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Light #4
Heartlight
Heartlight is the story of Bradley's greatest champion of good, Colin MacLaren, as he carries the banner of Light through the second half of the twentieth century. Ghostbuster, exorcist, student and teacher of the mystic arts, Colin meets Claire Moffat, who becomes his dearest friend, when he rescues her from a cult bent on human sacrifice.
The leader of that cult, Toller Hasloch, becomes one of Colin's greatest enemies. Working behind the scenes for the next thirty years, Hasloch subtly manipulates politics and the economy to turn America away from the Light. Colin, busy saving lives and teaching the next generation of psychic warriors, realizes almost too late how Hasloch has warped America's promise.
Now, Colin MacLaren is the only one who can face Hasloch and the hellhounds the younger man has unleashed. He must fight on, while the fate of America, and perhaps all mankind, hangs in the balance.
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
The leader of that cult, Toller Hasloch, becomes one of Colin's greatest enemies. Working behind the scenes for the next thirty years, Hasloch subtly manipulates politics and the economy to turn America away from the Light. Colin, busy saving lives and teaching the next generation of psychic warriors, realizes almost too late how Hasloch has warped America's promise.
Now, Colin MacLaren is the only one who can face Hasloch and the hellhounds the younger man has unleashed. He must fight on, while the fate of America, and perhaps all mankind, hangs in the balance.
At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Hardcover
First published January 1, 1998
About the author
Marion Zimmer Bradley
843 books5,081 followersMarion Eleanor Zimmer Bradley was an American author of fantasy novels such as The Mists of Avalon and the Darkover series, often with a feminist outlook.
Bradley's first published novel-length work was Falcons of Narabedla, first published in the May 1957 issue of Other Worlds. When she was a child, Bradley stated that she enjoyed reading adventure fantasy authors such as Henry Kuttner, Edmond Hamilton, and Leigh Brackett, especially when they wrote about "the glint of strange suns on worlds that never were and never would be." Her first novel and much of her subsequent work show their influence strongly.
Early in her career, writing as Morgan Ives, Miriam Gardner, John Dexter, and Lee Chapman, Marion Zimmer Bradley produced several works outside the speculative fiction genre, including some gay and lesbian pulp fiction novels. For example, I Am a Lesbian was published in 1962. Though relatively tame by today's standards, they were considered pornographic when published, and for a long time she refused to disclose the titles she wrote under these pseudonyms.
Her 1958 story The Planet Savers introduced the planet of Darkover, which became the setting of a popular series by Bradley and other authors. The Darkover milieu may be considered as either fantasy with science fiction overtones or as science fiction with fantasy overtones, as Darkover is a lost earth colony where psi powers developed to an unusual degree. Bradley wrote many Darkover novels by herself, but in her later years collaborated with other authors for publication; her literary collaborators have continued the series since her death.
Bradley took an active role in science-fiction and fantasy fandom, promoting interaction with professional authors and publishers and making several important contributions to the subculture.
For many years, Bradley actively encouraged Darkover fan fiction and reprinted some of it in commercial Darkover anthologies, continuing to encourage submissions from unpublished authors, but this ended after a dispute with a fan over an unpublished Darkover novel of Bradley's that had similarities to some of the fan's stories. As a result, the novel remained unpublished, and Bradley demanded the cessation of all Darkover fan fiction.
Bradley was also the editor of the long-running Sword and Sorceress anthology series, which encouraged submissions of fantasy stories featuring original and non-traditional heroines from young and upcoming authors. Although she particularly encouraged young female authors, she was not averse to including male authors in her anthologies. Mercedes Lackey was just one of many authors who first appeared in the anthologies. She also maintained a large family of writers at her home in Berkeley. Ms Bradley was editing the final Sword and Sorceress manuscript up until the week of her death in September of 1999.
Probably her most famous single novel is The Mists of Avalon. A retelling of the Camelot legend from the point of view of Morgaine and Gwenhwyfar, it grew into a series of books; like the Darkover series, the later novels are written with or by other authors and have continued to appear after Bradley's death.
Her reputation has been posthumously marred by multiple accusations of child sexual abuse by her daughter Moira Greyland, and for allegedly assisting her second husband, convicted child abuser Walter Breen, in sexually abusing multiple unrelated children.
