Split Heirs
by Lawrence Watt-Evans (Author), Esther M. Friesner (Author)
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Description
High comedy, low pratfalls, and thrilling derring-do combine in a magical and fantastic epic about the Ancient and Honorable Kingdom of the Hydrangeans; the mighty, though rather stupid, warrior Gudge; and the mysterious Black Weasel."Confusion reigns in this often funny, frequently precious fantasy about usurped thrones and lost heirs. After the Gorgorian barbarians conquer the civilized kingdom of Hydrangea, their leader Gudge makes himself king, marries Hydrangean Princess Artemisia and show more settles down to a highly satisfactory life of drinking and debauchery. Royal triplets, separated at birth because of a Gorgorian superstition that multiple births suggest the mother's infidelity, receive very different upbringings. The only girl, Avena, is brought up in the palace as Prince Arbol, heir to the throne and a fearsome swordsman. One brother, Wulfrith, is raised by a shepherd; although a young ewe is his favorite companion, his size makes him a fearsome battler. The other brother, Dunwin, reared by the outlawed wizard Clootie, develops into a talented magician. To this basic brew Watt-Evans (the Ethshar series) and Friesner (Gnome Man's Land) have added a couple of dragons, some attempted seductions, mistaken identities and misguided spells to produce a lighthearted fantasy." —Publishers Weekly
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Member Reviews
Lost heirs, barbarians, dragons, girl warriors, beheadings, rebels in the greenwood, palace intrigue, it's all here in this joke on epic fantasy. The characters race around bumping into each other and into the plot, until they all gather for a grand finale. My favorite character is Bernice, once a sheep, now a dragon, who realizes that she no longer is going to be eaten by anyone. Quite the opposite, in fact. The humor is sometimes a little fourteen-year-old clever for me, but still fun.
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Author Information
Some Editions
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Split Heirs
- Original publication date
- 1993
- Dedication
- Dedicated to our own heirs: Mike, Annie, Amanda, and Julian
- First words
- Three?" The scream from the north tower of the Palace of Divinely Tranquil Thoughts was loud and shrill enough to shatter seven stained-glass windows in the banqueting hall below-six of them among the handful of remain... (show all)ing works by the master artisan Oratio, dating from some fourteen centuries back, and the last a cheap imitation installed during the reign of Corulimus the Decadent, a mere millennium ago.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)He always had loved a challenge.
- Blurbers
- Shwartz, Susan
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 503
- Popularity
- 59,899
- Reviews
- 2
- Rating
- (3.26)
- Languages
- English, German, Russian
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 7
- ASINs
- 5
