I guess that's a race. Like, omg. So cute I can't believe it. One thing I noticed about this book that's quite different from others I read, is that, well. I know all protagonists in books change from the beginning to the end, but then I just never notice. She DID change. And, I tell you, from a stiff formal girl to a stubborn, more realistic version of Taoshira.
And yeah. On the back it says "Ages 12 and up". There's nothing inappropriate about it, so, um. The romance is not porny Thank the lord and it's not too awkward and slow either.
It's just right. Not love at first sight either. It's hate at first sight and then realizing they love each other.. Okay, Cindy. I think the romance is at least somewhat like Fire. Unless, of course, the protagonist is male. But when he was first introduced, he gave me the impression of a spoiled prince who didn't know anything. So, let me prove my point. It symbolized her fragility- it was her symbol. And then he just takes it and refolds it into a crumbled paper dart, and makes her cry.
And then he takes her horseback riding, riding too fast purposely to bully her. A lot better! Not strong physically, of course, but strong in her mental mind, always showing her doggedness. They're always captured and abducted and at the edge of death but they never stop being strong.
Anyways, it's a really cute story of adventure. Really adventurous. Yeah, the more I think about it, it really is like The Princess Bride. And, that's it! This is definitely a recommendation. View 1 comment. Nov 15, Maria Elmvang rated it it was amazing Shelves: owned-physical-book , , fantasy , 5-stars , arc , A gorgeous fantasy novel with lots of humour, romance and action.
I was especially intrigued by how Tashi and Ramil not only had to learn how to get along, but had to learn to accept the traditions and culture of each other's countries. And I was totally taken in by Tashi's self-appointed protector Gordoc, who in his simple-mindedness often ended up more insightful than all of his so-called 'knowledgeable' friends. Jan 26, bibliophile Romance Addict rated it it was amazing Recommends it for: Fantasy readers! Shelves: favorites , arranged-marriage , enemies-to-lovers , ya , made-me-cry-like-a-baby , kidnapping , fiction , kick-ass-heroine , fantasy.
I expected a fantasy novel that has to do with magic, or fantasy creatures. However, I wasn't disappointed to learn that this has nothing to do with my expectations. It was so much more. This book made a unique world that had its own problems.
A realistic one where each land has its own culture, religion, and so on. When princess Tashi is forced into an arranged marriage with price Ram, she expects nothing from the rude easterner. On the other hand, Ram does not like the girl who paints her face white, doesn't show emotion, and is very quite. Both can't handle each other, until they're kidnapped and need to work together to save their countries from falling. Now, did I enjoy reading this?
I so loved how each character got over the other's differences. The character development was great. The characters were well written and not flushed out. I just wished the pace was slower so I could get into the book, more. Other than that, I loved how this viewed different cultures and religions. It didn't matter to the author who was right and wrong, and viewed every culture with it's positives and negatives, which made the world balanced.
Well deserved five stars! View all 4 comments. Shelves: fantasy , , ya. This wonderful tale of adventure, self-discovery and love is marketed to the year-old age group like Anne of Green Gables - always a surprise, since when I finally got around to reading it at 14 I really struggled with it , but is highly enjoyable for any age group.
Sixteen year old Taoshira, Fourth Crown Princess of the Crescent Islands, was elected at 12, plucked from her goat herd on Kai Island and has been immersed in formality, ritual and rigmarole ever since.
The other three Crown Pri This wonderful tale of adventure, self-discovery and love is marketed to the year-old age group like Anne of Green Gables - always a surprise, since when I finally got around to reading it at 14 I really struggled with it , but is highly enjoyable for any age group. The other three Crown Princesses are all much older and only one, the Second Crown Princess, Safilen, shows any kind of emotion.
With their fair hair, elaborate robes, veils and white face paint, the four princesses perform constant rituals to the Mother Goddess. Their land is prosperous and protected by a formidable navy; they alone hold the secret to cannon shot and rifle. Taoshira, or "Tashi" as she used to be known, submits to the formalities and rituals but a part of her is never entirely comfortable with them.
On the mainland, the Spearthrower is expanding his empire from Holt and Kandar to Brigard and now has his eyes on Gerfal to the north. The Gerfalans are ignorant of Blue Crescent practice and procedure and on arriving at their capital, Tashi is insulted constantly by their ill-mannered rudeness - and eighteen-year-old Ramil himself, who doesn't want to marry Tashi and makes no effort to hide his derision. A last-ditch attempt to mend the rift between the two royals results in them being kidnapped by circus performers working for the Spearthrower, who has great plans for both Ramil and Tashi.
