Rate this book

A Dance Of Death (2000)

by David Dalglish(Favorite Author)

4.05 of 5 Votes: 5

languge

English

genre

Fantasy

series

Shadowdance

review 1: Valdaren is finally enjoying a period of peace albeit an uneasy one thanks to the actions of Haern who is now the King’s Watcher. However, now there’s a vigilante in Angelport copying the Watcher’s style and mark at his kills, implicating Haern. Haern can easily prove his innocence but, after the son of a Trifect member is killed, Alyssa Gemstone convinces him that they, along with her bodyguard Zusa should go and investigate. But they aren’t prepared for the political intrigues, rivalries, and gamesmanship that are the norm for Angelport. The Merchant Lords are battling the Trifect, the elves are killing citizens who are trying to invade the forest, a new and powerful drug has hit the streets, and the Wraith, the vigilante who is copying Haern’s style, may be... more even more dangerous and skilled than Haern. He is also more realistic and honest about his actions and his motives and he may force Haern to take a long hard look at himself, that is, of course, if he and his friends can survive long enough for reflection.And it is in the absolute moral decay of Angelport where I found my only objection to the book. There is noone here to root for outside of our three main protagonists. There is seemingly nothing and noone in the town worth saving. There are no lofty motives, no innocents caught in the crossfire, just corruption and greed and even that is on a scale so petty that it is hard to care about the fate of the city and its citizens.Still, despite this, I have to say I really enjoyed this tale. A Dance of Mirrors is the third installment in author David Dalglish’s Shadowdance series and, if anything, it is perhaps even more violent and more blood soaked than the previous two books. It is also a rollicking good time. For fans of grimdark who prefer their fantasy with more sword than sorcery, this is one addicting series.
review 2: This is the Third book in the ShadowDance series, and for me it was not bad...just not as good as the earlier two volumes. The fact that there is no overarching meta-story to these volumes is a big disappointment and has weakened my enjoyment; I began reading these thinking they were a trilogy and I was mistaken. The dangling plot threads from the prior books remain untethered and new ones are introduced. These books now remind me of the "installment" books of other fantasy/science fiction series (Dragonlance, Star Trek, Star Wars, et al) and, like those, there just isn't depth. Each book is not building on the previous one and, other then using some of the same characters, each book is a separate story.This book was originally released as A Dance of Death and I think that is a much better title for this story because there is so very much of it. Like the proverbial "red shirts" of Star Trek, almost every character introduced is going to die. Yes, these are wonderfully crafted deaths, each fight scene is very well written, but, I stopped becoming invested in the characters when I realized that everyone but the main ones were disposable. The Dance of Mirrors is supposed to refer to Haern meeting his "reflection" in the city of Angelport. Haern must deal with the Wraith, a vigilante who claims to be following Haern's own ideals but instead twists them into seemingly unfocused vengeance rather than vigilant justice. But, because this reflection is so brief and so shallow, it becomes disingenuous. The Wraith is NOT set upon the same purpose or course as Haern. It would have been a much stronger and more resonating examination of the motivations and psyche of Haern were he to meet a true vigilante trying to replicate "The Watcher" in another city plagued by violence, organized crime, corrupt officials, and incompetent government. *That* would be a mirror dance worth reading...The plot centers on Alyssa Gemcroft (Head of House Gemcroft), Zusa (the former "Faceless One" holy assassin and now Alyssa's protector), and Haern (the King's Watcher) travelling to a new city to help another Trifect House deal with a growing crisis of merchant princes and antagonized elves. Once again the political intrigue between desperate factions takes center stage. Dalglish is very good at creating a Machiavellian society ripe with betrayals, double-crosses, and misplaced loyalties. Unfortunately, this new city isn't Veldaren (the city of the previous two books and home to our "heroes"). As a reader, I really did not care about any of these people and I kept wanting Alyssa, Zusa, and Haern to just go home. This was not their city or their fight and it felt like Dalglish had to resort to cliche contrivances to get his characters to stay. For example: How do you get Haern, Velderan's vigilante legend to your city? Have a copy-cat leave Haern's mark at the scene of his crimes. How do you keep people from just leaving? Throw in a kidnapping.While I absolutely love the characters that Dalglish creates, the lack of cohesion in the plot (as it relates to what has gone before) and clarity in the theme (as it relates to the growth of these characters in light of the events that they experience) make these good - just not great. Knowing that there are now at least three more books planned in this series makes these even more like an episodic TV series (and even less like a cohesive multi-volume narrative).As I said at the start, these are good books - it's just that they are like popcorn and I was really hoping for steak... less

Download links for: A Dance of Death

Advertising