What do you think?
Rate this book
The Kiesha'ra #3
Falcondance
Nicias has never felt completely at home among the avians and serpiente in Wyvern's Court, despite his loyalty to Oliza Shardae Cobriana, the heir to both thrones. He is a falcon, the son of two exiles from Anhmik and images of this distant island have always haunted his dreams. But when Nicias's visions become more like reality, his parents have no choice but to send him back to the homeland and a royal falcon they've tried their best to forget.
If Araceli won't bind Nicias's newfound magic, it could destroy him. In a place where everyone is a pawn, only one other woman has the potential to save Nicias. But she holds the keys to a dangerous power struggle that will force Nicias to choose between his duty and his destiny.
If Araceli won't bind Nicias's newfound magic, it could destroy him. In a place where everyone is a pawn, only one other woman has the potential to save Nicias. But she holds the keys to a dangerous power struggle that will force Nicias to choose between his duty and his destiny.
183 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2005
About the author
Amelia Atwater-Rhodes
45 books3,383 followersI grew up in Concord, Massachusetts, where I matriculated through the public Concord-Carlisle school district from kindergarten until my graduation in 2001. The best part of school, from fifth grade until the year I graduated, was definitely chorus. I love music, and I love to sing, and though I never had the courage or the talent to participate in any of the high school plays as a performer, I enjoyed being involved at other levels; the music and drama community at CCHS was the highlight of my high school career. I was also on the fencing team for two years, an experience that actually inspired a couple storylines, and regret that I did not continue with that sport.
I now live in Massachusetts with several pets... as well as, of course, my family. I am a student at the University of Massachusetts, with an English/psychology double-major. I hope to work either as an English teacher at the secondary level, or in special education. I have strong opinions about literacy, education, and how our educational systems are treated- strong enough that most of my friends know not to get me started on the subject.
My non-writing hobbies are eclectic, and cover everything from rather domestic pastimes like cross-stitch and cooking to aquarium keeping, playing piano, gardening, carpentry, Harley-Davidsons, driving, and arguing- there are few things I enjoy more than a good debate with someone who knows how to argue, which might have something to do with a best friend who works in politics. I love to learn, so if I have down-time and nothing to do, it is not at all unusual to find me pouring over some book, website or video designed to teach me some new skill, from belly dancing (something I desperately want to learn but have not yet been brave enough to sign up for classes on) to JavaScript.
I now live in Massachusetts with several pets... as well as, of course, my family. I am a student at the University of Massachusetts, with an English/psychology double-major. I hope to work either as an English teacher at the secondary level, or in special education. I have strong opinions about literacy, education, and how our educational systems are treated- strong enough that most of my friends know not to get me started on the subject.
My non-writing hobbies are eclectic, and cover everything from rather domestic pastimes like cross-stitch and cooking to aquarium keeping, playing piano, gardening, carpentry, Harley-Davidsons, driving, and arguing- there are few things I enjoy more than a good debate with someone who knows how to argue, which might have something to do with a best friend who works in politics. I love to learn, so if I have down-time and nothing to do, it is not at all unusual to find me pouring over some book, website or video designed to teach me some new skill, from belly dancing (something I desperately want to learn but have not yet been brave enough to sign up for classes on) to JavaScript.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 177 reviews
May 28, 2020
The truth is, I didn't remember the first 2 books in this series at all. And by the way, there is no romance in this book, there is quite a lot of fantasy and magic. And many women in power.
What is it about? Well, of shapeshifting breeds that live in permanent conflict (snake and avians), with mistrust and prejudice for thousands of years. The reason seems to be generated in a split of the races by magic, and the conflict has been helped by the falcons.
Queen Oliza's wyverns court appears to be on the brink of a new conflict, even though her parents have done their best to reconcile them despite being of two different races, pressuring her to choose a mate, and neither wants that the would-be-king of the other race that they do not favor.
This book focuses on Nicias, faithful guard of the princess, protector of the royal family. He is a friend of Oliza because they both share the conflict of being different, although in his case he leads him to live a life in which he mistrusts all Wyvern for being a full-blooded falcon. His parents fled the royal falcon court, preferring to lose their magic and true form to get out of there. But now Nicias is awakened by his magic, and this is deadly with no one to teach him how to handle it, and the only ones who can help him are those of the royal falcon court, of which he is the heir by blood.
Much of the story is a big one: "Who is telling the truth?" The unexplained fear of her parents (who do not give the image of very good parents), the people of the Wyvern court, Lily?, Araceli? The Emperatress Cjarsa? Darien? Those from the falcon court?
---
Did anyone here ever work under pure motives, or was it all a facade, layers upon layers of deception?
We are Ahnmik's chosen, and Ahnmik is god of control and power and the mind. These games are the way of our realm.
---
The center of everything seems to be who can we trust? In our memories? In what everyone tells us is the truth and how things should be? Do prejudices have a reason for being? On the other hand, Nicias is not a very heroic character, that of being tied by the oath to Oliza makes him quite 'square', he is not interested in anything else, he has no vision of the future in how everything he learns can affect the population in the future. And the cold way as it speaks of stripping someone of their magic as if that would not affect them at all ... Nicias as royal guard he is quite closed and with no future in view of all the decisions he is making.
The book ends with the idea that Hai will now influence upcoming events.
The madness of Eel and the magical ¿deities? that they dispute is rather confusing. But I would like to know what happens next.
