Product Description

Twenty years have passed since the tiny kingdom of the Icemark last defended itself from invasion. Now the imperial invader Scipio Bellorum is back - joined by his brutal twin sons. The Icemark's fate rests with Queen Thirrin, Oskan Witchfather - and their five strong-willed children. But not all the royal siblings are ready for the task. What of Medea, the dark daughter, poisoning the family from within? Or Sharley, the youngest and weakest son, strangely foretold to return with a blade of fire?

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7092 in Books
• Published on: 2007-05-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 640 pages

Review
A huge (in every way) disappointment, this bloated sequel to Cry of the Icemark (2005) bogs down a tale terrific at its core in a mire of uninspired subplots, unnecessary explanations and predictable set pieces. Twenty years later, crazed general Scipio Bellorum is again massing troops to invade the chilly Icemark. Suspecting that not even her nonhuman allies will be enough to turn the tide this time, Queen Thirrin sends Charlemagne, youngest of her five children, overseas to safety - but "Sharley" has other ideas, and even though hobbled by both polio and adolescent lack of confidence, he embarks on a quest to find new allies. Watching him grow, mature and meet new (if not particularly original) peoples provides the same fascination that his mother's similar journey supplied in the previous episode. Compelled to give nearly every character a point of view, though, Hill keeps putting Sharley's part on hold while cycling tediously through an unwieldy Icemark cast. Eventually the foes all come together, Sharley charges in with dark-skinned armies from "Arifica" mounted on horses and zebras, the cardboard villains are washed away in fountains of blood and Sharley's truly bad-apple witch sister Medea is dispatched to another dimension - doubtless to await the next sequel. Some good parts, but not enough to meet expectations. (Fantasy. 11-13) (Kirkus Reviews)

Customer Reviews

Amazing!
I was extremely wary of this book when I first heard that it was set 20 years after the first book as I had liked Thirrin and Oskan, but I have to say that this book is amazing!
The descriptions are wonderful and the battle scenes are lovely and gorey.
I cannot wait to read the next book!
By Nicole, aged 15.

Good, but could have been better
I felt this book was a good read. It was exciting and had likeable characters.

There are some things that I feel could have been a lot better though:

1. The character arc with the vampires slowly remembering their humanity after spending time with humans was a really good idea, but I didn't feel drawn into it. I felt that it happened too quickly. Perhaps spending more time on it or starting it earlier in the story would have helped.

2. Some of the weapons technology seemed badly researched. For example, making out that longbows are superior weapons to muskets due to greater range and rate of fire was true, but he ignored the advantages of the musket, namely its penetration power and the fact that it is much easier to learn to use than the longbow. This could have been an interesting explanation of the numbers of the Polypontans, their weapons are easier to use, hence they can more easily train large numbers of troops to use them.

3. Some of the language was too contemporary. Since it is a pseudo-medieval setting, the use of modern phrases had the effect of taking me out of the story and making the setting less believable.

4. The battles could have done with a bit more detail on actual maneouvers and tactics during the battles themselves. It just struck me as mobs of soldiers charging each other much of the time, though that might just be me.

5. Some of the cultures, particularly the Venezzians and the Desert People, where too much like transplants of historical cultures, specifically Venice and Arabia. Having familiar elements is ok, but I think these cultures didn't have enough originality in them to make them seem genuinely part of the world.

6. The plot seemed too much like a rehash of the first book. Though considering that the baddy is a general, I can't really think of anything else that could be done.

Anyway, that's what I think. It's a fun book. More aimed at kids than adults I'd say. It's the sort of book that you'd buy if you were looking for something fun to read, rather than social commentary or any of that kind of stuff.

Fantastic...
This is an excellent book and a sequel that does not degrade in quality from the first book, beautifully written it captures the imagination perfectly and creates an entirely original world. Historical truths mixed with pure fantasy are woven together into atruly remarkable tale of honour, battle and adventure. My advice to anyone is to buy this book (after reading the prequel) as you will never look back...