Heroes of the Valley [Hardcover]

Having read Johnathan Stroud's The Bartimaeus Trilogy which was an excellent series I was quite disappointed in this book. It seemed to me that Mr. Stroud was under some timeline to finish another book because this was so boring I almost quit reading it many times and even fell asleep a couple of times. I'm not saying there wasn't the occasional action scene because there was but they were so few and far between that it seemed like reading the local newspaper at times. The ending was also pretty weak as well. This book didn't feel anything like Mr. Stroud's previous writings ... not even close. Makes you wonder if someone else wrote the book under his name? I feel Mr. Stroud let his readers down in a big way here with this book. Hopefully, his next novels wich won't be a continuation of this book will again be on the same level as his "Bartimaeus" novels. Bottom line is don't waste your time and money on this book.

"Heroes of the Valley," by Jonathan Stroud, tells the story of Halli, the youngest son of the head of the House of Svein, one of 12 houses of ancient Heroes that populate the valley of the title. All his life, Halli has heard stories of the great heroes, and in particular Svein, the greatest hero, and how they fought off the dreadful Trows, terrible beasts that lived under the ground and only came up at night, to kill and eat humans. Svein and his heroic companions all died in the defense, but subsequently were buried in massive cairns that ringed the entire valley and protected the people from the Trows, who had been driven beyond the cairns. It was up to the people now, generations later, to stick to Svein's rules and never pass the cairns. The valley has lived peacefully since, with the male head of each House being the Arbiter and the female head becoming the Law-Giver; together, the Houses resolve disagreements and maintain order. Halli has always dreamed of being heroic, like Svein, but unlike the rest of his family, he's short and bandy-legged, and above all given to playing practical jokes on people, none of which endears him to his family or his House. When he plays a joke on the visiting son of the House of Hakon that results in the lad becoming ill for a time, actions are set into motion that lead to the murder of his uncle and Halli's determination to leave his House, travel to the House of Hakon and avenge his uncle's death there. But that is only the beginning of the troubles Halli has visited upon his House, and himself - and he must finally learn the truth of the stories of the ancient Heroes, and overcome them....While not as engaging as Stroud's demonic "Bartimaeus Trilogy," "Heroes of the Valley" paints a vivid portrait of how an ancient Viking settlement might have lived. A nice touch was including a new part of Svein's heroic cycle at the beginning of each chapter; this enables us to watch Halli's parallel path to heroism and see how much the ancient and the modern have in common. I'm not sure that this would be for young children, as there's a great deal of violence, some quite graphic, but then again, it's a fun read for young adults (and adults!). Recommended.

Heroes of the Valley is a good book, with a relatively even pace throughout but its length requires a particular patience. The story is relatively good, in this medieval/Viking setting, primarily about a boy, Halli, who is second to his older brother and wishes for change in the isolated and uneventful life of the 12 houses. He is rebellious, courageous and naïve and after a tragedy is involved in a series of events-himself in the middle of it. Unlike traditional stories of main characters questioning everything and bringing about change, this one has a twist in the latter half of the story. The writing is of quality, clear and well paced but at times a bit too descriptive. The only problem with the book is its not quite great, you'll have some fun reading it but when its finished, you don't come away with a sense of classic or the need to revisit it. Regardless, standing in the shadow of the Bartaemieus trilogy, it stands well on its own. 7/10