Ruin Mist: Keeper Martin's Tale (Ruin Mist Chronicles Series)

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Summary: I love Keeper Martin's Tale and give Stanek a break!
Review: I love Keeper Martin's Tale. It's the best book I've read this year. So far I've read it 4 times. I've read some of the recent reviews and find them a bit harsh. I can't believe the people who give this book less than 5 stars. I think this book is amazing. It has incredible action, awesome characters, and I thought the descriptions were good, very detailed. I felt like I was in Imtal, Quashan, adn all the places in between.

Like another reviewer said robertstanek.com and ruinmist.com are very cool sites too! I can't wait till Fields Of Honor comes out in 2 months and then Mark Of The Dragon this winter is going to be amazing!

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Summary: My Favorite Book!!!
Review: Keeper Martin's Tale is a great book for people who like fantasy and adventure. I love the companion sites www.robertstanek.com and www.ruinmist.com!

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Summary: Martin should keep his tale
Review: I echo the last two reviewers. I too was taken in by the rave reviews but perhaps they read a different book. The one I read resembled a junior high project to re-write Robert Jordan or George RR Martin. The prose was flat, the plot simplistic, the characters undeveloped. None of the characters or the places are described well so that you can visualize them, so important in novels about an alternative universe. Save your money and go first class: buy Gene Wolfe.

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Summary: A fantastic and fascinating read!
Review: I'm not usually into fantasy, but the story description and characters were the hooks that reeled me in. I'm not complaining at all! (Being set in the fantastical world of ruin mist didn't hurt either.) This is the best book I've read in months. I couldn't put it down. The adventure aspects, tying in with the in fighting and mystery, etc. were fascinating. Near the end I felt like I was learning something about medieval warfare in addition to being entertained with a well-paced story. Definitely something that will bring about some interesting conversations. Now I need all my friends to read it so I have someone to talk about it with!

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Summary: By far the worst book I've ever read
Review: Well, apparently my previous two reviews crossed the line and were pulled by the powers that be on this site, so let's see how many more I have to write before one finally remains posted. This time I'll try to not raise any questions about ulterior motives on the author's part. I ordered this book on the strength of the many glowingly positive reviews, even though I was very suspicious that the reviews were so poorly written and non-specific about the novel. What I in fact received was apparently not the same book the other 5-star reviewers did. The title and author appeared to be the same, but the book itself was garbage.

A ludicrously inane and unoriginal plot written at the third grade level, complete with cardboard characters. The most spelling and grammatical mistakes I've ever encountered. Sentences that plain don't make sense. Clearly self-published; this wouldn't have passed muster with any reputable publisher. I didn't make it very far before literally throwing it into the trash from the other end of the room. I checked on it later and it seemed very happy in there, it appeared to be very much at home with the other garbage.

Do yourself a favor and stay far away from these books. Or just get the first one and write an honest review, we need more of them! Check the credibility of some of the 5-star reviewers, people. Like how many reviews do they have to their names?

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Summary: Yet another incredible book by Stanek!
Review: I think this one has to be my favorite, although the others are just as incredible. If you want to escape in to the world of the unknown, then read this masterpiece. Once I started reading Keeper Martin's Tale, I could not put it down. The imagination and depth Stanek displays in his writing takes fantasy novels to another level. I would recommend this book and Stanek to everyone.

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Summary: An excellent book for any lover of fantasy
Review: Ruin Mist Chronicles (now five books total Keeper Martin's Tale, Elf Queen's Quest, Kingdom Alliance and Mark of the Dragon, Fields of Honor) is becoming one of THE standards in fantasy for good reason. The author knows how to tell a story. The story flows well and will undoutedly find its place among the great fantasy series of all time. Ruin Mist is a vast, colorful, and incredibly original world that you can't help but be drawn into. It is the only fantasy multiverse of its kind I know of where you have three intertwined realms (the author calls these realms over earth, middle earth and under earth). In this first book we meet the reach elves (Seth, Galan, Bryan, Cagan and the rest), the kingdomers (Adrina, Emel, Vilmos, others) and those from other realms (Xith, Erravane, others). The plot is intruiging, though somewhat rushed at times it is a true pleasure to read. Robert Stanek also seems to be a Tolkien scholar or at least a scholar of language and culture (specifically the names of people and places have hints of many languages and cultures). The elves in his story have fled to the east after lengthy war with men. The elvish maps in his world have east at the top. The kingdomer maps have north at the top. The language is at times beautiful even though simple mostly. There is no doubt Stanek is a master with a unique voice. The best part is that the books keep getting better and more intruiging. Read this if for no other reason than to get to Kingdom Alliance which I think is one of the best books I've ever read (andI've read hundreds).

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Summary: What a fun read!
Review: I am long time fan of David Eddings, Raymond Fiest, and Terry Brooks. I've read everything they've written. Friends who know what I like to read told me I should read this new series by Robert Stanek. They've been talking about the books for several months in group.

I read Keeper Martin's Tale and Kingdom Alliance to find out what everyone was talking about, then read them both again -- they're that good. The series name "Ruin Mist Chronicles" gets its name from the fantasy universe the story is set: Ruin Mist.

As the MP3 on the authors site says (robertstanek.com) "Ruin Mist has three distinct realms: over earth, middle earth and under earth. The idea of a world such as this is interesting and different from anything I've read in fantasy. The book is different from anything I've read in fantasy too. Each character inthe book has his/her own scene. The scenes change through all the main characters as you go.

Some of the best bits about the book is the writing and the plotting. Stanek moves you through the story. The pace is fast once you get past the beginning, and a lot happens.

Over all, it is a fun read, and I can now say I have a new favorite writer.