Shadow of a Dark Queen (The Serpentwar Saga #1)

I already have this in book form as my kids and I read all the Midkemia books back in the day. I’m currently replacing my favorite books with Kindle versions. So, of course I reread them. Unlike the previous titles, I warned my then adolescent daughter she might not want to read the Serpentwar Saga for a few years and she’s actually reading it now. Shadow of a Dark Queen and the rest of the Serpentwar Saga are a bit more graphic than the previous Midkemia books, but I particularly like the way Feist permits his characters to mature and grow in this series.

The only reason I couldn’t give this a 5 star review is the beginning of the book. The story starts in another world, and then drops that storyline, not to be picked up until much later in the book. There are so many fantasy names and places in the start, the author appears to be trying to impress us with the world he has created. It’s so confusing I almost stopped reading. Thankfully I continued, as the book really picks up steam and turns into a really good fantasy novel. For the first time in a while, I really cared about the main character and what happens to him.
This is the start of a series, and I will be reading the rest.

[This applies to the Kindle version only.]

The book – story, plot, writing, characters – was excellent. However, it was very clear that the book had been prepared for ebook format through an optical scan, not from a text file. There were numerous typographical, spelling and punctuation errors as a result. There are no characters or lines – only an extra space – to break scenes. Since the line spacing is fairly loose to begin with, that made for some confusing moments. The production of the ebook does not do Feist’s works justice.

This assessment applies to the Kindle versions of all four Serpentwar books – Shadow of a Dark Queen, Rise of a Merchant Prince, Rage of a Demon King and Shards of a Broken Crown. All were apparently prepared for publication in the same way, sans proofreading, with text just dumped on the page.

Raymond Feist is a master of fantasy writing, ranking right up there with the masters. This is my favorite series he’s written – you see the characters you read about in later series as they are developing into the legends they eventually become – Roo is a dark horse hero – ugly, skinny, and sneak but you root for him – you see the characters as they face what will evolve into later series. It’s fast, grabs you and you’ll want to read it at one sitting. While it isn’t a contender to knock Jordan’s Eye of the World epic series off it’s pedestal, it’s definitely one must read book if you’re a fantasy fan.

Love it. Excellent fantasy from one of the masters. Dragged a bit in the middle but so enjoyable. Great characters and well thought out plot. Magic and Mayhem. More please.

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