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lathanyI've read three new books over the last few weeks, so time for some reviews.
Both The Silver Branch and The Lantern Bearers were part of a three book set (the other one being Eagle of the Ninth). They are both set in Roman Britain and feature descendants of the hero of the Eagle of the Ninth. However, they are rather different.
The Silver Branch is set in the middle of the Roman occupation. It is when Carausius claims to be Emperor of Britain and the two protagonists are caught within the differing power struggles that occur on his death. It is an interesting story of conflict and, to some extent, betrayal of which the highlight is probably the siege towards the end. It also ties in quite closely with Eagle of the Ninth as the two characters you follow are both descendants of the hero of that earlier book. It is also similar in other ways as it is about following two close friends.
The Lantern Bearers comes at the end of the occupation and is chiefly concerned by what happens when the Romans leave and the Saxons take over. It is in a different style to the previous two as the main character is - or, perhaps, becomes - much more of a loner. It focused more on themes of loyalty and belonging and seems a much sadder book overall, for all that it has a decent ending for the hero (again a descendant of the hero of Eagle of the Ninth). Having read about it afterwards, I gather it is also supposed to be the first of the King Arthur books, but I wasn't particularly aware of that as I read it.
Overall, I enjoyed all three Sutcliff books in rather different ways.
The last new book that I read recently was The New Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko; namely the fifth in the Night Watch series. I enjoyed it, I found it very readable and thought it was a decent addition to the series.
I have also been in one roleplaying game since the start of the year. Martin ran a Dwarf Fortress game for Chris V's 40th birthday. It was an enjoyable game of dwarven politics, exploration and fighting. It also involved a very interesting use of a map. I'm hoping that there will be more.
Both The Silver Branch and The Lantern Bearers were part of a three book set (the other one being Eagle of the Ninth). They are both set in Roman Britain and feature descendants of the hero of the Eagle of the Ninth. However, they are rather different.
The Silver Branch is set in the middle of the Roman occupation. It is when Carausius claims to be Emperor of Britain and the two protagonists are caught within the differing power struggles that occur on his death. It is an interesting story of conflict and, to some extent, betrayal of which the highlight is probably the siege towards the end. It also ties in quite closely with Eagle of the Ninth as the two characters you follow are both descendants of the hero of that earlier book. It is also similar in other ways as it is about following two close friends.
The Lantern Bearers comes at the end of the occupation and is chiefly concerned by what happens when the Romans leave and the Saxons take over. It is in a different style to the previous two as the main character is - or, perhaps, becomes - much more of a loner. It focused more on themes of loyalty and belonging and seems a much sadder book overall, for all that it has a decent ending for the hero (again a descendant of the hero of Eagle of the Ninth). Having read about it afterwards, I gather it is also supposed to be the first of the King Arthur books, but I wasn't particularly aware of that as I read it.
Overall, I enjoyed all three Sutcliff books in rather different ways.
The last new book that I read recently was The New Watch by Sergei Lukyanenko; namely the fifth in the Night Watch series. I enjoyed it, I found it very readable and thought it was a decent addition to the series.
I have also been in one roleplaying game since the start of the year. Martin ran a Dwarf Fortress game for Chris V's 40th birthday. It was an enjoyable game of dwarven politics, exploration and fighting. It also involved a very interesting use of a map. I'm hoping that there will be more.
