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Collegia Magica #3
The Daemon Prism
A blind mage teams up with an unlikely ally to save a friend and the world in this quasi-Renaissance epic fantasy adventure by the author of The Soul Mirror.
Indicted for crimes against the living and the dead, Dante the necromancer has become the most hated man in Sabria. Becoming blind by his enemy's cruel vengeance only exacerbates his situation. These days, his only comfort is time spent with his student, Anne de Vernase, passing his knowledge on to her. But when her family greatly needs her, she must leave Dante.
Then a retired soldier, haunted by powerful dreams, seeks out Dante's help. Seeing a magical puzzle to solve and a chance to redeem himself, Dante offers his services—even though he senses the man's plea hides something far more sinister. Soon the blind mage embarks on a mad journey with an unlikely ally beside him. Together they must rescue a former companion from a hellish demise that could raise a destructive cataclysm greater than any war their world has ever seen . . .
"An amazingly complex and rewarding story, The Daemon Prince is certain to reward the devoted students of the Collegia Magica trilogy." —Booklist
"Enthralling and not to be missed." —Kirkus Reviews
"This rousing and complex good-against-evil battle concludes Berg's voluminous quasi-Renaissance epic fantasy trilogy. . . . [Berg's] insight into the nature of human good and evil, the constantly ebbing and flowing relationships among lovers and friends . . . consistently raises this novel above sword-and-sorcery routine." —Publishers Weekly
"Filled with action and feeling as if it occurs in a Berg version of the Age of Reason; fans will appreciate this stupendous story." —Alternative Worlds
Indicted for crimes against the living and the dead, Dante the necromancer has become the most hated man in Sabria. Becoming blind by his enemy's cruel vengeance only exacerbates his situation. These days, his only comfort is time spent with his student, Anne de Vernase, passing his knowledge on to her. But when her family greatly needs her, she must leave Dante.
Then a retired soldier, haunted by powerful dreams, seeks out Dante's help. Seeing a magical puzzle to solve and a chance to redeem himself, Dante offers his services—even though he senses the man's plea hides something far more sinister. Soon the blind mage embarks on a mad journey with an unlikely ally beside him. Together they must rescue a former companion from a hellish demise that could raise a destructive cataclysm greater than any war their world has ever seen . . .
"An amazingly complex and rewarding story, The Daemon Prince is certain to reward the devoted students of the Collegia Magica trilogy." —Booklist
"Enthralling and not to be missed." —Kirkus Reviews
"This rousing and complex good-against-evil battle concludes Berg's voluminous quasi-Renaissance epic fantasy trilogy. . . . [Berg's] insight into the nature of human good and evil, the constantly ebbing and flowing relationships among lovers and friends . . . consistently raises this novel above sword-and-sorcery routine." —Publishers Weekly
"Filled with action and feeling as if it occurs in a Berg version of the Age of Reason; fans will appreciate this stupendous story." —Alternative Worlds
498 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2012
17 people are currently reading
777 people want to read
About the author
Carol Berg
33 books1,128 followersCarol Berg is the author of the epic fantasy
The Books of the Rai-kirah, The Bridge of D'Arnath Quartet, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award winning Lighthouse Duet - Flesh and Spirit and Breath and Bone - the standalone novel Song of the Beast , and the three novels of the Collegia Magica.
Berg holds a degree in mathematics from Rice University, and a degree in computer science from the University of Colorado. Before writing full-time, she worked as a software engineer. She lives in Colorado at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, and is the mother of three mostly grown sons.
The Books of the Rai-kirah, The Bridge of D'Arnath Quartet, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award winning Lighthouse Duet - Flesh and Spirit and Breath and Bone - the standalone novel Song of the Beast , and the three novels of the Collegia Magica.
Berg holds a degree in mathematics from Rice University, and a degree in computer science from the University of Colorado. Before writing full-time, she worked as a software engineer. She lives in Colorado at the foot of the Rocky Mountains, and is the mother of three mostly grown sons.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 118 reviews
June 24, 2015
The Daemon Prism was a slightly underwhelming finish to the Collegia Magica series. It was always going to be tough for Berg to top the excellent The Soul Mirror, but this one was not even on par with The Spirit Lens. I think the main problem I had was that the mystery and court intrigue of the first two books was gone to be replaced by a rather confusing plot that got bogged down in religious mythos and prophecy.
Dante was the main character for this installment and the story picks up 5 years after the final events in The Soul Mirror. Dante has been left blind and has been living the quiet life teaching Anne to use her magic. As Anne heads back home to visit her family Dante's attempts to help a soldier rid himself of troublesome dreams reveal the presence of a dream enchantress. The enchantress soon makes her presence felt again by invading the dreams of Dante's estranged father. Dante seeks out the enchantress and soon finds himself caught in a web of plotting that involves his old enemy Jachard and his latest attempts to bring souls back from the afterlife.
The main problem with the plot was that a lot of the elements were repeats of the last book. Dante was again playing the double agent and doing what he had to to keep suspicion from himself. Portier was back in his new found role as damsel in distress. Jachard was back trying to resurrect souls into new bodies. None of it was as exciting the second time around. The parts of the story that revolved around the religious mythos was actually pretty confusing due to not being explained well enough.
Another issue I had was with the fact that certain things just seemed to get forgotten. Things like
Dante himself was a decent enough lead character and it was interesting to learn his back story and see other familiar faces through his eyes. His brother was a great addition to the cast and Anne, Portier, and Ilario were as likable as ever.
All in all this was a decent read that did not quite match the previous books.
Rating: 3.5 stars.
Audio Note: The majority of this was narrated by Eric Brooks. He dealt with Dante's POV segments and was simply awful. His performance definitely detracted from my enjoyment of the story.
Dante was the main character for this installment and the story picks up 5 years after the final events in The Soul Mirror. Dante has been left blind and has been living the quiet life teaching Anne to use her magic. As Anne heads back home to visit her family Dante's attempts to help a soldier rid himself of troublesome dreams reveal the presence of a dream enchantress. The enchantress soon makes her presence felt again by invading the dreams of Dante's estranged father. Dante seeks out the enchantress and soon finds himself caught in a web of plotting that involves his old enemy Jachard and his latest attempts to bring souls back from the afterlife.
The main problem with the plot was that a lot of the elements were repeats of the last book. Dante was again playing the double agent and doing what he had to to keep suspicion from himself. Portier was back in his new found role as damsel in distress. Jachard was back trying to resurrect souls into new bodies. None of it was as exciting the second time around. The parts of the story that revolved around the religious mythos was actually pretty confusing due to not being explained well enough.
Another issue I had was with the fact that certain things just seemed to get forgotten. Things like
Dante himself was a decent enough lead character and it was interesting to learn his back story and see other familiar faces through his eyes. His brother was a great addition to the cast and Anne, Portier, and Ilario were as likable as ever.
All in all this was a decent read that did not quite match the previous books.
Rating: 3.5 stars.
