Green Rider by Kirsten Britain

It’s time again to post another book review but instead of writing about a book that I could only enthuse of I decided to write about one that gave me a decidedly mixed reaction.

Green Rider is the first book in this series and focuses on Karrigan G’ladheon, a merchants daughter. She has just run away from her elitist school as she’s treat too differently due to her common birth. What ensues is an adventure of epic proportions full of magic, colourful characters and self exploration. She comes across deceptively seductive beings tempting her to forgo her destiny and give in to them. Among this she discovers romantic possibilities with both a fellow rider and the Lord she is to serve. She’s determined to finish her task and fulfill the promise she made to a dying man.

The book intrigues me in many ways. Karrigan is a deep character with many levels and many different emotions. She longs to find her own place in the World, seperate from her family and the expectations of her father. Coming across the dying Fryan and discovering she could use the rider brooch seem like the perfect opportunity. You begin to love Karrigan immediately but I will admit that the book loses me a few times on the way. Kirsten Britain describes the World beautifully but sometimes goes into a little too much detail for my personal liking; I find myself skipping a fair few pages.

Not only does the tempo lose me but it seems that Kirsten Britain sets out from the beginning to make Karrigan suffer. She’s filled the character with so much of a noble spirit; Karrigan is compassionate, brave and all too ready to come to the aid of her friends. She’s never allowed happiness though; she’s denied the closest friendship she could wish for, she’s denied any love and she seems to suffer with unending torments. My question is: when will Karrigan get her happiness? I couldn’t say anything else bad about the book; it’s a well written, imaginative piece.

What do you think? Am I wrong? Please share 🙂

Sometimes…

I will be the first to admit that I’m no authority on poetry but I will talk of one if it peaks my interest. I have a wonderful friend that has blessed me with her friendship for a few years now but only recently did I discover her love of poetry. She has very kindly sent a poem to me so I can  show others of her creativeness and her love for the written word. It’s called Sometimes and though it is free verse you can tell from the beginning of her love of poetry. It’s also reminiscent of a poem I jotted down in Uni called Echo:

Sometimes I go quiet,

I have problems of my own,

Things I need to talk about,

But no one to talk too.

Sometimes I go quiet,

I have things that make me worry,

But no one cares enough to ask,

They all just turn their backs.

Sometimes I go quiet,

And won’t talk to you for days,

I’m not ignoring you,

I just have things to think about.

I like the repetition of the first line of each verse. It really makes the protagonist sound like they have something on their mind. It also makes you wonder of the despair the protagonist feels as it seems she has been ignored by all. Good job Marie (Marie Sherman was Evans) and keep writing and experimenting 🙂

What do you think?