Status
Checked out
Genres
Collection
Publication
Del Rey (1981), 528 pages
Description
Fantasy. Fiction. Science Fiction. Thriller. HTML:â??The Thomas Covenant saga . . . will certainly find a place on the small list of true classics in its specialized field.â?ťâ??The Washington Post Book World After scant days in his â??realâ?ť world, Thomas Covenant finds himself again summoned to the Land. There, forty bitter years have passed, while Lord Foul, immortal enemy of the Land, moves to fulfill his prophecy of doom. The Council of Lords find their spells useless, now that Foul the Despiser holds the Illearth Stone, ancient source of evil power. At last High Lord Elena turns in desperation to Covenant and the legendary white gold magic of
User reviews
LibraryThing member iftyzaidi
This second book of the series picks up the pace and spends more time on the characters without being overwhelmed by the need to fill out the history and geography of the land - something that made the first book seem somewhat turgid and difficult to read.
LibraryThing member aethercowboy
The Thomas Covenant series is something like Narnia meets Middle Earth, only instead of Pevensie children entering a wardrobe, a leper enters by accidentally striking his head against a coffee table.
Once again in the Land, Covenant discovers that much time has passed since his last visit, though he
Covenant and other real-worlder Hile Troy both work towards trying to defeat Foul. Troy through military tactics, and Covenant through ancient lore. Neither being as successful as they would have hoped.
No epic fantasy written post-Tolkien can be without very heavy Tolkien influences. In this one, the heaviest tolkienoid aspect could arguably be the character of Caerroil Wildwood. I'll leave it as an exercise to the reader to figure out if he's more like Tom Bombadil or Treebeard.
However, to the discerning reader, Donaldson is much less tolkienoid than authors like Terry Brooks or David Eddings (whose Sword of Shannara and Belgarath the Sorcerer both read like poor retellings of Tolkien's Legendarium).
Read this book if you love epic fantasy beyond all reason. Don't read this book if you're Tolkien's biggest fan and think that even Christopher Tolkien spoils his father's work.
Once again in the Land, Covenant discovers that much time has passed since his last visit, though he
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was only away for a few weeks. This further solidifies in his mind that he is merely dreaming. A new set of Lords seem to know him by reputation, but the adversary is still the same old(er) Lord Foul. This time, he is harnessing the power of the Illearth Stones, which allow him to corrupt even the uncorruptable giants.Covenant and other real-worlder Hile Troy both work towards trying to defeat Foul. Troy through military tactics, and Covenant through ancient lore. Neither being as successful as they would have hoped.
No epic fantasy written post-Tolkien can be without very heavy Tolkien influences. In this one, the heaviest tolkienoid aspect could arguably be the character of Caerroil Wildwood. I'll leave it as an exercise to the reader to figure out if he's more like Tom Bombadil or Treebeard.
However, to the discerning reader, Donaldson is much less tolkienoid than authors like Terry Brooks or David Eddings (whose Sword of Shannara and Belgarath the Sorcerer both read like poor retellings of Tolkien's Legendarium).
Read this book if you love epic fantasy beyond all reason. Don't read this book if you're Tolkien's biggest fan and think that even Christopher Tolkien spoils his father's work.
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LibraryThing member renbedell
Stephen Donaldson takes Thomas Covenant on another strange journey through the Land. The second book in the series is much better than the first, which the first was great already. It introduces more aspects of the world, but doesn't it in a more organic way. The first book has Thomas Covenant
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getting told many stories about the Land, while in Illearth War he learns more about actually being involved. The plot of this book also moves much quicker and has a bit more originality to it. Thomas Covenant character grows, and while he still laments the way we all know and love, it isn't so repetitive. There is also a second protagonist in this book that creates a refreshing look at the Land through different eyes. While the series so far has a recurring theme, the characters are so great that it really pulls you in. Show Less
LibraryThing member alexis3700
Like the premise, but wish it moved faster. Hero is very annoying, but I guess that is the point. Dark hero? Um, yeah.
LibraryThing member Karlstar
The second book in the Chronicles of Thomas Covenant is just as powerful as the first though less controversial. Covenant and his allies struggle constantly against horrible odds, with surprising help. A complex, fascinating and very well written book.
