Rating: 4 out of 5
I wanted to delve into Mr Tchaikovsky’s world of technological progress once again (first and second reviews which I mainly agree with even now though the major issue from the previous experiences—the language—was something I mostly glid over now). I can’t exactly say why, but I had this feeling that this is a story I want to experience again. The first book is underwhelming in this regard because the major action with technology is secondary to the rest of the character introductions.
I was most amazed by how much actually happened in here, often thinking that a plotline would be brought to its close in a future book, only to be proven wrong some chapters later. This plurality was probably my biggest surprise, but it also brings home that the book is action-packed and there is little time left over for other things.
I remembered the characters and has certain impressions of them regarding which ones were decent enough, which ones were annoying, and which ones I didn’t like. In general, this was pretty much as I expected though I gave Cheerwell a lot more credit this time round. Also, Thalric proves already in the first book to be more introspective than one should expect: the author doesn’t hide it, but it was reinforced.
I liked it even on a third read, but I’ve not yet decided whether this re-reading will continue with the entire series.
