[.ca] Slaves of the Mastery (ISBN 078681800X)

solid sequel but not as imaginitive as the original:
Slaves of the Mastery picks up several years after the events of the Windsinger (first book of the trilogy) and in plot and structure is similar to its predecessor, though not as original in thought or imagery. Once again, the book examines a dystopic setting. In this case it is The Mastery, a city-state of slaves and masters, one of whose leaders has raided the Manth city and taken its inhabitants, including the main characters from book one, into slavery. The book once again focuses on the Hath family (including this time Pinto, the baby in book one, who is accorded more of a place here) and a small circle of friends as they first are first taken, then herded into a forced march from Amaranth to The Mastery, then attempt to escape. Kestrel and Bowman, the two siblings and the main focus, are separated early on and as did the first book, this one soon evolves into a split structure, interweaving between Bowman and his family's march and Kestrel's attempts to follow them in the guise of a servant to a vain and powerful princess on her way to marry sight unseen the chosen son of the Mastery's leader. Eventually, the two stories coincide in the climax of the book. This is certainly a young adult novel, and the slim setting details, quick pace, and thin characterization are what one would expect. The book, however, is much darker than usual for this age group in terms of tone and specific detail and can be jarringly so at times. Nicholson certainly doesn't sugarcoat despair or tragedy here. Being a YA novel, coming-of-age themes are readily apparent and Nicholson does a good job of showing the development of Bowman, Kestrel, their friend Mumpo, and Kestrel's princess. If their development is predictable or obvious, it is probably more a nature of the genre than the writing, though YA doesn't preclude a more subtle touch. Other characters are sketchy and somewhat two-dimensional. This unfortunately includes the mother and father, who play a major role. The mother especially is not only not fully fleshed out but is actually pretty annoying as a character. The plot is not as episodic as the first one, which allows for a tighter focus and more growth in side characters as they are given more pages to develop. One of the strengths of the first book's episodic nature, however, was that it gave Nicholson full reign to indulge his imagination and while he didn't hit a home run for each adventure, he came up with enough startlingly imaginative events that it kept the book fresh and exciting. This book isn't as imaginative and therefore also not as interesting or compelling. The lessons of the first book were pretty simple but here Nicholson moves into more thoughtful, more abstract, more open-ended worlds. If the characterization is perhaps overly simple for the audience, he certainly does not condescend when it comes to the larger issues of the book, which give pause for thought to any adult let alone a young teen. Once again, the book closes with a sense that there is more to come and if this one isn't as strong as the first, it holds interest enough to make the reader hope for better in the third and keep on with the series.

Wonderful!!!:
This is by far one of the best books I have EVER read. This is an amazing writer. This one even rivals Harry Potter. Anyone who likes a good mix of fantasy, suspence, and action would love this book. When I read the first book I wasnt all that impressed, but this book is amazing. It doesnt even feel like the same person wrote the book. This is a must read!!!

Big surprise:
This is a brillaint book. The first one was already exciting and absorping but Slaves of Mastery is breath-taking! I am a girl from Hong Kong. I didn't read much books before. But when i first saw Volume 1 and 2 from Library I grabbed it. The first one was a kind of children adventure.It was beautifully written, especially the link between Bowman and Kestrel.it seems likea classic. In second one,Slaves of Mastery, characters have grown up to 15 years old which is teenage years. In Anamanth they married soon but Kestrel refused marry to anyone.This is a reflection in the real world though.Nowadays most people are lucky that they can choose their own girl-boy to marry. Not like Ortiz and Siso who don't even know each other.Mumpo was a really lovely and mild boy! He changed from adore to LOVE Ketrel and wanted to marry her. The storyline is so cool. Ortiz was a cruel leader under the Master and he burnt Anamanth. But you can't believe that Ortiz will deeply fall in love with someone who should not. Although Ortiz was cruel, he had a pure love for his lover. he daydreamt about her a lot.^^He was the one who Anamanth people aimed to revenge for... This book has some scenes very cruel and terrible. It has more cruel and lovely scenes than the first! Especially the scene when Ortiz and his 'bride' were dancing!it was certainly a pure love for ortiz...Oh...he had a ending which surprised me...although he was really really really bad. This book made me cried a lot. it contains many many general touching. I run through the book and can't believe some horribe dying. I am highly highly recommend this book to everyone who loves fantasy story!Honestly, this isn't just a book only about three teengers' adventure! it was a truly touching, human-like and unforgettable story! I sincerely thank you the people who read my comments with tears! I hope you find my comments interesting and buy the book! Buy it! Buy it!!>

Better than the first:
I didn't expect much out of this book after being so disapointed with the first, but I loved Slaves of the Mastery. I think I could relate more to the main charactors (Bo and Kes) because they are much older than they were in the first book. I highly reccomend this book along with Firesong, the third book in the trilogy.