Red Gloves
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Product Description
Product Description
Red Gloves is a mercenary, raised to the blade and trained in the ways of war. She'll take no nonsense and pull no punches; she seizes what she wants and leaves when she's done. She and Bethral, her sword-sister, have come to Palins looking for work, but they find torched fields and razed farms, a land defiled. During a storm they stumble across a derelict mansion and beg shelter of the sole human occupant, the resident goatherd. He's not happy, and he's not impressed with the stroppy mercenary - but Red Gloves is even less impressed when he notices her birthmark and claims it marks her out as Chosen, born to help the people of Palins reclaim their land. Her inclination to help dwindles still further when she discovers there's no money, no reward, in fact, nothing in store for the Chosen but a difficult, bloody battle against the odds. So she takes what she wants of the goatherd, and she leaves. But circumstances force Red back to the mansion, and this time she's more inclined to help - after all, impossible odds and bloody battles are very much her style. She's poised, reluctantly, to do her thing, when it turns out she's not the only Chosen in the race for freedom, and the crown . . . RED GLOVES: a beguiling tale of daggers, derring-do and destiny, and heroes who come in all shapes and sizes.
About the Author
Elizabeth Vaughan is a bankruptcy and financial lawyer in real life, and a keen fantasy role-player. She lives in Ohio.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Red Gloves is a female mercenary who has come to the land of Palins in search of work. Josiah - a goatherder - knows very little about her, but he knows her dagger-star birthmark indicates she's a Chosen. Part of a prophecy that may set the land of Palins free.
Red Gloves is a name, that for me, took some getting used to and I think it distanced me a little from the story to begin with, though by page 7 I was interested and by page 40 completely hooked. It's more like a label than a name as such - she's a mercenary who wears red gloves. This is in a world where people change their names as their circumstances change.
Red is the alpha in this story, and is not exactly the most sensitive person. She's a much more prickly character than Lara(from the War Plains books) not so ready to be the martyr. She's practical to the point of insensitivity, stroppy, knows her own mind. But she's also loyal, brave and determined. This is a woman we believe capable of leading an army.
There is a slight role reversal. Red is very take charge, whilst Josiah is more beta. That doesn't mean he's a wimp - think Daniel Jackson from Stargate. There's strength in being able to bend rather than break. I also think it can be harder to write a believable beta hero, than a believable alpha.
This book has a large 'cast' and is told from multiple points of view, but each character has their own beliefs, quirks, desires and ambitions. Red - the mercenary, Bethral her sword-sister, Ezren - the storyteller, Evelyn - the priestess. I suspect for some people this style won't work, but I do like seeing the same situation through different eyes. There are a couple of wonderfully written parallel scenes where it's clear Red and Josiah are thinking the same thing, but are convinced the other person is thinking something else. They need to talk. :) I think as long as it adds more to the story then it's working. I wish the book had been longer so we could have gone into more depth, but hopefully there will be more books to come.
My main concern whilst I was reading was how this world fits in with that of the War Plains trilogy (written as Elizabeth Vaughan). The thing I liked about the trilogy was that it was a fantasy, which dealt with the cultural conflict between two peoples. There was no magic, no easy solution. Everything had to be strived for. There are hints that this is the same world - kavage, references to the Tribes of the Plains. I think what concerns me, is how what we find out in Red Gloves, affects the world of the Plains.
In Red Gloves we find out there is magic - elves, portals, magical fire. And in a way I wish Red Gloves had been set in a new world, that the two worlds had been kept separate. If magic is real then maybe the warrior-priests of the plains weren't lying to Lara.
That aside, this was another story I immersed myself into and at the end there are still questions that haven't been answered. Still stories there to be told. I want to know what happens next not only to Red and Josiah, but also to Ezren, Bethral, Evelyn, Dominic, Fael, Helene. And I really want to know how Verice and Warna got together.
Elizabeth Vaughan writes stories about women who change their world. Heroines who may doubt themselves or their gifts but who ultimately triumph. And it's not through use of magic but through self-belief and determination. She's one of my favourite authors and I'm counting the days 'til the next book.
(Note - published in the US as Dagger Star by Elizabeth Vaughan)
Red Gloves is a name, that for me, took some getting used to and I think it distanced me a little from the story to begin with, though by page 7 I was interested and by page 40 completely hooked. It's more like a label than a name as such - she's a mercenary who wears red gloves. This is in a world where people change their names as their circumstances change.
Red is the alpha in this story, and is not exactly the most sensitive person. She's a much more prickly character than Lara(from the War Plains books) not so ready to be the martyr. She's practical to the point of insensitivity, stroppy, knows her own mind. But she's also loyal, brave and determined. This is a woman we believe capable of leading an army.
There is a slight role reversal. Red is very take charge, whilst Josiah is more beta. That doesn't mean he's a wimp - think Daniel Jackson from Stargate. There's strength in being able to bend rather than break. I also think it can be harder to write a believable beta hero, than a believable alpha.
This book has a large 'cast' and is told from multiple points of view, but each character has their own beliefs, quirks, desires and ambitions. Red - the mercenary, Bethral her sword-sister, Ezren - the storyteller, Evelyn - the priestess. I suspect for some people this style won't work, but I do like seeing the same situation through different eyes. There are a couple of wonderfully written parallel scenes where it's clear Red and Josiah are thinking the same thing, but are convinced the other person is thinking something else. They need to talk. :) I think as long as it adds more to the story then it's working. I wish the book had been longer so we could have gone into more depth, but hopefully there will be more books to come.
