13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
Not her best..., Jun 13 2008
By R. Wagner - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Warrior Rising (Paperback)
I am sad to say that I was disappointed in this book. I absolutely adore P.C. Cast and her Goddess Summoning Series, but I felt that this book did not live up to my expectations.
The major plot of the book was good. I enjoyed seeing Kat and Achilles build a relationship and try to work around the berserker. I did not enjoy much of the banter between Kat and her BFF Jacky, though. It was amusing at times, but after a short while, it became aggravatingly repetitive.
The side stories with Jacky and Patroklas, and Athena and Odysseus do not add anything to the book. As far as I'm concerned, the first is pointless for the majority of the book, though Jacky and Patroklas do have their roles to play to move the action to the final climax. Otherwise, I found their story distracting and annoying. Athena's story also has a role to play in moving the action forward, but it comes out of nowhere near the end of the book. There is no build up; it just happens.
Then there is the ending. I have come to expect the end of P.C. Cast's books to be tear-jerkers. There is suspense at the end of her other books that lead the reader to wonder if there actually will be a happy ending, and give the characters room to show even more depth and feeling. This is something that I really love about reading P.C.'s novels. In Warrior Rising, though, there is no suspense. There are some abbreviated, almost tear-jerker moments near the end, but they are over quickly and do not have the punch her other books have. And the very end of the book is, well, a train wreck. She should have stopped short of where she did. I won't ruin the ending, but I advise readers to stop at the end of the scene that involves a flaming arrow and Paris. For those of you that have read the book, I just have to say: Kirk, really?! Worst ending ever.
I do look forward to P.C. Cast's next Goddess Summoning book. I hope she is able to recreate the magic of her other books in this series, magic which was lacking in this latest installment.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
The Trojan War Made Romantic, Dec 2 2008
By Sheena Colbath Harden "The Weeb" - Published on Amazon.com
A light-hearted romantic version of the Trojan War? Why not?! Olympians run amok, Achilles goes berserk, Odysseus gets some divine lovin' and two modern mortals find their true loves in the ancient world. While there are some inconsistencies in story telling, the book still manages to whisk the reader away, much like our main characters. Two modern women, Kat and Jackie have their souls hijacked and swept into the bodies of a Trojan Princess and her servant. Tasked by Goddesses to end the war, these BFFs face an angry king, accusations of witchcraft and terrible monsters to alter the fate of Achillies and Greece.
You would think by now that Cast would tire of her Goddess series but to the contrary it seems to gain more steam with each new novel. She makes no apologies for totally changing history (as we think of it) and crafts a beautiful, if not terribly original, romance.
One thing that worries me is that she may be headed into a rut with all the soul swapping going on. I'd like to see a new take on the modern/ancient interaction in the next book. Also, she needs to watch for consistency. One moment the gods can bring back and ensoul the dead, the next they can't heal a simple wound. The boundaries are unclear as to when/where/how the gods are allowed to intervene.
Despite its flaws Warrior Rising is a worthy addition to the series; a fun, fast read.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Average, Jan 5 2009
By The Famous Jano - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Warrior Rising (Paperback)
The previous books I read in this series were great. Then I read this book a few weeks ago. I wondered why I did not enjoy it as much, why it was missing the richness of the previous ones.
Then a few days ago I read the Goddess of Love. While reading that one, I realized that what I had enjoyed most about the series was the emphasis and buildup of the central heroine. I enjoy her progression into self confidence and empowerment.
Here we get a heroine who is brought in to help Achilles. He is more the central figure in this story. We do not see the evolvement of the heroine as much as past stories.
In addition, as a previous poster commented about the "swearing" in the story, I too add my wish that with the next books Ms. Cast tamper this down to an occassional word here or there, especially those with a religious reference. It really does NOT add to character development.
I still loved the goddess references and most of all Venus, who was the one bright spot in this book.