The Blue Sword (Damar, #1) in Beyond Reality

Aug 04, 2013 mark monday rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy-60s-70s-80s

a pleasure to read.

wonderful heroine. reminded me a bit of Brienne from ASOIF although quite a different character overall. I loved her nonchalant displays of bravery and independence, her easy acceptance of her own difference from others, her drama-free perspective on the world(s) around her, her quiet and her calm.

opening chapters felt distinctly like an alternate version of colonial era Britain. interesting path into a high fantasy novel.

best kidnapping ever! I never feared for her safety and ...more

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Jul 11, 2013 Oni rated it did not like it

Shelves: fantasy, young-adult

I read this book as a group reading assignment. Otherwise, I would have never touch this book. And after reading this one, I think I will never read anything written by McKinley.

First of all, the story line is predictable, simple, not engaging, even as a YA book, which means I have lower my standard. Once the story is laid, everything goes as predicted. No surprise, no excitement. So, if you do not like surprises, and expect happy ending in all the books that you read, this book is for you. It d I read this book as a group reading assignment. Otherwise, I would have never touch this book. And after reading this one, I think I will never read anything written by McKinley.

First of all, the story line is predictable, simple, not engaging, even as a YA book, which means I have lower my standard. Once the story is laid, everything goes as predicted. No surprise, no excitement. So, if you do not like surprises, and expect happy ending in all the books that you read, this book is for you. It does not mean I dislike all juvenile or young adult book, but this one is just below par. I can enjoy Nicholas Flamel series, even Percy Jackon. But not this one.

Secondly, the writing itself is not enjoyable. It is sub-standard, far from beautiful. The author is telling things that I don't care, and she did not do a great job in the process of telling it. Her descriptions of the setting is bland, and the character is one dimensional.

The story line is, a strong woman, Harry, saved the entire realm, by defeating the invasion by pulling of a very powerful magic, which no one can explain, even the author. That's all. And that is not even a spoiler.

Many reviewers have already mentioned that the woman character is a Mary-Sue, so I am not going to explore it further. The plot itself started quite OK in the first chapter. The setting is laid properly. And then it becomes boring. Later, going about one third portion of the novel, it becomes better. But later it goes down again, till the end. Even the climax is not good. The story is resolved with one single strike! And that's all. I feel cheated.

It would be ashamed to categorized this book as a YA. It would be better to consider this book as a children or at least preteen. The vocabulary is not difficult. The story line is not convoluted. It is a decent novel to practice your reading, but not to kindle your love for reading a decent fantasy novel. It is more like a fairy tale instead of a fantasy novel.

As a novel I will give it a ONE STAR. But as a children book, I still can give it a TWO STAR or even a THREE. For avid fantasy readers, avoid it like a plague. There are many other books out there. Don't waste your time. I begin to regret my decision to read this one. ...more

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Jul 03, 2016 Kerry rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, reread, 10-out-of-10, 2008, read-pre-tracking, favourite-authors, 2020, rereads-in-2020

REREAD: 22 March 2020 - 25 March 2020 (10/10)
Wonderful comfort reading in a time of stress (lockdown during 2020 Covid19 pandemic). Just what I needed. My reading goal is self care right now, so I'm not worrying about reviews, jut enjoying my books.

The Blue Sword - Robin McKinley
Damar, Book 1; 10/10
Having had two DNFs that were holiday reading, I found myself in something of a bind as I'd used by the books I'd brought with me. I looked through what I had on my PDA and decided to reread The Blue ...more

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Feb 02, 2009 Lisa rated it liked it

Shelves: from-the-public-library

I liked this book, but I have a problem with the heroine. She has zero inner life. She's like a kite on some mysterious and powerful winds. She doesn't seem to think about anything, or feel any emotions with much strength. It felt a bit hollow. ...more

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Feb 18, 2013 Christine rated it it was amazing

a great fanntasy; I've picked up a couple more of her books at the plbrary ...more

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May 13, 2010 Snail in Danger (Sid) Nicolaides rated it liked it

Shelves: fantasy-fiction, children-ya, whereisit-fsa

Maybe more like a 3.5. I just gave this a re-read, and I find that this book is less engrossing and exciting than it seemed when I first read it. Partly because "magic powers + destiny" is less exciting than it used to seem, as a premise.

Colonel Dedham is a nifty character, though. It's almost too bad he didn't get a little more face time. ...more

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Apr 22, 2010 Deedee marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Shelves: author-name-presidents, np-what-weve-read-2020-one, feminist-gr-list, title-color-red-white-blue, speculative-fiction-20-or-more, books-to-read-snow-is-falling, beyond-reality-unread, young-adult, young-adult-fantasy-and-sf, mythopoeic-award-nominees

(Lexile Score: 1030L)
IL: MG - BL: 6.8 - AR Pts: 17.0

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Jul 29, 2007 Wealhtheow rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy

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Sep 10, 2007 Tani rated it really liked it

Shelves: female-author, fantasy, youngadult, ya-fantasy

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Nov 01, 2007 Grey rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy

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Jan 26, 2008 Jeffrey rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

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Aug 03, 2008 christine. marked it as did-not-finish · review of another edition

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Oct 27, 2008 Sandi rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: audio, scifi-fantasy-horror-althistory, read-2003

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Dec 10, 2008 Antonio marked it as to-read

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Feb 03, 2009 Shanshad Whelan rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy, ya, books-i-own

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Mar 29, 2009 Janny rated it it was amazing

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Apr 08, 2009 Valerie rated it really liked it

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Aug 19, 2009 Megan rated it it was amazing

Shelves: re-read

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Oct 31, 2009 Stephen marked it as to-read

Shelves: fantasy, fantasy-high-and-epic

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Nov 30, 2009 Angela Randall marked it as to-read

Shelves: fiction, young-adult, kids, bruce-recommends, we-own, friends-recommend, award-winner, a-great-list-of-top-books-to-read, 20th-century, fantasy

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