And so the real adventure begins. One of the things I loved about this story was the Blue Crescent culture - with governance that reminded me somewhat of Queen Amidala of Star Wars fame the elected royal, the formal stiffness of posture, the white face paint and elaborate clothing , the people are also matriarchal and sophisticated. While they have their fair share of prejudice and the formalities make things excruciating, they have that hint of Asian perfection and exotic allure that always make a fantasy story exciting.
It's nice to have this culture juxtaposed against the more cliched "medieval" culture of the Holtish Empire and Gerfal: patriarchal, superstitious, warmongering, poorly educated. Niether type of culture is held up as a model; all have their faults as well as their benefits. Tashi is an interesting heroine: while protected by her role, she is regal and composed and older than her years. Stripped of it by her kidnappers, she's again just a girl with no real skills and few resources.
She's strong of will but passive by upbringing: an interesting mix - and she does have her wits, which are a resource that serves her well. Despite what the cover implies, she does not learn any fighting skills except for some self-defence that she never gets a chance to use. She does learn to ride a horse, however. Ramil likewise is a well-developed and well-drawn character. Even at his most insolent, in the beginning, he's still endearing and likeable, probably because his predicament is understandable and sympathetic.
And he really grows and matures and becomes more open to other cultures. I'd say the story is inspired by The Princess Bride - you have a princess kidnapped by a dwarf and a giant, rescued by a prince, and the giant becomes her good friend and protector. There are sword fights and a bad man bent on marrying the princess. It's a rollicking good tale from start to finish, very well-written, and my one complaint is the outcome for the Empire - though, given the setting and characters, they probably couldn't even conceive of a different way of governing.
Shame though. Aug 16, Sherwood Smith added it Shelves: fantasy. If I were still teaching, I would have bought a copy instantly for my classroom shelves.
I know I would have loved this book at age twelve or thirteen, and would have read and reread it passionately. Now I'm old, and I still found it perfect read for soggy hot weather after two days of insomnia. The Blue Crescent people are peaceful goddess worshippers. Gerfalians are military, with only men in charge, but they use crossbows and spears. They need an alliance against the evil, conquering Fergox of Holt--who is forcing worship of his bloodthirsty god over conquered territories--and his equally nasty sister Junis.
Unfortunately, Tashi and Ramil get off to a very bad start, as neither wants to marry the other. They don't understand or respect either the person or the other's culture. They endure two days of mutual dislike before they get captured, and hauled back to Fergox as part of the latter's expansion plans. The pacing keeps moving along at a fast clip, and there is plenty of action and fun dialogue.
Tasha and Ramil begin to change their attitudes toward each other--and to grow up fast, as they are constantly threatened with death. They also have other challenges. Tasha, regarded everywhere as a witch though the Crescent people don't do magic--there doesn't seem to be any magic in this world , is treated badly and then thrown into a dungeon until she agrees to give up the goddess and worship the bloody god.
Her faith takes a hard hit, which leaves her bewildered and in despair. Ramil, in trying to help, thinks about the big questions for the first time, but he also has lessons to learn.
As a prince, his life has been easy, and now he finally has to work at the lessons he ignored. They escape and get into a lot more action, meeting a variety of colorful characters along the way. I found Fergox and the horrible Junis amusing villains--way better than the usual Evil All The Time rug chewers--but the side characters are pretty stock. Golding keeps things moving fast enough that I never minded stock characters doing predictably stock things. A young teen without years of reading experience is not going to see familiar patterns, and be on the edge of her seat.
I liked the story, the evolutions of Ramil and Tashi's romance, and the lessons they learn, and though the world building was painted in pretty broad strokes, as were the characters, it suited the story. This was such fun. I've a grand niece I think is just ready for it. I can easily see it becoming her favorite book. View 2 comments. Feb 23, Victoria rated it it was amazing Shelves: favorite , read-in , fantasy , war.
I'm speechless!!! Ramil isn't happy about that too. They are too different. She is the Fourth Princess who is used to a life of discipline, ritual and splendor. Ramil is a "boor" who is used to hunting and horse riding.
There are Fantastic!!! There are few books that completely sweep me away into their worlds, and leave me thinking about them days after I've read them. Not only is the setting beautiful and vivid, but the characters are lively. It is action packed from start to finish with both adventure and romance.
There is never a dull moment. You can write a trilogy using material of this book. The conflicts between nations were complex enough to be realistic, but not so complicated that you can't follow them. The international intrigues were one of the best parts of the book. I loved Tashi and Ramil. I loved that Tashi was smart, had a deep sense of integrity and morality, and a strength of character.
They both learn to trust and rely on each other, and the end result is a breath taking love story that left me with a happy sigh at the end of their story.
View all 9 comments. Sep 27, Monique V rated it really liked it Shelves: fantasy , young-adult. This book has a great world and I want to read more books that take place here! Sep 04, Stacia the club rated it liked it Shelves: epic-or-high-fantasy , young-adult. This book could have been a 4 for me if a few of the overly descriptive parts had been left out.
