Kim Hunter (1)

The city of Zamerkand is in the hands of the usurper Humbold, and the witchboy who is successor to the wizard's throne has been forced into hiding. Soldier, now commander of the mercenary army known as the Red Pavilions, meets with his captains outside the walls of the great city to plan their next move. But Soldier has troubles of his own. The memory of his past life, which has been lost to him since his arrival in this strange land, is about to return. For when his sword is reunited with its scabbard, the song it sings will tell him of a feud driven by murder, betrayal and bloodshed - a feud that continues for as long as his enemy stalks him. But just as Soldier has not known his true identity, so his enemy has remained hidden. Now they must meet, to end at last this conflict that has crossed from one world to another, and threatens to destroy both.… (más)

In this book Soldier is the only mortal that has been allowed in a wizard's funeral. When Soldier goes to the funerals he finds all sorts of faery folk and demons. At this time while a Queen Vanda is sick with the madness her chancellor takes control and makes himself king. While doing this he sends Princess Layana to her prison in a desert where they forget their names. Soldier finds this prison but is too late and Princess Layana has already been bought as a slave. Soldier finally haves her and takes her home. At this they hear of Humbold's upsurping. When Soldier questioned them they through Queen Vanda's severed head over the wall.… (más)

I was skeptical when I opened this book for some reason. I think it was because I've read past reviews on other websites and none look that good. Nevertheless I decided to give it a try (since I picked the book up at a used bookstore). I don't regret giving it a chance although I wouldn't reread this book either. Once is enough for me. There's too many near death situations and last minute rescues that it gives the book a feeling that it should be a low budget made for TV (or direct to DVD) film. It has its light moments where you chuckle to yourself but the bad crap the main character goes through makes you think it's going to be one of those tragic hero characters that make you want to roll your eyes and go for another novel. If it's not one thing, it's another for Soldier (what kind of a stupid name is that?) Also, I don't know what the author was on when she was inventing some of these names....and I know authors like to get creative and think of unique strange names for their fantasy plot. But... names like HoulluoH (spelling like it is in the novel) and Wwssxxyynn (could be because she's not human) ??????? did the author just pound her hands on a keyboard and out came a name? that's something that irked me.… (más)

I decided to keep going with the series because there was an element of political intrigue that was interesting, and also I was curious as to the mystery behind Soldier's past and who he really is. It wasn't a bad book, but there were a couple of things that I didn't like. Yet let me get to what I liked about Wizard's Funeral.

The funeral of the King Magus described in this book was very unique and different. It was a meeting of creatures from every myth and legend you could think of, yet instead of making it sound like a total chaotic mess it was an interesting mixture and blend. It was also interesting as Soldier was the only human invited, and the other creatures thought he was the oddity in the funeral instead of the other way around. I thought that was the most interesting part of the book and have never read anything like this in any fantasy novel I have read. This definitely stood out.

Another thing I liked are the characters, there's a bit of a witty black comedy involved and sometimes it comes when it's least expected. I did jot down quite a few memorable quotes that I thought were well written and got a chuckle out of me. Aside from the previous characters mentioned in Knight's Dawn, there are some new ones involved in this book but it's a healthy amount so the reader is not confused. Soldier's new friend Goldgath brought more to the plot, thus making it more enjoyable to read. Also, I enjoyed the giant cliffhanger ending. I wasn't about to give up on this series, but it was not going to be in my top priority list to read either, but the ending changed things and now I want to know what's going to happen.

The plot and storyline was all right, but still not great. There's one part of the plot where Soldier arrives at a certain destination, only to go back to Zamarkand ONLY to find out he wasn't needed there in the first place! then he makes the trek back to where he originally wanted to go to. What in the world was that all about??? and what a waste!! I didn't know what was the point of that! there wasn't any big revelation, or anything that is character revealing, or anything to advance the plot. I thought it was strange and extremely unnecessary.

At times I sometimes reflected back on my reading, and wondered where is this plot going to? it just seems so haphazard and to me, it feels as if this series is just going nowhwere. What seems as if Soldier is going in the right direction, something else distracts him. Also, it seems as if he doesn't really care about his past and is not even making an effort to find out. It's odd and not what you'd expect from a behavior of a normal human being. What I also don't get is some of these character names. They are the most odd and most obscure ones I have ever read so far and are just beyond strange.

Overall, still not the greatest of fantasy series I've been reading. However I am not going to give up on it. The ending of this book caught me off guard and although there are a lot of unanswered questions, I am hoping the third and final book of this series will provide a lot of closure. It's not the greatest, but it's not a terrible read either. I give it kudos for making such a unique and different plot with very different characters with their own unique personalities. Do pick this trilogy if you want something different, but don't expect a lot either. It's definitely not your average fantasy.… (más)