In Book one, Tranquil Fury, Lauren reluctantly accepted the role of Earth Daughter, and led the remaining elf and dwarf characters, as well as her friends, south in search of Mother’s children. If they did not leave, the increasing presence of the black-clad army would trap them in the Ironhouse Mine, and all would be lost. Their only guidance, from the now absent Earth Mother, but none wished to talk of the prophecies she delivered. With the help of her brother Logan, and the strange creature IT, they threaded their way through the enemy controlled lands, and black-clad forces, which were larger than they anticipated. As they attempted to use stealth, to find passage to the free lands (if there were any left), their worst nightmare was realized; capture.
Now Lauren, her elf Earth Guard, the dwarven Ironhouse Brothers, and Ryan, who mysteriously appeared when the threats had disappeared, are stranded in the enemy occupied territory. And the hunt is on for Zack, John, Eric the Champion of Tranquil Fury, Mirtza, and her brother Logan. And should they find them in time, the black-clad army presence is increasing, and the whereabouts of Mother’s children that fled the plague hoax, is still a mystery.
I love this trilogy. It has all the elements of good fantasy and yet Is different enough to be more than "just another fantasy". The different gifts of each character and the timing of their awareness of them keeps the story from getting stale. The cast of supporting characters adds just the right depth. Also, without giving too much away, I particularly liked how Lauren experienced the flip side of grief and loss. The character development in this trilogy is pretty awesome. Each character is given their own unique spotlight and is essential to the story. They are likeable, relateable, deep, frivolous, flawed, human. I like them. I'm interested in their stories and I want to see them succeed. I also really enjoyed the element of mystery woven throughout the story.What didn't I like? Not much. Some of the writing was a little problematic. But not the different speech patterns. I actually enjoyed the different speech patterns. Being a mom, the frequency and amount they drank was a bit distressing. I began to wonder if it was through alcohol that Mother was guiding Lauren! Also the three scenes where Lauren told the earth mothers their story, for me, bordered on tedious. The overall story surpasses the few criticisms I have. I highly recommend this series.
The continuing adventures of Lauren and her Earth friends on a foreign world. Each of them, aside from John, have been mysteriously gifted interesting abilities, although I'm still trying to understand those of Ryan. The best thing I can say about these books is that they're interesting and unlike anything else I've read, which is a good thing. The main complaint I have is that there's no suspense, as Eric wielding Tranquil Fury the self-aware sword could defeat the "black clad soldiers" all by himself without breaking a sweat. The typos still remain along with the weird language, but I've kind of gotten used to that stuff. This was a bit of what I'd call a filler book with nothing in particular happening except the group strengthening their position in a town named after Alron, a stalwart Earth Guard. I will be reading the third book right after this and hope the action picks up. It has the makings of a busy book and look forward to see how it all ends up.
Good worldbuilding, fairly well developed characters, dialogue isn't overly current or trendy, books are reasonably long , and are fairly priced are all positive factors. On the negative side, is the Yodaesque dwarf language, the cliffhanger endings ( The author defends the practice by publishing each trilogy complete on the same day. I suppose that paying three times the money for an epic tale isn't out of the question. I have read lots of bad self-published e-books recently, this series is very good and worthy of recommendation. With a better skilled editor of could be a great story. Such is the risk of buying the more raw direct from the author product, but since we only have five stars to date with and all books are equal in the scale....
Okay, first, I wish that Amazon made it possible to give half stars as I would give this volume of the series four and a half of them. The series overall, I give a solid five. The book has tremendously enriched and expanded the ongoing story. The pace is well balanced with enough detail and action, but yet not bogging down the timeline. My only complaint is the dwarfish and elvish cant to you some of the dialogue. Not that it is hard to understand, but rather it's use gets a little mixed up in the editorial process. I'm going to start reading the next volume as soon as I post this review. I hope you enjoy the time you spend in this fictional universe.
I like that the characters, divinely touched and granted OP gifts, continue to remain 'normal' people who don't have all the answers and find themselves dealing with regular reality checks. The characters, races, and cultures are well written. The story definitely doesn't lack depth.
