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Witch World Series 1: The Estcarp Cycle #3
Three Against the Witch World
NORTH, EAST, SOUTH, WEST...
The offspring of Simon Tregarth, half earthling, half witch-brood, realized that they alone could perceive the four directions - for everyone else, there was no East!
It was a blank in the mind, a blank in legend and history.
And when new menaces threatened, the Tregarths realized that in that mental barrier there lay the key to all their world... somewhere to the unknown eastward must lie the sorcery that had secretly molded their destinies!
The offspring of Simon Tregarth, half earthling, half witch-brood, realized that they alone could perceive the four directions - for everyone else, there was no East!
It was a blank in the mind, a blank in legend and history.
And when new menaces threatened, the Tregarths realized that in that mental barrier there lay the key to all their world... somewhere to the unknown eastward must lie the sorcery that had secretly molded their destinies!
190 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1965
13 people are currently reading
821 people want to read
About the author
Andre Norton
694 books1,386 followersAndre Norton, born Alice Mary Norton, was a pioneering American author of science fiction and fantasy, widely regarded as the Grande Dame of those genres. She also wrote historical and contemporary fiction, publishing under the pen names Andre Alice Norton, Andrew North, and Allen Weston. She launched her career in 1934 with The Prince Commands, adopting the name “Andre” to appeal to a male readership. After working for the Cleveland Library System and the Library of Congress, she began publishing science fiction under “Andrew North” and fantasy under her own name. She became a full-time writer in 1958 and was known for her prolific output, including Star Man’s Son, 2250 A.D. and Witch World, the latter spawning a long-running series and shared universe. Norton was a founding member of the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America and authored Quag Keep, the first novel based on the Dungeons & Dragons game. She influenced generations of writers, including Lois McMaster Bujold and Mercedes Lackey. Among her many honors were being the first woman named Gandalf Grand Master of Fantasy and SFWA Grand Master. In her later years, she established the High Hallack Library to support research in genre fiction. Her legacy continues with the Andre Norton Award for young adult science fiction and fantasy.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 51 reviews
August 15, 2022
I don't recall how I learned of Andre Norton but I am so glad I did. She was an American author of science fiction and fantasy. She changed her given name of Mary to Andre while she was still in school so boys would not be afraid to read her stories. That was in the 1930s.
I started with her Witch World Series, first published in 1963. Three Against the Witch World is the third in that series. Killen, Kemoc, and Kathlea are triplets born of Simon Tegarth, an earthman and his wife Jaelithe, a rebel with who sacrificed some, but not all, of her witch power to marry Simon.
These three siblings are now young adults. They each have a special gift: warrior, sage and witch, and can communicate telepathically. In this story they flee from danger to the mysterious and ancient land east beyond high mountains. In doing so they awaken an even greater peril and must resolve age old conflicts in the Witch World.
It takes a certain bit of concentration to read these books but that is rewarded by a tale full of danger, adventure and a deep wisdom. No wonder she was named The Grande Dame of Science Fiction and Fantasy.
I started with her Witch World Series, first published in 1963. Three Against the Witch World is the third in that series. Killen, Kemoc, and Kathlea are triplets born of Simon Tegarth, an earthman and his wife Jaelithe, a rebel with who sacrificed some, but not all, of her witch power to marry Simon.
These three siblings are now young adults. They each have a special gift: warrior, sage and witch, and can communicate telepathically. In this story they flee from danger to the mysterious and ancient land east beyond high mountains. In doing so they awaken an even greater peril and must resolve age old conflicts in the Witch World.
It takes a certain bit of concentration to read these books but that is rewarded by a tale full of danger, adventure and a deep wisdom. No wonder she was named The Grande Dame of Science Fiction and Fantasy.
July 22, 2022
W trzecim tomie przechodzimy do dzieci Simona i jego ukochanej czarownicy, trojaczków złączonych niezwykłą telepatyczną więzią i posiadających magiczne talenty o jakich Estcarp nie słyszał. Rzucają wyzwanie autorytarnym rządom czarownic i uciekają do zakazanej krainy na wschodzie, gdzie poznają zaginioną historię Estcarpu. Miła przygodówka, Norton z każdą książką robi lekką korektę kanonu ustalonego w pierwszym tomie. Dzieje się tak wiele, że nie mamy czasu poznać bohaterów, ale oni są bardziej jak postaci z romansów rycerskich niż z literatury realizmu psychologicznego i zaczyna mi brakować trochę postaci, które mają inne cechy niż to, że są Dobre i Uzdolnione. Chyba pora na przerwę od Estcarpu.
