Shadowmarch (original 2004; edition 2004)

by Tad Williams (Author)

Series: Shadowmarch (1)

Members	Reviews	Popularity	Average rating	Mentions
2,449	44	6,156	(3.7)	59
An epic tale of magic and mystery, duty and betrayal, Tad Williams' SHADOWMARCH trilogy is destined to become a classic of modern fantasy. At the uppermost edge of the northern kingdoms, towers shrouded in mist, lies Southmarch Castle. For hundreds of years it has remained hidden from the affairs of empire. Now its isolation can protect it no more. Southmarch is under siege; from both its neighbours, without, and the more insidious enemies who would destroy it from within. Even further to the north, within the ancient walls of Qul-na-Qar, in a land of silence and gloom, the Twilight People gather to hear Ynnir, the blind king, pronounce the dark fate of human kind. In the south, the Autarch, the god-king who has already conquered an entire continent, now looks to extend his domain once more. It is upon Southmarch that the armies advance, and to its people that darkness will speed.… (more)

▾Book information

Member:	VilleH
Title:	Shadowmarch
Authors:	Tad Williams (Author)
Info:	London : Orbit, 2004.
Collections:	Your library
Rating:
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Work Information

Shadowmarch by Tad WILIAMS (2004)

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20
The Dragonbone Chair by Tad Williams (Cecrow)
Cecrow: A better introduction to Tad Williams' fantasy oeuvre.
21
A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin (alcc)
alcc: Another high fantasy, the first novel in the series a A Song of Ice and Fire, that shares many similarities. It has an amazing cast of characters, an intricate world, riveting plot, and was thoroughly enjoyable.
00
The Dark Tide by Dennis L. McKiernan (Cecrow)
Cecrow: This earlier work also featured an encroaching "shadowline"

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English (39) Spanish (1) Dutch (1) Swedish (1) German (1) All languages (43)

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Showing 1-5 of 39 (next | show all)

I give it more of a 3.5 rating, but have to give a BOOOOO to the publisher for messing up the books available for Kindle. Book 2 is missing, with the other books available. (

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jazzbird61 | Feb 29, 2024 |

I didn't read this book for years because of personal writing reasons. Now that I have I am glad I waited. Having said that I still enjoyed it. The book started really slow for me. Eventually it got going and by the time I reached the end I felt invested in the characters and the story. (

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cdaley | Nov 2, 2023 |

Plods along for awhile in the way I have come to recognize from Tad Williams but eventually got around to being an engaging read. (

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levlazarev | Oct 18, 2023 |

The pace is far too slow for such a lengthy book (or perhaps I’m just an impatient reader...), and until the point that I stopped reading (around one-fifth of the way in), I was feeling that the plot just wasn’t developing at all.

The characters in this book should be interesting to me, right? There are simply too many protagonists here, which means none of them get the development time they need to be interesting. To me, protagonists don't need to be likable. An unlikable character can still be captivating. Most of these main characters aren't very likable.

This book is merely the first act of a much larger story, which is fueling all other problems. The purpose of the first book is to do just that! The plot also doesn’t have a lot of forward motion, and apart from a single murder that occurs near the beginning, it resolves nothing else.

It feels like I’ve just read a 750-page prologue, and that’s not good.

A waste of time. (

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onlyfiction | Oct 2, 2023 |

I found this book while I was browsing the shelves at the library. A reminder that random browsing can uncover a jewel. T. Williams story telling drew me in immediately and I embraced the large cast of characters. The story ofThe Match Kingdom takes off at a fast pace and never slows down. A kidnapping of the King, the murder of a major player in the kingdom, a strange mist rolling over the kingdom and a exotic southern land ,all introduced within the first 100 pages. Shadow March is the first in a series and I am back at the library, not browsing this time, but swooping up books 2 and 3. if you love a good fantasy land, well thought out adventure stories and solid characters, then give Tad Williams a go. I don't think a good Fantasy - Geek would be disappointed. (

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JBroda | Sep 24, 2021 |

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Author name	Role	Type of author	Work?	Status
WILIAMS, Tad	—	primary author	all editions	confirmed
FEBERWEE, Erica	Translator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed
Hurme-Keränen, Auli	Translator	secondary author	some editions	confirmed

▾Series and work relationships

Belongs to Series

Shadowmarch (1)

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DAW Book Collectors (1309)

Contains

Shadowmarch {part 1 of 2} by Tad Williams

Shadowmarch {part 2 of 2} by Tad Williams

▾Awards and Honors

Awards

SF Site Reader's Choice (2004)

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Canonical title

Shadowmarch

Original title

Shadowmarch

Alternative titles

Shadowmarch: Volume One

Original publication date

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Epigraph

Dedication

This book is dedicated to my children, Connor Williams and Devon Beale, who as I write this are still small but extremely powerful. They amaze me every day.

Someday, when they are grown and their mother and I have ambled on to the Fields Beyond, I hope the two of them will be warmed by the knowledge of how fiercely we loved them, and a tiny bit embarrassed by how wickedly they took advantage of it, charming, funny little buggers that they are.

First words

For almost a thousand years before our Trigonate Era, history was written only in the ancient kingdoms of Xand, the southern continent that was the world's first seat of civilization.

Come away, dreamer, come away. Soon you will witness things that only sleepers and sorcerers can see.

The belling of the hounds was already growing faint in the hollows behind them when he finally pulled up.

Quotations

Perhaps it really is as the ancients say, he thought. Perhaps a heart was indeed like a piece of dry birchwood, and could only take fire and burn brightly once - that any fire that came after would be only an ember, smaller and cooler.

It's as if we live on a thousand, thousand different islands in the middle of an ocean, he thought, but with no boats. We can see each other. We can shout to each other. But we can none of us leave our own island and travel to another.

Last words

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English

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Shadowmarch

▾Book descriptions

An epic tale of magic and mystery, duty and betrayal, Tad Williams' SHADOWMARCH trilogy is destined to become a classic of modern fantasy. At the uppermost edge of the northern kingdoms, towers shrouded in mist, lies Southmarch Castle. For hundreds of years it has remained hidden from the affairs of empire. Now its isolation can protect it no more. Southmarch is under siege; from both its neighbours, without, and the more insidious enemies who would destroy it from within. Even further to the north, within the ancient walls of Qul-na-Qar, in a land of silence and gloom, the Twilight People gather to hear Ynnir, the blind king, pronounce the dark fate of human kind. In the south, the Autarch, the god-king who has already conquered an entire continent, now looks to extend his domain once more. It is upon Southmarch that the armies advance, and to its people that darkness will speed.

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