(from Wikipedia)
Bradley's first published novel-length work was Falcons of Narabedla, first published in the May 1957 issue of Other Worlds. When she was a child, Bradley stated that she enjoyed reading adventure fantasy authors such as Henry Kuttner, Edmond Hamilton, and Leigh Brackett, especially when they wrote about "the glint of strange suns on worlds that never were and never would be." Her first novel and much of her subsequent work show their influence strongly.
Early in her career, writing as Morgan Ives, Miriam Gardner, John Dexter, and Lee Chapman, Marion Zimmer Bradley produced several works outside the speculative fiction genre, including some gay and lesbian pulp fiction novels. For example, I Am a Lesbian was published in 1962. Though relatively tame by today's standards, they were considered pornographic when published, and for a long time she refused to disclose the titles she wrote under these pseudonyms.
Her 1958 story The Planet Savers introduced the planet of Darkover, which became the setting of a popular series by Bradley and other authors. The Darkover milieu may be considered as either fantasy with science fiction overtones or as science fiction with fantasy overtones, as Darkover is a lost earth colony where psi powers developed to an unusual degree. Bradley wrote many Darkover novels by herself, but in her later years collaborated with other authors for publication; her literary collaborators have continued the series since her death.
Bradley took an active role in science-fiction and fantasy fandom, promoting interaction with professional authors and publishers and making several important contributions to the subculture.
For many years, Bradley actively encouraged Darkover fan fiction and reprinted some of it in commercial Darkover anthologies, continuing to encourage submissions from unpublished authors, but this ended after a dispute with a fan over an unpublished Darkover novel of Bradley's that had similarities to some of the fan's stories. As a result, the novel remained unpublished, and Bradley demanded the cessation of all Darkover fan fiction.
Bradley was also the editor of the long-running Sword and Sorceress anthology series, which encouraged submissions of fantasy stories featuring original and non-traditional heroines from young and upcoming authors. Although she particularly encouraged young female authors, she was not averse to including male authors in her anthologies. Mercedes Lackey was just one of many authors who first appeared in the anthologies. She also maintained a large family of writers at her home in Berkeley. Ms Bradley was editing the final Sword and Sorceress manuscript up until the week of her death in September of 1999.
Probably her most famous single novel is The Mists of Avalon. A retelling of the Camelot legend from the point of view of Morgaine and Gwenhwyfar, it grew into a series of books; like the Darkover series, the later novels are written with or by other authors and have continued to appear after Bradley's death.
Her reputation has been posthumously marred by multiple accusations of child sexual abuse by her daughter Moira Greyland, and for allegedly assisting her second husband, convicted child abuser Walter Breen, in sexually abusing multiple unrelated children.
(from Wikipedia)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
September 13, 2012
This final book in the Light series takes the reader into the life and workings of one of the most enigmatic characters of the series, Colin MacLaren. As I can’t decide on a way to describe the book that doesn’t involve a lot of spoilers, I’ll just leave it at, once you’ve read any book in the series, you’ll see mention of Colin MacLaren, and Heartlight takes place a good number of years prior to any of the other books in the series, even though it’s the final book.
I had a lot of problems with this book. For one thing, it’s told partly in the First Person point-of-view of Colin’s associate, Claire Moffat (also found a few times earlier in the series), and partly told in Third Person omniscient (narrator) point-of-view, bouncing between characters’ heads. This format issue alone can be off-putting.
My other issue has less to do with mechanics, and more to do with opinion – namely Ms. Bradley’s. While I thoroughly enjoyed the first several books of the series, and was duly impressed by both her research into the paranormal, and her open-minded view of the paranormal, I was not so impressed by this final book. It was preachy, judgmental, and narrow-minded in its view of the paranormal. There was an almost anti-paranormal (beyond merely skeptical) tone to some of the things addressed in the book, while other elements took on a “prophetic doom” feeling – none of which was warranted by the storyline itself. In the end, unlike the previous books, I was left feeling as if Ms. Bradley neither understood nor cared to understand those with paranormal issues or abilities. Quite frankly, the judgmental attitude of the book was a real turn-off.
I had a lot of problems with this book. For one thing, it’s told partly in the First Person point-of-view of Colin’s associate, Claire Moffat (also found a few times earlier in the series), and partly told in Third Person omniscient (narrator) point-of-view, bouncing between characters’ heads. This format issue alone can be off-putting.
