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The Saga of Recluce #1
The Magic of Recluce
Young Lerris is dissatisfied with his life and trade, and yearns to find a place in the world better suited to his skills and temperament. But in Recluce a change in circumstances means taking one of two options: permanent exile from Recluce or the dangergeld, a complex, rule-laden wanderjahr in the lands beyond Recluce, with the aim of learning how the world works and what his place in it might be. Many do not survive. Lerris chooses dangergeld. When Lerris is sent into intensive training for his quest, it soon becomes clear that he has a natural talent for magic. And he will need magic in the lands beyond, where the power of the Chaos Wizards reigns unchecked. Though it goes against all of his instincts, Lerris must learn to use his powers in an orderly way before his wanderjahr, or fall prey to Chaos.
501 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published April 1, 1991
838 people are currently reading
15601 people want to read
About the author
L.E. Modesitt Jr.
191 books2,591 followersL. E. (Leland Exton) Modesitt, Jr. is an author of science fiction and fantasy novels. He is best known for the fantasy series The Saga of Recluce. He graduated from Williams College in Massachusetts, lived in Washington, D.C. for 20 years, then moved to New Hampshire in 1989 where he met his wife. They relocated to Cedar City, Utah in 1993.
He has worked as a Navy pilot, lifeguard, delivery boy, unpaid radio disc jockey, real estate agent, market research analyst, director of research for a political campaign, legislative assistant for a Congressman, Director of Legislation and Congressional Relations for the United States Environmental Protection Agency, a consultant on environmental, regulatory, and communications issues, and a college lecturer and writer in residence.
In addition to his novels, Mr. Modesitt has published technical studies and articles, columns, poetry, and a number of science fiction stories. His first short story, "The Great American Economy", was published in 1973 in Analog Science Fiction and Science Fact.
-Wikipedia
He has worked as a Navy pilot, lifeguard, delivery boy, unpaid radio disc jockey, real estate agent, market research analyst, director of research for a political campaign, legislative assistant for a Congressman, Director of Legislation and Congressional Relations for the United States Environmental Protection Agency, a consultant on environmental, regulatory, and communications issues, and a college lecturer and writer in residence.
In addition to his novels, Mr. Modesitt has published technical studies and articles, columns, poetry, and a number of science fiction stories. His first short story, "The Great American Economy", was published in 1973 in Analog Science Fiction and Science Fact.
-Wikipedia
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 883 reviews
July 27, 2010
This was a book where patience proves to be a virtue. It started very slowly, with an almost tedious amount of detail. As I continued to read, it started to make sense.
This is a book about the battle between two opposing forces: chaos and order. The tedious amount of detail really ties into this story, for it defined the foundation of Recluce. Recluce is a city of almost pure order. Everything is so perfect and ordered that it is perceived as being boring to our hero, Lerris. Any persons who compromise that order are exiled. Our hero is such a person. But, like any good heroic fantasy, this reluctant, unlikely hero does save the day.
Lerris was a bit annoying at first, like one of those eternally bored youngsters that made my life miserable when I taught. I don't think I've ever seen the word 'boring' so much in my life. When I was a kid, I was not allowed to be 'bored', so I don't have much patience for people who go through life bored with everything. Fortunately, I came to see how this plays a role in the story. Lerris is looking for answers. He's like the kid who always asks 'why' about everything, wanted to be told instead of finding out the answers for himself. His exile from Recluce turns out to be the making of him. He finds a strength and a purpose over the course of this novel that can only be gained the hard way, through action and practice.
At first, I didn't think Mr. Modesitt's style of writing was going to work for me, but then I began to appreciate it. His attention to detail is very important to the narrative. I especially liked his descriptions of woodworking. I am not very good with my hands, despite being a decent artist and gardener. I do respect those who can build functional things with their hands. Lerris's approach to woodworking--initially one of boredom and disinterest, which changed to one of intense focus and commitment to perfection--was a metaphor for his maturation from boy to man. He has a hard, often lonely road ahead of him in this novel. Seeing that slow, often painful growth made me come to love him as a hero. He showed that his heart was in the right place, although he seemed so disinterested and self-absorbed initially.
The magic system was very interesting. It turned a a big thing on its head as far as conventions: the black wizards are the good wizards, and the white wizards are the evil wizards. That was an unique twist that I liked. I was surprised that I figured out some of how the chaos versus order dynamic worked. I was putting the pieces together along with Lerris. I liked how the order in persons and things were manipulated by Lerris and his eventual mentor, gray (mostly black but a little white) wizard, Justen. That was their power as order-masters. And it wasn't just a matter of creating things to solve problems. If done wrongly or for the wrong motives, this could become an act of chaos. Lerris had to continually weigh his actions to make sure he wasn't doing that. As I read, I wondered what could and couldn't be done and stay on the side of order.
Although this story is focused on Lerris, there are some interesting secondary characters, and quite a lot of strong, well-developed women characters. I liked that the women were in powerful roles, often serving in the military and as soldiers. Krystal turned out to be a good character, showing her own evolution in character for the best. And I loved Lerris trusty mountain pony, Gairloch. He's quite the boon companion.
I am the risk of being long-winded, so I'll bring this review to a close. This was a very good book. I'm glad I hung in there and kept reading past the slow beginning, and that I paid attention. Mr. Modesitt lays a powerful foundation for this story, and everything ties in together. I appreciate being recommended this story by a fellow Goodreads friend. I will definitely continue reading this series. Recommended to readers who like an intricate fantasy story.
This is a book about the battle between two opposing forces: chaos and order. The tedious amount of detail really ties into this story, for it defined the foundation of Recluce. Recluce is a city of almost pure order. Everything is so perfect and ordered that it is perceived as being boring to our hero, Lerris. Any persons who compromise that order are exiled. Our hero is such a person. But, like any good heroic fantasy, this reluctant, unlikely hero does save the day.
Lerris was a bit annoying at first, like one of those eternally bored youngsters that made my life miserable when I taught. I don't think I've ever seen the word 'boring' so much in my life. When I was a kid, I was not allowed to be 'bored', so I don't have much patience for people who go through life bored with everything. Fortunately, I came to see how this plays a role in the story. Lerris is looking for answers. He's like the kid who always asks 'why' about everything, wanted to be told instead of finding out the answers for himself. His exile from Recluce turns out to be the making of him. He finds a strength and a purpose over the course of this novel that can only be gained the hard way, through action and practice.
At first, I didn't think Mr. Modesitt's style of writing was going to work for me, but then I began to appreciate it. His attention to detail is very important to the narrative. I especially liked his descriptions of woodworking. I am not very good with my hands, despite being a decent artist and gardener. I do respect those who can build functional things with their hands. Lerris's approach to woodworking--initially one of boredom and disinterest, which changed to one of intense focus and commitment to perfection--was a metaphor for his maturation from boy to man. He has a hard, often lonely road ahead of him in this novel. Seeing that slow, often painful growth made me come to love him as a hero. He showed that his heart was in the right place, although he seemed so disinterested and self-absorbed initially.
The magic system was very interesting. It turned a a big thing on its head as far as conventions: the black wizards are the good wizards, and the white wizards are the evil wizards. That was an unique twist that I liked. I was surprised that I figured out some of how the chaos versus order dynamic worked. I was putting the pieces together along with Lerris. I liked how the order in persons and things were manipulated by Lerris and his eventual mentor, gray (mostly black but a little white) wizard, Justen. That was their power as order-masters. And it wasn't just a matter of creating things to solve problems. If done wrongly or for the wrong motives, this could become an act of chaos. Lerris had to continually weigh his actions to make sure he wasn't doing that. As I read, I wondered what could and couldn't be done and stay on the side of order.
Although this story is focused on Lerris, there are some interesting secondary characters, and quite a lot of strong, well-developed women characters. I liked that the women were in powerful roles, often serving in the military and as soldiers. Krystal turned out to be a good character, showing her own evolution in character for the best. And I loved Lerris trusty mountain pony, Gairloch. He's quite the boon companion.
I am the risk of being long-winded, so I'll bring this review to a close. This was a very good book. I'm glad I hung in there and kept reading past the slow beginning, and that I paid attention. Mr. Modesitt lays a powerful foundation for this story, and everything ties in together. I appreciate being recommended this story by a fellow Goodreads friend. I will definitely continue reading this series. Recommended to readers who like an intricate fantasy story.
