Stephen R. Donaldson
Authors Book Titles
Home
The Wounded Land by Stephen R. Donaldson
It has been 10 years since Thomas Covenant was
last summoned to The Land to assist the Lords of The Land in their battle
against Lord Foul. His last visit resulted in his confrontation and defeat of
Lord Foul by using the wild magic of his white gold ring. During these 10 years,
Covenant has tried to make a life for himself as a writer and cope with his
leprosy to the best of his ability.
However, Covenant suddenly finds himself summoned
to The Land once more and this time his summoner is Lord Foul. Three thousand
years have passed since Covenant was last in The Land. But all the beauty and
healthful benefits of The Land are gone. Lord Foul has warped The Land to his
will through the use of the Sunbane, an evil aura around the sun that bends the
laws of nature. The people of The Land must scratch out a meager existence and
use human blood in an attempt to control the Sunbane. The people have forgotten
all they once knew about the earthpower that they used to cherish and care for
The Land. Also, all the healing restoratives that helped Covenant overcome the
effects of his leprosy are now gone. To make matters worse, Covenant no longer
possesses the "health sense" that allowed him to see what was good and
evil about The Land.
Accidentally summoned with him this time is a
physician, Linden Avery. Linden possesses the "health sense" that
Covenant now lacks. Just looking at the warped nature of The Land is painful to
her. Although not suffering from leprosy, Linden has demons of her own from her
past that she must come to terms with in order to assist Covenant in the
redemption of The Land.
Covenant decides to journey to Revelstone, the
former Lords’ keep, to determine if the Clave, strange governing body that
manipulates the Sunbane, is acting for the good of the people. Can Covenant find
a way to reverse the effects of the Sunbane? Can he face and defeat Lord Foul
once again? Can Linden come to terms with the ghosts of her past and find a way
to assist Covenant? This and the other two books in the trilogy will answer
these questions.
Donaldson is once again masterful without
repeating the story line of the first trilogy. The Land is completely different
(yet strangely the same) in this trilogy, which opens numerous new
possibilities. As in the first trilogy, much of the book is used to explore the
frailties of the main characters and how they mirror the basic frailties of
human nature. Donaldson triumphs once again. If you liked the first trilogy,
this one won’t disappoint you. While not superior to the original trilogy,
this is every bit its equal.
Reviewed by: Alan
Stephen R. Donaldson
Authors Book Titles
Home Top
The One Tree
by Stephen R. Donaldson
In The Wounded Land Covenant confronted the
Clave, strange governing body of The Land that has replaced the council of
Lords, and learned the truth about Lord Foul’s role in the desecration of The
Land. Covenant decides the best course of action is to leave The Land to search
for the Isle of the One Tree. Centuries before, Berek Halfhand had forged the
Staff of Law from a branch of the One Tree. Covenant feels the only hope of
redemption for The Land is to forge a new staff and restore the laws of nature
that were broken when the original staff was destroyed. Accompanied by Linden
Avery and a ship full of giants they depart The Land. Since no one knows where
the One Tree is located, the giants suggest that the company seek the help of
the Elohim. The Elohim are a fairy people that appear to be earthpower
incarnate. But the Elohim have their own plans for Covenant and the white gold.
A great deal of this book explores the character
of Linden Avery. She has terrible secrets in her past that she must explore and
confront to overcome her feelings of helplessness. Her confrontation with the
leader of the Clave in The Wounded Land left her doubting herself and
feeling that she is inherently evil. She must work through her feelings and find
a way to help Covenant on his quest to redeem The Land. The giants are all
terrific characters, which add to the enjoyment of this book. There is a great
deal of action in this book, which flows exceptionally well and never drags.
Reviewed by: Alan
Stephen R. Donaldson
Authors Book Titles
Home Top
White Gold Wielder
by Stephen R. Donaldson
Despite the crushing failure at the Isle of the
One Tree, Covenant and Linden realize that they have no choice but to go on
fighting the nefarious plots of Lord Foul. They decide to return to The Land and
attempt to extinguish the Banefire hoping that this will slow the desecration of
the Sunbane. The minions of Lord Foul are poised to oppose them every step of
the way. They also know that even if they slow down the Sunbane, they still must
eventually find a way to stop Lord Foul himself.
Donaldson brings the trilogy to a brilliant
conclusion in this volume. Linden finally comes to terms with the
"ghosts" of her past and realizes that she is not inherently evil
despite having made mistakes in the past. Covenant achieves an inner peace after
he finally accepts what he must do to defeat Lord Foul. The triumph of two
flawed human beings over the "devil incarnate" provides an interesting
premise for Donaldson to explore the frailties of human nature. I finally began
to like Covenant in this volume and I actually began to empathize with him.
Although we expect Covenant and Linden to win in the end, the ending was
inventive and engaging and not at all what I expected.
There is a rumor that Donaldson may write the
Third Chronicles of Thomas Covenant. I, for one, am avidly awaiting their
publication.
Reviewed by: Alan
Stephen R. Donaldson
Authors Book Titles
Home Top
