Kate Elliott

Who are the interesting secondary characters and what makes them interesting. What makes them special? Fighting abilities, wisdom, magic?
 
It's really hard to desrbibe without spoilers






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Isn't it already a spoiler to tell that Alain befriends the eika prince?


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I find it very refreshing that the two main characters - Liath and Alain - are not Lovers!

Really there a lot of secrets about the real nature and origins of some of the protagonists, so to tell would give something away.

The Eika are a very very strange race but to tell in which way would lift the veil.

The whole story centers around a cosmic constellation which happens every thousand years - at least on earth.

The last time this constellation happened something very bad happened and it seems it wasn't the first time.

Liath is somehow connected with this constellation because of her unusual powers and origins and becomes the aim of rivalizing groups and it's quite uncertain who's bad and who's good.

On another level there's a lot of intrigue evolving around the court and wars to be fought.
 
It's tricky to figure how to describe the secondary characters without giving lot away for sure. To even name them would give stuff away, since then you have to figure SOMEONE'S gonna meet them sooner or later...

who does the back cover mention?
 
I'm goingto give the first book a try very soon, I think I might like them a lot. Though I will note I'm a little wary that the books will be beating the feminist drumbeat, because that is what the reviewer in Hobbit's link mentions. The culture being matriarchal etc.
Here's what he says to be more precise:

Much more emphasis is placed on the role of women in the church and in society than there was in the original time period - in some cases here the power of the women surpasses those of men. To start with I enjoyed the difference - Marian, Lucia, Matthias and Peter as disciples, anyone? - though towards the end I did feel that the book was trying a little too hard to hammer home 'a message', with the point that despite the trappings of religion and royal heritage it is really the women who have power. Whilst I liked the idea of religious and social equality in the book, I was starting to feel by the end (perhaps a little unfairly) that I had been ensconced into a feminine (note: not 'feminist'!) 'wish-fulfilment' tale.

Nevertheless at the end of the book I was pleased with having read it. I did feel that it was a 'feminine' book, with its greater depth of characters, its sympathetic (mainly female) characters, its harsher (mainly male) enemies, and limited 'action' and emphasis on women in the alternative-world society.

Would you guys and gals agree?
 
Disagree. That reviewer is a git. There is nothing feminist about the books imo.
 
ditto

I agree with Caldazar. I didn't notice any overwhelming 'feminism' in the books.
 
It's not that the church is matriarchal. The people in the story percieve God as as unity between the ultimate male and the ultimate female. Which I thought was a nicer take on things than what we have in real life.

If that reviewer wants to find nasty females in that story she need only read on to the next few books.
 
This is my favourite series! As to the enquiry about the secondary characters I would say at times they can be more interesting than the main ones. My fav secondary character is Ivar, pity she neglects him badly.
Allanon, if you're looking for characters with magical and fighting abilities, this book won't probably interest you. Its nothing like David Eddings. Its far superior.

I love the characters; you really feel for them. And the eika rock. Also she doesn't revolve characters every chapter or two, she sticks with them for a while. This way you get a feel for their part of the story/world.

THIs works against her at points. The story occasionally disinterests you (you'd much rather read about another character) and you have to stick it out for ages.

Personally I do not like Sanglant, anyone agree with me. I recently saw theres going to be two more books, and the fifth is out in January.
 
Yesterday, while doing one of the things I like doing most of all, (and I don't mean that either :) )- just browsing in a second hand book shop I found the first two books of the series Crown of Stars. In view of the mainly positive on-going discussion about it, I bought both books -they were only 50 pence each anyway.

I've edited this because in trying not read any possible spoilers I asked a question already answered further up the thread :o

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I like Sanglant, myself. I know there are other people around who don't, however.

I find fifth son's story to be a pretty good read. Also, Zaccharias' traveling companion is pretty interesting.
 
I'm a Sanglant fan, too, SJ. Just something tragic but appealing about him. :D
 
SPOILERS!!!!!!!!!
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What, you like men that cheat on their wives? Sanglant is a bastard who should be shot. He takes an army that is needed at home to go chasing after phoinex feathers even after he's told his father is processed by a demon. I used to like him but now I can't stand him.
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*makes note to go reread this bit. I seem to have forgotten something*
undecided.gif
 
I meant I like reading about him. I wasn't too pleased when he cheated, but the guy was under considerable emotional duress at the time.

I get the impression that he's the loneliest guy ever. Maybe that's why he seems tragic E-M.
 
**SPOILER**
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Sanglant is tragic because his character promotes the idea that even the best of men have uncontrollable animal urges and can't go without sex for long. At first he tries to resist it but he can't and once he has given in he doesn't limit himself to one woman. With his wife gone he finds subsitutes, and it's not her love that he needs first but the coupling.
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Sex is great but for a wife like Liath you would think he could do without it for a while. It will be intresting to see how Eliott will develop the Liath - Sangliant relationship. When Liath finds out will she push him away or will she forgive him because he's so beautiful and tragic? After all, it must have been his remaining dog insticts that made him do it ;)
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**END SPOILER**
 
I'm starting this series soon and was wondering if anyone could give me a bit of a sneak preview about what the main characters ( Liath, Alain, Sanglant&Stronghand) can do. Same question with regards to the Aoi. :)
 
I tried to minimize the spoilers but you did say you wanted a sneak peek!

Liath is an orphan with some mysterious affinity to fire. For some reason every guy who she comes across wants her too.

Alain is the ultimate nice guy. The problem is that throughout the first 3 books he is thrust into situations where nice guys finish last. However, he's got the favour of The Lady of Battles, who grants him battle-prowess and courage beyond his capabilities.

Sanglant is defined by a conflict between duty and personal desire. He's actually half-Aoi, with an enchantment which prevents him from being killed by mortal weapons.

Fifth Son starts off as nobody, shunned by his own people for the cunning and intelligence which set him apart from their barbaric raging ways.

The Aoi are lost spirits of a long-dead Empire. There's a lot of discrepency among the people in the book as to whether they actually exist (duh! it is a fantasy story ;)), just where they went to when they left the earth so long ago and whether or not they could come back.
 
But they don't actually appear to us then, not even in the later books?

Are there any other races?

For some reason this series reminds me of Jones' Sword of Shadows trilogy (of which the third book will be published this year btw).
 
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