June 15, 2020
As I was reading, I kept having to stop and convince myself that I wasn't reading a book that came out in the last few years. It's style and worldbuilding and quick developments belied the fact that it was pubbed in 1991. And yet?
I was entranced. I felt like I was reading Robin Hobb (this came out before her popular epic fantasy) mixed with some Robert Jordan and some of the high-fantasy elements of Moorcock.
And it wasn't even the magic dichotomy between Order vs Chaos and how it felt like a gigantic Yin/Yang motif that got me revved up. It wasn't even the interesting feel of reading LeGuin's fantasy tucked away in these pages.
It was the Main Character.
I've never seen the ultimate growth of a wet-nosed teen to a magician of the high order come packaged in such a MODEST package.
I'll be frank. The main character charmed me the most.
I love the magic system and learning how it worked and following his long discoveries was fantastic, but it was his personality that made me love this book. :)
I'm definitely going to continue this series. I had a misstep with one of his other, later books, but if I had started here, I never would have worried. :)
I was entranced. I felt like I was reading Robin Hobb (this came out before her popular epic fantasy) mixed with some Robert Jordan and some of the high-fantasy elements of Moorcock.
And it wasn't even the magic dichotomy between Order vs Chaos and how it felt like a gigantic Yin/Yang motif that got me revved up. It wasn't even the interesting feel of reading LeGuin's fantasy tucked away in these pages.
It was the Main Character.
I've never seen the ultimate growth of a wet-nosed teen to a magician of the high order come packaged in such a MODEST package.
I'll be frank. The main character charmed me the most.
I love the magic system and learning how it worked and following his long discoveries was fantastic, but it was his personality that made me love this book. :)
I'm definitely going to continue this series. I had a misstep with one of his other, later books, but if I had started here, I never would have worried. :)
November 30, 2019
I debated the rating on this and went with 4.
The above was my original review of this book, I'm a little surprised that it got a vote (LOL). I'm also a little surprised at my comment. In retrospect I like the book much better than my initial impression above. Over the years, the book has apparently gotten better LOL. It stayed with me and I own most of the series...I like it and the series a great deal. I read this book a good many years ago and it launched me off into tracking down the Recluse books or snatching them up as they came out. Modesitt is one of those interesting people who can turn out a lot of books and still have the quality stay high.
These are a fantastic fantasy series and worth the read. It rests heavily on character development (though some disagree about this I think the character/s are well drawn and interesting). This/these books have an interesting and "fairly" original magic system that he builds onto rather well later.
Second update:
I just reread this novel (again) with a group read here and have decided to up the rating to 5 stars. While others have expressed negative opinions of the book it seems every time I read it I like it better.
I will note one thing. This time I "read" the audio version of the book. a couple of the other readers in the group noted that all the sound effects in the book annoyed them,(biff, splush, zingggg, swish, etc.). I suppose that I just read over these the first time I read the book as I sometimes do obscenities, oaths or whatever. This time both the fact that I'm listening to the audio and the fact that they had been brought to my attention caused me to notice them. I have to admit there are a lot of them, however far from annoying me now when I hear the exceptional number of sound effects, I tend to crack up. As the boots pulled out of the mud or the wood broke or whatever I'd laugh out loud just noticing it.
So, yeah lots of sound effects but still a deeply characterized story and very well told.
The above was my original review of this book, I'm a little surprised that it got a vote (LOL). I'm also a little surprised at my comment. In retrospect I like the book much better than my initial impression above. Over the years, the book has apparently gotten better LOL. It stayed with me and I own most of the series...I like it and the series a great deal. I read this book a good many years ago and it launched me off into tracking down the Recluse books or snatching them up as they came out. Modesitt is one of those interesting people who can turn out a lot of books and still have the quality stay high.
These are a fantastic fantasy series and worth the read. It rests heavily on character development (though some disagree about this I think the character/s are well drawn and interesting). This/these books have an interesting and "fairly" original magic system that he builds onto rather well later.
Second update:
I just reread this novel (again) with a group read here and have decided to up the rating to 5 stars. While others have expressed negative opinions of the book it seems every time I read it I like it better.
I will note one thing. This time I "read" the audio version of the book. a couple of the other readers in the group noted that all the sound effects in the book annoyed them,(biff, splush, zingggg, swish, etc.). I suppose that I just read over these the first time I read the book as I sometimes do obscenities, oaths or whatever. This time both the fact that I'm listening to the audio and the fact that they had been brought to my attention caused me to notice them. I have to admit there are a lot of them, however far from annoying me now when I hear the exceptional number of sound effects, I tend to crack up. As the boots pulled out of the mud or the wood broke or whatever I'd laugh out loud just noticing it.
So, yeah lots of sound effects but still a deeply characterized story and very well told.
March 30, 2021
He posits an interesting world where Order (Black) & Chaos (White) are separate forces that can be manipulated by humans. Those who wield each, don't generally play well with those who use the opposing force. There is a balance, so both forces gain more play in the world as the other side becomes stronger. Some people are focuses of one or the other, too. It leads to interesting situations.
The world is complex with very real politics, economics, & issues. That's what I like best about them since parallels can easily be drawn to our reality. It's not boring, but full of twists, betrayals, & problems. What's even more real are the way he treats peasants & crafters. Wood & metal working are very well described. Well enough that I'm glad I don't use hide glue & have modern finishes.
Throughout the series, his heroes & heroines have to take care of their horses which occasionally slow the frantic pace since they're not just cars with hooves. They get tired, have to be fed, given breaks, & have their stalls mucked out. None of them seem to care for the smell of horse all that much which is rather odd to me. I like it, a good thing since it's the perfume of preference for my wife.
In this book, he tells the story from the Order side. He continues this for the next 6 books in published order, until book 8, "The White Order" finally gives us the Chaos side of the story. This is the first of the series published, but is currently next to the last or so in the chronology. He recommends his books be read in the order he wrote them & I have to agree for the first read, but a second round in chronological order is better, though. I've read some books several times. Very enjoyable, a highly recommended series.
Since this book is listed first in the GR 'Saga of Recluce' list I'm going to put chronological order list here. I wished GR had a chronological list for this series & Rindis made it here. Thanks, Rindis! I didn't know how to create it, just this way & Listopia. I created one there, but it can get messed up.
Note, this list is subject to change. Modesitt is constantly adding to the series (Amazingly keeping it fresh, too.) & I'll put in the short stories as best I can, too. If anyone can add to or help make this better, please leave a comment about it & I'll tweak as needed. Update: The author himself gave me the chronology for the short stories & has checked this.
Current Recluce Chronology (18Jan2018)
Books are whole numbers, short stories are fractional.
Recluce Tales: Stories from the World of Recluce are all the Recluce short stories, although some can be found elsewhere, too. I'll note that if I know it. In the book, they're in chronological order save for one & I've inserted them here in their proper places in the list here. Books are grouped by characters/story arcs. (Many thanks to Modesitt for placating my obsessive need.)
0.5 - "The Vice Marshal's Trial" Year -300, takes place roughly 300 years before the beginning of Magi'i of Cyador & is about one aspect of the founding of Cyador.
0.6 - "Madness" Year -200, is set about a hundred years after the above. It takes place on the opposite side of Candor, a bit of the early history of Lydiar.
0.7 - "The Forest Girl" slightly after the above, back in Cyador, a glimpse into the life of Alyiakal & the Great Forest.
0.8"The Choice" - Year -50, takes place about 50 years before the start of Magi'i of Cyador, a glimpse into the history of Toziel & his consort, the emperor of Cyador in Lorn's time.
1 - Magi'i of Cyador - Year 0 - Lorn must become a Mirror Lancer officer of the White Empire of Cyador, hiding his talents as a magus, while fighting barbarians and the Accursed Forest, and falling in love with the merchanter Ryalth.
2 - Scion of Cyador - Year 8 - Now an overcaptain, Lorn - and Ryalth - must discover how to keep Lorn from falling prey to plots from ambitious senior officers, merchanters, and Magi'i who plot various coups to take over the Malachite Throne, and stop a barbarian invasion.
2.1 - "The Most Successful Merchant" starts before the two Lorn books, is contemporaneous with them, but ends later.
