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Braided Path #1
The Weavers of Saramyr
This is the story of the ancient empire of Saramyr—an empire that rules over a land overwhelmed by evil. The evil comes from within the empire’s center: the Weavers, a sect of male magicians close to the throne, intent on killing any child born with magical powers. But now the Empress has given birth to just such a child…and a revolution is brewing.
384 pages, Paperback
First published December 14, 2004
47 people are currently reading
1822 people want to read
About the author
Chris Wooding
79 books2,190 followersChris Wooding grew up in a small town in Leicestershire, where not much of anything happened. So he started to write novels. He was sixteen when he completed his first. He had an agent by eighteen. By nineteen he had signed his first book deal. When he left university he began to write full-time, and he has been doing it professionally all his adult life.
Now thirty-nine, Chris has written over twenty books, which have been translated into twenty languages, won various awards and been published around the world. He writes for film and television, and has several projects in development.
Chris has travelled extensively round the world, having backpacked all over Europe and North America, Scandinavia, South East Asia, Japan and South Africa. He also lived in Madrid for a time. When he wasn’t travelling on his own, he spent his twenties touring with bands and seeing the UK and Europe from the back of a van.
He also learned not so long ago that his family tree can be traced back to John Milton, author of Paradise Lost, which has no bearing on him whatsoever but it’s kind of interesting anyway.
Chris lives in London.
Now thirty-nine, Chris has written over twenty books, which have been translated into twenty languages, won various awards and been published around the world. He writes for film and television, and has several projects in development.
Chris has travelled extensively round the world, having backpacked all over Europe and North America, Scandinavia, South East Asia, Japan and South Africa. He also lived in Madrid for a time. When he wasn’t travelling on his own, he spent his twenties touring with bands and seeing the UK and Europe from the back of a van.
He also learned not so long ago that his family tree can be traced back to John Milton, author of Paradise Lost, which has no bearing on him whatsoever but it’s kind of interesting anyway.
Chris lives in London.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews
July 5, 2016
As a big fan of Kety Jay series, I went into this with s lot of expectations. Wooding paints a fantastic world in KetybJay and his characters are up there with the best (think The Expanse) so it was with interest that I started this trilogy. The obvious Japanese theme always reminds me of The servant of the Empire series and whilst the story kicks off with a lot of energy, it soon settles into a nice pace. Once again Wooding makes sure you really get to know the characters personalities and again he does make you like them, only some of the bit part characters are flat, but all main ones are developed well.
There is a lot of this story that you have read before, there is nothing new in plot, magic systems or goals, but it is told well, and I am looking forward to getting into book two.
There is a lot of this story that you have read before, there is nothing new in plot, magic systems or goals, but it is told well, and I am looking forward to getting into book two.
February 5, 2024
Este libro tiene traiciones, conspiraciones, una arriesgada huida y caos. Ah, y un sacrificio. Dioses, cómo odio los sacrificios.
La Heir-Empress Lucia tu Erinima sabe que es distinta, que dentro de ella hay un poder extraño y peligroso y que esa es la razón por la que su madre la ha mantenido encerrada y tan a salvo como le ha sido posible… mas eso no estaba destinado a durar.
Tras un intento de asesinato, la noticia de que la única heredera al trono es una "Aberrant", un tipo de persona despreciada por la gente de Saramyr, se divulga rápidamente. Los Weavers la quieren muerta, los nobles no son felices, su padre la odia y quienes están dispuestos a apoyarla son pocos. Un violento conflicto se acerca…
Kaiku tu Makaima muere la noche en que asesinan a su familia… y luego, de algún modo, es traída de vuelta por su doncella Asara, alguien a quien creía conocer… aunque ahora se está dando cuenta de que la realidad es otra.
Asara empieza a contarle algunas cosas pero, antes de que profundice en ellas, algo extraño despierta dentro de Kaiku…
Con la muerte de Asara pesando sobre sí, Kaiku jura encontrar al que mandó asesinar a sus familiares y vengarse; además, se propone descubrir qué es esa cosa rara que está en su interior y por qué esa máscara que su padre trajo a casa es la causa de la ruina que le ha caído encima.
El Weave-lord Vyrrch hará todo con tal de impedir que una Aberrant se vuelva Emperatriz de Saramyr y, también, para conseguir que los Weavers se conviertan en el poder detrás del trono; sin embargo, el juego que juega es peligroso, a los habitantes de Saramyr nunca les han agradado los de su especie, fuerzas que desconoce trabajan en su contra y la locura lo ha empezado a afectar más últimamente…
Seguro que Tane tu Jeribos no pensó que salvar a alguien desataría acontecimientos repentinos en su vida… y no obstante aquí está, dejando atrás su templo que fue atacado por demonios, emprendiendo un viaje junto a mujeres que cargan con secretos y llevando los suyos, preocupado por la plaga que aqueja la tierra, los espíritus hostiles y los animales salvajes y enterándose de que, tal vez, la Heir-Empress podría ser un puente entre espíritus y humanos. Ah, diversión…
En una nota relacionada, el momento en que se revela lo que Ruito tu Makaima investigaba y las acciones que este puso en práctica al verse perseguido por los Weavers es… impactante, sí.
La Heir-Empress Lucia tu Erinima sabe que es distinta, que dentro de ella hay un poder extraño y peligroso y que esa es la razón por la que su madre la ha mantenido encerrada y tan a salvo como le ha sido posible… mas eso no estaba destinado a durar.
Tras un intento de asesinato, la noticia de que la única heredera al trono es una "Aberrant", un tipo de persona despreciada por la gente de Saramyr, se divulga rápidamente. Los Weavers la quieren muerta, los nobles no son felices, su padre la odia y quienes están dispuestos a apoyarla son pocos. Un violento conflicto se acerca…
Kaiku tu Makaima muere la noche en que asesinan a su familia… y luego, de algún modo, es traída de vuelta por su doncella Asara, alguien a quien creía conocer… aunque ahora se está dando cuenta de que la realidad es otra.
