Review: Best series I have read in ages!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 11 3, 2013
This series is fantastic. If you haven' read it, you are missing out!After reading book one I couldn't wait for book two. When it finally came out I purchased it right away, but I had lost my impetus in the wait and I didn't read it until I had purchased book three. I am glad that I waited. I would have gone crazy waiting for the finale if I had read book two when it was first released.This series was so good that after reading book two, I went back and read book one again straight away, then back to two and then on to three. I don't think I had a lot of sleep - if any that day, thank heavens for weekends! And when I had finished, I went back and read them all again. Any book/series you can do that with has to be something pretty special.The character building is excellent - sometimes Taryn's character seemed a bit stilted as if Ben Hale suddenly remembered that Taryn was supposed to be socially awkward, but otherwise everyone was very believable. My favourite character would have to be Braon. What a mind, and what courage in the face of overwhelming pressure.As with most fantasy based novels we saw the same groups of people - elves, humans, dwarfs, goblins ogres and more. But Ben managed to put his own stamp on him and make them his while still retaining those characteristics that we have come to associate with them. I particularly liked the rock trolls.The writing was fantastic. It was clear. It was descriptive. It was completely believable. I was introduced to a world in which I almost immediately felt at home, and characters I came immediately to love. Every twist and turn in the plot had meaning and connection, and even those events that broke my heart had purpose. Finally, in these days of poorly (or clearly un-) edited work it is a relief to have a book that someone has actually checked.Ben Hale is clearly an author to watch and I look forward to reading more of his work.