3 - Fall of Angels - Year 401 - Ryba's and Nylan's ship Winterlance breaks the order-chaos barrier into new universe; they and 24 female marines planetfall to the Roof of World, survive local attacks, build Tower Black and Westwind, and begin the Westwind guards.
4 - The Chaos Balance - Year 403 - Nylan and Ayrlyn leave Westwind. They seek refuge in Lornth, which comes under attack by Cyador, the first white empire. Nylan must discover the secret of the accursed forest to save Lornth and his son.
4.3 - "Heritage" takes place immediately after The Chaos Balance with the Empress leaving Cyador for new lands.
4.5 - The Stranger - begins early in Fall of Angels, but ends several years after The Chaos Balance. It adds to the story of a character who wandered off. Also found in Speculative Horizons.
5 - Arms-Commander - Year 415 - Saryn and Ryba face invasion of Westwind by Gallos, Suthyan treachery, and a lords' rebellion in Lornth that threatens peace between the Regency and Westwind, and only Saryn can make the difference and pay the price.
6 - Cyador's Heirs - Year 425 - Lephi and Lerial, grandsons of the fallen Emperor of Cyador struggle to help their father, Kiedron, maintain the Duchy of Cigoerne, established in Hamor after the fall of Cyad.
7 - Heritage of Cyador - Year 433 - Lerial, now a full captain in the Mirror Lancers of Cigoerne, is dispatched to neighboring Afrit to to help repel a possible invasion that threatens not only Afrit, but Cigoerne as well.
8 - The Mongrel Mage - Year 675 - Beltur is raised as a White wizard, but learns what he really is in Alparata, Spidlar as the Prefect of Gallos is dissatisfied with the status quo.
9 - Outcasts of Order - Year 677 - Beltur discovers he's a frighteningly powerful Order mage & everyone fears or wants to use him.
10 - The Mage-Fire War From Modesitt's website: I’ve finished the sequel to Outcasts of Order, which will be the third and final book about Beltur [yes, I know it’s the first time I’ve ever written three books about a character in the Saga of Recluce]. It’s entitled The Mage-Fire War, and it’s scheduled for publication and release in July of next year.... 9July2018 book released Aug2019
11 - Fairhaven Rising Year 704(? Takes place 16 years after The Mage-Fire War Taelya, Beltur’s adopted niece, is now a white mage undercaptain in the Road Guards of Fairhaven.
11.7 - "Songs Past, Songs for Those to Come" - Year 880 - is a bit about a bard who is often referred to, but rarely shown.
12 - The Towers of the Sunset - Year 900 - Creslin, son of the Marshall of Westwind, flees an arranged marriage; is enslaved by the White Wizards, escapes, and enters a marriage of convenience to Maegara, the white witch; they escape Candar to a desert isle where they create the island nation of Recluce.
12.1 - "Sisters of Sarronnyn, Sisters of Westwind" is contemporaneous with above. Also in Viewpoints Critical: Selected Stories.
13 - The White Order - Year 1190 - Cerryl, orphan son of a renegade white mage, works his way toward the heritage which fate - and the Guild of the White Order - have denied him. He becomes an apprentice scrivener in Fairhaven, only to discover the white wizards are observing his every move... and may take his life.
14 - The Magic Engineer - Year 1200 - Dorrin is exiled from Recluce because of his love of forbidden machines; he, Kadara, and Brede travel through Candar and settle in Spidlar; the White Wizards of Fairhaven raise mountains and build roads through them to unite Candar under chaos-rule; Dorrin tries to build machines, many turned to war uses by Brede, as the three fend off chaos.
14.5 - "Artisan" begins in the early part ofThe Magic Engineer and ends roughly eighteen years after the book ends. Fills in Dorrin's story a bit.
15 - Colors of Chaos - Year 1205 - Cerryl finds that he had only begun to discover the problems facing Fairhaven and the White Order and now must cope with dangers from all over Candar, from Recluce, and from within Fairhaven itself, including the jealousy and instability of the High Wizard himself.
15.3 - "Armsman's Odds" takes place near the end of the above, but the motivation for the story takes place before The White Order.
15.6 - "Brass and Lacquer" takes place a hundred-fifty years after the end of Colors of Chaos. Set in Recluce with a junior engineer named Talysen.
15.9 - "Ice and Fire" is set in the same general time frame as the next book & seems like a good way to segue into it, although it is set in Austra.
16 - Natural Ordermage - Year 1500 - Rahl is an apprentice scrivener in Land's End who refuses to believe he has order skills - until he finds himself facing charges of misuse of order and possible exile - or even death - before he is trained and sent to Hamor, where the dangers and challenges he faces are far greater than he realized could be possible.
17 - Mage-Guard of Hamor - Year 1503 - As a junior mage-guard, Rahl must return to Recluce with his mentor to tell the magisters of the destruction of their trading center in Swartheld... and then go back to Hamor where he is transferred to the army charged with putting down a rebellion against the Emperor... in a conflict where nothing is what it seems.
17.7 - "A Game of Capture" Year 1648 - set in Recluce.
18 - The Order War - Year 1650 - Justen, a Black engineer, and his brother Gunnar volunteer to help Sarronnyn fight off the White Wizards of Fairhaven; Justen is driven into the Stone Hills, then rescued by a druid to face greater trials. He defies the Council of Recluce and builds a weapon horrifying both the Council and the White Wizards in his efforts to destroy Fairhaven.
18.1 "The Price of Perfect Order" is the exception in terms of the chronological order in "Recluce Tales". It takes place around the time of the above, but appears in the book after 'The Assistant Envoy' (17.1).
19 - Wellspring of Chaos - Year 1710 - Kharl, a cooper in Brysta, rescues a young woman Blackstaffer, only to find that he has earned the wrath of the heir to one of the Lords of the Quadrant who rule Nordla. With a black staff he does not understand and white wizards opposing him he must find a way to leave Brysta or die - yet what of his family and his cooperage?
20 - Ordermaster - Year 1712 - Kharl has become the Lord's Mage of Austra, only to find himself facing a rebellion by nobles dissatisfied with Lord Ghrant's efforts to curtail their excesses and corruption. And if he succeeds in keeping the young ruler on the throne, he will face an even greater challenge back in Nordla.
20.1 - "The Assistant Envoy's Problem" takes place immediately after the above & features some of the same characters.
20.7 - "Black Ordermage" - Year 1810 - Cassius' origins. Also in Viewpoints Critical: Selected Stories.
21 - The Magic of Recluce - Year 1850 - Young, bored, woodworker Lerris leaves Recluce on his dangergeld exile; he travels Candar and finds the gray wizard Justen; he escapes danger and becomes a woodworker again; he fights the great white wizard Antonin; then finds love and understanding with Krystal, subcommander of Kyphros.
22 - The Death of Chaos - Year 1855 - Lerris, Krystal, and all of Candar are threatened by both the growing power of the Emperor of Hamor and the growth of Chaos; Hamor attacks Candar, and then Recluce; in the end Lerris must attempt to destroy Hamor's power and the power of Chaos, or face the proverbial fate worse than death.
22.2 - "Burning Duty" is told some twenty years after The Death of Chaos, but the events take place during the last part of The Magic of Recluce. Those chairs that were too well made.
22.4 - "Worth" is set just after the end of The Death of Chaos & cleans up Wrynn's story a bit.
22.6 - "Fame" is set about eighty years after The Death of Chaos about how great people are remembered.
The world is complex with very real politics, economics, & issues. That's what I like best about them since parallels can easily be drawn to our reality. It's not boring, but full of twists, betrayals, & problems. What's even more real are the way he treats peasants & crafters. Wood & metal working are very well described. Well enough that I'm glad I don't use hide glue & have modern finishes.
Throughout the series, his heroes & heroines have to take care of their horses which occasionally slow the frantic pace since they're not just cars with hooves. They get tired, have to be fed, given breaks, & have their stalls mucked out. None of them seem to care for the smell of horse all that much which is rather odd to me. I like it, a good thing since it's the perfume of preference for my wife.
In this book, he tells the story from the Order side. He continues this for the next 6 books in published order, until book 8, "The White Order" finally gives us the Chaos side of the story. This is the first of the series published, but is currently next to the last or so in the chronology. He recommends his books be read in the order he wrote them & I have to agree for the first read, but a second round in chronological order is better, though. I've read some books several times. Very enjoyable, a highly recommended series.
