This book was great! It took me only 2 days to read through it.I was captured by the story line and overwhelmed by the feelings brought from it.

There are 3 criticisms of Kate Elliott's Crown of Stars series that I keep seeing book after book.

1. Each installment is too long.
2. There are too many characters.
3. The plot is too confusing.

I don't find any of those criticisms particularly true. For example, I love long fantasy series, thus I expect this series to be long because a friend recommended it to me as being a good, long fantasy series. Similarly, because the series is long, I expect there to be a lot of characters, and for the plot to be a tad confusing on the first read. In short, the fact that CoS is long, character heavy and confusing shouldn't be a deterrent. It's something that by looking at the books on the shelf of your local book store, or reading the page count here on Amazon, is a fact you should expect.

Yes, prospective reader, this series is very long, but there's something to keep in mind; while most long fantasy series are still being milked for all they're worth, Crown of Stars is a complete work. Kate Elliott released the seventh and final volume in February of 2006. So, if you are just about to start reading Burning Stone, or have already finished it, you can be assured there is an end in sight.

That being said, The Burning Stone is the best installation yet. One major achievement of TBS is to really blur the line between right and wrong. I think the thing I love most about this series is that it's so hard to tell who is evil, who is good, and who is right. For example, Anne may be right in wanting to keep the Elvin race from earth, but just be wrong in the methods she is willing to use. I think Child of Flame clears up a lot of questions, but, in order to have a large part of the mystery solved, you'll just have to read on.

I give this volume a five out of five.

This series is great, and more thought provoking and interesting than any other fantasy series I have ever read. Although the books are long, I find this good as Kate Elliott is always building up more of her world and making it more believable. This series is not easy to read, but a good challenge. It does appeal to teenagers as both my friend and I have read the whole series and understood it.And changing from different characters is different but I found it to be effective, as some books are ruined by a boring narrator. People should read this book, and don't be deterred by its number of pages!!

Kate Elliot has lost herself in a world of her own making, where the characters, plots and intrigue proliferate without any narrative structure or point. The personalities of the characters slip into the one-dimensional, losing much of my sympathy in the process. With far too many subplots, mysteries and creatures; Elliot exhibits no discipline. Her writing too, is schizoid: one minute the language is arcane seventeenth century English, and the next minute it's more Californian than Celtic. And way too girly. Granted, the idea of a matriarchal medieval society is a seductive one, but do we have to hear quite so much about `gorgeous tunics'? I'm quite sure your average medieval male wouldn't use that kind of language, let alone give a toss what the wench was wearing.

Kate Elliot, if she disciplined her writing and reigned in her imagination a little, could be an excellent storyteller. In order to do that, each book must stand as a novel in it's own right, and central themes should link a beginning middle and end. There is no sign of this in 'The Burning Stone'. There are also glaring and highly annoying editorial mistakes, such as one sentence where the pope-like 'skopos' is refered to as ruling from Rome, which doesn't actually exist in the world Elliot has created.

In short, she's not a bad writer. But she desperately needs a good editor and half-way decent proof-readers.

While some may think that Kate Elliotts books are to long or have to many characters, I find that both are excellent qualities in a book. How can one imagine them selves in such a world without the insight of the many characters in different living classes and situations? I must disagree with any review that says that these books are to long or have to many characters. Also while the books are written for adults, I that many teenagers (like my self) who like to read sci fi fantasy will enjoy these books if they give them a try.