Annals of the Western Shore

By far my favorite of the Annals of the Western Shore, this book is a great continuation of an interesting world. More important– this book is about Gavir, a house slave in the city of Etra. It is very well written, empathy for Gavir is immediate and strong.

Gavir provides a great viewpoint of the world. His house, the city, and the world are all positively revealed through his eyes. As the book goes on, Gavir learns, but his core nature remains unchanged. His relationships involve a huge mix of relative power and authority. His book knowledge is widely respected and makes him popular in many ways, but it alters the way he’s seen consistently.

I’ll have to reread the first two books in the series [though there’s no direct connection, not even characters]. The theme running throughout this book (about trust and power) is strong, so if you dislike coincidence in service to a theme and it gets your hackles up, this might trip your radar. Otherwise, I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did.

Vigilant, by James Alan Gardner, is a solid book in the Expendables universe. While it’s not the strongest book, it does have enjoyable mysteries and plotting, and a solid viewpoint character (Faye).

Men of Iron, by Howard Pyle is about a fictional struggle in early 15th century England. The book does a good job of hewing to the viewpoints of the era; unlike most of today’s fantasy, the characters have viewpoints appropriate to the era. Despite stilted speech and some interesting authorial choices as to which parts of the story he’d tell, it was a good read. (Discussion about it will start up soon in CVGamer’s bookcase.)

Ursula LeGuin’s Gifts is a good book, and a strong start on a series. It’s in the Young Adult section, but is as interesting and complex as most of her stories. The tale of Orrec and Gry growing up as landholder’s children in a fantastic Scotland analogue is light on action and long on solid, believable thought.