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Pigs Don't Fly #1
The Unlikely Ones
A young girl who hides beneath a mask, a crow, a toad, a goldfish, and a kitten make an unlikely band of unheroic heroes. Yet each needs the other to discover the secret that can restore them to health and happiness.
432 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published March 13, 1986
About the author
Mary Brown
9 books73 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 100 reviews
February 22, 2016
I've had a few people tell me I absolutely had to read Mary Brown, I would love her.
If I could remember who those people were I would curse them to a year of bad book reading.
This was excruciatingly long, boring, and it sucked.
I hate fantasy books that are all about the death of magic (Tolkien aside), especially where the death of magic is supposed to be some sort of metaphor for growing up. If I wanted to read about no magic I would pick up something other than a fantasy. And there seems to be this idea that being an adult means losing touch with your imagination, with fun, with magic. That only by becoming some boring, serious person who works and sleeps and nothing more, will you be an adult. Books like this wallow in the idea that giving up what you love, what makes you happy, is what makes you an adult. I suppose so we can be just as miserable as all those that came before and believed the same crap.
So lesson one from this book: Growing up means abandoning your friends and all joy, but in return you can be labeled as a "responsible adult".
Lesson two from this book: No matter how wonderful, loyal, giving, and loving you are, a beautiful face and high social standing are always more important.
If I could remember who those people were I would curse them to a year of bad book reading.
This was excruciatingly long, boring, and it sucked.
I hate fantasy books that are all about the death of magic (Tolkien aside), especially where the death of magic is supposed to be some sort of metaphor for growing up. If I wanted to read about no magic I would pick up something other than a fantasy. And there seems to be this idea that being an adult means losing touch with your imagination, with fun, with magic. That only by becoming some boring, serious person who works and sleeps and nothing more, will you be an adult. Books like this wallow in the idea that giving up what you love, what makes you happy, is what makes you an adult. I suppose so we can be just as miserable as all those that came before and believed the same crap.
So lesson one from this book: Growing up means abandoning your friends and all joy, but in return you can be labeled as a "responsible adult".
Lesson two from this book: No matter how wonderful, loyal, giving, and loving you are, a beautiful face and high social standing are always more important.
May 4, 2009
There's SEX in here! I read this book when I was about ten years old, and I don't remember there being sex in here!
Well, maybe I sort of do remember.... Nothing I read was unfamiliar except by the dullness that a few decades between one and the original event can place on memory. I suppose that, as a child, I didn't really think the same way about things that I do now as an adult.
Okay, that was a really stupid thing to say; but hopefully my meaning comes across.
Not that there is all manner of graphic scrogging going on in here. Not by any stretch of the imagination. A knight gets turned on by a beautiful illusion. There are references to masturbation and there is one attempted rape. In the end of the book, the hero and heroine make love, but only in a sort of 1950's-style movie fade-to-black in soft-focus kind of way.
Oh, and there’s a gay unicorn.
But, see, I didn't think of him as a gay unicorn when I was a kid. I knew that he was deeply in love in that calmly-willing-to-die-for-love sort of way with someone under a deep enchantment. And that someone was a prince. It didn't seem at all weird to me then. Love was love. And he was a unicorn, so he could pretty much do anything he wanted, as far as I was concerned. Things remain unchanged in my opinion this time around, but I was a little surprised. I guess it's hard to put into words.
This is a fine story. The adult themes are placed in a very natural way throughout what reads, essentially, like a very old fairy tale for children. It's sweet and not too difficult and it has all the fantastic elements: dragons, quests, witches, curses, true love. Et cetera. The main crux of the tale is: five animals (a young girl, a toad, a cat, a koi, and a crow), who have no memories except of pain, are all servants of an evil witch who has embedded magic stones into each of their bodies. The stones have to be housed in living bodies until the witch can figure out how to harness their magic for herself. The rocks don't give any of the animals powers of any sort other than the ability to speak to one another, and a side effect of being a host for a gem is that you don't age. So they have no memories of who they are or where they came from or how old they really are. After the witch is killed, they all decide to find the real owner of the stones so they can have them removed and live normal lives. Along the way they pick up a cursed knight and a cursed unicorn. The novel is the journey to find the wizard and then the dragon and then their real lives.
