F/SF

Fun, irritating in places, and then fun some more. ( )

Emereck the minstrel is traveling with Flindaran, a nobleman masquerading as a mistrel, when he discovers, in an abandoned castle, an ancient, and magical, harp. He would much rather have not found it, because all magic has its price. He has an obligation to bring it to the guild, though, and that means he has to deal with other people's desires surrounding it.

Because the Harp of Imach Thyssel can make a badly wounded man whole, or kill an entire city.

Emereck is plunged into the middle of politics he wants no part of, and is going to need to learn very quickly who his real friends and enemies are.

Neither the plot nor the worldbuilding are as strong here as in the earlier Lyra novels, but it's still an enjoyable plot that does keep moving, and I like the characters. The narrator does a fine job, too.

Recommended. ( )

Eh. It has a good ending, but way too much of the story is spent floundering and with the good guys divided amongst themselves. They only ally after disaster, and even then Emereck remains very cautious. I understand his reasons...and it still makes for an unpleasant and unclear story. Motivations are obscured by the author - that is, the reader is deliberately kept in the dark about who is on which side, and in a few cases even about who some of the characters really are. Ryl and Kensal know what they need the Harp for, but their dialog doesn't give the reader any clue until Ryl explains to the Duke; Shalarn is clearly hunting the Harp, but again we don't learn what she wants with it until nearly the end; and so on for everyone. Even Flindaran's motives are unclear - is he a Boromir or was there another reason? Foggy, at best. And the final fight is rather contrived, dragging everyone to one spot and Revealing the Truth. Eh. It's not bad - not terrible - but a long way from a favorite. ( )

A good book. I wish it was a bit longer because it is a good story and well written. Good characters though their attachments form a bit quickly. Defiantly worth finding in a second hand shop. ( )