Mistress of the Catacombs

I must say that when I started to read some of the other reviews of this book, I was confused. People say that the books are falling into the Jordon trap, or they say he is getting too repetitive. I find this odd because I don't get that feeling at all. Firstly, the first 2 books tie up almost all loose ends and explain everything you need to know to enjoy further stories. If you read book 4 before you read book 3, you should not have any problem following along. This is most definitely not the way Jordon works...if you skip a book in the series, you are just lost. Also the one thing I really like about Drake, is his ability to have a small amount of characters and make you care about all of them. Books 3 and 4 are capsulated so they are almost independent stories. All loose ends are tied up in 3. All loose ends are tied up in 4. It's very satisfying to have endings. That again is unlike Jordon, who bases his fan base and sales on the fact that he ends his books in huge plot altering cliff hangers. I'm not saying that's bad, but it makes me want to pick up a new drake book knowing it's going to end with everything wrapped up, then a Jordon book that I know some stuff will be solved, and then open up twice as many threads. As for the repetitive aspect, it's really not. It's formulaic which is different. Basically Garric has to do some stuff for the kingdom, and Iina and Cashel go on their related adventures...it's just a fun yarn. Highly recommended.

This is a very entertaining fantasy series, though you need to start with the first volume, Lord of the Isles, because it's pretty much all one story. It will catch your interest immediately, and you'll care about the main characters right from the start. (These books are not what I'd normally expect from David Drake, who usually writes military SF with an emphasis on blood and guts.)The first volume is the best, but this one is just as good as the others. In fact, it's almost identical to the others. Sadly, each new volume is nearly indistinguishable from the rest. First, the characters are widely separated in time and/or space, they have their individual adventures as they struggle to return, and then they're reunited for the ending.I keep hoping that the next volume will keep them together for the immense - and interesting - work of building and maintaining the kingdom, but it never happens. Frankly, the same story told in every volume is getting a bit old.Another reviewer mentioned the "Robert Jordan syndrome." Like Jordan, has Drake realized that he can keep fans perpetually buying new books in a popular series by just never going anywhere with the story? Is this just a way to extend the series as long as possible, or doesn't he know where he wants to go next?I'm still giving this 4 stars, because I love the characters and I guess because I really loved the first couple of volumes. But I'm very disappointed with this book; it's certainly not bad but it's nearly identical to the previous two. I can't say you'd miss anything if you just skipped it and waited until (if) Drake decides to go on with the story in some future volume.

David Drake has done it again with his swashbuckling hero once again weaving through the mystical and political intrigue of the Isles. Magic and mayhem vie with moonlight and romance as Garrictries against impossible odds to save the people and places he cares for.A great read and one for your permanent collection

David Drake is on my list of authors "to buy on publication, hard or soft cover," so in general I think highly of him. Some of his books I have not cared for, but his military SF is classic. In recent years Drake has started two series that I find very impressive: Lord of the Isles and Lt Leary (also the Belisarius series with Eric Flint). The two Lt Leary books are "space fantasy" (one of the things that bothers me about Drake is that his science is pretty dreadful for SF); the Lord of the Isles series is heroic fantasy. With this installment, however, I found myself asking whether Drake really knows where he's going. These are fairly massive books, yet in terms of plot it's starting to feel like he's falling into "Robert Jordan syndrome." We're not yet to the point where I'd say this is another series that wouldn't die, yet the feel of this book was very similar to the previous books: the four main characters split off at the beginning when dragged into attacking a particular problem, address some aspect of it, and join together at the end. At this point in the series you might expect some problems to be ones that combinations of the main characters would attack. I still like these books a great deal (if you haven't read any of them yet, start with Lord of the Isles!), but I'm getting concerned about the direction of the series. Drake is usually meticulous in his plots, so it's quite possible this will all come together in the next book or so. Still recommended, but with a caution for future books in the series.

Former peasant, Prince Garric has done the impossible. Garric has forged a government with him in charge of the Kingdom of the Isles. This is the first central government in a millennium plus years. However, not everyone is content with Garric ruling the Isles. Rebels and their outside allies unite to try to overthrow the new regime. Led by wizards who see mortals as cannon fodder and the Children of the Mistress, who cast spells, Garric's foes have overwhelming superiority in numbers, weapons, and magic. Thus, when the final battle happens, Garric's chances of surviving is ground zero let alone winning, but then again he shares cerebral space with his ancestor, the brilliant strategist King Carus. The fourth book in the Lord of the Isles series, MISTRESS OF THE CATACOMBS, is a strong epic fantasy that will elate readers of previous tales and send newcomers seeking those novels. The tale has all the elements expected in a high fantasy adventure, but centers on the coming of age of a youngster thrust into a position of grave responsibility. David Drake flies like an eagle, proving he is one of the stronger speculative fiction authors.Harriet Klausner