I like it. I liked it then and I like it now. I don't really know what else to say. I'm very glad I was given this book for my birthday. I had forgotten about it.
Well, maybe I sort of do remember.... Nothing I read was unfamiliar except by the dullness that a few decades between one and the original event can place on memory. I suppose that, as a child, I didn't really think the same way about things that I do now as an adult.
Okay, that was a really stupid thing to say; but hopefully my meaning comes across.
Not that there is all manner of graphic scrogging going on in here. Not by any stretch of the imagination. A knight gets turned on by a beautiful illusion. There are references to masturbation and there is one attempted rape. In the end of the book, the hero and heroine make love, but only in a sort of 1950's-style movie fade-to-black in soft-focus kind of way.
Oh, and there’s a gay unicorn.
But, see, I didn't think of him as a gay unicorn when I was a kid. I knew that he was deeply in love in that calmly-willing-to-die-for-love sort of way with someone under a deep enchantment. And that someone was a prince. It didn't seem at all weird to me then. Love was love. And he was a unicorn, so he could pretty much do anything he wanted, as far as I was concerned. Things remain unchanged in my opinion this time around, but I was a little surprised. I guess it's hard to put into words.
This is a fine story. The adult themes are placed in a very natural way throughout what reads, essentially, like a very old fairy tale for children. It's sweet and not too difficult and it has all the fantastic elements: dragons, quests, witches, curses, true love. Et cetera. The main crux of the tale is: five animals (a young girl, a toad, a cat, a koi, and a crow), who have no memories except of pain, are all servants of an evil witch who has embedded magic stones into each of their bodies. The stones have to be housed in living bodies until the witch can figure out how to harness their magic for herself. The rocks don't give any of the animals powers of any sort other than the ability to speak to one another, and a side effect of being a host for a gem is that you don't age. So they have no memories of who they are or where they came from or how old they really are. After the witch is killed, they all decide to find the real owner of the stones so they can have them removed and live normal lives. Along the way they pick up a cursed knight and a cursed unicorn. The novel is the journey to find the wizard and then the dragon and then their real lives.
I like it. I liked it then and I like it now. I don't really know what else to say. I'm very glad I was given this book for my birthday. I had forgotten about it.
January 27, 2009
Love love love this book (though mine was not as an appealing cover, it was quite unique and was a nature/forest scene..where as the one showing here sort of makes it like alot of book covers.. where the focus is one person. Anyway thats just the cover.
There is a really good review of this book at:
http://www.fantasyfreaks.org/reviews/...
The only thing to note is that when the reviewer mentions Thing, thats actually the main characters name. If you didnt read the book you might have read it as thing - something.
This book, I picked up for a few bucks (maybe less) in some random bookstore in some random place. One of those 'o hey this looks interesting'
This book is.. funny. I laughed out loud in parts. Its as the other reviewer noted.. kind of unique. It was lovely and funny and beautiful and touching and heartbreaking. And although the characters are cute and funny and neurotic and the story could be mistaken for a childs book there are some very adult themes.
Read it. Recommend. If I had an option to give it 5 more starts i would.
There is a really good review of this book at:
http://www.fantasyfreaks.org/reviews/...
The only thing to note is that when the reviewer mentions Thing, thats actually the main characters name. If you didnt read the book you might have read it as thing - something.
This book, I picked up for a few bucks (maybe less) in some random bookstore in some random place. One of those 'o hey this looks interesting'
This book is.. funny. I laughed out loud in parts. Its as the other reviewer noted.. kind of unique. It was lovely and funny and beautiful and touching and heartbreaking. And although the characters are cute and funny and neurotic and the story could be mistaken for a childs book there are some very adult themes.
