Title: Not really fantasy
Product review: I finished this book, and at 800+ pages, that means it has some value. However, I had the impression this would be a FANTASY book, not a medieval power struggle that happens to take place in an alternate universe. Aside from the preface, there are no fantasy or supernatural elements in the story until almost 500 pages in.There are many, many characters in the book, and that's certainly daunting when you first start. Add to this the fact that some characters go by different names, and it makes it a difficult book to get into. However, I did get into it enough to read all the way through, and certainly by the end of the story I knew all of the major characters.One other issue I have is that the book doesn't really stand by itself. Things happen, but there's no sense of a build to a climax. In fact, it really seems like a deliberate effort to set things up for the next book in the series. That's fine, but it's better if a book can stand by itself.
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