Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Review: The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley



Title: The Blue Sword (Damar, #1) 

Author: Robin McKinley 

Rating: 3/5 Stars

I don’t get it. I just don’t. Robin McKinley’s The Blue Sword has been acclaimed as one of the most remarkable fantasy novels of our age, but I am unable to see why. I suppose the best way I can describe The Blue Sword is to tell you that it is similar to a camp-fire story – entertaining, filled with action and heroes, a rather under-developed romance, and ultimately, a story that needs to be told again and again with more and more details filled in every time. In fact, I would go so far as to say that while I loved the world-building in this story, much of it felt like a mere outline which McKinley had forgotten to go back and develop in many parts. Thus, while I most certainly liked this novel, I by no means loved it and nor do I see exactly what is so remarkable about it.

I suppose it all really comes down to the writing style and execution of this story, not to mention the characters. Harry Crewe, our enigmatic heroine, is kidnapped from her foster home and taken to the Hills where the Damarians, mysterious hill-folk that can perform magic, reside. It is a dangerous time for her nation as the Northerners, an inhuman race, plan to attack and the hill-people of Damar whose numbers have steadily dwindled for years, are in grave danger. Thus, their king, Corlath, looks to the Outlanders for aid and, when receiving none, feels a strange pull towards Harry, who seems to have an affinity for the magic of the Hills as well. It is then that Harry realizes her true destiny as the savior of these people and along with the legendary Blue Sword, sets out to meet her fate.

The Blue Sword sounds interesting enough and I suppose it is, but it took awhile to get into. I felt as if the writing style was deliberately distant and slow-moving and it took awhile to become accustomed to it. In fact, I’m still not sure if I quite am. McKinley tends to describe many aspects of Damarian life such as customs of the hill-folk, the beautiful horses they ride, and even the setting of her lands, but she fails to make the reader connect with anything much beyond that. Not only does her writing wander a bit, she also shifts between using the Damarian and Outlander names for certain things which becomes cumbersome and irritating after awhile. Yet, I found the biggest downfall to be in the characters themselves.

While I loved the strong themes of woman empowerment in this story, I never felt a connection with Harry in the least. Not only is she vastly different from other characters, she is incredibly mature – so mature that she does not question the reasons for her kidnapping as she begins to innately understand them, but nor does she question any of the other actions in this story. Furthermore, while we are told about Harry’s conflicting emotions concerning the Damarians and the Outlander heritage she has grown up with, it is hard to sympathize or feel for her due to the narration. Thus, I was quite annoyed with Harry for her utter placidness and inability to take action until the last part of the novel. Yet, while I enjoyed the battle scenes in the end, I never felt as if I could pinpoint or understand Harry’s growth – it was all very sudden and hard to truly see. Furthermore, the friendships she made were never elaborated on and became strong with a simple smile, which leads the reader to believe that there are missing pages from their copy of the book. So really, Harry was not the only under-developed character in this tale.

That being said, I still did like reading The Blue Sword. It had many technical flaws in its writing and narration and while I could not connect with the characters and don’t feel as if I know Corlath, the enigmatic Damarian king who later becomes Harry’s husband, I think the setting and political intrigue of this novel is remarkable. Yet, I firmly believe that in the hands of a different author, The Blue Sword could have been the fantastic tale other readers gush over. For all my enjoyment of this story, I don’t think I will be reading much more of Robin McKinley in the future, not matter how wonderful her storytelling is proclaimed.

17 comments:

  1. I'm sorry that this was such a disappointment for you Keertana, but am glad that you at least liked this one. Surprisingly, I haven't heard of this one before!! It sounds MG-ish though, which is something I'm not completely sure that I'd enjoy. The writing style sounds very strange, and the characters definitely seem very dull. And characters are so important for me!

    I think I'll have to pass on this one. Thanks for the super helpful review Keertana! <3

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    1. Yes, I'd probably have to recommend that too, Aneeqah. I think a lot of people read this at a younger age and loved it, but reading it now, I just didn't enjoy it as much as other readers seemed to. Plus, as you said, the characters were definitely rather dull and strangely written. Anyway, I'm glad my review helped! :D

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  2. Thanks for such an honest review, I guess it comes down to different opinions? I often read books that have received LOTS of hype and plenty of 5star reviews only to be disappointed. I'm glad you managed to enjoy for the most part!

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    1. Yup, I think it just came down to opinion and writing style. I wasn't able to really grasp or get into the manner in which this novel was written, so it didn't quite work for me. I did enjoy it though, so I guess that's what matters!

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  3. I have never really been too interested in reading this book. I actually didn't even know it was as popular as you mentioned! It's a shame it didn't quite meet your high expectations Keertana, but I'm glad you still liked it. It sounds like lots of different aspects of this book were lacking in good development. I doubt I'll be reading it any time soon, but thanks for the helpful review! :)

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    1. You're welcome, Sam - I'm glad you found my review helpful! It definitely didn't meet my expectations and I was rather disappointed with it, but I'm not sure if my dislike of it was just my problems with the writing style. If/when you do read it, I'll be interested to see what you think! :)

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  4. I've tried to read BEAUTY by this author several times and could never get into it--it sounds like I'd feel the same way about this book. Always disappointing when a book you hear so much about is one you don't have a positive reaction to. :(

    Wendy @ The Midnight Garden

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    1. Wendy, it definitely is! McKinley is known for being such an amazing fantasy author, but I can't see why. I guess it really is just a matter of writing style though since you didn't seem to enjoy her other novels either! :/ I read this along with a few of my other GoodReads friends during a readalong and they weren't too fond of it either, so opinions seem to depend on personal tastes it looks like. I guess I just don't have what it takes to join the McKinley bandwagon! *shrugs*

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  5. I haven't read this one but I did read Sunshine by this author. Her writing style does take some getting used to but I ultimately love the story. This one doesn't seem to attract my attention as much. The fact you just felt it was "okay" just re-affirms my hesitancy. Great review Keertana.

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    1. Thanks Rachel! I'm glad you were able to enjoy McKinley's other novels! Perhaps you might like this one better than I did? If you do get around to reading it, I'll be interested to see what you think! :)

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  6. I've never actually heard of this book before, but it sounds like it has a lot of potential, I'm glad that you enjoyed it overall despite some of your issues with it! A lovely review Keertana, I may have to check this one out :)

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    1. Thanks Jasprit! I'm thrilled that my review didn't put you off of this one! It definitely have an interesting premises and I love the world-building and concepts, I simply had issues with the writing. Hopefully you'll like it better than me! :D

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  7. Oh, overly mature characters are always hard to connect with! Harry seems like not my kind of character. I think I might have some problems with this book because writing plays important part in my verdict. But I'm happy that you still can find things you enjoyed in this book, Keertana! <3

    Beautiful review as always! <3

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  8. Hmm...perhaps this is a case of people having loved this one as a child and it not working as well if you first read it as an adult? I reread A Wrinkle in Time last year and was upset by how not good I thought it was when I'd adored it as a child. I read this one something like 15 years ago, and was actually thinking of rereading it, but you've certainly given me pause. I'm sorry that the characters didn't really flush out for you, but you've given a lovely and fair review nonetheless!

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  9. I like fantasy genre, but it seems there are better books out there to read than this one.

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  11. I absolutely loved this book. While its true that its slow to pace, what you get is a lot of character growth and rich characters. Corlath is completely dreamy and Harimand-sol grows and thrives while offering so little complaint you have to be impressed by her dignity. Its a hidden gem and so far my favorite of Robin McKinley's books.

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