Shadowrise

Just when I thought I had a grip on this series (that it wasn't gripping me) I was grabbed. What I guess happened is that Williams' himself, fully immersed in this very complex story was taken into a more original source inside himself, with less reference and homage to the memes he loves and admires, or spinning them together more originally. Barrick Eddon's gradual transformation has begun, you knew it would, but when. Sulepis the mad ruler of Xis is epically insane. His agent Vo is both horrendous and pitiable. Qinnitan, always naturally tough, is more determined than ever. Even Briony has begun to mature, to stand a little away from her emotional reactions effectively. All good. The Funderlings, while they owe a lot to the hobbits, show more are in their own tale now and part of the bigger story. The Qar too, are emerging and diverging as a true 'people'. So, on to the 4th and final book. Even Briony's romantic quandary is becoming interesting. **** show less

8.5/10
Well, you can tell this is the second-last book because finally things are coming together, setting up the climax! Most of the main characters are heading to the same place and I don’t doubt that the others will join them.

Little hints from previous books are starting to bear fruit. The Qar blood in Olin, Barrick, and likely Qinnitan links them in interesting ways, and perhaps Briony as well. It must act differently in males than females. And the importance of the Mysteries/Shining Man deep in the Funderlings’ temple.

Does anyone else read the epigraphs at the beginning of each chapter? It’s been interesting to compare the Xandian and Eionian versions of the tales of the gods, and then compare those to the Qar version.

I am show more (finally) warming up to Barrick, although the “gifts” of the Sleepers have changed him. He is stronger in both body and spirit but colder as well—more removed from his emotions (not necessarily a bad thing in his case since self-pity was a dominant emotion for him).

And Sulepis continues to simply be appalling, as are his agents Vo and Ananka.

What I liked:
-understanding more of the story of the gods and how that impacts the current plots/subplots
-vivid descriptions; engaging characters—not just the main ones, but the secondary ones as well
-the multi-layered plot and the blurring of the lines between “good guys” and “bad guys” as we learn that almost everyone is just trying to survive (Exception—Autarch Sulepis!)

What I didn’t like:
-some of the inevitable journeying was a bit too endless—Briony with the players, Barrick with the crow, Olin with the Autarch and Vash
-related to that issue, the snail’s pace of much of the book. That is typical of this author, not just in this series, and while so much detail makes for a fully realized world and characters, it also makes for long books that occasionally get bogged down in the details. Still, I read this book in half the time I read book 2, so that’s an improvement in pacing, I guess.
-subplots that feel superfluous: Matt Tinwright and Lady Elan, Sister Utta and Lady Merolanna

I am hoping for a truly satisfying conclusion in the next book! show less

Things have gone from bad to worse in Southmarch castle. The usurper Tollys are still on the throne and the army of Qar camped outside the front gate are getting restless. To add insult to injury, the insane Autarch of Xis has taken an unhealthy interest in Southmarch and its royal family. Barrick Eddon remains lost behind the Shadowline while his twin sister Briony searches for allies in a far away foreign court. Their father, King Olin, is still a prisoner and unable to help. All the while, the gods are starting to wake up.

For the sake of full disclosure let me admit right now that I have a literary crush on Tad Williams. Dropping into one of his stories is better than mulled wine on a frosted evening. Scrumptious. Shadowrise was no show more exception. I do, however, feel the need to point out one burr in my happy Tad Williams epic fantasy saddle. I am weary of homosexuals in epic fantasy forever being either evil/corrupt or overtly lascivious. This is common in epic fantasy and in this case Williams is no exception. Either leave the sexual orientation piece completely out of the story or allow some healthy, mature homosexual relationships to exist as well. I want to be able to love my fantasy escapism without feeling like I'm betraying my morals. And end rant.

With that out of the way I do still recommend this series. Tad Williams is truly a master of story weaving and world building. Two of my very favorite things. show less

This series continues to be something of an enigma, but not in the usual sense of the word.

Sure, there's a number of great reveals in this volume that let us dive deeper and deeper into what the gods are and what they were and how they work. We understand the god's children, the Fae who are bursting out into this fantasy land and displacing or killing the lesser, or rather, quite equal humans.
There's even a great deal of good action and epic battles and tons of court intrigue and traveling on the road if hobnobbing with gods isn't your thing. It is my thing, however, and I count that part of the storytelling to be some of the most interesting. By far. Keyword STORYTELLING. Those of you who've read this will understand what I mean. It's show more quite beautiful how the gods and their lands work.