My other issue has less to do with mechanics, and more to do with opinion – namely Ms. Bradley’s. While I thoroughly enjoyed the first several books of the series, and was duly impressed by both her research into the paranormal, and her open-minded view of the paranormal, I was not so impressed by this final book. It was preachy, judgmental, and narrow-minded in its view of the paranormal. There was an almost anti-paranormal (beyond merely skeptical) tone to some of the things addressed in the book, while other elements took on a “prophetic doom” feeling – none of which was warranted by the storyline itself. In the end, unlike the previous books, I was left feeling as if Ms. Bradley neither understood nor cared to understand those with paranormal issues or abilities. Quite frankly, the judgmental attitude of the book was a real turn-off.
June 9, 2010
The last in Bradley's 'Light' series; although it was published the year before Bradley died (1999), I don't think that Bradley wrote this book at all. Rosemary Edghill may have collaborated on some of the other books in this series, but I think that this one is completely her work. The feel of the writing is completely different from the others in the series. This is also a completely unnecessary book. It contributes nearly nothing new to the series; rather, it goes through all of the events already told in the previous books in the series, linking them through the character of Colin MacLaren, White Adept, and also trying to give them a sense of 'history' by going on endlessly and pedantically about historical events that happened in each time. It also frames all of these events in the context of Colin's fight against the resurgence of evil Nazi-linked occultism.
While the earlier books in this series had an authentic 'feel' of time & place, (mostly the 70's), this book does not feel authentic. All the historical details contribute to a sense of 'trying too hard'. The Nazi theme is cheesy. It's also a very long, slow-moving book; not a good thing in 'light' fiction such as this. As well, there are continuity problems; things in this book that contradict the 'facts' of earlier books in the series. Overall, I'd recommend the 'Light' series for any fans of occult/paranormal fiction, but give this book a miss.
While the earlier books in this series had an authentic 'feel' of time & place, (mostly the 70's), this book does not feel authentic. All the historical details contribute to a sense of 'trying too hard'. The Nazi theme is cheesy. It's also a very long, slow-moving book; not a good thing in 'light' fiction such as this. As well, there are continuity problems; things in this book that contradict the 'facts' of earlier books in the series. Overall, I'd recommend the 'Light' series for any fans of occult/paranormal fiction, but give this book a miss.
August 11, 2009
my fav i love carl maclaren
July 29, 2020
Histórico de leitura
27/11/2010
100% (544 de 544)
"Marion deixou umas pontas soltas aqui e ali, apesar disso um bom livro, apesar que o final ficou meio fraco em relação ao clímax de certas passagens. Questionamentos interessantes.."
25/11/2010
41% (225 de 544)
"Uma sangrenta batalha entre a luz e as trevas.. muito bom e receio muito real.."
23/11/2010
7% (36 de 544)
"No inicio e gostando.."
27/11/2010
100% (544 de 544)
"Marion deixou umas pontas soltas aqui e ali, apesar disso um bom livro, apesar que o final ficou meio fraco em relação ao clímax de certas passagens. Questionamentos interessantes.."
25/11/2010
41% (225 de 544)
"Uma sangrenta batalha entre a luz e as trevas.. muito bom e receio muito real.."
23/11/2010
7% (36 de 544)
"No inicio e gostando.."
May 20, 2026
Final chapter
It's been a few years since reading the other three books in the series. This focused on Colin McLaren coming out of his stint during WWII and living through trials on his own as well as history with the sixties, seventies, historical changes in the 80's and finally ending in 1999. This was quite a deep look into not only his life but the history of America as well. It puts today's news in perspective.
It's been a few years since reading the other three books in the series. This focused on Colin McLaren coming out of his stint during WWII and living through trials on his own as well as history with the sixties, seventies, historical changes in the 80's and finally ending in 1999. This was quite a deep look into not only his life but the history of America as well. It puts today's news in perspective.
December 8, 2022
I really really wanted to like this book. I think I struggled partially because I was coming in at the end or middle of a series and didn’t know the ins and out. Overall, the story seemed disconnected from itself and I had a hard time seeing how all the pieces fit together.
