic, maps and adventure with a touch of romance. Geared towards younger adult readers, the series will feel comfortable and familiar to fantasy lovers, hitting all the right notes of a quest fantasy and delivering an enjoyable read.

In the first part of the trilogy, The Singer of All Songs, readers are introduced to sixteen year old Calwyn a headstrong, fiery novice priestess of ice who longs to escape the ice wall that surrounds her home of Antaris. Unlike the other priestesses who seem to be content with Antaris, Calwyn feels the itch to know what's beyond the wall. She gets her wish when she meets iron chanter, Darrow.

Darrow stumbles show more into Antaris, injured and weary but is found by Calwyn who nurses him back to health. He tells Calwyn of lands far away and of the sorcerer Samis who wants to be crowned ruler of Tremaris.

Samis is on a quest to obtain all nine powers of chantment and be named the Singer of All Songs as told of in a prophecy made long ago. Having mastered two of the powers, he is well on his way but when he arrives in Antaris to learn the power of ice and threatens the priestesses, Calwyn finds herself and Darrow off on a journey to gather friends and allies to fight Samis.

I love this book. Calwyn is brave and passionate and cares fiercely for others. She is impulsive and stubborn and just a tiny bit of trouble. Her mind is hilarious as well;

‘But –’ Calwyn opened her mouth to protest, then closed it again. Perhaps it was best to do as he said at least some of the time, when it didn’t really matter, and save her disagreements for a time when it did. Obediently she seated herself on a squat bollard, pulled her cloak tightly about her, and tried to look patient. ‘Very well.’

Constable, Kate. The Chanters of Tremaris Trilogy bundle: fantasy adventure magic series The Singer of All Songs; The Waterless Sea; The Tenth Power . Allen and Unwin. Kindle Edition.

Her inquisitive nature is brilliant and I love her desire to know about the world around her. The land of Tremaris is interesting and I loved the world building of the nine powers of chantment. The idea of singing as power isn't a new one but it's a fun concept and it was well done in this. I enjoyed how Calwyn stumbles her way into learning the power of winds and finds that she already knows the power of beasts from her days as a beekeeper in Antaris. I liked the excitement she has for learning magic. And I loved the idea of Calwyn being the Singer of All Songs. As Tonno put it;

‘You’ve always called Samis such a marvel. Such a mighty sorcerer. And here’s this lass with her plaits down her back, with the same gift, mebbe. Mebbe stronger than his, for all we know.’ ‘Maybe.’The word was breathed so low that Calwyn barely heard it. ‘Mebbe she’s the one, not him – the Singer of all Songs. Think of that! I’d like to see his face if he knew it, to be trumped by a slip of a lass, not even in skirts.’ Tonno’s rare, deep laugh rumbled through the cabin. ‘Aye, I’d like to see that day!’

Constable, Kate. The Chanters of Tremaris Trilogy bundle: fantasy adventure magic series The Singer of All Songs; The Waterless Sea; The Tenth Power . Allen and Unwin. Kindle Edition.

There's just something about girls triumphing over boys.

The adventure itself is fast paced and full of magic. I loved the friends they meet on the way, Tonno, Xanni, Trout, Mica and Halasaa - although I was devastated by Xanni's death. Like really? Couldn't he have lived? I liked the hints of romance between Calwyn and Darrow but would've liked it even more if after they left Antaris they still bothered to talk to one another. The miscommunication between them was annoying.

The build up to the final confrontation with Samis was great and I liked how Trout was the one to save the day. The idea that he couldn't hear the Power of Seeming because he's slightly deaf was hilarious.

A fun fantasy read with a quest to save the lands, found family, an evil sorcerer and lots of musical magic. 5 stars. show less

At first I thought I would be a little bored with this middle-reader fantasy, but I ended up getting into it. It would have been nice to get to know the characters a little more. It's a trilogy, so I imagine that there's still a lot to learn. If I see the second in the series, I'll probably pick it up. The focus on chants as the source of magic was a fun to think about. The world and its magic are filling out nicely.

I picked up this first novel by Constable because of a cover blurb by Garth Nix. We'll see if I trust HIM again! ;-)
Seriously, maybe Constable will improve with time, but I didn't feel that this book was up to general publishing standards. It really felt like a first effort.
It started out OK, with us meeting the young, talented, but rebellious priestess in her home village... but once she absconds from said village (with an injured sorcerer on the run from his powerful nemesis) it becomes hopeless.
There's no attempt at character generation, and so much happens in so few pages that you could miss entire locations if you blinked... seriously - this page: we're at a college, next page pirates, two pages later, volcano, three pages later, show more dinosaurs, everything flying by without any time for the reader to FEEL - or even visualize - anything. A character might die - but we don't care, 'cause we never got to know him in the slightest, since he was only ALIVE for 5 pages! (etc.)
The plot is really stereotypical (There are 9 types of magical spellsong, and the bad guy wants to collect them all so he can take over the world) - and while I do feel that a 'classic' plot can be done well, Constable needs to learn to slow down and savor her writing - so that her readers can enjoy the action! show less

Singer of All Songs is a short, captivating novel. This book took me from this world to a world full of magic and other wonders that you can only get through reading. Calwyn and her friends go on an epic adventure to stop the evil and ambitious, Samis, from trying to conquer all of Tremaris by becoming the 'singer of all songs'- possessing the ability to sing all the chantments.

Kate Constable created a world that is unlike any other. How amazing it would be to be able to create ice, wind, fire, etc... with song, or as in Halasaa's case, through dance and body movements.

This novel is definitely worth reading, as well as the other two books in the trilogy!

Even from the base level of the structure of The Singer of All Songs, Constable does something captivating: creates an original world with an original fantasy. So many of the books within this genre coming out over the past 20 years have been based off of already well-known mythologies, like vampires, magic, dragons and elves, and many of the other fantasy structures that have been replayed too many times. It’s refreshing to be brought into a world and mythology that opens and expands the creative possibilities and mixes well-known aspects of our own world into a parallel world with different rules about interacting with nature and song.Ultimately, the story is simplistic with characters that struggle with one to two-dimensional show more issues at best, but that’s generally par for the course in this genre. The writing is decent, and although it’s probably not going to be considered great literature, it’s a fun, fast-paced read with a classic good vs. evil, the world as we know it is going to end plot. It won’t be a life changing read, or a book that will inspire or answer the depths of intrapersonal searches in philosophy, sociology, or religion. However, it is a great rainy day book that will provide escape and entertainment. I recommend this book and the trilogy as a whole for adults looking for a fun read, but it’s primary audience will be kids ages 8-13.-Lindsey Miller, www.lindseyslibrary.com show less

An interesting audio performance. This story is about a world where magic is performed by people who sing and chant. The audio version has haunting songs whenever magic is performed - a bit eerie, but it enhances the experience. I liked the story, but the ending fizzled a bit. Also, I didn't like the love ?? interest between 2 of the characters - especially since the girl was a teenager and the man was over 30 - creepy!