----------------
La verdad es que no recordaba para nada los primeros 2 libros de esta serie. Y de paso no hay romance en este libro, hay bastante fantasia y magia. Y varias mujeres muy poderosas.
¿De qué se trata? Pues, de razas de cambiaformas que viven en permanente conflicto (serpiente y avians), con desconfianza y prejuicio por miles de años. La razón se genera al parecer en una escision de las razas por magia , y el conflicto ha sido ayudado por los halcones.
La corte de Wyverns de la reina Oliza parece encontrarse al borde de un nuevo conflicto, pese a que sus padres han hecho lo posible por reconciliarlos a pesar de ser de dos razas diferentes, la presionan para elegir un esposo , y ninguno de los dos quiere que el futuro rey sea de la otra raza que no favorecen.
Este libro se centra en Nicias, fiel guardia de la princesa, protector de la familia real. Es amigo de Oliza porque ambos comparten el conflicto de ser diferentes, aunque es su caso le lleva a vivir una vida en que sufre la desconfianza de todos los Wyvern por ser de sangre pura falcon. Sus padre huyeron de la corte real falcon , prefiriendo perder su magia y su forma verdadera para salir de alli. Pero ahora Nicias sufre un despertar de su magia, y esto es mortal sin nadie que le enseñe como manejarla, y los unicos que pueden ayudarlo son los de la corte real de falcon, de la que él es el heredero por sangre.
Gran parte de la historia es un gran: "¿Quién esta diciendo la verdad?". El temor poco explicado de sus padres (quienes no dan la imagen de muy buenos padres), la gente de la corte Wyvern?, ¿Lily?, ¿Araceli? , ¿Darien?, ¿La Emperatriz Cjarsa? ¿Los de la corte falcon?
El centro de todo parece ser en quien podemos confiar? en nuestros recuerdos?, en lo que todos nos dicen que es la verdad y como deben ser las cosas?, tienen los prejuicios una razon de ser?. Por otra parte Nicias no es un personaje muy heroico, eso de estar atado por el juramento a Oliza lo hace verbastante cuadrado, no le interesa nada más no tiene vision de futuro en como todo lo que aprende puede afectar a la poblacion en el futuro. Y la forma tan fria como habla de despojar a alguien de su magia como si eso no fuera a afectarlos en nada... Para ser un guardia real es bastante cerrado y sin miras de futuro por todas las decisiones que esta tomando.
El libro termina con la idea de que Hai ahora influirá en los próximos eventos.
La locura de Eel y las mágicas deidades? que disputan es bastante confuso. Pero me gustaria saber que pasa despues.
What is it about? Well, of shapeshifting breeds that live in permanent conflict (snake and avians), with mistrust and prejudice for thousands of years. The reason seems to be generated in a split of the races by magic, and the conflict has been helped by the falcons.
Queen Oliza's wyverns court appears to be on the brink of a new conflict, even though her parents have done their best to reconcile them despite being of two different races, pressuring her to choose a mate, and neither wants that the would-be-king of the other race that they do not favor.
This book focuses on Nicias, faithful guard of the princess, protector of the royal family. He is a friend of Oliza because they both share the conflict of being different, although in his case he leads him to live a life in which he mistrusts all Wyvern for being a full-blooded falcon. His parents fled the royal falcon court, preferring to lose their magic and true form to get out of there. But now Nicias is awakened by his magic, and this is deadly with no one to teach him how to handle it, and the only ones who can help him are those of the royal falcon court, of which he is the heir by blood.
Much of the story is a big one: "Who is telling the truth?" The unexplained fear of her parents (who do not give the image of very good parents), the people of the Wyvern court, Lily?, Araceli? The Emperatress Cjarsa? Darien? Those from the falcon court?
---
Did anyone here ever work under pure motives, or was it all a facade, layers upon layers of deception?
We are Ahnmik's chosen, and Ahnmik is god of control and power and the mind. These games are the way of our realm.
---
The center of everything seems to be who can we trust? In our memories? In what everyone tells us is the truth and how things should be? Do prejudices have a reason for being? On the other hand, Nicias is not a very heroic character, that of being tied by the oath to Oliza makes him quite 'square', he is not interested in anything else, he has no vision of the future in how everything he learns can affect the population in the future. And the cold way as it speaks of stripping someone of their magic as if that would not affect them at all ... Nicias as royal guard he is quite closed and with no future in view of all the decisions he is making.
The book ends with the idea that Hai will now influence upcoming events.
The madness of Eel and the magical ¿deities? that they dispute is rather confusing. But I would like to know what happens next.
----------------
La verdad es que no recordaba para nada los primeros 2 libros de esta serie. Y de paso no hay romance en este libro, hay bastante fantasia y magia. Y varias mujeres muy poderosas.
¿De qué se trata? Pues, de razas de cambiaformas que viven en permanente conflicto (serpiente y avians), con desconfianza y prejuicio por miles de años. La razón se genera al parecer en una escision de las razas por magia , y el conflicto ha sido ayudado por los halcones.
La corte de Wyverns de la reina Oliza parece encontrarse al borde de un nuevo conflicto, pese a que sus padres han hecho lo posible por reconciliarlos a pesar de ser de dos razas diferentes, la presionan para elegir un esposo , y ninguno de los dos quiere que el futuro rey sea de la otra raza que no favorecen.