Asara empieza a contarle algunas cosas pero, antes de que profundice en ellas, algo extraño despierta dentro de Kaiku…
Con la muerte de Asara pesando sobre sí, Kaiku jura encontrar al que mandó asesinar a sus familiares y vengarse; además, se propone descubrir qué es esa cosa rara que está en su interior y por qué esa máscara que su padre trajo a casa es la causa de la ruina que le ha caído encima.
El Weave-lord Vyrrch hará todo con tal de impedir que una Aberrant se vuelva Emperatriz de Saramyr y, también, para conseguir que los Weavers se conviertan en el poder detrás del trono; sin embargo, el juego que juega es peligroso, a los habitantes de Saramyr nunca les han agradado los de su especie, fuerzas que desconoce trabajan en su contra y la locura lo ha empezado a afectar más últimamente…
Seguro que Tane tu Jeribos no pensó que salvar a alguien desataría acontecimientos repentinos en su vida… y no obstante aquí está, dejando atrás su templo que fue atacado por demonios, emprendiendo un viaje junto a mujeres que cargan con secretos y llevando los suyos, preocupado por la plaga que aqueja la tierra, los espíritus hostiles y los animales salvajes y enterándose de que, tal vez, la Heir-Empress podría ser un puente entre espíritus y humanos. Ah, diversión…
En una nota relacionada, el momento en que se revela lo que Ruito tu Makaima investigaba y las acciones que este puso en práctica al verse perseguido por los Weavers es… impactante, sí.
March 20, 2012
I'm not sure why I seem to be in disagreement with most of the reviews, but this book simply didn't captivate me. I forced my way through this book through sheer stubborness, and only for about 5-10% of the book did I feel like it had any entertainment value. I gave this 2 stars instead of 1, because I didn't HATE it, but I definitely didn't like it. I also felt that the author has great potential as a writer.
The story had great potential. The setting and plot was reminiscent of X-Men set in an anime-ish eastern fantasy world of temples and forest spirits and empresses and emperors, where Aberrants are a mutated/evolved form of humans, and they're prejudiced upon. The explanation (when you finally get there) was well-thought, and it was one of the only pleasant surprise about this book (along with the plot/idea).
That's about as much as I can say positively about this book. The shortcomings are rather many, and while it's easy to just let it slide because the author was fairly young when he wrote the novel, I feel like more people should at least point them out to help balance the reviews properly.
The writing was downright boring. Many chapters started with pages after pages of description of the environment, or current events, or something from the past -- anything other than present events told in an active format of character interaction. It killed the pacing and slowed everything down to a crawl every single time.
The characters had zero personality. I would say that Asara was probably the best character in the story, but there's really not much that a person can identify with her. She's vain, cares little of human life, but cares for the good guys for some reason. All the other characters were simply boring boring boring. What was the point of even telling us about Tane's past? It added almost no value to his character, and had zero ties to anything in the story. It was... interesting, I guess, but it felt like a mini story on its own that has no place being in the book. In fact, this could be said about 50% of the book. It was a bunch of fluff thrown in together to add atmosphere and told zero story. Where the hell was the editor in all this???
The violence and sex were so forced. They came out of nowhere and was completely foreign in the setting of the story. It's as if the writer set out to write a book for adults, but since the story was more PG-13ish in tone, he added adults elements to make it darker. It just fell flat.
I AM curious as to what happens in book 2 or 3, but only because I spent days forcing myself to finish the book. I don't think I can endure another 2 books like this. I will, however, give Chris Wooding's sci-fi book "Retribution Falls" a try. What I've read from the first few pages seems like it doesn't suffer from the same issues of passive story-telling, though now I'm wary of all the good reviews after reading this book. Still, I'll give it a shot, and I'll be fair about it!
The story had great potential. The setting and plot was reminiscent of X-Men set in an anime-ish eastern fantasy world of temples and forest spirits and empresses and emperors, where Aberrants are a mutated/evolved form of humans, and they're prejudiced upon. The explanation (when you finally get there) was well-thought, and it was one of the only pleasant surprise about this book (along with the plot/idea).
That's about as much as I can say positively about this book. The shortcomings are rather many, and while it's easy to just let it slide because the author was fairly young when he wrote the novel, I feel like more people should at least point them out to help balance the reviews properly.
The writing was downright boring. Many chapters started with pages after pages of description of the environment, or current events, or something from the past -- anything other than present events told in an active format of character interaction. It killed the pacing and slowed everything down to a crawl every single time.
The characters had zero personality. I would say that Asara was probably the best character in the story, but there's really not much that a person can identify with her. She's vain, cares little of human life, but cares for the good guys for some reason. All the other characters were simply boring boring boring. What was the point of even telling us about Tane's past? It added almost no value to his character, and had zero ties to anything in the story. It was... interesting, I guess, but it felt like a mini story on its own that has no place being in the book. In fact, this could be said about 50% of the book. It was a bunch of fluff thrown in together to add atmosphere and told zero story. Where the hell was the editor in all this???
The violence and sex were so forced. They came out of nowhere and was completely foreign in the setting of the story. It's as if the writer set out to write a book for adults, but since the story was more PG-13ish in tone, he added adults elements to make it darker. It just fell flat.
I AM curious as to what happens in book 2 or 3, but only because I spent days forcing myself to finish the book. I don't think I can endure another 2 books like this. I will, however, give Chris Wooding's sci-fi book "Retribution Falls" a try. What I've read from the first few pages seems like it doesn't suffer from the same issues of passive story-telling, though now I'm wary of all the good reviews after reading this book. Still, I'll give it a shot, and I'll be fair about it!
September 30, 2011
[9/10] one of the highlights of the year for me. I've been hearing about this series for years, and I'm glad I have finally got around to start it.
The story has an Oriental feel, closer in style to Empire series by Janny Wurts and R A Salvatore rather than the more lyrical Tales of the Otori by Hearne or Initiate Brother by Sean Russell. It has the epic scope, the grand vistas and the political infighting. It's strenghts I consider to be
- the magic system : powerful and dangerous, unpredictable, hard to control and slighly mysterious. I prefer it this way , especially when comprared to the mechanical approaches favored by Sanderson or Butcher.