Read it. Recommend. If I had an option to give it 5 more starts i would.
August 3, 2007
I should have known it was bad; both Marion Zimmer Bradley and Anne McCaffrey are quoted as liking it. Various creatures captured and mistreated by a witch escape and seek their fortunes together. And of course the main character is secretly a beautiful young maiden convinced of her ugliness, and of course she falls in love with someone she thinks far above her station, and of course the two slowly grow to understand each other, and I assume that at the end, she turns out to be beautiful. I don't know, I never bothered to finish it.
xx-dnf-skim-reference
August 14, 2018Not thrilled so far. Too much rape and ugly sex. The characters are actually rather flat. Otoh, it's the sequel that was actually the title recommended to me... so I don't want to dnf too quickly.
Argh.
... Ok, got to page 96. Still boring. Read more reviews, and checked out the ending, and it turns out that this is
The clincher for quitting is that the ratings for the sequels go down. It's readers who like a series who keep reading, not those who rated the first one low, so even if they don't like it as much as the first the average rating should go up with each book.
Argh.
... Ok, got to page 96. Still boring. Read more reviews, and checked out the ending, and it turns out that this is
The clincher for quitting is that the ratings for the sequels go down. It's readers who like a series who keep reading, not those who rated the first one low, so even if they don't like it as much as the first the average rating should go up with each book.
January 12, 2011
I loved this book when I first read it, and I've enjoyed it each and every other time I've read it. My copy didn't have the same cover, focusing on the girl. Mine was a boat filled with the group of characters in a swamp of some sort.
Fantastic read in my opinion. There are a few parts which I wouldn't say are "any age friendly" but then again, I first read this book in my early teens and I didn't find it offensive.
Fantastic read in my opinion. There are a few parts which I wouldn't say are "any age friendly" but then again, I first read this book in my early teens and I didn't find it offensive.
June 14, 2010
There aren't enough stars for this book!
My copy is the original hardback, and the scene is more indicative of the true story.
I love this book, and have read it many times.
Heartily recommended to anyone who likes underdogs coming out on top.
A story of overcoming handicaps, real or perceived, invoked or inherited. A story for the ages.
My copy is the original hardback, and the scene is more indicative of the true story.
I love this book, and have read it many times.
Heartily recommended to anyone who likes underdogs coming out on top.
A story of overcoming handicaps, real or perceived, invoked or inherited. A story for the ages.
March 20, 2011
one of my favourite fantasy novels
December 18, 2008
I can't believe my mother got this for me when I was eight years old (not the most child-appropriate book ever written), and it took me until I was nine to finish reading it, at that. I was shocked when I was browsing on Amazon and saw what a tawdry-looking cover the paperbacks have--the hardback has a really beautiful, restrained, mysterious dustjacket that does more justice to the actual tone and quality of the writing. I think this one affected me, in terms of the way it launched my imagination, almost as much as the Chronicles of Narnia did.
April 14, 2011
wonderfully well written fantasy
July 1, 2017
This was the first book in a long time that made me cry.
August 2, 2022
This book has been an absolute adventure.
I work in a second hand bookstore. While sifting through books to be priced and shelved my co-worker came across a book with the strangest looking unicorn I'd ever seen. The thing could only be described as a space unicorn. What's more is the book was titled An Unexpected Dragon, and the opening line was that that the main character was the daughter of the village whore and that she loved her mother very much!
I had been frustrated with a series I was reading and decided to buy and read the book to find out what in the world was going on with this weird looking unicorn. And oh my goodness I have never read a more outlandish and just...insane story. I ended up telling my co-worker about what I had read so far. We started doing some research and found the book was actually an omnibus of 3 books. Reviews of the book kept calling it a heartwarming coming of age story. All I could think everytime I turned a page was how is the main character still alive! Every time i turned a page they had gotten themselves into some other crazy scenario. I finished the first book and still had no information about the weird Unicorn! So I started the second book in the omnibus AND IT JUST KEPT GETTING CRAZIER!