My main concern whilst I was reading was how this world fits in with that of the War Plains trilogy (written as Elizabeth Vaughan). The thing I liked about the trilogy was that it was a fantasy, which dealt with the cultural conflict between two peoples. There was no magic, no easy solution. Everything had to be strived for. There are hints that this is the same world - kavage, references to the Tribes of the Plains. I think what concerns me, is how what we find out in Red Gloves, affects the world of the Plains.
In Red Gloves we find out there is magic - elves, portals, magical fire. And in a way I wish Red Gloves had been set in a new world, that the two worlds had been kept separate. If magic is real then maybe the warrior-priests of the plains weren't lying to Lara.
That aside, this was another story I immersed myself into and at the end there are still questions that haven't been answered. Still stories there to be told. I want to know what happens next not only to Red and Josiah, but also to Ezren, Bethral, Evelyn, Dominic, Fael, Helene. And I really want to know how Verice and Warna got together.
Elizabeth Vaughan writes stories about women who change their world. Heroines who may doubt themselves or their gifts but who ultimately triumph. And it's not through use of magic but through self-belief and determination. She's one of my favourite authors and I'm counting the days 'til the next book.
(Note - published in the US as Dagger Star by Elizabeth Vaughan)
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I've been reading fantasy novels since I was a child, and these days I look for something a little different, a little more challenging...Unfortunately this is neither.
Everything about this book is so stereotypical. The characters, the plot and the world in which the story plays. It's awful. Plain and simple.
The characters are flat and bland. The main heroine of the story 'Red Gloves' is a typical alpha female. You know the kind, cold hearted and hard edged...but with a sensitive and caring side hidden beneath the surface. Please! Give us something new.
I felt absolutely no sympathy with any of the characters especially Josiah, painted as the 'lonely goatherd' with a dark past.
Everything about this book is drab and unimaginative. A group of unlikely companions thrown together by fate to save the land. An unusual birthmark, a prophecy. Blah blah blah!
Not only that...It's written badly too. The text is incredibly cheesy and simplistic. Everything is over stated, and repeated..and I quote from page 22 'Lord of Light, he wanted her.' Then again on page 93 'Lord of Light, he wanted her' Yes, we get the picture, the goatherd fancies the tough warrior woman! Like we didn't see that coming a mile off, no need to tell us twice. But it doesn't stop there as there are numerous instances where the text is repeated.
Just your everyday run of the mill fantasy book. It's like the writer picked up 'The A to Z of how to write a fantasy novel' and copied it cover to cover.
My advice is, if you're looking for a book you can pick up, that isn't challenging, that you don't really have to think about then this is perfect.
But if you want something to really get your teeth into, with a fantastic cast of fully-formed interesting characters, exciting and entwining plot, brilliant wit and a decent female heroine, then instead buy Maria V. Snyder's Poison Study, Magic Study and Fire Study. Don't waste your money or your time here.
Everything about this book is so stereotypical. The characters, the plot and the world in which the story plays. It's awful. Plain and simple.
The characters are flat and bland. The main heroine of the story 'Red Gloves' is a typical alpha female. You know the kind, cold hearted and hard edged...but with a sensitive and caring side hidden beneath the surface. Please! Give us something new.
I felt absolutely no sympathy with any of the characters especially Josiah, painted as the 'lonely goatherd' with a dark past.
Everything about this book is drab and unimaginative. A group of unlikely companions thrown together by fate to save the land. An unusual birthmark, a prophecy. Blah blah blah!
Not only that...It's written badly too. The text is incredibly cheesy and simplistic. Everything is over stated, and repeated..and I quote from page 22 'Lord of Light, he wanted her.' Then again on page 93 'Lord of Light, he wanted her' Yes, we get the picture, the goatherd fancies the tough warrior woman! Like we didn't see that coming a mile off, no need to tell us twice. But it doesn't stop there as there are numerous instances where the text is repeated.
Just your everyday run of the mill fantasy book. It's like the writer picked up 'The A to Z of how to write a fantasy novel' and copied it cover to cover.
My advice is, if you're looking for a book you can pick up, that isn't challenging, that you don't really have to think about then this is perfect.
But if you want something to really get your teeth into, with a fantastic cast of fully-formed interesting characters, exciting and entwining plot, brilliant wit and a decent female heroine, then instead buy Maria V. Snyder's Poison Study, Magic Study and Fire Study. Don't waste your money or your time here.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I really enjoyed this fantasy - a strong female protagonist and excellent supporting characters. The love story was played out very sweetly. My only criticism would be that the end was a bit too quick and neat. I thought this was going to be a series and hope that the stories of some of the other main characters are going to played out in further books.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
red gloves
this book is also called DAGGER STAR which i had already purchased but as it was a paper back i decided to keep it as it is a very good read
Published 18 months ago by R. G. Pask
First in a new Fantasy series set in the world of the War Plains
"Red Gloves" is the first book in a new fantasy series set in the same Universe as the author's "War Prize" trilogy, but with most of the action taking place hundreds of miles away... Read more
Published 21 months ago by Marshall Lord
Sad disappointment
I really loved reading the Warlord trilogy. I thought the idea was original and enjoyed the detail in the books. Read more
Published on 14 April 2009 by Sarah Dee
Be Warned
This is the same book as "Dagger Star" by Elizabeth Vaughan, published by Berkley earlier last year. Read more
Published on 4 Jan 2009 by Dragon in the Library
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