Este libro se centra en Nicias, fiel guardia de la princesa, protector de la familia real. Es amigo de Oliza porque ambos comparten el conflicto de ser diferentes, aunque es su caso le lleva a vivir una vida en que sufre la desconfianza de todos los Wyvern por ser de sangre pura falcon. Sus padre huyeron de la corte real falcon , prefiriendo perder su magia y su forma verdadera para salir de alli. Pero ahora Nicias sufre un despertar de su magia, y esto es mortal sin nadie que le enseñe como manejarla, y los unicos que pueden ayudarlo son los de la corte real de falcon, de la que él es el heredero por sangre.
Gran parte de la historia es un gran: "¿Quién esta diciendo la verdad?". El temor poco explicado de sus padres (quienes no dan la imagen de muy buenos padres), la gente de la corte Wyvern?, ¿Lily?, ¿Araceli? , ¿Darien?, ¿La Emperatriz Cjarsa? ¿Los de la corte falcon?
El centro de todo parece ser en quien podemos confiar? en nuestros recuerdos?, en lo que todos nos dicen que es la verdad y como deben ser las cosas?, tienen los prejuicios una razon de ser?. Por otra parte Nicias no es un personaje muy heroico, eso de estar atado por el juramento a Oliza lo hace verbastante cuadrado, no le interesa nada más no tiene vision de futuro en como todo lo que aprende puede afectar a la poblacion en el futuro. Y la forma tan fria como habla de despojar a alguien de su magia como si eso no fuera a afectarlos en nada... Para ser un guardia real es bastante cerrado y sin miras de futuro por todas las decisiones que esta tomando.
El libro termina con la idea de que Hai ahora influirá en los próximos eventos.
La locura de Eel y las mágicas deidades? que disputan es bastante confuso. Pero me gustaria saber que pasa despues.
April 15, 2017
This has so far been my least favorite of the series which is sad because it had my favorite narrater to date. But I feel like the magic system while so expanded wasn't explained enough and so a lot of interactions left me confused. With a bit more length for really explaining how these magical things were happening I feel like it would have been an epic read.
January 20, 2013
This is the third book of this series and I think my favorite so far. I'd give it a 4.5 but rounded it up. When the previous book left off with Danica who is an avian (hawk shape shifter)pregnant by her mate Zane Cobriana (serpent shape shifter)I espected this book to be about their child. Danica and Zane united to bring peace to their people who had been warring for thousands of years. It is at best an uneasy peace, but here twenty years later it still holds. Their daughter Oliza is a wyvern shape shifter, a cross between the two species. (sort of like a dragon)
This book is actually about Oliza's sworn guard, Nicias, who is the son of two falcons who are valued and trusted members of the royal guard. However, they have had their power bound and physically shape shift into a crow and a sparrow - but that is all in the previous books. Because the binding did not affect genetics, Nicias is a falcon. The falcons live far away in a land called Anhmik where they have powerful magic and are known to be cruel and dangerous. Although Nicias is a trusted member of the guard, he still is distrusted by many because of his heritage. He is completely loyal to Oliza and they are special friends, partly because there can never be a match between them. She must choose either an avian or a serpiente as a mate.
This story mostly takes place after Nicias begins to show signs of magic and his parents and a falcon woman who befriends him insist he must go to Anhnik to learn about his magic or it will destroy him. The land of Anhnik is amazing and the descriptions and events that happpen there are a great read. Nicias is torn between who to believe, the story his parent told him, his friend who accompanied him to Anhnik or a strange woman who comes to him in dreams after he finds her locked away supposedly destroyed by magic. As the reader, I too did not know who to believe. When he learns the truth he returns home, but there is much much more to the story. I think the magic in this book was what I found fascinating and how it ties into a world I am now three books into. These books are all YA and suitable for any age.
This book is actually about Oliza's sworn guard, Nicias, who is the son of two falcons who are valued and trusted members of the royal guard. However, they have had their power bound and physically shape shift into a crow and a sparrow - but that is all in the previous books. Because the binding did not affect genetics, Nicias is a falcon. The falcons live far away in a land called Anhmik where they have powerful magic and are known to be cruel and dangerous. Although Nicias is a trusted member of the guard, he still is distrusted by many because of his heritage. He is completely loyal to Oliza and they are special friends, partly because there can never be a match between them. She must choose either an avian or a serpiente as a mate.
This story mostly takes place after Nicias begins to show signs of magic and his parents and a falcon woman who befriends him insist he must go to Anhnik to learn about his magic or it will destroy him. The land of Anhnik is amazing and the descriptions and events that happpen there are a great read. Nicias is torn between who to believe, the story his parent told him, his friend who accompanied him to Anhnik or a strange woman who comes to him in dreams after he finds her locked away supposedly destroyed by magic. As the reader, I too did not know who to believe. When he learns the truth he returns home, but there is much much more to the story. I think the magic in this book was what I found fascinating and how it ties into a world I am now three books into. These books are all YA and suitable for any age.
July 20, 2021
Ah. Now I know why this was my favorite of the quintet: it's one big worldbuilding lore dump.
I mean, it's not just a lore dump - it's also a window into a part of this world where you can have shapeshifting AND extra magic powers, which I'm a sucker for. The falcon society of Ahnmik definitely still has an oddly tragic appeal to me, in the juxtaposition of beauty and totalitarian rule, and in the way that its inhabitants are rarely ever able to leave but also rarely would.