Yes, I know While Golding has an excellent writing style and nice flow, I found myself skimming a few random parts that were only cosmetic to the story, and was still able to keep up with no problem. That said, this book was a pleasant read and I enjoyed it. It's always nice to read about growth in the main characters, and both the hero and heroine had to overc This book could have been a 4 for me if a few of the overly descriptive parts had been left out.
It's always nice to read about growth in the main characters, and both the hero and heroine had to overcome pre-programmed prejudices against each other's cultures. It was a cute fantasy story - good enough to pass the time.
Jul 20, Krystle rated it it was ok. Dragonfly has everything I could want in a fantasy book — action, romance, a beautiful cover, and well defined characters — but I just could not get into it. But the major downfall of this book is the plot. Well, Julia Golding is not lacking in that area, the plot was just not something I could get over. It became a drag and I quickly could not became engaged or care about the characters at all. There were a bunch of things that made me smile though.
I liked how that the two main characters are from different cultures and societies, and how they both have their own preconceived and biased viewpoints of them. The romance worked a lot better when they disliked each other.
I felt that they had loads of chemistry, but that all fizzled out when they finally admitted their feelings and got together. They became flat and dull, but I enjoyed how they fought their own separate battles in order to be together, instead of having the woman cling on to the man like a leech. Nov 06, Jessica rated it it was amazing Shelves: favorites , books-i-own , before I really enjoyed this book! It had everything I love in a book, comedy, action, and a love story with nothing too cheesy all mixed together.
There were times where I was freaking out about what was going to happen, if the characters I had grown to love were going to live or die. There were other times where I was laughing out loud right where I was sitting. And then there were times where I wanted the characters to pull it together and realize there feelings for each other.
I've noticed that I I really enjoyed this book! I've noticed that I kinda like a love story, when the characters start off hating each other. It makes it more interesting. Instead of instantly falling in love. I don't mind the instant falling in love, it's just some authors don't pull it off very well, so the love story doesn't seem believable, and it takes away from the story. But with this book I felt the love story was totally believable. They slowly got over the hatred for one another, then a friendship started up, and then the blossoming of there love grew at the right time, to make it very believable.
Even the secondary relationships were believable. I would definitely recommend this book. It was so good! If your looking for an action pack love story, this is the book for you. The only thing I didn't like about it, was that it's not part of a series. I was kinda sad when it was over, knowing there isn't going to be another book.
And those are always the kind of books I love. When I don't ever want it to end. But as all stories go it did end and if I may say so, it was a very happy ending, which I love! View all 3 comments. Jan 12, Valerie rated it really liked it Shelves: fantasy. A teriffic plot and a memorable story. The blurb explains what the book is about pretty well so I'll leave out an overview. I will say however, that their world was rich with different cultures and people.
Tashi and Ramil are quite a dynamic pair. I knew there was supposed to be romance in this book but I expected it to be different. They seemed so young but did things that were responsible-most of the time. They reacted off of each other most of the time. The secondary characters grew on me. How A teriffic plot and a memorable story. How come I don't have a big guy to watch over me, shove off anyone who's giving me a look?
This book had an underlying messages of religious tolerance and cultural differences. This was done well, meaning I didn't feel like I was being bashed over the head with the message. It also had other messages like the price of war and peace.
The only qualm I have with the book was Tashi. Now she is a good character all around but there were parts where I was just begging her to do something and she did something else.
It probably turned out best that she didn't do what I wanted her to but it frustrated me nonetheless. I guess I was expecting something like Tamora Peirce's headstrong kick-some-butt kind of things from Tashi though it was clear she just isn't the type to do that.
An extremely enjoyable read and I hope to find more like it. Sep 20, Maria rated it it was amazing. Read this as a kid- loved it! I can forgive a little awkwardness in an author's writing if the characters are interesting and the story engaging, but I think it didn't work for me because I had two major issues with this book.
Firstly, I disliked how Tashi completely assimilated into Ramil's culture. When the West versus East comparison was This When the West versus East comparison was set up, the Westerners were clearly too reserved and emotionless.
But to me, the Easterners were also flawed: they were too informal and overly touchy-feely. King Lagan was always hugging people he barely knew, or patting them on the shoulder, which seemed way too personal, especially for a king.
I figured that by the end of the novel, Tashi would have learnt to open up a bit more, and Ramil would have learnt to hold back in certain situations. But no, Tashi essentially abandons all her principles because she's realised that her culture is doing it all wrong and you have to be free with your emotions!