Audio Note: The majority of this was narrated by Eric Brooks. He dealt with Dante's POV segments and was simply awful. His performance definitely detracted from my enjoyment of the story.
March 7, 2012
I was so profoundly disappointed in this conclusion to a series I have loved! After spending two books developing a rich political environment, the heroes are drawn - in the slowest, most agonizing, roundabout, boring way possible - to a neighboring land in the middle of nowhere. The uninteresting antagonists dominate the plot while the main narrator, Dante, bides his time... and bides his time... and bides his time.
For about three-quarters of the book, I was bored, slogging through the antagonists essentially laughing evilly at one another and doing terrible things while Dante did the same thing he has done in previous books: Gritted his teeth and pretended to be evil. He's an interesting character, but it would have been nice to see him without his masks for the book that was supposed to be centered about him. To top things off, the shifting narrative -- which did not occur in the other books -- seemed off-balance, disorienting and confusing rather than offering multiple facets (perhaps a meta-reference to the prisms around which the story centers?) to the story.
When I wasn't bored, I dreaded the conclusion, because the heroes never really get the upper hand and it looks as though something terrible is going to happen. I did not develop a love for Dante as I did for Portier, Illario, and Anne in the first three books. I worried for them. But Berg has always put her characters in really hot water and pulled off a delightful save. Right up until the last few pages, I was expecting that save - and instead, the conclusion felt, to me, like the most unnecessarily heartbreaking ending imaginable. Instead of feeling satisfied, the conclusion of the series left me sad, angry, and unfulfilled. Other reviewers have criticized Portier's role as 'damsel in distress' for the entirety of the third book, and I too disliked seeing the focal character of the first book and the brilliant manipulator of the second, demoted to humiliated impotence .
This is a horrible review, and I realize the author may read it, and I do not mean to be hurtful or disrespectful to Ms. Berg. I feel like I have to write this because I am so anguished and heartbroken that I have no other outlet. Indeed, if I did not respect Ms. Berg so much I would not have had such high expectations for her conclusion. As it is, I feel as though I've been betrayed by the author.
For about three-quarters of the book, I was bored, slogging through the antagonists essentially laughing evilly at one another and doing terrible things while Dante did the same thing he has done in previous books: Gritted his teeth and pretended to be evil. He's an interesting character, but it would have been nice to see him without his masks for the book that was supposed to be centered about him. To top things off, the shifting narrative -- which did not occur in the other books -- seemed off-balance, disorienting and confusing rather than offering multiple facets (perhaps a meta-reference to the prisms around which the story centers?) to the story.
When I wasn't bored, I dreaded the conclusion, because the heroes never really get the upper hand and it looks as though something terrible is going to happen. I did not develop a love for Dante as I did for Portier, Illario, and Anne in the first three books. I worried for them. But Berg has always put her characters in really hot water and pulled off a delightful save. Right up until the last few pages, I was expecting that save - and instead, the conclusion felt, to me, like the most unnecessarily heartbreaking ending imaginable. Instead of feeling satisfied, the conclusion of the series left me sad, angry, and unfulfilled. Other reviewers have criticized Portier's role as 'damsel in distress' for the entirety of the third book, and I too disliked seeing the focal character of the first book and the brilliant manipulator of the second, demoted to humiliated impotence .
This is a horrible review, and I realize the author may read it, and I do not mean to be hurtful or disrespectful to Ms. Berg. I feel like I have to write this because I am so anguished and heartbroken that I have no other outlet. Indeed, if I did not respect Ms. Berg so much I would not have had such high expectations for her conclusion. As it is, I feel as though I've been betrayed by the author.
April 28, 2012
All in all, very disappointing. For me, Dante was most interesting when viewed through the lens of other character's perspectives. In this book, he is the narrator for the majority of the story and while it was fascinating to see how he coped with his blindness, I didn't enjoy his narrative as much as I thought I might have. My biggest complaint with the book is that it's essentially plot and character-wise a complete rehash of The Soul Mirror. The veil between the living and the dead is torn and bad people (Jacard, Katejan) want to open it for their nefarious purposes. Opposing then are Dante, Illario, Portier & Anne. Dante once again does horrible things as an undercover agent, Portier once again plays the helpless damsel in distress (which I really, really disliked - I wish there had been more for him to do/be than a pawn in everyone's games). Basically his function in the plot was to be a motivator for a quest (his rescue) and then to die. Permanently, one assumes (if reborn saints can said to really ever die). I really liked his character and wish he had gotten a chance to do more, be more active in his fate. Anne must once again use her mighty Mondragon magic to do a ritual, which they've subverted, and hopefully save the world. Again.
Maybe it's just me, but I wanted more from this book. I also felt like we saw too little of Anne, who I really loved in the Soul Mirror. I'm happy her romance with Dante worked out and I was more than fine with the understated nature of it, but overall the plot of this book sucked. Sure, it added on some more mythology, but there wasn't enough time in between the torture and fleeing here and there to really soak it all in. Thankfully from the ending it seems like the Collegia of Magica series is at a close.
Maybe it's just me, but I wanted more from this book. I also felt like we saw too little of Anne, who I really loved in the Soul Mirror. I'm happy her romance with Dante worked out and I was more than fine with the understated nature of it, but overall the plot of this book sucked. Sure, it added on some more mythology, but there wasn't enough time in between the torture and fleeing here and there to really soak it all in. Thankfully from the ending it seems like the Collegia of Magica series is at a close.
February 4, 2012
I've been looking forward to reading THE DAEMON PRISM since reading THE SOUL MIRROR in May. I had no clue what to expect, or where Carol Berg was going with the story. After the stunning climax in MIRROR, what else could happen? As it turns out, there's an even bigger plot we haven't discovered yet.
At the end of book two, Anne and Dante retire to the country where he can teach Anne her new-found magic skills. Portier has gone into hiding to recover from the events on the mount, but also to study the myths and history that would make people believe he is a Saint Reborn. They had discovered and thwarted the nefarious plots of the aspirant--but it turns out that the conspiracy is even deeper, and they must stop the evil that would bind the world of the living and dead together permanently.
SPIRIT was narrated in first person by Portier, MIRROR by Anne, but DAEMON is primarily Dante, a PoV that is a complicated, tortured soul. He's proved in every book that he's willing to do despicable things in order to see the mystery through, and will even risk his friendships and the relationship with the woman he loves. Berg has made a deliciously tortured character in Dante, whose past has shaped him, and we finally get to see in DAEMON exactly what that means. Many are convinced he's the evil that needs to be stopped, but Anne, Portier, and Illario are steadfast in their trust that he's doing what's ultimately the right thing. In DAEMON Anne, Portier, and even Illario make brief appearances as first person viewpoints to round out the narrative; but here, it's Dante who shines.
When the narrative started I had a hard time understanding how this new plot line continued that of the previous books. It begins with Anne returning home to her parents to help with the household, leaving the blind Dante alone and feeling abandoned. Until a former soldier appears at his doorstep with a dream that has tormented him for years, and fears it will cause him to go insane. But Dante learns that the dream is actually someone looking for him, and he's compelled to find out what it's really about--something about magic stones and setting free the beautiful woman trapped by them.
