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Snow-walker

Catherine Fisher

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 11 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

A Snowy Surprise: Norse Fantasy Tales 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

I picked this up because I needed something to read over my lunchbreak. I wasn't expecting much--lately all the epic fantasy stuff I've found tends to be either pedestrian and cliched or monstrously complex and spread over many volumes. Let's just say the book followed me back from lunch onto the subway, and was read intently for several hours before I turned the last page. The snow cast setting was immediately accessible and stunningly described. The main characters came to life as natural elements in the setting. The story wove skillfully from first page to last. This volume is actually made up of three stories, each about 150 pages long. The three tales tell the ongoing story of our band of heroes, but each is complete unto itself. I believe they were orginally published in Britain as three separate volumes: The Snow-walker's Son, The Empty Hand, and The Soul Thieves.

Gudrun, a strange and sorcerous woman of great power and cruelty, has one weakness. That weakness is her son, Kari. Almost no one has seen Kari since he was born, and rumors abound that he is some sort of monster. Exiled to a far northern fortress of Thrasirshall, he has been alone but for his guardian for years while Gudrun and her chieftan husband have tyrannized the people. Now two young people are sent to join Kari in his exile--Jessa and Thorkil. Will they meet a monster? An enemy? Or perhaps . . . a new ally against Gudrun? In this first book we meet a delightful cast of characters, some more developed than others. Most notable among them is Jessa, our young protagonist equipped with enough courage and wisdom to survive her adventures and see the truth and Kari, the Snow-walker's son, the strange being with a powerful and fearful inheritance he doesn't want and can't avoid. Note to readers, I'll outline briefly the plots two and three below, so be aware there will be mild spoilers.

Book two continues our story of Jarlshold. While Gudrun has been defeated, she is not gone, nor has she forgotten Jarlshold. A mysterious creature has arrived in the land, a creature of sorcery and hunger that kills without mercy. Rumors of distrust and betrayal run rampant as people begin to look at Kari with fear and suspicion--is he the one who has created this creature? It's going to take Kari's friends banding together with the help of a young man called Hakon the Empty Handed, to set things right in the hold. In Book three, Gudrun makes good on her threat to steal from the Jarl the thing he loves most, now Kari and his friends must journey beyond the edge of the world to Gudrun's hall in order to end Gudrun's sorcery once and for all.

It is through Jessa's eyes that we see a good portion of this story. She's a delightful character, confident, plenty of courage, and not at all conflicted about her role or who she is. While fantasy stories where the girls are working hard to be considered as good or better than boys are enjoyable in their own right, it's nice to read one where the girl in question has no doubt where she stands and neither do the men who befriend her. But, this isn't really Jessa's story. It's Kari's. Kari is the strange and sorcerous figure cursed with power and constantly having to face the price of that power. That said, these tales are not in-depth character studies, but adventure tales, full of action and event. Ms. Fisher's confident and elegant writing style never falters, providing an icily beautiful backdrop for her story. This is a tale that pulls strongly on the Norse legends and sagas without allowing them to overtake the plot. There are shades of Beowulf here as well--it was no surprise to find that the chapter opening quotes for book 2 are taken from Beowulf. The chapter openings for books 1 and 3 come from a collection of Norse Poems. Ms. Fisher has true grasp of her mythos and setting for this set of tales--the society is that of the holds and halls of Beowulf. It breaks the story out of the rather tired medieval mode with its more familiar kings and dragons and knights in armor. Given all this, it's a light read--with the books themselves only about 150 pages, no story can cover too much ground. The telling is tight and swift and definitely page-turning. The author never forgets to call in the setting at hand, and while the characters don't have the depth a longer story might call for, they aren't one-dimensional chess pieces either. The amount of graphic violence is pretty light considering the story--it's more concerned with the sorcerous struggle than any sort of warfare. I'd say this book would be appropriate for young teens and older readers, particularly those who enjoy fantasy adventure and may be looking for something new to whet their appetites.

This may not be for readers who prefer a more Harry Potter style school story fantasy, but for epic fantasy readers it should be a good fit. Those who enjoy this will probably also like the Underland Chronicles by Suzanne Collins and may also want to check out Goose Girl by Sharon Hale.

Happy Reading! ^_^ Shanshad

Editorial Review:

Since Gudrun came from the frozen mists beyond the edge of the world, the Jarl's people have obeyed her in hatred andterror. But the enchantress has one weakness: a son, Kari, banished to a forbidding fortress in the north, never seen by the Jarl's people. In secret they wonder: Are the rumors true? Was he born a monster?

Now Jessa and her cousin Thorkil have been exiled to the north, and if they survive the journey, they will find the truth: Is Kari a beast? Or the means to stop the sorceress?

