The War Of The Flowers

by Tad Williams.

I love Tad Williams. He wrote what is one of my absolute favorite book series ever- Otherland. So I knew I wanted to read War Of The Flowers the second it hit the bookshelves. Well, about 18 months later, I finally purchased a copy and proceeded to devour it.

One of my favorite things about Tad Williams is that he writes a beautiful blend of sci-fi and fantasy mixed with a bit of reality. He does it so well, that it doesn't take long to become fully engrossed in his story and eager for the next page turn. When War Of The Flowers begins, we meet Theo Vilmos, a 30-something without much to care about. He spends his free time playing in a garage band, and when he's not making music, he's spending time with his pregnant girlfriend. Until one horrible day when his girlfriend leaves him and he's forced to move in with his mother. Moving in with Mom leads to a whole series of events that eventually place Theo Vilmos in another world. The world of faerie. He arrives in Faerie as the major houses are at the brink of civil war. The warring houses are cleverly named after flowers- and Theo quickly becomes entangled in the deadly and dangerous game of houses, only to discover that he is more important to the world of faerie than he could have ever imagined.

I certainly enjoyed reading this book. It was a wonderful story and I love the touches of realism mixed in with the fantasy. When I picked up the book, at first I was so grateful to Mr. Williams for keeping the story to one novel. His Otherland was 4 novels- and I am a terribly impatient person when I am waiting for the next part of the story. But War of The Flowers, I feel, could have been better served by at least one more book. There was so much we didn't get to discover. Several storylines wrapped up to quickly, and then some stories never got a conclusion. Parts of the ending were contrived and didn't make sense with the flow of the rest of the book. But the book as a whole was great. So don't let my little bit of picking discourage you from picking up this book. It was definitely a great read, and so worth my time. If you enjoy fantasy, give this one your full attention- I promise it will be worth it.