Rating: 
Summary: 100% Amazing!!!
Review: A great book, full of unexpected twists. This is the story of Aerin-sol, the Witchwoman's daughter. Aerin has never fit in, but she turns out to be the best hero Damar ever had... the finder of the crown! Many unforgetable characters, including Tor, Luthe, Arlbeth, Galanna, Talat,Maur, and of course, the dragon slayer Aerin.
Rating:
Summary: This book swept me off my feet!!!
Review: Anyone who put down this book obviously didn't have a strong grasp or understanding of Aerin. Aerin has to be my favorite heroine of all times. A lot of people complain that she lacks a strong personality, and there is some truth behind that. Aerin, at the beginning of the book, is quiet and without much audacity. But that is the result of years and years of being shunned by her own people. The cold of living like that will eventually set into anyone's minds. Imagine, living you're entire life without the flutter and fun of friends and the enjoyment of parties. Aerin remians, throughout the book a humble person. I think this is the part that i love the most. she's so down to earth, and yet she's witty and sarcastic. Aerin proves you can be the protangonist of a novel and not make it all flash and glamorous, unlike the heroine of The Anita Blake series.
Aerin's ability to fight dragons stems from a genuine interest and curiousity that only adds to her personality. I don't know about anyone else, but I was completely warmed by the characters of Tor and Aerin's father. In Aerin is the moral conviction to know what is right and what is wrong.
Don't miss this wonderful book that will introduce to you one of the greatest heroines since Scarlet from gone with the wind!
Rating: 
Summary: Good short read
Review: Pro - Just finishing a 1500 page epic by another author when I realized it has been a long time since I read a single story compressed to 200 pages. Robin McKinley does a fine job getting all the necessary components into this small space.Pro - Enjoyable characters, interesting plot twists and a great world has been created Con - Felt the "villian" was snuck in there as an after thought. Kind of felt robbed by this and didn't have a sense of real danger for our heroine. Pro - Different outlook on dragons and how they pose a threat. Believable idea and entertaining. Con - The romance story seemed forced and anti-climatic. Aeirn-sol doesn't seem to notice Tor at all because she is so distracted by her experiments, but at the end she suddenly "loves" him?!? Made for a forced happy ending. Pro - Interesting and entertaining concepts of magic, who has it and how it comes to fruitrition. OVERALL - good story, worth reading. I liked it enough that I'm already on the sequel, The Blue Sword.
Rating:
Summary: Alway's loved this book
Review: I've been reading this book since 5th grade. I think it's a very good fantasy & good characterization. I'm 27 now & still read it once in a while. Love the dragon! And it's nice to have a heroine killing a dragon.
Rating:
Summary: Great!
Review: This is truly a wonderful book. The language is crisp and vivid, the dialogue witty, the environment is very life-like and real, considering it's a fantasy. This is a very entertaining book that all fans and non-fans of fantasy should read. It is one of the best and most entertaining Newbery books out there.
Rating:
Summary: IT IS MY FAVORITE BOOK IN THE WHOLE WORLD
Review: THIS BOOK IS FANTASTIC IT IS THE BEST OF ALL TIMES ROBIN MCKINLEY CREATES A WHOLE WORLD AND TELLS ABOUT THE STRUGGLES OF A YOUNG GIRL WHO FINDS HER DESTINY AND CAN EASILY BE RELATED TO AN AVERAGE TEEN OF THIS TIME - THERE IS ACTION LOVE AND SOO MUCH CREATIVITY AND FANTASY ALL IN ONE BOOK ITS SO INTRIGUEING (I DIDN'T SPELL THAT RIGHT) AND I COULDN'T SET DOWN THE BOOK AND ITS NOT THE TYPE OF BOOK THAT ENDS WITH A CLIFF HANGER I LIKED THE ENDING YET I WANTED TO STAY IN THIS BOOK FOREVER AND LIVE IN THAT WORLD THE ONLY THING THAT WAS BAD WAS THE FACT THAT IT WAS GOOD AND IT ENDED EVENTUALLY - I DONT' WANT TO TELL MUCH BECAUSE IT IS MUCH MORE FUN TO READ AND FIND OUT YOURSELF!!!
