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Damselflies: An Ancient Mirrors Tale
real or imagined? In their demon-bound minds, fearful and powerful men consider Arcinaë, the last Damselfly, a threat to their race. Hunted by those men, Arcinaë must set aside her docile nature to learn the skills of weaponry and war if she is to protect her unborn offspring and ensure the future of her race. With the help of Ilerion, an embittered nobleman, and his manservant, Nilus, Arcinaë races against time to stop a vicious warlord set on cleansing the world of the Damselflies' potent magick. Spanning two generations, Damselflies sweeps you into a tangled web of twisted legends and broken promises, desire and deception, fear and fallacy, and the endless struggle to control the minds of humankind.
- GenresFantasy
413 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2007
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
March 19, 2009
Damselflies is the third book in the Ancient Mirrors series, which so far seems to me to be an above-average imaginary world fantasy series. It is not a stand-alone book, although it does feel like it at the beginning, and there is a large chunk in the middle which would have made more sense if I read book two of the series, The Wrekening. (The Minneapolis library doesn't carry it, and I don't like these books well enough to purchase yet). If I get my hands on book two and read it, I may revise this review, but it seems to me that the parts I liked and the parts I didn't weren't dependent on having read book two.
Part I of the book tells the story of Arcinae, the last Damselfly, a race of full-size winged humanoids. Arcinae has seen her people slain in a brutal attack, in which she herself was raped, had her wings severed, and was left for dead. She is found by the hunter Ilerion and his assistant Ninus, who have to help Arcinae as she recovers from her ordeal and grows strong enough to seek her revenge. The rape and attack actually take place before the book begins, but the description of Arcinae's recovery, from sleeping through the night to regaining her strength and training herself as a warrior, seems particularly well-done. In addition, this part of the book has a powerful message about prejudice: the villains refer to Arcinae as a "beast" and even the sympathetic characters see the wisdom in passing her off as an ordinary human. I found both Arcinae and Ilerion to be very interesting characters, and their relationship was interesting to watch grow.
So from the beginning, I really enjoyed the story and found the characters fascinating---however, when Arcinae passes into the realm of Revere, and characters are introduced who appeared in the first two books I get a little lost. That's to be expected, since I read book one but not two; Cwen, niece of the Dragon Queen, for instance, I had not yet met, although I knew her parents from the first book. I found Cwen much less interesting than Arcinae, but with more back story possibly I would not---and I did wonder about her estrangement from her father, and her relationship with the thief Caen. So although here I resented her a bit for taking me away from the story of Arcinae and Ilerion, I have high hopes that I will like her when I read books two and four.
It's difficult for me to write about Part II of the book without revealing spoilers; it takes place a generation after the first part and seemed to suffer a bit from poor transitions, and telling rather than showing. 100 pages shorter than Part I, Part II simply felt a bit rushed, as if the author were trying to squeeze in so much detail she simply had no time for character development. And honestly, these characters deserve better.
Overall, there is a lot to like in this series, and in Damselflies in particular. The world is well-developed, and Gibson continues to write female characters who are strong and appealing, but not interchangeable. She uses many of the tropes of traditional fantasy, sometimes in quite original ways. Fantasy lovers looking for a new series should consider Gibson's work; it has its flaws, but is enjoyable and thought-provoking at its best.
Part I of the book tells the story of Arcinae, the last Damselfly, a race of full-size winged humanoids. Arcinae has seen her people slain in a brutal attack, in which she herself was raped, had her wings severed, and was left for dead. She is found by the hunter Ilerion and his assistant Ninus, who have to help Arcinae as she recovers from her ordeal and grows strong enough to seek her revenge. The rape and attack actually take place before the book begins, but the description of Arcinae's recovery, from sleeping through the night to regaining her strength and training herself as a warrior, seems particularly well-done. In addition, this part of the book has a powerful message about prejudice: the villains refer to Arcinae as a "beast" and even the sympathetic characters see the wisdom in passing her off as an ordinary human. I found both Arcinae and Ilerion to be very interesting characters, and their relationship was interesting to watch grow.
So from the beginning, I really enjoyed the story and found the characters fascinating---however, when Arcinae passes into the realm of Revere, and characters are introduced who appeared in the first two books I get a little lost. That's to be expected, since I read book one but not two; Cwen, niece of the Dragon Queen, for instance, I had not yet met, although I knew her parents from the first book. I found Cwen much less interesting than Arcinae, but with more back story possibly I would not---and I did wonder about her estrangement from her father, and her relationship with the thief Caen. So although here I resented her a bit for taking me away from the story of Arcinae and Ilerion, I have high hopes that I will like her when I read books two and four.
