| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| Dennis |
Posted - 04 Mar 2012 : 00:09:25
The Masked Witches is the fourth book of the Brotherhood of the Griffon series. For reasons yet unknown, the Three patron deities of Rashemen 'gave' them griffons... The dead shook off the dust of age and began to rise as an anonymous mastermind set his plan to work... Competing mercenaries were to rid the land of evil undead... Their price: the griffons. It sounds easy, only if you fail to consider treachery. As Aoth once noted about the Rashemi berserkers, "Better mad and wild than treacherous."
Byers captured the feel and the scent of the land which is home to the mysterious (and often misunderstood) masked witches---Rashemen.
There's more than enough suspense and intrigue that would make your fingers move on their own to turn the pages; drama to feel for the characters and their plight; and humor to make you grin and laugh.
Among the many things that I like about Byers is his mastery in keeping the reader guess who is what. Even upon reaching the end of the story, I couldn't be so certain who's pulling the strings.
Aoth, Jhesri, and Cera are amazing. Byers made it a point to show that (despite their number of experiences in battling the undead and all manner of formidable creatures, and their sheer magical powers), above everything else, they are humans. And humans tire, get wounded, and are susceptible to deception. Also, humans, especially those whose motivitation extends beyond selfish gratification, strive so hard to disentagle themselves from any impasse and to emerge as victors.
The very last word of the book made me even more excited for the sequel! And it looks like my guess as to who the mastermind is behind the undead movement in Rashemen is near the mark.
I still maintain that Richard's best work so far is The Haunted Lands trilogy. But this novel comes close to beating it.
This goes to my To-Re-read stacks. Which is like my Library's version of Hall of Fame.
Out of 10 possible stars, I give this 9. |
| 18 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| Dennis |
Posted - 22 May 2012 : 04:33:56
Spoiler:
@ jhelivar: I think (and hope) Jet survived... He's rather irreplaceable and one of a kind; the only known griffon who's magically altered at the moment of conception. |
| jhelivar |
Posted - 21 May 2012 : 00:51:41
Superb...Looking forward to it :)
Thanks Richard |
| Richard Lee Byers |
Posted - 20 May 2012 : 17:15:22
The sequel is called Prophet of the Dead and is due out in February, 2013. |
| jhelivar |
Posted - 20 May 2012 : 09:11:07
Loved the books to...enjoyed mostly because of the mix of the old FR with that of the new and must simply ask...when is the sequel??? No writer creates such a cliffhanger without thoughts of another :) and my favorite character was Jet given the humor and banter between him and Aoth...though dosnt seem to end well for jet when hes hit by a magic missile type firefall...ouch
Any word on the sequel? |
| Dennis |
Posted - 25 Mar 2012 : 00:43:06
That's interesting...Velshy trying to spank Tammy...Hmm... |
| sleyvas |
Posted - 25 Mar 2012 : 00:13:15
*********Kind of Spoiler Alert************
Just finished it, and I won't go into great detail because I hate when people reveal too much to me. I'm glad the Durthans are being brought back (granted as undead, but nothing says undead Durthans can't train living Durthans). I have always felt that the wychlaran of Rashemen needed to be very diverse (even before their prestige class allowed it to be so), especially since they don't have universities nor are they all just one of the archetype of druids, priests, or mages. I was also glad to see him bring back Nars and Raumvirans. In the case of the Raumvirans, I was glad to see the nod that they loved constructs, but that was to me just a sub-piece of their culture. It might be interesting to see some of them actually have a modicum of respect for Aoth, especially since the Raumathari empire was known for its "bastard sword wielding Raumathari Battlemages".... in fact having a rebellion amongst the undead with some turning to Aoth & Rashemen's aid against their former Nar rivals would be a possible plot twist (they are free-willed undead it does seem).
