Book Review: "Lake of Tears" by Emily Rodda

SPOIL-FREE SUMMARY

Lief, Barda and Jasmine head for the lake of tears. But their journey is slowed by a bridge-guarding monster, some Grey Guards and some man-eating monsters. Along the way they find a guide and a friend but still have to defeat the monster, Soldeen. Not to mention the evil sorcerer Thaegen.

RETURNING CHARACTERS

Lief does reveal some more of his personality. There is a time where he gets homesick but gets mad at himself. He doubts himself on more than one occasion, cursing his stupidity. He feels quite real in these moments. And there are moments of profundity where he wonders if some unseeing hand is guiding their journey. He thinks back to how he and his friends used to laugh at such ideas of having faith. It shows growth.

Jasmine reveals more skills, such as being able to see through a spell. She is also much more suspicious of people they come across. While Barda and Lief seem quite naive, it's Jasmine who has to point out the obvious. Also, she is crucial to saving their lives in one scene, showing not just her bravery, but her cleverness.

Barda once again doesn't seem to have a real purpose. The only use he has is he becomes a translator of Manus. I could understand that, perhaps if he was a tagalong, like Jasmine. But Barda supposedly watched over Lief his whole life. And yet he isn't much help so far.

When Jasmine gets stuck in quicksand, Barda can't pull her out. Even though she is most likely half his weight and he is supposed to be rather big and tough. It's Lief who has to figure out a way to save her. And I could understand Lief's naivete in a certain incident, but Barda, a grown man, can't sniff out any hints of deception? I started to wonder why he was there.

NEW CHARACTERS

Manus is the man they end up rescuing. He cannot speak and communicates in writing. Barda translates for him. He is very grateful for the rescue and insists on guiding them to the lake of tears. He is also very brave.

Thaegen is the sorcerer that rules this area. Jasmine is afraid for Kree, because she killed the raven's family. Thaegen is invincible, because she wears armor, and the only way to kill her is to draw blood.

Soldeen is the monster that guards the Lake of Tears. He is more than he seems.

PACING

The pacing is just as good as the first book. Rodda uses many of her trademark, cliffhanger endings.

FORESHADOWING

There are multiple hints of foreshadowing such as the guard of the bridge they meet in the start of the book. The end result is a sign of things to come.

As well as the riddle that Lief has to solve. Make note of the names that are sung to him.

And there are times where the narrator steps in, saying that they "should have listened to Jasmine", or that "Lief would never forget what happened the next day", ect.

RIDDLES

There are a few direct riddles in the beginning (I had to stop and try to solve Lief's math riddle), as well as some indirect ones left for the reader to solve. There is also a deceiving sign. See if you can figure out what words are missing. Not to mention a secret language that you will probably be able to figure out even before Lief does.

THE CLIMAX-SPOILERS

One might feel cheated as it is not our heroes that defeat Thaegen, but they do the brunt of the work beforehand. The monster in the lake of tears was much more dramatic and requiring more thought than Thaegen. I am not sure how I feel about that, seeing how she was built up before hand. I wish that had played a part in her downfall.

I like all parts of stories to come from purposeful actions. I Would forgive an accident, but the whimsical act of Lief's led to a huge part of the story. It took a large coincidence to do so. Also, the truth about Soldeen also comes from a rather odd source, Lief proclaiming his willingness to die for his friends. Although in all honesty, this comes from his actions, not just his proclamation, so I can forgive that.

EXPLICIT CONTENT

The group comes across stolen items from those that were drugged and eaten by monsters.

CONCLUSION

Rodda creates another well paced story with unique monsters and likable characters. Her riddles and codes make her stand apart. But Barda still feels useless and we get cheated out of showdown with Thaegen. I give “Lake of Tears” three and a half stars.