April 20, 2017
Book 3 of the first Witch World series and different from the first two, which told the story of Simon Tregarth, who came to Witch World from our world through an interdimensional gateway, and Jaelithe, one of the Witches. The first books are concerned with how Simon and Jaelithe spearhead the fight against the Kolder, an alien race who came through yet another gateway, and so can be classified as science fantasy, given the amount of technology in the stories as well as the Witch World's psychic witch powers.
This book is told from the viewpoint of their oldest son, Kyllan, first of triplets. He and his brother Kemoc, and sister Kaththea, inherited the abilities of their parents who shared a mental bond, despite the rejection of the other Witches who deplore the idea that men can share the Power as it is called. The first part covers their upbringing, with Jaelithe ill for months following the birth, and after her recovery a remote parent, as is their father. The children are given to a nurse to raise, and, in the case of the boys, a soldier to train in warrior skills as, despite the removal of the Kolder, the land of Estcarp is still under severe pressure from their enemies to the north and south. Friends of their parents, Koris and Loyse, who featured in the first two novels, stand in loco parentis. As the chidren develop, so does their mental three-way bond, similar to that shared by their parents.
The first tragedy which will shape their destiny strikes when they are about 12 and Simon is lost at sea. Jaelithe departs to search for him. After a few more years, Koris and Loiyse are unavoidably absent and this provides the opportunity for the family's enemies to strike. I won't say more about the plot, other than to say their paths will separate but lead them ultimately to a strange land, which is old rather than new, and that what they discover throws an illuminating light on the history of Estcarp and the restrictions now based on the Power.
This story differs from the first two which were action adventure with quite a science fictional flavour. This is much more of a straight fantasy, except that intriguing and odd characters appear which add a different flavour to the series. The narrative is possibly a little flat; old time fantasy such as this doesn't feature deep characterisation, angst and self examination. Characters face problems and just get on with things rather than agonise. Yet I liked the different setting of this book and the characters they meet who are reminiscent of the Irish Sidhe or some otherworldly group.
It's also easy to see again how influential Norton was, with a sequence involving a dark force within a stone ring that pulls in its prey in a spiraling walk - reminiscent of the same idea in a Roger Zelazny Amber novel except this precedes the Zelazny book by some years. Norton had new ideas which no one had thought of before and other writers often borrowed them and gave them a different spin, which is why she had such an influence on the genre.
Therefore an enjoyable read even though the story is left at a point in the proceedings where more is obviously to come, probably in the next volume.
This book is told from the viewpoint of their oldest son, Kyllan, first of triplets. He and his brother Kemoc, and sister Kaththea, inherited the abilities of their parents who shared a mental bond, despite the rejection of the other Witches who deplore the idea that men can share the Power as it is called. The first part covers their upbringing, with Jaelithe ill for months following the birth, and after her recovery a remote parent, as is their father. The children are given to a nurse to raise, and, in the case of the boys, a soldier to train in warrior skills as, despite the removal of the Kolder, the land of Estcarp is still under severe pressure from their enemies to the north and south. Friends of their parents, Koris and Loyse, who featured in the first two novels, stand in loco parentis. As the chidren develop, so does their mental three-way bond, similar to that shared by their parents.
The first tragedy which will shape their destiny strikes when they are about 12 and Simon is lost at sea. Jaelithe departs to search for him. After a few more years, Koris and Loiyse are unavoidably absent and this provides the opportunity for the family's enemies to strike. I won't say more about the plot, other than to say their paths will separate but lead them ultimately to a strange land, which is old rather than new, and that what they discover throws an illuminating light on the history of Estcarp and the restrictions now based on the Power.
This story differs from the first two which were action adventure with quite a science fictional flavour. This is much more of a straight fantasy, except that intriguing and odd characters appear which add a different flavour to the series. The narrative is possibly a little flat; old time fantasy such as this doesn't feature deep characterisation, angst and self examination. Characters face problems and just get on with things rather than agonise. Yet I liked the different setting of this book and the characters they meet who are reminiscent of the Irish Sidhe or some otherworldly group.
It's also easy to see again how influential Norton was, with a sequence involving a dark force within a stone ring that pulls in its prey in a spiraling walk - reminiscent of the same idea in a Roger Zelazny Amber novel except this precedes the Zelazny book by some years. Norton had new ideas which no one had thought of before and other writers often borrowed them and gave them a different spin, which is why she had such an influence on the genre.
Therefore an enjoyable read even though the story is left at a point in the proceedings where more is obviously to come, probably in the next volume.
February 3, 2008
Old school fantasy/sci-fi. Wrote my thesis about this book and other Andre Norton's. No feminist protagonist, but strong female characters and even stronger feminist implications.
March 28, 2013
This is as awesome as the first time I read it in the 80s.
