- Paperback: 288 pages
- Publisher: International Waters (May 1 2005)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1905336004
- ISBN-13: 978-1905336005
- Product Dimensions: 16.8 x 11 x 1.6 cm
- Shipping Weight: 240 g
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
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Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
The next new blockbuster!
May 16 2005
Format:Paperback
This one was just released, but I had the privilege of attending the launch party in the UK!
Jaq D Hawkins has been one of my favourite authors in another genre for many years, so I was eagerly anticipating the release of her first fantasy novel. I was not to be disappointed.
Dance of the Goblins is the most original and imaginative piece of fantasy work I have seen since Marian Zimmer Bradley's Darkover novels. It takes you into another world, the world of the goblins, in an enticing manner that makes you want to visit the place in real life and become one of them. To enjoy the spiritual feeling of the Dance, as they do. I can't wait for the conferences that will surely follow the success of the series, and I've heard that a film is in the pipeline.
The story is based in the future rather than the past, but the past flows into the new conditions that have occurred after a cataclysmic planetary pole shift wipes out most of civilisation as we know it. The humans salvage what they can of their world, and the magicians become the ruling class. How this comes about is one of the most amusing parts of the story.
One magician, the respected Count Anton, has befriended the goblins who have lived underground throughout the ages of mankind but remain hidden from human eyes since the old days when humans used to see them as mythological beings of various sorts. The superstitious humans persecuted them until they stopped appearing above ground at all. It is no different in the new world where religion has preserved the mindless superstitions and branded the goblins as demons.
An accidental sighting of one of them begins a chain of events that will lead to a serious conflict and even war between the races for the first time in centuries. As the story unfolds, we get to know the main characters both among the humans and goblins, as they get to know each other. One of the most important of these is a strong female character. Talla is a goblin, but one with a difference. Learning what this is will take us into some of the deeper realms of the goblins, where even the legends fail to depict the layers of goblin society that have formed over the ages of the earth.
If the sequels are anything like the first book, I'm looking forward to this being the next 'must read' series for those who are jaded with LOTR clones and look for a fresh new perspective of the world of fantasy. Even the cover art is a beautiful new approach that laughs in the face of the standard designs you see on big publisher production-line novels. The book comes to a tidy conclusion, and yet leaves much to build on for the continuing series. I'm going to pre-order the second book as soon as the publisher begins taking orders.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
8 reviews
13 of 14 people found the following review helpful
Worth Reading Again
Sep 15 2010
Format:Paperback
I had been looking for a book, one of those you just can't put down if you don't absolutely have to.
Dance of the Goblins was that book.
It was nothing like I had envisioned it to be. I thought it would be some typical Goblin type story.
It wasn't.
And the way the author takes you from one setting to the next is a smooth transition.
I learned to love and hate characters. Very believable history written about the Goblin and human interaction.
I don't want to give away any part of the book because I think everyone should read it fresh with no spoilers.
I think you will get lost in the Dance like I did.
Dance of the Goblins was that book.
It was nothing like I had envisioned it to be. I thought it would be some typical Goblin type story.
It wasn't.
And the way the author takes you from one setting to the next is a smooth transition.
I learned to love and hate characters. Very believable history written about the Goblin and human interaction.
I don't want to give away any part of the book because I think everyone should read it fresh with no spoilers.
I think you will get lost in the Dance like I did.
12 of 13 people found the following review helpful
A book I enjoyed on a genre I do not enjoy
Sep 11 2010
Format:Paperback
I am not a big fan of the fantasy genre. I find most works I read in this genre to be dreadfully generic. I think originality is what allowed me to make it all the way to the end of Dance of the Goblins. The work feels fresh. The author sets out to do something different and I feel she succeeds at it, which I think is quite an accomplishment in a fantasy setting.
The concept of The Dance feels authentic and, above all, it feels natural. The Dance doesn't feel like a slapped on fantasy requisite. It does feel like a part of the Goblin world. The world itself doesn't feel like it's ripped off the pages of the Lord of the Rings and the author has made an effort to make all characters feel interesting and driven. The reader gets to know them and I found myself caring for what happened in the story.
There are ongoing ideas of understanding, discovery, acceptance and duty in the novel that make the adventure feel intelligent without making it feel heavy handed. I knew I was meant to understand the feelings of the parties involved in the conflict, but it never felt that I was getting a lecture on accepting others in their differences.
Overall, I enjoyed dance of the Goblins and I will remember the book as a fun time. I would read the other two books if they were more easily available. That is big praise for a book in a genre I usually stay away from.
The concept of The Dance feels authentic and, above all, it feels natural. The Dance doesn't feel like a slapped on fantasy requisite. It does feel like a part of the Goblin world. The world itself doesn't feel like it's ripped off the pages of the Lord of the Rings and the author has made an effort to make all characters feel interesting and driven. The reader gets to know them and I found myself caring for what happened in the story.
There are ongoing ideas of understanding, discovery, acceptance and duty in the novel that make the adventure feel intelligent without making it feel heavy handed. I knew I was meant to understand the feelings of the parties involved in the conflict, but it never felt that I was getting a lecture on accepting others in their differences.
Overall, I enjoyed dance of the Goblins and I will remember the book as a fun time. I would read the other two books if they were more easily available. That is big praise for a book in a genre I usually stay away from.
7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
Wonderful
Mar 3 2012
The title of this book intrigued me into to reading it and I wasnt dissapointed, it is a wonderful story which immerses you into a world of magic, nature and wonderful characters especially Haguf the goblin, being a work of its own it also conjurs up vibes of tales that evoke beautiful nature like a midsummer nights dresm or the stolen child, and lord of the rings, also giving a detailede intersting but fun picture on those naughty magicl beings Goblins, this book is sure to delight adults and children alike.
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