Brother to Shadows

by Andre Norton

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"Brother to shadows marks the triumphant, long-awaited return of one of the most distinctive voices in the realm of the future-possible - the first sf novel in over a decade by the incomparable Andre Norton, winner of the Science Fiction Writers of America's prestigious Grand Master Award." "At the end of the history of Ho-Le-Far Lair, a young Shadow named Jofre is cast out in disgrace - cruelly forsaken by the illustrious Brotherhood of spies, bodyguards and assassins to whom he has dedicated his life...and damned to wander Asborgan alone." "Then Destiny unveils her grand designs for Jofre in the Stinkhole - haven of the vilest scum to follow the star lanes. For there he is blood-oathed to the off-worlder Zurzal - a gentle, reptilian knowledge-seeker on a quest to penetrate the mystery of time itself." "There are others, however, intently interested in the progress of the lizard-being and his newly acquired guardian: the lord of a contentious world who would harness their powers to crush a revolution...the bloodthirsty minions of the dreaded interplanetary Thieves Guild...and a beautiful, issha-trained Shadow-sister, entrusted with the destruction of one with whom she shares an unbreakable bond." "But a Shadow, once oathed, may not question his mission. And Jofre must be faithful to the path he has chosen - embarking upon an exrtraordinary journey through strange worlds and unknown perils...and toward an unforeseen magnificence that awaits him in the terrible Shattered Land."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved… (more)

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I came to this read-again book thinking it was one of those that I got just because the subject mentioned time travel. However, after actually reading it, I found it quite interesting and rather more exciting in terms of people shooting at each other than is usual in Andre Norton's stories and, though it's listed as part of a series, it is more than fine as a standalone. As is usual with Norton's far future science fiction it may not be directly related to other books in that future though it shares a lot of common elements, not least of all, the zacathans in the shape of Zurzal a researcher in bad odour with his own people as he tries to use some forbidden technology to look into the past. Jofre is an outcast from the only life he knows as a trainee assassin who finds himself oathbonded to Zurzal after saving his life. We even have a beautiful female agent who's been ordered to kill Jofre but instead finds herself bonded to him and Zurfal. (

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JohnFair | Jul 7, 2020 |

Okay sci-fi where not a whole lot happens. Characters are surprisingly dense. I was very happy that the main woman character does *not* become the romantic interest to whom the main character becomes entwined. (

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dbsovereign | Jan 26, 2016 |

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Author name	Role	Type of author	Work?	Status
Andre Norton	—	primary author	all editions	calculated
Horne,Daniel	Cover artist	secondary author	some editions	confirmed

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Ice and Shadow by Andre Norton

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Canonical title

Brother to Shadows

Original title

Brother to Shadows

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Asborgan (fictional planet)

Lochan (fictional planet)

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The chill fingers of the dawn wind clawed.

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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

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"Brother to shadows marks the triumphant, long-awaited return of one of the most distinctive voices in the realm of the future-possible - the first sf novel in over a decade by the incomparable Andre Norton, winner of the Science Fiction Writers of America's prestigious Grand Master Award." "At the end of the history of Ho-Le-Far Lair, a young Shadow named Jofre is cast out in disgrace - cruelly forsaken by the illustrious Brotherhood of spies, bodyguards and assassins to whom he has dedicated his life...and damned to wander Asborgan alone." "Then Destiny unveils her grand designs for Jofre in the Stinkhole - haven of the vilest scum to follow the star lanes. For there he is blood-oathed to the off-worlder Zurzal - a gentle, reptilian knowledge-seeker on a quest to penetrate the mystery of time itself." "There are others, however, intently interested in the progress of the lizard-being and his newly acquired guardian: the lord of a contentious world who would harness their powers to crush a revolution...the bloodthirsty minions of the dreaded interplanetary Thieves Guild...and a beautiful, issha-trained Shadow-sister, entrusted with the destruction of one with whom she shares an unbreakable bond." "But a Shadow, once oathed, may not question his mission. And Jofre must be faithful to the path he has chosen - embarking upon an exrtraordinary journey through strange worlds and unknown perils...and toward an unforeseen magnificence that awaits him in the terrible Shattered Land."--BOOK JACKET.Title Summary field provided by Blackwell North America, Inc. All Rights Reserved

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DEBT OF HONOR, OATH OF BLOOD

Since early childhood, Jofre has honored the ways of the Brotherhood. Now the illustrious order of bodyguards and assassins has cast him out in disgrace - cruelly condemning the young Shadow to wander a treacherous world alone.

But in the Stinkport, safe haven from the vilest of star-travelling scum. His true destiny awaits him in a stinking port where the vilest of star-traveling scum congregate.

For here he is bound by blood-oath to a gentle reptilian knowledge-seeker Zurzal on a perilous quest to penetrate the mysteries of time itself -
a miraculous journey that will carry them through war and evolution on far planets and deep into the Shattered Lands - a sacred duty imperiled by those who would use a window on the past to wreak havoc upon an already volatile universe.

In war and revolution - on far planets and in shattered lands - Jofre's skills and spirit will be tested in fire and in blood...as his sworn mission is threatened by a mysterious Shadow-sister whose own secret agenda could doom them all.

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Jofre's chain weapons was a serpent ready to strike. There was a rising howl of sound and Jofre put his weapon into use. It twisted among the cords on the floor. He gave a jerk with full shoulder strength and the nearest of the broadcasting machines came crashing down.

Blaster beams were sweeping back and forth. There was struggling and the screaming of the women. Jofre tensed. He tightly gripped the weapon, expecting every breathless moment to be either cut down by a stass ray or fried by a blaster.

He gave a leap which carried him over the wrecking of the wires and landed behind the Holder. In a moment his arm was over the other's shoulder, brining pressure to bear on the Tssekian's throat.

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