I tried to figure out how this seemingly random storyline coincided with the previous books, and for a long time I felt like it was a contrivance. But, as in the previous books, patience wins out--Berg has a bigger picture in mind through the entire series. Dante's story is compelling, and it's worth the wait to watch it slowly build and come together in the final climax of the series.
We also see more of the world outside of Sabria; before we were limited to the capital city and a few areas around it. This time we travel to Dante's hometown and beyond, to cities where history is catching up to and influencing the present. Berg's world is varied without being overwhelming, with a rich history that's interesting to unravel and explore. I only wish there were more.
If you've read the previous books, yes THE DAEMON PRISM is worth the effort to see it through. Berg does take her sweet time telling the story, but there is a purpose to it, and when the threads start coming together in the final 70 or so pages, everything gets mashed up and jumbled and exciting.
I know I gush; however, I'm not completely blind to the book's imperfections, including some unanswered questions, abruptly tied off character story lines, and pacing issues through the middle of the book. Yet, they are small issues when one looks at the series as a whole, because the overarching narrative is fascinating and compelling.
Can you read THE DAEMON PRISM without reading the first two? No, and you wouldn't want to. The previous novels are worth the slow buildup of information--magical, historical, religious, character--and the time it takes to see this series to the very end.
Recommended Age: 16+ more for comprehension than content
Language: Fewer than five instances
Violence: Death, torture, and grisly magic rites, much more than in previous books
Sex: Referenced and described in a handful of instances (including as part of a death ritual), although without detail
***This book review and others are available on the Elitist Book Reviews blog.***
At the end of book two, Anne and Dante retire to the country where he can teach Anne her new-found magic skills. Portier has gone into hiding to recover from the events on the mount, but also to study the myths and history that would make people believe he is a Saint Reborn. They had discovered and thwarted the nefarious plots of the aspirant--but it turns out that the conspiracy is even deeper, and they must stop the evil that would bind the world of the living and dead together permanently.
SPIRIT was narrated in first person by Portier, MIRROR by Anne, but DAEMON is primarily Dante, a PoV that is a complicated, tortured soul. He's proved in every book that he's willing to do despicable things in order to see the mystery through, and will even risk his friendships and the relationship with the woman he loves. Berg has made a deliciously tortured character in Dante, whose past has shaped him, and we finally get to see in DAEMON exactly what that means. Many are convinced he's the evil that needs to be stopped, but Anne, Portier, and Illario are steadfast in their trust that he's doing what's ultimately the right thing. In DAEMON Anne, Portier, and even Illario make brief appearances as first person viewpoints to round out the narrative; but here, it's Dante who shines.
When the narrative started I had a hard time understanding how this new plot line continued that of the previous books. It begins with Anne returning home to her parents to help with the household, leaving the blind Dante alone and feeling abandoned. Until a former soldier appears at his doorstep with a dream that has tormented him for years, and fears it will cause him to go insane. But Dante learns that the dream is actually someone looking for him, and he's compelled to find out what it's really about--something about magic stones and setting free the beautiful woman trapped by them.
I tried to figure out how this seemingly random storyline coincided with the previous books, and for a long time I felt like it was a contrivance. But, as in the previous books, patience wins out--Berg has a bigger picture in mind through the entire series. Dante's story is compelling, and it's worth the wait to watch it slowly build and come together in the final climax of the series.
We also see more of the world outside of Sabria; before we were limited to the capital city and a few areas around it. This time we travel to Dante's hometown and beyond, to cities where history is catching up to and influencing the present. Berg's world is varied without being overwhelming, with a rich history that's interesting to unravel and explore. I only wish there were more.
If you've read the previous books, yes THE DAEMON PRISM is worth the effort to see it through. Berg does take her sweet time telling the story, but there is a purpose to it, and when the threads start coming together in the final 70 or so pages, everything gets mashed up and jumbled and exciting.
I know I gush; however, I'm not completely blind to the book's imperfections, including some unanswered questions, abruptly tied off character story lines, and pacing issues through the middle of the book. Yet, they are small issues when one looks at the series as a whole, because the overarching narrative is fascinating and compelling.
Can you read THE DAEMON PRISM without reading the first two? No, and you wouldn't want to. The previous novels are worth the slow buildup of information--magical, historical, religious, character--and the time it takes to see this series to the very end.
Recommended Age: 16+ more for comprehension than content
Language: Fewer than five instances
Violence: Death, torture, and grisly magic rites, much more than in previous books
Sex: Referenced and described in a handful of instances (including as part of a death ritual), although without detail
***This book review and others are available on the Elitist Book Reviews blog.***
April 26, 2012
4 3/4 stars!
“Daemon’s Prism” by Carol Berg continues the saga of Dante de Raghinne, the Master Mage who has been chronicled in the ‘Collegia Magica’ series. Blinded physically and emotionally, Dante has been living with Anne de Vernase and teaching her to use her magic but never allowing her to get past his tightly guarded barriers. A series of events lead to the sorcerer reluctantly calling for the services of Ilario de Sylvae and his soldier, Captain de Santo, in order to start a journey that may rock the very world on its foundations. A threat to Portier, one of the few that Dante allows himself to care for, ensnares the handicapped sorcerer in a struggle with both his past enemies and with legends that stretch into the distant past. Unlikely and unwilling allies who may or not be betrayers as well complicate the struggle that echoes throughout the ages and the Tetrarch Beltan de Ferrau continues on his mission to force Dante to pay for all of his crimes. The discovery of the Maldivean Seeing Stones and the travails that Dante and his friends must endure to unravel their secrets may finally destroy the man who seems to have been born to become the Daemon of legends.
Another intricately plotted and detailed fantasy novel that sweeps the reader onto a remarkable journey of magic and betrayal. Dante has been a tortured character throughout the series yet manages to gain the trust of those few that have seen his actions and the struggles that underly them. Several startling twists and glimpses of the dark beginnings that Dante faced during his formative years give insight into him even as the machinations continue to plague the man whom is reviled by far more than valued by the few who know his secrets. A rare view of Dante’s family introduces yet another person of importance to the troubled soul even as it shows some of the events that hone his character. Ms Berg continues to display her mastery at world-building and her facility for creating characters and situations that shift perceptions with subsequent chapters in this mesmerizing addition to yet another of her complex series.
© Night Owl Reviews
“Daemon’s Prism” by Carol Berg continues the saga of Dante de Raghinne, the Master Mage who has been chronicled in the ‘Collegia Magica’ series. Blinded physically and emotionally, Dante has been living with Anne de Vernase and teaching her to use her magic but never allowing her to get past his tightly guarded barriers. A series of events lead to the sorcerer reluctantly calling for the services of Ilario de Sylvae and his soldier, Captain de Santo, in order to start a journey that may rock the very world on its foundations. A threat to Portier, one of the few that Dante allows himself to care for, ensnares the handicapped sorcerer in a struggle with both his past enemies and with legends that stretch into the distant past. Unlikely and unwilling allies who may or not be betrayers as well complicate the struggle that echoes throughout the ages and the Tetrarch Beltan de Ferrau continues on his mission to force Dante to pay for all of his crimes. The discovery of the Maldivean Seeing Stones and the travails that Dante and his friends must endure to unravel their secrets may finally destroy the man who seems to have been born to become the Daemon of legends.