I ended up calling a my dear friend Kathryn and after summarizing most of the story to her she interrupts me and asks me if the book I was reading, Pigs Don't Fly and Master of Many Treasures, was the sequel to The Unlikely Ones. I was confused. Come to find out, Kathryn had purchased the book The Unlikely Ones from the very same book store I work at now 7 years ago, had finished it, and been unable to fine the sequels since. Kathryn and I hadnt event been friends this long. Both of us were completely confused and immediately began looking up information about the author because this has just been the craziest ride I've ever been on with a book.
There is almost no information about Mary Brown anywhere on the internet. The author is an absolute mystery which I feel is just perfect for this whole situation. That and who in the world makes an omnibus for a series missing the first volume? An omnibus of books 2, 3, and 4, I mean really!
Flabbergasted I went back to work to tell my co-worker everything and we immediately proceeded to locate The Unlikely Ones. At this point I was only a quarter of the way through what I now knew to be the 3rd book in the series, still with no idea about the weird unicorn. I did finish the 3rd book, I did find out about the weird unicorn. You will have to read my review on An Unexpected Dragon to find out.
I did not want to read the 4th book until I read this one.
This book, while it is as enchanting and spell binding as book 2 and book 3, it is not as out of pocket as the other two. The magic and premise are simple (or as simple as Mary Brown gets), well explained, and well carried out. As magical stories of a band of odd travelers searching to free themselves of an evil witche's curse goes, this one is pretty dope! The voice of the main character is strong and keenly developed. And this book has a regular unicorn in it!
Fair warning there is a great deal of strange sexual encounters in this book and Mary Brown is no stranger to sexual assault in any of her books. While nothing is explicit to the point of erotica, you definitely get a very clear picture of what is going on. Like the difference between an X rating and an R rating for a film. Mary Brown is also fond of, "the ugly girl who doesn't know she's beautiful" trope so if you are a fan of modern feminism....you might not enjoy her treatment of women, or men for that matter. She does, however, acknowledged all races and various sexual orientations. Someone in the book is gay, its wonderful, and I'm not telling you who.
What I do enjoy is that the setting is blended into historically relevant detail for the time period and definitely brings a sense of whimsy to world of around you. For all the magic and fantastic shenanigans going on, the world is largely as it should be in the first millenia of A.D. timeline. So its almost believable how this amazing adventure could have taken place right now in our world and no one would be the wiser for it.
Please read this. This is a beautifully woven story and it really deserves better attention. Also side note, the number 7 is a big magical deal in this book and I would like to point out in all the craziness that happened to get me to this point, Kathryn had to wait 7 years to find out what happened next in this story. If you came across it, it was meant to be.
I work in a second hand bookstore. While sifting through books to be priced and shelved my co-worker came across a book with the strangest looking unicorn I'd ever seen. The thing could only be described as a space unicorn. What's more is the book was titled An Unexpected Dragon, and the opening line was that that the main character was the daughter of the village whore and that she loved her mother very much!
I had been frustrated with a series I was reading and decided to buy and read the book to find out what in the world was going on with this weird looking unicorn. And oh my goodness I have never read a more outlandish and just...insane story. I ended up telling my co-worker about what I had read so far. We started doing some research and found the book was actually an omnibus of 3 books. Reviews of the book kept calling it a heartwarming coming of age story. All I could think everytime I turned a page was how is the main character still alive! Every time i turned a page they had gotten themselves into some other crazy scenario. I finished the first book and still had no information about the weird Unicorn! So I started the second book in the omnibus AND IT JUST KEPT GETTING CRAZIER!
I ended up calling a my dear friend Kathryn and after summarizing most of the story to her she interrupts me and asks me if the book I was reading, Pigs Don't Fly and Master of Many Treasures, was the sequel to The Unlikely Ones. I was confused. Come to find out, Kathryn had purchased the book The Unlikely Ones from the very same book store I work at now 7 years ago, had finished it, and been unable to fine the sequels since. Kathryn and I hadnt event been friends this long. Both of us were completely confused and immediately began looking up information about the author because this has just been the craziest ride I've ever been on with a book.