Day of the Scarab: Book Three of The Oracle Prophecies

Catherine Fisher

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

reminiscent of the Andre Norton young adult tales 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 6 people found this review helpful.

General Argelin, after killing Hermia, one of the Nine and Speaker for the god, crowns himself king and Archon. The real Archon returns from the Well of Songs to see his people caught in a stranglehold by the dictator who rules with an iron fist and his mercenary army. The Nine are scattered; Mirany the new Speaker is in while Argelin destroys all pictures, paintings, books describing the Rain Queen, the goddess of the kingdom of death who he blames for Hermia's demise.

Seth, a scribe takes a job as Argelin's assistant in the hopes of finding a way to free the people. The Emperor's fleet stays off the coast because his heir prince Jamil is held hostage. A way is found for the king to travel to the underworld to try and free Hermia from the Rain Queen. He takes Alexos the Archon (god on earth), Mirany and their ally the musician Oblek to the realm of the dead while Seth is chosen as the new Speaker until Mirany returns. Seth gathers an unusual group of allies in the hopes of saving the land from the god, the emperor and his soldiers.

What began in SNOW WALKER and continued in the ORACLE BETRAYED comes to a glorious conclusion in DAY OF THE SCARAB. This book is reminiscent of the Andre Norton young adult tales that were enjoyed by an adult audience. The characterizations are superb and there is plenty of action and adventures to maintain readers' interest but it is the theme of good vs. evil that will resonate with the audience who sees that there are shades of gray in each individual so they are not all good or all evil.

Harriet Klausner

Editorial Review:

Since the destruction of the Oracle, madness reigns in the Two Lands—and his name is General Argelin. The self-appointed king is destroying his enemies, human and god alike. Seth and the Jackal secretly gather a group of resisters, risking all in an attempt to save the Two Lands from Argelin's tyranny and from the new power he controls in the sign of the scarab.

Their last hope lies in the Underworld. Mirany, the young priestess, can lead them on their journey into death, but can she lead them back?

The Oracle Betrayed: Book One of The Oracle Prophecies

Catherine Fisher

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 11 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

After wowing kids and critics alike in the UK, this smart and suprisingly gritty historical fantasy from award-winning Welsh author and poet Catherine Fisher finally arrives in the US. Fisher grabs readers quickly with a convincingly imagined Greco-Egyptian setting and characters that defy quick classification. Our heroine, Mirany, begins the story as a timid teen serving the High Priestess, the masked Speaker who discerns the wishes of a god through a mysterious island oracle. When the current Archon (the sequestered God-on-Earth) passes a secret note to Mirany just before he's sacrificed, the story throws intrigue onto intrigue with a murder plot, a drunken musician, a conflicted scribe, a slick tomb robber, an offended Rain Goddess, and no shortage of mystic burial rituals and dusty tombs.
Fisher's biggest accomplishment is that for all the page-turning action, she still manages to raise some pretty heady ideas about death, ambition, and the nature of faith. Expect both kids and grownups to be reaching for Fisher's follow-up. (Ages 9 to 12) --Paul Hughes

Darkhenge

Catherine Fisher

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Don't bother 1 out of 5 stars.
6 of 7 people found this review helpful.

I cannot believe this book rated positive reviews at all. Wow.
The only positive thing I can think of is the main character, who I liked in a rather abstract way.
The writing was distractingly obtuse. Nothing ever really made sense except the parts told in this world, which were so broken up by strange people and even stranger events that they could not hold the narrative together. And I say strange meaning that these are things never explained. They just "happened."

The dream/alt. reality world they descended into halfway in had no rules. Often the narrative would lead one way, then backtrack whimsically as if to say, "well, I guess we won't go in that direction after all."

The biggest mystery of them all, the one that kept me reading, frustrated though I was, had no true answer, so that all of the lead-up just fizzles away.

Finally, Chloe was a horrible, hateful character that I found myself wishing they would just leave in that weird world. Her hatred of Rob, her brother, was so unjustified (as far as the narrative goes) that I just felt as blindsided as Rob about it.

Additionally, The Poet and the Goddess who were friends/enemies/lovers and who knew what else made absolutely no sense to me. Sorry. I was wishing the author would just specify!!! It was like watching a movie through fog.

And lest you think I'm a fantasy hater, let me set your mind at ease. I adore good writing in any genre--fantasy, especially. I just hate a work that asks tons of questions, never answers them and hopes that moodiness will carry a patchy narrative over the plotholes.

This book is not good. Period.

Editorial Review:

Rob's younger sister, Chloe, has been in a coma for three months, and his life is in disarray. To distract himself and avoid his grieving parents, Rob takes a job at a local—and mysterious—archaeological dig. There an ancient tree has been discovered, growing upside down—a tree that leads to the Unworld, the kingdom a seemingly happy and healthy Chloe presides over with no desire to return to her old life.