Since this book is listed first in the GR 'Saga of Recluce' list I'm going to put chronological order list here. I wished GR had a chronological list for this series & Rindis made it here. Thanks, Rindis! I didn't know how to create it, just this way & Listopia. I created one there, but it can get messed up.
Note, this list is subject to change. Modesitt is constantly adding to the series (Amazingly keeping it fresh, too.) & I'll put in the short stories as best I can, too. If anyone can add to or help make this better, please leave a comment about it & I'll tweak as needed. Update: The author himself gave me the chronology for the short stories & has checked this.
Current Recluce Chronology (18Jan2018)
Books are whole numbers, short stories are fractional.
Recluce Tales: Stories from the World of Recluce are all the Recluce short stories, although some can be found elsewhere, too. I'll note that if I know it. In the book, they're in chronological order save for one & I've inserted them here in their proper places in the list here. Books are grouped by characters/story arcs. (Many thanks to Modesitt for placating my obsessive need.)
0.5 - "The Vice Marshal's Trial" Year -300, takes place roughly 300 years before the beginning of Magi'i of Cyador & is about one aspect of the founding of Cyador.
0.6 - "Madness" Year -200, is set about a hundred years after the above. It takes place on the opposite side of Candor, a bit of the early history of Lydiar.
0.7 - "The Forest Girl" slightly after the above, back in Cyador, a glimpse into the life of Alyiakal & the Great Forest.
0.8"The Choice" - Year -50, takes place about 50 years before the start of Magi'i of Cyador, a glimpse into the history of Toziel & his consort, the emperor of Cyador in Lorn's time.
1 - Magi'i of Cyador - Year 0 - Lorn must become a Mirror Lancer officer of the White Empire of Cyador, hiding his talents as a magus, while fighting barbarians and the Accursed Forest, and falling in love with the merchanter Ryalth.
2 - Scion of Cyador - Year 8 - Now an overcaptain, Lorn - and Ryalth - must discover how to keep Lorn from falling prey to plots from ambitious senior officers, merchanters, and Magi'i who plot various coups to take over the Malachite Throne, and stop a barbarian invasion.
2.1 - "The Most Successful Merchant" starts before the two Lorn books, is contemporaneous with them, but ends later.
3 - Fall of Angels - Year 401 - Ryba's and Nylan's ship Winterlance breaks the order-chaos barrier into new universe; they and 24 female marines planetfall to the Roof of World, survive local attacks, build Tower Black and Westwind, and begin the Westwind guards.
4 - The Chaos Balance - Year 403 - Nylan and Ayrlyn leave Westwind. They seek refuge in Lornth, which comes under attack by Cyador, the first white empire. Nylan must discover the secret of the accursed forest to save Lornth and his son.
4.3 - "Heritage" takes place immediately after The Chaos Balance with the Empress leaving Cyador for new lands.
4.5 - The Stranger - begins early in Fall of Angels, but ends several years after The Chaos Balance. It adds to the story of a character who wandered off. Also found in Speculative Horizons.
5 - Arms-Commander - Year 415 - Saryn and Ryba face invasion of Westwind by Gallos, Suthyan treachery, and a lords' rebellion in Lornth that threatens peace between the Regency and Westwind, and only Saryn can make the difference and pay the price.
6 - Cyador's Heirs - Year 425 - Lephi and Lerial, grandsons of the fallen Emperor of Cyador struggle to help their father, Kiedron, maintain the Duchy of Cigoerne, established in Hamor after the fall of Cyad.
7 - Heritage of Cyador - Year 433 - Lerial, now a full captain in the Mirror Lancers of Cigoerne, is dispatched to neighboring Afrit to to help repel a possible invasion that threatens not only Afrit, but Cigoerne as well.
8 - The Mongrel Mage - Year 675 - Beltur is raised as a White wizard, but learns what he really is in Alparata, Spidlar as the Prefect of Gallos is dissatisfied with the status quo.
9 - Outcasts of Order - Year 677 - Beltur discovers he's a frighteningly powerful Order mage & everyone fears or wants to use him.
10 - The Mage-Fire War From Modesitt's website: I’ve finished the sequel to Outcasts of Order, which will be the third and final book about Beltur [yes, I know it’s the first time I’ve ever written three books about a character in the Saga of Recluce]. It’s entitled The Mage-Fire War, and it’s scheduled for publication and release in July of next year.... 9July2018 book released Aug2019
11 - Fairhaven Rising Year 704(? Takes place 16 years after The Mage-Fire War Taelya, Beltur’s adopted niece, is now a white mage undercaptain in the Road Guards of Fairhaven.
11.7 - "Songs Past, Songs for Those to Come" - Year 880 - is a bit about a bard who is often referred to, but rarely shown.
12 - The Towers of the Sunset - Year 900 - Creslin, son of the Marshall of Westwind, flees an arranged marriage; is enslaved by the White Wizards, escapes, and enters a marriage of convenience to Maegara, the white witch; they escape Candar to a desert isle where they create the island nation of Recluce.
12.1 - "Sisters of Sarronnyn, Sisters of Westwind" is contemporaneous with above. Also in Viewpoints Critical: Selected Stories.
13 - The White Order - Year 1190 - Cerryl, orphan son of a renegade white mage, works his way toward the heritage which fate - and the Guild of the White Order - have denied him. He becomes an apprentice scrivener in Fairhaven, only to discover the white wizards are observing his every move... and may take his life.
14 - The Magic Engineer - Year 1200 - Dorrin is exiled from Recluce because of his love of forbidden machines; he, Kadara, and Brede travel through Candar and settle in Spidlar; the White Wizards of Fairhaven raise mountains and build roads through them to unite Candar under chaos-rule; Dorrin tries to build machines, many turned to war uses by Brede, as the three fend off chaos.
14.5 - "Artisan" begins in the early part ofThe Magic Engineer and ends roughly eighteen years after the book ends. Fills in Dorrin's story a bit.
15 - Colors of Chaos - Year 1205 - Cerryl finds that he had only begun to discover the problems facing Fairhaven and the White Order and now must cope with dangers from all over Candar, from Recluce, and from within Fairhaven itself, including the jealousy and instability of the High Wizard himself.
15.3 - "Armsman's Odds" takes place near the end of the above, but the motivation for the story takes place before The White Order.
15.6 - "Brass and Lacquer" takes place a hundred-fifty years after the end of Colors of Chaos. Set in Recluce with a junior engineer named Talysen.
15.9 - "Ice and Fire" is set in the same general time frame as the next book & seems like a good way to segue into it, although it is set in Austra.
16 - Natural Ordermage - Year 1500 - Rahl is an apprentice scrivener in Land's End who refuses to believe he has order skills - until he finds himself facing charges of misuse of order and possible exile - or even death - before he is trained and sent to Hamor, where the dangers and challenges he faces are far greater than he realized could be possible.
17 - Mage-Guard of Hamor - Year 1503 - As a junior mage-guard, Rahl must return to Recluce with his mentor to tell the magisters of the destruction of their trading center in Swartheld... and then go back to Hamor where he is transferred to the army charged with putting down a rebellion against the Emperor... in a conflict where nothing is what it seems.
17.7 - "A Game of Capture" Year 1648 - set in Recluce.
18 - The Order War - Year 1650 - Justen, a Black engineer, and his brother Gunnar volunteer to help Sarronnyn fight off the White Wizards of Fairhaven; Justen is driven into the Stone Hills, then rescued by a druid to face greater trials. He defies the Council of Recluce and builds a weapon horrifying both the Council and the White Wizards in his efforts to destroy Fairhaven.
18.1 "The Price of Perfect Order" is the exception in terms of the chronological order in "Recluce Tales". It takes place around the time of the above, but appears in the book after 'The Assistant Envoy' (17.1).
19 - Wellspring of Chaos - Year 1710 - Kharl, a cooper in Brysta, rescues a young woman Blackstaffer, only to find that he has earned the wrath of the heir to one of the Lords of the Quadrant who rule Nordla. With a black staff he does not understand and white wizards opposing him he must find a way to leave Brysta or die - yet what of his family and his cooperage?
20 - Ordermaster - Year 1712 - Kharl has become the Lord's Mage of Austra, only to find himself facing a rebellion by nobles dissatisfied with Lord Ghrant's efforts to curtail their excesses and corruption. And if he succeeds in keeping the young ruler on the throne, he will face an even greater challenge back in Nordla.