There is almost no information about Mary Brown anywhere on the internet. The author is an absolute mystery which I feel is just perfect for this whole situation. That and who in the world makes an omnibus for a series missing the first volume? An omnibus of books 2, 3, and 4, I mean really!
Flabbergasted I went back to work to tell my co-worker everything and we immediately proceeded to locate The Unlikely Ones. At this point I was only a quarter of the way through what I now knew to be the 3rd book in the series, still with no idea about the weird unicorn. I did finish the 3rd book, I did find out about the weird unicorn. You will have to read my review on An Unexpected Dragon to find out.
I did not want to read the 4th book until I read this one.
This book, while it is as enchanting and spell binding as book 2 and book 3, it is not as out of pocket as the other two. The magic and premise are simple (or as simple as Mary Brown gets), well explained, and well carried out. As magical stories of a band of odd travelers searching to free themselves of an evil witche's curse goes, this one is pretty dope! The voice of the main character is strong and keenly developed. And this book has a regular unicorn in it!
Fair warning there is a great deal of strange sexual encounters in this book and Mary Brown is no stranger to sexual assault in any of her books. While nothing is explicit to the point of erotica, you definitely get a very clear picture of what is going on. Like the difference between an X rating and an R rating for a film. Mary Brown is also fond of, "the ugly girl who doesn't know she's beautiful" trope so if you are a fan of modern feminism....you might not enjoy her treatment of women, or men for that matter. She does, however, acknowledged all races and various sexual orientations. Someone in the book is gay, its wonderful, and I'm not telling you who.
What I do enjoy is that the setting is blended into historically relevant detail for the time period and definitely brings a sense of whimsy to world of around you. For all the magic and fantastic shenanigans going on, the world is largely as it should be in the first millenia of A.D. timeline. So its almost believable how this amazing adventure could have taken place right now in our world and no one would be the wiser for it.
Please read this. This is a beautifully woven story and it really deserves better attention. Also side note, the number 7 is a big magical deal in this book and I would like to point out in all the craziness that happened to get me to this point, Kathryn had to wait 7 years to find out what happened next in this story. If you came across it, it was meant to be.
September 24, 2015
A long time ago, when I first read this (I was 9 or so) a lot went over my head. Mostly the sex stuff (there's quite a bit, all things considered, about sex in here), but also I remember how fiercely I sobbed because Thing lost all her friends.
Not to death, this book had surprisingly little death in it (I say surprisingly because most of my fantasy books of that time involved heroic sacrificial death as a means to winning), though it wasn't completely absent. No, she lost them to life. And I sobbed because it didn't seem fair to me--the me who had really no close friends at that time and had the vaguest of memories of what it was like to have a friend who I shared everything with--that Thing had to lose her friends.
Not to death, this book had surprisingly little death in it (I say surprisingly because most of my fantasy books of that time involved heroic sacrificial death as a means to winning), though it wasn't completely absent. No, she lost them to life. And I sobbed because it didn't seem fair to me--the me who had really no close friends at that time and had the vaguest of memories of what it was like to have a friend who I shared everything with--that Thing had to lose her friends.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 10, 2011
This was a brilliant faery tale, told as one should be. The story is full of quests, meandering through woods and mountains, wizards gardens and terrifying castles. The characters are unexpected but so fitting for the story. What I love about this book is that the story is not as straightforward as you might think; just when you're sure the Quest is over, you realize there are 100 pages left to go and are constantly surprised by the authors ingenuity and yet the simplicity is stunning. Wonderful book, a must-read for those who love fantasy.
April 29, 2009
At times a gorgeous fairytale of a book, it suffers mainly from being overlong and not-infrequently rambly. It's a story of five unlikely heroes--only one of whom is human--caught as pets for a selfish, petty witch, who seek to free themselves from her power, even after she is dead. The ending is exceptionally beautiful, sad and bittersweet but redemptive. It almost makes the up for the flawed story that precedes it.