LibraryThing member reading_fox
2nd part of Thomas' troubles.
Struggling to come to terms with th eimaginary events of the last book - there is no sign apart from his memories that they were real - Covenant is surprised to recieve a phone call from his ex-wife, so surprised that he trips and bashes his head, cutting it open and
Summoned by the latest High Lord Elena, Thomas finds that although only a week or two of his time has passed, nearly 40 years have passed in the Land, and the prophecy he carried on his last visit is near to fruition. Lord Foul has gained the Illearth Stone and raised a vast army. The new Warmark, one blind Hille Troy -nominally also from 'the real world' - has a cunning plan. The lords have not been idle but they come nowhere close to matching Lord Foul's numbers. And of even greater concern nothing has been heard of from the Giants. And so they all depart ready for a great battle. En Route they are joined by a stranger Amok. Under careful questioning he is revealed to bte 'The Way and the Door' to the 7th Ward of hidden lore. Elena and Thomas depart to persue this quest while the rest of the army tries to fight.
Much closer to a standard fantasy Thomas is more accepting of the Land, and the large parts spent following the Warward's progress while Thomas isn't there help to convince that the Land is real (Donaldson's excision of GildenFire on these grounds begins to spund spurious, but as the book is already long reducing a few chapters isn't a bad thing). There is still great continuity from the previous book, action that Thomas took are rebounding in unexpected directions, and he finds that the Land has a full claim on him, even though there is still little he can do to aid it.
Thi sis perhaps the least dark of the trilogy, despite the battles scenes which are mostly glossed over. There is little violence, littel recrimination or anger, mearly exploration and discovery, both of hte land and of relationships. However the ending is not upbeat, and Thomas still feels angst and responsability.
Adult fantasy read it.
Struggling to come to terms with th eimaginary events of the last book - there is no sign apart from his memories that they were real - Covenant is surprised to recieve a phone call from his ex-wife, so surprised that he trips and bashes his head, cutting it open and
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sending him unconscious whereby he returns to the Land.Summoned by the latest High Lord Elena, Thomas finds that although only a week or two of his time has passed, nearly 40 years have passed in the Land, and the prophecy he carried on his last visit is near to fruition. Lord Foul has gained the Illearth Stone and raised a vast army. The new Warmark, one blind Hille Troy -nominally also from 'the real world' - has a cunning plan. The lords have not been idle but they come nowhere close to matching Lord Foul's numbers. And of even greater concern nothing has been heard of from the Giants. And so they all depart ready for a great battle. En Route they are joined by a stranger Amok. Under careful questioning he is revealed to bte 'The Way and the Door' to the 7th Ward of hidden lore. Elena and Thomas depart to persue this quest while the rest of the army tries to fight.
Much closer to a standard fantasy Thomas is more accepting of the Land, and the large parts spent following the Warward's progress while Thomas isn't there help to convince that the Land is real (Donaldson's excision of GildenFire on these grounds begins to spund spurious, but as the book is already long reducing a few chapters isn't a bad thing). There is still great continuity from the previous book, action that Thomas took are rebounding in unexpected directions, and he finds that the Land has a full claim on him, even though there is still little he can do to aid it.
Thi sis perhaps the least dark of the trilogy, despite the battles scenes which are mostly glossed over. There is little violence, littel recrimination or anger, mearly exploration and discovery, both of hte land and of relationships. However the ending is not upbeat, and Thomas still feels angst and responsability.
Adult fantasy read it.
Show Less
LibraryThing member nimoloth
[Caution: contains minor spoilers.]
While just as harsh as the first book, this one makes a lot more sense - there is less metaphorical wandering. It is also helped by the fact that it is not all from Covenant's perspective as the first book is - it follows the story of Hile Troy for a good part of
Elena is another interesting character. She is definitely a bit strange in the head. She starts out seemingly normal, but the weirdness creeps out as the book progresses. I don't get the part of the storyline where she is sexually attracted to Covenant - he's her father. There are hints of incest, and yet the author skirts past it and never really explains it or delves into it or anything. I'm putting it down to Elena's mental instability.