June 8, 2017
Great end to the series
December 3, 2021
Nothing like the previous books. Starts with war and politics. Boring
Read
July 24, 2025One of my favorite works of contemporary fiction. Definitely the best of the "Light" series.
July 15, 2013
I read some of Marion Zimmer Bradley's books a couple of decades ago, and loved them, so I decided to read a couple more now. Reading this one, I felt like I was missing some pieces, and now I realize that this book is actually 4th in a series, so maybe that's why. So much of the book referred to things as though they were obvious, and I just wasn't on the same page with some of it.
The characters were okay - rather flat in the way of series novels (I'm thinking Agatha Christie, for example) - comfortably predictable, but not necessarily taking you along for any new insights into humanity. This is a plot- and event-driven book, following the arc of cultural shifts in the U.S. from the 1950s into the 1990s, but with the premise that major world events are really part of the ongoing epic battle between the forces of Light and Darkness, fought through White and Black magick (yes, magick with a "k"), and the manipulation of people. The main reason I didn't give this more stars is that I thought the story-telling could have been a little tighter. It took awhile to see how certain things were connected, with a slightly disorienting way of sliding through time, and some of it never fully came together for me. Maybe I need to read the previous ones in the series to get more out of this book, though.
The characters were okay - rather flat in the way of series novels (I'm thinking Agatha Christie, for example) - comfortably predictable, but not necessarily taking you along for any new insights into humanity. This is a plot- and event-driven book, following the arc of cultural shifts in the U.S. from the 1950s into the 1990s, but with the premise that major world events are really part of the ongoing epic battle between the forces of Light and Darkness, fought through White and Black magick (yes, magick with a "k"), and the manipulation of people. The main reason I didn't give this more stars is that I thought the story-telling could have been a little tighter. It took awhile to see how certain things were connected, with a slightly disorienting way of sliding through time, and some of it never fully came together for me. Maybe I need to read the previous ones in the series to get more out of this book, though.
July 26, 2011
This one ties all the "Light" books together, plus The Inheritor and Witch Hill. It is a feast and a very entertaining read, despite it's subject matter being beyond me. Colin MacLaren is a proponent of "magick" on the Left Hand Path, which is different from Wicca and of course satanism. Then there is black magick, from the Right Hand Path, which is also not satanism. All very confusing! Add to it all the "Blackburn Work", which had something to do with gateways to Faerie, or whatever, and plain old ESP and spiritualism, etc etc. She really stuffed it all in. There was a lot of Christian imagery in the white magick stuff, yet sometimes she would "put down" religion. Hard to follow, not really a plot, but still a fun read -- plus there was that reincarnated tie-in to Fall of Atlantis that caught my eye. Colin was Riveda again. I remember him!
Anyway, tons of magical adventuring. Her Darkover novels still win out over everything.
Anyway, tons of magical adventuring. Her Darkover novels still win out over everything.
March 15, 2009
Heartlight is a peculiar book. It's almost a meta-book - a collection of backstory for the other three *light books. It doesn't really have a plot of its own, and it meanders from decade to decade more like a high-school history paper than a novel. There are some decent sub-plots here and there, but on the whole it's pretty flat and charmless.
(It is worth noting that this book, and the rest of the series, were published years after MZB's death, and are in fact copyrighted to Rosemary Edghill, who is a consistent if second-rate purveyor of what I fondly call "mall-elf fiction." I strongly suspect that Bradley herself had minimal involvement with this series. I'm not entirely thrilled by the deception.)
(It is worth noting that this book, and the rest of the series, were published years after MZB's death, and are in fact copyrighted to Rosemary Edghill, who is a consistent if second-rate purveyor of what I fondly call "mall-elf fiction." I strongly suspect that Bradley herself had minimal involvement with this series. I'm not entirely thrilled by the deception.)
June 3, 2009
This was a pretty good close to the "Light" books. It covers all of the events from The Inheritor throught Witchlight in self-contained sections which could easily be short stories, then follows with a final section in which the main character, Colin McLaren, confronts an old enemy while looking for his student and heir. It's interesting to read the events of the previous books from a different perspective, and Bradley does a good job with continuity. It would be possible if rather spoiler-rich for a reader to pick this book up first and then decide to read the rest of the books.
June 3, 2011
A tedious read. As she has done with the previous three books in the series, MZB relied on stereotypes and cliches to define her characters. They end the story in almost the exact same shape and form that they entered it - their personal growth in response to conflict is superficial.