Want to Read
February 7, 2013I actually read this book eons ago, but recently came across it in the library. It's been one of those books where I tried and tried to remember the name or author and never could (I remembered it as The Unchosen Ones for some reason). It's good to have found it. I'd like to re-read it and see if it is as good as I remember!
March 15, 2019
I will be fully honest - 3 stars is generous and any other descriptions would, I fear, just sound mean. However, when I get more than halfway through a book and only then realize that the rest will be like THAT...well, one must stick it out.
Also, my cover did NOT look like the above and the disrespect of this being the cover...truly, the audacity.
Also, my cover did NOT look like the above and the disrespect of this being the cover...truly, the audacity.
June 8, 2023
The only reason I read this book was for the love between the unicorn and the prince. There's some interesting ideas about magic here, but it's clouded by the story of a terribly abused child - she is twelve at the start of the story, although that isn't revealed until the final chapters for some reason - who has low self esteem and falls in love with a jerk.
August 8, 2022
Overall, a 2.5
The first 100 pages were just so, so hard to muddle through while the story was getting set up. So for me that was like a -1.
The rest of the book was delightful and whimsical if not a little repetitive, so I'd give it a 3.5.
The first 100 pages were just so, so hard to muddle through while the story was getting set up. So for me that was like a -1.
The rest of the book was delightful and whimsical if not a little repetitive, so I'd give it a 3.5.
June 26, 2008
I read this as a teen, and thought it was one of the best books I'd ever laid hands on at the time. I'd like to find the book again to see if it is still so brilliant to me.
April 28, 2016
A Brilliant and innovative twist to a classic story, beautifully and evocatively written
September 12, 2024
It was actually pretty good, not what I expected at all though.
The characters are all pretty likable, I especially loved the animals, there was a good amount of fantasy & a surprising amount of things & characters were intertwined in one way or another- I really liked how close Thing & the animals were, on multiple occasions they protected & comforted each other.
I'm not 100% sure I understand the relationship between the unicorn & the prince...
Thing, Moglet, Puddy & Corby were my favorites, it took me a bit longer to like Conn- I also liked Tom (the mushroom guy) I thought he'd have more relevance towards the end but he didn't.
The ending was sorta sad, after the jewels were retrieved all the animals immediately showed signs of aging, Puddy got wrinkly, Corby started getting grey feathers, Moglet became a full grown cat, Pisky got bigger (but he still has a lot of years left unlike the others) & Thing grew from around 12 years old to about 19-20ish.
I was hoping they'd all end up together instead of going off in separate directions, I assumed to grant all their wishes they'd go back to the (viking)? Village & have a cottage by the cliffs with a pond so everyone would be together & have what they want.
It was an entertaining book though, holding on to the fantasy aspects that are usually exclusive to children's books but having a darker & more mature setting.
The characters are all pretty likable, I especially loved the animals, there was a good amount of fantasy & a surprising amount of things & characters were intertwined in one way or another- I really liked how close Thing & the animals were, on multiple occasions they protected & comforted each other.
I'm not 100% sure I understand the relationship between the unicorn & the prince...
Thing, Moglet, Puddy & Corby were my favorites, it took me a bit longer to like Conn- I also liked Tom (the mushroom guy) I thought he'd have more relevance towards the end but he didn't.
The ending was sorta sad, after the jewels were retrieved all the animals immediately showed signs of aging, Puddy got wrinkly, Corby started getting grey feathers, Moglet became a full grown cat, Pisky got bigger (but he still has a lot of years left unlike the others) & Thing grew from around 12 years old to about 19-20ish.
I was hoping they'd all end up together instead of going off in separate directions, I assumed to grant all their wishes they'd go back to the (viking)? Village & have a cottage by the cliffs with a pond so everyone would be together & have what they want.