Another mystery to me is Covenant's bargain with the Ranyhyn in the first book. I just don't get it. What is the bargain? How does it save him or absolve him from anything? It's referenced again here, and still doesn't make sense. I understand what he tries to do with Elena more - get her to accept final responsibility for the Land in his place. Still pretty flimsy though!
A good book though - more coherent and developed than the first, a definite improvement.
While just as harsh as the first book, this one makes a lot more sense - there is less metaphorical wandering. It is also helped by the fact that it is not all from Covenant's perspective as the first book is - it follows the story of Hile Troy for a good part of
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it. He's an interesting character - apparently from the real world. This causes some distress to Covenant (most things do) but his reality or otherwise is not resolved in this book.Elena is another interesting character. She is definitely a bit strange in the head. She starts out seemingly normal, but the weirdness creeps out as the book progresses. I don't get the part of the storyline where she is sexually attracted to Covenant - he's her father. There are hints of incest, and yet the author skirts past it and never really explains it or delves into it or anything. I'm putting it down to Elena's mental instability.
Another mystery to me is Covenant's bargain with the Ranyhyn in the first book. I just don't get it. What is the bargain? How does it save him or absolve him from anything? It's referenced again here, and still doesn't make sense. I understand what he tries to do with Elena more - get her to accept final responsibility for the Land in his place. Still pretty flimsy though!
A good book though - more coherent and developed than the first, a definite improvement.
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LibraryThing member jveezer
Spurred on by having the first two books of his Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant on my shelf and knowing that the third and final should be out soon, I embarked on re-reading the first two trilogies, or Chronicles. Rather than review them separately, I thought I would treat each Chronicle as a
The Land itself is an incredible creation that for me is one of the greatest joys of reading his Chronicles and an incredible achievement for Donaldson, on par with the creation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth. The land and its inhabitants are alive with health and sentience; manifested in EarthPower. The people of the land can sense the right and wrong in rock, tree, water, and fire, as well as in themselves. When their earth-sense lets them down or where despite and evil creep into the land, it has some defenses of its own. This earth-sense is something that resonates deep in my soul and in that part of me that treasures our earth. I wish I had a little more EarthSense. He has also peopled The Land with many strange and interesting inhabitants, good and bad: the giants, the Ranyhyn, Forestals, the Bloodguard, Elohim, Sand Gorgons, Merewives, Ravers, Ur-Viles and the like.
Were the books as good as I remember from reading them in my college days 20+ years ago? Suprisingly, yes. Although I still like the genre and read it occasionally, I have moved on from those times when this was my primary source of literary escape. But I found that the books have held up very well in the time since my last read. I would highly recommend them to readers interested in one of the early masters of the genre.
In The Ill-Earth War, Covenant again is summoned to the land upon falling and striking his head on his living room table. In the 4 days it has been since he recovered from his last accident and visit to The Land; 40 years have passed there. Lord Foul is making war upon the land. The Lords are in dire need and have summoned Covenant back to help them in their extremity. Suprisingly, Covenant finds that Hile Troy, another person from his world, is in command of the Lord’s armies. While Hile Troy meets the armies of Lord Foul, Covenant and the High Lord are again on a quest for the knowledge and strength to save the land and fight the Despiser. The novel builds to a suprising climax that has major ramifications for the future of The Land.
Of the three books in the first Chronicles, this was the weakest for me.
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whole, as I cannot concieve of not finishing any of the Chronicles once they grab hold of you. Although many disparage Stephen Donaldson’s writing, I don’t have any problem with it and like that I sometimes have to grab the dictionary to understand a work he has used. In fact, that is one of the joys of reading him as I like to be challenged with vocabulary while I read.The Land itself is an incredible creation that for me is one of the greatest joys of reading his Chronicles and an incredible achievement for Donaldson, on par with the creation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle-earth. The land and its inhabitants are alive with health and sentience; manifested in EarthPower. The people of the land can sense the right and wrong in rock, tree, water, and fire, as well as in themselves. When their earth-sense lets them down or where despite and evil creep into the land, it has some defenses of its own. This earth-sense is something that resonates deep in my soul and in that part of me that treasures our earth. I wish I had a little more EarthSense. He has also peopled The Land with many strange and interesting inhabitants, good and bad: the giants, the Ranyhyn, Forestals, the Bloodguard, Elohim, Sand Gorgons, Merewives, Ravers, Ur-Viles and the like.