At the core of this is the Eminence of Araunt, and it seems as though they're trying to use the spirit energy of Rashemen to make a shorefront from which to challenge Szass Tam. Its a very interesting idea to my mind, and I will say that the Eminence of Araunt was one of the few ideas I saw in the 4E campaign set that I thought was interesting. The only thing that would make it better for me though would be if the Eminence of Araunt had taken to worshipping Velsharoon (and yes, before anyone says it, I know he's dead... but is he?) and Velsharoon was wanting them to challenge Tam. I must confess to loving when Dai Shan opened the Deathway by saying "In the name of the Vaunted, the Staff Bearer, the Lord of the Forsaken Crypt, Open".... I was like "YES, he is still around". Maybe certain priests of Velsharoon (undead ones of course) have infiltrated the upper heirarchy of Lod's "officers".
Hmmm, now I've got a hankering to redo the Durthan prestige class to 3.5 standards. Wish all my books weren't packed up to move now. Let me see what I can find.
|
| Dennis |
Posted - 24 Mar 2012 : 00:02:38
I like that part, too, but not as much as I like the one when Aoth and company besieged the undead's stronghold. I thought Richard handled it pretty well, and it's somewhat reminiscent of some battles in The Haunted Lands. |
| Thauranil |
Posted - 23 Mar 2012 : 12:52:29
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
quote:
Originally posted by Thauranil
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
I was surprised to realize I liked Cera, too---because I don't normally like priests.
Dai Shan is also great, and until now I'm not sure if I want him to die or survive. Given the cliffhanger ending, we wouldn't know until the sequel comes out...
Well I just finished this book and it was a truly enjoyable experience.
Thanks for the recommendation.
Dai Shan is truly a ruthless rogue  dont you just love him
What's your favorite part in the book?
I particularly enjoyed the ambush of the griffons riders. It was well written and really conveyed the full horror and power of the undead. |
| Dennis |
Posted - 22 Mar 2012 : 11:03:43
quote:
Originally posted by Thauranil
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
I was surprised to realize I liked Cera, too---because I don't normally like priests.
Dai Shan is also great, and until now I'm not sure if I want him to die or survive. Given the cliffhanger ending, we wouldn't know until the sequel comes out...
Well I just finished this book and it was a truly enjoyable experience.
Thanks for the recommendation.
Dai Shan is truly a ruthless rogue dont you just love him
What's your favorite part in the book? |
| Thauranil |
Posted - 20 Mar 2012 : 14:32:59
It was a pleasure to read and I look forward to the next one. |
| Richard Lee Byers |
Posted - 20 Mar 2012 : 14:09:05
Glad you enjoyed it, Thauranil. |
| Thauranil |
Posted - 20 Mar 2012 : 11:14:34
quote:
Originally posted by Dennis
I was surprised to realize I liked Cera, too---because I don't normally like priests.
Dai Shan is also great, and until now I'm not sure if I want him to die or survive. Given the cliffhanger ending, we wouldn't know until the sequel comes out...
Well I just finished this book and it was a truly enjoyable experience.
Thanks for the recommendation.
Dai Shan is truly a ruthless rogue dont you just love him |
| Dennis |
Posted - 07 Mar 2012 : 02:59:05
I was surprised to realize I liked Cera, too---because I don't normally like priests.
Dai Shan is also great, and until now I'm not sure if I want him to die or survive. Given the cliffhanger ending, we wouldn't know until the sequel comes out... |
| Gyor |
Posted - 07 Mar 2012 : 02:18:10
Great novel, I especially like Cera who is both my favourite character in the book, the most sympathetic, and the most identifible. Not that the other characters aren't cool its just the mix of being spiritual without being annoying about it, well meaning ambision and all around charm. |
| Dennis |
Posted - 07 Mar 2012 : 01:21:27
quote:
Originally posted by Thauranil
Nice review. I was thinking about getting this book but will definitely get it now.
I recommend you read the previous books as well. |
| Thauranil |
Posted - 06 Mar 2012 : 12:08:47
Nice review. I was thinking about getting this book but will definitely get it now. |
| Dennis |
Posted - 04 Mar 2012 : 17:12:27
Thanks.
Since you enjoyed the HL series, I'm sure you would also feel the same for this book. |
| LastStand |
Posted - 04 Mar 2012 : 10:37:30
Nice 'teaser' review!
I've yet to start the Brotherhood of the Griffon novels, but because we were largely of the same mind on the Haunted lands, it makes me excited to work my way through to this novel - when you compare it to the latter. |
