REVIEW: A Hero's Tale by Catherine M. Wilson

A Hero's Tale byCatherine M. Wilson
Publishing information: eBook(Kindle Edition)
Publisher: ShieldMaiden Press, 1^stOctober 2008
ISBN 10: 0981563635 (Paperback)
ISBN 13: 978-0981563633 (Paperback)

ASIN:B001MBUDNU
Series: WhenWomen Were Warriors
Copy: Suppliedby Author
Reviewer: Kathryn

Blurb:“In Book III of thetrilogy, Tamras must make her own hero’s journey. She ventures intothe unknown and encounters a more formidable enemy than any she hasever faced. Character is destiny, and the destiny of Tamras and allher people will depend upon choices that come less from the skillsshe has been taught than from the person she has become, from her ownheart.”

AHero's Tale is the final part of Catherine M. Wilson's When WomenWere Warriors series, and it follows on directly from the end of thesecond. Together in the forest, Maara and Tamras find allies in thestrangest of places, but their happiness doesn't last. Whilst Tamraslearns valuable lessons from the new allies, it's only a matter oftime before her luck runs out.

Likethe previous volumes, I found the writing mostly clear, concise andenjoyable to read. The character development continued very well, andwhilst the number of characters sometimes became a little hard tomanage, Wilson left enough clues in the text to get a good idea oftheir differences. I'm finding it hard to find praise for this bookthat I haven't applied to the previous two, because it really is –once again – more of the same.

Thematicallyspeaking, Wilson again puts a lot of emphasis on love, but a lot ofthought is put into the other topics such as betrayal and hope, aswell as a look at the differences between cultures and communities.Tamras finds herself in various locations in this volume, and eachcommunity feels different. The Northerners speak in a differentmanner, the people of an important settlement have the oppositesystem for their rulers to Tamras' home – yet they're all in whatwe'd now consider the same country. These discussions andexplorations build the world in a way I've found few series to do,and I enjoyed how it made me think.

Interms of criticism, I found myself becoming a little uncomfortablewith the erotic scenes. It's not so much that I have a problem witheroticism, but whilst they originally offered some characterdevelopment, it feels like they were elaborated on to fill the time.I felt that I'd read it before, that these actions had been doneearlier, and it took away from my enjoyment a little. They were stilltasteful and had an air of beauty around them, yet I wished them overmore often than not.

Thepacing gained in the second part also seemed to fall flat with thestart of this volume, with the plotline seeming to just fade. I didfind myself a little confused with the plot and all its nuances, butI would say that's partially due to the inconsistent method in whichI read the book, but thankfully it's summarised a number of timestowards the end. I was a little surprised by the ending, but I foundit pleasant all the same.

Tosummarise, I felt A Hero's Tale was a slightly weak end to apowerful and emotional series, and whilst I enjoyed this volume theleast of the three, I still took a good amount of pleasure andenjoyment from it, as well as a level of sadness upon reaching thefinal page.

N.B.In a previous review, I mentioned the books felt like one book thatwas split up - I've been informed by the author that it was indeed asingle novel that was split into three parts.

Plot:7/10
Characters: 8/10
Style: 8/10

Overall:8/10