Dreams, imagination, passing on of immortality, the difficulty of children... all of it wraps up into something quite delicious.

And then there's the enigma.

How can something with such core awesomeness in an epic fantasy wind up having so many tedious passages? I'm sorry, but the book is too long. I might have said the same about the other two and by the look of things, the fourth is the worst.

Unfortunately, some storylines lost my interest. I might have perked up with the assassination attempts and the escapes and the times of good dialogue where reveals were being had, but the rest was full of sad tedium.

And yet I still rate this as a four star because on the whole, I love the story. That's the strength of Tad Williams and it's why I'm willing to slog a bit. It's worth it in the end. Especially this novel. The end was pretty fantastic and has me rearing to pick up the next. :)

But I shall wait a little. I need to recharge. :) show less

So on to the next novel and the one I have not read before. It is still a bit of a slog at times and I found I got on better with it in small chunks rather than large ones. But more happens in this - there are more revelations and more action. Barrick's annoying whining got less and the end was a real twist. Still not sure what point of Briony's story is though - so far she has left Southmarch - wandered about a bit, met a few people, nothing much has changed and now she's on her way back to Southmarch with an army but she has that by accident.
Everyone is converging on Southmarch for the final showdown, so let's see how it all comes together.

The pace is much improved over the second volume, with nearly all of these chapters carrying weight and momentum. Briony regains most of her agency as she seeks foreign assistance against the Shadowmarch usurper. Barrick's narrative improves while he's on his lonesome in the inhospitable fairy lands. Chert is assertive and Chaven further defies his character template as they deal with mysterious events at the castle, now aided by Vansen who gets back to what he's good at. Only Quinnitan languishes for being held prisoner, but her captor Daikonas Vo is interesting and so is her strange psychic tie to Barrick. Various other players have roles as the Quar ramp up the Shadowmarch siege. I don't think anyone makes it this far without being show more invested in these characters and it's gratifying whenever something goes right for them. Unfortunately we don't reach the conclusion as scheduled, the author again finding himself in need of a fourth volume to close out his trilogy. show less

I have the occasional argument with friends about whether Tad Williams has anything of his own to say. While I agree that [b:Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn|91981|The Dragonbone Chair (Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn, #1)|Tad Williams|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1309286899s/91981.jpg|840191] was derivative, I thought [b:Otherland|28695|City of Golden Shadow (Otherland, #1)|Tad Williams|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1329075235s/28695.jpg|1570074] was innovative and interesting, as was [b:The War of the Flowers|28692|The War of the Flowers|Tad Williams|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1347622742s/28692.jpg|1872421]. The first two books of [b:Shadowmarch|28694|Shadowmarch (Shadowmarch, #1)|Tad show more Williams|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1290856030s/28694.jpg|832564] seemed to bear out that promise.

Shadowrise, unfortunately, bogs down substantially. It's not bad, but it is dull. The complex plot moves on, and Williams does a good job of keeping all the key characters in play. Potentially intriguing things happen, but somehow they're not really intriguing. For one thing, he doesn't really explore them - they just happen, then are left behind. While all the characters are on desperate, life and death quests, the book somehow becomes just a series of events - "this happened, then this happened, then that happened, then the other thing happened". Even the complex relationships of the gods, which we learn more about, didn't really hold my interest. One revelation apparently intended as a key tipping point in the human-fairy relationship evoked no more from me than acknowledgement - because I never got very deeply involved.

The book isn't bad - it just feels like filler. Williams notes that he intended it to be shorter, and it probably would have been a better book that way. One case when one wishes for a firmer editorial hand.

I already have [b:Shadowheart|7876746|Shadowheart (Shadowmarch. #4)|Tad Williams|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1279550641s/7876746.jpg|11066482], book 4 of the series, but I feel as if I can fairly well predict what will happen in that heavy volume. I foresee more of the same - moving, complex parts, but no great surprises. I hope I'm wrong.

If you're considering whether to read past book 2, and you're not a die-hard Williams fan, I'm afraid I have to advise against. Too big an investment of time for too little return. show less