Becky Baldridge
Let me start by saying the Kevin Hearne is a talented writer with some absolutely brilliant stories. I loved his Iron Druid Chronicles and was so excited to see this start to a new series. A Plague of Giants comes in at 600+ pages and is quite the undertaking, especially with so many characters and situations. The premise is an exciting one and quite often, there are some amazing scenes to hold a reader's interest. The problem lies in the execution of the story. It is told by Dervan, a historian and that, in itself, wouldn't be bothersome except that Dervan is retelling the stories that the bard, Fintan, is telling to the people gathered to listen. So, basically, this is a story of a story, or more accurately, several stories of stories. The way the bard goes about it is imaginative with the optical illusions and colorful language, but each chapter is a different story. By the time I was able to get into each individual tale, it was coming to a close and time for the next, creating a rather disjointed story. As this is a series, the story will continue in the next book, but by the time I got to end of this one, I found that I'm not sufficiently invested in any of the characters to see where it goes from here. Hearne is a favorite for this reader and I'll be looking forward to seeing what comes after this series. Unfortunately, this one missed the mark and was just okay for me.
3 people found this review helpful
Bernard Robert Reyes
There are characters that are engaging and disengaging as well. But overall the book is a disjointed mess. I like the Iron Druid Chronicles but this is not a worthwhile read. I get the point of trying to vary the way a story is delivered but this type doesn't work. You don't have a sense of fulfillment and eagerness for the next installment.
Kevin Salisbury
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Generally, I enjoy many types of science fiction from a wide variety of authors and styles. The main storyline and plot is a pretty good one and the structure is uniquely formed making it an interesting read. By the end the format was starting to become a little tiresome, but it works for one novel at least.