Um, sorry, but no. There's nothing wrong with being more circumspect and guarded. I also disliked how the only reason Ramil started to fall in love with Tashi was because she was beautiful. Once her face paint and veil were off, he noticed that she was actually quite pretty and had long fair hair, etc etc.
He repeatedly mentioned how beautiful she was, like it was all that mattered, while I waited in vain for him to notice her personality. How generous of him, right? May 30, Small Review rated it liked it Shelves: library-own-re , g-fantasy , library-own-e , library-own-e , library-own-print , library-own-rp , read , library-own-read , library-own , pagess.
Oh gosh, the blurb sounded like a recipe for success, but unfortunately the actual story fell flat for me. The hate-turned-love romantic device relies completely on the strength of the characters. They need to be interesting as individuals and there needs to be a spark bet 3.
They need to be interesting as individuals and there needs to be a spark between them. For me, neither of those factors was met with Tashi and Ramil. Tashi was nice, but part of her personality was that she was very closed off and removed. This makes sense for her culture, and it was fascinating, but it also served to close her off to me.
I felt like I was never able to get around her walls and know her on a deeper level. The glimpses I did see were likable. She began the book as a very timid girl, but she grew considerably through the book becoming a woman I would have loved if only she would let me.
Ramil pretty much killed the book for me. He irritated me so much with his bravado, impulsiveness, and stubborn inability to see beyond his own perspective. For fantasy lovers The world Julia Golding described was both familiar and creative. The competing cultures were detailed and extremely interesting to learn about. I loved learning all about the various customs and aspects of her culture. It was also interesting to see the clash of cultures.
Julia Golding superbly highlighted the truly alien feelings that occur when two distinctly different cultures meet. The plot itself was pretty standard fare for the high fantasy genre. The whole thing was very predictable and offered nothing new to the fantasy genre. If the characters had captured my heart, I probably would have made this a five star book regardless of the predictable plot.
The action parts were good, but even they needed that little boost that is usually filled in by the charisma of the characters. Should you read it? If the plot sounds interesting to you, then I think you should give it a try for sure. Apr 16, Marta rated it it was amazing Shelves: favorites , read-multiple-times , to-read-again , my-top-shelf , take-me-to-wonderland , a-couple-a-cuties , cool-story-bro , refreshing. Okay, first things first, favorite character: Gordoc. He was such a softy under all the muscle and I loved that he was like an uncle to Tashi!!
So protective, I love that. Prince Ramil: Y. Ram was And as you get farther along in the book you fall more in love with him. I loved that for once it was the guy getting jealous of the girl. And never once did he stray from his feelings for Tashi. And he redeemed himself on their journey amazingly. And he stood up for her when it would cost him. What else can you ask for in a guy? Tashi: Innocent. NOT a witch. Quite charming. But sometimes, a bit Other than that I really liked Princess Taoshira, and what cool name!!!
She wasn't a perfect princess which I liked. She wavered in her faith under her circumstances and doubted who she was. She got angry, unlike some characters where there just so proper they don't even show the common emotions!!!! I could understand her frustration and felt her heplessness at times. It so Perfect. No, realistic, ideal. And when Merl came along she wasn't so naive. And in the end she was a wonderful character!
Melletin and Yelena: Loved them. Witty and smart, and finally got some girl power going on!!!! Everyone else was special and defined and I thought the bad guy was "terror"ific Wow that was bad. He was super creepy and evil. I just LOVE this book!!!!!!! I just die a little every time I reread the end of this book, I just can't believe it's over and I don't want it to end!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Evil warlord is warlording towards a country. Country attempts to make alliance with other country but they are too different and friction ensues.
Things happen and people travel around and other things happen. Lots of fortuitous friendships are happened upon. Some more things happen. So, apparently I'm in the huge minority of people that don't think this book is all that great. And I think the reason that I think this is because it's all a little too planned out. I know, I know - books that are Evil warlord is warlording towards a country.
I know, I know - books that are planned out are good! It means the author knows where they want things to go, blah blah blah. But this was one of those books that even when things went wrong, they went right. There were no real disasters or anything. It's possible that the reason behind this is Julia Golding's background: she has written an awful lot of children's books.
And children's books tend to have a lot less 'ah, everything's going horribly wrong! DMCA and Copyright : The book is not hosted on our servers, to remove the file please contact the source url. If you see a Google Drive link instead of source url, means that the file witch you will get after approval is just a summary of original book or the file has been already removed.
Loved each and every part of this book. I will definitely recommend this book to fantasy, young adult lovers. Your Rating:. Your Comment:. Home Downloads Free Downloads Dragonfly pdf. Read Online Download. Great book, Dragonfly pdf is enough to raise the goose bumps alone. Add a review Your Rating: Your Comment:. The Glass Swallow by Julia Golding.
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