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Science Fiction and Fantasy Association of New Zealand |
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Echoes Of Betrayal Paladin's Legacy Book 3 by Elizabeth Moon Hachette Supplied for review by Hachette New Zealand |
Reviewed By: Katie Boyle |
| This is the third book in a five-book fantasy series. As
such, it tells only the middle of a long and complex story, and in that sense reviewing
the book on its own is pointless. With that in mind, I took this as an opportunity to read the first two books of the series (Oath of Fealty and Kings of the North) along with this one. It was a very pleasurable experience, and I can definitely recommend all three books. Moon shows her extensive writing experience in her competent handling of multiple story lines and her character building. She says she is writing this series (she has finished, or nearly finished, the fourth book) to explore what happens to characters after their lives are touched by Paksennarion, the paladin at the centre of her earlier fantasy work, The Deed of Paksennarion.. Paladins, it seems, are created as agents of change, and Moon follows this idea through by showing her characters as they change in response to events set off by Paks’ actions. The books refer to Paks, and the characters speak and think of her even though her direct role in these books is small. I don’t know that this is realistic, at least not in terms of modern life. We all have people who have influenced us and changed our way of thinking about ourselves, but how often do we talk about those people to others? How often do we even realise their impact on our lives? Moon has created a situation where she has to move such effects to the forefront, and this sometimes makes the series seem forced. However, the stories don’t bog down, the characters are believable, and the language is brisk and vivid. |
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