The Ring

Wonderful story that really carries from one book to the next, with very good characters, and has you waiting to read what happens next! A great series and worth reading by anyone who loves fantasy and sci-fi!

This is the second book in Deborah Chester's trilogy: The Sword, The Ring, and The Chalice (following THE SWORD). Again, just as in the first book, she is brilliant in developing her characters and making the reader care for the protagonists. Not only are her characters vivid and interesting, but their reactions to their surroundings and the situations they find themselves in are realistic. What makes things truly enjoyable are the characters' interactions with one another. Their emotions are rendered beautifully and the dialogue is a joy to read.On top of this, the storytelling is quite intelligent. The reader never knows what's going to happen next because Chester doesn't have her protagonists overcoming every obstacle with ease. They are truly challenged at every turn, thus providing the reader with a sense of suspense and urgency. In some fantasy, the choices that the characters make are obvious and the reader can immediately discern what will occur because of them. Not so in this case. The reader has a general idea of where the author is taking them, but can never really predict the path the characters will take along the way. This makes for some very engaging reading. Once the reader has come to care for the characters, they cannot help but keep reading to find out what happens to them.What seems unjust to me is that Chester is not as widely recognized (yet) as such authors as Raymond E. Feist or Robin Hobb, despite the fact that her writing is as good as, if not better than, theirs. She's not quite up to the level of Jordan, Brooks, or Martin, but her books are still fascinating reads. If you haven't read anything by her yet, I highly recommend this series (I can't wait to get to the third book, THE CHALICE).

It has been a while since I have read a book as good as this. Although there are a few annoying habbits (someone mentioned how everyone turned red with anger), I find these to be minor. She keeps the plot running and suprised me at many times with the outcome of situations. She painted her scenes well without going into mind numbing detail which seems to be fad of late with many authors. I would say this is so far one of the best series I have read in a long time (I am half waythrough book three at the moment).

I have been a fan of Debra Chesters books for a long time. And I have to say they are just getting better and better!!! She describes everything so vividly that I cant stop reading. I feel that im really there. The characters are so well developed... along with all the wonderfull views of there surrondings!!! I feel I know these characters as if I was the character myself. I recommend these books to anyone who will listen. THey inspire and grow on you. I can hardly wait for "The Chalice" to come out. Been searching for a release date but still no outcome=) Hopefully very soon!!!

Okay, fantasy fans, what are we going to do? The Robert Jordan series is absolutely creaking. Goodkind hasn't had a surprise in the last 3,000 pages. G. R. R. Martin takes a long time between books. Weis and Hickman are in rewrite, although still good. We've all read "Rhapsody" three times. This series is an excellent option for solving our problems. The battle scenes are superb, there are twists and surprises, and lots of conflict. Aside from the fact that every character seems to "flush red in the face" (or words to that effect) on every page, I thought this one was as great as "The Sword," which is unusual for the middle book of a trilogy. Recommended.