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Summary: Bathing in suspense, cowering with anticipation - read it.
Review: You would probably not believe such books, or any English books, for that matter, are read in Croatia, but if any author normally excluded from the list of the literary and fantasy masters (in the latter of these only Tolkien may justfully be included) should be expected to be read in all of the world's countries, Stephen Donaldson should definitely be him.Few are the fantasy books which not only suck you into another world and make your families cry with rage because you have spent three days and nights relentlessy reading the same series of books, but allow you to feel the plasticity of crime, to burn with rage, to be consumed in the inquisition purifying your crimehood, but this one has achieved it. Few are the books you feel have thoroughly depicted all the regions of despair, few are the books that make you feel no number of sentences can adequately describe the reality of the "impenetrable mien" of the warriors who are perfect killing machines in their sole selves - the Haruchai. Indeed, few are such books, and I doubt I will ever see a book that will allow me to go through so many characters, feel their inside, allow me later to invent situations for them and guess perfectly how they would act, not let me sit behind having read it and say: "OK, one more fantasy read, let's go on to some other." Would you like to allow yourself an unending reading experience? Do you like living other worlds? Do you like your fantasy characters make you throw up with disgust of their reality? Do you think reality can be achieved in literature? READ THIS, you'll find out.
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Summary: Masterpiece in the line of "The Lord of The Rings"...
Review: This first book in the trilogy is arguably the best. It has tension, drama, action, all that. It has a STRONG plot and VERY developed characterizations.
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Summary: Prepare for a VERY different kind of series...
Review: There is nothing like Donaldson's Lord Foul's Bane. Nothing at all. I'm not sure how many times over the years I've gotten lost in this series. I always come back for more though. A few people seem to discard the book because of the rape scene. It's true, there are no happy rainbows or flying hyperspacial unicorns in this story where Covenant (the anti-hero) is concerned. But there is a different kind of beauty. It's neat to experience the Land first-hand through the eyes that can 'see' good and evil. You get to meet the most diverse and intense characters: The Hyuchai - stern, seemingly emotionless, the Elohim - the living earth spirits, the Giants (my favorite) kind-hearted and loving, the brave and the bitter, strong and weak - human and otherwise. You'll be angry sometimes, sad others, and sometimes there is a spot of humor (although certainly not much of that). You end up caring about the characters and the place they call home. AND if you continue reading you find that Covenant spends the next 5 novels suffering the consequences of that one act in the first book! It is necessary for the plot of the story (since when did distasteful mean: 'uninteresting'?) He pays for it a thousand times more more than any convicted rape felon would today! The real question will become, can you forgive/understand him? At times you wonder why he just doesn't give up, but his disease and his stubborness prevail against both good, evil, life and even death. Sure, Thomas Covenant is easy to hate, but it's a 'good' kind of hate!
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Summary: WOW
Review: What can I say. This book is the best. I am getting to the end of the first part of the chronicles of Thomas Covenant, and it is great. well that's it. Just read it :)
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Summary: Cheerfulness doesn't make a good story.
Review: This series is for anyone tired of the typical hero. Lord Foul's Bane makes the reader so disgusted with Thomas Covenant - the main character - that you have to read on. The writing is incredibly descriptive and the plot is rock solid. If you're looking for cute, lovable characters, look elsewhere. TC is brutally unaccepting of his situation and it does make you start to hate him. Donalson's ability to evoke such emotions is evidence of the high quality of his art. Like most other fantasy novels the Chronicles of Thomas Covenant have their fair share of mythic creatures: sapient horses, Giants, wights, etc. The tale is brilliantly woven with few detectable flaws. Definitly worth reading sveral times. A warning though: bring along a dictionary, you'll need it.
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Summary: Thomas Covenant - Unbelievable!
Review: I first read the Chronicles 15 or so years ago and have since re-read them a number of times. The depth and richness of the characters surpasses most authors and the scenery promotes stunning mental visuals. The subplots and continuing thread of re-appearing characters (and their progeny) make you want to tear through the entire series in rapid succession. I cannot say enough good things about Stephen R. Donaldson, but that won't stop me from trying.
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Summary: Erm...no snazzy summary here I'm afraid!
Review: I didn't discover Thomas Covenant until around November 1998. My favourite author has been David Gemmell, and I have read all of his books. I was looking in my brother's room to see what books he had and I noticed three uniformed books on the shelf...they were the first chronicles of Thomas Covenant, the Unbeliever. It took a while, but Lord Foul's Bane really grew on me and I found that I had ploughed through the whole trilogy in a fortnight. I then discovered that there was a second chroncicles of TC. having read the entire six-book epic, I want more and was delighted to hear that Stephen Donaldson is writing a "Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant" in which Thomas Covenant becomes Lord Foul and the Land is destroyed (Thomas of course is still around due to High Lord Elena and then Caer caveral destroying the Law of Death) and am desperate for information as to when they may be around. The beauty of Stephen Donaldson's books is that there are no heroes in shining armour - nothing is Good and Evil, Black and White; with Donaldson there are infinite shades of grey.
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Summary: Untouchable
Review: When I was 12, Lord Foul's Bane was published in the UK. Donaldson's debut and subsequent novels hooked me so completely that I've been looking for a repeat of that 'pure reading' experience ever since. Periodically, my search takes me to the latest 'hot' new multi part fantasy (Jordan, Feist, Goodkind, Eddings etc) but only Tad Williams' books have come close to the extraordinary sensation of reading the Thomas Covenant story arc. With the other (endless) sagas, I've never been able to get past the first couple of instalments before their derivative and formulaic hack work; same story - different names, becomes too much. Donaldson's books remain apart. The central characters have a complexity and humanity that makes them properly three-dimensional and their heroism becomes utterly convincing because of it. These books have everything you want from fantasy; a literate prose style, emotional engagement, character development, awe and wonder, impossible odds, fear, glossaries and cool characters (Vain, the Haruchai...wow). Most of all, while you always know that these kind of books end in a showdown with 'Evil', the journey to that moment is never predictable, never implausible, always gripping. I read the books as the were published through my school years. And I've read them again, first when I was at University, and again about 5 years ago in Nepal, relaxing after a month long trek. Each time I 'consumed' the two trilogies in a matter of days - barely stopping for food. Each time Donaldson transported me back to the Land, a fantasy realm for grown-ups. Last year I got married. It had to be with a white gold ring....
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Summary: MUST SEE PB!!!!
Review: I read this entire series twice in the first year that I owned it and I have never forgotton them. Donaldson has an exquisite eye for detail in the books and this one lays the foundation for the next five to come. Sometimes the detail bogs the story down a little bit, but can you honestly say that there were no slow parts in 'Lord of the Rings'? Besides, for me the details just helped refine what I was imagining the land to look like at the time. There is a rape scene in this book, so caveat emptor! Otherwise it is as breathtaking a fantasy (and high fantasy, at that) series as was ever written by a mortal hand. In my opinion this is a 'classic' of fantasy literature. To miss it would be doing both the author and yourself a huge disservice. READ IT NOW!!!
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Summary: MUST Reading!
Review: I have read the series a number of times. It is simply excellent, although the second trilogy is somewhat tedious. I highly recommend Volumes 1 through 4.
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