The Death of the Necromancer (Ile-Rien #2) in Building a SciFi/Fantasy Library

Aug 24, 2008 Mir rated it it was amazing

Shelves: mystery, fantasy, favorite

Now available for free online reading!

http://marthawells.livejournal.com/55... ...more

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Sep 22, 2019 Jamie Collins rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

2.5 stars. I nearly abandoned this early on, because while it’s not at all bad, it contains a great deal of the sort of action writing which bores me. The heroes spend a lot of time walking down streets, crawling through tunnels, climbing trees, picking locks, etc., and very little time giving the reader a reason to care about what they are doing.

I stuck with it long enough to finally get interested in the story, and I finished it pleasantly enough, but I found the characterization disappointing ...more

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Aug 04, 2007 Lorena rated it it was amazing

Shelves: fantasy

Originally read on my honeymoon in 2000, and just as amazing now as it was then. Both this book and the first in the series (Element of Fire) will work as standalones, but are better together. The 3-book series that follows is one of my favorite in all of fantasy. What I love about this book in particular is the immersive world-building, so real you can practically taste the coffee in the cafes and smell the misty cobblestone streets. I also love the characters, the mystery, and the action - and ...more

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Mar 03, 2014 Liz rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy, 20th-century, women-authors

Well, I seem to have exhausted the Read of Ile-Rien. I wish there were more books in this world. Still, the ones there are were definitely a fun read and, as I've been saying this whole time, hit all my fantasy buttons.

There are some authors who are great because they are very clearly doing new and innovative and interesting things and it's obvious from the cover. And then there are other authors who, in telling a familiar story and working within the tradition of epic fantasy, just do it better ...more

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Mar 15, 2020 Liz rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, 20th-century

This book did not end up getting the focused attention it deserved and also Nicholas Valiarde is delightful in the worst way and I understand his daughter SO WELL now.

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Jun 04, 2025 Tess rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, series, audiobook

This was a fun heist. Took me 80% of the book to realize what the timeline was, and a lot of the names sounded similar in the audiobook, so that's why it's only a 4 star instead of 5 - the moments of complete confusion were annoying.
but overall, I loved how competent everyone was at what they did. I love the vaguely Sherlock Holms and Watson vibes the secondary characters had, and I enjoyed Nicholas and Madeline's relationship.
Others have recommended starting on this one, not the first book in t ...more

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