Terec and the Wild

Here is a story about Terec! (He’s Conju’s lost love. And if you don’t know who they are, then don’t start your Nine Worlds journey here, obviously.)

Terec happens to be a wild mage, and the magic of Astandalas is like an oppressive weight which is there every day, every minute, suffocating. There is fire in him, and he afraid of hurting people he loves by accident. So Terec exiles himself, without saying goodbye to anyone.

Following his travels is a melancholy thing. Oh, to be very young, alone, inexperienced, vulnerable, and far from home.

“He wanted to go home, so intensely that he could not breathe. He sat there, longing crashing over him.”

As Terec comes ever closer to the Border, his magic grows… content. It’s show more lovely.

The writing is as wonderful as always. But I thought that Terec was not as compelling or interesting as so many other characters I met in Victoria Goddard’s books. So his story did not grab me as much as other Nine Worlds tales. I wouldn’t mind reading more about Terec, though – there is one more short story/novella out there.

The Nine Worlds journey will continue :) show less

Terec's wild magic is getting more and more out of control, and the magic of the empire of Astandalas doesn't play nice with it. when he starts having nightmares that his fire burns down his house, Terec knows it's time to venture outside the empire.

This short story gives us just a hint of the story of Terec, the man who was Conju's first love. It's a little bit of an episodic adventure as he ventures closer and closer to the edge of the empire, which gave it slightly odd pacing and structure, and as much as I enjoyed getting to know Terec, I wanted more and will look forward to reading the sequel.

I understand the purpose of these short stories — to give us background on some mentioned characters from other books. This one feels unfinished— clearly this is just the beginning of Terec’s story, and it definitely makes me want to know more — I just wish it was more all at once rather than in little snippets.

It leaves me worried about Terec, and his intoxicating journey, so I hope to learn more soon.

A short story explaining what happened to Conju's friend Terec, from his point of view. He's heading north, where the Empire's magic doesn't hold and his wild magic won't be so suppressed and bound...odd things happen along the way, but he ends up reaching his goal and disappears from our ken. Until the next book, anyway. Not a lot to it but, as with most of these side stories, it illuminates a character we didn't know much about.

Wild Mages cannot easily survive in the Empire, and endanger all around them if the try to stay. Leaving the Empire is a long journey and dangerous for a young man like Terec, used to the support of civilization and comfort if not wealth, and deeply injured by leaving all he loves behind.