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Book review: Princeps' Fury
Jan. 30th, 2010 10:00 pmToday's book review is Princeps' Fury by Jim Butcher.
This is book 5 in the excellent Alera series. You definitely need to start at the beginning to know who these people are and how they got there. We're right in the middle of a lot of really scary stuff, but unlike some authors, it seems like Butcher tries his best to stop at a good place in the middle of the absolutely non-stop story arc, rather than at the very worst possible place.
There is just too much carnage in this book. But it sure does provide a great backdrop for the heroes to be heroic against, and they certainly rise to the challenge. They should be way over the top, but they have, and continue to hold, my heart so tightly that I'm wholly engaged. Magic is really powerful in this world, but it has enough limits to remain convincing, and the bad guys are really nightmarish. It would all be good fantasy anyway, but the best part continues to be the Canim, the most important non-human race. Their wonderfully alien psychology, and the way we use it to probe what's really important about people, would probably appeal to me a whole lot even if they weren't given a physical appearance that really pushes my buttons.
This volume isn't as good as the last couple. But I couldn't actually tell that while I was reading; I was far too deeply engaged. The series as a whole continues to be superb. 8 out of 10.
( plot summary )
This is book 5 in the excellent Alera series. You definitely need to start at the beginning to know who these people are and how they got there. We're right in the middle of a lot of really scary stuff, but unlike some authors, it seems like Butcher tries his best to stop at a good place in the middle of the absolutely non-stop story arc, rather than at the very worst possible place.
There is just too much carnage in this book. But it sure does provide a great backdrop for the heroes to be heroic against, and they certainly rise to the challenge. They should be way over the top, but they have, and continue to hold, my heart so tightly that I'm wholly engaged. Magic is really powerful in this world, but it has enough limits to remain convincing, and the bad guys are really nightmarish. It would all be good fantasy anyway, but the best part continues to be the Canim, the most important non-human race. Their wonderfully alien psychology, and the way we use it to probe what's really important about people, would probably appeal to me a whole lot even if they weren't given a physical appearance that really pushes my buttons.
This volume isn't as good as the last couple. But I couldn't actually tell that while I was reading; I was far too deeply engaged. The series as a whole continues to be superb. 8 out of 10.
( plot summary )