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Liked It2 of 2 members found this review helpful “This was a hard book for me to read. It is undeniably brilliantly written, with characters that go down and down and a world that extends well belong the edge of the page. It is true, there is no magic as so many people insist on having in their fantasy worlds, but the world we get glimpses of is...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It0 of 1 members found this review helpful “s I think I've mentioned, when I was a teenager I was quiet enamoured of the fantasy genre. Books were something that I could always count on my mother purchasing for me. These two things added together equal a whole lot of unread books. I cannot bear to leave books unread and I have vowed not to...” see full review » see other reviews » |
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2 of 2 members found this review helpful
“This was a hard book for me to read. It is undeniably brilliantly written, with characters that go down and down and a world that extends well belong the edge of the page. It is true, there is no magic as so many people insist on having in their fantasy worlds, but the world we get glimpses of is certainly not this one, so there is nowhere else to market it but the fantasy shelves. That depth and realism is extremely rare, and definitely to be commended: every single character whose viewpoint we see (and the viewpoint shifts frequently and with no formatting flourishes like line or chapter breaks) is damaged, driven by wants and needs that we get mere glimpses of. It is really an incredible feat for an author to accomplish: every time the viewpoint shifts the reader can see how the person whose actions we are following is acting in the way he or she thinks is right or justified. Knowing what we know of what else is going on, we can see how the person is short-sighted, or is playing into someone else's hands, or is simply an idiot; but every single person has his or her reasons and, given his or her state of knowledge and desired goals, is justified.
PhoenixFalls wrote this review Saturday, August 8 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
This, unfortunately, is what made the book so extremely hard to read. Because it takes place among an aristocracy that do nothing but play politics with their own and other peoples' lives, the only viewpoint that was restful, the only person whose goals and needs were simply and straightforward, the only person who acted consistently with what we normally consider honor in a fantasy novel, was the swordsman Richard St. Vier. His was the most common viewpoint, as it is his story being told, but it was not often enough to prevent the novel from feeling like a tragedy to me, rather than the comedy I was led to believe it was. This was partly aided by the fact that something I read online about it gave away what I think was actually supposed to be a twist in the middle of the story, but I think even without that spoiler I would still have been left feeling unsettled by this novel. It clashes with my view of the world. I made my philosophical choice years ago, and I chose to believe that the world is ultimately a decent place, where people occasionally have misunderstandings, but these misunderstandings can be ironed out if we give honest communication and empathy a try. I do not want to live in a world like the one Kushner so lovingly detailed, where every man is an island to himself and the only choice is who you want to be used by and how. There is too much power in this novel and not enough love, and even the love that is in it is based in mutual conquest rather than in mutual surrender. It is an dark novel, an ugly one, but one that will undoubtedly stay with me a long time.”
0 of 1 members found this review helpful“Swordspoint is the first in group of three related books, including The Fall of the Kings and The Privilege of the Sword. Great characters, great story.”
Carol U wrote this review Thursday, July 23 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
0 of 1 members found this review helpful“This book was different from what I usually enjoy, but I really liked it. The author has an interesting writing style that comes into play.”
Kara A wrote this review Monday, June 29 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
0 of 1 members found this review helpful“Kind of slow going and I didn't really like the main character. I skipped some parts, skimmed others but did enjoy the ending. There were a couple very good lines as well.”
JenineW wrote this review Thursday, April 9 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
2 of 2 members found this review helpful“I read The Privilege of the Sword first, although it actually comes 2nd chronologically, and loved it. This book didn't disappointed, on the contrary, it was absolutely riveting and I think I liked it even better! The plot holds together well, but it's really Kushner's multi-dimensional, wonderful characters that do it.”
Hope N wrote this review Wednesday, August 20 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
0 of 1 members found this review helpful“Fall of the Kings IS better, but Swordspoint and it's subsequent followup- The Privilege of the Sword do carry the story quite well.”
Wolf wrote this review Friday, May 23 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
1 of 1 members found this review helpful“A little bit of Tanya Huff, a little bit of Elizabeth Bear. I wasn't sure about this book at first, but wound up staying up late to finish the last few chapters. Although it's not exactly action-packed, the characters and their interconnections make for interesting reading, if providing a few wild-goose chases here and there. ”
krimon wrote this review Friday, February 22 2008. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
0 of 1 members found this review helpful“This book is labled fantasy but it reads more like historical fiction. I liked the swordsman Richard and the young nobel Godwin and wished he was in the story more. Overall an interesting book and I plan to read another by this author.”
Heather G wrote this review Friday, September 11 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No0 of 1 members found this review helpful“s I think I've mentioned, when I was a teenager I was quiet enamoured of the fantasy genre. Books were something that I could always count on my mother purchasing for me. These two things added together equal a whole lot of unread books. I cannot bear to leave books unread and I have vowed not to purchase anymore books until I have read all that I have in my possession in New York. It is a combination of these factors that have led me to the horror that was Swordspoint.
Lissa T wrote this review Sunday, December 30 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Swordspoint stradles the line between fantasy and historical fiction. There is no magic, no creatures, no quests - none of the hallmarks of the JRR Tolkein style fantasy novels. Instead, the book creates an alternate universe that approximates that of medieval England. So, instead of magic, we get swordfights and schemeing. And actually, that's really all we get for the entire book.
The book begins with a serious of weighty quotes designed to foreshadow what happens in the rest of the book. But really, not a whole lot happens in the book. Swordspoint follows the life of Richard St. Vier, swordman for hire. Nobles who wish to exact revenge on other nobles hire him to kill. The nobles plot against each other and St. Vier gets caught in the middle, along with his lover, Alec, who has a mysterious past. That is the entire plot of the novel. The novel isn't really long enough to make us care about the characters enough to really care about the outcome of the plots. The addition of homosexuality to the book was surely edgy and in your face in 1987, but comes off as a bit out of place now with so many other fantasy writers doing it better. The book is prettily written, I suppose - but there's really not enough story to do any florid writing justice.
Overall, extremely disappointing. This was Kushner's first novel. One must hope that if she managed to get another one published, it was better than this.”
1 of 1 members found this review helpful“I liked this book. The relationships were subtle and interesting, each character having flaws you wouldn't expect that affected their interactions more than a little bit unpredictable.[br/][br/]The political intrigues, while the central focus of the plot, I suppose, were just a backdrop for me. I'm more interested in reading about relationships than politics, and this book really delivered. ”
dont kickmycane wrote this review Friday, November 23 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
