Product Description

The Confederation of Wizards is forced to put aside its long-standing historical dispute with the inhabitants of Rovac. Instead, both must join together in a common cause, to prevent the utter destruction of their world. They face two perils: the Swarms, and a power that turns living things to stone and brings rocks to life. Cook writes with grace, vividness, and a fair amount of wit."" - Booklist. ""A nonstop fantasy adventure...recommended for fantasy collections."" - Library Journal. ""This first volume...proclaims a talent worth watching."" - Publishers Weekly.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1426898 in Books
• Published on: 1987-12-31
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 351 pages

Customer Reviews

Great Stuff
This book is one of the best I've ever read in my life. It's definitely the best piece of fantasy out there, apart from the other volumes of the 'Chronicles of an Age of Darkness' Series, especially the 4th and 10th. If You're bored by all the regular fantasy novels from various authors i won't mention here, where everything is black or white and the structure and course of action are so clear that You know everything in advance, this will genuinely cheer You up again! The characters don't seem to be constructed and are vivid and realistic. Things happen as if by random, which makes the book so thrilling to read. However the plot doesn't end up in total chaos, but always leads to certain crucial events in the history of the world. It is seen from a different point of view in each of the 10 volumes and the stories may entwine. The different heroes interact: They meet and talk to each other, they fight each other or join in a common cause for a while. So a person who appears only shortly in a former volume may be the hero in the next, or former main characters casually appear in a later volume. This fascinating feature can not be found in any other fantasy series I know of. It really makes me sad that the series seems to end with the 10th volume. I'd give a year of my life to read more of it (especially about the south searcher plot and the Skull of The Deep South). So if you ever happen to read this, Hugh, write more! Or if You're a reader and know Hugh or his email address, pester him with pleas for more ;)

The start of something good
Despite the name (which is effectively 'Generic Fantasy number one'), this book is an excellent read and the introduction to what is possibly the best fantasy series yet written. If you're tired of the typical cliched rubbish (I mention no names but take a bow 'The Belgariad'), you will really enjoy this. (By the way, if anyone else in the world has noticed that there are actually NINE types of wizard, please confirm that it's not just my imagination). In conclusion, silly name but great book. Just read the first few pages and you'll be hooked -

'It was Phyphor's birthday. He was 5736(?) years old. He saw no cause to celebrate.....'

For more, read the next 500 odd pages.

10/10
Brilliant.

Proof that a fantasy series doesn't need to be populated be characters that are too morally predictable to be believable. These books won't please everybody (the evidence is in the sales sadly), but for those wanting a three dimensional fantasy world, you will be hard pressed to a find better storyteller.