- the characters : well contoured and dynamic, they react to their environment and to the people around them but they also question themselves and try to act right in the face of quite strong adversity. They are also unpredictable in a good way, with few clear cut good or bad personalities, with the exception of Vyrchh.
- the prose : functional, decent dialogue and lean paragraphs that avoid unnecesary description or excessive use of adjectives.
The story starts with one of the heroines losing her entire family in a night attack by powerful demons and it gets darker from here, with betrayals, torture, terrorist attacks and human sacrifices. Still I would not put the Braided Path in the gritty and cynical category as some recent titles. There is a balance here, a sense of hope and a chance the world will get right in the end. Hopefully.
The story has an Oriental feel, closer in style to Empire series by Janny Wurts and R A Salvatore rather than the more lyrical Tales of the Otori by Hearne or Initiate Brother by Sean Russell. It has the epic scope, the grand vistas and the political infighting. It's strenghts I consider to be
- the magic system : powerful and dangerous, unpredictable, hard to control and slighly mysterious. I prefer it this way , especially when comprared to the mechanical approaches favored by Sanderson or Butcher.
- the characters : well contoured and dynamic, they react to their environment and to the people around them but they also question themselves and try to act right in the face of quite strong adversity. They are also unpredictable in a good way, with few clear cut good or bad personalities, with the exception of Vyrchh.
- the prose : functional, decent dialogue and lean paragraphs that avoid unnecesary description or excessive use of adjectives.
The story starts with one of the heroines losing her entire family in a night attack by powerful demons and it gets darker from here, with betrayals, torture, terrorist attacks and human sacrifices. Still I would not put the Braided Path in the gritty and cynical category as some recent titles. There is a balance here, a sense of hope and a chance the world will get right in the end. Hopefully.
January 18, 2015
4 Stars
I had a great deal of fun reading The Weavers of Saramyr (The Braided Path, Book 1). This book and series has been in my to-read queue for a long time. I was looking for a straight up fantasy with plenty of magic and action, and with this book, I got just that.
I am a huge fan of Chris Wooding because of NY love for his rollicking fun steampunk series Tales of the Ketty Jay. His writing style shines through in both genres in that he crafts characters both good and bad that you can relate with and route for or against. One of the best things about this book is that it is almost completely female. All of the main characters are female and they carry the load easily. Wooding has given this story a serious Eastern feel with the setting, the names, and the plot. Kaiku our main heroine grows as a character as she comes to grips with what it means to be Abberant.
Like so many books these days this is a novel that has prejudicism, segregation, a class based society as it's main plot line. The Abberants are children/people that are born with magical abilities. They are quickly found and killed by the Weavers as they are an abomination. The story follows this point...
The novel is fast paced and light. It has quite an original feel to it that makes it easy to recommend. I already am a fan of Chris Wooding and I hope that so to will you.
I had a great deal of fun reading The Weavers of Saramyr (The Braided Path, Book 1). This book and series has been in my to-read queue for a long time. I was looking for a straight up fantasy with plenty of magic and action, and with this book, I got just that.
I am a huge fan of Chris Wooding because of NY love for his rollicking fun steampunk series Tales of the Ketty Jay. His writing style shines through in both genres in that he crafts characters both good and bad that you can relate with and route for or against. One of the best things about this book is that it is almost completely female. All of the main characters are female and they carry the load easily. Wooding has given this story a serious Eastern feel with the setting, the names, and the plot. Kaiku our main heroine grows as a character as she comes to grips with what it means to be Abberant.
Like so many books these days this is a novel that has prejudicism, segregation, a class based society as it's main plot line. The Abberants are children/people that are born with magical abilities. They are quickly found and killed by the Weavers as they are an abomination. The story follows this point...
The novel is fast paced and light. It has quite an original feel to it that makes it easy to recommend. I already am a fan of Chris Wooding and I hope that so to will you.
April 6, 2017
A beautifully executed first volume. The descriptive text is astounding!
Read
March 13, 2016Chris Wooding has once again branched out and attacked another flavour of fantasy. This time the story brings the reader a sophisticated beginning to what promises to be a mysterious, cutthroat, and complex trilogy: THE BRAIDED PATH. Both the physical and social settings are richly described and beautifully rendered throughout. The Weavers of Saramyr introduces us to a nation torn apart by sickness, an empress who is all out of options, survival against the odds, and unlikely freedom fighters. The Weavers of Saramyr is no less than gripping from the first page through to the last.
There is a sickness in the lands of Saramyr. It manifests in deformed animal and plant life across the nation. Farmers call the soil evil, wildlife is ... Read More: http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...
There is a sickness in the lands of Saramyr. It manifests in deformed animal and plant life across the nation. Farmers call the soil evil, wildlife is ... Read More: http://www.fantasyliterature.com/revi...
October 12, 2021
I'm having trouble rating and reviewing this one. There was some good world building, interesting plot twists, and big reveal near the end. On the other hand, I didn't care for most of the characters, and the institutionalized pedophilia/child torture/murder was kind of hard to read about.
In this world, the Empress rules, and the Empire is helped by the Weavers, those who can manipulate reality and communicate over long distances. But after a Weaver works, they fall into a depressive state and need drugs, booze, or whatever the vice of their choice is. Some of these are really gruesome.
Among the main characters that fall into hard times as this story goes on:
Kaiku is a spoiled noble of a great house. When her family is killed and her handmaiden revealed to be more than she thought, Kaiku has to grow up fast and start to see how the world really works.
Tane is a priest who can't settle into his calling, and hides a dark past. When darkness comes for his home, he has to confront the real world and forces beyond his understanding or control, as well as look at some of his beliefs.
Lucia is the Heir-Empress, due to succeed to the throne. But this young girl is very different, and becomes the focal point of many plans, schemes, and betrayals.
Their fates come together in a story that goes from the wild woods to the capital of the Empire.
It's a decent fantasy tale, but nothing wowed me aside from a big twist near the end. And, as I said, some of the Weavers' predilections were hard to read about.
I don't think I'll be reading the rest of this series.
In this world, the Empress rules, and the Empire is helped by the Weavers, those who can manipulate reality and communicate over long distances. But after a Weaver works, they fall into a depressive state and need drugs, booze, or whatever the vice of their choice is. Some of these are really gruesome.
