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The DragonSpawn Cycle #2
WinterMaejic
The captivating sequel of AutumnQuest. Donavah is learning to control her vast maejic powers. When she is brutally attacked and stripped of her voice, the use of her hands, and her maejic, Donavah is perhaps the only hope against the evil forces scheduled to dispose of the mages and overthrow the king.
Hardcover
First published February 1, 2007
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
December 7, 2014
Donavah's training in maejic has hardly begun when her life is uprooted yet again. The Royal Guard is going after the mages, and everyone with maejic has to flee or risk death. But even their flight is full of hazard after hazard. Donavah ends up alone, stricken of power and the use of her hands. And even if she can rejoin the others, she doesn't know if she can recover.
This book was leaps and bounds ahead of AutumnQuest. The beginning explains a great deal about the end of AutumnQuest, particularly how the rescue at the end had actually worked. The description of maejic is only slightly better than AutumnQuest, but at least it comes up front.
The real meat of the book comes after Donavah has been cursed and abandoned in the forest. Her power gone, her voice silent, her hands nearly useless, she struggles to come to grips with her fear, her helplessness, and her rescuer. Grey is patient and kind, and nurses her to as much of a recovery as she can make. He's a big part of what makes the book enjoyable.
The story flows much better here than in AutumnQuest, although the beginning and end are still awkward. Donavah is overpowered when she has use of maejic; nothing seems to be a struggle for her, and she keeps accidently doing things that blow away everyone else. Maejic still seems to be mostly used for sensing the moods of people and talking to animals, but at least there was an attempt to show other ways it can be used. Maybe someday I'll figure out more of the things it can and can't do.
The between-chapter scenes have gotten more cohesive as well, but they've also gotten disturbing. Donavah is 15, and many of the inter-chapter sequences were about 80-year-old Yallik's agonizing over how much he's in love with her. Including the first one.
There were also places where the prose was jumpy; Grey's explanation of how he'd been abandoned shortly after birth felt very random. He could have told it in pieces, or in a way that didn't feel so awkward. And since most of Grey's section was so good, it stood out especially.
Overall this was head and shoulders above AutumnQuest, but still not something I would recommend friends pick up and read. For one, it won't stand alone very well, so that means reading AutumnQuest first. For another, I only particularly cared for the middle; the beginning and end didn't work so well. I would give this book a Neutral.
This book was leaps and bounds ahead of AutumnQuest. The beginning explains a great deal about the end of AutumnQuest, particularly how the rescue at the end had actually worked. The description of maejic is only slightly better than AutumnQuest, but at least it comes up front.
The real meat of the book comes after Donavah has been cursed and abandoned in the forest. Her power gone, her voice silent, her hands nearly useless, she struggles to come to grips with her fear, her helplessness, and her rescuer. Grey is patient and kind, and nurses her to as much of a recovery as she can make. He's a big part of what makes the book enjoyable.
The story flows much better here than in AutumnQuest, although the beginning and end are still awkward. Donavah is overpowered when she has use of maejic; nothing seems to be a struggle for her, and she keeps accidently doing things that blow away everyone else. Maejic still seems to be mostly used for sensing the moods of people and talking to animals, but at least there was an attempt to show other ways it can be used. Maybe someday I'll figure out more of the things it can and can't do.
The between-chapter scenes have gotten more cohesive as well, but they've also gotten disturbing. Donavah is 15, and many of the inter-chapter sequences were about 80-year-old Yallik's agonizing over how much he's in love with her. Including the first one.
There were also places where the prose was jumpy; Grey's explanation of how he'd been abandoned shortly after birth felt very random. He could have told it in pieces, or in a way that didn't feel so awkward. And since most of Grey's section was so good, it stood out especially.
Overall this was head and shoulders above AutumnQuest, but still not something I would recommend friends pick up and read. For one, it won't stand alone very well, so that means reading AutumnQuest first. For another, I only particularly cared for the middle; the beginning and end didn't work so well. I would give this book a Neutral.
April 6, 2011
Se lis très rapidement et tres agéable pour passer le temps
June 7, 2011
A highly enjoyable second part of what promises to be a consistently good series.
March 6, 2012
The Journey continues with the same style set-up as the first but takes on a new direction. Could not put the book down.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews