Posted on  21/08/2024 12:45:36

My rating: 4 stars


I must confess that this series has been sitting on my bookshelf for a very long time now and I have somehow always skipped over it, partly due to its bulkiness and also partly because of so many discouraging reviews. Curiosity won over eventually and I gave it a try.

From the beginning itself I didn’t really love it. The pace was extremely slow and practically nothing significant happened in the first half of the book. At times it felt like dragging. And the main hero Simon – a literally walking disaster from the very beginning! – skirting his chores and avoiding any responsibility while daydreaming about fame and glory and going from blunder to blunder – I couldn’t bring myself to like him regardless of how hard I tried.

Then why the 4 stars?

Because the world Tad Williams describes is extraordinary! So complex and beautiful and brilliantly rendered that you can practically see it! The magic, the trolls, the Sithi and the human kingdoms on the background of wonderful landscapes, they slowly but surely pull you in and do not let you go until you’ve reached the last page and even then you’ll find yourself wanting for more.

The Dragonbone Chair - cover art by Michael Whelan

As soon as you hit the halfway mark the pace of the book changes completely. Its tempo is rising and it becomes more and more complex as you go on until, when you get to the last few chapters you won’t feel like putting it down anymore.

Little irresponsible and naive Simon grows in front of your eyes and even though he is by far not perfect before this first instalment of the story is done he sort of gets under your skin and you eventually realise that you have somehow, somewhere started to really like him and even root for him.

The blunders of a little airheaded castle boy somehow turn into a wondrous fantasy tale: adventures through wild forests, wolf-riding trolls and magical Sithi, magic swords and witches, dragons and a hero’s quest as well as an epic battle against an ancient evil, this book has it all!
It is epic fantasy at its best and I highly recommend it!

Check out this book and more of Tad Williams over at www.tadwilliams.com