Among the main characters that fall into hard times as this story goes on:
Kaiku is a spoiled noble of a great house. When her family is killed and her handmaiden revealed to be more than she thought, Kaiku has to grow up fast and start to see how the world really works.
Tane is a priest who can't settle into his calling, and hides a dark past. When darkness comes for his home, he has to confront the real world and forces beyond his understanding or control, as well as look at some of his beliefs.
Lucia is the Heir-Empress, due to succeed to the throne. But this young girl is very different, and becomes the focal point of many plans, schemes, and betrayals.
Their fates come together in a story that goes from the wild woods to the capital of the Empire.
It's a decent fantasy tale, but nothing wowed me aside from a big twist near the end. And, as I said, some of the Weavers' predilections were hard to read about.
I don't think I'll be reading the rest of this series.
August 5, 2011
The weaver of this story shouldn't have tried to follow so many threads, because as a result it's all tangled up.
The main flaw is that there is no clear point of view : you think you follow the thoughts of a character, and then it can jump to another character in the same paragraph. It's very confusing. At first I read back to see if I had missed something, until I realised it was useless and I just read on without trying to see images of the scenes. It's like we have the point of view of the author, but fragmented, without all that was in his mind when he wrote this book.
The other problem I have with this story is the abuse of descriptions at the worst of times. To begin with, I don't like much descriptions, but I don't mind when they merge well in a story. Here it isn't the case. Descriptions abound to the point of feeling like reading an encyclopaedia. And to make things worse, it's like reading an encyclopaedia just as the person next to you is being attacked, but you just have to know what the people of this town eat for breakfast, even if this information is pointless. I ended up skimming these parts, reading a word every two lines, to quickly get to the relatively more interesting parts, where the action took place.
I didn't expect much of the ending, so I wasn't really disappointed. There isn't a real ending, just a "what happens to them in the future", as in some movies. The story certainly continues in the next book, but I definitely won't try to untangle it, I've had enough.
The main flaw is that there is no clear point of view : you think you follow the thoughts of a character, and then it can jump to another character in the same paragraph. It's very confusing. At first I read back to see if I had missed something, until I realised it was useless and I just read on without trying to see images of the scenes. It's like we have the point of view of the author, but fragmented, without all that was in his mind when he wrote this book.
The other problem I have with this story is the abuse of descriptions at the worst of times. To begin with, I don't like much descriptions, but I don't mind when they merge well in a story. Here it isn't the case. Descriptions abound to the point of feeling like reading an encyclopaedia. And to make things worse, it's like reading an encyclopaedia just as the person next to you is being attacked, but you just have to know what the people of this town eat for breakfast, even if this information is pointless. I ended up skimming these parts, reading a word every two lines, to quickly get to the relatively more interesting parts, where the action took place.
I didn't expect much of the ending, so I wasn't really disappointed. There isn't a real ending, just a "what happens to them in the future", as in some movies. The story certainly continues in the next book, but I definitely won't try to untangle it, I've had enough.
September 23, 2020
Loved this! The Weavers were soooooo nasty, they make really good "baddies"!
Good v Evil
Coming of Age
Lots of Action
Political intrigue
Interesting magic system
Characters I enjoyed spending time with
Good v Evil
Coming of Age
Lots of Action
Political intrigue
Interesting magic system
Characters I enjoyed spending time with
May 25, 2024
3.5/5
This is a book/series that is not known by many, and while I wait for the conclusion of the Darkwater Legacy, I figured I should do a reread of this one.
If I pitched a novel as "an Oriental inspired grimdark fantasy with strong female characters and sapphic romance," who would have expected the book to be writren in the early 2000's? Wooding always impresses me with the stories he creates. Where some authors stict to a static script, I feel like Wooding can create interesting stories out of everything.
The main focus of this book is characters trying to escape and fight back against prejudice that they face for being different. Again, thematically, this is a book you'd expect to see on shelves today. Our main character Kaiku grows as she learns what it means to be an Abberant (one who possesses magic). While a common theme for fantasy novels released now, this one felt ahead of it's time.
It is a grimdark book that came out well before grimdark was a sub genre that caught. It is important to note that this book is dark. The author doesn't pull punches when it comes to showing the atrocities of war.
Where this book lost some marks is that it just felt quite unrefined. If you're a fan of Wooding's newer novels, jumping into this one will feel a bit awkward. There are pacing issues, overall world building inconsistencies, and the book absolutely needed to be longer to round things out. We are thrown into a complex and unique world rather blind, but the book progresses too quickly for things to unfold naturally. The end result is that often we are told things, a character loving another. Major character deaths that should be shocking and important to the story feel irrelevant, as it just happens.
Despite Wooding becoming a much more polished author since, this still manages to tell a unique, fast paced and dark story. I was glad to be back in the world of Saramyr and look forward to the next two books.
This is a book/series that is not known by many, and while I wait for the conclusion of the Darkwater Legacy, I figured I should do a reread of this one.
If I pitched a novel as "an Oriental inspired grimdark fantasy with strong female characters and sapphic romance," who would have expected the book to be writren in the early 2000's? Wooding always impresses me with the stories he creates. Where some authors stict to a static script, I feel like Wooding can create interesting stories out of everything.
The main focus of this book is characters trying to escape and fight back against prejudice that they face for being different. Again, thematically, this is a book you'd expect to see on shelves today. Our main character Kaiku grows as she learns what it means to be an Abberant (one who possesses magic). While a common theme for fantasy novels released now, this one felt ahead of it's time.
It is a grimdark book that came out well before grimdark was a sub genre that caught. It is important to note that this book is dark. The author doesn't pull punches when it comes to showing the atrocities of war.
Where this book lost some marks is that it just felt quite unrefined. If you're a fan of Wooding's newer novels, jumping into this one will feel a bit awkward. There are pacing issues, overall world building inconsistencies, and the book absolutely needed to be longer to round things out. We are thrown into a complex and unique world rather blind, but the book progresses too quickly for things to unfold naturally. The end result is that often we are told things, a character loving another. Major character deaths that should be shocking and important to the story feel irrelevant, as it just happens.
