tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7354250.post7951020061594893287..comments2024-01-31T01:40:57.553-06:00Comments on Adventures in Reading: Soldiers Live, by Glen CookJoehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16094675116398769415noreply@blogger.comBlogger5125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7354250.post-20349786756020266092011-07-01T22:27:36.229-05:002011-07-01T22:27:36.229-05:00I pretty much couldn't put this series down, I...I pretty much couldn't put this series down, I found it not too long ago and just finished it. I found the Books of the North ridiculously good, especially given that the first was published two years before I was even born. The ending of Soldiers Live, like all great fantasy books I've read, left me feeling both enlightened and incredibly sad. I had wished for a happier ending for Lady and Croaker (make them gods in their own right, forever young and strong and eternally together!), given how much Croaker gave to the Company over all those years. Although the whole of the series generally saddened me since all the characters I knew and loved faded into the Annals over time. The writing was so powerful it made me want to comfort some of the characters, as if they were people I grew up with. I'm not sure why, but I generally found myself commiserating with Soulcatcher (I doubt she got much love herself as a young woman), and I really liked her. I felt she could have been something much different had she found someone like Lady found Croaker. I could rant for a long time about the sheer greatness of this series, but I'll sum it up by saying those who have not read it will be far, far lesser for it.Jikenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7354250.post-78417141253512087802009-01-23T05:33:00.000-06:002009-01-23T05:33:00.000-06:00Scale of rating points (subjective):5 – very good ...Scale of rating points (subjective):<BR/>5 – very good plot with minor flaws<BR/>4 – good plot OR<BR/> very good plot with some annoying flaws<BR/>(+/-)<BR/><BR/><BR/>Comments with NO SPOILERS:<BR/><BR/>The Black Company: <BR/>5- (Great concept)<BR/><BR/>Shadows Linger: <BR/>4- (Half a book is about a person that is not a member of The BC.)<BR/><BR/>The White Rose: <BR/>4+ (The letters were annoying. The ending was very good.)<BR/><BR/>Silver Spike:<BR/>4+ (Some moments are described from a strange point of view.)<BR/><BR/>Shadow Games:<BR/>4 (The travel south was too easy and too quickly described.)<BR/><BR/>Dreams of Steel:<BR/>5- (The grittiness and military action resembled the first book.)<BR/><BR/>Bleak Seasons:<BR/>4 (Weak start but then the book was very gripping for me.)<BR/><BR/>She is the Darkness:<BR/>4+ (Too powerful “spying tool” and “bamboo poles”.)<BR/><BR/>Water Sleeps:<BR/>4- (Too little action.)<BR/><BR/>Soldiers Live:<BR/>4+ (Some bad ideas about Voroshk. The ending – PERFECT!)<BR/><BR/>The whole series:<BR/>4+Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7354250.post-56990322628631937162009-01-22T22:01:00.000-06:002009-01-22T22:01:00.000-06:00Hi Joe, we'll have to agree to disagree again ;-) ...Hi Joe, we'll have to agree to disagree again ;-) <BR/><BR/>I'm typing this at work, just as with my earlier comment, and I was so busy before that I forgot to mention a thanks to you, for writing the Soldiers Live in depth review. I appreciate your hard work in updating your blog on a regular basis! Cheers!Marchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07474232677152016337noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7354250.post-57981062361949019602009-01-22T18:26:00.000-06:002009-01-22T18:26:00.000-06:00I don't disagree with what you're saying about the...I don't disagree with what you're saying about the little bits that are good about those books (I liked Lady as narrator), and I certainly didn't pick up on all the details, but as novels to read - I really think the Murgen books are disappointing. Important info to convey or not. :)<BR/><BR/>I'll have to check out Elfquest.Joehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16094675116398769415noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7354250.post-73388808004261169022009-01-22T18:15:00.000-06:002009-01-22T18:15:00.000-06:00I do think that Bleak Seasons was the weakest of a...I do think that Bleak Seasons was the weakest of all the Black Company books. However, I also think the two Murgen-narrated novels serve a vital purpose in helping the readers gain a deeper perspective of the "star characters." Seeing them through a different set of eyes helps us to realize that not every narrator was completely candid at all times.<BR/><BR/>In particular, Lady may have fudged some things in Dreams of Steel. The example that comes to mind is her first meeting with Murgen after the siege of Dejagore has been lifted. She writes that she sent him away, but it is only when he writes of it in Bleak Seasons that we learn that Lady was back to her imperious ways and put a spell on him to force him to do something. <BR/><BR/>I really like She is the Darkness for three things that usually go unrecognized. 1)It is the account of a military campaign, as the Black Company and Taglian Army push south through the mountains and lay siege to a fortress. Sieges are boring affairs with flashes of action, and this is captured in the book. 2) during those in-betweens, we get to watch Murgen sink into addiction, as he prefers to spend his time drifting away from his body through Smoke's magic. So the book is a study of how one person can become an addict. 3)The book is, on a small scale, a love story between Murgen and Sahra, despite the many things separating them. This was quite touching IMHO.<BR/><BR/>Finally, I still recommend Elfquest, in case you didn't see my late comment to your January 17th post :-)Marchttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07474232677152016337noreply@blogger.com