Sapphique

Catherine Fisher

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Editorial Review:

Finn has escaped from the terrible living Prison of Incarceron, but its memory torments him, because his brother Keiro is still inside. Outside, Claudia insists he must be king, but Finn doubts even his own identity. Is he the lost prince Giles? Or are his memories no more than another construct of his imprisonment? And can you be free if your friends are still captive? Can you be free if your world is frozen in time? Can you be free if you don't even know who you are? Inside Incarceron, has the crazy sorcerer Rix really found the Glove of Sapphique, the only man the Prison ever loved. Sapphique, whose image fires Incarceron with the desire to escape its own nature. If Keiro steals the glove, will he bring destruction to the world? Inside. Outside. All seeking freedom. Like Sapphique.

The Sphere of Secrets: Book Two of The Oracle Prophecies

Catherine Fisher

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Birds, stars and diamonds 3 out of 5 stars.
3 of 4 people found this review helpful.

Catherine Fisher continues the tales of incarnate gods, desert kingdoms and plots that would shame Machievelli. "Sphere of Secrets" suffers from some awkward, rushed storylines and an unfortunate heroine, but it does have a spellbinding quest story wrapped up in it.

The Archon, a peasant boy named Alexos, has been found, but things haven't improved. The drought continues, General Argelin is still plotting to seize power, and Mirany is still enmeshed in the lies and schemes of the Nine priestesses. So Alexos tells the people that he will bring back prosperity by making a journey to the mystical Well of Songs, to atone for stealing three stars. But he doesn't know that Argelin is blackmailing his pal Seth to kill him.

Meanwhile Mirany is trying to deal with the Oracle's corruption, and the fact that one priestess is secretly in league with Argelin's enemies. Plots are exposed and Mirany finds herself made into a puppet Speaker. Her only hope is that Alexos survives the journey to the Well of Songs...

In concept, there's very little wrong with a story like this. Fisher piles on the wonder and beautiful prose, including everything from a ragged bird-worshiping civilization to a mountain made of diamond. At the same time, she also exposes the frightening results when a religion tries to use lies for its own benefit.

But despite some tense moments, the schemes and plots never come to life, even when the god makes a convenient cameo to save a little girl. Fisher seems more comfortable in Alexos' desert quest, in which the god-boy has to deal with drunks, savages, fallen stars, and a master thief who thinks he's just a crazy little kid.

The biggest flaw is the heroine Mirany. While Seth is struggling to protect his family, we're never really told why Mirany cares about any of this. She also seems a trifle wimpy and naive beside the mysterious desert thieves and the enigmatic Alexos, who can be a cheerful boy one minute and an overpowering god the next.

Though the scheming priestesses get tiresome after awhile, the desert quest for the three fallen stars is reason enough to read "Sphere of Secrets." Not Catherine Fisher's best, but an intriguing read.

Editorial Review:

Everything has gone wrong.

The drought should have ended, but the land is still parched.

Mirany should be savoring her role as priestess, but someone may be trying to poison her.

Seth should know to stay away from smuggled goods, but his greed has led him to blackmail.

Alexos should stay and rule as the Archon, but his plan is to journey to the Well of Songs -- a place from which no one has ever returned.

Everything is wrong. And in the midst of such chaos, The Two Lands should collapse. But an ancient map carved into a silver sphere may be enough to make things right and save their world.

Corbenic

Catherine Fisher

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

A deep and intense retelling of the Grail legend 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 4 people found this review helpful.

After a childhood spent taking care of his alchoholic mother, Cal finally gets a chance to leave home. He's going to live with his uncle, a successful accountant who has offered Cal a job and a place to live. But Cal gets off the train at the wrong stop, and finds himself in the middle of nowhere, in a place called Corbenic. In Corbenic, Cal stays at a mysterious hotel called the Castle, and dines with the proprietor, a handicapped man named Bron who appears to be the Wounded King or Fisher King of the Grail legend. At the dinner, Cal sees a vision, but denies having seen it, a denial which dooms him to a path of suffering. Before Cal can find peace, he must learn to confront the pain in his life, to forgive and to seek forgiveness, and to make choices about the life he wants to lead.

Corbenic is an intense, dark, and deeply emotional book. Catherine Fisher does a remarkable job of juxtaposing the ancient with the modern in unusual ways, such as the bohemian reenactors who may or may not be the knights of King Arthur's court. Cal is not a very likeable character, at least not at first; he seems shallow and selfish and even cruel to his mother. But as the book progresses and the layers are peeled back, you see the deep emotional scars that Cal tries to hide, and the pain that he copes with by trying to control everything in his life.