Despite Wooding becoming a much more polished author since, this still manages to tell a unique, fast paced and dark story. I was glad to be back in the world of Saramyr and look forward to the next two books.
June 17, 2020
2.5 stars
Review to come :)
Review to come :)
April 28, 2012
In many ways the first novel in the Braided Path trilogy is a fairly standard epic fantasy novel but it does have a few distinctive touches. It isn't the first epic fantasy series to be set in a world largely inspired by feudal Japan, but it's still a nice change from the default medieval European setting. Saramyr is an interesting setting and the world-building is generally convincing, although occasionally some things are a bit under-explained, for example as the series goes on and the plot expands the different provinces of Saramyr become important but the differences between, say, the Southern Prefectures and the Newlands are never really described. The most memorable part of the world-building are the Weavers, officially the only people in the world able to use magic. They have insinuated themselves into every aspect of Saramyr society and stand beside every noble lord because their talents are indispensable. One of the main themes of the series is how much a society is prepared to overlook when there is something to gain, in this case the Weavers' abilities are considered so valuable that the people of Saramyr tolerate the fact that the True Masks they wear which allow them to do magic drive the Weavers insane and cause them to go on rampages of rape, torture and murder. In case we might forget how evil the Weavers are, there is generally a reminder every couple of chapters, it does a good job of building up the Weavers as dangerous and detestable villains but the frequency of their awful deeds does seem a bit unsubtle and gratuitous at times. Despite the lack of subtlety, the complicity of Saramyr society in the atrocities the Weavers commit is one of the more interesting thematic elements of the book.
The Weavers are entirely male (for reasons explained later in the book), on the other hand four of the five main characters in this are women. There is a good variety of characters, Kaiku is a naive young woman with magical abilities which are potentially very powerful but also dangerous to both herself and those around her, her noblewoman friend Mishani has no special powers but is adept at the manipulations and deceptions of Saramyr's nobility, Lucia is the otherworldly and almost angelic heir to the Empire whose abilities must be concealed from her Mother's subjects and Asara is 90-year old shapechanging assassin who is ruthlessly self-centred. The characterisation is generally good, Kaiku is a likeable protagonist despite being excessively foolhardy at times in her quest to avenge herself against the Weavers who killed her family, Mishani probably gets the most character development as she is forced to confront her assumptions and prejudices and Asara is an interesting antihero who finds herself on the 'good' side of the conflict for largely selfish reasons. The interaction between Kaiku and Asara is the most interesting relationship in the novel, they need to work together and they want to like each other but they also can't trust the other. Tane, the main male character in the story, is probably the weakest of the major characters since his motivations often seem to be a puzzle even to himself and the incipient romance between him and Kaiku never feels like more than just teenage infatuation.
Although the world-building is relatively original and some of the character motivations are varied and complex, the novel feels a bit too conventional when it comes to structure. From Kaiku's perspective it is fairly standard coming-of-age story as she deals with an early tragedy and starts to realise some of her potential power. Her attempt to make her way into a hidden Weaver monastery does have some elements of a conventional fantasy quest to it. However, there are enough original elements to avoid it feeling too clichéd as an epic fantasy story.
It is an entertaining read, although perhaps not quite compelling enough to really take its place among the great epic fantasy novels. There's nothing really particularly lacking about it, but there's also not much that really stands out about it and aside from the creepiness of the Weavers nothing is particularly memorable about it.
The Weavers are entirely male (for reasons explained later in the book), on the other hand four of the five main characters in this are women. There is a good variety of characters, Kaiku is a naive young woman with magical abilities which are potentially very powerful but also dangerous to both herself and those around her, her noblewoman friend Mishani has no special powers but is adept at the manipulations and deceptions of Saramyr's nobility, Lucia is the otherworldly and almost angelic heir to the Empire whose abilities must be concealed from her Mother's subjects and Asara is 90-year old shapechanging assassin who is ruthlessly self-centred. The characterisation is generally good, Kaiku is a likeable protagonist despite being excessively foolhardy at times in her quest to avenge herself against the Weavers who killed her family, Mishani probably gets the most character development as she is forced to confront her assumptions and prejudices and Asara is an interesting antihero who finds herself on the 'good' side of the conflict for largely selfish reasons. The interaction between Kaiku and Asara is the most interesting relationship in the novel, they need to work together and they want to like each other but they also can't trust the other. Tane, the main male character in the story, is probably the weakest of the major characters since his motivations often seem to be a puzzle even to himself and the incipient romance between him and Kaiku never feels like more than just teenage infatuation.
Although the world-building is relatively original and some of the character motivations are varied and complex, the novel feels a bit too conventional when it comes to structure. From Kaiku's perspective it is fairly standard coming-of-age story as she deals with an early tragedy and starts to realise some of her potential power. Her attempt to make her way into a hidden Weaver monastery does have some elements of a conventional fantasy quest to it. However, there are enough original elements to avoid it feeling too clichéd as an epic fantasy story.
It is an entertaining read, although perhaps not quite compelling enough to really take its place among the great epic fantasy novels. There's nothing really particularly lacking about it, but there's also not much that really stands out about it and aside from the creepiness of the Weavers nothing is particularly memorable about it.
September 9, 2013
I didn't hate it but the story is too scattered for me to connect with the characters. The are some parts that bothered me greatly like when the Weavers were first introduced, their atrocities are too public yet no one not even the empress dare stop it. I didn't buy the 'they are too important now to dismiss' because no one should have let them get into power in the first place with all their evil bared openly for all to see. Maybe one or half of the greedy nobles but all of them? and for all that they not only managed to be important but convinced to prosecute Abberants calling the unnatural and evil. It's not that it's so impossible to be believable in any way but there is no explanation for this great con. The was no epic battle to conquer and force, there was no subtle brilliant plan. They're just there one day demanding children to torture and more on exchange for bearing and passing messages?
This was a hard thing for me to get over but it's supposed to be an epic novel and while waiting for stamina to refill on puzzle dragon I finished. It's not a bad one but the scattered feel is not for me. I had trouble concentrating and my eyes glaze over,everytime someone over analyze which happened a lot. Not too bad but I'm moving the next book maybe half-down my long TBR list. I'm just not invested enough to be curious for next.
This was a hard thing for me to get over but it's supposed to be an epic novel and while waiting for stamina to refill on puzzle dragon I finished. It's not a bad one but the scattered feel is not for me. I had trouble concentrating and my eyes glaze over,everytime someone over analyze which happened a lot. Not too bad but I'm moving the next book maybe half-down my long TBR list. I'm just not invested enough to be curious for next.
July 23, 2011
c2004: Far eastern like setting with the weavers as the bad guys as opposed to some earlier spec fic when weavers were the good guys. Quite nasty they are too - straying into my real dislike of using acts of cruelty and brutality on children to illustrate just how bad these characters are. Surely there must be other plot devices out there to point out just how bad these characters are? And I am not talking about rape which is almost on a par. Anyways..rant over. I didn't really manage to "connect" with any of the characters and some of the events seemed to have been manufactured once again just to prove, say for example,how much in danger the characters are. (Lovely grammar!!). Although, I have to remind myself that the Far Eastern settings are not my favourite in any event so that could have influenced my feelings from the start. The PR department went with a quote from "Dreamwatch" (I must be so ignorant but I have no idea who or what this is - so a weird one to go for if trying to entice somebody new to the genre to take the plunge) which went like this "A finely crafted and deeply visual oriental treasure." FWFTB: Aberrant, twisted, indispensible, Empress, slaughter. FCN: Kaiku, Asara, Tane, Durun, Heir-Empress Lucia.
July 24, 2011
This book just couldn't grab me.
I never could quite figure out how the magic system worked, which was important because the magic system was always being used. I just couldn't put together how it was described with how it worked. I guess I'm too used to the Sanderson style magic system, where things are a little more firm.
The characters started out very compelling, but as the story carried on they started doing more and more uncharacteristic things without any clear description on their thought process. At one point a character who is religiously for one side very suddenly changes sides without really describing what was going on, other than "loves!".
The author tries to spring some twists on you, but they're coming from characters that are minor and whose POV we've never seen, so it's less a foreshadowed twist and more something out of left field.
It was kind of confusing how the author would change POV without a page break or even a paragraph break. Who is this paragraph about! I found myself thinking that a lot.
Check out my other reviews at my blog
I never could quite figure out how the magic system worked, which was important because the magic system was always being used. I just couldn't put together how it was described with how it worked. I guess I'm too used to the Sanderson style magic system, where things are a little more firm.
The characters started out very compelling, but as the story carried on they started doing more and more uncharacteristic things without any clear description on their thought process. At one point a character who is religiously for one side very suddenly changes sides without really describing what was going on, other than "loves!".
The author tries to spring some twists on you, but they're coming from characters that are minor and whose POV we've never seen, so it's less a foreshadowed twist and more something out of left field.
It was kind of confusing how the author would change POV without a page break or even a paragraph break. Who is this paragraph about! I found myself thinking that a lot.
Check out my other reviews at my blog
November 15, 2023
The book is fantastic in terms of plot,character development and world building and features an entirely female lead cast.These were the first female characters that I actually cared about and aren't just some love interest with boobs for the lead character like in other fantasy books.I highly reccommend it to any fantasy fan,who isn't afraid of a little more gore,likes political strife and intricate plots and people who like Japan because the book has a Japanese feel to it.
July 5, 2009
This could have been so much more. I was getting really interested in the mechanics of everything, like the way it worked and all, and his writing style was pretty good, but then Chris Wooding had to go and get off on writing some girl on girl.
This is the only book I've ever thrown across the room.
Such a damned WASTE!
This is the only book I've ever thrown across the room.
Such a damned WASTE!
November 16, 2025
I have been sitting with The Braided Path by Chris Wooding on my shelf since just about when it was released. The only reason I can think for not reading it in the intervening 20-odd years is my distaste for omnibus editions, that is, multiple books masquerading as one. Do I class this as three books, logging them individually? As one? By opting for the former, I seem to have overcome the activation energy to read this book, finally. Perhaps it is in the safety of knowing I can jettison the book after 300-odd pages if I dislike it (I have a similarly strong distaste for not finishing books, a particular problem with 1,000+ page novels).
Having gotten around to reading the first book - The Weavers of Saramyr - I was very surprised by one of the early episodes, which involved cruelty and sexual violence towards a child. This was followed up by a very difficult-to-read boat scene involving the same. Everything occurs in reported speech, but the episode is harrowing. Those involved in perpetrating this violence are held up as the most twisted and evil in the land, to be sure, but these scenes feel so egregious and so apt to be upsetting to most (I hope all) readers that it is beyond me why the author chose to include them.
The group in question, the eponymous weavers, would have embodied evil without including such elements at all. It is also tonally highly at odds with the rest of the book. There are a couple of not particularly detailed sex scenes, no bad language at all; nothing here or on the dust jacket harmonises with this type of very adult, very sadistic content making it even harder to justify the material (if ever it could be).
This almost made me break my book-finishing rule and put it down. Thankfully, the boat scene is the worst episode by far. The book beyond this is reasonably good. The narrative is multi-perspective, dotting around the map as we build up our understanding of a richly drawn, imaginative world. The fantasy dimension is innovative, involving mutations, aberrations, and a shadowy woven sub-strata that the weavers can manipulate. The prose leans towards overdetailed at times but mostly the story moves at a good pace while the characters are worth following around.
The climax of the book is propulsive enough, and the awful early episodes far enough in the rearview mirror, to make me want to come back and finish the series. Yet, however good the narrative becomes, however satisfying the weavers’ inevitable comeuppance in the series later entries, I would not recommend buying this book. It has sat on my shelf for the better part of two decades, so I didn’t really have a choice but to give it a go. For everyone else, far better and far less upsetting fantasy books abound; go read one of those instead.
Having gotten around to reading the first book - The Weavers of Saramyr - I was very surprised by one of the early episodes, which involved cruelty and sexual violence towards a child. This was followed up by a very difficult-to-read boat scene involving the same. Everything occurs in reported speech, but the episode is harrowing. Those involved in perpetrating this violence are held up as the most twisted and evil in the land, to be sure, but these scenes feel so egregious and so apt to be upsetting to most (I hope all) readers that it is beyond me why the author chose to include them.
The group in question, the eponymous weavers, would have embodied evil without including such elements at all. It is also tonally highly at odds with the rest of the book. There are a couple of not particularly detailed sex scenes, no bad language at all; nothing here or on the dust jacket harmonises with this type of very adult, very sadistic content making it even harder to justify the material (if ever it could be).
This almost made me break my book-finishing rule and put it down. Thankfully, the boat scene is the worst episode by far. The book beyond this is reasonably good. The narrative is multi-perspective, dotting around the map as we build up our understanding of a richly drawn, imaginative world. The fantasy dimension is innovative, involving mutations, aberrations, and a shadowy woven sub-strata that the weavers can manipulate. The prose leans towards overdetailed at times but mostly the story moves at a good pace while the characters are worth following around.
The climax of the book is propulsive enough, and the awful early episodes far enough in the rearview mirror, to make me want to come back and finish the series. Yet, however good the narrative becomes, however satisfying the weavers’ inevitable comeuppance in the series later entries, I would not recommend buying this book. It has sat on my shelf for the better part of two decades, so I didn’t really have a choice but to give it a go. For everyone else, far better and far less upsetting fantasy books abound; go read one of those instead.
February 6, 2025
4,5⭐
𝘿𝙞𝙚 𝙒𝙚𝙗𝙚𝙧 𝙑𝙤𝙣 𝙎𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙢𝙮𝙧 ist Band 1 in Chris Woodings Fantasy Trilogie - DER VERSCHLUNGENE PFAD.
Ich bin ein Fan von Woodings Schreibkunst, spätestens nach ·.★·.·´¯`·.·★ 🅳🅰🆂 🆂🅲🅷🆆🅴🆁🆃 🅳🅴🆁 🅺ö🅽🅸🅶🅴 ★·.·´¯`·.·★.·
Diese Reihe hier ist älter. Sie existiert in deutscher Auflage und man kann sie gebraucht erhalten.
Natürlich wollte ich gucken, ob ich Woodings Handschrift wiedererkenne.
Die Weber von Saramyr ist ein Fantasybuch in einer östlich-asiatisch inspirierten Welt. Hier gibt es keine Zwergen, Elfen, Orks.
Im Kaiserreich Saramyr haben die sogenannten Weber es geschafft, die magiebegabten Menschen, Ausgeburten genannt, stark zu dezimieren. Weber haben die Macht, Magie zu verspüren. Kinder mit diesen Fähigkeiten werden unverzüglich vernichtet.
Da stellt sich heraus, daß Kind der Kaiserin selbst magische Fähigkeiten besitzt.
Dies stürzt Saramyr in eine ernsthafte politische Krise, denn das Volk und gewisse Familien mit Einfluß gedenken nicht, sich dieser Thronfolgerin zu beugen.
Und dann verfolgen wir eine junge Frau, die ebenfalls gewisse Fähigkeiten an sich entdeckt und dem Geheimnis rund um ihre Magie auf den Grund gehen möchte.
Ich fand dieses Buch äußerst faszinierend. Es sind hier zu einem Großteil weibliche Charaktere, die die Geschichte voran treiben. Es gibt sehr viele Geheimnisse, Politik und Verrat.
Die Geschichte schlägt ein gemächliches Tempo ein, ja ähnlich wie in der Darkwater Legacy, wo sich ebenfalls alles so nach und nach entblättert.
Es ist Woodings Stärke, gut ausgearbeitete Charaktere zu schreiben, vor allem liebe ich seine Fähigkeiten, die Antagonisten von verschiedenen Seiten zu beleuchten. Die Welt wirkt exotisch, detailliert und geheimnisvoll.
Für mich ist dieses Buch ein sogenanntes Hidden Gem.
Ich freue mich total auf Band 2 und hoffe, dass ich mich im zweiten Buch der Reihe genauso wohl fühle.
𝘿𝙞𝙚 𝙒𝙚𝙗𝙚𝙧 𝙑𝙤𝙣 𝙎𝙖𝙧𝙖𝙢𝙮𝙧 ist Band 1 in Chris Woodings Fantasy Trilogie - DER VERSCHLUNGENE PFAD.
Ich bin ein Fan von Woodings Schreibkunst, spätestens nach ·.★·.·´¯`·.·★ 🅳🅰🆂 🆂🅲🅷🆆🅴🆁🆃 🅳🅴🆁 🅺ö🅽🅸🅶🅴 ★·.·´¯`·.·★.·
Diese Reihe hier ist älter. Sie existiert in deutscher Auflage und man kann sie gebraucht erhalten.
Natürlich wollte ich gucken, ob ich Woodings Handschrift wiedererkenne.
Die Weber von Saramyr ist ein Fantasybuch in einer östlich-asiatisch inspirierten Welt. Hier gibt es keine Zwergen, Elfen, Orks.
Im Kaiserreich Saramyr haben die sogenannten Weber es geschafft, die magiebegabten Menschen, Ausgeburten genannt, stark zu dezimieren. Weber haben die Macht, Magie zu verspüren. Kinder mit diesen Fähigkeiten werden unverzüglich vernichtet.
Da stellt sich heraus, daß Kind der Kaiserin selbst magische Fähigkeiten besitzt.
Dies stürzt Saramyr in eine ernsthafte politische Krise, denn das Volk und gewisse Familien mit Einfluß gedenken nicht, sich dieser Thronfolgerin zu beugen.
Und dann verfolgen wir eine junge Frau, die ebenfalls gewisse Fähigkeiten an sich entdeckt und dem Geheimnis rund um ihre Magie auf den Grund gehen möchte.
Ich fand dieses Buch äußerst faszinierend. Es sind hier zu einem Großteil weibliche Charaktere, die die Geschichte voran treiben. Es gibt sehr viele Geheimnisse, Politik und Verrat.
Die Geschichte schlägt ein gemächliches Tempo ein, ja ähnlich wie in der Darkwater Legacy, wo sich ebenfalls alles so nach und nach entblättert.
Es ist Woodings Stärke, gut ausgearbeitete Charaktere zu schreiben, vor allem liebe ich seine Fähigkeiten, die Antagonisten von verschiedenen Seiten zu beleuchten. Die Welt wirkt exotisch, detailliert und geheimnisvoll.
Für mich ist dieses Buch ein sogenanntes Hidden Gem.
Ich freue mich total auf Band 2 und hoffe, dass ich mich im zweiten Buch der Reihe genauso wohl fühle.
May 8, 2020
I am not generally a fan of fantasy. I received this book as a Christmas present and finally began reading in April because I had time self-isolating during this pandemic. I became enamored with the story and the characters. The writing is very descriptive and almost poetic as the countryside and the dwellings are described. The story unfolds slowly and it drew me into the world where they lived. The history, the culture/religious belief, and the current shifting alliances as well as the undercurrents of intrigue are well woven together into what he calls the Braided Weave. I did keep a list of characters which helps me remember important facts which do come back later and do matter. This is not a book that I had to force myself to finish, in fact, the way the story unfolds kept me interested. The technique of making the reader wonder who might be a traitor to the cause or might not be as the person appears also kept we reading. The use of magical powers is presented in a believable way and with limitations. There exists here the black and the white but there are many shades in between and mixed motives all over the place. There are many parallels to our contemporary society which come to mind that makes this book a fascinating read.
September 30, 2018
Версията, която четох, е записана в Читанка така: Вещерите от Сарамир
Това е преводът на романа преди редактирането и издаването му на български от ИК „Ера“.
Обяснението, защо започнах тази книга, е елементарно - съдържаше думата "вещер" :Д
Естествено знаех, че няма да има нищо общо с Гералт, и като видях, че авторът е англичанин, станах съвсем скептична. Но в крайна сметка останах доста доволна от резултата. Историята е увлекателна и интересна. За необичайна не мога да твърдя, при положение, че нямам опит с фентъзито. Не знам за книжното издание и какви думи са използвани в оригинала, но този превод ми допада страшно много като изказ. Самата дума Чаросплетие е сама по себе си прекрасна! Трябва да проверя от какво англоезично извращение е произлязла, но вече ми е любима. Бих продължила на драго сърце поредицата, която не знам защо в Читанка има коренно различен вид като имена на книгите и на самата поредица (Преплетеният път). Чак започвам да се чудя същото нещо ли е. Но щом е за вещери от Сарамир звучи логично да е това. Ако са разбутали подбора на думи в превода и вътре в книгата, вероятно е голяма загуба!
Това е преводът на романа преди редактирането и издаването му на български от ИК „Ера“.
Обяснението, защо започнах тази книга, е елементарно - съдържаше думата "вещер" :Д
Естествено знаех, че няма да има нищо общо с Гералт, и като видях, че авторът е англичанин, станах съвсем скептична. Но в крайна сметка останах доста доволна от резултата. Историята е увлекателна и интересна. За необичайна не мога да твърдя, при положение, че нямам опит с фентъзито. Не знам за книжното издание и какви думи са използвани в оригинала, но този превод ми допада страшно много като изказ. Самата дума Чаросплетие е сама по себе си прекрасна! Трябва да проверя от какво англоезично извращение е произлязла, но вече ми е любима. Бих продължила на драго сърце поредицата, която не знам защо в Читанка има коренно различен вид като имена на книгите и на самата поредица (Преплетеният път). Чак започвам да се чудя същото нещо ли е. Но щом е за вещери от Сарамир звучи логично да е това. Ако са разбутали подбора на думи в превода и вътре в книгата, вероятно е голяма загуба!
July 24, 2024
Tight prose, a little florid at times.
Interesting eastern inspired setting and a fresh fantasy concept: dark magic has twisted the land and given rise to aberrants. Cursed people and beasts sometimes with odd powers. An empire under the sway of those who control the dark magic who serve as a binding force that enables mass communication.
One downside is that these dark magicians are prey to insanity that leads to very grim (sexual assault) behaviour. Fortuantely it isn't described, but it is mentioned. I didn't think it was necessary to get the point across about their evil nature. But it isn't gratutous.
Interesting eastern inspired setting and a fresh fantasy concept: dark magic has twisted the land and given rise to aberrants. Cursed people and beasts sometimes with odd powers. An empire under the sway of those who control the dark magic who serve as a binding force that enables mass communication.
One downside is that these dark magicians are prey to insanity that leads to very grim (sexual assault) behaviour. Fortuantely it isn't described, but it is mentioned. I didn't think it was necessary to get the point across about their evil nature. But it isn't gratutous.
May 14, 2019
Had no expectations about the book and surprised me nicely. It has lots of violence, and people die (it's ok for my taste). Some descriptions surprised me in terms of making me feel disgust (i'm not easily impressed, so props for the writer). And the story progression is not predictable. Overall really liked the book.
August 18, 2018
I’ve had this book for years and tried to read it numerous times xD It took a few chapters for me to get into, but when I did I found the story gripping and the characters intriguing. Now want to read the next one xD
May 20, 2020
This was a good book but not great for me. I found it a little too typical and nothing new. That’s not to say I didn’t like it. I may finish the series at some point. But I didn’t finish it, thinking wow.
March 6, 2021
abandoned at 36%
i think it was city of sin .a Chinese trash webnovel ,that after maybe 10 thousands pages .have been abandoned for the same reason as this
there ,a fight turning into sex ,here , the empress husband after grabbing a maid and raping here while his friends cheered ,the empress finds out ,and fucks him .because ohhh,he can be so charismatic some times.
i think it was city of sin .a Chinese trash webnovel ,that after maybe 10 thousands pages .have been abandoned for the same reason as this
there ,a fight turning into sex ,here , the empress husband after grabbing a maid and raping here while his friends cheered ,the empress finds out ,and fucks him .because ohhh,he can be so charismatic some times.
June 30, 2019
Interesting. Solid. Deserves to be read.
March 30, 2022
One of the best openers to a fantasy series
Displaying 1 - 30 of 87 reviews