My four-star rating, I admit, is largely influenced by nostalgia. This book makes me feel things, in part because I have a strong memory of being obsessed with it, and it was hard for me to put down. Objectively, it's probably not four-star quality, but that's how I'd assess its value to me personally.
While rereading, I found myself wondering what it would have been like if Atwater-Rhodes had written longer books in this series. I think it would have benefitted all of the installments I've re-read so far (maybe a little less dramatic poisoning/injury to lead to revelations, a little more slow character development and reflection) but especially this one. There's just so much revealed in this book; combined with the fact that love of the city of Ahnmik is supposed to be a kind of insidious thing, I really feel like that would have played better over more pagetime.
There are also some aspects of the writing which feel unpolished, especially blocking and dialogue tags; it was often hard for me to picture what was going on, and one of the climactic conversations was several Kindle pages of un-tagged back and forth, which felt very flat. It doesn't detract much from my experience, but I suppose it might for new readers.
I'm very interested to see how I feel about Wolfcry and Wyvernhail. I don't remember them nearly as well as the first three, so I may have a less rose-tinted take.
I mean, it's not just a lore dump - it's also a window into a part of this world where you can have shapeshifting AND extra magic powers, which I'm a sucker for. The falcon society of Ahnmik definitely still has an oddly tragic appeal to me, in the juxtaposition of beauty and totalitarian rule, and in the way that its inhabitants are rarely ever able to leave but also rarely would.
My four-star rating, I admit, is largely influenced by nostalgia. This book makes me feel things, in part because I have a strong memory of being obsessed with it, and it was hard for me to put down. Objectively, it's probably not four-star quality, but that's how I'd assess its value to me personally.
While rereading, I found myself wondering what it would have been like if Atwater-Rhodes had written longer books in this series. I think it would have benefitted all of the installments I've re-read so far (maybe a little less dramatic poisoning/injury to lead to revelations, a little more slow character development and reflection) but especially this one. There's just so much revealed in this book; combined with the fact that love of the city of Ahnmik is supposed to be a kind of insidious thing, I really feel like that would have played better over more pagetime.
There are also some aspects of the writing which feel unpolished, especially blocking and dialogue tags; it was often hard for me to picture what was going on, and one of the climactic conversations was several Kindle pages of un-tagged back and forth, which felt very flat. It doesn't detract much from my experience, but I suppose it might for new readers.
I'm very interested to see how I feel about Wolfcry and Wyvernhail. I don't remember them nearly as well as the first three, so I may have a less rose-tinted take.
May 23, 2010
Falcondance is the third book in the Keisha'ra series. The entire series is an elaborate re-imagining of were-animal myths. After focusing on the Hawks and the Snakes, this book focuses on Nicias, a Falcon who is coming into his power untrained, which makes him dangerous.
Falcondance consists largely of world building. While taking into account the short length of the book (barely over 200 pages) and the fact that this is the third in the series, the amount of time spent learning about rules and places seems extreme. This seems to be on par with the rest of the series though. Each books looks at a different race of the same mythological world meaning that each book needs to set up the basics for those races. While this is the norm for the series, it makes for little in the way of depth of plot or intense action.
With each book, I keep waiting for the series to culminate into something more. The information learned in each book is relevant to the next, but not in any important way. These books are mildly interesting in their take on were-animals, but unless something major in later books brings everything together, I don't really see the point.
Falcondance consists largely of world building. While taking into account the short length of the book (barely over 200 pages) and the fact that this is the third in the series, the amount of time spent learning about rules and places seems extreme. This seems to be on par with the rest of the series though. Each books looks at a different race of the same mythological world meaning that each book needs to set up the basics for those races. While this is the norm for the series, it makes for little in the way of depth of plot or intense action.
With each book, I keep waiting for the series to culminate into something more. The information learned in each book is relevant to the next, but not in any important way. These books are mildly interesting in their take on were-animals, but unless something major in later books brings everything together, I don't really see the point.
April 2, 2013
I'm sorry, but this one do not desrive more than 3 stars...
I loved the first two books and didn't want to believe that this was not as good, but unfortunately it is true.
This is the story of Nicias the son of the two renegade falcons of the first two books and his struggle with his awakening magic.
He's forced to go to Anhmik or die. On Anhmik he's faced with his grandmother who is plotting to make him stay and become her heir since she failed to coerce his father, but others, those locked in a kind of asylum for crazy falcons, are trying to "help" him...
The story is not as interesting as that of the previous books: it draggs and has made me yawn a few times. I was not so interested in what happens to Nicias, even if he seemed like a nice guy.
When the end came I was like: OK it has ended... and nothing more.
I loved the first two books and didn't want to believe that this was not as good, but unfortunately it is true.
This is the story of Nicias the son of the two renegade falcons of the first two books and his struggle with his awakening magic.
He's forced to go to Anhmik or die. On Anhmik he's faced with his grandmother who is plotting to make him stay and become her heir since she failed to coerce his father, but others, those locked in a kind of asylum for crazy falcons, are trying to "help" him...
The story is not as interesting as that of the previous books: it draggs and has made me yawn a few times. I was not so interested in what happens to Nicias, even if he seemed like a nice guy.
When the end came I was like: OK it has ended... and nothing more.
September 30, 2017
Great narrator/character but the story is definitely the weakest of the first three. I still have the last two books of the series to read.
