- Hardcover: 352 pages
- Publisher: Tor Books; 1st edition edition (Nov 10 2009)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 076532279X
- ISBN-13: 978-0765322791
- Product Dimensions: 24.3 x 16.5 x 3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 476 g
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #392,849 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||
Product Details |
Product Description
Product Description
Lawrence Watt-Evans, author of the acclaimed Legends of Ethshar and Worlds of Shadows novels invites readers to embark on a rollicking journey in a brand-new fantasy series.
Anrel Murau is a scholar, a young man with no magical ability even though he is the son of two powerful sorcerers. Anrel’s lack of talent bars him from the ruling classes, but he is content to be a simple clerk.
Upon returning to his childhood home after years of study in the capital, Anrel finds his friends and family held under the thumb of the corrupt local lord. When this lord murders a dear friend, Anrel finds that although he’s not a sorcerer, he is not without other means to demand justice.
If he can survive life on the run, that is.
Carrying only his sword, a few coins, and his wit, Anrel must leave behind everything he has ever known, trust himself to unexpected allies, and outmaneuver leagues of enemies who will stop at nothing to keep his dangerous ideas from ever being heard. Magic and intrigue collide in a swashbuckling tale of daring escapes, beautiful witches, and one quiet young man’s rise to hero—or traitor. Nothing will ever be simple for Anrel again, as his personal quest may provide more peril for those he holds dear.
About the Author
Lawrence Watt-Evans has been a full-time writer and editor for more than twenty years. The author of more than thirty novels, over one hundred short stories, and more than one hundred and fifty published articles, Watt-Evans writes primarily in the fields of science fiction, fantasy, horror, and comic books. His short fiction has won the Hugo Award as well as twice winning the Asimov’s Readers Award. He currently lives in Maryland with his wife.
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organize and find favorite items. |
Customer Reviews
|
There are no customer reviews yet on Amazon.ca
|
||||||||||||||||||||
|
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
3.4 out of 5 stars (12 customer reviews)
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars
A Huge Letdown, Aug 14 2010
By Solomon Foster - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: A Young Man Without Magic (Hardcover)
I am a big fan of both the fantasy of manners and swashbuckling genres, and this book appeared like it might be a good example of both. Alas, this book has neither the wit of a fantasy of manners, nor the panache of a swashbuckler.It starts off quite promisingly with some nice world-building. But it goes nowhere. Our hero is bland and unlikeable, and what passes for a plot is largely driven by him failing to dissuade his even more unlikeable friends from doing things which are (literally) criminally stupid. In fact, it is the sort of book where the characters' actions are routinely so stupid that they stop and discuss just how stupid they are -- before going ahead and doing them.
The villain is only marginally villainous at best. The hero is inept; the only thing he seems to be really good at is starting major riots. (Which probably means he is responsible for more innocent deaths than the villain!) Most of the other characters are paper-thin. The love interest, in particular, shows no noteworthy characteristics at all, and seems to exist mostly so that her relatives can drag the hero into further plot.
The ending is a complete mess. Without getting into spoilers, the majority of the plot threads are left unresolved, and the hero goes from being crazily heroic to being completely unheroic in the space of about two pages. It is utterly unsatisfying.
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
2.0 out of 5 stars
Left me hanging, May 2 2010
By The Big Bee - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: A Young Man Without Magic (Hardcover)
I found this book not really up to the usual standsrd for Lawrence Watt-Evans. The story is interesting enough and shows promise but never quite delivers. The characters are realistic and believable and suit the story.I have enjoyed many of this author's previous novels, but this one just didn't quite get there. For one thing, the story didn't have an ending. The plot built nicely towards a conclusion, but then it sort of fizzled into nothing. Oviously there is a second book planned, but this one needed to have a better ending to encourage me to follow the story on. At the end I felt cheated for having read so much story to end up with nothing in my hand.
Will I buy the next book? Possibly, but I certainly wouldn't buy the hardback version. I'll wait until a paperback version comes out and make my decision then.
4.0 out of 5 stars
A quite enjoyable story, May 24 2011
By Kurt A. Johnson - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: A Young Man Without Magic (Hardcover)
Anrel Murau finishes his education in the capital, and returns home to find that the Walsian Empire is indeed in trouble. Failing harvests and the depredations of a sorcerous aristocracy have left the people on the edge of rebellion. Caught up in events beyond his control, Anrel soon finds himself on the run from the law, having inadvertently fomented a rebellion. But Anrel never wanted to be a revolutionary, and he desperately wants out of his new role...if only events will allow it.Overall, I found this to be a quite good book. Admittedly, I can't compare it to the works of Rafael Sabatini, but stacked up against such wonderful classics any other work is likely to look like a poor relation. But, having read it just for itself, I found it to be a quite enjoyable story, with interesting characters and an interesting milieu. As for me, I am very glad that I read it!
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
|
