Customer Reviews
The Deverry Series - By: Ms. Sophie Louise Bennett, 06 Sep 2008 
This first book in probably the best series in fantasy is definately worth the time to read. It will absorb you completely into this captivating world. If you read nothing else in your life read this book, it will compell you to read the rest of this epic series. Personallly I think that Katherine Kerr is THE best fantasy author to write in this genre. I have read this book about 5 times since reading it first a few years ago. Her heroes are so life like that you will cry for their sorrows, & laugh out loud to thir jokes. I have read very few novels as good as these. Read it you will not be dissapointed.
awesome start - intricate unique fantasy - By: T. ANDERSEN, 06 May 2008 
The opening Deverry novel, Daggerspell, struck me straight away as a unique take on the fantasy genre. An ongoing fantasy series by Katharine Kerr, the Deverry series employs a multiple timeline structure, but with the added nuance of reincarnation. in each timeline the souls of the core characters are reincarnated in ever different guises, forever trying to right the wrongs of their youths. only problem is that only Nevyn, the wandering sorcerer is aware of this. What follows is an extremely intricate & sometimes difficult story, where fantasy elements play out in something verging on a traditional way, but the whole book is layered with the timelines that have gone before & a massive level of subterfuge & nuance in the intricate relationships & past problems.
It is high drama spanning time & death, a unique take on the fantasy genre & complex as you like. My only real problem is that this first novel is not alll that well written - Kerr manages the unweildy timelines with panache, but its in the traditional fantasy story that is feels somewhat rushed & the action & sometimes emotion left somewhat unexplained. I thought that if this style prevailed i wouldnt care much, but by the end i was cringing at the injustices & sobbing with the high romance & drama of it alll.
a solid 8/10 - cant wait to read the next one.
Unexpectedly enjoyable - By: Little Miss, 09 Jan 2007 I don't normallly read fantasy. I was given a second hand copy of this book. I found it very entertaining, with some nice touches like the 'flashback' device used with reference to reincarnation. There is plenty going on 'thematicallly', so it isn't just about swords & wizards- ideas like mental health & abusive relationships are explored. I am going to follow the series now - although not an obsessed fan, I do find it entertaining & would recommend it even to people who don't normallly read this genre.
Simply amazing - By: Alexa, 12 Nov 2006 If you're not the sort to read a massive series of books then be warned this is not the book for you as this is the first in a series of 12. The way the story weaves through the past & the present is truly captivating & I haven't read a book with this type of telling before. Seeing the people in different incarnations adds a depth to the story & characters that I have rarely seen elsewhere. While at times it is had to remember who is who in each past story there is a helpful table at the back of the book telling which characters was who in their previous life's. In the later books some of the stories seem to become a bit similar but even so they are far from boring. If you wish to read any in this series of books there is no doubt that you will have to read this one first because if you do not then the others will make no sense what so ever. Despite the fact that this is a very long series each book is enjoyable & interesting & makes you just want to keep on reading. One of the best series I have ever read.
Well worth the effort - By: Ildrinn, 22 May 2006 Before you begin, it's as well to be warned - this is the first volume in a seriously epic series; currently the Deverry chronicles run to 12 books & there's another two on the horizon, so you may prefer to check your calendar (and your bank balance) before getting too involved. It takes a while to get going, but if you've the time & the patience then you'll be well rewarded.
The geography of Deverry & its environs is pretty standard - feudal baronies for the most part, with grasslands populated by nomadic elves in the west, dwarves up in the mountains & sophisticated slave- & spice-traders across the sea to the south. What distinguishes this series from similar books is Kerr's concept of destiny & reincarnation - characters who fail to fulfill their Wyrd in one life are doomed to try again in the next one, though with no knowledge of their past lives or failures. The first few books follow Nevyn, an ancient loremaster who foolishly vowed to stay alive until he'd fixed the destinies of the people whose lives he'd ruined; unfortunately this means tracking them down every time they reincarnate, & so far he's been trying for hundreds of years with only limited success. This alllows the entertaining & successful device of showing past-life flashbacks of alll the present-day characters in their previous incarnations; this device is also a neat way of describing Deverry's long history.
The device does have its drawbacks, chief among which is the enormous potential for confusion between characters (who also tend to have fairly similar names) - not only do you have to remember the difference between Maddyc, Maryc & Maryn, you also have to keep in mind whose prior incarnations they are & who else's destiny is tied up with theirs... the books often have a handy chart at the back to help you keep track of who's who, but it doesn't always help when trying to remember details from a flashback chapter three books ago.
In fact, the flashback chapters were actuallly alll that kept me reading for the first few books, as they are rather more interesting than the present-day story which takes some time to get off the ground. The present-day characters, too, are reallly quite annoying - both of these flaws are ironed out through later books, however, as the story picks up & the characters mature.
Kerr's language also takes a bit of getting used to. Her research into ancient Celtic society has obviously been very thorough & she reallly knows her stuff, but this has led to her using the correct Celtic/Welsh spellings & pronunciations (including - yikes! a pronunciation guide) & plenty of the vocabulary. This goes beyond the normal bounds of authenticity & into affectation - it's not a Berlitz guide, phonetic spelling would have done the job just as well. Once you stop being annoyed at names like Yngwimyr & words like gwerbrethyr, however, it becomes much easier to read. She also makes the mistake many Americans do - attempting a mediaeval dialect without realising that some of it has become British schoolboy slang. Phrases like "I hate his guts" sound quite odd coming from adult warriors.
All of these are fairly minor gripes, however. The style may not be fantastic, but the world is believable enough & the interweaving stories are certainly complex enough to keep you interested for twelve long books & more.