It's difficult for me to write about Part II of the book without revealing spoilers; it takes place a generation after the first part and seemed to suffer a bit from poor transitions, and telling rather than showing. 100 pages shorter than Part I, Part II simply felt a bit rushed, as if the author were trying to squeeze in so much detail she simply had no time for character development. And honestly, these characters deserve better.
Overall, there is a lot to like in this series, and in Damselflies in particular. The world is well-developed, and Gibson continues to write female characters who are strong and appealing, but not interchangeable. She uses many of the tropes of traditional fantasy, sometimes in quite original ways. Fantasy lovers looking for a new series should consider Gibson's work; it has its flaws, but is enjoyable and thought-provoking at its best.
June 23, 2008
Lives are ruled by prophecy and legend in Gibson’s continuation of the Ancient Mirrors series. Men whose minds have been corrupted seek to destroy all the enchanted folk, especially the Damselflies, because of their fear of a legend telling that men would be ruled by a Damselfly’s halfling daughter. Only through the kindness of two hunters is Arcinaë able to survive, becoming the last Damselfly. She struggles to overcome her passive nature and become a warrior, in order to get revenge on the men who killed her Damselfly kin and to learn to lead Grimmoirë, as is her right. Damselflies tells the tale of Arcinaë’s struggles as well as those of her halfling daughters.
Firstly, I commend Gibson for being able to weave a thrilling story that held my interest the entire way through. I really like the strong female characters presented throughout the Ancient Mirrors series, and Damselflies was no exception. These females are skilled warriors in battle and are also highly intelligent and usually stubborn, yet they are easy to like by the reader. I also like how there’s always a bit of romance woven into the story, even in the midst of fighting. My only issue with this story was that in the second half, the plot seemed rushed and sometimes details were unclear, such as the location of one character and who spoke what line. However, Damselflies was a truly exciting read.
Out of the three first novels in the Ancient Mirrors series, Damselflies is by far my favorite. It isn’t necessary to read the first two novels to understand Damselflies, but I recommend reading Dragon Queen and The Wreckening just because they are also great stories, although readers who are not very into fantasy may be intimidated by the length of Gibson’s novels.
reposted from http://thebookmuncher.blogspot.com
Firstly, I commend Gibson for being able to weave a thrilling story that held my interest the entire way through. I really like the strong female characters presented throughout the Ancient Mirrors series, and Damselflies was no exception. These females are skilled warriors in battle and are also highly intelligent and usually stubborn, yet they are easy to like by the reader. I also like how there’s always a bit of romance woven into the story, even in the midst of fighting. My only issue with this story was that in the second half, the plot seemed rushed and sometimes details were unclear, such as the location of one character and who spoke what line. However, Damselflies was a truly exciting read.
Out of the three first novels in the Ancient Mirrors series, Damselflies is by far my favorite. It isn’t necessary to read the first two novels to understand Damselflies, but I recommend reading Dragon Queen and The Wreckening just because they are also great stories, although readers who are not very into fantasy may be intimidated by the length of Gibson’s novels.
reposted from http://thebookmuncher.blogspot.com
April 15, 2008
Ilerion is a hunter who is haunted by his inability to protect his loving wife, Cylacia. Now, he is faced with protecting another of her kind, a Damselfly. Ilerion and his men stumble upon a bloody scene of torture, mutilation, and death. Despite all odds, there is a sole survivor. Brutally raped, her wings cut off, and left for dead, the last Damselfly hangs onto life. Her only reason for living is revenge upon the men who have destroyed her people, an act completely alien to her peaceful people.
It seemed to me that Damselflies was actually two books in one. The first part of the story focused primarily on Ilerion and Archinae: their meeting, their journey, and their eventual romance. The second part of the story then continued after the death of Ilerion and Archinae. At this point, the focus of the story was their twin daughters and the continuation of the fulfilling of the prophecy. I personally would have like this book to end with the birth of the children and have the next book begin after this point.
It seemed to me that Damselflies was actually two books in one. The first part of the story focused primarily on Ilerion and Archinae: their meeting, their journey, and their eventual romance. The second part of the story then continued after the death of Ilerion and Archinae. At this point, the focus of the story was their twin daughters and the continuation of the fulfilling of the prophecy. I personally would have like this book to end with the birth of the children and have the next book begin after this point.
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