20.1 - "The Assistant Envoy's Problem" takes place immediately after the above & features some of the same characters.
20.7 - "Black Ordermage" - Year 1810 - Cassius' origins. Also in Viewpoints Critical: Selected Stories.
21 - The Magic of Recluce - Year 1850 - Young, bored, woodworker Lerris leaves Recluce on his dangergeld exile; he travels Candar and finds the gray wizard Justen; he escapes danger and becomes a woodworker again; he fights the great white wizard Antonin; then finds love and understanding with Krystal, subcommander of Kyphros.
22 - The Death of Chaos - Year 1855 - Lerris, Krystal, and all of Candar are threatened by both the growing power of the Emperor of Hamor and the growth of Chaos; Hamor attacks Candar, and then Recluce; in the end Lerris must attempt to destroy Hamor's power and the power of Chaos, or face the proverbial fate worse than death.
22.2 - "Burning Duty" is told some twenty years after The Death of Chaos, but the events take place during the last part of The Magic of Recluce. Those chairs that were too well made.
22.4 - "Worth" is set just after the end of The Death of Chaos & cleans up Wrynn's story a bit.
22.6 - "Fame" is set about eighty years after The Death of Chaos about how great people are remembered.
August 15, 2009
Sometimes I worry I've become too cynical in my old age (says the nineteen-year-old). When I read The Magic of Recluce for the first time, I thought it was the best thing since sliced bread, and I went on to devour the next several books of the Recluce saga before promptly breaking for lunch.... (Well, OK, the span of several months may have elapsed sometime among all that, but you get the idea.) Now I feel less charitable toward this book. The Magic of Recluce has a couple of problems, none of them insurmountable and none of them alone detract too much from the story.
Firstly, the story is slow. This isn't the same as pacing, mind you—the pacing of The Magic of Recluce is a near-perfect balance of dialogue and action sequences. The story is slow because it takes a long time for the main character, Lerris, to develop to a point where we feel invested in him as a person; by the time that happens, the story is nearly over, and suddenly he's fighting the evil wizard.
Secondly, Lerris seems to suddenly acquire a long-term planning ability that he lacks upon leaving Recluce. He goes from bored youth to concerned woodcrafter, arranging a marriage for his master's daughter and instilling order everywhere. While much of Lerris' maturity can be attributed to character development, I just never got a sense of how Lerris matured, since everyone he meets seems to deplore his idle search for answers.
Lastly, a good deal of the philosophical discussion in the book is too vague for my liking. I really really love the order/chaos magic system that Modesitt has set up here. However, Justen's (and even Lerris') explanations are too esoteric; I feel like I've landed in an alien university lecture. I get the general gist of the theme that Modesitt wanted to communicate—mainly, that there needs to be balance between order and chaos. However, any serious arguments are stultified by the refusal of those who know better to actually discuss these matters with Lerris. There is a difference between giving someone the answers and debating a point, and the knowledgeable characters of this book seem to confuse the two concepts.
The Magic of Recluce is a highly logistical fantasy novel. By that I mean Modesitt pays close attention to numbers and organization; we get frequent asides that comment on finances, the weather, the political state of the country in which Lerris currently resides, etc. I wouldn't call this a bad thing, but some people might find it boring. Although it would have been nice for Modesitt to develop a slightly more interesting coinage system, and maybe spent less time worrying about coin and more about work in general (Lerris never could seem to dabble in anything; once he tried to do something, he went at it full bore), I didn't mind the logistical elements. It gave me some time to mull over the vagueness surrounding order/chaos theory.
As far as characterization goes, I honestly didn't pay attention to any of the characters except for the few main ones. It seems that Lerris met the same hostile innkeeper at every village (and subsequently had to make a hasty escape from said inn). Even the arguably main characters, however, don't feel very real. Modesitt fails to provide us with any explanation for their inner conflicts. Krystal clearly has issues, but what are they? What really happened in Justen's past? Even more hints or veiled implications would be better than absolute ignorance, the result of which was my apathy toward Krystal's attraction to Lerris and Justen's attitude at the end of the book.
In the end, The Magic of Recluce adheres too faithfully to the standard fantasy tropes. It is technically sound, much like a David Eddings novel, but lacks the truly intriguing hook to make it amazing. Hopefully my memory will be correct in that the later books in this series are far better, especially when it comes to the quality of the characters. I do recall not feeling as passionate about The Magic of Recluce as I did about its successors, re-reading it only because it's the first book. We'll see how I like the next ones.
My reviews of the Recluce saga:
The Towers of Sunset →
Firstly, the story is slow. This isn't the same as pacing, mind you—the pacing of The Magic of Recluce is a near-perfect balance of dialogue and action sequences. The story is slow because it takes a long time for the main character, Lerris, to develop to a point where we feel invested in him as a person; by the time that happens, the story is nearly over, and suddenly he's fighting the evil wizard.
Secondly, Lerris seems to suddenly acquire a long-term planning ability that he lacks upon leaving Recluce. He goes from bored youth to concerned woodcrafter, arranging a marriage for his master's daughter and instilling order everywhere. While much of Lerris' maturity can be attributed to character development, I just never got a sense of how Lerris matured, since everyone he meets seems to deplore his idle search for answers.
Lastly, a good deal of the philosophical discussion in the book is too vague for my liking. I really really love the order/chaos magic system that Modesitt has set up here. However, Justen's (and even Lerris') explanations are too esoteric; I feel like I've landed in an alien university lecture. I get the general gist of the theme that Modesitt wanted to communicate—mainly, that there needs to be balance between order and chaos. However, any serious arguments are stultified by the refusal of those who know better to actually discuss these matters with Lerris. There is a difference between giving someone the answers and debating a point, and the knowledgeable characters of this book seem to confuse the two concepts.
The Magic of Recluce is a highly logistical fantasy novel. By that I mean Modesitt pays close attention to numbers and organization; we get frequent asides that comment on finances, the weather, the political state of the country in which Lerris currently resides, etc. I wouldn't call this a bad thing, but some people might find it boring. Although it would have been nice for Modesitt to develop a slightly more interesting coinage system, and maybe spent less time worrying about coin and more about work in general (Lerris never could seem to dabble in anything; once he tried to do something, he went at it full bore), I didn't mind the logistical elements. It gave me some time to mull over the vagueness surrounding order/chaos theory.
As far as characterization goes, I honestly didn't pay attention to any of the characters except for the few main ones. It seems that Lerris met the same hostile innkeeper at every village (and subsequently had to make a hasty escape from said inn). Even the arguably main characters, however, don't feel very real. Modesitt fails to provide us with any explanation for their inner conflicts. Krystal clearly has issues, but what are they? What really happened in Justen's past? Even more hints or veiled implications would be better than absolute ignorance, the result of which was my apathy toward Krystal's attraction to Lerris and Justen's attitude at the end of the book.
In the end, The Magic of Recluce adheres too faithfully to the standard fantasy tropes. It is technically sound, much like a David Eddings novel, but lacks the truly intriguing hook to make it amazing. Hopefully my memory will be correct in that the later books in this series are far better, especially when it comes to the quality of the characters. I do recall not feeling as passionate about The Magic of Recluce as I did about its successors, re-reading it only because it's the first book. We'll see how I like the next ones.
My reviews of the Recluce saga:
The Towers of Sunset →
November 3, 2010
There are three reasons why I love The Magic of Recluce: 1) it's not like the Star Wars movies in one crucial way; 2) it is built around training rather than adventure; 3) woodworking.
1) Not Star Wars: There is a line in Empire Strikes Back where Yoda says, "A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, NEVER for attack." There is no equivocation in that. It is NEVER for attack. Pretty simple, I would think. Yet the movies are packed with our Jedis on the offensive, including Yoda in the prequels. I wanted to believe Yoda. I wanted it to be true. I wanted Luke's confrontation with Darth Vader in Bespin to be as much a mistake because of its offensive nature as it was a mistake of his youth.
