2.5 stars Sooo, while there were some things I liked about this book, it was just too slow and long and unexciting to merit anything higher than a 2 star rating. I mean, I didn't hate it. That's why I upped my rating to 2.5 stars, because this was a pretty average book. There was nothing I loved, yet there was nothing that I though really problematic. So, the world building wasn't amazing. Trudi Canavan managed to convey the actual geography of the land itself to me, with the help of a map (t...

Okay, I give up. I couldn't even finish this one, which is very rare for me--and I had less than a hundred pages to go. I had put it down one night and have not been able to make myself pick it back up again.I found it to be completely boring, despite the interesting concepts and potential conflicts. This book just drug. Not much action to move it along. Gets bogged down in what seem to be side-stories (they may come together at the end, I'll never know). I liked this authors previous series, so...

This is just not fun. I'm having to force myself to finish it. I can't even be sure if it's a good book, I'm so sick of reading it! The plot seems creative, but something about it draaaaaaaags. Edit: Finally finished it, and still completely unimpressed. And after I enjoyed her other trilogy so much, too!

Priestess of the White is the first novel in Trudi Canavan’s Age of Five series.Set in a fantastical world where Gods have chosen representatives to do their bidding in the world, this novel mixes magic and religion. The leaders of Hania are the White – five powerful sorcerers who are guided by their Gods. Auraya is the youngest of the White and the novel begins with her joining the Priesthood and her commitment to devote her life to the will of the Gods.It is the Gods’ will that all of Northern...

SPOILER FREEPriestess of the White by Trudi Canavan is where my love of reading big fantasy books began when I was 11 or 12 years old.I was on holiday on the Isle of Mull and the only thing close to us that was at all interesting (to a kid of that age) was a book shop in Tobermory. I picked this wonderful fantasy novel up there and I’ve re-read it more than any other book I own.I quickly finished the trilogy within a week.Read Why You Should Read ‘The Age of Five Trilogy’ to learn more about thi...

This wasn't actively terrible, but it wasn't great. The writing and world building are both pretty pedestrian, and the plot is an old standard. The characters are all pretty one dimensional with fairly straightforward conflicts, and fantasy names that made me, a person who has a pretty high tolerance for made up stuff, roll my eyes.Before I had access to the book-ternet, I might have liked this book. I've always had a soft spot for fantasy and good guy vs. bad guy show downs, and this would prob...

3.5 starsIn a world where magic and gods exist, Auraya has become one of the legendary, immortal 'Whites' - people chosen by the Gods to be their voices, and granted magical gifts and immortality. But Auraya doesn't have long to get used to her new position as Black Sorcerers from a neighboring land are intent on invading her world and killing those who impose them. I enjoyed the quality of the writing in this, the care taken to unveil each character we follow and their personality and thought p...

Priestess of the White (Age of the Five, #1), Trudi CanavanAge of the Five is a trilogy of fantasy novels by Australian author Trudi Canavan.It consists of the novels: Priestess of the White, Last of the Wilds and Voice of the Gods. The fictional series recounts the story of Auraya, a young priestess who, after rising to the highest rank in her world's religious hierarchy, subsequently discovers that the gods she worships are significantly different entities from those in whom she was originally...

Interesting and with the potential to be betterThe Good-------------------------------Secondary/Tertiary Characters: Most of the secondary viewpoint characters have some personality that make the story worth reading and some of the tertiary characters are good too. Character development is lacking for most characters though. Looking forward to more from the Hag.Hints: There are many hints at history and future of the world -- enough potential to make continuing the series worth while.The Bad----...

I would have actually given this book 3,5 stars but there's no such scale. After reading The Black Magician trilogy I expected this one to be better... there was nothing wrong with the style of writing but I wanted something fresh, something new. And here? I'm getting a copy of Canavan's previous novel.The motive of forbidden romance between Sonea and Akkarin is very similar to the one that Auraya and Leiard struggle with. Despite the fact that they are featureless (most of the characters in thi...

This one... I read it rather a short time after the Magicians Guild books - and so it took me a bit by surprise how different it was.While the first series is published as YA (here in Germany), the second series definitely is not. There is a bit of a love plot and some sex scenes in it - and of course the main protagonists are older.After I got used to the change - I did definitely enjoy the book, though it didn't completely blow me away. I liked the main character and definitely wanted to spend...

Was looking for a new author (having exhausted all the ones I know I like). Ran across this in the local library. I really couldn't get into it. The writing was a bit clunky and the plotline seemed fairly standard high fantasy by the time I gave up. The world building seemed potentially interesting, but I couldn't bring myself to care enough to keep reading. I gather from other comments that this author has more interesting works, so I may try another book another time.

First Read, 2014While a tad slow and scattered at the beginning, I was thoroughly involved and enjoying the story as I read further on. Despite criticisms I've read of this series, I find Priestess of the White a strong beginning to a high fantasy trilogy with interesting races, animals, magic, and Gods.Second Read, 2015 After reading this book a second time, I really can't figure out why I only gave this book four stars the first time. While this book can be slow, filled with world-building inf...

I love stories within fantasy that focus heavily on gods, priests, religions etc. so this grabbed my interest as soon as I saw it and it did not disappoint. I love multiple POV in books so I’m very pleased you usually get 2 or 3 POV’s in a chapter and it was not overwhelming either: you are given enough time to get to know a few characters before a new POV is added. There are a lot of characters but that is part of why I enjoyed it so much. The world building is fantastic. Canavan created such a...

At first I didn't like this book, but the intrigung sub-plots and many of the characters hooked me. I didn't like the main character as she was a little too Mary Sue-ish and the planned romantic entanglement seemed a little too contrived. I loved every other character and the world created and that more than made up for it. This book has strong feminist themes, such as Emmerahl teaching girls to defend herself, or becoming a whore to survive, but with no shame. I didn't think this was overbearin...

Really liked this book though it jumped around a lot. I totally want Mischief lol he is so cute.

I adored this book, it's one of my all time favourites. Rereading on audio was definitely a good idea, the narration was superb. Excited for book 2!

This is a review for ALL of the books, ie. the whole series. I started the book about 5 or 6 Months before I finished it, but never got past the first fifty pages. I had liked the Black Magician Trilogy, but I thought I didn't like the theme too much in this book. Yet, in the end, I think I totally prefer this series to the other!There were many positive points in the series. It was more complex and the plot and the world seemed very well deverloped. It had more mature themes, which are definite...

Edit: dropped this rating down from 2.5 to a 1 because it's really not worth anyone's time. Why the heck has this been rated so high? It's crap, especially compared to her excellent debut trilogy! The respect I had for Canavan's writing has largely evaporated. I hope this terrible book was simply a dud, and not that the Black Magician trilogy was a fluke.Okay, gripe #1. Plants, animals and vehicles are given totally random names despite being albeit identical to things we have in this world. Why...

"All you can be sure of in life is change." It's a very calming book, good for relaxation. But also boring and not very creative. I noticed some inspiration from old Greek mythology. The novel is disrespectful of religions and has waaay too many characters. I didn't complete it.