Chaos

“Hannis Arc, working on the tapestry of lines linking constellations of elements that constituted the language of Creation recorded on the ancient cerulean scroll spread out among the clutter on his desk, was not surprised to see the seven etherial forms billow into the room like acrid smoke driven on a breath of bitter breeze. Like an otherworldly collection of spectral shapes seemingly carried on random eddies of air, they wandered in a loose clutch among the still and silent mounted bears and beasts rising up on their stands, the small forest stone pedestals holding massive books of recorded prophecy, and the evenly spaced display cases of oddities, their glass reflecting the firelight from the massive hearth at the side of the room.Since the seven rarely used doors, the shutters on the windows donwn on the ground level several stories below stood open as a fearless show of invitation. Though they frequently chose to use windows, they didn't actually need the windows a any more than they needed doors. They could seep through any opening, any crack like vapor rising in the early morning from the stretches of stagnant water that lay in dark swaths through the peat barrens.The open shutters were meant to be a declaration for all to see, including the seven, that Hannis Arc feared nothing.”

Sounds intriguing but um...“acrid smoke driven on a breath of bitter breeze”?

This book had definite potential but failed on many levels to live up to it. Overall I enjoyed it, but most of the time I was waiting for something to happen - things to be revealed/started and then...it ended.

The lack of any kind of clear plot line was aggravating because I went in expecting something interesting, some kind of research/quest/secrets/religion based mystery and then when everything was revealed I was disappointed at how last minute it all felt. Most of the book is based on Ana having this super frustrating drawn out romance with this Sam guy, and even that was bland.

The population concept of 1 million souls, constantly being reborn into new bodies was interesting but raised some awkward questions. Also, it seemed like we were supposed to believe that pretty much everyone lived in the main city but....why? Why not have more cities? There was one mention of a bird that lived on the other city of the world - and I mean really, if you have unlimited lives, why the hell would you spend all of them in the same place?? I really really wanted some more information about the world, there were a ton of cool details like dragons and mysterious white walls in the woods, a temple with a heartbeat and then in the end it was again - flat. I mean come on! You're apparently born fully formed, fully conscious and functioning, and trek across the world to find a completely built city waiting for you, BUT NO - lets not focus on the one really interesting item, lets instead learn about how Ana is writing a song but the melodies don't match up. Yeah, sure.

I guess we'll learn more in the other books but what I wouldn't give for writers nowadays to make each book interesting on its own - instead of needing the other two to complete it.

So far so good. I enjoy the main character's hard ass attitude, which is spunky but realistic and in keeping with her life experiences. At 100 pages in things are kind of settling into a rhythm that I hope doesn't keep up until the end - sleep/eat/train/compete.

Im intrigued by some of the minor characters that they've introduced. The world building is good, but there isnt enough of it - the authors use of imagery is excellent and I hope we get to see more than just the castle.
The history of the country is mentioned briefly, but never fully explained, Im a little confused about the layout of the country/timeline of events, I wish there was 1) a map, and 2) a preface with details about the current king's invasion. I suppose we'll learn more as we go?

They've glossed over the training crap, and focused more on the mystery aspect. The romance between the main character and the prince is irritating, I like the captain more. Also love the Nahima character, would love to see her fathers kingdom - the desert. Wish there were more small details about what the characters look like, how they act.

Theres some kind of mystery about her parents thats intriguing, and her connection to the fae queen's ghost that Im sure will feature in the next book. The magic system shown is also interesting.

Good climax, and enough of an ending to wrap things up nicely. Looking forward to the next book.

So...not a ton happened in this book: hiking, random treasure hunters/psychos, mountain lions, angst - but it was fanfucktastic. I dont know if its because I am shipping Ty/Zane so damn hard or what, but I am completely hooked on this series.
Seriously, its 2 am and Im forcing myself not to start on the third one, its that bad.

You know what I hate? When Im reading a book and near the beginning I think - Hey, I bet thats the bad guy. And then it is. I mean, if its a mystery....can we keep it that way until the end and not be quite so obvious?
Excellent character development - the mystery/cop aspect was well done, aside from what I said before. There was a little too much talking at times, but just enough angst that I was able to follow through and not skip entire paragraphs like I find myself doing in other books when the dialogue gets tedious.

Looking forward to the next books, hopefully the bad guy is less obvious.

ME = MAN - SO POWERFUL AND DANGEROUS NO ONE CAN STOP ME! But what is this? A gorgeous fragile woman with low self esteem that constantly needs rescuing? And what is that you say? You cant stay away from her, and are both suddenly in a love so strong that it conquers all things and completely changes both your personalities?

