Flamesong

Tekumel #2

by M.A.R. Barker

A commander of the Petal Throne, the ruling empire of Tekumel, and his captive, an enemy female officer carrying a powerful ancient weapon, join forces unwillingly to escape uncharted subterranean passages inhabited by horrific monsters.

Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Fiction, Novels, Linguistics, Science Fiction Fantasy

412 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published September 3, 1985

About the author

Muhammad Abd-Al-Rahman Barker

Reviews

[Forrest · Rating 3 out of 5]

Four attempts and 26 years. That's how long it took me to finally complete MAR Barker's monumental "Flamesong". The world is incredible: intricate, alien, vast, internally consistent. But the late Barker's means of relating this intricacy, through long monologues at the most unlikely times, make it a difficult read. Several information dumps later, I wish that the book just had a separate glossary and timeline, rather than the long interruptions of what was a fairly decent plot. I must admit though, that I was a little wrankled by the sheer convenience of plot - especially running into a key noble figure in the middle of the desert. I really wanted to love the book, but found myself only liking it. Perhaps this is because it read more like a strongly edited role playing game session in what is an absolutely fascinating campaign. If the encyclopedic elements could have been removed or introduced in a more natural way, this would have been a four star review.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

M.A.R. Barker's world is incredibly detailed -- he even published books on the Tsolyani language. Read this book for the worldbuilding, and for a fairly decent story, but his characterization is where he falls flat -- none of the characters are particularly sympathetic or distinctive. I finished the book and had no particularly interest in knowing what happened to any of them next.

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Again, not going to even pretend to be objective about this.

While I think my personal favorite is The Man of Gold, this is easily a stronger book, and a better introduction to Tekumel, my favorite fictional world.

Trinesh hiKetkolel is a Hereksa, a commander of one hundred soldiers in one of the Tsolyani Empire's legions. As things begin, his soldiers have just captured Fortress Ninu'ur, a squalid outpost in the Desert of Sighs, as part of the Tsolyani Empire's push to invade the neighboring state of Yan Kor (events in this war also formed much of the backdrop for The Man of Gold; Flamesong takes place shortly after the events of Man of Gold, but is about an entirely different set of characters in entirely different parts of the world, so can be treated as a standalone novel to all intents and purposes). Much to their surprise, they discover, in the bowels of the fortress, a tubeway car station of the Ancients (n.b. -- Tekumel is an alien planet that was settled by humanity (and several other alien races) tens or hundreds of thousands of years in our future; and then after even more tens or hundreds of thousands of years, catastrophic events caused the collapse of the then high-tech civilization, and in the present (even further in the future), it's a post-apocalyptic, low-tech world littered with the detritus of long-dead civilizations; the tubeway cars were the Ancients' version of Elon Musk's Hyperloop) and some high-ranking Yan Koryani officers and, well, somebody hits one of the destination studs on the tubeway car and ... complications ensue, of a sort that will take them to any number of distant locations on their way home.

Also in the mix: One Ridek Chna Ald, the 12 year old son of Baron Ald, ruler of Yan Kor, whose path will eventually intersect with Trinesh's.

Adventure and aliens and exotic locales -- I can't think of anything I like more.

Oh, and I'm going to link to a larger version of the cover (which, on the original DAW paperback, wrapped all the way around to the back) because it should tell you everything you need to know about exactly what kind of story you're in for.

[Wise_owl · Rating 4 out of 5]

M.A.R. Barkers second forey into fiction in his fascinating interesting world of Tekumel is a nod better than his first in my estimation. The book and the world come across as more confident.

Tekumel is a fascinating world peopled by a variety of races, but dominated by humans who are descendent from Earth Humans, though principally through the cultures of South East Asia and South America. They thus have very little relationship to 'traditional' fantasy fiction in it's 'pseudo-european' mode and this presents elements that are at once challenging and fascinating.

For example, many of the principal characters in the novel worship a Fire Diety whose worship includes human sacrifice. The presentation of this fact, the disagreement in opinion between the religious fanatic who wants to burn everyone they can and the 'moderate' who will sacrifice a few prisoners but thinks otherwise is being excessive is very well done and like many other elements serves both to demonstrate character and to explain a world that is often very alien.

I think others, less in love with Tekumel, might find the book, with it's strange linguistic quirks, it's reference to elaborate history, and so forth, to be a bit challenging and perhaps pedantic, but for me it was great fun. Woven into these things is a sort of sword&sorcery adventure, in which a group of soldiers is ripped away from their home, must ally with their some-times enemies for a time, and struggle both to survive, and to out-guess their opponents before they return home. It was alot of fun and a good read for anyone who likes classic fantasy, or more properly, one who likes that sort of thing but would like to see the potential in the word 'fantasy' actually explored.