October 11, 2019
"Sometimes it seemed that time dragged, and others it seemed that it was moving quickly."
That's how I felt reading this book.
Falcondance is the third book in The Kiesha'ra series, and it...definitely exists. I don't know how to even properly express how I feel about it, because for 70% of the book I was bored nearly to death. It had its ups and downs, but mostly it was exactly as described in one of my updates. Reading Falcondance was like reading the outline to a book instead of an actual book.
We follow Nicias Silvermead, Kel and Rei's son, to the Falcon island of Ahnmik. There, he is to either have his magic bound or remain forever, and possibly lose himself to the Ecl.
This sounds pretty interesting. And I was excited to finally see Ahnmik after allllll the talk about it in Snakecharm that led to absolutely nothing. But like its predecessor, this failed to deliver the goods.
The Good
• I love the Kiesha’ra world. I always will. Even if the world-building is mostly through telling, and we see little of it, the universe and shapeshifters are all so intriguing. This universe is obviously well thought out, and intricate. Just not presented to the reader in an interesting fashion.
• This book is readable, as always. I didn’t get through it as quickly as the others, but the prose is simple and easy to follow along. Falcondance is short and fast. Unfortunately, that’s also a failing, which I'll get into later.
• Hai and Darien, I'm just...in love. I'm in love with all of these characters, actually. I love how all their stories are woven together and the connections between them. They're all so tragic, too, my poor heart.
• The Ecl is cool, if not explained as well as I would have wanted it to be. It's basically limbo from Inception.
The Bad
• The weaknesses of the previous book in the series are present in this one, as well, and probably even more noticeable. Snakecharm had some weird pacing and a meandering plot, which I hoped would be a fluke. It was not. It’s a little better in Falcondance, and started off stronger with the appearance of Nicias’ magic, and it picked up near the end, but for most of the book it was incredibly slow. Surprising, since not much was gone into detail.
• I've started to realize that AAR seriously struggles with description, especially when it comes to characters. Every author has their weaknesses and that’s fine, but it’s so noticeable in this book that half the time, I didn’t even know where the characters were. The chapter where Lily and Nicias arrive to the Ahnmik, all it says is that they landed on a “marble terrace.” Where? Is it a castle? Are they high up? What does it look like? Too bad, you're gonna have to guess.
And that’s only with the scenery. For characters, we get hair color and eye color, at most. We sometimes get skin color if we’re lucky. When we do, a lot of the characters are coded as white, which is very strange when this universe, and all the shapeshifters, have their roots in Egyptian myth. Plus with the all-powerful falcons being white just...idk man, doesn't sit well with me!
• Speaking of characters, they all had the same voices. They talked in the same way, and had no real discernible personalities. I think only Darien and Hai really stood out. Darien in her desire for vengeance and Hai in her bitterness. They were interesting characters. And while Nicias was the MC...idk. I didn't dislike him, but he was so simple. His defining trait is his loyalty, and there doesn't seem to be much else to him. I didn't see him have any character development, because he always seemed the type to sacrifice himself for the greater good, and he was the same by the end.
• The telling is mainly why this book turned into a slog. Here is the plot structure of Falcondance.
Character: I'm sure you have a lot of questions.
Nicias: Asks all those questions.
Character: Answers with long, in-depth explanation.
That's it. That's most of the book. I get the necessity of it because the information has to be delivered somehow, but there are things that were only described through dialogue that would have been cool to see actually written out. Like the streets! I have a serious love for sentient cities, especially malevolent ones, so the street trickery would have been great to see more of.
• Falcondance started to pick up at the end, but it soon turned into an anticlimax, and a confusing one at that.
And after that, everything wraps up so neatly. Which leads me into...
• AAR's characters rarely run into obstacles that cannot be overcome through some plot contrivance. Everything works out well, and the only strings left loose are the sequel hooks for the series to continue.
• Remember when I mentioned that the short length was one of its weaknesses? Yeah. This would have been so much better handled if there was room to expand upon it. I feel like a part of the reason there was so much telling and not enough showing was because there wasn't enough room to show everything. And by the time interesting things rolled around, they were wrapped up so quickly there was barely enough time to take them in.
• The falcons are so cool...as ideas. We don't really get to see much of their culture, as it's only described through dialogue. And it's impossible to feel connections to any of them because they're so static. This is intentional, of course; the falcons worship the god of stillness. But that makes it difficult to care as much about them as other characters.
• There is so much more but that's the main problems I had. The magic was also vague, and as stated in one of my updates, I didn't get Nicias' reasoning for not telling Oliza the truth.
This got so long but I have so many frustrations because I wanted to love this series. But it keeps letting me now. I'm a completionist at heart, so I will definitely be reading on, but I am not as thrilled about it as I want to be.
Bleh. kicks stone I just want a book with either Zane and Danica's generation, or those before. The war is what made Hawksong so interesting and powerful. And that's probably why I like the Wyvern's Court parts more than the falcons; that's where the conflict is. There's hardly any conflict throughout this book that isn't immediately resolved.
Thinking I'm going to take a break from the series for a bit, because I don't want to spend another week trying to plow through a book.