It was an entertaining book though, holding on to the fantasy aspects that are usually exclusive to children's books but having a darker & more mature setting.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 18, 2022
I really had high hopes going in to this. I guess I was expecting a bit more wonder, like The Forgotten Beasts of Eld by Patricia McKillip or The Dreamstone by C.J. Cherryh. Admittedly my memory of them may be incorrect as I read them both a couple of decades ago.
That said, I thought I'd also enjoy the "unlikely rag-tag group of heroes" but found it a bit hard to engage with a fish and a toad and a crow and a cat. The foreshadowing was a bit clumsy, in that the end of the knight's curse was easy to predict from the beginning of the book. The love story didn't feel organic, or respectful of Thing.
And it felt a bit too coincidental in the end as the knight came across old companions.
Perhaps I should give it two stars (I originally gave it three). I am sitting here trying to remember parts that I really did enjoy, and unfortunately I'm just glad I have finished so I can start another book. I hunted this one down for years. On to the TBR.
That said, I thought I'd also enjoy the "unlikely rag-tag group of heroes" but found it a bit hard to engage with a fish and a toad and a crow and a cat. The foreshadowing was a bit clumsy, in that the end of the knight's curse was easy to predict from the beginning of the book. The love story didn't feel organic, or respectful of Thing.
And it felt a bit too coincidental in the end as the knight came across old companions.
Perhaps I should give it two stars (I originally gave it three). I am sitting here trying to remember parts that I really did enjoy, and unfortunately I'm just glad I have finished so I can start another book. I hunted this one down for years. On to the TBR.
January 15, 2024
If you're looking for something historical, fantastical, and emotionally stirring, this is a great choice. This book was recommended to me, and I am ashamed to say I read it slowly over the course of a few months - due to the busy circumstances at the time (not because of the book itself). But even so, even though I did not read it in one go and give it the dedicated attention it deserved, I thoroughly enjoyed it each time I picked it up to continue the story!
There is so much clever humour in this book, and the journey with the characters and the growing relationships they have with each other feel authentic. You grow to care about them very much. The setting is also very enjoyable - traversing different terrains, from snowy mountains to thick forests.
It is the kind of book I would read again, and that has had a lasting impression on me.
Would recommend it to those seeking an escape that is immersive and light-hearted, while simultaneously providing you with enough arcs and development so you bond with the characters.
There is so much clever humour in this book, and the journey with the characters and the growing relationships they have with each other feel authentic. You grow to care about them very much. The setting is also very enjoyable - traversing different terrains, from snowy mountains to thick forests.
It is the kind of book I would read again, and that has had a lasting impression on me.
Would recommend it to those seeking an escape that is immersive and light-hearted, while simultaneously providing you with enough arcs and development so you bond with the characters.
June 24, 2026
I had so much fun reading this. I found this in a random pile at a charity book sale and the cover art drew my attention. It sat for years on my shelf until a few days ago when I decided to give it a shot, and I'm so glad I did.
While the prose is nothing unique (written in the first person), I found the characters were delightful and relatable.
Regarding plot, I noticed similarities to works by Tolkien (specifically Farmer Giles of Ham, and his Middle Earth works), Peter S. Beagle, Anne McCaffrey, Ursula K. le Guin, and even Terry Pratchett. There was also a stylistic similarity (repetition and formula) that made me think of folk tales and fairy tales.
All in all, I found this to be an enjoyable and accessable read, and while Mary Brown seems to take inspiration from other fantasy, she also succeeds in making it her own. 10/10
While the prose is nothing unique (written in the first person), I found the characters were delightful and relatable.
Regarding plot, I noticed similarities to works by Tolkien (specifically Farmer Giles of Ham, and his Middle Earth works), Peter S. Beagle, Anne McCaffrey, Ursula K. le Guin, and even Terry Pratchett. There was also a stylistic similarity (repetition and formula) that made me think of folk tales and fairy tales.
