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1 of 1 found the following review helpful:
A worthy sequel Mar 17, 2008
By Seth Kerin
Review by Seth Kerin
Shadow Over Shandahar: Warrior of Destiny
Warrior of Destiny is the second novel in the series by T.R. Chowdhury and T.M. Crim, and it shows considerable improvement over its predecessor, without taking anything away from the first novel which was great in its own right.
This novel begins at a fast pace, and covers what came before in helpful snippets that are not overwhelming. These little `reviews' are essential for us forgetful readers out there, without bogging down readers who have great memory with extraneous repetition. It's a tight balance, but it is done well here.
The motivations of the characters are very clear in the early going, and it strikes me as a book that could be as easily read even if one had not picked up the first novel. Throughout the novel, the true strength of character development takes hold. This is really the ace up the sleeves of the authors - they do an excellent job of working through their characters, making them real three dimensional people instead of merely two dimensional archteypes. Character motivation is really quite complex, even taking some clichés and making them new and different.
The only complaint with the novel, and believe me it is a minor quip, is again the number of characters. This is offset by the attention to detail that each character receives, but there are a lot of names and details to remember. Again, not enough of a gripe to even knock off a half-star, but something to note.
Shandahar is a complex world filled with complex characters. As with many great fantasy novels, there appears to be influence of Tolkein, Dungeons & Dragons, maybe even some R.A. Salvatore, among others, but the Shandahar novels attempt to take the greats and move them to the next level. Certainly that is a tall order, but Warrior of Destiny holds its own, and is definitely worth the read to any true fantasy fan out there, and any other avid reader willing to give something knew a try. I for one am looking forward to the next in the series.
better than the first May 16, 2008
By Jon Sutherland
"Akri Azerial"
For any one who has ever been a fan of novel series such as the lord of the rings, or sword of truth, or even the wheel of time(my personal faverite) the Shandahar duo is a safe bet to keep you up into the wee hours of the night hatin the thought of putting the books down. This novel the second in the series is one that will capture you and make you think you are the Adria or Sirion. or perhaps TC himself. which ever you relate to you are sure to find at least one person in this novel that will make you see yourself in a new light. A wonderful read that all people young or old would enjoy. and if you get the chance you can meet the authors and you will find some of the nicest and most down to earth novelist i have ever had the honor to call my friends.
 Much improvemed from book one! Apr 28, 2008
By Andrew Gray
"Beezer Review"
Shadow Over Shandahar: Warrior of Destiny by T.R. Chowdhury and T.M. Crim is the second book in the Shadow Over Shandahar trilogy. Being the second book, the action picks up where the first book left off. So, if you have not read the first book in the trilogy Shadow Over Shandahar then you really need to do that in order to understand most of the things that occur in this book. This is the second novel by the two authors and as such I was curious to see if and how their writing had changed since their first novel.
The plot of this book picks up where book one left off, the main characters are now battling an even greater evil that will have far reaching consequences if it is successful. There are numerous sub plots included in this novel as well. Such as one of the character seeking to be trained in the ways of magic at a mysterious citadel. Another sub plot focuses on the inner turmoil of a character as he begins to wonder what is real and what is not, as well as struggling between the truth and what is not. Another subplot focuses on a group who have pledged to do everything in their power to thwart an evil in the land. There is also the inclusion of a prophecy. Now, prophecies can be hit or miss with me in fantasy books. In some fantasy novels a prophecy is nothing more than a plot crutch that authors lean on to make things easier for themselves. However, the way the authors worked with the prophecy in this novel made a great deal of sense and it was not merely a plot point but added considerable value to the overall story. There are several other sub plots in this novel, but in interest of time I will leave it to the ones I have already mentioned. Like the first book, the plot (and sub plots) of this novel are expansive. The true beauty of the plot lies in when you are completely finished and you see how everything pieces together. It was close to mastery to make everything work as well as it did.
The characters in this novel are mostly characters that were present in the first novel. Some of the returning favorites are Adrianna, Sirion, Anya, Dinim, and Tianna. Being that this is the second book, the authors were allowed able to spend less time setting up characters and allowing them to grow. That is very evident in this book, the character development is fantastic. The individual character's motivations are easy to see, and understand. This makes the characters feel more real and interesting. Not only were the main characters well written, but the `bad guys' were equally as interesting. This balance in the characters gives the novel a more even feel to it. I can't stress enough the character development that was present in this novel. In the first book, there were times when the authors spent so much time on the plot and focusing on setting things up that characters got lost in the shuffle. That is not the case here. The characters are very much in the forefront and many of them really shine.
A couple minor criticisms I have with this novel are:
1 - One of the things that caught me off guard was a few descriptive scenes that though they fit the story, seemed almost to descriptive. It almost felt as thought the authors really wanted the reader to know just how evil some of the characters were and went out of their way to describe things. Sometimes, in my opinion saying less is actually more.
2 - The beginning of the novel seemed rushed to me. Not that the story, or characters, were poorly written by any means. More so that there were so many different things that the authors wanted to get going and set up for later plot points. It didn't feel like I had much time to really grasp some of the things that were going on before I was reading about something else starting up, or a character going somewhere else. I would have liked a little more set up at the beginning, but being that this novel also encroaches on the 600 page mark I can understand why things are as they are. It's just a personal bias of mine I guess.
Some things that I really enjoyed with this novel are:
1 - The characters in this book are simply fantastic. They have all the elements that make for memorable characters. They are well written, they each have their own unique voice, but more importantly, there are multi-dimensional. None of the characters are the two-dimensional cut-outs that you can find in sub par fantasy novels permeating books now-a-days.
2 - The plot of this book is also well written, but more importantly well thought out. The plot points that occur make sense and do not take liberties with the story. It is simply amazing that the authors were able to include so many different things, and not lose control of the story at any point.
3 - The last thing I'll mention is the magic and the all around fantasy element to the story. I don't want to say too much about this, for fear of spoiling things, but suffice it to say it is a big difference, in my opinion, from the first book. The authors have really stepped up and have some fantastic ideas.
Overall, this is a very good book and a big improvement from the first novel. There are still a few tweaks that I would personally like to see but it seems the larger stuff I had issue with in the first book has been corrected. The authors have really seemed to hone there craft from the first book to this one, one can only imagine the improvement that will occur in the next book. Where the first book was a solid addition to the fantasy genre, this book is one that begins to make its own way in the genre. It seems to step out of the shadow of others and become its own story. This is a story that many fantasy fans will enjoy if they but give it a chance. I, for one, can not wait to read the next book in the series.
0 of 2 found the following review helpful:
Better then Harry Potter! Nov 14, 2007
By Amber H.
"Number1fan"
This book is like read Lord of Rings with a little of Harry Potter. Its a really good Fantasy story. T.R. Chowdhury & T.M. Crim are best authors in the world. The more you read, the more you want to know about the characters in the story. I love this series and own both books and keep up one the next book.
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