I've debated and discussed this with many over the years, and one of the most frustrating excuses for the movies is that "there is no other way." I've always argued that there is another way, and that the failure to embrace that other way is a terrible failure of the films and its creator (I am fine with using the violence of attack as an answer, so long as the great guru of our hero doesn't say that it is NEVER for attack). But my argument has been written off as mere theory because while I have argued that there is another way all I had was my assertion that there was. Now I have The Magic of Recluce. Where Lucas fails, Modesitt Jr. succeeds. Where Luke Skywalker fails, Lerris succeeds. Where the flawed use of force fails, order succeeds by letting chaos destroy itself.
Lerris doesn't need big weapons. He actually breaks his own staff at one point and uses a shield as his "weapon." Lerris spends the novel disarming people, avoiding people, protecting people and attempting to bring order to the chaos around him. And there is no loss of excitement in the story. Big action be damned.
2) Training: I am a big sucker for training stories. It has always been one of my favourite aspects of war movies (raw recruits becoming soldiers), martial arts movies (ninja and samurai mastering their weapons), and sports movies (especially the crappy baseball team going back to basics). I suppose it is because I like to learn and I like to teach, but it is also a wonderful tool of storytelling because it breathes life into characters very naturally. Character development must happen. There is no avoiding it when a character's raison d'etre is to change. And here, in The Magic of Recluce, Lerris is learning from the first page to the last, even when he is bored, even when he is seeking, even when he is teaching and even when he is just riding his pony. Lerris learns and that is good.
3) Woodworking: This may seem like an odd reason for loving the story, but the woodworking is quite a beautiful addition to The Magic of Recluce. It grounds our hero, is key to his search for his place in order and chaos, links him permanently to the land of his birth and provides him with an occupation when times get tight. And it is the latter economic use of woodworking that I liked best.
Fantasy novels and their characters rarely worry themselves with anything as mundane as money. Even the poorest farmboy turned hero just goes out in the world and has everything happen for him. There is some early testing adventure that puts him in danger, and when he walks away from it he has a full purse and food just falls into his lap whenever he needs it (either because he is an accomplished hunter or everyone's happy to give their food away). Not for Lerris. He makes his way through the Easthorns after a last ditch escape from Jellico and finds himself short on food and short on funds. So what does he do? He gets himself a gig as a journeyman woodworker and spends a good third of the novel becoming a master builder. This, of course, does much more for him than simply providing money (it is probably the most important part of his personal training), but to see a hero concerned with the day to day difficulties of living pushed The Magic of Recluce into rarified air for me.
It is a damn good novel, but the woodworking? The woodworking makes it great.
1) Not Star Wars: There is a line in Empire Strikes Back where Yoda says, "A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, NEVER for attack." There is no equivocation in that. It is NEVER for attack. Pretty simple, I would think. Yet the movies are packed with our Jedis on the offensive, including Yoda in the prequels. I wanted to believe Yoda. I wanted it to be true. I wanted Luke's confrontation with Darth Vader in Bespin to be as much a mistake because of its offensive nature as it was a mistake of his youth.
I've debated and discussed this with many over the years, and one of the most frustrating excuses for the movies is that "there is no other way." I've always argued that there is another way, and that the failure to embrace that other way is a terrible failure of the films and its creator (I am fine with using the violence of attack as an answer, so long as the great guru of our hero doesn't say that it is NEVER for attack). But my argument has been written off as mere theory because while I have argued that there is another way all I had was my assertion that there was. Now I have The Magic of Recluce. Where Lucas fails, Modesitt Jr. succeeds. Where Luke Skywalker fails, Lerris succeeds. Where the flawed use of force fails, order succeeds by letting chaos destroy itself.
Lerris doesn't need big weapons. He actually breaks his own staff at one point and uses a shield as his "weapon." Lerris spends the novel disarming people, avoiding people, protecting people and attempting to bring order to the chaos around him. And there is no loss of excitement in the story. Big action be damned.
2) Training: I am a big sucker for training stories. It has always been one of my favourite aspects of war movies (raw recruits becoming soldiers), martial arts movies (ninja and samurai mastering their weapons), and sports movies (especially the crappy baseball team going back to basics). I suppose it is because I like to learn and I like to teach, but it is also a wonderful tool of storytelling because it breathes life into characters very naturally. Character development must happen. There is no avoiding it when a character's raison d'etre is to change. And here, in The Magic of Recluce, Lerris is learning from the first page to the last, even when he is bored, even when he is seeking, even when he is teaching and even when he is just riding his pony. Lerris learns and that is good.
3) Woodworking: This may seem like an odd reason for loving the story, but the woodworking is quite a beautiful addition to The Magic of Recluce. It grounds our hero, is key to his search for his place in order and chaos, links him permanently to the land of his birth and provides him with an occupation when times get tight. And it is the latter economic use of woodworking that I liked best.
Fantasy novels and their characters rarely worry themselves with anything as mundane as money. Even the poorest farmboy turned hero just goes out in the world and has everything happen for him. There is some early testing adventure that puts him in danger, and when he walks away from it he has a full purse and food just falls into his lap whenever he needs it (either because he is an accomplished hunter or everyone's happy to give their food away). Not for Lerris. He makes his way through the Easthorns after a last ditch escape from Jellico and finds himself short on food and short on funds. So what does he do? He gets himself a gig as a journeyman woodworker and spends a good third of the novel becoming a master builder. This, of course, does much more for him than simply providing money (it is probably the most important part of his personal training), but to see a hero concerned with the day to day difficulties of living pushed The Magic of Recluce into rarified air for me.
It is a damn good novel, but the woodworking? The woodworking makes it great.
November 3, 2010
An engaging read that starts out as a coming-of-age fantasy and advances into something...else. It reminds me in places of Robert Jordan, Michael Moorcock, and Steven Erikson, yet has its own voice.
Modesitt gets a high score for his world building. The world of Recluce is wonderful and the surface is only scratched at here. I'm intrigued enough by this to read more in the series at some point. Since all but one of the 15 or so other books out there happen before this one, there's plenty of backstory to add to the world here.
I also enjoyed Modesitt's pace and style. He uses the first person narrative style as the story is revealed by the main character, Lerris. He's a young man learning his powers and his way in the world. He seems to start out as a typical Rand/Frodo/Richard Cypher/Luke Skywalker type but eventually matures into an interesting character in his own right. And he does this mostly by learning things for himself, rather than having a Gandalf figure to tell him what to do.
The magic system of Recluce is excellent. Basically, all of the magic is centered around the forces of order and chaos, and the manipulation or of keeping them up. This is where the Moorcock reminders are. I enjoyed seeing Lerris learn about the system and seeing it in practice from him and others utilizing it. The chaos-masters and order-masters, commanding the white of chaos and black of order fascinated me. I love the switch from typical by having white reprsent evil and black for good, though they're not quite as black and white (forgive the play on words) as that. Chaos leads to evil but isn't evil in and of itself. Same thing with order. The relationships and manipulations of chaos and order are what end up defining good and evil here.
There are some small breaks in the course of the novel where the author switches to a present tense third person and gives us hints as to other happenings away from Lerris. I had mixed feelings about those. While they were interesting and helped set up some of the big picture drama, they were too few and far between to really help the story that much. They were also pretty vague and honestly took away from some of the surprise later. It was a jolt in the narrative whenever one of these came up, both to switch into the third person and then back to Lerris's view. In my opinion, they should have been left out. Or, where there was something useful there, maybe it could have been told to Lerris by someone on the road. As far as giving the reader something that Lerris didn't know, that doesn't make sense in a first person story. There was a LOT going on that he didn't pick up all the details on, and that was fine. It added to the mystery of the world and story.
The other annoying thing wasn't as minor. In fact, it bugged the piss out of me and might have helped keep this book from a 5-star rating. The f**king sound effects! That was a narrative flaw that could very well get a book tossed into the burn pile. If this story wasn't as engaging as it was, that would have had me heading right back to the library to drop this thing in the overnight return.
Here's an example:
"Tharoom...thud...tharoom... Walking the white fir was walking across a massive drum. Antonin's coach must have vied with the real thunder when it rumbled across his bridge...Tharummmm...
Creaaakkkk...The heavy wooden gate, set on massive bronze hinges, eased open even more widely as I watched."
That's annoying. I felt like I was watching one of those old cheesy Batman television episodes. There are ways to describe sound without treating the reader like an idiot or make them feel like they're reading a comic book without pictures. Luckily he didn't really get rolling with this technique too early in the book, and by the time he did I was already hooked by the story. Otherwise it would have been "holy cheesy effects, Batman" and I would have moved on to something else. I was able to live with them eventually, my eyes blurring over and past to the real narrative beyond.