August 8, 2008
Simon Tregarth was the hero of the first couple of Witch World books. This book features his three children. Pretty good.
April 13, 2009
An enticing peek into a new segment of Andre Norton's Witchworld universe!
Read
May 12, 2015Kyllan is the character I'd least have expected to identify with. Why I find his story engaging, while Kaththea's part is so detached and unsympathetic, I don't know. Anyway, there's a map in the frontispiece, which is handy, though later books in the same series have more complete maps.
I have several copies of this, but I'm pretty sure they're all the same edition. I kept a look out for copies, because at least one copy I have is damaged, obscuring some of the text.
The plot summary for this edition is simply absurd, and seems to have been taken verbatim from the back cover. It's evident that the blurb writer hadn't read the book--but the question is, why did Norton pass it?
In one of her earliest books (Ralestone Luck), Norton does discuss the relationships between writers, illustrators, publishers, etc, and makes it clear that writers too often have very little control over technical aspects of publication. This is an Ace book, and Ace books tended to be cheap editions, with poor proofreading, and limited information as to cover art, blurb writers, etc.
The edition I recently reread is the 1965 edition (apparently the 1st paperback edition), which has, instead of a map, a capsule contemporary biography of Norton in the front.
The cover art on this edition is frankly NOT the sort of thing that would have attracted me, if I hadn't been familiar with Norton's works. I've always had a problem with Norton's tendencies to create monstrae ex machina, and though it's not as bad in this book as in others in the Witch World series (and definitely not as bad as the cover picture implies), it's still pretty bad. To choose this isolated incident for the cover is not a very good idea--but the presentation makes it even worse.
The basic story of the Tregarth triplets is critical to the series, not only because of the later impact of their escape to Escore, but also because of the impact on other people and events. The fact that Lormt is casually introduced early in the story gives an idea of the significance of this volume in the series.
The book begins with Kyllan establishing his identity, and telling, in summary, the history of his family and household. This he largely knows by repute, because he doesn't have intimate contact with most of the principals.
I have to say that I suspect that the Estcarpian 'Old Race' were genetically engineered (?perhaps voluntarily? It's not clear) before they left Escore. The limitation of the Power to nonreproducing females may be largely psychological, like the Estcarpian obliviousness to the East--a matter of engrained prejudices which limit people's ability to even consider alternatives. But other matters seem to involve physical alterations. Some were probably tied to trying to make inheritance of the Power sex-linked. Others are probably related to inbreeding, due to the fact that few women reproduced. The difficulty 'Old Race' women experience in childbirth, for example, (often leading to maternal mortality, although in this case the Lady Jaelithe did (barely) recover, after a prolonged convalescence) may be tied to inbreeding.
But why would triplets be entirely unprecedented? This seems to indicate some sort of deliberate modification of the genetic structure, which the Lady Jaelithe intervened to circumvent--and paid extravagantly for the intervention.
The Tregarth triplets are obviously not identical, since two are male, and one female. They're not even a compromise, with the two males identical and the female fraternal. They are fraternal triplets, yet they all share a psychic bond, so that they can unify to act as an entity at need.
In Kyllan's case, this is pretty nearly the limit of his powers, except that he has an affinity for animals, and can go into rapport with them to influence their behavior (sometimes). Kemoc and Kaththea both have other talents. Because their mother was incapacitated for quite some time, and their father showed little interest in them, they were fostered partly by Koris of Gorm and the Lady Loyse of Verlaine, and partly by the Falconer woman Anghart.
Fairly early in the story, Simon Tregarth disappears, and the Lady Jaelithe uses their children's unifying powers to trace her husband and to go off in search of him, leaving the children not significantly more alone than before, but with fewer potential protectors from the Witches' Council.
It's not clear what exactly was going on inside the Witches' Council at the time. They were hard-pressed, true. But to send raiders to Etsford to kidnap Kaththea (and murder Anghart), while her brothers were off with the Borderers, seems more than desperate--there seems to have been a strain of vengeful fanaticism at the time. No later story or volume really deals with this, and it's too late to question the ringleaders--they were probably among the first to die in the 'Turning'.
Kemoc is injured fairly early on, and is invalided home, where he takes off to Lormt to try to find a way to reunite the triplets. He knows that they cannot simply kidnap Kaththea back. For one thing, where would they flee to, with enemies to the north and south and allies to the west? But Kemoc has an idea. He's learned from experience that his fellow Borderers cannot even THINK about the East--but he and his siblings can. So he researches at Lormt, trying to figure out if there's any potential escape there.
But Lormt, at the time, was not a very well cataloged archive--and the scholars there are almost all people who have been likewise conditioned not to be aware of the east.