Were the books as good as I remember from reading them in my college days 20+ years ago? Suprisingly, yes. Although I still like the genre and read it occasionally, I have moved on from those times when this was my primary source of literary escape. But I found that the books have held up very well in the time since my last read. I would highly recommend them to readers interested in one of the early masters of the genre.
In The Ill-Earth War, Covenant again is summoned to the land upon falling and striking his head on his living room table. In the 4 days it has been since he recovered from his last accident and visit to The Land; 40 years have passed there. Lord Foul is making war upon the land. The Lords are in dire need and have summoned Covenant back to help them in their extremity. Suprisingly, Covenant finds that Hile Troy, another person from his world, is in command of the Lord’s armies. While Hile Troy meets the armies of Lord Foul, Covenant and the High Lord are again on a quest for the knowledge and strength to save the land and fight the Despiser. The novel builds to a suprising climax that has major ramifications for the future of The Land.
Of the three books in the first Chronicles, this was the weakest for me.
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LibraryThing member dogrover
At 13 years old, I'm not quite sure I was ready for this series. Re-reading it now, much older and more experienced, I still feel the bitter-sweet mix of pain and beauty. As a stand-alone volume, this book is powerful, but sometimes sacrifices clarity for message.
LibraryThing member Lizparker
Book two in The chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever. Covenant is once again thrust back into "The Land" and its war with Lord Foul.
LibraryThing member aball
Not bad, but Donaldson works really hard to build a hero you just don't like, and that's not my thing.
LibraryThing member macha
second book in this series of trilogies. this time the central figure's PoV remains so unpleasant that even the author can't stand it, and retreats to a new character (also unlikeable) and his PoV for long periods of time. there's a certain sick fascination to this stuff, which consists partly of
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wondering what the author is thinking. beyond that, it's a pretty standard setting and plot. i'll finish the trilogy, just on the off-chance something interesting might happen, but after that no more. please. Show Less
LibraryThing member john_hunter
I don't like this book, and have tried giving it several chances. Given that, for those that like fantasy this may well be a fine book, it just isn't a good fit for me.
LibraryThing member DinadansFriend
There I was, trapped with nothing to read. And there was this thick Fantasy series by a writer I hadn't heard of, Stephen Donaldson. And this is the middle volume. It's no better than the first, and that's "Nae sa Guid!" I know he has fans, but I'm sorry for your lives.
LibraryThing member Rosenectur
This book is a major reason my reading stalled out… It’s so hard to get through a book when you don’t like the characters. Everyone seems to think that the Thomas Covenant books are classic fantasy, but I just have a lot of trouble getting into them. It’s a really unique idea to have a
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leper at the center of the story, but the character of Thomas Covenant pushes the troupe of the reluctant hero past the point of tolerance. If you can’t relate to or even like the protagonist the story is going to have trouble keeping your attention. (Which by the way, is why my husband can’t stand NCIS… he thinks that same way about Gibbs.) Plus the not so subtle incest lust side story in this book really turned me off. Show Less
LibraryThing member ragwaine
Definitely better than book 1 because there was a huge section without Thomas Covenant in it, but even the part with him in it at the end wasn't terrible. I'll definitely be finishing the trilogy, but that third book will help me decide whether I do the 2nd trilogy or not.
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confronted by his daughter and she says she wants to be his lover, what does Covenant say? Not, "eww that's gross you're my daughter.", Not "Well you are hot, but you're my daughter so no." But instead he says, "We can't because I'm a leper." EVEN THOUGH he totally can, because he's not really a leper in the fantasy world. But of course, he has to bring up being a leper. He's worse than a vegan! Show Less
Language
Original language
English
Original publication date
1977
Physical description
528 p.; 6.9 inches
ISBN
0345296567 / 9780345296566