All in all, I found this to be an enjoyable and accessable read, and while Mary Brown seems to take inspiration from other fantasy, she also succeeds in making it her own. 10/10
February 23, 2018
I picked this book up at my local library. They had a theme of "Dragon Tales are Not Just For Children," and the cover intrigued me. Along with the illustrations on the cover, there was a quote that Mary Brown was being compared to JRR Tolkien and T.H. White.
As suggested, the story is very much like JRR Tolkien's, "The Hobbit." It is about 7 "Unlikely" heroes that go on an epic quest that they believe is only to help relieve them of curses that a local Witch afflicted on them individually. However, as the tale progresses, they come to find out that it is more of a self-discovery quest You can also see how the characters progress and grow during the story. I can definitely see the similarities between The Hobbit and The Unlikely Ones. Can not wait to read the next in the series.
As suggested, the story is very much like JRR Tolkien's, "The Hobbit." It is about 7 "Unlikely" heroes that go on an epic quest that they believe is only to help relieve them of curses that a local Witch afflicted on them individually. However, as the tale progresses, they come to find out that it is more of a self-discovery quest You can also see how the characters progress and grow during the story. I can definitely see the similarities between The Hobbit and The Unlikely Ones. Can not wait to read the next in the series.
March 27, 2026
The first thirteen pages of this book are some of the most magical I've ever read in a fantasy novel. But as soon as the third-person narrative shifts to first, that magic slips away. For the most part this is an entertaining if somewhat conventional fantasy novel, but it's hampered by an annoying main character and a cringeworthy "romance" at its center. The main love interest is especially perplexing since he's not at all likeable, and it's unclear why the reader should root for him to pair up with the protagonist. The most fascinating part of the story is the character of the unicorn and his tragic relationship with a human prince, but this is ancillary to the main plot and is barely explored by the author; a wasted opportunity to explore a truly original and interesting story.
April 25, 2018
An odd and interesting fantasy novel. It's something of a mash-up of a number of different fantasy subgenres from several different eras, including some straight out of the middle ages; however, it's all told in a colloquial modern style (somewhat reminiscent of some of the works of T. H. White, Peter S. Beagle, or Patricia McKillip), with a surprising but not unwelcome sprinkling of sex and drugs. It bogs down a bit during a long quest sequence in the middle, but I can still see why some people consider it something of a lesser-known 80's classic. While I didn't think every moment of it worked, enough of it worked that I certainly enjoyed it.
June 14, 2023
I first read this book around thirty years ago and could remember nothing about it except that it featured an eclectic cast and that I burst into tears at the ending.
No such emotional outburst this time (I blame being a grizzled old man) but perhaps a greater appreciation of what is a almost typical "British" fantasy. I blasted through over half the book during a sunny weekend, even taking time out to try to work out whether Skarr Brae - the coastal village our intrepid heroes visit on one of their quests - could actually be a play on Scarborough (results inconclusive, so I might just carry on thinking it is...)
No such emotional outburst this time (I blame being a grizzled old man) but perhaps a greater appreciation of what is a almost typical "British" fantasy. I blasted through over half the book during a sunny weekend, even taking time out to try to work out whether Skarr Brae - the coastal village our intrepid heroes visit on one of their quests - could actually be a play on Scarborough (results inconclusive, so I might just carry on thinking it is...)
September 17, 2025
I came across this book in a secondhand book shop earlier this year - I had no previous knowledge of it but was immediately drawn to the title and front cover. I am so grateful that I picked this book up!
It follows an endearing group of characters that I became incredibly attached to and genuinely felt sad (enough to even cry) to say goodbye to.
Something about the companionship between them, really spoke to my inner child and it felt incredibly nostalgic.
I know I'll revisit this book in the future, for sure, and hopefully by then I can form a good review that really does this book justice.
It follows an endearing group of characters that I became incredibly attached to and genuinely felt sad (enough to even cry) to say goodbye to.
Something about the companionship between them, really spoke to my inner child and it felt incredibly nostalgic.
I know I'll revisit this book in the future, for sure, and hopefully by then I can form a good review that really does this book justice.
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