The blurb implies that the arrival of the 'three-in-one' has been prepared for in Escore. Later stories also imply this. But there's no real basis to believe that there was much more than vague intimations that things would change, and roughly when.
The crisis comes (as many crises do), at the time of the Turning. Kaththea is not intended to take part in the Turning (she's not yet an initiate). She's meant to be sworn just about the time of the Turning to act as a replacement for at least one of the many witches who will die or have their powers burnt out, perhaps permanently. But her brothers realize that if once she is sworn, she will no longer be able to escape. So once the Borderers are pulled back from the danger zone, they take action.
The escape itself is almost unopposed at first, because of the focus on the Turning then in process. Almost immediately, however, they run into a problem: though Kaththea, because of her 'mixed' parentage, had been as free as her brothers of the conditioning against awareness of the east, her training has attenuated her sensory abilities enough that she has to be blindfolded at least part of the way--and since the way has been almost entirely closed off (it turns out), this makes their escape more difficult.
Once in Escore, the escapees find themselves almost entirely at sea. The forgotten eastern land is remembered mostly in folktales, and there's very little history in those tales. So Kaththea tries something that's pretty desperate--and triggers an immediate, drastic reaction.
It's hard, at this distance in time, to distinguish what the Tregarths learned from what was established later. The basic story seems to be that Adepts of various sorts (most either good or evil, but some neither) began to meddle with the basic stuff of life in a barely-remembered golden age (note that no stories I know of are set in this golden age. I, for one, would like to know more about that time). Then they seem to have decided to have a war (?Why? It's never adequately explained). Many adepts left through worldgates, others were killed or confined, and most of the survivors either fled to Estcarp or took shelter in refuges, leaving most of Escore to the 'shadow', with an uneasy truce prevailing.
Exactly why three striplings practicing frankly not very great power become potent enough to unsettle the balance is not clear. Perhaps the minions of the Shadow have their own legends. Otherwise, why not simply swear them to the truce as well, and give them an escort to one of the refugia (such as the Valley of The Green Silences)?
Kyllan finds himself separated from his siblings because, by using his powers to lure an animal to its death, he renders himself vulnerable to whoever is directing the Keplians. As a result, he is the first to achieve contact with the People of The Green Silences, and to discover one of the treasures of Escore. I wonder, by the way, whether anybody has ever researched that red mud?
Kyllan then finds himself laid under a geas. He is sent to track down the survivors of the Borderers and their families (mostly refugee Karstenians, who have no real place in Estcarp), and lure them into Escore. On this quest he has formidable help, since the Lady of The Green Silences, Dahaun herself (or perhaps her contemporary avatar) has fallen in love with him, and it's your basic requited love--and partnership.
This volume ends as if with finality. Kyllan dreams of a long struggle with peace at the end, and prophesies that it will come true. But of course the story doesn't end there. So much of the Witch World series is hinged around the Turning that it's hard to decide where to go next. I'll probably continue with the tales of the Tregarth triplets, with Warlock of The Witch World--and then go on to other books set in the same time period.
One point: the Grey Ones, as described in this volume, seem to me to be among the best candidates for some kind of reform, or at least rapprochement. So why does nobody ever try it?
I have several copies of this, but I'm pretty sure they're all the same edition. I kept a look out for copies, because at least one copy I have is damaged, obscuring some of the text.
The plot summary for this edition is simply absurd, and seems to have been taken verbatim from the back cover. It's evident that the blurb writer hadn't read the book--but the question is, why did Norton pass it?
In one of her earliest books (Ralestone Luck), Norton does discuss the relationships between writers, illustrators, publishers, etc, and makes it clear that writers too often have very little control over technical aspects of publication. This is an Ace book, and Ace books tended to be cheap editions, with poor proofreading, and limited information as to cover art, blurb writers, etc.
The edition I recently reread is the 1965 edition (apparently the 1st paperback edition), which has, instead of a map, a capsule contemporary biography of Norton in the front.
The cover art on this edition is frankly NOT the sort of thing that would have attracted me, if I hadn't been familiar with Norton's works. I've always had a problem with Norton's tendencies to create monstrae ex machina, and though it's not as bad in this book as in others in the Witch World series (and definitely not as bad as the cover picture implies), it's still pretty bad. To choose this isolated incident for the cover is not a very good idea--but the presentation makes it even worse.
The basic story of the Tregarth triplets is critical to the series, not only because of the later impact of their escape to Escore, but also because of the impact on other people and events. The fact that Lormt is casually introduced early in the story gives an idea of the significance of this volume in the series.
The book begins with Kyllan establishing his identity, and telling, in summary, the history of his family and household. This he largely knows by repute, because he doesn't have intimate contact with most of the principals.
