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Loading... Shadowmarch: Volume Iby Tad Williams
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. A new trilogy by Tad Williams. I definitely enjoyed this one, so I now feel rather silly for having started the trilogy before all three books are available. The next is out but perhaps not yet in paperback and is called Shadowplay, but I don't even know the name of the third one! Fairly stock fantasy novel, but I like his style, and thankfully this is a bit lighter going that the Otherworld series was. And it makes a refreshing change for the main protagonists to actually *know* they're the prince and princess in advance, rather than having to do the whole adventure and then find it out. I'll get on with the rest of the to-read pile for now, but look forward to the rest. (  )lnr_blair | Jul 7, 2009 |   This is a complex, interesting book which feels somewhat similiar to his Memory, Sorrow and Thorn series. The human kingdoms are all involved in various wars, and for some reason, the royal family of Shadowmarch is bearing the brunt of the assault. At the same time, the forces of faerie that were forced out of the human lands centuries ago are on the attack again. This is obviously destined to be a multivolume series, which at times is a bit frustrating, because pages go by with little or nothing happening, though you can tell we are being setup for future events. It would be better if a few of those future events happened in this book, but they don't. This is a good book and a good start to the series, though sometimes it feels like it is just like other fantasy epic series - though not quite. Its not as original as War of the Flowers or the Otherland series, though still very good. ( )Karlstar | Mar 26, 2009 | Shadowmarch is epic. This first volume almost spans 850 pages in which a powerplay between monarchs is barely started. The scope of Shadowmarch is vast, with the plots spread across continents, rulers and races. Williams cannily crafts a new world, with hints of traditional fantasy and incredible depth. Thankfully, this broad and deep world is not described through tedious flashbacks or history lessons, but through small and frequent hints of the world and culture around the protagonists. The setting aside, the plots themselves are full of twists, emotionally charged and with strong characterisation. The backbone of all these strong elements is the broader good vs. evil story, and here it is well written and emotive. Shadowmarch is excellent fantasy fiction. At times it is too wordy, although never boring. Certainly recommended. (  )SonicQuack | Mar 25, 2009 | V. good, I thought. I love that his fairy folk aren't sweet little creatures with wings hopping around flowers. They're mean, baby! Evil, I say! Perhaps they're just really misunderstood--that's my take on it. The story: many years ago, there was a war between humans and the Twilight People. Devestation to the land, etc. The Twilight People eventually set up a barrier between their land and the world of men, the Shadowline. But now, in the kingdom of Southmarch, it seems as though it might be starting to move. Of course, as with Williams's epics, it's never just that simple. In the southern lands (Southmarch, sometimes called Shadowmarch, is in the northern continent), we have the autarch, the living god-on-earth. And we also have the Funderlings, shorter than humans, who have an entire underground city. And briefly, the Skimmers, water folk. And, as with Williams, I do recommend this book! ( )PirateJenny | Jan 1, 2009 | 1  Good old-fashioned fantasy, and the first Tad Williams I read. The characters are well-drawn, and the world is intriguing, especially the villians of the peice. As the trilogy is not finished yet, I have chosen to wait until it is, and go back and read the entire thing. ( )eddy79 | Aug 27, 2008 | 0.052 seconds to build listing  no reviews | add a review
Amazon.com (ISBN 0756403596, Mass Market Paperback)The Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series established Tad Williams's preeminence in fantasy. Now, after an absence of more than a decade, the New York Times bestselling author has returned to high fantasy with his Shadowmarch trilogy. Exciting, ambitious, intricate, and insightful, Shadowmarch: Volume 1 demonstrates that Williams is still America's best high fantasist.Shadowmarch: Volume 1 introduces a world conquered by humans, who have driven the Qar, or fairy folk, into the far north. There, the Qar hide behind the "Shadowline," a mysterious veil of perpetual mist, which drives mad any human who dares enter it. Bordering that mist and named for it is Shadowmarch, the northernmost human kingdom. Shadowmarch has lately fallen on hard times. Its king has been captured by a rival kingdom, the regent has been mysteriously slain, and the new regents are callow fifteen-year-olds. Moody, crippled Prince Barrick is uninterested in their responsibilities and haunted by eerie dreams. His twin, Princess Briony, takes their new duties seriously, but is hot-tempered and headstrong. How can they defeat the greatest threats in Shadowmarch history? Their nobles plot to overthrow them--and the plotters may include their pregnant stepmother, seeking the throne for her own child. The expanding empire of Xis has sent its agents into Shadowmarch. And, for the first time since it appeared centuries ago, the Shadowline has starting moving. As the maddening mist spreads south over Shadowmarch, it does not quite hide the powerful, uncanny, and vengeful Qar army of invasion... --Cynthia Ward (retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:58:12 -0400) The first test round has been closed. Visit the Open Shelves Classification group for details. |
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