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Janny Wurts

#1 User is offline   QuickTidal 

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Posted 28 March 2011 - 06:54 PM

I am contemplating picking up CURSE OF THE MISTWRAITH for my kindle...but I don't know enough about how decent the series is.

Anyone who's read it want to chime in and let me know what they thought of not only this, but the books that follow it in the series?
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#2 User is offline   caladanbrood 

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Posted 29 March 2011 - 06:32 AM

I've not read it myself, but I know people who have enjoyed it quite a lot. The series, that is, not individual books. On the other hand, I wouldn't necessarily trust their taste 100% of the time... that's the downside to ebooks i suppose, you can't read a bit in-store to see if you like it!
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#3 User is offline   MTS 

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Posted 29 March 2011 - 07:19 AM

I like The Wars of Light and Shadow. It's great fun. Not particularly brilliant, but they're good books nevertheless. To Ride Hell's Chasm is better than any book in that series though (in my opinion).
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Posted 29 March 2011 - 09:27 AM

View Postcaladanbrood, on 29 March 2011 - 06:32 AM, said:

I've not read it myself, but I know people who have enjoyed it quite a lot. The series, that is, not individual books. On the other hand, I wouldn't necessarily trust their taste 100% of the time... that's the downside to ebooks i suppose, you can't read a bit in-store to see if you like it!


Sample chapters for ebooks would be welcomed.
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#5 User is offline   Tsundoku 

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Posted 29 March 2011 - 09:46 AM

I have the whole series. It gets a bit melodramatic quite often. I'd even go so far as to say "chick lit"-ish. However the story itself is quite good, if a little repetitive at times, but some of the secondary characters are quite well done. I continue basically through a combination of inertia and to see where she's going to take it. I will give her credit in having many "grey" characters rather than simple black-and-white, even if that's what some of them try to make themselves out to be. Perspective and background play a big part.

She does tend to use italics a bit too much, Oh Ath! Sometimes the melodrama is simply too much to take ...

It's turning out to be a bloody long series as well. Off the top of my head it has been going the best part of 20 years. I haven't read the latest one, but I have no idea when she plans to end it. Maybe I should google it? :)

This post has been edited by Sombra: 29 March 2011 - 09:51 AM

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#6 User is offline   lulubel 

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Posted 29 March 2011 - 09:55 AM

View PostBombur, on 29 March 2011 - 09:27 AM, said:

Sample chapters for ebooks would be welcomed.


Amazon have samples for the kindle, not that it's much use if it's a book that takes a long time to get going.
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#7 User is offline   QuickTidal 

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Posted 29 March 2011 - 12:42 PM

View PostBombur, on 29 March 2011 - 09:27 AM, said:

View Postcaladanbrood, on 29 March 2011 - 06:32 AM, said:

I've not read it myself, but I know people who have enjoyed it quite a lot. The series, that is, not individual books. On the other hand, I wouldn't necessarily trust their taste 100% of the time... that's the downside to ebooks i suppose, you can't read a bit in-store to see if you like it!


Sample chapters for ebooks would be welcomed.


You can actually.

Every Amazon eBook for the kindle has a link below the purchase button to download a sample....it gives you about a chapter....I've done it a few times.

This post has been edited by QuickTidal: 29 March 2011 - 12:43 PM

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#8 User is offline   QuickTidal 

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Posted 29 March 2011 - 12:44 PM

Thanks for the input people! Much appreciated. I'll probably do a kindle sample and see if I like it.
"When the last tree has fallen, and the rivers are poisoned, you cannot eat money, oh no." ~Aurora

“Someone will always try to sell you despair, just so they don't feel alone.” ~Ursula Vernon
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#9 User is offline   Mentalist 

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Posted 30 March 2011 - 12:54 AM

they're okayish books, but it takes a LOOOOOOOOONG time for things to get going.
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View PostJump Around, on 23 October 2011 - 11:04 AM, said:

And I want to state that Ment has out-weaseled me by far in this game.
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Posted 04 April 2011 - 01:46 PM

It really doesn't take that long for things to get going! The points made above are all valid apart from that one though.