I have to say that I suspect that the Estcarpian 'Old Race' were genetically engineered (?perhaps voluntarily? It's not clear) before they left Escore. The limitation of the Power to nonreproducing females may be largely psychological, like the Estcarpian obliviousness to the East--a matter of engrained prejudices which limit people's ability to even consider alternatives. But other matters seem to involve physical alterations. Some were probably tied to trying to make inheritance of the Power sex-linked. Others are probably related to inbreeding, due to the fact that few women reproduced. The difficulty 'Old Race' women experience in childbirth, for example, (often leading to maternal mortality, although in this case the Lady Jaelithe did (barely) recover, after a prolonged convalescence) may be tied to inbreeding.
But why would triplets be entirely unprecedented? This seems to indicate some sort of deliberate modification of the genetic structure, which the Lady Jaelithe intervened to circumvent--and paid extravagantly for the intervention.
The Tregarth triplets are obviously not identical, since two are male, and one female. They're not even a compromise, with the two males identical and the female fraternal. They are fraternal triplets, yet they all share a psychic bond, so that they can unify to act as an entity at need.
In Kyllan's case, this is pretty nearly the limit of his powers, except that he has an affinity for animals, and can go into rapport with them to influence their behavior (sometimes). Kemoc and Kaththea both have other talents. Because their mother was incapacitated for quite some time, and their father showed little interest in them, they were fostered partly by Koris of Gorm and the Lady Loyse of Verlaine, and partly by the Falconer woman Anghart.
Fairly early in the story, Simon Tregarth disappears, and the Lady Jaelithe uses their children's unifying powers to trace her husband and to go off in search of him, leaving the children not significantly more alone than before, but with fewer potential protectors from the Witches' Council.
It's not clear what exactly was going on inside the Witches' Council at the time. They were hard-pressed, true. But to send raiders to Etsford to kidnap Kaththea (and murder Anghart), while her brothers were off with the Borderers, seems more than desperate--there seems to have been a strain of vengeful fanaticism at the time. No later story or volume really deals with this, and it's too late to question the ringleaders--they were probably among the first to die in the 'Turning'.
Kemoc is injured fairly early on, and is invalided home, where he takes off to Lormt to try to find a way to reunite the triplets. He knows that they cannot simply kidnap Kaththea back. For one thing, where would they flee to, with enemies to the north and south and allies to the west? But Kemoc has an idea. He's learned from experience that his fellow Borderers cannot even THINK about the East--but he and his siblings can. So he researches at Lormt, trying to figure out if there's any potential escape there.
But Lormt, at the time, was not a very well cataloged archive--and the scholars there are almost all people who have been likewise conditioned not to be aware of the east.
The blurb implies that the arrival of the 'three-in-one' has been prepared for in Escore. Later stories also imply this. But there's no real basis to believe that there was much more than vague intimations that things would change, and roughly when.
The crisis comes (as many crises do), at the time of the Turning. Kaththea is not intended to take part in the Turning (she's not yet an initiate). She's meant to be sworn just about the time of the Turning to act as a replacement for at least one of the many witches who will die or have their powers burnt out, perhaps permanently. But her brothers realize that if once she is sworn, she will no longer be able to escape. So once the Borderers are pulled back from the danger zone, they take action.
The escape itself is almost unopposed at first, because of the focus on the Turning then in process. Almost immediately, however, they run into a problem: though Kaththea, because of her 'mixed' parentage, had been as free as her brothers of the conditioning against awareness of the east, her training has attenuated her sensory abilities enough that she has to be blindfolded at least part of the way--and since the way has been almost entirely closed off (it turns out), this makes their escape more difficult.
Once in Escore, the escapees find themselves almost entirely at sea. The forgotten eastern land is remembered mostly in folktales, and there's very little history in those tales. So Kaththea tries something that's pretty desperate--and triggers an immediate, drastic reaction.
It's hard, at this distance in time, to distinguish what the Tregarths learned from what was established later. The basic story seems to be that Adepts of various sorts (most either good or evil, but some neither) began to meddle with the basic stuff of life in a barely-remembered golden age (note that no stories I know of are set in this golden age. I, for one, would like to know more about that time). Then they seem to have decided to have a war (?Why? It's never adequately explained). Many adepts left through worldgates, others were killed or confined, and most of the survivors either fled to Estcarp or took shelter in refuges, leaving most of Escore to the 'shadow', with an uneasy truce prevailing.
Exactly why three striplings practicing frankly not very great power become potent enough to unsettle the balance is not clear. Perhaps the minions of the Shadow have their own legends. Otherwise, why not simply swear them to the truce as well, and give them an escort to one of the refugia (such as the Valley of The Green Silences)?
Kyllan finds himself separated from his siblings because, by using his powers to lure an animal to its death, he renders himself vulnerable to whoever is directing the Keplians. As a result, he is the first to achieve contact with the People of The Green Silences, and to discover one of the treasures of Escore. I wonder, by the way, whether anybody has ever researched that red mud?
Kyllan then finds himself laid under a geas. He is sent to track down the survivors of the Borderers and their families (mostly refugee Karstenians, who have no real place in Estcarp), and lure them into Escore. On this quest he has formidable help, since the Lady of The Green Silences, Dahaun herself (or perhaps her contemporary avatar) has fallen in love with him, and it's your basic requited love--and partnership.
This volume ends as if with finality. Kyllan dreams of a long struggle with peace at the end, and prophesies that it will come true. But of course the story doesn't end there. So much of the Witch World series is hinged around the Turning that it's hard to decide where to go next. I'll probably continue with the tales of the Tregarth triplets, with Warlock of The Witch World--and then go on to other books set in the same time period.
One point: the Grey Ones, as described in this volume, seem to me to be among the best candidates for some kind of reform, or at least rapprochement. So why does nobody ever try it?
November 24, 2020
I am still liking this series a lot. It's mainly the mystery of Witch World's distant past that keeps me interested. By flipping some of the faces into heels, Norton adds a drop of depth to at least some of the antagonists but it's mostly very clearly drawn lines of good and evil. This book has one of my favorite fantasy tropes though, a land that magic has scarred... like the polluted wastelands of Weird NJ Magazine, only instead of brownfields and superfund sites it's magical pollution! I love that so much.
I read this during a day of covid quarantine, waiting for test results in my room at the funny farm.
I read this during a day of covid quarantine, waiting for test results in my room at the funny farm.
February 24, 2022
Another great installment in the Witch World series. This time around, it introduces some moral shades of grey.
April 18, 2020
This book has as its strength the desire of the triplets to be together as they struggle against both the standard of the Witch World to snatch gifted girls and make them part of the Witch community, and against the growing knowledge that their uniqueness is not limited to the fact that they are triplets.
May 22, 2016
This is an old one of hers and it brings the start of the story of the 3 triplets, children of a witch and a citizen of the 20th century. It shows how they get to a new part of their world and bring about change. Followed by several other stories
November 13, 2013
I've been reading and re-reading that book since high school. Always excellent!
August 20, 2019
A decent adventure and a fast read.
July 3, 2024
There's something so fresh and exciting about this book and I say that in full knowledge that it's now 60 years old. Norton flips the script entirely on what we thought Witch World was and was about, whilst somehow maintaining the fundamentals, and all of a sudden the fallout from the Simon Tregarth years - Norton's peculiar own take on the Sword and Planet genre, which I loved a lot - is background detail to the story of the their Triplets (which I love even more). It's as if Norton was simply overflowing with ideas here and she was busting at the seams to fit them all into this series, and since epic fantasy blockbuster trilogy things weren't actually a thing in 1965 she takes the Michael Moorcock way out and just splurges a mad genius onto the page and hopes the overall direction of the narrative will sort itself out if/when the publishers allow more and she feels like writing it. And this stuff is just wonderful to read - I don't intend to spoil anything, even the crazy direction this veers into but it feels like the true beginnings of modern fantasy as Norton's prose, which is admittedly probably somewhat difficult to read for a fantasy newbie - is so rich and vivid that even at its weirdest and most opaque narratively, there's a conjuring up of monsters and landscapes and an entire world in which the evil of it just seeps through into your brain. It's a more focussed story than what we got in the first two books as well and simply works a bit better as a page-turner.
There's a lot of Sword and Sorcery influence here, although the story is less contained in that mould. It's no wonder Norton was inducted into SAGA ... sadly the only female to be recognised at the time but her influence would be felt across the next batch of fantasy writers, for sure. Essential reading for nerds.
(Thanks to my reading schedule I'll have to wait a while now to find out where this is all going. Boooo!)
There's a lot of Sword and Sorcery influence here, although the story is less contained in that mould. It's no wonder Norton was inducted into SAGA ... sadly the only female to be recognised at the time but her influence would be felt across the next batch of fantasy writers, for sure. Essential reading for nerds.
(Thanks to my reading schedule I'll have to wait a while now to find out where this is all going. Boooo!)
May 24, 2017
E quindi? Questo libro è stato troppo confusionario e ci sono buchi narrativi che non mi hanno fatto apprezzare la storia.
