Tangled Webs by Anne Bishop
Apr. 28th, 2008 08:22 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
snugglekittyTangled Webs is the newest in the dark fantasy series The Black Jewels. The author includes a note to the reader at the beginning, saying that the epic is over but life goes on for the characters. This feeling has permeated what she has written about the characters since the initial trilogy ended, imo, and I'm glad she's being up front with us about it. She is not trying to write something that is on the same level as the first books, which I think is wise in some ways. However, at the same time, it can be a bit of a letdown when the villains would have no hope of defeating the heros on a level playing field.
Surreal is a main character of the book, and I like that. I've always like her. She and her friend and escort Prince Rainier become trapped in a haunted house, watched by a madman who is looking for material for his next book. For the book to be at all plausible, the most powerful characters (Janelle, Lucivar, and Sadi) all just happen to be on the outside of the house while their friends are trapped inside. I actually didn't find that very believable. It would have made more sense to me if the villain had purposely targeted Surreal for some reason.
Still, friends of Janelle and her family will not be able to resist this book, and ultimately I think you'll be smiling when you put it down. Three stars. Get it from the library, read it, move on.
I eagerly await the conclusion to Bishop's Ephemera series, which is still going strong.
Surreal is a main character of the book, and I like that. I've always like her. She and her friend and escort Prince Rainier become trapped in a haunted house, watched by a madman who is looking for material for his next book. For the book to be at all plausible, the most powerful characters (Janelle, Lucivar, and Sadi) all just happen to be on the outside of the house while their friends are trapped inside. I actually didn't find that very believable. It would have made more sense to me if the villain had purposely targeted Surreal for some reason.
Still, friends of Janelle and her family will not be able to resist this book, and ultimately I think you'll be smiling when you put it down. Three stars. Get it from the library, read it, move on.
I eagerly await the conclusion to Bishop's Ephemera series, which is still going strong.