I believe after her first orgasm, (because of course shes a virgin) one of first her thoughts was: “ I AM NOW HIS WOMAN” I think it even had the all caps. Sigh.

Really? Can we all get over this bullshit already? Or at least have some kind of label so that women who actually want to read sexy books without the whole - ME MAN, YOU WOMAN thing, know to stay far farr away.

What I wouldn't give for a well written hot paranormal erotica novel that has a strong female MC and doesn't involve the words Anita Blake.

Much better than I had expected going in. Great storyline and characters - even though I had trouble differentiating between the numerous men with dubiously Scandinavian names. My favorite characters ended up being the wolves themselves, because they were some of the most developed and varied.

The writing is very straight forward and to the point, with little excess description or dragging on. I appreciated this especially during the month-long march sections of the story, and the epic battle scenes.

The wolf mating portions of the novel were well written and realistic, they're definitly manly men who, for the most part, are doing it more for the sake of their wolves than anything. It at times made me wince in sympathy, but it was never distastful - just straight forward and in keeping with their society.
Next book could maybe feature a non-hetero guy who actually enjoys the implications that being bonded to a female wolf has? Just saying.

I liked the development with the troll storyline, and only wished that the history between the trolls and the svartalfar was further expanded. Id enjoy a sequel possibly a couple decades later, in the ‘away' place that the surviving troll mentioned.

Could have used some kind glossary to keep track of the various places and people, as well as a general map.

“Where to?” Danny asked. No one had an answer. “I don't think it matters,” Pastor Don said.

It didn't. They spent the night in Valley Forge park, sleeping on the ground by the bus, then headed south, staying off the highways. Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina: they kept on going. The journey had acquired its own meaning, independent of any destination. The goal was to move, to keep moving. They were together; that was all that mattered. The bus jostled beneath them on its tired springs. One by one the cities fell, the lights went out. The world was dissolving, taking its stories with it. Soon it would be gone.

This bus of survivors, twelve in sum: they could have continued that way forever. And in a sense, they did. The green fields of summer, the abandoned, time-stilled towns, the forests thick with shadow, the bus endlessly rolling. They were like a vision, they had slipped into eternity, a zone beyond time. There and not there, a presence unseen but felt, like stars in the daytime sky.

*********

This was a confusing book, Im not going to lie. There were a ton of characters, and so many different story lines happening that it was really difficult to keep it all together. I had to re-read sections and google a lot of things that I had forgotten from The Passage. I think when all three are done and I re-read them again I will understand the little details that escaped me this time. He just had too many thing happening all at once, he was too ambitious and tried to cover too much and just ended up giving us little pieces of each story. I wish that I had gotten more from just the key people and he'd just let others slide off to the side. Or maybe kill some off? Or just stop introducing more people? I don't know, something.
Well written, exciting, but definitely a middle book. Considering it was called The Twelve - you would think they would be around a little more. Anyways, after all that it was still great, which I guess goes to show what a writer Cronin is.

This had all the elements that I want in a book but they never seemed to come together in an interesting enough way to make me want to keep reading. The world felt small, the characters were flat and although Im sure they get more interesting as the book goes on, I just couldn't make myself care enough to find out.
Generally “okay” but not enough to stand out (in my mind at least - seems to be on everyone else's lists right now).

Worth the wait x10.

Ended up devouring this in just over two days and my only regret is that I finished it so quickly instead of savoring it :(
People with a much better grasp of the English language than I have reviewed this better than I ever could - so what can I really say? I laughed (a lot), I cried, I was totally enthralled with the storyline to the point that I gave up all pretense of working and simply sat reading at my desk for two days. This series is definitely in my top 5 favorite fantasy series of all time, cant wait to buy a special edition matching set of 3.

...I honestly dont know what some of the twits on here are thinking with one or two stars.

Well....I suppose its back to stalking Rothfuss' facebook for updates on the 3rd book ;)

Good, down to earth advice from a man who knows how to churn out great books that appeal to the average man.
Combines a backstory that moves from humourous to heart breaking and back again, with such sage advice as to not let your powers of description get away from you, and to not be afraid to kill your characters. Uses a metaphor of a toolbox to work through basics such as characterization, vocabulary and how to ‘fear the adverb' that was surprisingly insightful.
King rambles on about how he learned to write, and while doing so provides some insight on how to learn yourself: “You can learn only by doing.” Made me feel less like I was reading a ‘how to' than getting a peak inside his head, and getting to know him a little more closely.

4.5 stars

Surprisingly good, definitely richer than I can expected going in. Excellent world building, interesting magic system, characterization was a little expected at times but still engaging. Good little twist at the end and the second book is set up nicely. Looking forward to the next one - coming out sometime in 2013.