Product Description

A thrilling, heartstopping quest that blends the machinations of a king gone mad with the politics of empire, breathtaking suspense with the pity of war, a brilliantly conceived world of ancient days with the joys - and terrors - of magic ...

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #30187 in Books
• Published on: 1990-10-18
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 944 pages

Customer Reviews

The Start of an Epic
Though the paperback weighs in at 766 pages of text I wasn't bored or plodding through the story at all--rather I was racing towards the end, hoping that it would never come. Williams has crafted a fine tale set in a believable world. Follow the adventures of Simon (originally Seoman) the castle scullion. He lives in the Hayholt, capital castle for King John the Presbyter, High King of Osten Ard. Unfortunately King John is dying and his son Elias will inhereit the throne--however, not all is well with Elias and Pryrates, his mysterious counselor. Simon is thrust unwillingly into these tumultuous times and has to make the best of it.

Simon is definately the main character of the volume, yet as the story progresses you are introduced to a host of other characters and occasionally you'll see chapters and scenes from their perspective. Really everything weaves together in a tale that holds the imagination and attention while leaving you in anticipation of the next volume. I was also appreciative that the story stayed believable without falling into too many "fantasy cliches," and because of its length the development could go slowly (but not too slowly)--that is to say many things on the back cover weren't revealed for several hundred pages, :-). Don't expect to see characters who've never fought before suddenly wield a sword like an expert and become the kingdom's champion--Williams is more realistic than that, ;-).

The different cultures are well thoughtout, and the history of the world is anything but stagnant or "stuck in the Middle Ages." Rather there is a real sense of history and the rise and fall of nations. Don't expect to find a "typical fantasy" with humans, elves, and dwarves. Instead you'll find multiple believable human cultures, the mysterious Sithi, and diminutive Trolls.

Of worthy mention is the cover art and the maps. Michael Whelan produced the paperback cover art--and I have always enjoyed his work--true to the text as it is and wonderfully rendered. Additionally the maps were created by Tad Williams himself, and several enlargements appeared throughout the volume.

If you are looking for epic fantasy and a well crafted tale then look no further than Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn's first volume The Dragonbone Chair to start you off.

Memory, Sorrow and Thorn One of the Better Fantasy Series
This book begins the quartet of "Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn," and is one of the better fantasy series currently available for reading. Well written, with a developed mythos, good characterization, and solid plotting, this series must stand as one of the better, if not among the best, of the fantasy series availble for reading. Much of the story and world are freshly rendered, and rarely does the reader encounter the overly familiar or implausible contrivances that plague so much of contemporary fantasy fiction. Nor are the characterizations idealized or juvenile. While this series does not rise, for me, to the imaginary involvement of works such as "Lord of the Rings," the first three "Chronicles of Thomas Covenant," Bradley's "Mists of Avalon," Kay's work since "Fianovar," and Martin's or Jordan's (despite its flaws) ongoing series, nonetheless, I cannot recommend this quartet highly enough.

One note of caution: Action addicts may have difficulty with the "Stone of Farewell" as the first 150 pages are devoted to establishing background and character development of the main protagonist, but I believe if they perservere, only the true adrenelin junkie will feel short-changed. And for you, there is always Eddings or Brooks or comics.

Traditional fantasy
The Dragonbone Chair kicks off the Memory, Sorrow and Thorn (MSaT) trilogy - which is four books in paperback. The book starts slowly with the focus on the hero, the obligatory orphan boy, Simon. This makes a welcome change from recent fantasy novels I've read that pommel you into submission with action scenes from the first page. Halfway into the book the story gets going and branches out with three or four narrative strands on the go - a structure that is maintained until the end of the series.

The writing style is very similar to Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time (WoT) Series - which is to say, a comfort read and very easy to lose yourself in the author's world. It also has in common, frequent access to the hero's thoughts for the added feeling of actually being there. So if you read and enjoyed the first four WoT books you will enjoy the MSaT series. And of course you have the added bonus of knowing there is an ending!

This is my favourite type of fantasy book. A low level of technology, high level of magic. Tolkienesque I suppose. Derivative? - Yes. But so what. MSaT is easily up there with Magician, Sword of Shannara, and Lord of the Rings.