Ian Irvine (1) (1950–)

7/10 for book 2 in The View From the Mirror quartet.

What I liked: the characters are more complete and we learn more backstory as well. Some parts are very exciting and there are unexpected developments and twists and turns in the plot. Pender the boatman is a joy of a character.

What bugged me: still a lot of unanswered questions, which i hope will be answered in the final two books.The maps are not detailed enough to show the reader where the action is taking place. Endless traveling interrupted by excitement, revelations, confrontations of all sorts, close calls and escapes.… (more)

While very few of the characters are completely likable, they have become more complex in the 3rd book of The View from the Mirror quartet. And while there continue to be seemingly interminable journeys, they are shorter than in previous books. There is definitely more action.

One thing that bothers me, however, is the way some of the key characters revert back to being one or two dimensional after struggling to develop some skills or abilities or strengthen some traits. Llian becomes the proud, self-centered, story-hungry chronicler, Maigrith becomes a dependent, duty-bound tool, Shand suddenly turns blindly bigoted. It may not last, thank goodness, but it doesn't seem to take much to undo the changes the characters have achieved through hard work and effort enduring some amazing challenges and hardships.

Tallia, Lilis, Nadiril and Pender are my favorite characters. They have the least subterfuge about them and are a clear contrast to the complicated hopes, fears, vanities, and insecurities of the main characters.… (more)

6/10
This is book 1 in a tetralogy, so the author spends a lot of time on world-building and historical back-notes. Yet we do get to know the main characters, Llian and Karan, quite well. i thought all the major characters seem fairly nuanced--real people with flaws and strengths, warts and virtues.

I thought some of the interminable journeying could have been condensed, but the events in the escapes and chases did help develop the characters and their relationships with each other.

I certainly enjoyed this enough and am intrigued enough to continue the series.… (more)