Review: The Chosen - Ricardo Pinto

The Chosen by Ricardo Pinto

Book 1 of The Stone Dance of the Chameleon

Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 700 (paperback)
Published: 2000

Young Carnelian has spent his entire life alone with his father, who years ago rejected the savage cruelty of the Masters of Osrakum and was sent into exile. But now a ship has come flying through the winter gales to shatter his quiet world. Three Masters disembark, and as they remove their masks of gold, Carnelian is awed by the light that seems to radiate from their skin. In formal conclave they beg Carnelian's father to return with them to Osrakum to oversee the election of a new God Emperor.

And so Carnelian begins to fulfill his destiny. Along his perilous journey to the Osrakum, he is forced to learn bitter lessons in bloodshed, power, intrigue, love, and treachery--and sets in motion the concluding events in a story four thousand years old.

I sadly was not taken by this book, don't get me wrong. He is a great worldbuilder, and has created this rich and complicated race, and he is a good writer. But just because of that I do not have to fall for it.

First up is the main character whom I never connected with, a 15 year old boy who was so more humane than those other Masters that lives back in Osrakum. But I just never cared for him, or anyone in this book. I think this might be a character driven fantasy book and I have seen this year that those do not work for me. But great for those who love those kinds of books.

Also I need magic, wars and stuff in my fantasy, this could just have been in some far away and very creepy country.

The book also gave me a lot of questions and I need answers, there could have been more talk of how things where as they were. I mean the book had over 700 pages, but still I never got close to this rich world.

Also I do not want to read about a 15 year old boy having sex, especially since he always talked about the other one as a boy, did that mean he was younger? I hope not. So that did not work for me, and it felt strange since the road there was so much different than was what to come. Suddenly he was all whiny and lovestruck.

But yes do not listen to me, those were just things that did not work for me. But if you like character driven fantasy then this book is for you.

It is a story about a boy who grows up with his dad and all is fine, then the Masters come. He sees how cruel they are and when they leave for the mainland it gets worse. he might be one of them but he certainly not act like them. How anyone can live in that horrible society I do not know. There are also a lot of Eastern influences and he has built in it to make it a fantasy with those influences. Funny enough I love sic-fi like that but not fantasy. I can already imagine how cool this would have been in sci.fi.

So it is not the writing that did not work, it was just not the story for me. I can't like all fantasy which I have noticed.

Blodeuedd's Cover Corner. Fantasy

Reason for reading: My own book

Final thoughts: Did not work for me, but I leave it up to you to make up your own mind. He is a good writer. And the world is complex.