Mary Brown (1)Recensioni

A long time ago, when I first read this (I was 9 or so) a lot went over my head. Mostly the sex stuff (there's quite a bit, all things considered, about sex in here), but also I remember how fiercely I sobbed because Thing lost all her friends.

Not to death, this book had surprisingly little death in it (I say surprisingly because most of my fantasy books of that time involved heroic sacrificial death as a means to winning), though it wasn't completely absent. No, she lost them to life. And I sobbed because it didn't seem fair to me--the me who had really no close friends at that time and had the vaguest of memories of what it was like to have a friend who I shared everything with--that Thing had to lose her friends.

More of a 2.5...okay so read this years ago, probably about 12 or so, and had fallen. in love with everything about it. Not enough to add it to my annual reread list, but well enough to keep it for possible reread in the near future.

I quite forget what I loved about this, though I can speculate based on what I do know of 20something Lexie's preferences.

It was a quest, with magic and folklore and a girl who had troubles with her mother but always found the right answer to save the day. Except...that's not true upon rereading as a full adult. Summer rarely finds the solution---if she does she nearly kills them all by bungling it.

Trusts the wrong people. Says the wrong thing. Hardly listens...

It's Whimperling (the eponymous flying pig of the title) who almost ALWAYS saves the day. Contrast that with THE UNLIKELY ONES wherein Thing did make mistakes but had many clever solutions and her companions by in large were useful much of the time.

Meanwhile I find it interesting that unlike TUO that Summer's companions here all settle or compromise on their greatest wish for life. I wonder if it's because Thing's friends were far better creatures? Though to be truthful Summer is nowhere near as close to her friends as Thing was.

All in all I'm disappointed...even in Jasper...hopefully the next 2 books are better and I didn't misremember.

I enjoyed the first two books in this omnibus (Pigs don't Fly and Master of Many Treasures) much more then the last book (Dragonne's Egg). Following the prequel, The Unlikely Ones, The Unexpected Dragon trilogy is quite exciting.

I can understand how others might view it with discontent since there is no definite ending to the romance of the first two books (an ambiguious ending where the characters may or may not have survived) and the third book comes out of left field (though with a definite ending for the romance element).

Good lord, I finally found this book! I read this so many years ago--my first pet cat I had when I first lived on my own, I named Moglet because of this book. I can't believe I forgot it--but as I saw this on my recommended pages here on Good Reads and saw the image of the girl in the mask--I thought it seemed familiar some how. Clicking on the link and reading the description, all of my memories of this book flooded back--especially the bitter sweet of its ending. This is an amazing book; while memory dimmed it occasionally, it's now 2014 and I can recall the story (after being reminded) and all the emotions it called forth when reading it. I highly, highly recommend this book--and I wish it will someday be counted as a "classic!"

Sophie had resigned herself to a life of genteel poverty. She had a life she enjoyed but no real purpose. This is all changed by the bequest of an unknown uncle which sends her on a quest to return a dragon’s egg to its home. Companions, both mystical and human, help her on her trek. An enjoyable ending for the series.½

woman, fish, cat, toad, unicorn, crow and knight on quest to dragon

I had a bit of a difficult time getting into the book, but once I got into the proper mindset everything just sort of flew by. I really liked the fact that it was set in *our* world rather than some random fantasy world since that added a very different flavor to the entire piece.



There were some unanswered questions at the end of everything, but I'm okay with that.

I am glad I persevered with The Unlikely Ones - the opening chapters don't give an accurate impression of what this book is like. They're like an extended prologue - and then you meet Thing, the first-person narrator of the rest of the story. However, it takes a few more chapters work out who Thing is and just where is this story going anyway...

Thing is the prisoner of a very nasty witch. Thing has a hunchback, hides her face behind a mask and suffers stomach cramps if she strays too far from her captor, and beyond that she doesn't quite know who she is. She cannot remember her name, her past, or even how long she's been enslaved. She struggles to recall human speech, finding it easier to communicate with her fellow prisoners: a crow, a toad, a kitten and a fish.
Thing and her friends manage to escape the witch's house, and set out to properly free themselves from the witch's spells. They are joined on this quest by a unicorn and a knight, both of whom have fallen afoul of the witch.

The Unlikely Ones is written like a fairytale. A fairytale for adults, even though Thing begins with a somewhat child-like naivety. (It's a bit of an unexpected juxtaposition but there you go.) There are some odd moments of humour and an element of tropes being subverted, and an understandable vagueness about the worldbuilding. Stylistically, it reminds me a little of Patricia A. McKillip or Robin McKinley - and it reminds me more of Mary Stewart's fantasy. Which makes sense - they were writing in a similar era.

It's a coming-of-age story for Thing. And it's also about what happens after a quest is over, and dealing with your companions of the road going in different directions.

It's a strange story, but once I got past that oddness, I read it all in one go. I might read more in this series (I gather it's a loosely connected series), if I can find them.

One of my favourite parts about The Unlikely Ones was the physical book itself, simply because it was a hardback edition purchased in 1987 - not very old, all things considered, but I am convinced my local library has sold off or thrown away most of the books they had on their shelves ten years ago, so it was fun to borrow a book that had a sense of history about it.

I should have known it was bad; both Marion Zimmer Bradley and Anne McCaffrey are quoted as liking it. Various creatures captured and mistreated by a witch escape and seek their fortunes together. And of course the main character is secretly a beautiful young maiden convinced of her ugliness, and of course she falls in love with someone she thinks far above her station, and of course the two slowly grow to understand each other, and I assume that at the end, she turns out to be beautiful. I don't know, I never bothered to finish it.

