Poor sequel

I tend to cut sequels a lot of slack. Sequels are hard... particularly when the author clearly did not intend to write one from the start and did not leave much room for one.

That said, this sequel was just awful. The character who we know and love from River God is a self referencing caricature. The plot is more or less more of the same and the narrative style is weak. The plot does not really hold together and whole chapters could have been dispensed with as they did not advance the plot.

While I thought the first book was an interesting listen, this was an unworthy successor.

That said. I seem to be in the firm minority. Most other people who left ratings for this book rated it very highly. It is possible that I am missing something or just did not enjoy the original book enough. This gives me pause and suggests that you seek out other reviews to see if there is another side that I did not appreciate.

The narration and sound-quality were completely unexceptionable.

21 people found this helpful

Graphic Violence and Sexual Content

This book has a good story line, although it was somewhat predictable. I really like Wilbur Smith, but he is 'over the top' in graphic violence and sexual content. In most cases it did little to enhance the novel, and seemed so unnecessary (such as ripping babies from the womb). If you have sensitive dispositions, avoid this book. If you can overlook the violence, it is a good book to read

3 people found this helpful

Dissapointing because I loved River God so well.

If you loved River God, be wary of this title. I loved River God, and Dick Hill, but Smith takes an intentional turn with this novel, perhaps because he wants to take ownership of the story line (Smith claims River God was based on actual Egyptian scrolls), or perhaps because he wanted to bring mysticism to the forefront. Either way, the magic was gone.

Because this book is written in the third person, Dick Hill abandons Tiata's voice for the narration for a time, but it seems that he realized his mistake about halfway through and slowly made the correction. I was glad he did.

Three stars was too much, and two not enough. I say you should get this one from the library if you want to take a chance.

3 people found this helpful

I wanted this, but was a little disappointed ...

I loved 'The River God', and hoped Wilbur Smith would write a sequel. Even though all his peeps were gone, I wanted to know what Taita did in his later years! 'Warlock" certainly tells that. The characters are true, the writing fluid and fluent, the story engrossing, just not quite as enthralling as 'River God'. They're great together though!

4 people found this helpful

its good

if i read this book before reading River God, i might have loved it But as a sequel of River God this book is kinda not good. The main reason for me for not loving this book is how much Taita has changed. if he wasn't named the same name and not keeping on reminding and referring to actions of him in River God, i wouldn't have believed it was the same person.
In addition, i hated how they killed the king and old characters from River god in the beginning of the book... Didn't like that much, actually i really hated it.

This book is nice, and i did enjoy it, but still I loved River God and liked this one.

4 people found this helpful

Exceptional Listening!

Gripping story. Wilbur Smith paints a picture like no other. The narrator was superb and he made each character come to vivid life.

1 person found this helpful

A gripping tale... maybe a bit too wordy

Wilbur Smith is a master story teller but, as is the case with some of his books, he could benefit from an editor. At times it becomes a challenge to stick with it when the writing becomes a little self indulgent.

That said I enjoyed the story and it was narrated extremely well.

1 person found this helpful

Terrible.

What would have made Warlock better?

Beyond help!

What was most disappointing about Wilbur Smith’s story?

This series started fantastic and jumped off a cliff with this one. Got through about 6 hours before I couldn't take it anymore and considered driving into the guardrail.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

He was the worst I have ever heard. If you listened to River God and Warlock, this guys Irish/English Hobbit voice will make your skin crawl. At least pronounce the names of the primary characters the same as the other books in the series. How could anyone produce this recording and not understand that?The fluctuation in accent and tones were like nails on a chalkboard.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

Yes....I was able to return it for a credit!!!

1 person found this helpful

I'll quit the series now, they're not improving

I loved the first two books in this series. However, this one seemed to go downhill just a bit. Based on other reviews, I think I'll stop with this one. I do like the narrator though - does a good job with these.

1 person found this helpful

Entertaining but some gore & very adult material

If were made into a movie they would be hard put to not edit out some scenes or have a R or even X rating. I didn't appreciate the explicit gore much but did like the history being brought to life. Very life-like, including the sex, if that is what you are looking for in your library (I'm not) ; its all part of life.

3 people found this helpful