I'd suggest trying to get Wurts's Cycle of Fire trilogy instead. It will give you a taste of her writing style (though that has changed over the years, as CoF was her breakthrough work), while being complete in itself and available as an omnibus. The individual novels are: Stormwarden; Keeper of the Keys; Shadowfane.

I wrote to the author when I was at uni ('96), asking about The Wars of Light and Shadow and how long it was likely to be. She had planned the whole thing out even then (CotMW had only just come out). It's split into 5 arcs
1. Curse Arc: Curse of the Mistwraith
2. Ship of Merior Arc: Ships of Merior; Warhost of Vastmark (in US, these were published as one novel with the former title)
3. Alliance of Light Arc: Fugitive Prince; Grand Conspiracy; Peril's Gate; Traitor's Knot; Stormed Fortress (this is where we are currently in terms of what's published and available)
4. Sword of the Canon Arc: Initiate's Trial (due to be published Autumn this year, I believe); Destiny's Conflict
5. Song of the Mysteries (placeholder title)

One thing that grates hugely is that Wurts's ear for dialogue has deteriorated massively since Empire (where it's possible that Feist was a controlling influence). I often need to reread dialogue several times to work out what is actually being said by any given character. Note that this is not that I have problems working out _who_ is saying what. The dialogue is just so utterly dense and complex structurally that it's impossible to parse on a single reading. It's not so bad in CotMW, but use that as a test for whether you'll be able to put up with it as it worsens.

But Wurts's writing in general is good, and she has an excellent ear for imagery when it comes to depicting music (much of the magic in the universe she's created is musical, concerned with primal chords sung by the Creator, and echoes of the same) and magic.
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Posted 05 April 2011 - 11:53 AM

Not read any of her stand-alone stuff, but the Empire Trilogy with Feist is fantastic, better than anything Feist's done since Magician to be frank, so I attributed to her a positive qualitative influence. Unless Feist just really upped his game for the trilogy.
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Posted 05 April 2011 - 12:39 PM

I've read the first two 'arcs', but so long ago I'd probably need to read them again before reading the next arc.
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Posted 12 December 2020 - 09:45 PM

I believe the series is out of print in the USA and she doesn't have a US publisher. Her UK publisher put out the last few books by themselves and will be publishing the last one next year.

So for USians, your best bet in the Internet.
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#14 User is offline   Mentalist 

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Posted 23 January 2021 - 06:57 PM

Got a copy of Grand Conspiracy from Book Depository last week. Despite the cover on the site being a UK one, thankfully this one matches the other ones I've got.
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View PostJump Around, on 23 October 2011 - 11:04 AM, said:

And I want to state that Ment has out-weaseled me by far in this game.
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Posted 14 November 2021 - 06:52 PM

Fyi, there's a reddit readalong about to start for CURSE OF THE MISWRAITH. It's a pretty relaxed pace of 4 chapters per week. If you've been holding off on starting this, now would be a good time to join in.

The relevant info for the readalong is near the bottom of the main readalong post. Here's a link if you're interested.

https://www.reddit.c...megathread_book
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#16 User is offline   Gabriele 

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Posted 12 December 2021 - 03:24 PM

View PostTsundoku, on 29 March 2011 - 09:46 AM, said:

I have the whole series. It gets a bit melodramatic quite often. I'd even go so far as to say "chick lit"-ish. However the story itself is quite good, if a little repetitive at times, but some of the secondary characters are quite well done. I continue basically through a combination of inertia and to see where she's going to take it. I will give her credit in having many "grey" characters rather than simple black-and-white, even if that's what some of them try to make themselves out to be. Perspective and background play a big part.

She does tend to use italics a bit too much, Oh Ath! Sometimes the melodrama is simply too much to take ...

It's turning out to be a bloody long series as well. Off the top of my head it has been going the best part of 20 years. I haven't read the latest one, but I have no idea when she plans to end it. Maybe I should google it? :)

She's writing the final book right now and, judging be her tweets, it seems to come along quite well.

This post has been edited by Gabriele: 12 December 2021 - 03:24 PM

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