Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #319214 in Books
• Published on: 1992-12-31
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

Customer Reviews

Stick with it - the rest are worth the wait!
Please don't be put off by the fact that this book is short, extremely dark and ultimately just the preview of what is to come.

It's a necessary step towards one of the best science fiction series that I've read. 'The Real Story' opens the curtain to a dangerous, dark world of the future and one woman's harrowing journey through it. If you've read the Thomas Covenant books then you'll know Donaldon's penchant for awkward, unloveable characters. This series is no different and though the first two books are more background than anything else, the momentum that they provide (used to amazing effect in the last three books) is quite something else.

I can't recommend this series highly enough - if I was marking 'The Real Story' as a stand alone novel I'd probably give it three stars. The series itself goes beyond five stars. Awesome.

Complex, compelling - excellent
This review realy applies to the whole Gap series by Stephen Donaldson. I found his best yet (the Thomas Covenant series is good but takes far too much from Tolkien for my liking and the characterisation is a bit strained at times).

The characterisation in the Gap series is, on the other hand, excellent. The storyline initially appears quite simple but soon becomes quite bizzare in the turns in takes and all the way through you're never quite sure who's going to do what next.

Please ignore all the bad reviews, these books are well worth reading if you like intelligent science-fiction.

Perfection and that's all I have to say
Will people please stop bitching about how the Real Story dosen't go deep enough. Firstly you obviousley haven't read Donaldson's own justification of it and secondly it is the first of a quintet. If everything was explained and made clear in the first book, what would be the point of the other four. You wouldn't just read book one of The Lord of the Rings and then walk away saying 'all very well, but what happens to Frodo?' - you'd pick up and get into the second book. The Gap series is one of the best things I've ever read and I speak as a degree level English student - so there!