Simon e la moglie maga Jaelithe hanno messo al mondo 3 figli, 2 maschi e una femmina gemella,tutti naturalmente con poteri, uno è un guerriero, una è una maga e l'altro sa entrare nella mente degli animali. I 3 crescono lontani dai genitori,ma un bel giorno la loro madre li incontra per dirgli che sta andando a cercare il padre e che loro saranno una cosa sola,ma individui diversi (boh). I fratelli si sentono chiamati da un destino e partono alla ricerca di nuove terre,nel frattempo incontreranno amici/nemici e strane creature,si separeranno e si ritroveranno. Ma io torno a dire: e quindi?
La serie in italiano termina qui,per cui non lo saprò mai, ma ho trovato che la storia abbia avuto del potenziale solo nel secondo libro,un po' fantasy e un po' fantascienza, per il resto mi sono annoiata. Metto la sufficienza solo per le diverse creature che si incontrano in questo terzo libro.
Eppure questa scrittrice ha vinto tanti premi...forse non l'ho capita tanto bene io perché mi è sembrata una storia troppo fredda e scontata.
Simon e la moglie maga Jaelithe hanno messo al mondo 3 figli, 2 maschi e una femmina gemella,tutti naturalmente con poteri, uno è un guerriero, una è una maga e l'altro sa entrare nella mente degli animali. I 3 crescono lontani dai genitori,ma un bel giorno la loro madre li incontra per dirgli che sta andando a cercare il padre e che loro saranno una cosa sola,ma individui diversi (boh). I fratelli si sentono chiamati da un destino e partono alla ricerca di nuove terre,nel frattempo incontreranno amici/nemici e strane creature,si separeranno e si ritroveranno. Ma io torno a dire: e quindi?
La serie in italiano termina qui,per cui non lo saprò mai, ma ho trovato che la storia abbia avuto del potenziale solo nel secondo libro,un po' fantasy e un po' fantascienza, per il resto mi sono annoiata. Metto la sufficienza solo per le diverse creature che si incontrano in questo terzo libro.
Eppure questa scrittrice ha vinto tanti premi...forse non l'ho capita tanto bene io perché mi è sembrata una storia troppo fredda e scontata.
May 8, 2019
I'd love to know what prompted Andre Norton to switch from the adventures of Simon and Jaelithe (protagonists of the first two books) and jump ahead to the next generation. It proved a good move.
We start slow, filling in the life of the Tregarth triplets, Kyllan, Kemoc and Kaththea, from childhood to the present. After the Witches capture Kaththea to force her into training (the Witches of Estcarp come off much darker here than the first two books), her brothers rescue her. Realizing there's a mental block against the people of Estcarp crossing the Eastern border, they figure they won't be followed — and stumble into an ancient land whose ancient powers start to wake up at the newbies tramping around.
I like this one better than the first two because the magic is wilder, weirder and nastier. Kyllan is a bit stiff and passive as a protagonist, but not enough to hurt the book.
We start slow, filling in the life of the Tregarth triplets, Kyllan, Kemoc and Kaththea, from childhood to the present. After the Witches capture Kaththea to force her into training (the Witches of Estcarp come off much darker here than the first two books), her brothers rescue her. Realizing there's a mental block against the people of Estcarp crossing the Eastern border, they figure they won't be followed — and stumble into an ancient land whose ancient powers start to wake up at the newbies tramping around.
I like this one better than the first two because the magic is wilder, weirder and nastier. Kyllan is a bit stiff and passive as a protagonist, but not enough to hurt the book.
July 18, 2023
The first few "scenes" in the book are devoid of any dialog or direct action. There's an old rule in fiction: "Show, don't tell". It means to use characters to impart the story, rather than just "telling" the reader what's going on. Norton violated that rule and almost made me put the book aside.
Fortunately, she finally get around to "showing" what was going on and pretty much stuck to doing so for the balance of the story.
This is part of a series, so you have to purchase 4 more books to find out how things end (if they do end -- I haven't read that far and I'm not sure I will). The "show" parts are well-written and kept my interest, but not enough for me to buy the next 4 books. I'm just not that invested in the characters or the territory that everyone is fighting over. I could be missing out on something, but that's my problem.
Fortunately, she finally get around to "showing" what was going on and pretty much stuck to doing so for the balance of the story.
This is part of a series, so you have to purchase 4 more books to find out how things end (if they do end -- I haven't read that far and I'm not sure I will). The "show" parts are well-written and kept my interest, but not enough for me to buy the next 4 books. I'm just not that invested in the characters or the territory that everyone is fighting over. I could be missing out on something, but that's my problem.
September 27, 2025
I picked this up at a random bookstore in Arroyo Grande because a) it was old and b) I recognize the author and c) it was short. Oh, and also the whole "No one can think 'EAST' is a pretty funny/interesting gimmick. I had too see what she would do with it.