Overall, I give this book high points for the world building, the magic system, the characters, and the writing voice used by Modesitt over the course of most of the novel. I'm definitely interested in reading more books in the Recluce series, I'm just hoping he cuts back on the special effects.
Modesitt gets a high score for his world building. The world of Recluce is wonderful and the surface is only scratched at here. I'm intrigued enough by this to read more in the series at some point. Since all but one of the 15 or so other books out there happen before this one, there's plenty of backstory to add to the world here.
I also enjoyed Modesitt's pace and style. He uses the first person narrative style as the story is revealed by the main character, Lerris. He's a young man learning his powers and his way in the world. He seems to start out as a typical Rand/Frodo/Richard Cypher/Luke Skywalker type but eventually matures into an interesting character in his own right. And he does this mostly by learning things for himself, rather than having a Gandalf figure to tell him what to do.
The magic system of Recluce is excellent. Basically, all of the magic is centered around the forces of order and chaos, and the manipulation or of keeping them up. This is where the Moorcock reminders are. I enjoyed seeing Lerris learn about the system and seeing it in practice from him and others utilizing it. The chaos-masters and order-masters, commanding the white of chaos and black of order fascinated me. I love the switch from typical by having white reprsent evil and black for good, though they're not quite as black and white (forgive the play on words) as that. Chaos leads to evil but isn't evil in and of itself. Same thing with order. The relationships and manipulations of chaos and order are what end up defining good and evil here.
There are some small breaks in the course of the novel where the author switches to a present tense third person and gives us hints as to other happenings away from Lerris. I had mixed feelings about those. While they were interesting and helped set up some of the big picture drama, they were too few and far between to really help the story that much. They were also pretty vague and honestly took away from some of the surprise later. It was a jolt in the narrative whenever one of these came up, both to switch into the third person and then back to Lerris's view. In my opinion, they should have been left out. Or, where there was something useful there, maybe it could have been told to Lerris by someone on the road. As far as giving the reader something that Lerris didn't know, that doesn't make sense in a first person story. There was a LOT going on that he didn't pick up all the details on, and that was fine. It added to the mystery of the world and story.
The other annoying thing wasn't as minor. In fact, it bugged the piss out of me and might have helped keep this book from a 5-star rating. The f**king sound effects! That was a narrative flaw that could very well get a book tossed into the burn pile. If this story wasn't as engaging as it was, that would have had me heading right back to the library to drop this thing in the overnight return.
Here's an example:
"Tharoom...thud...tharoom... Walking the white fir was walking across a massive drum. Antonin's coach must have vied with the real thunder when it rumbled across his bridge...Tharummmm...
Creaaakkkk...The heavy wooden gate, set on massive bronze hinges, eased open even more widely as I watched."
That's annoying. I felt like I was watching one of those old cheesy Batman television episodes. There are ways to describe sound without treating the reader like an idiot or make them feel like they're reading a comic book without pictures. Luckily he didn't really get rolling with this technique too early in the book, and by the time he did I was already hooked by the story. Otherwise it would have been "holy cheesy effects, Batman" and I would have moved on to something else. I was able to live with them eventually, my eyes blurring over and past to the real narrative beyond.
Overall, I give this book high points for the world building, the magic system, the characters, and the writing voice used by Modesitt over the course of most of the novel. I'm definitely interested in reading more books in the Recluce series, I'm just hoping he cuts back on the special effects.
October 17, 2018
Usually in the field of high fantasy I choose recent works, but I like to look for the distant and the near past for corresponding works Phase difference have influenced The current writers. One of these works is this book, which starts a very large set of books that continues even nowadays, so we can say that it is at the same time recent.
In this first book, therefore, we start from a utopian place where order and stability reign, tensions are non-existent and, in general, its inhabitants live a peaceful life. To do this, however, the authorities manage creatively those people find this whole order boring and want to do more. This creative management involves exile to other parts of the world where they are called upon to find their way but also to help stabilize these areas where they are sent.
One of them is our young hero who is bored with the life that has set him up and wants to make something more exciting. So, after a short period of learning, they send him along with others to a nearby area where things are more... chaotic, as various competitions and power games have led to a lasting war. Here our hero - like his friends - is called upon to mature, cultivate more his magic powers and be able to bring peace to this region. But quickly he understands that things are very difficult, as against him are the magical powers of chaos that threaten to destroy everything and then spread their influence across the globe. To face this evil needs to make difficult choices that even in the end can not know if they are right.
That is how this series begins, with a book in which the reader will not find much action or very intense emotions but will find different things that may be even more essential as the author focuses more on our hero and on his personal quest, inviting us to identify with him, comparing our own search with his own. So we follow its course which leads us to an interesting story, although in some places this interest is diminishing, while at a time the rather subdued finale does not offer complete satisfaction. At the same time, however, the author puts out several philosophical questions, insisting much on the contrast between order and chaos, which the more learned know is at the core of the perceptions of every human civilization. Of course, this philosophical search is somewhat simplistic and does not reach much depth, but it is capable of putting the reader in thought and this is quite important and makes me appreciate what I read.
Συνήθως στο χώρο της υψηλής φαντασίας επιλέγω πρόσφατα έργα, μου αρέσει, όμως, να ψάχνω στο μακρινό και το κοντινό παρελθόν για αντίστοιχα έργα διαφορά φάσης έχουν επηρεάσει Τους σημερινούς συγγραφείς. Ένα από αυτά τα έργα είναι αυτό εδώ το βιβλίο, το οποίο ξεκινάει μία ιδιαίτερα μεγάλη σειρά βιβλίων που συνεχίζεται ακόμα και στις μέρες μας, οπότε μπορούμε να πούμε ότι είναι και σημερινή ταυτόχρονα.
Σε αυτό το πρώτο βιβλίο, λοιπόν, ξεκινάμε από ένα ουτοπικό μέρος, όπου βασιλεύει η τάξη και η σταθερότητα, οι εντάσεις είναι ανύπαρκτες και γενικότερα οι κάτοικοι του ζούνε μία ειρηνική ζωή. Για να το επιτύχουν αυτό, όμως, οι αρχές διαχειρίζονται δημιουργικά εκείνα τα άτομα βρίσκουν όλη αυτή την τάξη βαρετή και θέλουν να κάνουν κάτι περισσότερο. Αυτή η δημιουργική διαχείριση περιλαμβάνει την εξορία τους σε άλλα μέρη του πλανήτη όπου εκεί καλούνται να βρουν το δρόμο τους αλλά και να βοηθήσουν στην σταθεροποίηση αυτών των περιοχών όπου αποστέλλονται.
Ένας από αυτούς είναι ο νεαρός ήρωάς μας που βαριέται αφόρητα τη ζωή που το έχουν ορίσει και ζητάει να κάνει κάτι συναρπαστικότερο. Έτ��ι, μετά από μία σύντομη περίοδο εκπαίδευσης, τον στέλνουν μαζί με κάποιους άλλους σε μία κοντινή περιοχή όπου τα πράγματα είναι περισσότερο... χαοτικά, καθώς oi διάφοροι ανταγωνισμοί και τα παιχνίδια εξουσίας έχουν οδηγήσει σε μία διαρκή εμπόλεμη κατάσταση. Εκεί ο ήρωάς μας - όπως και οι φίλοι του - καλείται να ωριμάσει, να καλλιεργήσει περισσότερο τις μαγικές του δυνάμεις και να μπορέσει να φέρει την ειρήνη σε αυτήν την περιοχή. Γρήγορα, όμως, καταλαβαίνεις ότι τα πράγματα είναι πολύ δύσκολα καθώς απέναντί του βρίσκονται οι μαγικές δυνάμεις του χ��ους που απειλούν να καταστρέψουν τα πάντα και μετά να εξαπλώσουν την επιρροή τους σε ολόκληρο τον πλανήτη. Για να αντιμετωπίσει αυτό το κακό χρειάζεται να κάνει δύσκολες επιλογές που ακόμα και στο τέλος δεν μπορεί να ξέρει αν είναι σωστές.
