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UK Authors - Sci-fi & fantasy |
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The Sapphire Throne: Book II of the Jewelfire Trilogy |
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 The Sapphire Throne:Book II of the Jewelfire Trilogy by Freda Warrington Simon & Schuster (Earthlight) 527 pages, 2000 ISBN 0743408268 Reviewed by our UK Editor Rachel A. Hyde The phrase "it ain’t what you do, it’s the way that you do it" was never more apt than when applied to fantasy. The ingredients of standard sword-and-sorcery tales seldom vary much, so the book’s merit (or lack of it) arises from the way in which these ingredients are used. Warrington is certainly easy to read and easy to like. She packs a lot of adventures into quite a modest length novel for a fantasy writer, and her characters are well-delineated and lively, flawed but often endearing. So what makes it better than the average fantasy novel? Likeable many-faceted characters, detailed descriptions of places and people, a well-realised world to put it all in, and a tortuous teasing plot. It managed not to sag in the middle or dazzle the reader with hundreds of characters, and the tone wasn’t too twee or too bloody for a sympathetic read. For it’s all here: elves carrying off mortals to their shadowy realm for dodgy purposes, a young queen trying to hold her own in a war torn land, sinister demonic creatures waiting in the wings to take over, and more. I particularly liked the description of the Isle of Vexor and the totally alien and incomprehensible Bhahdradomen visited by the hapless envoy Rufryd, a peasant who has come a long way from his own once-idyllic village. There are surprises galore and the whole thing left me eager for the final part of the trilogy. |
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