The Gate of Gods by Martha Wells
Jul. 11th, 2008 12:55 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
meganbmooreI can’t help but think Wells wrote herself (and her characters) into a bit of a corner with this last book in the trilogy. With so many problems and so many routes to solve them cut off, all that was really left to try was something completely out of left field with a deus ex machina thrown in for good luck. Which is what we get. And, surprisingly, it works.
Like a lot of the series, it really only works because of Tremaine. As has been pointed out in the comments of my other posts, Tremaine doesn’t fit any of the typical modes. She’s not a warrior, she has no magic of her own, she has no prophecy to fulfill, or any of that. She’s not even a scholar or politician. She’s a slightly (ok, more than slightly) odd woman with a background that should have produced a dashing adventurer, but instead produced a mostly normal woman with a lot of determination and an odd way of thinking. Everyone around her is straight out of another fantasy novel, but she isn’t.
The romance between Tremaine and Ilias is something of a hoot. If I weren’t so used to a few certain manga, I wouldn’t believe how two people could be so dense when everyone else discussed it regularly. The resolution felt a bit sudden, but it worked.
Anyway, this series was a little random and repetitive in places, but I recommend it. For Tremaine, if nothing else appeals.
Like a lot of the series, it really only works because of Tremaine. As has been pointed out in the comments of my other posts, Tremaine doesn’t fit any of the typical modes. She’s not a warrior, she has no magic of her own, she has no prophecy to fulfill, or any of that. She’s not even a scholar or politician. She’s a slightly (ok, more than slightly) odd woman with a background that should have produced a dashing adventurer, but instead produced a mostly normal woman with a lot of determination and an odd way of thinking. Everyone around her is straight out of another fantasy novel, but she isn’t.
The romance between Tremaine and Ilias is something of a hoot. If I weren’t so used to a few certain manga, I wouldn’t believe how two people could be so dense when everyone else discussed it regularly. The resolution felt a bit sudden, but it worked.
Anyway, this series was a little random and repetitive in places, but I recommend it. For Tremaine, if nothing else appeals.
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Date: 2008-07-11 06:43 pm (UTC)I'm so glad you enjoyed this (for the most part, anyway!).
Have you given up on getting Riddle-Master for now?
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Date: 2008-07-11 06:50 pm (UTC)I haven't given up on Riddlemaster, I just have large piles (recs and otherwise) to work through.
I did read Sorcery and Cecelia a few weeks back, though.
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Date: 2008-07-12 02:23 am (UTC)Well, I didn't mean "give up" quite that way ... I still owe you your Kyo book, and I was going to see if I could snag a complete of the omnibus Riddle-Master to send along with it as an apology for the delay.
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Date: 2008-07-12 02:29 am (UTC)As far as Riddlemaster goes...I can find it for a good price, but I can still find a few other McKillips I haven't read yet for an even lower price. I'm penny pinching that way.