[Gregs3071 · Rating 5 out of 5]

This one is a cracker.
I read some reviews before I read the book itself. I agree that this is the best of the Professor's Tekumel novels.
The pace barely lets up - it's out of the frying pan and into the fire, over and over, from beginning to end. More details of this fantastical world are slowly revealed as the reader is led away from from the Tsolyani Empire and into some of the surrounding lands. Twin plot lines involving two protagonists, and the odd character from the first novel, are inevitably drawn together.
Once again, Barker had me reaching for the dictionary. Now I know even more about architectural details, and obscure elements of armour, than I did previously.
The story is good enough to be read in isolation from the rest of the series. I would recommend it to anyone interest in sci-fantasy

[Baron Greystone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just re-read this, in a re-read of the entire series. I was very shocked at the time it came out, because the author ignores the protagonists of the prior novel, and just sets up a whole new crew. Don't know why you'd choose to do that, since the setting is the same, a little further down the time line. Anyway, these new characters have grown on me over the years, until now I like them fairly well. Again, as with characters in the first book, if anyone from this book reappears in a subsequent novel, you won't recognize them. That's a shame, if you grow to like their personalities and mannerisms.

[Kevin Leung · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's better than "Man of Gold".

[Tom the Guvnor · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have had this paperback on my bookshelf for over 30 years. I thought I'd ready to university but it turns out that either I didn't or my memory is very bad.

This is the second novel by Barker set in his fantasy world of Tékumel. Tekumel is a fantasy world based on the cultured of southeast Asia or meso-America. It is an extremely developed deep and extensive fantasy world. It dates from the late 60s. it has formed the basis of several role-playing games but is extremely niche and considered to be very difficult to get into.

Having read this book I can see that indeed this is wrong. master at quite a lot of funny names in this book at it's cool it's an opportunity to have rip-roaring adventures in a setting that excites the mind and does not offend one's sensibilities. This is a book with a liberal view on sexualities and nudity and although it is written with a male gaze there are many very strong female characters who follow their own agendas and have autonomy from men.

Barker writes a good adventure yarn. He has a deft hand with language. his ability as a philologist comes through as he shifts language and ways of speaking between different cultures and different castes within a society. It will remind people of John Carter of Mars, or Poul Anderson, or Jack Vance, but with more balanced sexual politics. It is, however, not politically correct for the sake of it.

Be aware that these are societies which have low levels of slavery integral to them, and some of the religious practices are quite bloody as you might expect looking at the influences which will include the Aztecs. The main characters however a very sympathetic for a modern reader.

if you can get a copy and they're very difficult then I recommend this book as an enjoyable read which you may wish to follow up by having a look at the rest of the fantasy setting.

[Preston Ray · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved Tekumel from my days playing Empire of the Petal Throne. For the time period it was written, Tekumel was wonderfully different. A lot of the rest of the novel though is flat. It has the whole "tell don't show" style that was more common then, the story arc is weak with a meandering middle and the characters are not very memorable.
Also from a writing perspective all the allusions to the world which do not drive the plots/characters forward will probably drive many modern readers crazy.
I try not to let deceased author's views affect me too much as at this point it is moot from my perspective, but, the author wrote a virulent anti-semitic novel (Serpent's Walk) under a pseudonym so if that influences your buying behavior, be warned ahead of time.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

The last Tekemul novel published by DAW, Barker wrote three others that were self published. It's a fun adventure, I don't like Trinesh as much as I like Harsan from Man of Gold, but the young boy Ridek is a nice sidekick. People who are not Tekumel fans may feel that there's too much info dumping, but I like it.

Barker was a great world builder, and the world he created was not a European based one. An excellent read.

[Tor.com Publishing]

I think this might be my favorite of the Tekumel books of M.A.R. Barker. If you don't know Barker-- he's a linguist, like Tolkien, but interested in Mesoamerican & South Asian languages more than European. He's also part Gygax, as Tekumel was there when the RPG hobby was being formed. This book shows the paradigm of "Chaos" to be as human & worthy of empathy as the gods & heroes of "Order" & is a science-fantasy classic. --MK

[Jorgen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like these books (Tekumel) for the way the world is different than all the LOTR/Morte d'Arthur influenced books/stories.

Sadly the writing thought competent is not great. That said I'm keeping the book on the shelf with "The Man of Gold" for future rereading potential but I'm not planning to seek out the rest of the series.

[Terence · Rating 2 out of 5]

Professor Barker is a better imaginer of worlds than a writer about them.

[John Massey · Rating 5 out of 5]

GREAT GREAT STORY

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a good book for people who are already fans of this franchise. Persons who are not fans may be very confused by the description of the setting, or may think that it is a novelisation of a poorly-run RPG campaign.

I am a fan of EPT and I enjoyed this book greatly, especially the appendix, but there are significant flaws in the plotline and the dual narrative structure.

[Derek · Rating 4 out of 5]

More focused and adventure-driven than Man of Gold, and less of a tour through the fantastic world of Tekumel.