Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi have been my favorite master/padawan pair since the prequels were released. I devoured the Master Apprentice series and this book is just an extension of that. In this novel we got to know their relationship a bit more intimately. It was fascinating that Qui-Gon was offered a position on the council as well as the fact that he believed he was failing Obi-Wan as a master. Seeing them go through turmoil once more was unexpected, but I suppose that was their relationship from the beginning to the very end. They clearly loved and respected one another, but they also butted heads frequently. Perhaps their love for one another was the reason they were in opposition so often.

This story was well done because it didn't lose anything from the Master Apprentice series and even though I knew the outcome would be Qui-Gon declining his invitation to join the council, which woulingd have meant hand Obi-Wan over to a new master, I still had no idea how it would all transpire. They were both disenchanted with one another throughout, but it was because they both cared. Qui-Gon saw his failings as a master and pondered whether or not he even deserved to be Obi's master. Obi-Wan felt his inadequacies as a padawan was the reason he learned about Qui-Gon's invitation from an outside source, rather than from his master. I think he believed that Qui-Gon was disappointed in him as an apprentice. Oh, and in the midst of all of this angst, there were flashbacks from Qui-Gon's time as Dooku's apprentice, and an entire plot of betrayal and murder involving a "backwater" planet's monarchy and their ascent into "modern" within the republic.

A very good addition the the JA canon and Jeff Davis did very well with the narration. He captured each characters voice and emotion in a believable way. Fun listen.

by Robin Hobb

This is an excellent fantasy story in the old traditional sword and sorcery sense. It's about a boy, born a royal bastard, who is thrust into his father's family with all the intrigues and dangers that go with being a loose end in the line of succession.

The story is very well written and although I seldom read stories with child protagonists, this one was worth making an exception. The characters are distinctive and interesting as individuals, even if their names are rather cheesy. The more likeable ones include an assassin, a rough keeper of animals, the boy himself (generally referred to as Fitz, as his father never game him a name) and a shrewd grandfather who is known as *cough* King Shrewd. Oh my...

The fun thing about assassins is that they are full of surprises. Just when the plot seems to be going along predictably, something comes out of left field to change the game.

Somewhere after 40% it does begin to drag a little, and then to meander in plot. However, the political intrigues that are the real strength of the story are further developed so that by 90% I was really interested again and wondering how it was all going to get wrapped up with so little time left. I feared a cliffhanger ending that would try to blackmail me into buying book 2, when the price of the further episodes is rather high in my opinion for something I would describe as Fantasy Lite. Yes it's a good story, but it's fairly simple and will appeal to those who like to read a lot of YA and prefer stories with a single protagonist, rather than the sort of complications of keeping up with something like George R.R. Martin's Songs of Ice and Fire series.

I just have a preference for stories that will stretch my brain cells, although I can enjoy light entertainment as well. This one did pick up with loads of action in the final stretch. I didn't like some of the conclusions, but at least the story did wrap up with tidy closing stages so that I wasn't left on that cliff. A few loose ends were obviously left so that the saga can continue, but despite the story starting well, I think it will continue without me to follow along. I enjoyed reading it, but there were just some final elements that left me with phrases like "Why didn't you..." "You couldn't possibly let him..." and similar rants echoing through my head.

I give it 4 stars for writing ability, but only 3.5 for plot detail. Too many things just didn't ring true in the end.

Tour ~ My review is voluntary and honest.

Thirteen-year-old Philip has the honor of dying and being sent to Hell. Honor, you say? Well, yeah. He’s slated to be Lucifer’s successor. Except he’s not. Due to a massive screw up Philip has landed in Hell in someone else’s place. Lucifer has one foot on a banana peel and the other in a grave, so he has to make the best of the situation. He must mold Philip, who never lies, into the leader of Hell and do it quickly. Oh, boy. Does Lucifer have his work cut out for him? Hell yes.

This is a fun story that fits into the younger end of Young Adult, teetering on the cusp of Middle Grade. It’s got a fine mystery to be solved, but it’s a simplistic straightforward one. Just because it’s set in Hell doesn’t mean it has to be dark and disturbing. The world is a bit weird. For Hell anyway. Philip is an amenable teen, typical in some ways and atypical in others. The plot is interesting (the reason I picked it up) and the characters are well-defined, most are actually quite likeable. Philip’s dilemma is a decent one and his development over the course of the book is a bit surprising. Even a little disappointing at times. But then he is only 13-yrs-old, so I cut him some slack. If you’re looking for a different kind of YA adventure then I recommend this one for a few hours of pleasurable reading.

Actually wasn't going to read this for the Paint it Black Square but then realized it worked.  Happy Day.

I am finding writing this review difficult. On one hand, this is a magic novel. On the other hand, it is a quiet novel - not so much a book of great events, though a great man is a supporting character.

And Chota, why is Chota there? In many ways, he seems like a plot device, but in other ways he feels like something far more.

Yet, there is a magic to the book. It is engrossing, it is encompassing, it plays with the ideas of stories and rumors.  It is actually quite fitting for Halloween because it is about masks and hidden thoughts, feelings, motivations and such.

It's a book to revisit.

Never got around to do a review of this book, so I decided to re-read it and amend this oversight.

After failing his entrance exams into the military academy and the death of his grandfather, Miles Vorkosigan, 17 years old, handicapped by brittle bones, suffering from (more or less) latent depression, is sent to distant Beta Colony. There he stumbles upon a Barrayaran deserter, a jumpship pilot and a contract to ship cargo - erm, weapons - through a blockade.What follows is, as they say, history. Forward momentum anyone?

Coming back to the beginnings of this saga is kind of strange experience: Miles feeling like a failure (and having this feeling reenforced by his grandfather's death and some ill-thought through, and misunderstood, statements of his father's), being rather narrow-minded - well, like a normal 17 year old, I guess. His whole world exists of getting into the academy and impressing Elena, his childhood friend and daughter of his bodyguard Bothari. Stumbling his way through creating an army, dealing with history that's been kept hidden from him, and facing loss and pain broadens his horizons and defines who Miles's ultimately going to become.

In a sense this novel concludes the first part of the Vorkosigan series. It puts a preliminary ending to plotthreads set out in Cordelia's Honor, such as Bothari, Elena, Miles's grandfather, the Regency, Vorhalas's family's involvement with the soltoxin attack etc. The epilogue will be found in "The Vor Game" where Gregor'll have to come to terms with his family's past.

But the board is set for part two of the saga: Miles's time in the Imperial service - and with the Dendarii... and finding his way back to his roots in more figurative sense.