May 9, 2017
There is a reason that Amelia Atwater Rhodes was one of my very favorite authors at a young age. I regret that its taken me this long to read all of the Kiesha'Ra series, because if at all possible it is even BETTER than her other series. <3
April 18, 2010
In this one there wasn't as much action as there was in the others. It focused on magic, how it worked, the white city, and the history behind the races. The familiar Zane and Danica are just mentioned maybe a couple times. It sucked a little that we didn't even get that much of their child, the first mixture of serpent and hawk. Of course it is expected like that anyways with a little including falcon instead of wyvern. The falcon is the child of Andreios and Kel. So I had to put it one star down from the others, but I still really liked how Atwater-Rhodes presented magic and the falcons. Falcondance also adds some important information to the series.
December 18, 2010
what can i say my rating says it all....i didnt like it! it was boring and for me it was an agony finishing this book. the series started out good, the second book was tolerable and ok but this one i was just so depressed to continue it. i fell asleep while reading this book. i was so disappointed because i wanted to see what happen after the second book coz this third installment happened several years after. oliza (daughter of zane and danica) and nicias (son of kel rei) is all grown up. i was expecting a more from this book. but WTF!!! its all talking and arguing....i just dont want to continue. i dont know if ill continue with this series.
March 2, 2012
In my opinion, this is the best of the Kiesha'Ra series, after Hawskong, which introduces the reader to the world Atwater-Rhodes sets up. Falcon Dance tells Nicias's story. For me, of all the characters we have met, he is the most appealing and the most sympathetic, in a series full of appealing and sympathetic characters. The reader struggles with him, as he uncovers the truth of his identity. This is a very satisfying installment in the series and sets up the problems the later books must resolve.
I thoroughly enjoyed this series.
I thoroughly enjoyed this series.
November 9, 2015
After a rough start, Falcondance becomes much more enjoyable to read as we are introduced to the second generation of the Keisha'ra (I miss Zane and Danica though TT_TT). Due to its short length, there is a lack of action and it seems that whatever story is presented in the book is only a slice of all that has happened since the last book. One might need to stretch their imagination a bit as the different forms of magic are explained and a glossary would be nice to have as well.
June 1, 2020
This book I thought was WAY better then the last one. After reading the last one I was reluctant to pick up this one but I really enjoyed it! In total I'd give it more 4.5 stars then 5 since it wasn't perfect but it was a great read to pick up. Again this is one of my shorter reviews since I'm in a hurry.
September 21, 2019
This book was just... so incredibly boring. I was also super confused by what was going on most of the time. Filled to the brim with characters I didn't care about or didn't like. Araceli and Syfka and the other falcons made their reappearances, but we were expected to treat them like they are good guys and then be all *surprised pikachu face* when they turn out to not be good guys in the end, but it was so obvious that they weren't looking out for Nicias because they've already been presented as antagonists in previous books. And sure, maybe they've changed, but the way that they were introduced made it pretty obvious that they were not going to be helpful to the story. I didn't understand anything about what was going on in Falcon City, nor did I really care about it? While I enjoyed the worldbuilding in the previous two books, Anhmik was such a boring place because everything is perfect except no one can say or do anything because the Empress or her heir might murder them. Also everyone is powerful and snooty. I didn't care for the falcons.
Kel and Rei were incredibly underwhelming in this book. They were the worst parents ever, tbh. I can't believe they just never told Nicias ANYTHING about being a falcon, especially the whole hey-we-have-magic-and-eventually-it's-going-to-come-out-of-you-and-probably-kill-you-because-you-don't-know-how-to-handle-it part. Also, the fact that no one told Nic anything about his origins! Like Kel, okay, she kind of lost her memory so w/e, but I cannot believe Rei just sat on this information for years without even giving his son a warning about the falcons. God, they were just... the absolute worst.
Hai was unlikable, Lily was unlikable (idk if we were supposed to root for her as the love interest? She literally came out of nowhere and was super sus from the beginning so whatever plot twist her betrayal was supposed to be, didn't work). The other lady, Kel's old partner D whose name I can't remember, was also just incredibly patronizing and annoying and I didn't care about her. Basically: did not care about anyone. Even Nicias was making the dumbest decisions he could and sure, we could have sympathized with him because his parents are The Worst and didn't tell him anything and all he wants to do is belong somewhere, but I never felt like I knew enough about him to be able to sympathize. He is the worst kind of protagonist: the strong, silent type. He's so boring for all of the story.
IDK. All in all, extremely underwhelmed. If the next book isn't good by 50%, I will probably just stop reading the series there.
Kel and Rei were incredibly underwhelming in this book. They were the worst parents ever, tbh. I can't believe they just never told Nicias ANYTHING about being a falcon, especially the whole hey-we-have-magic-and-eventually-it's-going-to-come-out-of-you-and-probably-kill-you-because-you-don't-know-how-to-handle-it part. Also, the fact that no one told Nic anything about his origins! Like Kel, okay, she kind of lost her memory so w/e, but I cannot believe Rei just sat on this information for years without even giving his son a warning about the falcons. God, they were just... the absolute worst.
Hai was unlikable, Lily was unlikable (idk if we were supposed to root for her as the love interest? She literally came out of nowhere and was super sus from the beginning so whatever plot twist her betrayal was supposed to be, didn't work). The other lady, Kel's old partner D whose name I can't remember, was also just incredibly patronizing and annoying and I didn't care about her. Basically: did not care about anyone. Even Nicias was making the dumbest decisions he could and sure, we could have sympathized with him because his parents are The Worst and didn't tell him anything and all he wants to do is belong somewhere, but I never felt like I knew enough about him to be able to sympathize. He is the worst kind of protagonist: the strong, silent type. He's so boring for all of the story.
