The Farseekers: The Obernewtyn Chronicles - Book Two: Amazon.ca: Isobelle Carmody: Books

Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

Written by an Australian children's author, this award-winning (in Australia) fantasy-adventure novel is the sequel to last year's Obernewtyn, which was first published Down Under in 1988; this book appeared there in 1990. It takes place in relatively familiar fantasy territory--think Julian May's Saga of Pliocene Exile without the descriptive power, or Anne McCaffrey without the dragons. Young narrator Elspeth Gordie is a mutant "Misfit" with unusual mental powers. Because, in Elspeth's world, both the oppressive religionists and the semi-governmental Council hate Misfits and hunt them down, her kind has joined together and found refuge on the mountain keep of Obernewtyn. Despite the danger, Elspeth and others--including a telepathic, human-hating horse--leave this refuge and undertake a journey to find an enormous book trove, and to save an extraordinarily gifted Misfit. Elspeth also has a mysterious personal quest to fulfill. Carmody's mostly clear, readable style is tainted by awkward "fantasy-speak" dialogue and etymologically curious argot (soldierguards, deathmachines, firstmeal, nightmeal). Better than its predecessor, the novel showcases engaging characters, pacing and plots that may, despite the publisher's adult marketing campaign, appeal primarily to adolescent females. (Aug.)

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

After liberating themselves from their control by the totalitarian Council, the psychically gifted Misfits of Obernewtyn attempt to develop their skills without interference from the outside world. When powerful psychic Elspeth Gordie leads an expedition into the distant Lowlands to rescue another Misfit, she also receives a call to find and destroy a cache of ancient weapons, relics of the legendary Beforetimers. Carmody!s postapocalyptic tale of heroism and courage in the face of persecution blends graceful storytelling with appealing characters. Recommended for most sf collections as well as for YA fans of speculative fiction.
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Customer Reviews

14 Reviews

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Average Customer Review

4.7 out of 5 stars (14 customer reviews)

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5.0 out of 5 stars Farseeker!, April 1 2004

By

Readaholic "lerner93" (Palmyra, VA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Farseekers: The Obernewtyn Chronicles - Book Two (Mass Market Paperback)

Ok, I have to say that Isobelle Carmody is one of the most talented writes out there. The character Elspeth Gordie, is described well, and I feel I can relate to her. I recommend you read this book (not before Obernewtyn of course) and travel through a world of the future with Elspeth as she discovers the hardships of being a 'misfit' and uncovers new talents. Its weird to think, that you never know, some thing like this could be our future Earth. This book, most definitely deserves 5 stars(or more!)

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5.0 out of 5 stars ENGAGING SERIES - COULDN'T PUT EACH BOOK DOWN!, May 10 2003

By

Maria "avidreader--denver" (Denver, Colombia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)

This review is from: The Farseekers: The Obernewtyn Chronicles - Book Two (Paperback)

This is an unusually well-written series, with unique characters and a fascinating story line. Isobelle Carmody is a gifted writer. I have read a lot of fantasy/scifi, and often the plots or aspects of the plot are similar from one book to another (find a portal, travel to another world/time, etc). This series is not only creatively different, it is thought-provoking. I could not put down each book in the series, reading late into the night (which I usually avoid doing). I will not recapitulate the plot here, because so many others have done so. I do want to contradict one of the reviewers cited above (Publisher's Weekly), who stated that the book was more likely to appeal to adolescent females. I am a 45-year-old woman, and I have found this series to be one of my all-time favorites. There is nothing adolescent about it, except the ages of some of the characters. However, they do not act or think in particularly adolescent ways. Of course, I think the series would ALSO appeal to adolescent females, as well as to advanced pre-teen readers (since the plot is complicated). Order your copy of Obernewtyn today, and set some time aside!

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5.0 out of 5 stars Better than the last, Nov 16 2002

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Nancy E. "Nancy" (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Farseekers: The Obernewtyn Chronicles - Book Two (Paperback)

It has been a couple years since Elspeth first came to Obernewtyn and much has changed. The school is now run by the misfits who used to consider the castle to be a prison. They are members of guilds, which guild depends on their strongest gift, and decide how things are going in the castle. Elspeth is a guildmistress and has a lot of say with the guilds. Outside of Obernewtyn little has changed. The land is controlled by the herder religion and the harsh government that wants to rid the world of Misfits. So that's why it's a terrible thing when the misfits learn that people from the government are becoming suspicious of Obernewtyn, their only safe haven.

When Elspeth has a premonition that she needs to find a powerful misfit far to the South she knows she needs to convince, Rushton, the master of Obernewtyn to let her go. She sets off with a team of misfits of every guild including plucky newcomer, Jif, and a horse that hates people. Unfortunately their journey proves to be more perilous than the small teams of misfits could ever imagine. Amazing and terrible things happen including being captured more than once, facing death, meeting a couple new friends, and seeing a couple old ones. Elspeth has a big challenge in front of her.

The Farseekers, the second book in the Obernewtyn chronicles, proves to be an even better book than the first one, Obernewtyn, the first book in the series. The book suspenseful with a new surprise around every twist and bend. It has more magic than the last book and different kinds of magic. It's fun to see how each character has grown from the last book. Everyone seems to get smarter as they get older. And it's fun to watch some romance blossom between unlikely characters. I highly recommend this book to fans of fantasy authors such as Mindy L. Klasky, Mercedes Lackey, and Tamora Pierce. I can't wait to read the third book in the series Ashling, which is currently sitting on my bookshelf and waiting to be read.

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Most recent customer reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars An improvement on OBERNEWTYN, but still not great
One of the best things I can say about THE FARSEEKERS is that it is a better book than OBERNEWTYN. But there are still problems plaguing Carmody, and one can only hope that... Read more

Published on Jun 1 2002 by M. Collins

5.0 out of 5 stars One adventure after another.
When i say one adventure after another i mean this book being an adventure after the first but also in the book itself. Read more

Published on Mar 10 2002 by Sara Figgins