The Forests of Silence, by Emily Rodda
Book Review by David A. Olson
Have you read this book?
The Forests of Silence is the first book in the young adult (YA) fantasy series Deltora Quest. It's written for readers a little too young for Harry Potter, although I don't doubt that older children (and adults who are young at heart) would enjoy this book as well. It is set in the usual pseudo-medieval setting with evil assistants to the king, blacksmiths, and big forests filled with evil monsters.
There's nothing new here in terms of setting, or really in terms of the characters, who feel like they came from central casting. Which is why I was very surprised to find myself reading page after page, well past the point when I intended to stop and do something else. I think this is because Emily Rodda has an excellent sense of dramatic tension. Almost every chapter ends with a cliffhanger. The ones that don't still have endings that practically forced me to continue reading.
The book is split into two parts. In the first, the king is under the influence of an evil assistant who steers him the wrong way. In the second, years have past, and a new generation is searching for the seven lost gems of the magic Belt of Deltora, which will reunite the kingdom, destroy the evil, etc. (All the usual stuff.) I always dislike the "years later" thing as I feel like the emotional involvement I had before the time change was wasted, and this was no exception, as after the time jump we are introduced to new characters and can essentially forget the old. In fact, it might be just as well to skip to chapter 8 and start there, but that's just one man's opinion.
I'd recommend The Forests of Silence to anyone looking for dramatic, but not terribly original, YA fantasy set in the olden days. It's a bit of a guilty pleasure, and has little to challenge the mind.
There's nothing new here in terms of setting, or really in terms of the characters, who feel like they came from central casting. Which is why I was very surprised to find myself reading page after page, well past the point when I intended to stop and do something else. I think this is because Emily Rodda has an excellent sense of dramatic tension. Almost every chapter ends with a cliffhanger. The ones that don't still have endings that practically forced me to continue reading.
The book is split into two parts. In the first, the king is under the influence of an evil assistant who steers him the wrong way. In the second, years have past, and a new generation is searching for the seven lost gems of the magic Belt of Deltora, which will reunite the kingdom, destroy the evil, etc. (All the usual stuff.) I always dislike the "years later" thing as I feel like the emotional involvement I had before the time change was wasted, and this was no exception, as after the time jump we are introduced to new characters and can essentially forget the old. In fact, it might be just as well to skip to chapter 8 and start there, but that's just one man's opinion.
I'd recommend The Forests of Silence to anyone looking for dramatic, but not terribly original, YA fantasy set in the olden days. It's a bit of a guilty pleasure, and has little to challenge the mind.
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