IDK. All in all, extremely underwhelmed. If the next book isn't good by 50%, I will probably just stop reading the series there.
March 14, 2022
I think I would have to give this book a 4 ⭐
I loved it. Everything about it was incredible and marvelous! It spoke about Nicias' life on Wyvern's court. In this series there is magic everywhere but especially in falcons. Since both of his parents were exiled falcons, he was born a true royal falcon. I loved each aspect of magic that was explained.
I felt as if I was learning about my own magical powers as well.
However, the reason why this book isn't a 5 star is because it was so damn short. The events that happened in this book needed more explanation. I wanted to know more. There were many things left unsaid and unexplained. It infuriated me while I was reading. I also wanted a detailed explanation of his magic. The simple scenes that were written, helped me imagine them but I wasn't able to live them.
There is one scene however when he enters "ecl", this shot straight at my heart. I was so hooked and entranced by the void he entered. The author did an amazing job of explaining the void that people enter whenever they want to run away from their feelings and problems but end up numb and have a hard time feeling anything. It was superb! While reading that scene, I couldn't help myself by pondering on the idea that many people find themselves numb towards everything. It was somewhat triggering but at the same time eye opening.
I really enjoyed reading this book and can't wait to finish Wolfcry! ❤
I loved it. Everything about it was incredible and marvelous! It spoke about Nicias' life on Wyvern's court. In this series there is magic everywhere but especially in falcons. Since both of his parents were exiled falcons, he was born a true royal falcon. I loved each aspect of magic that was explained.
I felt as if I was learning about my own magical powers as well.
However, the reason why this book isn't a 5 star is because it was so damn short. The events that happened in this book needed more explanation. I wanted to know more. There were many things left unsaid and unexplained. It infuriated me while I was reading. I also wanted a detailed explanation of his magic. The simple scenes that were written, helped me imagine them but I wasn't able to live them.
There is one scene however when he enters "ecl", this shot straight at my heart. I was so hooked and entranced by the void he entered. The author did an amazing job of explaining the void that people enter whenever they want to run away from their feelings and problems but end up numb and have a hard time feeling anything. It was superb! While reading that scene, I couldn't help myself by pondering on the idea that many people find themselves numb towards everything. It was somewhat triggering but at the same time eye opening.
I really enjoyed reading this book and can't wait to finish Wolfcry! ❤
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
January 26, 2019
Compared to Snakecharm, this book is very refreshing. Focused solely on Nicias’s arc, it introduced the city of Ahnmik and the Falcon’s magic system, along with the history of Cjarsa, Aracelei, and the fight between the Avians and the Serpientes, reasonably well.
My favourite aspect was getting to explore Ahnmik for the first time, after hearing about it for the past two books.
The ending was wrapped up a little too quickly for my liking, and the way it explained the reasoning behind why the Avians and the Serpientes can never coexist was a little too much exposition and not built up well enough.
I found it much more easy to picture Oliza and Hai while rereading it this time around than I did the first time. Oliza is screwed in so many ways. You’d think her people would cut her some slack. But I guess we now know why that can never happen.
I enjoyed Hai as a mysterious and interesting character. I think she was set up well for her story.
I’m looking forward to the next two books!
My favourite aspect was getting to explore Ahnmik for the first time, after hearing about it for the past two books.
The ending was wrapped up a little too quickly for my liking, and the way it explained the reasoning behind why the Avians and the Serpientes can never coexist was a little too much exposition and not built up well enough.
I found it much more easy to picture Oliza and Hai while rereading it this time around than I did the first time. Oliza is screwed in so many ways. You’d think her people would cut her some slack. But I guess we now know why that can never happen.
I enjoyed Hai as a mysterious and interesting character. I think she was set up well for her story.
I’m looking forward to the next two books!
March 18, 2020
I don't understand these people that don't give these books a 5 star because they are so good. They are mixed with emotion and complex plots. Although there are definetaly things you can easily predict, there are also things I don't think should have happened, and stuff like that, but unless you yourself write the book you can't change that. Just because it's not necacarily something YOU want to happen, doesn't mean it's bad. For example *SPOILERS* I would have liked it if it wouldn't ruin the world for Oliza and Nicias to be together, and that Lily didn't all of a suden hate Nicias, but I don't know, maybe that will add to the plot in the next book? I also would have liked Skyfa to stay good the entire book through but by making her the real villan, it adds character to Araceli (Rei's mom) and also explained her behavior when she helped Sebastian (Rei) escape from Ahnmik(the falcon kingdom.) But I do love Hai's character and hope she becomes part of the grand plot in that rest of the series.
July 5, 2017
I read this whole book in one day and this was probably the most interesting of the three books for me so far, but it still just falls short of what it could be. The new culture was fascinating and the story was more compelling, but as before I found the characters to be wooden and unchanging. The characters from prior books seemed almost to be entirely separate characters in this one. The main characters from the first two books were barely present at all, instead following a young Falcon shifter. While the main character seemed nice enough to me, he seemed as gullible as a two year old meeting a world class magician. I'd give it 3.5 stars at most. It was good, but it wasn't that good.
The ending wasn't as tidy as the last two books, which I was very grateful for. However, it still just seemed so easy an ending that it made me not want to read them anymore. While I may eventually get around to reading later books, I doubt it'll be at the top of my to do list.
