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The River King

The River King
by Alice Hoffman
Hardcover: Jul 2000,
304 pages.
Paperback: Jul 2001,
352 pages.

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Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Mary
Thank you again A.H. The River King took me somewhere else. Anyone who has enjoyed fairytales in their youth can recapture that certain something in Alice Hoffman's prose. Filled with mystery, magical atmosphere and interesting characters, The River king delivers.

Rated 3 of 5 of 5 by Rhyan
This book was not that good. There were about 250 unnecessary pages. This novel was not spell-binding at all, if I were not required to read it for class, I would have stopped within the first 10 pages. The 'who done it' aspect was horrible, the plot was predictable, the 'magical world' created by Alice Hoffman was merely that of a B-grade movie. As far as this book being a journey of three people, the journey really doesn't take you anywhere. As far as the main female character is concerned, she isn't a dynamic character, she gains and loses a friend in a short period of time, not a big journey. Two people find love, which is predictable. The man who endulges in only physical passion falls falls in love with a woman who rushed into engagement with a man who proved to be merely convienant. Once again, definately B-grade movie material. So buy this book if you want, I wouldn't.

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Sarah
This book was really good. It portrayed the regular mystery plot, who dun it, but deep down it is a journey that three people, individually, go on inside themselves to find their real selves. It never gets boring and has new peices of the story at every turn of the page.

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Nyx
The River King was haunting. I fell in love with the characters right from the start and practically cried in a crowded waiting room when I reached the end, that's how powerfully it hit me. I'd recommend this book especially to those who consider themselves to be misunderstood. Honestly, I sometimes wish I could live in Alice Hoffman's imagination.

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by iqreign
The River King was a beautiful, magical novel that evokes the power of love and intertwines it with the mystery of nature. Once again Alice Hoffman has illuminated a world that could be my own in a way that is both painfully dark yet exquisitely light. I cried within the first half hour I began reading it, and read the book in its entirety without the ability to put it down once. TextText

Rated 4 of 5 of 5 by Bernadette
The River King's mystical elements remind me of the works of Isabela Allende whose characters also are involved in magic. The use of magical realism in South American literature is common. I don't find it in North American lit. I'd like some input about the question in the reader's guide as to why Abe could be dubbed The River King. Since water can be seen both as a saving life element and a death image, it would be interesting to hear other's opinions about this.
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