Luthiel's Song: Dreams of the Ringed Vale
by Robert Fanney
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Book Summary Information
Author: Robert FanneyEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2005
ISBN: 0976422603
Number of pages: 328
Publisher: Dark Forest Press
Book Reviews of Luthiel's Song: Dreams of the Ringed Vale
Book Review: A Book that Deserves to be Read
Summary: 5 Stars
A little over a year ago, I set out to find a solid, female-led novel. I'd gotten my fill of fist-pumping testosterone action, and I was looking for a little bit of girl power to serve as a change of pace. I excitedly ventured into Barnes and Noble, to find the book that would satisfy this desire.
I won't name the first book I bought. In fact, I won't even name the second book that I bought several weeks later. I won't name them, because I didn't finish either of them. I couldn't finish either of them. They went on my shelf, never to be read (or cared about) again.
They were terrible. So much for girl power.
Or so I thought...
I recently stumbled upon Luthiel's Song: Dreams of Ringed Vale. In short, it is the story of a young elf named Luthiel, a girl who is given the opportunity to essentially sacrifice herself to save the life of her sister. How? By replacing her sister as a sacrifice, to be handed over to the bloodthirsty monsters known as the Vyrl. You see, the Vyrl demand these sacrifices. If these demands are not met...let's just say bad things tend to happen to the general populace.
I cannot tell you how frustrating it is to pick up a novel, start reading it, and by the fifth page have decided that only the slow and painful death of the main character will make the book worthwhile. Some authors simply don't get it. No one wants to empathize with a character that begs to be hated. Do we love cruel characters? Of course. They add so much to the story. But you see, that's the whole point. They add to the story. They aren't the story. Being in the thoughts of a main character that you utterly despise is one of the most irritating aspects of literature. That's not a problem in Dreams of the Ringed Vale (hereby shortened to DotRV).
Luthiel, as a protagonist, is immediately likeable. She's good-natured, she's loyal, and she's flawed. Without flaws, a character isn't real. Luthiel has just enough to make her the perfect underdog girl to root for. You want to read on, because you want to see her succeed. You want to see her victorious. You want to see things work out for her in the end.
That's one of the great things about this story. It's a good story. It's genuine, and it's the kind of thing you can get behind. It's the story of a girl who--whether she realizes it or not--is trying to be her sister's hero. That's unconditional love, and that's a very refreshing thing to read about. In a literary world full of gimmicks, grandeur, and garbage, DotRV stands out in the crowd as decidedly straightforward and pure. Not many authors have the self-confidence (or morality) to write something like that. Fannéy pulls it off like a pro.
I won't talk much about secondary characters, as to not inadvertently give anything away, but I will say this: they're diverse and they're excellent. Make no mistake...you're going to get attached to someone other than Luthiel. It's going to happen.
There is one thing I'll caution you about, though. If you're looking for a book that's going to wrap itself up by the last page, by design DotRV isn't for you. This is the first book in a series, and it's obvious that in order for this story to be told, it's going to take more than one book. Since I'm a fan of series literature, I find this perfect. If you're a fan of the whole "all TV dramas must fix themselves in 30 minutes" thing, this book won't satisfy you. It'll leave you thirty for more, which is the point.
The story is heartfelt, the progression isn't cookie-cutter predictable, and the characters are memorable. The bottom line?
This is a very good book.
For parental references, this book is perfectly safe for a child to read. There's not a lick of profanity or sexuality. You may purchase it without a weight on your conscience.
Summary of Luthiel's Song: Dreams of the Ringed Vale
First Summer's Eve has come and all elves celebrate as the black moon's shadow fades from the world. It is also Luthiel's fifteenth birthday. With it come two extraordinary and dangerous surprises: a Wyrd Stone, its silvery heart a window into a world of dreams and nightmares, and a Blade Dancer, dreaded protector of the Faelands, who bears a dark message. Instead of celebration, Luthiel is given a terrible choice: if she does nothing, someone she loves deeply will die. Or to save a life, she can break the most perilous law of the Faelands, and venture alone to the Vale of Mists. If she chooses the journey, she must race Othalas -- eldest and most feared of all the werewolves -- past great back spiders who weave webs out of nightmares, through glittering mists with the power to reshape flesh, and at last into death by the teeth of dark and ancient Vyrl, who feed on the blood of elves. Either choice will bring death -- unless Luthiel can find the secret in her remarkable Stone, a secret that even the nightmares fear.Literature & Fiction Books
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