The ending wasn't as tidy as the last two books, which I was very grateful for. However, it still just seemed so easy an ending that it made me not want to read them anymore. While I may eventually get around to reading later books, I doubt it'll be at the top of my to do list.
June 7, 2018
Re-reading teen favorites to take me to a happy place.
This is always the point in the series where things get really weird. We've been gradually introduced to falcons and their magic for two books, and now with Nicias's story, we get slammed into the white city and the history of the avian-serpiente war and the magic of falcons and the story turns sharply into something much more elaborate and complicated than two rival houses trying to make peace. It's amazing how much depth and detail Atwater-Rhodes can weave into 183 pages, and I always read these books so fast that I don't get a chance to analyze the craft. She'll always be one of my favorites. Don't @ me.
This is always the point in the series where things get really weird. We've been gradually introduced to falcons and their magic for two books, and now with Nicias's story, we get slammed into the white city and the history of the avian-serpiente war and the magic of falcons and the story turns sharply into something much more elaborate and complicated than two rival houses trying to make peace. It's amazing how much depth and detail Atwater-Rhodes can weave into 183 pages, and I always read these books so fast that I don't get a chance to analyze the craft. She'll always be one of my favorites. Don't @ me.
June 6, 2019
3.5 stars
Nicias, son of Kel and Rei, comes into his powers abruptly and must travel to Anhmik to learn control before it overtakes him. He learns valuable and life changing lessons while learning under his grandmother.
This was an interesting story because we finally get to see the mysterious Falcon homeland. The magic, culture, and design of the city was quite fascinating and horrifying.
I hope we see more of Wyvern Court in the next books because I really want to see how Danica and Zane's dream played out.
Nicias, son of Kel and Rei, comes into his powers abruptly and must travel to Anhmik to learn control before it overtakes him. He learns valuable and life changing lessons while learning under his grandmother.
This was an interesting story because we finally get to see the mysterious Falcon homeland. The magic, culture, and design of the city was quite fascinating and horrifying.
I hope we see more of Wyvern Court in the next books because I really want to see how Danica and Zane's dream played out.
May 19, 2022
Once again, my only complaint is that I wish this was longer. I loved how this book expanded on the falcons and their magic. The City of Ahnmik was very cool, the roads that had a life of their own were awesome. I loved the incorporation of dance and magic and how integral it is in the lives of the serpents and falcons. I also love how much this held my attention when there was next to no romance at all. Definitely curious to see what Hai is going to do in the future novels. She seems like a wild card.
June 4, 2018
Wow so much intrigue, so much history, so much politics and so much magic but zero romance. I am glad the story progressed to the heirs of the two factions although I missed Danica and Zane. Nicias was such a "white hat" but I was rooting for him to kick the empress and her daughter asses. I'm still hoping that there is some romance in his future though. I like HEA and this book, although a wild ride, did not deliver on that. So hoping the next book does.
April 20, 2022
So this book takes place twenty years after the last one. Danica and Zane are not in at all and mentioned maybe twice, so that was really disappointing. Their daughter, Oliza is now the age they were in the first book.
This book centers around Nicias, the son of falcons Kel and Sebastian(is a coincidence that their names together sound like the band name Belle And Sebastian?). I really don’t have that much to say about the book. There was only one part that kind of blew my mind, and that was Hai’s parentage. This book was overall just kind of sad. Not in a I’m-so-sad-I’m-crying kind of way, but more of a well-I’m-looking-at-the-produce-and-it-all-looks-pretty-sad kind of way.
This book centers around Nicias, the son of falcons Kel and Sebastian(is a coincidence that their names together sound like the band name Belle And Sebastian?). I really don’t have that much to say about the book. There was only one part that kind of blew my mind, and that was Hai’s parentage. This book was overall just kind of sad. Not in a I’m-so-sad-I’m-crying kind of way, but more of a well-I’m-looking-at-the-produce-and-it-all-looks-pretty-sad kind of way.
July 10, 2024
The world that is woven in this story is so intricate and beautiful. You don't want to like the falcon city but you also can't help falling in love with it. This one is a perfect middle of the series book because it provides enough lore with new content that you know why things happened and what is happening now. The cliff hanger really gets you super excited for the next book.
May 8, 2017
3.5 stars. Best written so far but I still got lost a few times by the random jumps the plot made. Also, I think the author could really, really benefit from describing how her characters look beyond the occasional eye and hair color, although some characters don't even get that.
September 24, 2017
A bit disorienting because it's suddenly many years in the future and we see very little of Zane or Danica, but still a fascinating read. Interesting to read about the Falcoms and the real cause of the war.
March 23, 2018
I liked the narrator of this book, but it has so far been my least favorite simply because the falcons drive me nuts. I was sad , coming into the last three books in this series, that I'd have to give up Zane and Danica as main figures, but I've enjoyed many of the new ones nonetheless. I'm currently reading Wolfcry and am enjoying it very much.
March 20, 2019
I read this series as a teenager and wanted to revisit it now in my late 20's because I remember it being one of the best series I ever read, but this really is a book for teens and I couldn't finish the whole series.
February 23, 2020
This third book in the series brought back some of the drama, thank goodness. It felt a bit more like an actual story than Snakecharm did, and the protagonist was interesting, if sometimes frustrating.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 177 reviews