| Author |
Topic:
The Worlds of Jacqueline Carey
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Raven
Title:
SFF: Books and Comics Mangler
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
6/13 5:39pm
Subject:
RE: The Worlds of Jacqueline Carey
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I'm about 2/3 of the way through.
The series has been odd. I rate the first book as 7.5/10, the second as 5/10, the third as 2.5/10. And then the fourth was a 6/10, the fifth... the first half of the fifth was 8/10, the second half 5/10. The sixth, so far, is 8.5/10. Which makes the sixth book - so far - the best yet.
There are some great shows of trust and love in the book. Good stuff.
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1. Seek enlightenment.
2. ???
3. Prophet.
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Raven
Title:
SFF: Books and Comics Mangler
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
6/16 12:33pm
Subject:
RE: The Worlds of Jacqueline Carey
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Finished the book (again). After giving it a lot of thought, I'd rate it as 8/10. The middle sags a bit. Overall, best in the series. The final few chapters are heartbreaking, leading to one of the best "love conquers all" scenes I've read in a long, long time. The actual mechanics of the scene are mediocre, but the emotions are razor sharp.
Good stuff.
The sex in the book took an interesting turn. I think that overall, the book probably had more sex than any of the other books, and it was closer to vanilla sex for the most part. But it became fairly ordinary, much better integrated into the overall plot than it's ever been in the series.
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1. Seek enlightenment.
2. ???
3. Prophet.
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Cobranaconda
Title: Ex-FF-UK: South CR
Registered:
Mar '04
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Date Posted:
6/16 12:49pm
Subject:
RE: The Worlds of Jacqueline Carey
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I need to read it a second time, but I think it's still not as good as Dart, and about even with Justice. I'll let you know when I finish (read the whole lot in 7 hours last time  ).
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"We find that your American beer is a little like making love in a canoe."
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Raven
Title:
SFF: Books and Comics Mangler
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
6/17 5:48am
Subject:
RE: The Worlds of Jacqueline Carey
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The thing about Dart is, while it has the best plotline in the series, Carey's writing style was still taking shape. Her writing has improved, but she no doesn't have a plot to hook it on that's quite as good. Judged on its own merits, I firmly believe that Mercy is better than Dart, despite weaker slightly plotting - and Mercy has the best plotting since Dart.
Also, I need to give any book serious props for killing off all of the villains with a couple hundred pages left. It's pretty non-standard writing. Yes, I realize that the gem plotline kept things going, but still. Definitely not the easy choice to make.
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1. Seek enlightenment.
2. ???
3. Prophet.
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jadesaber2
Registered:
Oct '00
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Date Posted:
6/18 9:51pm
Subject:
RE: The Worlds of Jacqueline Carey
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Picked up my copy a few days ago. These books do not lend themselves to early nights. I stayed up until 4:30 for half a week reading the last one. And it was Good. I really got into this one, especially the feeling of helpless rage against Astegal and Bodeshmun. And the despair over what has happened to the City of Elua. Reading that bit near the end, I found myself wishing for Bodeshmun to come back, just so Imriel could kill him again. I felt really bad for poor Sidonie when they returned to the City. To know that you're losing a part of yourself, without knowing what part you're losing, must be terrifying. And I felt bad for Imri, having to watch his love slowly forget about him.
I'd rate Mercy as the best of the series, with Dart close behind. I prefer the second trilogy to the first. The Phedre books seemed to be all about Phedre and Joscelin saving the land from one threat or another, with the character exploration just along for the ride. Imriel's books do a much better job of getting inside Imri's head, his personal struggles against those who would hold him accountable for his mother's actions and against his own sense of shortcoming. Sure, Scion wasn't the most exciting book, but to me, it seemed that the book was as much Carey finding out who Imri was as it was Imri finding out the same. In a way, I can relate more to Imri than Phedre (at least in Scion), in that I'm always comparing myself to those around me and finding myself wanting. Of course, being of the same sex as the main character in a first-person story also helps a bit.