Rating:
Summary: An amazing mix of action, drama, magaic and love.
Review: I first read Robin McKinley's Beauty which I adored, then the sequel to Hero and the Crown, 'The Blue Sword'. I loved this book, I had never read anything like it. I knew I had to read the prequel - and I was amazed. It is about a king's daughter, Aerin, whose mother was a witch woman from the north. Aerin has always hidden away in her castle, believing the people dislike her. Her best friend is Tor, whose feelings develop for her over time. When Tor teaches her how to use a sword, Aerin befriends the lame war-horse, Talat, and makes an ancient recipie to protect her from dragon-fire. She kills many small dragons, and gains much respect in her father's court. But when the Black Dragon, Maur, returns she faces him alone, and kills him, which no other warrior could. But she pays the price, and is called to the mountains by a mysterious man in her dreams. She realises her destiny has not been fufilled.
This is an amazing tale. McKinley is a genius! It is full of mystery, joy, sorrow, pain, beauty, magic, action, wars and love. Arin has some difficult choices in her life, and has to be determined and strong after she meets Maur. When she realised she had to choose between Luthe and Tor and almost cried, and I felt her pain when she returned from her fight with Maur.
Anyone would love this book, it is essential if you have read others by the same author.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty good
Review: This is the story of the Princess Aerin. Her mother, who people thought was a witch, died right after she was born. With only her father and the first sola, Tor, as friends, it's really hard for her.
One day after recovering from eating poisenous leaves, she finds a book with a recipe for a fireproof ointment. During the times she tries to make it, she starts to form a bond with her fahers former war-horse, Talat.
Soon after she sucsesfully makes the ointment, there is a complaint about dragons in a small village. She goes with Talat and kills the dragons. After that, whenever there is a dragon, they ask her to go.
One day, just as her father is leaving for battle, a messenger runs in asking for Aerin, for the last real dragon, Maur, has awoken and is wreaking havok on the countryside. Aerin goes and starts the adventure of a life time.
This book is really good, but a little confusing because it jumps around a little to much. But overall, this is a great book for Tamora Pierce, Sherwood Smith and Tanith Lee lovers.
Rating:
Summary: The Hero and the Crown
Review: The Hero and the Crown is about a girl named Aerin. She is the king's daughter and a bad rumor follows her around like a shadow. Her mother bewitched the king to get him to marry her, the rumor says. Furthermore, Aerin's mother died of dispare when she learned she had given birth to a daughter instead of a son (in those days it is nearly impossible for a woman to become qween when not married to the king). When she finds a formula that makes you unburnable (after about 1000 tries and quite a few burnt fingers) she decides to become a dragon hunter. When a huge dragon named Maur awakens it will test Aerin to the peak of her abilities.
Rating:
Summary: Should probably just be called The Hero
Review: Aerin is the only child of the King of Damar but she is not in line to succeed him. Her mother was a foreigner and rumored to have been a witch and the country also fears Aerin may take after her. So, Aerin grows up not really having a place in the kingdom she loves but wanting to find a way to serve it. She knows that a life as a court lady isn't for her and she soon becomes interested in dragon slaying. She begins slaying small dragons but she soon discovers that an ancient giant dragon has awoken. Although, I didn't really like this book as much as the other McKinley books I've read it's still a darn good book. Aerin is a heroin that you can get really attached to. The action in the book is terrific and action scenes usually bore me to tears. The romance scenes, though brief, are very touching. The reason I feel that this book doesn't quite measure up to McKinley's others is that the last third of the book is far too rushed. Aerin's strongest enemy seems to just come out of nowhere and the battle that results isn't nearly as interesting as the earlier battles. Also, it was not really explained in enough detail why the crown was so important. Another large problem was that Aerin's horse (not that I don't love that horse) was given more personality then either of her love interests. However, I still feel that the book deserves five stars because of the strength of it's heroine. Aerin really is one of the most endearing fantasy heroines I've ever come across.
|
