- Audio Cassette
- Publisher: Random House Audio; Unabridged edition (July 13 2004)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0739310844
- ISBN-13: 978-0739310847
- Product Dimensions: 17.5 x 11.7 x 3.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 159 g
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Publishers Weekly
Brimming with action and energy, wit and charm, pathos and joy, Silverberg's anthology of short novels from 11 masters of fantasy, six of whom contributed to the original Legends (1998), provides a dazzling display of the genre's variety and versatility. Otherland fans will welcome Tad Williams's The Happiest Dead Boy in the World as a chance to visit with an old friend they never thought to see again. George R.R. Martin's The Sworn Sword, which continues the story of Dunk and Egg that he began in the first Legends, will also please his readers. All the returning authors more than live up to their reputations, except for Anne McCaffrey, whose Beyond Between, an ill-conceived explanation of what happens when a dragon fails to return from between, strikes the book's lone sour note. Yet for all the returnees' star power, it's the new authors who truly shine here. Elizabeth Haydon's entry, Threshold, follows five doomed friends left to guard the remnants of a civilization about to be destroyed in a cataclysm after most of the populace has already fled to a safe haven: a stunning tale of courage and honor, duty and friendship, it may be the book's best entry. Robin Hobb's Homecoming, the story of the settlement of the Rain Wild River and one woman's journey to independence, is the other contender. Terry Brooks, Diana Gabaldon, Raymond E. Feist, Orson Scott Card, Neil Gaiman and Silverberg round out the all-star cast.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
From Booklist
Many contributors to Legends (1998), Silverberg's first collection of short(er) stories set in the worlds of their authors' successful fantasy series, return in the follow-up. Anne McCaffrey offers a freestanding tale of Pern; Raymond E. Feist, a tale from the middle of his Riftwar saga; George R. R. Martin, a direct successor to his Legends contribution about a squire on the way to knighthood and his peculiar boy sidekick; editor Silverberg, another Majipoor story; and Orson Scott Card, a yarn in which Alvin Maker meets some of the Alamo's destined defenders. Splash first timers include romantic historical fantasist Diana Gabaldon, of Outlander fame, with an episode in her Lord John Grey series; Neil Gaiman, with a story starring Shadow, hero of his award-winning American Gods (2001) and named after Sir Edwin Landseer's famous painting Monarch of the Glen; and Robin Hobb, whose creepy, Liveship Traders-related "Homecoming" (think H. P. Lovecraft rewriting The Swiss Family Robinson) opens this book and sets the bar of quality extremely high for what follows. Ray Olson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Mostly the masters,
By Joe Williams (Plano, Texas) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Legends II: New Short Novels by the Masters of Modern Fantasy (Hardcover)
One reviewer asked why various authors including Mary Gentle and C J Cherryh were not included in this book of master of fantasy. I agree that they should not have been. The people listed here write fantasy for the most part, not science fiction or horror, and are for the most part better and certainly more popular authors than those. The only possible exceptions I see is Silverberg, who writes Sci Fi but is definitely a master of it, McCaffrey, who has lost her touch in a big way, and Gabaldon, who writes romance and should have been left off the roster altogether.It's always wonderful to read Orson Scott Card when he writes the Alvin Maker stories. George Martin has a style that transcends much of the genre. I am really sorry that Stephen King didn't do another Dark Tower tale, as that is probably my favorite from the last book. Robin Hobb did a credible job, and Elizabeth Haydon was by far the hands down winner of this collection. These definitely are the masters, if you can overlook a few of them. I recommend it as a great read if you are into series fantasy. If you aren't, you may still find it entertaining, but you have to really follow the series to get the ultimate enjoyment out of seeing these side tales.
4.0 out of 5 stars
Worth it!,
By Dave Liles (Mansfield, Oh) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Legends II: New Short Novels by the Masters of Modern Fantasy (Hardcover)
This book has definitely rekindled my interest in Fantasy. While I have not finished it yet, I found the works by Robin Hobb (my first time here), Raymond Feist, and, of course, the great Silverberg to be especially good. I look forward to reading he rest. I recommend it.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Legends II,
By A Customer
This review is from: Legends II: New Short Novels by the Masters of Modern Fantasy (Hardcover)
Here's a caveat: I only read about half of the stories in this anthology, because only about half of the authors do work that interests me. I don't know exactly why the "masters of modern fantasy" couldn't include CJ Cherryh, or Tanith Lee, or Mary Gentle, or Ellen Kushner, or Chaz Brenchley. But apparently they don't.Quibbles with the selection process aside: I liked Robin Hobb's Rain Wild story. Though it doesn't reveal anything readers of the novels won't know, it is a strong character-driven work with plenty of tension. I was a bit disappointed in George Martin's Ice & Fire story. It is well-written, but it doesn't attain the level of grimth his work often does. (Though there is a very cool fight scene.) The twist ending happens a bit too fast and wraps things up a bit too neatly for me. Diana Gabaldon's Lord John story also disappointed me a bit, for three reasons: no actual speculative element; a somewhat confused plot that feels not quite put together yet; and NO romance, despite tantalizing hints. Unfair! Still, it's an interesting time period and a character with a lot of potential. I didn't know about the novel and I mean to go read it now. Don't read Anne McCaffrey's Moreta story. That's all I can say. It totally spoils the tragedy of the novel Moreta, it has several internal inconsistencies, and it lacks tension. I'd reread the novel instead. Neil Gaiman's Shadow story is very good -- in fact I think I liked it better than I did American Gods. It's atmospheric and skillfully written. I wanted to know more about the significance of the ritual, and more about what the freeing of the gods would mean, but it's still a good one.
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