It's whimsical and bizarre as only sci-fi books can be, and I enjoyed that. It wasn't terrible. But sometimes the old school way of shit just happening or people just knowing stuff, or basically a whole string of dues-ex-machinas can be hard to handle as a modern reader.
Also, I guess it's the third book in a series? Based on the way it referenced the others, it doesn't -seem- to matter, but maybe someday I'll go and pick those up and see....
It's whimsical and bizarre as only sci-fi books can be, and I enjoyed that. It wasn't terrible. But sometimes the old school way of shit just happening or people just knowing stuff, or basically a whole string of dues-ex-machinas can be hard to handle as a modern reader.
Also, I guess it's the third book in a series? Based on the way it referenced the others, it doesn't -seem- to matter, but maybe someday I'll go and pick those up and see....
January 19, 2019
I’d actually rate this 3.5. I usually adore Norton. Perhaps not locating book two in the series interferes with my enjoyment of this novel. Certain key connections among the characters weren’t clearly established.
Kyllan, Kemoc, and Kaththea are triplets with an unusual background on the Witch World. Their father came across dimensions from Earth, and has Powers the Witch World tend to view with suspicion. The powerful witches want to train Kaththea; their parents refuse. However, their parents disappear, so those in power intervene and split them up. The trio decides to dispute this ruling.
Kyllan, Kemoc, and Kaththea are triplets with an unusual background on the Witch World. Their father came across dimensions from Earth, and has Powers the Witch World tend to view with suspicion. The powerful witches want to train Kaththea; their parents refuse. However, their parents disappear, so those in power intervene and split them up. The trio decides to dispute this ruling.
October 5, 2022
Like most of the Witch World books, it was only on looking back that I realize how loaded with ideas this seemingly simple adventure story really is (curious are directed to the "Andre Norton Re-Read" over on tor.com). We are talking about a book in which apocalyptic magic is treated as almost routine., characters are far more complex than they seem, and mysteries are presented that are never solved. I found myself thinking (again) that Norton had to cram the fruits of a prolific imagination into a novel of about 180 pages, and how much more she could have developed in this day of brick-size paperback fantasies.
July 19, 2025
After the 3rd book (by publication date), this one is less loosely tied to the first 2. To be honest, it took me a while to get around to this since I found the ending of Year of the Unicorn uninteresting. This is exactly what you expect from a Norton book: lots of travel, survival, and going into the unknown. The world is the main character, the "main characters" don't do much (not a complaint, but acknowledging the kind of story). The phrasing is a little repetitive. I found the set up in the first few chapters interesting, and I still wonder how much more we will find out about Volt.
April 26, 2021
This book begins with the birth of Simon and Jaelithe's triplets. Their childhood is discussed briefly, then their adventures begin to be chronicled. Each has their own strengths as warrior, sage, and witch.
The action is evenly paced with a bit of magic and battle throughout the book. It is interesting that they sought a land no one else remembers or can even contemplate the direction of that land.
The action is evenly paced with a bit of magic and battle throughout the book. It is interesting that they sought a land no one else remembers or can even contemplate the direction of that land.
March 23, 2025
This is where I officially give up on Witch World. On all the past ones I didn't QUITE like them but there was something there and I kept thinking "surely it will get better as it goes on" but this is the forth book and I like it the least out of all of them. I think perhaps Witch World is just not for me. I won't give up on Andre Norton though, I have a couple other books of hers to try out. Perhaps I will like her stuff that is more sci-fi oriented than this which has more fantasy vibes.
January 26, 2022
Автору быстро надоели первоначальные герои (конкретно - один) и она решила переключиться на их детей. Причём взяв и переместив на совершенно другую локацию, которая подразумевает буквально всё новое... С одной стороны, Нортон это дало больше свободы, с другой - пока не видно, что это пошло в плюс повествованию...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 28, 2023
It has taken me a while to acclimate to Norton's style of writing, but now that I am used to it, I am finding that I enjoy it tremendously. The story is odd and the plot is also odd, so that is a plus (not being predictable). I like the Estcarp series a lot better than the High Hallack series.
January 30, 2024
The only thing I didn't like about this book was that Norton wrote the relationship between two of the triplets in the same way she wrote their parents. I was convinced they were gonna smash by the end of this. I guess there's still time bc I'll probably read the next book lmaooo
September 16, 2017
Although disappointing that Norton decided to write Witch World: The Next Generation and leave behind Simon and Jaelithe, it did allow her to take the story in an entirely new direction - literally.
July 12, 2024
Had a hard time with this staying awake @
March 22, 2025
it end in a cliffhanger.
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