The Bright and The Dark

Five Countries #2

by Michelle M. Welch

Ten years have passed since the end of Confidence Game . In Biora, Tod has found himself repairing the old books left by scholars three centuries ago. These books are valued in Dabion, but in Biora itself they are little more than curiosities, and most of its people cannot even read the books that are so prized outside its borders. Biora has become a land of unending violence, where men are destined to be warriors. Julian, a peaceful young man who has befriended Tod in Biora and learned to read from him, is not at home in his homeland. When traders come to Biora for books to sell in Dabion, they take Julian with them, another curiosity for the Justices.

Aron Jannes is the son of Lord Justice Jannes, a leader in the government of Dabion. Aron is angry at his father's negligence; he is angry at his mother's death ten years ago; he is angry at Elzith for her abandonment of him. It is no comfort to him to discover that his father employs spies. Not all the spies work only for Jannes, though. Justice Rayner, now at the head of Dabion's secret forces, has been following Jannes for more than ten years, and is intent on cornering him at last.

In Dabion, Julian encounters misunderstanding and conflict, a foreigner in a land that accepts only the image of Biorans gathered from their ancient books. Julian is drawn toward Aron, recognizing Aron as another seeker without a home, although Aron is too enthralled by his own anger to return Julian's friendship. One fateful day, Aron rescues Julian from danger almost by accident, and the two young men are thrown together by circumstance. As they become drawn up in Rayner's plots and the political turmoil that sets Dabion at the edge of civil war, Julian and Aron must discover where their loyalties lie and which paths they will walk.

Genres: Fantasy

400 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Reader, writer, librarian, finder of random stuff, reluctant cat person, sometime musician, generalist.

Reviews

[Yvensong · Rating 3 out of 5]

More of a political intrigue novel, with spies and corrupt governmental figures, than a fantasy filled with magic and adventure.

This novel is a little too convoluted to be a great read, but it kept me interested enough to continue reading. The first part of the story introduced some interesting characters, and I think if Welch had stayed more focused on them instead of continuing to introduce more characters, the novel wouldn't have felt so convoluted.

As the novel progressed, and more and more people got involved, character development fell away. There were times I felt that Welch was trying to examine the opposite qualities (light and dark?) of Julian and Aron, but it was muddled up with far too many other characters vying for the reader's attention.

The ending leaves our characters with a somewhat unresolved ending. I had a friend who used to call movies with an open ending a "movie with an English ending". I know many people who detest those types of endings, but personally, I'm fine with them. I don't always want a neat and tidy ending. I like being able to create a further story in my own way. (It is also my understanding, that there is a third book that does continue the story. Luckily, I think this can be read without reading the other books.)

I gave this 3 stars despite the above issues because the world Welch builds is interesting and some of the issues that arose for the characters felt real.

[Mj · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was good. I had a little trouble getting into it. Some confusion with following multiple story lines. It might've helped if I could've read more of the story at a time. It might also have helped to read the first in the series before this book.

[Ruhegeist · Rating 1 out of 5]

couldn't get into the story, didn't finish.

[Donald · Rating 2 out of 5]

Re-read this in May. The story really didn't grab me the second time around and the characters are not as interesting as the one's Welch introduces in Confidence Game.

[Bak Min]

http://mmwelch.blogspot.com/