Another intricately plotted and detailed fantasy novel that sweeps the reader onto a remarkable journey of magic and betrayal. Dante has been a tortured character throughout the series yet manages to gain the trust of those few that have seen his actions and the struggles that underly them. Several startling twists and glimpses of the dark beginnings that Dante faced during his formative years give insight into him even as the machinations continue to plague the man whom is reviled by far more than valued by the few who know his secrets. A rare view of Dante’s family introduces yet another person of importance to the troubled soul even as it shows some of the events that hone his character. Ms Berg continues to display her mastery at world-building and her facility for creating characters and situations that shift perceptions with subsequent chapters in this mesmerizing addition to yet another of her complex series.
© Night Owl Reviews
July 23, 2014
I will have a FBC rv probably around its Jan 4 publication date so again some points without (major) spoilers;
- Dante narrates for the major part of the story, but there are interludes from Anne that eventually grow in length and we even read Portier's thoughts once again and Ilario for the first time, so all the main series characters narrate at least a little
- the transitions are handled well though there is this tiny lack of smoothness as opposed to the one narrator earlier books
- the novel has a lot of magic, way too much in a way at least for me and the story becomes a very traditional one (long ago evil etc, etc) with a lot of stuff I've seen in countless novels to date, so again the originality of the first two books is somewhat lacking
- but the extraordinary characters, beautiful prose and superb ending more than make up for the above; I cannot emphasize how hard is to end series well and this does it pitch perfect imho
Overall a top 25 book for me and one that should satisfy the fans of the series to date, while being quite accessible to people who have not read the earlier two volumes (though of course i highly recommend them to do it) as the necessary back story is recounted, while here the action moves in very different places with generally very different secondary characters than in books 1/2
- Dante narrates for the major part of the story, but there are interludes from Anne that eventually grow in length and we even read Portier's thoughts once again and Ilario for the first time, so all the main series characters narrate at least a little
- the transitions are handled well though there is this tiny lack of smoothness as opposed to the one narrator earlier books
- the novel has a lot of magic, way too much in a way at least for me and the story becomes a very traditional one (long ago evil etc, etc) with a lot of stuff I've seen in countless novels to date, so again the originality of the first two books is somewhat lacking
- but the extraordinary characters, beautiful prose and superb ending more than make up for the above; I cannot emphasize how hard is to end series well and this does it pitch perfect imho
Overall a top 25 book for me and one that should satisfy the fans of the series to date, while being quite accessible to people who have not read the earlier two volumes (though of course i highly recommend them to do it) as the necessary back story is recounted, while here the action moves in very different places with generally very different secondary characters than in books 1/2
October 16, 2011
Haunting. Poignant.
This concluding book to the Magica series has multiple narrative voices. This allows the reader to have a greater emotional connection to the events taking place along with a broader view.
This book has quite a different feel than the first book in the series. While the first one was almost a strait forward mystery novel, this one is most defiantly a final chapter in an epic war.
Perhaps not the best simile, but the series was a bit like watching a natural disaster unfold. It starts out small and by the time you realize it's going to end badly there isn't a thing you can do. Just hold on and hope the body count is low.
Dante sets out to solve a riddle and the greater group of heroes finds themselves pulled along; with everyone having their place and purpose. As the greater arch unfolds and as epic battles are wont to do, faith, trust, sacrifice, and friendship are tested and used in painful, but triumphant ways.
This concluding book to the Magica series has multiple narrative voices. This allows the reader to have a greater emotional connection to the events taking place along with a broader view.
This book has quite a different feel than the first book in the series. While the first one was almost a strait forward mystery novel, this one is most defiantly a final chapter in an epic war.
Perhaps not the best simile, but the series was a bit like watching a natural disaster unfold. It starts out small and by the time you realize it's going to end badly there isn't a thing you can do. Just hold on and hope the body count is low.
Dante sets out to solve a riddle and the greater group of heroes finds themselves pulled along; with everyone having their place and purpose. As the greater arch unfolds and as epic battles are wont to do, faith, trust, sacrifice, and friendship are tested and used in painful, but triumphant ways.
February 26, 2012
I tell you what, Carol Berg can write. This is the third volume in her "Collegia Magica" series. The protagonist through most of this book is Dante, a sort of outcast sorceror who is more powerful than nearly all of the "book-learned" sorcerors at the Collegia Magica. He is also irascible, cantankerous, and unpredictable -- up to now. Oh, his personality doesn't really change in this book. It's just that now we see events through his eyes, and we finally get his back story, which explains much of why he is the way he is.
We also meet Anne de Vernase again -- Dante's pupil at the end of the second book -- as well as Ilario (in both his guises) and, almost too briefly, Portier, the Collegia's librarian, who took center stage in the first book.
Berg has written a satisfying voyage of discovery for Dante. The denouement was one of the best I've read in awhile. And the ending made me smile.
We also meet Anne de Vernase again -- Dante's pupil at the end of the second book -- as well as Ilario (in both his guises) and, almost too briefly, Portier, the Collegia's librarian, who took center stage in the first book.
Berg has written a satisfying voyage of discovery for Dante. The denouement was one of the best I've read in awhile. And the ending made me smile.
January 27, 2012
I can't tell you how disappointed I was with the third book in this series. The first two were so good. But Berg really reverted to her earlier style which I have found very turgid and stereotypical. She debased the tortured hero as much as she possibly could and offered no surcease from his battering for most of the book. She did it to set up the heroine, but that was only the last 10 percent of the book and by that time, I was wanting to throw my kindle across the room. When an author is so unremittingly bleak, and adds no breaks from the nastiness (which is what Tolkien and better authors do), it's very hard to finish. I am sorry I paid good money for this novel. It's really a poor effort by someone whose talent, I thought, was growing. I doubt I will read any more of her output.
February 21, 2012
It's sad to say goodbye to a good series. And I'm especially sad to have to say goodbye to the characters whom I loved so much! I wish, for one, Berg would give the Scarlet Pimpernal-ish Chevalier an adventure of his own. I do love his character so much!
That said, I think The Daemon Prism is the weakest of the three books, not that I'm saying it's terrible. I felt a little let down by the last few chapters as they seemed rushed and we didn't get to experience the adventure - rather, we were told that it happened. "Show, don't tell!" as they say. Still, a lovely series, though I felt the ending was really rushed. I felt like I didn't have a clear idea what was going towards the end, or what this world tha Dante visited was really like. Also, the resolution of Portier's tale was again, rather rushed, and I wished we had a more clearer understanding what happened.
That said, I think The Daemon Prism is the weakest of the three books, not that I'm saying it's terrible. I felt a little let down by the last few chapters as they seemed rushed and we didn't get to experience the adventure - rather, we were told that it happened. "Show, don't tell!" as they say. Still, a lovely series, though I felt the ending was really rushed. I felt like I didn't have a clear idea what was going towards the end, or what this world tha Dante visited was really like. Also, the resolution of Portier's tale was again, rather rushed, and I wished we had a more clearer understanding what happened.
March 25, 2012
This book failed to deliver with the powerful storyline of the first 2 books in this series, which I thought stellar. For me there are about 140 pages of torture bloat to the book. I skipped several pages, which I RARELY do in a book. It seemed torture and pain was used in the second half, instead of developing the story around the previous tension of science and magic. This book seemed half-formed to me. I could easily have skipped this third book and enjoyed it as a 2 book series, guessing the ending. The church and theology comes into the story for this book and is not developed to fit with the science and magic of the first 2 books. I do give it a 3 star. Carol Berg is a brilliant writer and I still admire her word wizardry even if the story fell short for me.
January 22, 2012
This review was posted first at Science Fiction and Other Oddyseys (http://sciencefictionmusings.blogspot...)
The Collegia Magica series, of which The Daemon Prism is the third and final book, is one of the best fantasies I have encountered in years. The first book was also my initial exposure to Carol Berg’s work, after I got the chance to hear her read from it at a science fiction convention a couple of years ago. Intrigued by the characters in the snippet she read, I bought the book and discovered a gem of an author, a grand master of characterization. Berg takes chances with her characters in ways that have, frankly, inspired me as a writer, and that leave them imprinted indelibly on your memory and your heart.
The Collegia Magica, set in a Renaissance world with vaguely French and Latin underpinnings, is about a struggle to unravel the deadly mystery surrounding an attempt on the king’s life, and then to stop the unscrupulous sorcerers who want to turn the world—and the afterlife—literally inside out. To stop them, each character must also unravel the mystery of themselves, for each is not really who he or she believes.
The narrator of The Spirit Lens, Portier, is a young, physically unprepossessing librarian with an extraordinary knack for surviving what would kill anyone else. His fellow agentes confide, the fop Ilario and the intemperate, bitter mage Dante, have precious little use for each other and harbor explosive secrets. Anne de Vernase, narrator of The Soul Mirror, is heir to a stunning heritage of magic and loathes all of it. The series traces their struggle to understand how they fit into both the problem and the solution as they race to save both their world and the souls of their beloved dead from feeding unspeakable magic.
Accepting what they find is an obstacle for each of them, from the leap of faith surrounding Portier to the realities of Anne’s dangerous heritage to the real explanation for Dante’s unusual magical abilities and uncontrollable temper. These struggles are, in a way, even more fun than the larger mystery, and all enlivened by Ilario, whose humor is matched by his loyalty. Since I refuse to give spoilers in reviews, I will say no more except that each of these four characters is so well drawn you will wish this series carried on and on instead of stopping at three books.
The Daemon Prism picks up the story two years after the titanic magical struggle that concluded The Soul Mirror. Our heroes are widely scattered, recovering from those events, and a fair bit of the action involves characters traveling to the one place they can stop the plot, a city so old that even its rightful name is nearly forgotten.
Once again we have a new perspective on the action. Berg always writes in the first person, and unlike many series, she changes the point of view character from book to book. The first two books maintain a single POV; The Daemon Prism switches several times, a necessity considering that the action is far-flung and the characters scattered. This is fine, but it does contribute to a couple of noticeable structural weaknesses. It was fairly obvious in the middle section that the author needed to stretch out the time frame in order for all the players to unravel the mystery and come together. It also contributed to one wishful instance for me, in that I would rather the climactic scene had been written from Portier’s POV instead of Anne’s.
The Daemon Prism is both more and less satisfying than the first two books. Less, because the characters are geographically separated for much of the book and therefore the interaction we love to see among them is largely missing. More, because the climax is both so poignant and so inevitable that you won’t soon forget it. Each previous book was complete and satisfying in itself.
As with all great fantasy, there is sacrifice and loss and the realization that even heroes don’t always get what they want or deserve.
This book was wonderful, but there were a few things that caught my attention: the somewhat saggy middle stretch, the slightly one-sided villains, the abrupt disappearance of Dante as narrator, and the fact that I would far rather have had Portier as the POV character for the climax. He was the endearing narrator of the first book, and we got to spend far too little time with him in this one. He is also the catalyst for the conclusion, which felt a little rushed, and it would have been nice to see his reaction to it all from the inside.
Dante’s absence is both necessary and predictable due to the way Berg constructed his choices for battling his enemies, but it would have been nice to dip into his head at least once in the final section of the book to see his struggle from the inside. I also felt one major plot thread ended somewhat serendipitously with the fearsome tetrarch who has pursued Dante with grim zealotry throughout the book defanged rather conveniently toward the end. I know from talking to Berg that her publisher was concerned with word count and she was forced to shave scenes that might have mitigated this feeling of sudden endings. Sometimes the author doesn’t get to present the book he or she would like to.
The Collegia Magica is for readers who want more than a recycled version of the current hot trend in the genre. Berg is a gifted writer who builds believable worlds and truly memorable characters; an author I am so glad to have discovered. I highly recommend the Collegia Magica, and The Daemon Prism does not disappoint as a touching and satisfying conclusion to an excellent series.
The Collegia Magica series, of which The Daemon Prism is the third and final book, is one of the best fantasies I have encountered in years. The first book was also my initial exposure to Carol Berg’s work, after I got the chance to hear her read from it at a science fiction convention a couple of years ago. Intrigued by the characters in the snippet she read, I bought the book and discovered a gem of an author, a grand master of characterization. Berg takes chances with her characters in ways that have, frankly, inspired me as a writer, and that leave them imprinted indelibly on your memory and your heart.
The Collegia Magica, set in a Renaissance world with vaguely French and Latin underpinnings, is about a struggle to unravel the deadly mystery surrounding an attempt on the king’s life, and then to stop the unscrupulous sorcerers who want to turn the world—and the afterlife—literally inside out. To stop them, each character must also unravel the mystery of themselves, for each is not really who he or she believes.
The narrator of The Spirit Lens, Portier, is a young, physically unprepossessing librarian with an extraordinary knack for surviving what would kill anyone else. His fellow agentes confide, the fop Ilario and the intemperate, bitter mage Dante, have precious little use for each other and harbor explosive secrets. Anne de Vernase, narrator of The Soul Mirror, is heir to a stunning heritage of magic and loathes all of it. The series traces their struggle to understand how they fit into both the problem and the solution as they race to save both their world and the souls of their beloved dead from feeding unspeakable magic.
Accepting what they find is an obstacle for each of them, from the leap of faith surrounding Portier to the realities of Anne’s dangerous heritage to the real explanation for Dante’s unusual magical abilities and uncontrollable temper. These struggles are, in a way, even more fun than the larger mystery, and all enlivened by Ilario, whose humor is matched by his loyalty. Since I refuse to give spoilers in reviews, I will say no more except that each of these four characters is so well drawn you will wish this series carried on and on instead of stopping at three books.
The Daemon Prism picks up the story two years after the titanic magical struggle that concluded The Soul Mirror. Our heroes are widely scattered, recovering from those events, and a fair bit of the action involves characters traveling to the one place they can stop the plot, a city so old that even its rightful name is nearly forgotten.
Once again we have a new perspective on the action. Berg always writes in the first person, and unlike many series, she changes the point of view character from book to book. The first two books maintain a single POV; The Daemon Prism switches several times, a necessity considering that the action is far-flung and the characters scattered. This is fine, but it does contribute to a couple of noticeable structural weaknesses. It was fairly obvious in the middle section that the author needed to stretch out the time frame in order for all the players to unravel the mystery and come together. It also contributed to one wishful instance for me, in that I would rather the climactic scene had been written from Portier’s POV instead of Anne’s.
The Daemon Prism is both more and less satisfying than the first two books. Less, because the characters are geographically separated for much of the book and therefore the interaction we love to see among them is largely missing. More, because the climax is both so poignant and so inevitable that you won’t soon forget it. Each previous book was complete and satisfying in itself.
As with all great fantasy, there is sacrifice and loss and the realization that even heroes don’t always get what they want or deserve.
This book was wonderful, but there were a few things that caught my attention: the somewhat saggy middle stretch, the slightly one-sided villains, the abrupt disappearance of Dante as narrator, and the fact that I would far rather have had Portier as the POV character for the climax. He was the endearing narrator of the first book, and we got to spend far too little time with him in this one. He is also the catalyst for the conclusion, which felt a little rushed, and it would have been nice to see his reaction to it all from the inside.
Dante’s absence is both necessary and predictable due to the way Berg constructed his choices for battling his enemies, but it would have been nice to dip into his head at least once in the final section of the book to see his struggle from the inside. I also felt one major plot thread ended somewhat serendipitously with the fearsome tetrarch who has pursued Dante with grim zealotry throughout the book defanged rather conveniently toward the end. I know from talking to Berg that her publisher was concerned with word count and she was forced to shave scenes that might have mitigated this feeling of sudden endings. Sometimes the author doesn’t get to present the book he or she would like to.
The Collegia Magica is for readers who want more than a recycled version of the current hot trend in the genre. Berg is a gifted writer who builds believable worlds and truly memorable characters; an author I am so glad to have discovered. I highly recommend the Collegia Magica, and The Daemon Prism does not disappoint as a touching and satisfying conclusion to an excellent series.
January 5, 2012
Favorite Quote: “You say you can see what lies within me, lady. Tell me I am not going to destroy the light.”
The Daemon Prism is the final installment of Berg’s complex renaissance based character driven trilogy, The Collegia Magica. It picks up not long after The Soul Mirror ends. Each book in this trilogy has been presented from one character’s viewpoint. The Spirit Lens was from Portier de Savin-Duplais, The Soul Mirror from Anne de Vernase, and our final journey is told from Dante, the catalyst in the whole series. Blinded and crippled after battling a vindictive enemy in The Soul Mirror, Dante is struggling to deal with the tremendous loss he feels he has suffered. Ms Berg’s wonderful use of prose makes Dante’s voice irresistible as he takes us on an incredulous journey fraught with mystery, intrigue, and fantasy. The incredible world building continues to superbly translate the emotions and feelings of Dante as he tries to come to terms with his blindness and eventual loss of magic. The overall storyline is elegant in it’s ebb and flow with a lyrical prose that dips deep into a well of darkness and despair that wasn’t present in the first two books.
Dante has made it his mission to teach the practical and stubborn Anne de Vernase how to wield and control her powerful magic. He knows the time will come when he will no longer be able to command the elements himself so he uses what little time he has left to pass his knowledge on. Anne, needing a rest from Dante and the insane pressures of his teaching, makes plans to visit her family. She departs, promising Dante she will return to him. When a battle scarred solder comes to Dante, begging help against powerful dreams of a magical crystal and a beautiful ghost, Dante sees his chance to be the man he once was. Dante knows deep down this is a trap and will probably be the end of him, but he agrees and is joined on his journey by an old companion, the chameleon chevalier, Ilario de Sylvae.
I love a well executed ending and Ms. Berg delivers that here in spades. Deception, sacrifice, madness, and redemption continue to be the main courses in which the reader sups upon when reading this final installment. A trap has been set and baited, with Dante as the prize. We follow his journey as it takes him to the truth of his own beginnings and destiny as he learns of his past, present, and possible future. Once again, past events are brought forth and viewed through various eyes, convincing us that what we have read and judged as absolute truth are nothing but wisps of facts and fiction, interweaving together to produce yet another version of the story. The explanations of the magic(s) involved continued to be overly elaborate and expounded on to the point of confusion. I found myself skimming through these parts to get back to the action of the story.
Various subplots run through out the main story, running independently until they merge together to form the big picture. Anne soon enters the narrative once she realizes why Dante has committed to this journey. His ulterior motives are finally revealed-he believes the crystal’s magic has something to do with his missing friend, Portier de Savin-Duplais. Both friend and enemy, Dante discovers that Portier is to be destroyed and his body used to raise the evil mage that Anne and Dante killed in The Soul Mirror. I loved once again seeing the connection between Anne and Dante. It gives a romantic element to the story in that they are physically separate throughout most of the book yet linked through their thoughts and actions. Dante realizes through this connection just how much he needs Anne.
Secondary characters, friends and foes alike, all hold exact places within the story, propelling it forward and imparting valuable information along the way. I will admit that towards the end we are subjected to rapidly switching narratives as everyone joins the fray and the story seems to stumble through these parts. Overall this installment didn’t have the same smoothness to it the last two had but in no way does it take away from your reading pleasure. The ending is a magnificent battle of wits, magic, and sacrifice as Dante struggles to find his way back from the Hell he has consigned himself to. I was hard pressed to imagine how Ms. Berg could end this epic saga on a satisfying note yet she managed to do so in a way that will keep these characters in my heart and soul for years to come.
Overall Rating: B+
The Daemon Prism is the final installment of Berg’s complex renaissance based character driven trilogy, The Collegia Magica. It picks up not long after The Soul Mirror ends. Each book in this trilogy has been presented from one character’s viewpoint. The Spirit Lens was from Portier de Savin-Duplais, The Soul Mirror from Anne de Vernase, and our final journey is told from Dante, the catalyst in the whole series. Blinded and crippled after battling a vindictive enemy in The Soul Mirror, Dante is struggling to deal with the tremendous loss he feels he has suffered. Ms Berg’s wonderful use of prose makes Dante’s voice irresistible as he takes us on an incredulous journey fraught with mystery, intrigue, and fantasy. The incredible world building continues to superbly translate the emotions and feelings of Dante as he tries to come to terms with his blindness and eventual loss of magic. The overall storyline is elegant in it’s ebb and flow with a lyrical prose that dips deep into a well of darkness and despair that wasn’t present in the first two books.
Dante has made it his mission to teach the practical and stubborn Anne de Vernase how to wield and control her powerful magic. He knows the time will come when he will no longer be able to command the elements himself so he uses what little time he has left to pass his knowledge on. Anne, needing a rest from Dante and the insane pressures of his teaching, makes plans to visit her family. She departs, promising Dante she will return to him. When a battle scarred solder comes to Dante, begging help against powerful dreams of a magical crystal and a beautiful ghost, Dante sees his chance to be the man he once was. Dante knows deep down this is a trap and will probably be the end of him, but he agrees and is joined on his journey by an old companion, the chameleon chevalier, Ilario de Sylvae.
I love a well executed ending and Ms. Berg delivers that here in spades. Deception, sacrifice, madness, and redemption continue to be the main courses in which the reader sups upon when reading this final installment. A trap has been set and baited, with Dante as the prize. We follow his journey as it takes him to the truth of his own beginnings and destiny as he learns of his past, present, and possible future. Once again, past events are brought forth and viewed through various eyes, convincing us that what we have read and judged as absolute truth are nothing but wisps of facts and fiction, interweaving together to produce yet another version of the story. The explanations of the magic(s) involved continued to be overly elaborate and expounded on to the point of confusion. I found myself skimming through these parts to get back to the action of the story.
Various subplots run through out the main story, running independently until they merge together to form the big picture. Anne soon enters the narrative once she realizes why Dante has committed to this journey. His ulterior motives are finally revealed-he believes the crystal’s magic has something to do with his missing friend, Portier de Savin-Duplais. Both friend and enemy, Dante discovers that Portier is to be destroyed and his body used to raise the evil mage that Anne and Dante killed in The Soul Mirror. I loved once again seeing the connection between Anne and Dante. It gives a romantic element to the story in that they are physically separate throughout most of the book yet linked through their thoughts and actions. Dante realizes through this connection just how much he needs Anne.
Secondary characters, friends and foes alike, all hold exact places within the story, propelling it forward and imparting valuable information along the way. I will admit that towards the end we are subjected to rapidly switching narratives as everyone joins the fray and the story seems to stumble through these parts. Overall this installment didn’t have the same smoothness to it the last two had but in no way does it take away from your reading pleasure. The ending is a magnificent battle of wits, magic, and sacrifice as Dante struggles to find his way back from the Hell he has consigned himself to. I was hard pressed to imagine how Ms. Berg could end this epic saga on a satisfying note yet she managed to do so in a way that will keep these characters in my heart and soul for years to come.
Overall Rating: B+
November 16, 2015
This story was a stormy ride. After the events of the last book, it seemed like our heroes deserved some peace and happiness. However, Ms. Berg was not yet done dragging Dante, Anne, Portier and Ilario through hell and back. The evil they thought they'd put an end to isn't done with them. No, not at all.
The majority of the story is told from Dante's PoV, which provides quite a lot more insight into his tumultuous personality. To some extent that was interesting, getting to see what made him tick. However, keeping him more of a mystery worked well in the first two books, and revealing so much of him in the third book left it the weakest of the three for me. I almost would have preferred his brother to be a PoV character instead. It would have taken a lot of work to make that happen, but seeing Dante through the eyes of others definitely made him more entertaining and maddening.
Anne proves to be a strong character again, and her chapters tended to be the most interesting to me. Much of the pleasure from reading the earlier books came from the political intrigue, and what little there is in this final volume comes from Anne's chapters. She's clever, resourceful and unstoppable. The courage and grace in which she conducts herself throughout the story makes her one of my all-time favorite heroines.
Some of the schemes the team came up with in order to accomplish their goals seemed a bit silly, like something out of "Leverage". And the end dragged a bit and threatened to disintegrate into a puddle of cloying sentimentality. However, Ms. Berg manages to bundle all that up and finish off strong with a satisfying ending. Or new beginning, as it were.
While not my favorite volume in the series, it was still beautifully written, and refused to let me leave it alone for long.
The majority of the story is told from Dante's PoV, which provides quite a lot more insight into his tumultuous personality. To some extent that was interesting, getting to see what made him tick. However, keeping him more of a mystery worked well in the first two books, and revealing so much of him in the third book left it the weakest of the three for me. I almost would have preferred his brother to be a PoV character instead. It would have taken a lot of work to make that happen, but seeing Dante through the eyes of others definitely made him more entertaining and maddening.
Anne proves to be a strong character again, and her chapters tended to be the most interesting to me. Much of the pleasure from reading the earlier books came from the political intrigue, and what little there is in this final volume comes from Anne's chapters. She's clever, resourceful and unstoppable. The courage and grace in which she conducts herself throughout the story makes her one of my all-time favorite heroines.
Some of the schemes the team came up with in order to accomplish their goals seemed a bit silly, like something out of "Leverage". And the end dragged a bit and threatened to disintegrate into a puddle of cloying sentimentality. However, Ms. Berg manages to bundle all that up and finish off strong with a satisfying ending. Or new beginning, as it were.
While not my favorite volume in the series, it was still beautifully written, and refused to let me leave it alone for long.
January 25, 2012
Wizard and friends go off to deal with their religion, which has gone badly, badly wrong. Not their church -- their religion. The religion (and church, and beliefs, and priests, and heresies, and all the other things that go along with religion) is one of the better-done examples of same in modern fantasy. It's all believably more complicated than made-up religions usually are.
Anyhow, we finally get Dante's point of view. (It's roughly two-thirds him and one-third Anne, from the previous book.) The transition to the interior works well, because we get more about where he's coming from and also see (or fail to see) his (no pun intended) blind spots. He is still an absolute bastard to everyone, of course, and this is correctly explained and not excused. Then he is dropped into seven kinds of shit. The plot goes rocketing off through disasters, betrayals, and all manner of wonderfully horrible things. The only weak spot is the sudden appearance of some fairy-tale villains out of ancient history, complete with fairy-tale magic tokens which are crucial to the plot. But this does not detract much from a slam-bang trilogy wrap-up.
Anyhow, we finally get Dante's point of view. (It's roughly two-thirds him and one-third Anne, from the previous book.) The transition to the interior works well, because we get more about where he's coming from and also see (or fail to see) his (no pun intended) blind spots. He is still an absolute bastard to everyone, of course, and this is correctly explained and not excused. Then he is dropped into seven kinds of shit. The plot goes rocketing off through disasters, betrayals, and all manner of wonderfully horrible things. The only weak spot is the sudden appearance of some fairy-tale villains out of ancient history, complete with fairy-tale magic tokens which are crucial to the plot. But this does not detract much from a slam-bang trilogy wrap-up.
April 8, 2012
Much as I love Carol Berg, I have to say, this book is a muddled mess - the last 200 pages in particular. Berg seems to have fallen into the same trap she has with many of her other sagas, taking a plunge into an esoteric, incomprehensible battle that lasts far too long for the reader to keep caring. I plunged through to the end just so I could reach -reality- again instead of the mists of bullshit the story had mired itself in. And even that wasn't very satisfying, as the story ties itself up too quickly and without any real satisfaction. I read three books to get to -that- answer? This book reminded me of Restoration, the third book in Rai-Kirah, which devolved into a soup I couldn't follow. Ugh. I really think Berg needs to go in another direction and break out of this pattern of characters, story elements, and occasionally deeply dissatisfying books and instead do something different.
March 8, 2015
A worthy follow-up to the first two in the series. In this installment, the reader gets a fuller understanding of the prickly, difficult wizard Dante, and background on why he is the way he is.
Of course, his characteristics get him into the most untenable situations, and here, he finds himself in the position of being forced to hide his true motives once again.
The bulk of the book is his POV, but we also get a good chunk of Anne's perspective, and a bit of Portier.
I thought this was going to be the last book in the series - but Berg definitely leaves it open for further events at the end! (Without creating an annoying cliffhanger - there's definitely a satisfying sense of conclusion.)
I truly enjoy Berg's writing - if you're looking for traditional fantasy with all the good stuff that ought to be there, which is also well-written, with rich characters and settings... she's your author.
Terrible, terribly embarrassing cover though. Really. Get a new artist.
Of course, his characteristics get him into the most untenable situations, and here, he finds himself in the position of being forced to hide his true motives once again.
The bulk of the book is his POV, but we also get a good chunk of Anne's perspective, and a bit of Portier.
I thought this was going to be the last book in the series - but Berg definitely leaves it open for further events at the end! (Without creating an annoying cliffhanger - there's definitely a satisfying sense of conclusion.)
I truly enjoy Berg's writing - if you're looking for traditional fantasy with all the good stuff that ought to be there, which is also well-written, with rich characters and settings... she's your author.
Terrible, terribly embarrassing cover though. Really. Get a new artist.
January 31, 2012
Four stars because it's about 150 pages too long....but 'tis a terrific story that continues the plotline supposedly finished in SOUL MIRROR. Once again everyone, especially Dante, takes a lot of physical and psychic torment along the way, so you couldn't exactly call this LIGHT reading. Still, very high quality fantasy. This one seems to finish things off too, but plainly the author might well have different ideas.
She does kill off a character, but it's the very last one you'd expect. In a way she's been preparing readers for it since an earlier episode, and in compensation she also moves the personal relationships to a new stage. Nuff said?
She does kill off a character, but it's the very last one you'd expect. In a way she's been preparing readers for it since an earlier episode, and in compensation she also moves the personal relationships to a new stage. Nuff said?
July 11, 2012
I've bought every book by Carol Berg that I could get my hands on, but I hadn't got around to reading the whole Collegia Magica series until the past two weeks. Once started, I wondered why I'd let them languish on the bookshelf for so long. They were great, imaginative fantasy books, something a bit different from the usual fare, although magic does still feature ;)
July 1, 2017
I dont want to rate this book bc didn't pay too much attention to it (gave 3 stars anyway) . I do mark it as read so I can avoid reading again another necromancer books full of spells and magik. Only one lady can write about magic and that Ursula L.G and Nina Simone
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ua2k5...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ua2k5...
January 3, 2012
What a gorgeous story.
Book 3 is told primarily from Dante's POV with a little of Anne, Ilario and Poiters.
The climax of Ancient evil defeated bu love and sacrifice was well done.
I love Anne and Dante.
Book 3 is told primarily from Dante's POV with a little of Anne, Ilario and Poiters.
The climax of Ancient evil defeated bu love and sacrifice was well done.
I love Anne and Dante.
January 9, 2012
Sorry, I like this series so much there's no room for rational thought about it. Was it good? What was good about it? What did you like about it? I have no idea. I got the box at six p.m. and read until 1 a.m. and was glad of it, that's all :)
May 3, 2018
I loved the pacing - this book took place over months, but the clever use of pacing meant that it didn't drag.
Basically: Dante gets strange dreams. He discovers Portier is in danger; ever loyal, he then sets out on an adventure to save Portier. Anne then goes after him along with Ilario and a few others. It does follow the other books in that there is a mystery and the characters go out to solve it.
I really liked Ilario in this book - we . We also learn more about Dante's family, and In a sense, this book is a lot about friendships and the relationships that keep them with each other - Ilario, Portier, Dante, and Anne, although Portier
Other than that: the ending was nice and happy, which I remain a huge fan of.
3/5 stars
Basically: Dante gets strange dreams. He discovers Portier is in danger; ever loyal, he then sets out on an adventure to save Portier. Anne then goes after him along with Ilario and a few others. It does follow the other books in that there is a mystery and the characters go out to solve it.
I really liked Ilario in this book - we . We also learn more about Dante's family, and In a sense, this book is a lot about friendships and the relationships that keep them with each other - Ilario, Portier, Dante, and Anne, although Portier
Other than that: the ending was nice and happy, which I remain a huge fan of.
3/5 stars
December 28, 2017
A solid finish to a great trilogy, The Daemon Prism is written in the standard style and with the depth that one can expect from Carol Berg. As with other books by Berg, the detail can be a bit heavy at times, however it creates vivid imagery needed to understand the complex or unintuitive aspects of magic and the world she has created. The characters are rich and multifaceted, although aspects of some characters develop in easily foreseeable ways. The only negative aspect I can call to mind is the slightly weak last struggle between the antagonists and protagonists. It was hard to visualize what happened until the very end, when the emotions of our protagonists are clear and raw.
June 5, 2018
The third installment had a different feel than the first two. Still very enjoyable, with a good ending, tons of action and unexpected twists, amazing characters and character development... The Daemon Prism was more of an adventure/journey story than a mystery. I'm not going to complain--we get chapters following my favorite character, and unexpected POV switches to OTHER favorite characters, so it was a lot of nail-biting wondering if one character was going to be able to reach another in time. All in all a satisfying conclusion to the Collegia Magica series.
October 16, 2020
I liked the first book of this trilogy, LOVED the second one, but the third... ugh. It was as if the author wanted to see how absolutely awful she could be to her protagonists. The torture and angst were ramped up tenfold and for what purpose? I was so disappointed. All that character growth, gone.
November 19, 2018
A multi-POV conclusion to a story that has twisted enough times to become an intricate hand-knotted rug of a tale. Berg takes you through a series of emotional journeys on this ome, and it's abaolutely worth it.
July 8, 2019
Dante is the least interesting of our 3 narrators, which made this book a little difficult to get into, but about 1/3 of the way through, the mystery kicks into high gear and the plot carries you through the length of the book. A great ending to a great series
July 3, 2020
I'm torn between 3 and 4 stars. It's nowhere near as good as the first two books, but that's a very VERY high bar. I hate to penalize it for not living up to those books, but I don't know if I had more than 3 stars worth of enjoyment. I might change this later.
July 7, 2017
Each book in this series is better than the last with many surprising twists of plot. The characters have depth and richness.
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