Wednesday, December 1, 2010

The Great Tree of Avalon

By T.A. Barron

Book 1: Child of the Dark Prophecy
Start Date: 21 November 2010
End Date: 23 November 2010

Book 2: Shadows on the Stars
Start Date: 23 November 2010
End Date: 24 November 2010

Book 3: The Eternal Flame
Start Date: 25 November 2010
End Date: 25 November 2010

Overall, I really liked this series, although I wouldn’t recommend reading them back to back in five days. (By the time I got to the middle of the third, I was getting sick of the storyline and needed a break.) The trilogy is a hero’s journey with three interconnecting plotlines that might be a little confusing at first: Tamwyn, a wilderness guide trying to find his brother and his own sense of self; Scree, an eagleman charged with protection of Merlin’s staff, and the foster-brother of Tamwyn; and Elli, an apprentice priestess who sets off on a journey to the Lady of the Lake. One of these is the true heir of Merlin, with the power to save Avalon. Another is the Child of the Dark Prophecy, with the power to destroy it. I really liked the entire trilogy, although it could get a little bit slow at times. Barron mostly drew me in with his masterful descriptions of the world of Avalon and his expert weaving of the three storylines. Also, it often references the Lost Years of Merlin books by T.A. Barron because they’re semi-prequels. However, you do not need to read The Lost Years of Merlin in order to understand or appreciate the Avalon books, because even though they’re mentioned, it’s in the context of pre-Avalon history rather than as an essential part of the plot. Overall, these books are long but recommended.

2 comments:

eaglescry said...

So wait, where does the Great Tree of Avalon fit into this series? In what order do you read it w/ these other books?

Pica said...

You can read them in any order- it's not necessary to read the Lost Years of Merlin books first. However, these books do come after the Merlin books.

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