The travelers journey on, engage the enemy, make it to a town, debunk the plague hoax, announce the invasion, engage the enemy, acquire allies, make plans, and prepare to engage the enemy. Hard won progress at no small cost. That's the best I can do as far as a spoiler free summary.
As stated in my review of book #1, there is graphic violence, emotional suffering, and torture in this series.
The tale of book 2 continues the promise of book 1, in the series written by Thomas.
Intrigue grows as does the story and cast of characters. Familiarity with the syntax of the elves and dwarfs allow for easier and faster reading than I experienced in book 1. I anticipate more action and solutions to questions raised in books 1 & 2 as I immerse myself in book 3. If you like sci-fi Fantasy, you'll enjoy this trilogy! Thank you P. G. Thomas for entertaining afternoons of reading!
I have read book 1, and just finished book 2, looking forward to book 3. I have purchased the 6 books in the series.
I do like the author. He has fresh stories, that aren't like other authors. This is an unusual plot, while it does slow a bit here & there. That can be expected.
If you like stories that are not like other teen girl heroines you will like this series. I recommend at least the first 2 books & will write about each book as I complete them.
Lauren and her friends all have special parts to play to free and protect the people of the land from invaders. Lauren becomes an Earth Mother, her twin Logan becomes Sister's Voice, Zack finds his ability to be changing into different animals, Eric and the sword becomes a great warrior of the Father, Ryan's broken body healed to be greater and John's intelligence introduces Science to the world of magic. All of them together with dwarves and elves and midlanders begin to fight back against the intruders.
Book two has not changed my mind of intention to buy the whole series.
Read my first review, the second book has in fact increased my desire to buy all of Author OF Thomas's books such a wonderful read such energy, excitement, suspense and believability, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see the value of reading this fantasy series out of entertainment value alone if for no other reason. DM
It is a combination of the Lord of the Rings meets Lion, Witch and Wardrobe. Teens will enjoy these books as well as adults. Good storyline, only found one spelling error (definitely a plus). Not sure what was with the word ‘as’ being in bold in book one, maybe I was supposed to count them and win a prize. Lol. Encourage fantasy lovers to read! I am loving the story.
Well worth reading if you like Tolkien or Zimmer-Bradley
The speech pattern takes a little getting used to, but don’t let it stop you from reading these books. The story line is interesting and the characters are well developed. I like the personalities of each character and they seem real and engaging. I’m looking forward to reading the 3rd book to see what happens next.
This story line is not new. The author has taken ideas from Tolkien to Anthony and make it unique: A problem that others seem to have. The characters are flawed and young and the rest of the other players varied and interesting. Buy this trilogy. It is worth it!
Enjoy the adventure of a lifetime. Things really heat up in this volume. Unexpected turns and twist, loss and greaving, discouragement and loss of confidence should have our hero's to fail. But great is the word love. Miracles still happen!
It kept my attention and interest . Kept me turning pages when I should have been doing other things. When you can keep interest going in second book as well as the first, especially with a person who loves to read, you have done a fantastic job!
I couldn't put the book down. The story of the kids continues in book 2. The story continues to grow as you learn more of the specials powers given to each of the kids as you discover more about the black clad invaders
This is a great book. I have not been able to put this down, read in a few days. Have now started on the next. Luckily I got the e_books at a great price as I need to read them all. Story keeps you wanting more.
The characters become mystical using their own personalities. The struggles of wisdom, death, knowing what decisions to make are all presented in a well planned arena. Love this trilogy!
I was gifted a copy of this book by the author in return for an unbiased review.
This novel continues precisely where Tranquil Fury left off, jumping straight into the action, and getting to grips with the cliff hanger the previous book was left on. I feel because of this, and the pace of much of the book it is important the reader has read the previous instalment already.
I felt overall this book was much smoother and flowed better, mixing scenes of action with explanations, as opposed to the longer explanation we saw in some places in book 1. I was instantly engrossed and it held my attention well, particularly through the first half. A rescue, increased danger as they were forced to stay put, followed by a long arduous trek, risking their necks several times a day.