The narrator tells us, rather than shows us, the story. Since the plot attempts to connect several historical events into one magical nazi-conspiracy theory, this writing method gave the story a dry, text-book quality that was difficult to overcome. I almost didn't finish this book - only my desire to finish the series (and be done with it), kept me going to the end.
The narrator tells us, rather than shows us, the story. Since the plot attempts to connect several historical events into one magical nazi-conspiracy theory, this writing method gave the story a dry, text-book quality that was difficult to overcome. I almost didn't finish this book - only my desire to finish the series (and be done with it), kept me going to the end.
February 10, 2012
I liked it but you have to have read all the books in the series starting with Dark Satanic and ending with Gravelight. I got a kick of Colin's observations of the previous stories characters. I did enjoy meeting Thorn Blackburn and his cult family. This made the character of Truth from Ghostlight, Witchlight and Gravelight a lot more interesting.
It seemed apparent that MZB was trying to finish this series before 'something' happened to her. Too bad she was correct.
But it was fun following the timeline of my life in a novel. It all seemed very familiar.
It seemed apparent that MZB was trying to finish this series before 'something' happened to her. Too bad she was correct.
But it was fun following the timeline of my life in a novel. It all seemed very familiar.
August 27, 2008
This book was ok. It started out different from the other three and very exciting for a while, then it just kind of got long. I found that i had to think of the book as a string of short stories brought together then it was a easier read. It ended pretty good. It was left open for more adventures of Truth and Dylan. I liked getting to know Thorne Blackburn and a few other characters that were just side notes in the other books.
October 27, 2012
I have to wonder if Ms Meyer got the idea to rewrite Twilight from a different perspective from this book. This unnecessary and tedious book is basically a summary of all the other books told from Colin's perspective, with a few other incidents thrown in. There's no real plot, no build up to a climax, just essentially a recount of Colin's life. In nearly 600 pages. A terribly boring way to end a reasonably entertaining series, that would've been much better if it were a book shorter.
January 10, 2014
If you've read the previous novels in Marion Zimmer Bradley's "Light" series then this is a compilation of those books with some added bonus material added between events- which makes it worthwhile reading. If you haven't read the previous books in the series then I don't think you would be satisfied with the "glossing over" of previous stories that this novel does. So save this as the final book in the series and enjoy the recap.
December 15, 2008
I never really enjoyed Bradley's "light" books. The plots always seemed too similar, the characters too interchangable. Even here, the main character, Colin doesn't seem to grow or change within the course of the book. Bradley does deserve props for being able to tie everything together; she weaves all the light stories together extremely well.
August 10, 2010
Um livro onde se percebe a magnificência da obra de Marion Zimmer Bradley, com o confluir das personagens dos mais diversos livros e as mais diversas histórias, num só... O que comprova porque é que estas personagens se parecem tanto com pessoas que eu podia ter conhecido e que me acompanham há anos.
September 29, 2014
This one was a little disappointing. I have always thought of Colin MacLaren as dull character so a entire book of him was not my cup of tea. Is a book you can read but not enjoy yourself while reading.
May 20, 2007
I started reading this years ago and begged off. Difficult to get into at first, but a good magical book to read. It's also set in SF and NY - my cities, which made it a poignant read.
May 3, 2008
Much more 'end of the world'-y then the rest of the books, but good enough for me.
October 20, 2008
Finally! One of these books actually focuses on Colin.
April 17, 2009
This is Darker then much of the urban fantasy/paranormal coming out these days. Majic and witches are less romantic. It plays out well in this "world".
April 1, 2011
#4 Shadows Gate
July 26, 2012
Very interesting, especially if you're into occult fiction.
April 15, 2013
Se amate la storia contemporanea e l'esoterismo non potete perdervelo.
La recensione completa dei demiurghi la trovate a questo link: BIBLIOTECA: Cuore di luce
La recensione completa dei demiurghi la trovate a questo link: BIBLIOTECA: Cuore di luce
May 29, 2014
I used to love this book, and many other titles by MZB. I tore up my copies of her books after finding out that she molested her daughter and protected her husband, who also molested other children.
January 6, 2010
I was not able to get into this book, and abandoned the effort.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews