Reviews

Isolde, Queen of the Western Isle: The First of the Tristan and Isolde Novels by Rosalind Miles

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jay_kay_dee's review against another edition

2.0

Meh. I already know the story of Tristan and Isolde, of course, but that doesn't mean the book couldn't still be enjoyable. Not so. Clumsily written, obvious prose, long streams of description. There are much better renditions of the Arthurian legends out there.

krausemouse's review against another edition

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5.0

This is probably my all-time favorite series. I don't know what it is, but it is always the first trilogy I mention when I talk about my favorite books... and I have a LOT of favorite books. :)

biajo83's review against another edition

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4.0

This is an interesting retelling of the Tristan and Isolde tale. I first grabbed this book because I loved the cover, but the inside keeps you hook. It the right blend of magic and realism that put you right in the middle of it all.

mclizzy6710's review against another edition

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2.0

This is the second trilogy I've tried to read by this author and I'm convinced she's just not for me.

whitneyswin's review against another edition

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3.0

I had forgotten how depressing the tale of Tristan & Isolde is when I started this book. I appreciate the author's attempt to make it less so, but I still wasn't a huge fan of this book. There was an overabundance of description, and I can't say I liked any of the characters except Brangwain, Isolde's maid. I'm not going to read the other books in the trilogy.

wslockard's review against another edition

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2.0

Not a great modernization of the tale of Isolde. It feels almost like a fetish the author has about paganism, many moons ago when “goddesses” guarded the precious land of Eire. Also, quite the complex plot device was needed to justify the dumbass decisions of Isolde and her Tristan. “Oh, they fell under a powerful spell set by a witch and a ladies maid.” The author couldn’t tolerate the thought that the couple might have just been stupid.

jabberjawsjoy's review against another edition

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1.0

Character development was adequate, story itself was predictable - not interesting enough for me to see what happens in the series. I am a fan of Arthurian legend, but this was seriously lacking in depth and plot.

bohemianasl's review against another edition

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2.0

The writing in this is pretentious and overblown. Miles seems to think that all she needs to do is begin two-thirds of her sentences with prepositions and we'll be magically transported to the time and place in which she envisions her characters to run about "tearing their hair" all the time. Seriously. I counted at least five places where she used variations of that phrase. Frankly, I was ready to tear my own hair if I had to read about one more character wanting to tear their hair.

This world is better visited in the Mists of Avalon. Different characters, but the same world and much better writing.

reindeerbandit's review against another edition

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adventurous slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

this was better than expected!! mind you, i only had low expectations because of how terrible the movie tristan and isolde was, with sophia myles and the awful franco. however, my friends and i loved that damn movie deeply so i also wouldn’t have even picked the book up without it. such is life.

i loved the matriarchy. i loved the obvious disdain for christianity. i love lore. i love ireland. it was very over the top, but aren’t all legends?

literarychanteuse's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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