Status
Available
Call number
Call number
F Chr
Genres
Collection
Publication
Macmillan (1971)
Description
Prince-in-Waiting Luke returns from exile to Winchester, a city of a future England ruled by patterns from the past, and sets out on a journey through the Burning Lands, a volcanic wasteland inhabited by strange peoples and the monstrous Bayemot.
Subjects
Original publication date
1971
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User reviews
LibraryThing member sirfurboy
This book, part of a trilogy, was a powerful work that challenges assumptions and makes you think about the goals we have in life. It is a science fiction story set in a future without machines. It is a story of friendships and deceptions and wars set in the kind of richly imagined dystopic future
A thoroughly recommended book that will suit children (perhaps especially boys) from about 11 onwards but translates well to adult readers too.
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that is so characteristic of this author.A thoroughly recommended book that will suit children (perhaps especially boys) from about 11 onwards but translates well to adult readers too.
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LibraryThing member riverwillow
Luke is allowed to return to Winchester and becomes fascinated with the tales of a pedlar who has crossed the Burning Lands. Eventually Luke is allowed to travel across to the land of the Wilsh, where he encounters a society based on trade, rather than warfare, and one where there are no seers. He
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becomes a hero and eventually achieves the status he has been promised. But is the price too high? Show Less
LibraryThing member edgeworth
This is the second book in John Christopher’s “Sword of the Spirits” trilogy, and I enjoyed it quite a bit more than the first. Luke Perry (yeah, yeah, it was written in the ‘70s) has been permitted to return to Winchester, the city of his birth, by the new Prince and his half-brother,
While The Prince in Waiting was fairly pedestrian fantasy/post-apocalyptic story offering castles, battles and political struggles, Beyond the Burning Lands features the mystery of new lands, cultural intrigue and even some monsters, and was a much more entertaining ride. I also found Christopher’s tell-don’t-show writing style more tolerable in this one, as it actually makes a lot more sense for Luke to be evaluating his feelings behind a poker face as he acts as an emissary in a strange and foreign country. On the whole, this was a quick, easy young adult novel that I enjoyed quite a bit more than its predecessor. I’m glad I stuck with this trilogy and I look forward to its eponymous conclusion, The Sword of the Spirits.
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Peter. While the Seers are continuing their man-behind-the-curtain machinations to restore science and knowledge to the world, Luke is content to be back at home, but soon goes off on another adventure. A peddler from foreign lands has arrived in Winchester, claiming to have crossed the volcanic wasteland to the north, and offers to return with an embassy to the “land of the Wilsh.” Luke, as Peter’s brother, is sent along with the group as an emissary.While The Prince in Waiting was fairly pedestrian fantasy/post-apocalyptic story offering castles, battles and political struggles, Beyond the Burning Lands features the mystery of new lands, cultural intrigue and even some monsters, and was a much more entertaining ride. I also found Christopher’s tell-don’t-show writing style more tolerable in this one, as it actually makes a lot more sense for Luke to be evaluating his feelings behind a poker face as he acts as an emissary in a strange and foreign country. On the whole, this was a quick, easy young adult novel that I enjoyed quite a bit more than its predecessor. I’m glad I stuck with this trilogy and I look forward to its eponymous conclusion, The Sword of the Spirits.
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LibraryThing member Figgles
Volume two of John Christopher's post apocalyptic Prince in Waiting series. Luke's journey continues as he crosses the volcanic lands from the tightly regimented civilisation of the South of England to the more relaxed and colourful land of the Wilsh (present day Wales). The different culture
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challenges Luke and the rest of the mission, but he remains the same stubborn hot-head and manages to win the hand of the Wilsh Princess Blodwen after a brave but foolish battle with a giant amoeba like monster (the Baymot - with a more than passing resemblance to the creatures from the deep in John Wyndham's "The Kraken Wakes"). There is something of the proto-feminist about this princess which doesn't sit well with our traditionalist hero. On his return to Winchester he is accused of murder and has to challenge and fight his half brother for the Princedom. Very much a middle book, you can read it as a stand-alone but it works better as part of the whole story. Show Less