The Company of Glass

The Company of Glass is one of those books that readers will either love or hate. There's really no middle ground. Leith's imagery and writing style is eloquent and provides an easily visualized setting. Leith also does a wonderful job of fleshing out characters. They become frustrated or sad and react accordingly, in other words, their emotions feel real, and it's easy for the reader to relate to them. There are three major plots that tie together: Istar the Seahawk warrior woman leads a small band of warriors on a quest to the floating lands; the exact quest that her father undertook nine years before. Tarquin the Free, Istar's adoptive father, seeks to warn Everien's king of an army of invading Pharicians and in the process encounters the enemy that devastated his company years ago. Istar's mother Mhani deals with an interfering influence in the Eye of Glass and discovers that the problem is something much worse than she had initially believed it to be. Sometimes the plot drags, but those points are few and far between. The Company of Glass is quest style fantasy, and as such follows the tried and true formula set down by Tolkien. However, the author has added their own unique touch to the storyline so that similarities aren't really noticeable.All in all, this debut is excellent and well worth reading.

Ok. All of you avid fanasty book readers, this book is quite different. I picked it up on the local used book store shelf and read it. I liked it but not quite as much as Raymond Feist's Serpent War Saga. But then I read the second one (The Riddled Night) more or less because I needed something to read and I knew the author was a pretty good writer. The Riddled Night was awesome! I was spellbound and read it in less than a week (quite a feat when you have Debate Team, Model UN, Math Team and Beta Club). If you love fanasty, YOU MUST READ THIS BOOK. It is essential to understand the second. It will not be a waste of your time or money!

The Company of Glass brought to mind the Tolkien trilogy, "Lord of the Rings". Like Tolkien's story, this story takes place in a land inhabited by creatures both human and non-human, and describes the battle of "good" (the Clans of Everien) vs. "evil" (the Sekks) - which battle includes the hunt for magical icons that are a part of "the Knowledge". I found the characters at once to be both likable and plausible, in both their actions and their reactions to events around them. I felt that there were some very unique and creative touches in the story that definitely added to the reading experience; for example (without giving anything away) the kingdom of Jai Khalar, Ice, and the Floating Lands. You'll have to read the story to know what I mean, but believe me, you will put this book down wanting more. While the story reaches a definite conclusion, there are enough "loose-ends" and unanswered questions to more than fill the coming sequel. I, for one, can't wait!

The Company of Glass by Valery Leith was a very good book. The book combined a sense of reality weaved in a world where nothing was what it seemed. The character development was great and by the end of the book I knew every character inside and out. This book is a must buy!

This book is one of the best books I have ever read. I really like books that focus on the unexplainable and midevil subjects. They let you use your imagination so freely. Valery Leith wrote a very good book. She intertwined the traditional view of women it the time we think of as "midevil" and the quest to save a world. She gave enough information to tell the story, but I thought of so many other stories that could come off of this one. In the end, I say that this book is great!