As with Fisher's other books, the writing is highly poetic and full of symbolism. For example, in some ways, Cal is the wounded king, although his wounds are internal rather than external. In fact, the whole internal/external dichotomy is never resolved, leaving open the question of whether Corbenic is real or an internal symbol of Cal's pain and healing. But in the long run, it doesn't matter, and Corbenic makes the Grail legend real and relevant, and not just some dusty story about ancient knights.

Corbenic is probably too intense for most children. There's nothing overly frightening, but there is tragedy, and the emotions, particularly in Cal's relationship with his mother, will be disturbing to those not developmentally ready to deal with them. But the dark, emotional nature of the book will probably appeal to many teens.

Editorial Review:

It starts when Cal gets off the train at the wrong stop in the middle of the night, in the middle of nowhere. He's stranded.

Following a muddy path leads him to a castle that appears to be deserted. But inside is Corbenic, a magnificent hotel filled with rich people preparing for a banquet—and Cal is their guest of honor. During the meal, he experiences a disturbing vision, but when he is asked to talk about what he has seen, he denies it. What if he's becoming crazy, like his mother?

When Cal wakes the next morning, the elegant castle turns out to be nothing more than an abandoned ruin. But something inside him has changed—he now knows he needs to right the wrongs in his life. It will be a difficult journey, and if Cal achieves his goal, it will not be without cost. The first step—he must return to Corbenic.

The Snow-Walker Trilogy : The Snow-Walker's Son, The Empty Hand and The Soul Thieves

Catherine Fisher

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 2 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

one of the best children's fantasy trilogies 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

Catehrine Fisher deserves to be far, far better known because she has a rare gift of being able to tell gripping stories in beautiful, shapely prose - no surprise to discover she's also a poet. This was the first novel of hers I read, and I've since re-read it to my children many times. If you're at all interested in the Vikings or Norse mythology it's especially useful, as it draws on these while creating a wholly believeable world (I also recommend the Margrave books, and The Oracle, which has just been short-listed for the Whitbread Prize).
The story begins with the evil witch Gudrun exiling her own baby son, Kari, and a huge warrior who has dared to cross her to the bitter north. Kari is supposed a monster, but when a small band of rebels is also exiled there, they find the truth to be very different....for Kari has inherited his mother's powers but struggles to find acceptance among human beings. There are sub-plots such as the growing attraction between Jessa "two-knives" and the skald or poet, but the main thrust of the plot is the chilling battle between Kari and his mother, or between love and hate, courage and fear, trust and lies. There are unforgettable images, such as Kari's crystal-strung room, the enchanted snake-bracelets biting into the flesh, the werewolf fighting the bear and the frozen bridge at the rim of the world. Each novel has the bite and crack of ice in it, the love of a good tale told by the fire-side that makes your hair stand up. I can't recommend them too highly for 8+. Oh, and they'd also make great films.

Incarceron

Catherine Fisher

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 1 Average rating: 5.0 of 5

One awesome book! 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

Flinn has no memory except bits of pieces from Outside. He lives in a vast prison where cruelty and danger is the norm.

Claudia lives in a manor house stuck in a 17th century world run by computers.

A world were artists and poets are doomed to endless repetitions of the past.

Her life is about to change as she's about to marry a spoiled prince and enter a society filled with whispers of assassination plots. Her father is Warden of Incarceron, the prison which is tucked away. No one can enter and no one can leave.

Or so they thought.

Flinn and Claudia's worlds collide when they both find a key. A key that might be the way out of the prison for Flinn and inside for Claudia.

Both will be surprised at the secrets hidden in Incarceron. As will be the reader on this very imaginative, exciting tale.

I loved this book. The author does a great job of introducing the reader to both worlds--the one inside Incarceron and the one outside. Both POV's flow seamlessly in this tale. Flinn's struggles to find out if he does belong Outside are powerful. He refuses to accept the belief he can never leave. Both worlds are rich with detail. I can't help but wonder if there's a sequel in the works?

I highly recommend this book! Right now it's only available in the UK but I'm sure it'll be coming here soon. It's well worth the wait!

Editorial Review:

Incarceron -- a futuristic prison, sealed from view, where the descendants of the original prisoners live in a dark world torn by rivalry and savagery. It is a terrifying mix of high technology -- a living building which pervades the novel as an ever-watchful, ever-vengeful character, and a typical medieval torture chamber -- chains, great halls, dungeons. A young prisoner, Finn, has haunting visions of an earlier life, and cannot believe he was born here and has always been here. In the outer world, Claudia, daughter of the Warden of Incarceron, is trapped in her own form of prison -- a futuristic world constructed beautifully to look like a past era, an imminent marriage she dreads. She knows nothing of Incarceron, except that it exists. But there comes a moment when Finn, inside Incarceron, and Claudia, outside, simultaneously find a device -- a crystal key, through which they can talk to each other. And so the plan for Finn's escape is born !