Heroes of the Valley

Good but not Great

Well I thought that it was a good book that had some good twists and turns. The thing I hated however was the ending and the way the author set things up and just kind of dropped them after building suspense. I enjoyed reading it but there were many times that I found myself wanting more out of this book. The main character is likeable but never actually becomes any kind of real hero in the end. I thought that this book could have done a whole lot more with such a good concept. Therefore a 3 out of 5.

Simply Brilliant!!

I recently purchased this book and I simply love it....it is not like other books I have read. Sure it has an unlikely hero and a villain a quest etc., but it also has a daily life quality. While some may call it boring or slow, it really allows you to see character relationships and really understand why certain things had to happen and HOW they actually came to occur. Each event and each line pushes the rest of the book forward. I would definitely recommend it to avid readers. Even if at first it seems to be incessantly boring, perservere and you will find a story of true heroics and how a trouble-making boy becomes a life-saving hero. =D

NO!!

This was one of the first books i had bought in a while, i thought it sounded good. I could not really get into it but i figured it was just because most books kinda have a slow start. This book was just awful, parts were okay and then it just got so boring and i could not even stand it. I would not recommend this book. Don't waste your money on it and buy a good book.

Good Book

A younger son, Halli Sveinsson rebels against his parents' and village's expectations through a series of endless (mostly harmless) pranks and escapades. But when his beloved uncle is murdered by a rival house, Halli sets out to avenge his uncle, a quest that will have startling repercussions for all of the residents of the valley.

Halli's people and those of neighboring villages have long confined themselves to their valley, safe behind rock walls and cairns, for fear of the man-eating Trows that roam the mountainsides. Halli and his friend Aud doubt the stories--no one, after all, has ever SEEN a Trow and lived to tell the tale. Surely they're only stories...or are they? Stroud leaves you guessing 'til the end. The two's attempts to push the boundaries of their peoples' beliefs, to break tradition.

I loved the details that Jonathan Stroud put in the book. I'm hoping this may be the start of a series--while it's utterly complete within itself, there's room to expand on Halli's story and what lies beyond the valley.A coming of age story. An epic fantasy adventure. For any fans of Eragon, or Ranger's Apprentice, or even Sea of Trolls this one's a must-read. A definite reccomendation to any friend.

The True Hero of the Valley by; Jess R.

In Heroes of the Valley, Jonathan Stroud explores the controversy of medieval democracy through the eyes of an ambitious but conflicted boy, Halli. In this action-packed fantasy, the houses of the Valley base their lives on the stories of heroes who had established their house . Over a vast amount of time, the stories become contorted in order to suit each house, forming arrogance in the house's leaders. This arrogance leads to the many family feuds that continue to afflict the houses until violence occurs, ending the peace that the civilization had worked so hard to establish. The writer reflects on how violence is inevitable, even if humans believe we can completely tame our primal instincts of selfish ambition.
Throughout the beginning of early childhood, Halli builds his character off the arrogance of preceding heroes who have been long dead. His aspirations are reflected by the ordeals he deliberately causes as a child in attempt to escape the mediocrity of farm life. He decides to become a man of action rather than one of reason. Although few share this same ambition, the houses of the valley that had once resided peacefully together began to feel the tension of power. The only thing that links the rival houses together was the paralyzing fear of the trows, monstrous creatures that lurk beyond the cairn border, confining them to the safety of the Valley. Soon, hostility arises and tempers flare . This sparks into violence, and an old feud between two conflicting house members leads to the death of Brodir, the beloved uncle of Halli. In order to avenge his uncle, he leaves on a quest to avenge his death, igniting the hatred of rival house. He soon learns that no action is without consequences.
Though Heroes of the Valley is a wonderful piece of literature, there are few that would not enjoy it. With an ending that has more of a deeper emotional meaning, few would find it adequate for a novel primarily based on action. Many could, at times, consider it boring. Although it has many great action scenes, it is also thick with emotional character development. Overall, the reading experience of the book is enriching and extremely enjoyable.

Jonathan Stroud - what happened?

I absolutely loved the Bartimaeus trilogy, also by this author. At least I think it was also by this author because this book was terrible from start to finish. I tried and tried to get into the story with the characters at the beginning but it was broken up by retelling of "historic" folk lore stories and present day events. This had a disrupting effect on the progress of the story. I almost gave up, but I never give up on a book. Then at the end, I actually yelled out loud my disgust when the source of evil was revealed. How awful. Don't read it, even if you liked Bartimaeus. It was clever writing but the characters, story, beginning, middle and end were terrible. Sorry Mr. Stroud.

Could have been Great

Overall the story was good except for 3 things that could have made it great. The first is just a personal issue for myself the main character's name always bugged me because it kept reminding me of a girl. The second issue was the lack of expansion on the male and female lead relationship leaving the ending unclear. I was lastly very dissapointed by its ending, to predictable and left me with many questions.

Good Book

Good read with great twist at the end.

Extremely Witty

Overall, this had to be the wittiest book I have ever read. Throughout the whole book I found myself laughing to myself because it was so very funny. I love the way the book was written and there was not a moment where I found myself bored. The characters were very real and it was refreshing to read a book where the main character is homely instead of being perfect looking. The only problem that I had with the book was the ending, which seemed very rushed to me. It ended so abruptly that I found myself wishing it had continued on for just a wee bit longer. I recommend Heroes of the Valley because it was a very entertaining and well written.

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