Warleader Fifth Stavin Kel'Aniston. With just two years as a caravan guard behind him, he has exceeded the accomplishments of every other Warrior in Kavinston. He earned his first star on his first expedition. He'd upgraded his star on his second expedition. He also founded a Trading House in Evandia. Then he got between the king and an assassin, and received a commission in the Evandian Royal Guard for his heroism, and his life got really interesting.
Master Trader Stavin is sent out to buy Kavinston's supplies. He fears that it is the end of his life as a Warrior, but after the supply run, Stavin goes to Evandia to tend his Trading House, accompanied by eight senior Warriors, and Warmaster Kel'Horval.
In Twin Bridges, Stavin becomes involved with the Royal Guard, and is as a supporter of the king. That leads to him being targeted by the king's enemies as well as his own.
Book Three in the Stavin Kel'Aniston DragonBlessed series.
I don't usually bother with reviews but this book and indeed series have been so enjoyable so far that I felt compelled to make an effort and give it 5 stars. If you haven't read this series yet do so.
I give it 4 stars, since it's much better than two previous books, but this rating skips immersion part of reading. It's pleasant to read, but it's extremely shallow.
After being really disappointed with book 2 and starting to get bored of the series at that point I figured might as well try book 3 and give this series one more chance.
Well I guess it was definetely worth it. After 2 books of mostly "wake up, ride whole day, kill a bandit, have someone insult stavin, set up caravan in city for the night, go on watch, go sleep and repeat till end of the book" this one feels extremely dynamic, while previous two were painfuly predictable, here we see some sudden changes of plot.
Sadly most characters still are shallow. Every character in this series is one dimentional, there is no character development at all. Even main character feels empty in this way. He has the same values, the same attitude and is literally exactly the same person that we've met in book one. He is killing dozens of people, but doesn't have a single internal struggle about anything. At the age of 15 he made one decision to not run from dragon and since that point he is not changing at all. This makes me feel like he is not a real person. And by extension the whole world doesn't feel real.
Unlike the previous two books, this book is not about caravan duty. Stavin has other things to do, such as checking his holdings and visiting the king. Of course, it hardly means less action as poor Stavin quickly finds out. The story is told in the same spirit as the earlier two books though, part Stavin, part Valley, action filled with a rather straightforward plot and not too much soul searching and a clear enemy. In other words, if you like the earlier two books, you like this one.
My one concern is the what happens in the end. When a protagonist suddenly gains a lot of power, it always leaves me worried. I don't mind powerful protagonists, but there is a thin line between that power and a Marty Sue. I am curious in what direction the author is going to take the story...
Jones now adds a focus on politics, intrigue, war and a maturing Stavin is called upon (of course!) to play a pivotal role in all this. Nice balance of adventure, fighting, ethics and magic. But read this series in order - you can just about read each book as a stand alone story, but you will enjoy them more if you know what's happened before.
Once again, a story of drama, magic, humor, military life, and tons of excellent action. All of which surrounds and is propelled by a certain diminutive gold-clad warrior. This is a superior series. Highly recommended for ages 10-100.
It is interesting, clean and fun. I like the main characters, the balance between home life and adventures. The relationships are strong and varied. There's dragon magic, hard training & battles.
Awesome read with twists and turns, treachery, honor and life as the saga continues within the realms and warring factions. Can't wait to read next book.
That cliffhanger scrambled my brain! Had to make sure the next book was already downloaded before I marked it "read". This is turn your brain off and dive into another world beautiful!
Not bad, though I haven't quite enjoyed this book as much as the two prior. I guess origin stories are more fun than the continuations....still, enjoyable enough to keep me reading :)
This series has been a great original read. This book had a couple of editing errors (biggest one occurred towards the very end of the book),but these errors in no way hurt the story. Eagerly awaiting the fourth book in the series.
For some reason reading this series is the same as sitting next a warm fire. They're comfortable, easy to read and you can do it for hours. One or two minor errors that an editor could fix but nothing so glaring that it detracts from the overall book. One of the ones I can quite happily reread again and again, a true underdog beating the giant and everything else story.
Great story. Good moral values with strong equal characters.
I really enjoyed the series. Try to read it at least once a year. Fast paced plot and good characters with believable dialogue make it a fun series to enjoy. Highly recommend all six books in the series.
Advise read the first two books for everything to make sense but could get away with reading alone. Great series great characters and great ongoing story.
Got into reading I was late twice for appointments. Danger of reading on your phone. Really good book and series. I really was not sure how this book was going to go with so many threads but brought them together. I still do have minor issue with the names but it doesn't detract from the quality of the reading experience. I will be looking for the next book
I can't say how much I enjoy this series. Well written and well designed. Even book to book the story line, and plot pieces are woven through the story without one thread being lost. One of my pet complaints is when a point is brought up then never to be seen again. Not in this series. I would love to see how the books are mapped out so everything fits together so well.