I am about to read the above trilogy, i have avoided reading this book for years, will it be worth the wait? or is it another overrated trilogy?
2006-08-12 09:21:52 · 15 answers · asked by ryn 4 in Arts & Humanities ➔ Books & Authors
i normally read more traditional fantasy.
2006-08-12 09:31:13 · update #1
it will take you to a great place,some one must have recommended this book,,,a friend,,, read and then try and put it down
2006-08-12 09:27:40 · answer #1 · answered by vivvy section 1 · 1⤊ 2⤋
I read these years ago when they were frst published. Some of the language is a bit obscure and the books can be a bit slow, but they're much richer and more imaginative than your typical swords'n'sorcery hackfest. Many of the characters are far from straightforward, with complex motivations, but they always make sense. If you let a certain incident fairly early on in the first book put you off you're not ready for the moral dilemmas presented in this trilogy.
2006-08-13 03:56:31 · answer #2 · answered by Huh? 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Depends. Stephen is very hard on his characters, and they aren't people that are always the easiest to like, though you can usually find a reasonable motivation for the actions they take, good and bad. His books are much more about character than say, traditional fantasy, and won't appeal to just your standard fantasy reader.
They are also a bit dated now in style. The first series starts off a bit slow, a lot of it can be kind of depressing, really. If you are into more...realistic looks at people in fantasy settings, you'll enjoy it. If you just want some swords and fighting and whatever, you'll hate it.
2006-08-12 09:28:14 · answer #3 · answered by evilnotbad 1 · 1⤊ 1⤋
It's a good read if you can get past the opening chapter. Thomas Covenant rapes a teenaged girl before all of his mental adventures.
2006-08-12 09:29:26 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
Overrated and painful to read. Thomas Covenant is the most unlikable, self-absorbed, angry, pathetic, loser of a protagonist. I wanted to kill him halfway through book 2. Couldn't finish book 3.
2006-08-12 18:01:25 · answer #5 · answered by LooneyDude 4 · 0⤊ 2⤋
My firend lent me the first book of these, after a few chapters, I had no sympathy for the guy, didn't want to develop sympathy and never finished it. You'll know the incident I'm referring to when you get to it, it's early in the first book. My friend swore it was better after that, I didn't care to find out though.
2006-08-12 13:11:25 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Stephen Donaldson is an appalling writer. His prose style is so turgid that reading him is like wading through a sea of mental porridge (with the lumps still in).
2006-08-13 22:40:33 · answer #7 · answered by los 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Oh please, lets concentrate on one little scene that happens early in book one and isn't even central to the story. Let's not talk about Thomas' physical problems, or of his unjustified treatment by his friends and neighbors, or even of his devotion to his ex-wife in spite of the way she treats him.
Most of the people who are saying "don't bother" I suspect never made it past the first half of book one. Once you get used to his style and get into the story it'll be hard to put down.
It's not a happy book, but most of his aren't. After you've read all SIX books on Thomas, if you don't want them, take them to the local secondhand book store. They can never keep this one in stock.
2006-08-12 11:00:30 · answer #8 · answered by Ford 4 · 2⤊ 2⤋
Excellent series. The characters are complex and the writing very erudite.
2006-08-13 10:33:41 · answer #9 · answered by Steve 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
it will be worth the wait! happy reading!
2006-08-12 10:04:12 · answer #10 · answered by mtlmnc 2 · 1⤊ 1⤋