Anyway, now I need to read all six books again.
tl, dr: I'm with Cobranaconda on this: WANT MOAR.
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*Retired Jedi Master of the Light Side*
What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters
compared to what lies within us. - Ralph Waldo Emerson
A smooth sea never made a skillful mariner
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Raven
Title:
SFF: Books and Comics Mangler
Registered:
Oct '98
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Date Posted:
6/19 11:36am
Subject:
RE: The Worlds of Jacqueline Carey
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I'd be up for the next set of stories to take place a few centuries later, when the heroes of the first trilogy (except maybe Hyacinthe) are long since dust and memory.
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1. Seek enlightenment.
2. ???
3. Prophet.
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AquaRose
Registered:
Sep '01
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Date Posted:
8/1 3:10pm
Subject:
RE: The Worlds of Jacqueline Carey
- Date Edited:
8/1 3:12pm (2 edits total)
Edited By:
AquaRose
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This thread does not get updated enough. *laughs* But I can't start a new thread so I guess I will just dig it up.
Anyway, I have read the first 4 books (ok, so I read slow...) and I really enjoyed the first and third book best. As a person who's parents left her at a young age, I feel Phedre's feelings towards her new family. I think these books have the most beautiful feel of family/love that I have ever read. They go beyond your traditional stand and embrace a view of family is who you embrace as such.
I was really surprised reading Dart, because I always thought I was the only person out there who found pain to be enticing and enjoyable.I grew up in a very sheltered environment.
I really hope others can see past the kink to enjoy the aspects of how Mel= passionate sexual love/lust and Jos=true love in the form of the altruistic sense.
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Yes, I live in Hawai'i. No, I do NOT surf.
This is how liberty dies--to thunderous applause
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NYCitygurl
Title: Manager of SFFBC, C&G, and NSWFF
Registered:
Jul '02
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Date Posted:
8/17 6:59pm
Subject:
RE: The Worlds of Jacqueline Carey
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Okay, fiiiiinally finished reading Mercy this morning.
It was good. Probably my favorite of the Imri books, though Dart is still my favorite. I agree, it was gutsy to kill the bad guys with over a hundred pages left - when they captured Astegal in battle, I kept thinking that he was going to escape or something.
It wasn't the plot I was expecting. I really did think that a great Melisande chase would commence and take up most of the book. I've been expecting that since I read Scion and Justice. So that was a bit surprising. I think the most ohmygoshwhat'sgoingtohappen bit for me was the part when Imri came out of his madness and learned that Sidonie had gone off to marry Astegal. This story definately didn't have the umph that the others did. I didn't spend much time on the edge of my seat. In Justice I was sitting on a couch, frantically reading and hoping that Dorelei was going to die. Nothing like that here. I'm really glad that everyone gets a happy ending (I hate unhappy endings) but there was some excitement missing for me. The end was pretty predictable (not the exact way with the stone in the tree and such, but the general what-happened). Overall, I prefer Phedre (less misery and whining, though I like Imri and Sidonie a LOT) and, as Raven pointed out, Dart had the best plot.
I did like that there wasn't a big journey, though. The farther they get from the City of Elua, the less I like it. The Saba trip and the trek through Vralia weren't very enjoyable for me.
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Master of padawanlost, Ultima_1, Jedimaster_JainaSolo, and Vaders_Angel 
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NYCitygurl
Title: Manager of SFFBC, C&G, and NSWFF
Registered:
Jul '02
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Date Posted:
9/3 5:28pm
Subject:
RE: The Worlds of Jacqueline Carey
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Raven posted:
I'd be up for the next set of stories to take place a few centuries later, when the heroes of the first trilogy (except maybe Hyacinthe) are long since dust and memory.
Wish granted! She's planning a new trilogy to take place sometime in the future (all the current characters are merely legends), and could involve the Book of Raziel and/or the magic school. Naamah's Gift is set to be released next summer.
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Master of padawanlost, Ultima_1, Jedimaster_JainaSolo, and Vaders_Angel
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