Rating: 
Summary: Wizards and the Warriors - an epic tale rivalling LOTR
Review: I happened to be the proud owner of all ten volumes of this series that comprise just one of two series of Fantasy books I have chosen to keep; the remainder passed on to friends or donated to local libraries. The other series I kept was the Dragonlance Chronicles Trilogy.
I cannot say enough about the absolute breath of fresh air these books were back when I was a youngster and still are today. Upon picking up this first volume I looked at the 800 pages with trepidation wondering how on earth I would complete such a task!
I began reading and spent the rest of the day in bed. It was raining but I couldn't even let the sounds of rain on the rooftop distract me from what I believe is the best epic tale of fantasy writing that rivals Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. That was nearly 20 years ago and such was its power that I remember the day so clearly today.
I was so incensed by the movie version of Dungeons and Dragons (2000) that I kept wondering what a wonderful movie this first book would make. There is enough material in it and the series to even make a trilogy.
The two main characters Elkor Alish and Morgan Hearst were wonderful as each battled their own demons. There were grand wizards, robust warriors and the mistrust between them caused by their chosen paths as well as betrayal, war and pursuits of power and the threat of world destruction.
My hope is that Hugh who quietly works away on other projects acknowledges that his work is a masterpiece in its own right and that in someway it should be brought to the attention of a new audience of young minds who have just discovered Tolkien's LOTR and dined on Harry Potter.
Such is the allure of tragic heroes like Frodo and Boromir in LOTR, Sturm Brightblade in Dragonlance and Harry Potter as well as anti-heroes Elkor and Morgan in W&W and Raistlin Majere in Dragonlance that makes fantasy worth reading and watching.
The boredom and predictability that is par for the course of a sizeable number of fantasy writers is what stifles any hope for reaching the mainstream and making memorable characters worthy of visual representation on screen.
I hope that these books become more widely available once again for the enjoyment of a new generation.
Rating:
Summary: 5 stars - no hyperbole.
Review: I hate fantasy books,with their Sacred Daggers of Klagg or Dwarves singing about gold. This ten book sieres shattered all my preconceptions (apart from the silly titles and godawful cover art). Really dark and at times very gory, all these books are packed with compelling characters (usually real anti-hero types), wit, and a smattering of philosophy. Sadly I can't find any other refrence to Cook on the net, and he doesn't seem to have produced anything new in a while. Why doesnt amazon have links to the writers homepages/fanclubs?
Rating:
Summary: Serious fantasy
Review: I suppose someone should post Hugh Cook's own commentary here :
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"The "Chronicles of an Age of Darkness" series follows the lives of various characters in a world of war and weapons. Those who like it tend to like it a lot, and those who do not like it tend to recoil, as one might when one reaches for a towel and discovers, unexpectedly, that it is soaked with wet.
"(Is it really that bad? Well, no, I don't think so. But I was looking for a really hard-edged close-up-and-accurate description of reality. My objective has always been to see preciselyn, not to see through a veil of gauze.)"
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This book, like the rest in the series, is jam-packed with realism and is a welcome relief from the standard fantasy fare.
Rating:
Summary: Luved em all
Review: I thought all the books in this series were hillarious entertainment and great fun, though I don't think I have found more than about 5 of them. Hugh Cook is a refreshing breath of fresh dare!
Rating:
Summary: Terrible title for a superb book
Review: Instead of production-line, good vs evil plots and tedious, clean-cut 'heroes' you dearly wish to see stomped, Hugh Cook delivers realistically motivated, complex characters, drawn (usually against their will and better judgement) into sweeping, epic tales. The setting for all ten stories is a vividly detailed world, whose origins are tantalisingly, never fully revealed throughout the series. There are one or two disappointments in the ten-book series, but books one, four and ten are among the most entertaining and absorbing fiction I have enjoyed.
Rating:
Summary: The First In one of the best fantasy series I have read.
Review: It was with some trepidation thet I embarked upon reading this tome, the title sounding too close to a generic "swords and sorcery" type volume. But after reading a few chapters I was hooked, not one sign of the cliches I was expecting. Instead realistic 'heroes' with realistic motivations trying to survive in an intricately detailes world. Unfortunatley this and the other nine books in the series are very hard to find, but I wholeheartedly reccomend this book and all it's sequels. Go find them, buy them read them, and above all enjoy them.
Rating:
Summary: A book to lose oneself within
Review: One of the first fantasy books I read after graduating in Tolkein with honours. If you wish to explore an amazingly detailed and intricate world, hard to escape from, this will be the first of ten wonderfully written books to start you off with
Rating:
Summary: Great Stuff
Review: This book is one of the best I've ever read in my life. It's definitely the best piece of fantasy out there, apart from the other volumes of the 'Chronicles of an Age of Darkness' Series, especially the 4th and 10th. If You're bored by all the regular fantasy novels from various authors i won't mention here, where everything is black or white and the structure and course of action are so clear that You know everything in advance, this will genuinely cheer You up again! The characters don't seem to be constructed and are vivid and realistic. Things happen as if by random, which makes the book so thrilling to read. However the plot doesn't end up in total chaos, but always leads to certain crucial events in the history of the world. It is seen from a different point of view in each of the 10 volumes and the stories may entwine. The different heroes interact: They meet and talk to each other, they fight each other or join in a common cause for a while. So a person who appears only shortly in a former volume may be the hero in the next, or former main characters casually appear in a later volume. This fascinating feature can not be found in any other fantasy series I know of. It really makes me sad that the series seems to end with the 10th volume. I'd give a year of my life to read more of it (especially about the south searcher plot and the Skull of The Deep South). So if you ever happen to read this, Hugh, write more! Or if You're a reader and know Hugh or his email address, pester him with pleas for more ;)
Rating:
Summary: Love it or hate it
Review: This book, and the series, definitely seems to divide people... you either love it or hate it. In my opinion, this is a sign of a very successful, and cutting edge piece of work.
To me, Cook's work is pure genius. I think his writing is decades ahead of its time, and even though this series was published in the late 80s / early 90s, most authors (certainly fantasy authors), are still a long way off catching up.
I've recently re-read the entire series, and it hasn't lost any of it's gloss to me. One suggestion though, if you can, read the series in order. Even though they're separate stories, there are a lot of subtle references to the other books, and they make more sense if you read them in sequence.
If you don't like these books, then they're most probably over your head. Pick up a copy of Harry Potter - probably more your style.
(And, despite other reveiwers claims, I am not Hugh Cook).
Rating:
Summary: Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy Series I Have Read
Review: This is the first book of an excellent series.The characters are complex and facinating, the plots complex yet enthralling and believable. The humor and deviousness of the situations and characters created by Cook are unmatched by any other fantasy author I have read, except perhaps Fritz Lieber. The world in which the series is set slowly unfolds like a detailed tapestry as the ten book series continues. In an interesting twist, the plot lines of the books intersect and the characters cross one another's paths throughout the series, yet each book contains a separate story. I whole-heartedly recommend this book and the remainder of the series. (This book and the fourth and tenth books in the series, are anchors of the series.)
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