Didn't want to put it down. It's about friends, love and seeing the real person inside instead of the outside. Fun novel.

A fun read. Mary Brown is one of fantasy's best authors. Second in the Pigs Don't Fly series.

I think if I'd read this book back in 1986 when it first came out, I would have enjoyed it more. Yes, I'd have been much younger, and not as picky about what I think makes a good book. But also, what we expect from fantasy novels has changed over the years. I thought the story dragged far too much. For instance, an entire story line in which the party faces seven challenges seemed unnecessary—nothing happened that affected the main goals of the story—but it took up almost a third of the book. Nowadays, we expect plots in which everything major ties into the main story line. I did enjoy the unconventional plot—the story really gets going after the villain perishes fairly early in the book. Also, the author does a fine job of giving each of the animals and people their own distinctive voice. But generally, there are tighter, more gripping fantasy novels out there.½

TBR

I re-read this one after many years of sitting on my shelf (my mother gifted it to me when I was about 18). I was surprised that I could remember as much of it as I did (some of the details I had forgotten). A straight forward plot and good cast of characters - probably young adult (though towards the older end with some of the sexual references). I do find the ending of the 'fellowship' bittersweet.½

One of the worst books I've ever finished. I know nothing about the author, but I have to wonder what she has on whom to get this thing into print.

An interesting fairy tale. The sexual content is a bit adult for kids (though I think it may have been targeted at them) but the author managed to give the book that classic fairy tale air of being simple, yet not exactly so.½

I thought I would like this book - it seemed like a fun story line, but it was too adult for a light children's fairy tale and too childish for a good fantasy adventure.

It really read like a romance novel (although I'm just guessing since I haven't read any romance novels). It was repetitive, characters were boring and I HATE when writers totally show their hand with the foreshadowing. It's ok to hint, don't make it obvious. Don't actually title the chapters with what's going to happen! (Some authors write in a way that they can get away with this - but Mary Brown's style doesn't lend itself to this). For the characters, the only one I liked really, wash Pisky - the fish. The toad was ok, but the others were too whiny. Maybe it would have been better if each adventure was told by that particular character rather than by Thing (the girl and main character of the tale).

It seemed like a good story idea, but it just fell short - it seemed with an idea like that, the book would have been easy to write, but I don't think the talent was there.½

Not horrible, but not horribly entertaining. The style is a little wordy for me - long descriptive paragraphs with interminable lists are not that interesting.

I've always been a fan of fantasy novels with talking animals (Narnia, Atlanton Earth, Spellsinger, etc.) but, in this case, it wasn't enough to make me want to continue to read this series.½

This is one of my all time favorite books. The heroine is fat, the prince is rescued instead of the rescuer, the whole story is a series of adventures that always end with the unexpected. It's a quest novel, only the people on the quest aren't completely aware that they're questing. It's actually the second book in a quadrilogy, however, each book stands alone. Meaning that you can read each book independently and not need the other 3 to understand what's going on. I liked book 1 almost as much as book 2 but not quite as much. Book 4 was okay, but not that great. I have had a really, really hard time reading book 3, which is surprising to me. It's the continuation of book 2 and since that was my favorite I assumed that I would love book 3 as well. No such luck. I highly recommend this book.

This is my absolute favorite Mary Brown book. Filled with fascinating and unique characters, the story moves along swiftly and is a greatly satisfying read. I've recommended it to many friends, and some have liked it so much that they have gone straight back to the beginning to re-read it immediately. While difficult to find these days, it is worth the effort to search it out.

Real fairy story telling with an engaging heroine.

first line: "The cave itself was cosy enough as caves go: sandy floor, reasonably draught-proof, convenient ledges for storing treasure, a rain/dew pond just outside, a southerly aspect and an excellent landing strip adjacent, but the occupant was definitely not at his best and the central heating in his belly not functioning as it should."

This is a fantasy novel that relates the quest for freedom of five unlikely companions: a girl, a raven, a cat, a toad, and a fish. Each have suffered related enchantments from the same witch: in each of their bodies, the witch has embedded a jewel that binds them (allowing them to communicate with one another) but also physically cripples them. It sounds cheesy, but I've always had a soft spot for this book; it's one of my guilty pleasures.

The first time I read it, I was a kid, scandalized by the sex and enamored by the relationship between the heroine and her animal companions. It made me cry.

The second time I read it, I was an adult: amused by the sex and enamored by the relationship between the heroine and her animal companions. It still made me cry.

....Incidentally, this book is one of the reasons I prefer to buy books rather than borrow them. The copy I read in childhood was a library book. Years later, I had forgotten the title and author but not the characters and their story. One day, in a used bookstore, I found myself thinking about it. I approached the fantasy section, looked up, and there it was. Ah, serendipity!

This was a good mix of historical fiction and fantasy set in the late 19th century. I liked the characters Sophie, Toby and Ky-Lin. The only downside was that I sometimes got annoyed at Sophie when she seemed to forget about the magic she learned and would think that she was dreaming. Now, to find the first three books of the Pigs Don't Fly series: The Unlikely Ones, Pigs Don't Fly and Master of Many Treasures.

I absolutely hated this book when I read it. I thought the main character was so incredibly stupid and annoying that I kept hoping she'd get herself killed whenever she was in trouble so some new (and more interesting) protagonist would take over the plot. I was also extremely annoyed by the fact that the book's main plot twist--that the flying pig is really a dragon--is completely given away by the moron who designed the cover.