Book Review: "The Forests of Silence" by Emily Rodda

SPOIL-FREE SUMMARY

Jarred and the young Prince of Deltora grow up together, but eventually are forced apart when he is crowned king. He waits till his friend calls him, but the kingdom is beyond saving from the the Shadow Lord by then. Eventually, Jarred and his wife have a son, who grows up. They ask him to set out on a quest to retrieve seven stolen items that will restore power to the king and free the land from oppression.

CAST OF CHARACTERS

Jarred grew up in the palace as the prince's best friend. He is rebellious, questioning the Rule about not leaving he castle, and is often considered a bad influence. But his curious nature leads him to learning about the Belt of Deltora and its powers.

Endon is a rather sheltered prince. He doesn't question the Rule about not being able to leave the Castle. Because of this, he is rather naive, and easily manipulated.

Lief grows up under the rule of the Shadow Lord, enforced by the Gray Guard. He thinks its unjust and is slightly perplexed to why his parents are so meek and obedient.

Barda is the son of the maidservant of the young prince. He escaped as a child. He is not quite sure that Lief is up to the task, and lets his speculation show sometimes. He has experience with fighting and monsters and Lief learns to follow his lead.

Jasmine has lived her life since childhood alone in the woods with only animals for company. Because of this, she is rather blunt and often loses her temper. She has rare abilities, like being able to hear tree's talk, as they often warn of danger. She becomes a guide for Barda and Lief.

PACING

The first part of the story is paced slower than the second part. We get a history lesson, which is important but slow. As well as Jarred waiting around for Endon, and becoming a blacksmith. But this part is brief.

FORESHADOWING

The author uses foreshadowing to break in different situations to urge the reader on. Often warning about trouble that is about to happen, or a mistake that has just been made.

STRUCTURE

The story is set up into two parts. In the first part we learn all about how the royal family came to neglect the belt. It is the first seven chapters in a sixteen chapter books, so a little less than half. You could argue that the first part is just a prologue, and could have been summarized. But it doesn't seem to distract from the main story in my view.

PUZZLES

A good part of the story are puzzles and riddles. And often times I found myself stopping and trying to solve them myself. They are not overly difficult, nor too easy. I was surprised to find I cared at all about solving them, as I have never had any fondness for riddles or puzzles growing up. But Rodda makes it fun.

LIEF THE HERO

There is one scene in the beginning of part two, where Lief gets mad about how he has to sneak around. He is mad that he has to live under the rule of the Shadow Lord. But it seems like a basic teenage rebellion, with not much depth behind it. So when he agrees right away to go on a quest, I was kind of taken aback. I felt if he had such deep convictions, it should have been explained better. Maybe he witnessed some terrible things done by the gray guards (they are mentioned, but in vague terms).

JASMINE THE GUIDE

Jasmine plays an important role, as she saves Barda and Lief. Also, she guides them to where the Topaz is. Basically, she is essential to the story. She even helps them in the end in an unbelievable way.

SHARN THE WIFE

There is a short scene with Sharn, Endon's wife. She calls out to Jarred, as if she knows him personally, which felt weird. And then she ends up doing something rather shocking. The scene felt odd. I guess it was to show us that Prandine, who served the shadow Lord, was not to be a real problem.

BARDA THE WHAT? SPOILERS

One other criticism I have is Barda. He doesn't have much of a role. He is supposed to be able to protect Lief, but he doesn't' really do much of anything. His one attempt to defeat an enemy ends in failure. His main role seems to realize that Lief is worth bringing with, as he admits in the end. Even so, he should have been shown as someone that Lief could admire and want to prove himself to for his good qualities. Note merely because he existed.

EXPLICIT CONTENT- SPOILERS

Lief witnesses some giants spiders being eaten alive. A man is thrown out of a window to his death.

CONCLUSION

Rodda paints a simple story with unique monsters and likable characters. The riddles and puzzles make it unique from other tales. I give “The Forest of Silence” three and half stars.