Eventually a village slash fort was found where they holed up to recover and regroup. They had found what they were looking for, a chance at salvation with people, but were these the people they sought? I felt at some points during this the book stalled or got off track, going into technical descriptions, politics and minutiae. Nevertheless there was more than enough to keep my attention turning the pages.
I felt the characters were stronger than the last book, they grew and drew me in, learning about themselves as some developed powers and others had to overcome their prejudices and become stronger people for the group as a whole to survive. As in the last novel the elves, dwarves and humans each have their own way of talking, I found it easier to keep up with this time, but in a few situations, particularly high action scenes I got elves and dwarves mixed up for a little while.
The 411 Overall I found this a fast paced and entertaining adventure novel with a good mix of themes. It had some minor issues with confusion but these were always cleared up before I felt the desire to put the book down. I feel this has a great setup for the final novel, Blood Bond, and look forward to reading it.
Usually, the second book of a trilogy is good, but is really just a transitional piece, with some few juicy bits, keeping the reader hooked so they will buy the third book. That is simply not the case here. "Sky Elf" is filled with adventure, surprises (we find out who "IT" is). As they travel south having buried Earth Mother and fearing being trapped in the IronHouse mine, they are met with horrible events. Certain of their number are captured and tortured by the black-clad soldiers. Moving at a pace that will cause you to lose sleep, more adventures ensue, with the Prophecy of Tranquil Fury, the sword, starting to manifest. Lauren continues with her struggle to accept all that comes with being Earth Mother, is in and out of action. As I said in my review of "Tranquil Fury", Mr. Thomas has cleverly intertwined a coming-of-age story arc within all the frantically paced action. This book is no typical middle book in a trilogy; Sky Elf ups the ante, provides more and more action and mystery and does not merely hold the interest of the reader so s/he will be sure to read book three; Sky Elf is as good, if not better than Tranquil Fury. I must add that another cleverly intertwined story arc is that the main characters from Earth, all high schoolers, also get to learn civics and politics up close and experientially. This while the action to eliminate the threat from the Royal House (the bad guys) is proceeding. Traitors are flushed out and dealt with rather harshly. The final thing I want to say is that the title of this book, Sky Elf, only makes sense at the very end, when it is learned that.... No, that would be telling. You have to read it for yourself to find out. If you read and enjoyed Tranquil Fury, then Sky Elf will only pull you into the story deeper and send you seeking the final book, Blood Bond, so quickly that your head will spin. I believe we are seeing the emergence of a master story-teller in P.G. Thomas. Get it, read it. One final note, your must read Tranquil Fury in order to fully understand the relevance and importance of all that takes place in Sky Elf.
Following the events at the close of Tranquil Fury, Lauren, the Earth Daughter musy grow into her ability, rescue her friends and defeat an army numbering in the hundreds of thousands! This book is a coming of age for the six high schoolers now lost on a world with 3 suns and a perilous time for the Elves, Dwarves and the midlander. After travelling for over six months, the group find themselves trapped with no where to turn to and no one to help them except the newfound abiloities they have developed.
P. G. Thomas has his thumb on the creative edge of the Fantasy/Action/Sword & Sorcery genre and instils a good tale, never losing sight of his plots, subplots and twists. The Anti-Matter Chronicles (and I'm breathlessly waiting for that shoe to drop) are a trilogy I wish had come soon, to run concurrently with Rosenberg, Brooks, Brust and Cook. He has his focus on his characterizations and hasn't dropped the big bomb yet of what brought these teens are here.
I found that I enjoyed this one more than the first one. This one seemed to draw me in quicker. Seemed to flow more smoothly. I also found that I empathized with the characters more. I love watching characters grow and they did quite a bit in this one! The ending is a slight cliffhanger (although not to the degree as the first) yet I still found myself immediately moving on to the next to find out what would happen next. Also, a hint of romance blossomed in this one. :) There is some slight profanity but, other than that, I thoroughly enjoyed this book and highly recommend.
I received a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.