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List Price: $7.99 | | Publisher: Tor Fantasy
Salesrank: 512382
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| Media: Mass Market Paperback |
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Editorial Review:
The brilliant new saga is born ...
Rhapsody is a woman, a Singer of some talent, who is swept up into events of world-shattering import. On the run from an old romantic interest who won't take no for an answer, Rhapsody literally bumps into a couple of shady characters: half-breeds who come to her rescue in the nick of time. Only the rescue turns into an abduction, and Rhapsody soon finds herself dragged along on an epic voyage, one that spans centuries and ranges across a wonder-filled fantasy world-- a world so real you can hear the sweet music of Rhapsody's aubade and smell the smoldering forges deep within the Cauldron.
Description of Rhapsody : Child of Blood:
Rhapsody is high fantasy, descended from Tolkien's Lord of the Rings through Eddings's Belgariad and Malloreon series, complete with an elf-like people, cannibalistic giants, fire-born demons, and dragons. Inquiring fantasy readers will wonder whether it can live up to such distinguished predecessors. The answer is yes. Haydon's first fantasy is a palpable hit. The three protagonists are well-realized characters whose adventures are by turns hilarious, horrific, and breathtaking. Best of all, though elements are drawn from familiar sources ranging from Norse myth to Mozart's The Magic Flute, Haydon's magic worldbuilding is convincing, consistent, and interesting.
Rhapsody, a young woman trained as a Namer, can attune herself to the vibrations of all things, tap the power of true names, and rename people, changing their basic identities. Her magic lies in music: "Music is nothing more than the maps through the vibrations that make up all the world. If you have the right map, it will take you wherever you want to go," she tells her adoptive brothers. They are "the Brother," a professional assassin able to sense and track the heartbeats of all natives of the doomed Island of Seren, their homeland, and his giant sidekick Grunthor, a green-skinned Sergeant Major who enjoys making jokes, using edged weapons, and honing his cannibalistic palate. Inadvertently, Rhapsody has renamed the Brother Achmed the Snake, breaking his enslavement to Tsoltan the F'dor (a fire-born demon). Tsoltan sends minions in pursuit to rebind Achmed. The three escape into the roots of a World Tree, Sagia, emerging transformed into another country and century. But have they truly escaped the F'dor's evil? And how does all this relate to the prologue's story of Gwydion and Emily, two young lovers brought together across history and then separated by the mysterious Meridion?
Like most first volumes, Rhapsody contains a lot of background information and foreshadowing, though Haydon ties up numerous plot lines at the end. The dislocations in time can be confusing, and some readers may find that the very 1990s dialogue clashes with the epic storytelling of the descriptive passages. Overall, however, Rhapsody is a smashing debut that delivers hours of great reading and will have you impatient to read the rest of the series. --Nona Vero
Rhapsody : Child of Blood Reviews:
One of the most powerful series i have ever read 
2008-06-07 - I have read a lot of fantasy series, probably every series that is out their that got a lot of attention. i have also read a bigger amount of ones that didn't get as much.
I am writing this review years+ after finishing it and i still think about it. i really wish it went on. Don't get me wrong, the series ended beautifully but with all things that are great you just wish them to keep on going forever. The only reason why i haven't gone back and re-read this series is their is just not enough time in the day to keep up with all the quality recently published ones. If their is ever a lag in new books to read this is the first series i am reading over. of course i kept the books!! I keep all books i consider a 5+ read.
The series is about a woman that sorta gets kidnapped along with 2 shady characters and they hit on the most creative adventure of a lifetime. The books actually spans lifetimes, but they stay with the main 3 characters throughout. i know that doesn't make any sense and i don't want to give any thing away that will spoil the reading of the series. I love to be surprised and i hate spoilers.
the fighting and danger and magic is all very original . it is a very refreshing story, nothing in it is "same o same o".
great read, and you will want to re-read it too.
This book was amazing
2008-05-12 - Rhapsody was, by far, one of my most favorite books. It is beyond well-written, with characters that will not be forgotten for a long time. It's a very intricate story with many small pieces that won't make complete sense until the other two books. This is by far one of the greatest books I've ever read and takes up a place of honor upon my bookshelf.
That sinking feeling... 
2008-04-08 - Epic fantasy asks a lot of the audience. Many (though not all) epic fantasy stories ask that you invest yourself in another world, knowing you may not get the plot and character payoff till much later. This leads many a bibliophile to approach with caution, aware that they may realize their time was wasted several hundred pages in (or several books in; you Wheel of Time readers will know what I'm talking about). I call it 'that sinking feeling', and RHAPSODY falls into that category.
RHAPSODY is the first in a series (of course). 200 pages into this book, I got 'that sinking feeling'. However, I had just prior pitched a book of another series into the pawn shop not 50 pages in because I knew it was not going to get better. So I toughed it out, to the bitter end, thinking I'd been hasty last time.
My first instinct was correct. Rhapsody is a book that begins well, but quickly loses it's way. Early into it, the characters are together on a long trek thru the earth, and having no one else to talk to, begin to grate each others nerves. Soon you feel the same way toward them. These characters begin to annoy, and with no clear antagonists around to drive most of this book, you will have nothing distracting you from the inconsistent, unlikeable characters (altho Grunthor, a giant goon of a man, gets off easy; a likeable, utterly one-dimensional comedic side-kick).
Rhapsody is supposedly a former prostitute, but has the intellect of a child, making it totally unbelieveable that she could have survived on her own so long. She shudders* one moment at nothing, then acts cool and stoic in light of attrocity. Who behaves like this?
Which leads me back to 'that sinking feeling'. The first book in a series must do more than merely set up a situation, and develop the characters. It must be impressive, because you are asking the reader to bear with you for more books ahead. I found nothing in this book that, in light of so many other fantasy books in any bookstore, incline me to spend any more time with these people or their world.
I don't mean to dump on an author so much on their debut, but I really don't have time to see if she gets better at this writing thing later on. I won't be reading any more in this series. Neither should you, your time is worth more than this.
*and speaking of shuddering, she does it about 25 times in the book. A writer needs to come up with more variations of character reaction than just to 'shudder' at everything. It drove me insane.
Meh. 
2007-10-12 - I gave this book a try... I really did.
But, and others have written better than I, it pretty much sucked.
I am not going to go on and on as to why.
I just found it boring and silly.
It didn't grab me.
It didn't excite me.
There are authors out there that are amazingly good at worldbuilding.
They do not need to resort to some authority-figure character spending pages and pages telling the history of the society to the protagonist and the reader. More than once.
I just finished Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel series for the second time and was looking for something new and as good --- but this was not it. Not even close. And I am still looking.....
A Beautiful Fantasy
2007-06-03 - I got this book at a bookstore a few years ago, not thinking much of it, just that i wanted 'something' to read. This is without doubt, my favorite book in the entire world! Its a little bit of all my favorite genres: Fantasy, Romance, Science Fiction... so i was really impressed and hooked right away. The tie between the three main characters is inseperable and the humor of this book is practically tangible. I loved this book! I couldnt put it down and as soon as i finished it i ran to the bookstore to get the other two of the first trilogy! I highly recommend it!