Κάπως έτσι ξεκινάει αυτή η σειρά, με ένα βιβλίο στο οποίο ο αναγνώστης δεν θα βρει πολύ δράση ή πολύ έντονες συγκινήσεις, θα βρει, όμως, διαφορετικά πράγματα που ίσως είναι και πιο ουσιαστικά καθώς ο συγγραφέας επικεντρώνεται περισσότερο στον ήρωά μας και στην προσωπική αναζήτηση του, καλώντας μας ίσως να ταυτιστούμε μαζί του, συγκρίνοντας τη δική μας αναζήτηση με τη δική του. Έτσι παρακολουθούμε την πορεία του η οποία μας οδηγεί σε μία ενδιαφέρουσα ιστορία, αν και σε κάποια σημεία αυτό το ενδιαφέρον μειώνεται, τη στιγμή που το μάλλον κάπως υποτονικό φινάλε δεν προσφέρει απόλυτη ικανοποίηση. Παράλληλα, όμως, ο συγγραφέας βάζει και αρκετά φιλοσοφικά ερωτήματα, επιμένοντας πολύ στην αντίθεση μεταξύ της τάξης και του χάους, κάτι που οι περισσότεροι διαβασμένοι γνωρίζουν ότι είναι στον πυρήνα των αντιλήψεων κάθε ανθρώπινου πολιτισμού. Βέβαια αυτή η φιλοσοφική αναζήτηση είναι κάπως απλοϊκή και δεν φτάνει σε μεγάλο βάθος, είναι ικανή, όμως, να βάλει τον αναγνώστη σε σκέψη και αυτό είναι αρκετά σημαντικό και με κάνει να εκτιμώ αυτό που διάβασα.
In this first book, therefore, we start from a utopian place where order and stability reign, tensions are non-existent and, in general, its inhabitants live a peaceful life. To do this, however, the authorities manage creatively those people find this whole order boring and want to do more. This creative management involves exile to other parts of the world where they are called upon to find their way but also to help stabilize these areas where they are sent.
One of them is our young hero who is bored with the life that has set him up and wants to make something more exciting. So, after a short period of learning, they send him along with others to a nearby area where things are more... chaotic, as various competitions and power games have led to a lasting war. Here our hero - like his friends - is called upon to mature, cultivate more his magic powers and be able to bring peace to this region. But quickly he understands that things are very difficult, as against him are the magical powers of chaos that threaten to destroy everything and then spread their influence across the globe. To face this evil needs to make difficult choices that even in the end can not know if they are right.
That is how this series begins, with a book in which the reader will not find much action or very intense emotions but will find different things that may be even more essential as the author focuses more on our hero and on his personal quest, inviting us to identify with him, comparing our own search with his own. So we follow its course which leads us to an interesting story, although in some places this interest is diminishing, while at a time the rather subdued finale does not offer complete satisfaction. At the same time, however, the author puts out several philosophical questions, insisting much on the contrast between order and chaos, which the more learned know is at the core of the perceptions of every human civilization. Of course, this philosophical search is somewhat simplistic and does not reach much depth, but it is capable of putting the reader in thought and this is quite important and makes me appreciate what I read.
Συνήθως στο χώρο της υψηλής φαντασίας επιλέγω πρόσφατα έργα, μου αρέσει, όμως, να ψάχνω στο μακρινό και το κοντινό παρελθόν για αντίστοιχα έργα διαφορά φάσης έχουν επηρεάσει Τους σημερινούς συγγραφείς. Ένα από αυτά τα έργα είναι αυτό εδώ το βιβλίο, το οποίο ξεκινάει μία ιδιαίτερα μεγάλη σειρά βιβλίων που συνεχίζεται ακόμα και στις μέρες μας, οπότε μπορούμε να πούμε ότι είναι και σημερινή ταυτόχρονα.
Σε αυτό το πρώτο βιβλίο, λοιπόν, ξεκινάμε από ένα ουτοπικό μέρος, όπου βασιλεύει η τάξη και η σταθερότητα, οι εντάσεις είναι ανύπαρκτες και γενικότερα οι κάτοικοι του ζούνε μία ειρηνική ζωή. Για να το επιτύχουν αυτό, όμως, οι αρχές διαχειρίζονται δημιουργικά εκείνα τα άτομα βρίσκουν όλη αυτή την τάξη βαρετή και θέλουν να κάνουν κάτι περισσότερο. Αυτή η δημιουργική διαχείριση περιλαμβάνει την εξορία τους σε άλλα μέρη του πλανήτη όπου εκεί καλούνται να βρουν το δρόμο τους αλλά και να βοηθήσουν στην σταθεροποίηση αυτών των περιοχών όπου αποστέλλονται.
Ένας από αυτούς είναι ο νεαρός ήρωάς μας που βαριέται αφόρητα τη ζωή που το έχουν ορίσει και ζητάει να κάνει κάτι συναρπαστικότερο. Έτ��ι, μετά από μία σύντομη περίοδο εκπαίδευσης, τον στέλνουν μαζί με κάποιους άλλους σε μία κοντινή περιοχή όπου τα πράγματα είναι περισσότερο... χαοτικά, καθώς oi διάφοροι ανταγωνισμοί και τα παιχνίδια εξουσίας έχουν οδηγήσει σε μία διαρκή εμπόλεμη κατάσταση. Εκεί ο ήρωάς μας - όπως και οι φίλοι του - καλείται να ωριμάσει, να καλλιεργήσει περισσότερο τις μαγικές του δυνάμεις και να μπορέσει να φέρει την ειρήνη σε αυτήν την περιοχή. Γρήγορα, όμως, καταλαβαίνεις ότι τα πράγματα είναι πολύ δύσκολα καθώς απέναντί του βρίσκονται οι μαγικές δυνάμεις του χ��ους που απειλούν να καταστρέψουν τα πάντα και μετά να εξαπλώσουν την επιρροή τους σε ολόκληρο τον πλανήτη. Για να αντιμετωπίσει αυτό το κακό χρειάζεται να κάνει δύσκολες επιλογές που ακόμα και στο τέλος δεν μπορεί να ξέρει αν είναι σωστές.
Κάπως έτσι ξεκινάει αυτή η σειρά, με ένα βιβλίο στο οποίο ο αναγνώστης δεν θα βρει πολύ δράση ή πολύ έντονες συγκινήσεις, θα βρει, όμως, διαφορετικά πράγματα που ίσως είναι και πιο ουσιαστικά καθώς ο συγγραφέας επικεντρώνεται περισσότερο στον ήρωά μας και στην προσωπική αναζήτηση του, καλώντας μας ίσως να ταυτιστούμε μαζί του, συγκρίνοντας τη δική μας αναζήτηση με τη δική του. Έτσι παρακολουθούμε την πορεία του η οποία μας οδηγεί σε μία ενδιαφέρουσα ιστορία, αν και σε κάποια σημεία αυτό το ενδιαφέρον μειώνεται, τη στιγμή που το μάλλον κάπως υποτονικό φινάλε δεν προσφέρει απόλυτη ικανοποίηση. Παράλληλα, όμως, ο συγγραφέας βάζει και αρκετά φιλοσοφικά ερωτήματα, επιμένοντας πολύ στην αντίθεση μεταξύ της τάξης και του χάους, κάτι που οι περισσότεροι διαβασμένοι γνωρίζουν ότι είναι στον πυρήνα των αντιλήψεων κάθε ανθρώπινου πολιτισμού. Βέβαια αυτή η φιλοσοφική αναζήτηση είναι κάπως απλοϊκή και δεν φτάνει σε μεγάλο βάθος, είναι ικανή, όμως, να βάλει τον αναγνώστη σε σκέψη και αυτό είναι αρκετά σημαντικό και με κάνει να εκτιμώ αυτό που διάβασα.
May 11, 2022
This was another one of my series-sampling audio listens, to see if I might want to pursue it in print someday.
Audio Narration
The narrator is Kirby Heyborne. He wasn’t a favorite, but I think most of my issues with him had more to do with the text than with his narration. The main character is whiny, and Heyborne didn’t over dramatize that, but his voice definitely “enhanced” the whininess. I’m not sure I would have liked the character any more in print, but it was even more annoying to listen to him in audio.
I think the text must also have had a lot of spelled-out sound effects, because the narrator was constantly whinnying and making bird noises and crack, whoosh, etc. noises. His whinnying was quite convincing, at least to a person like me who has had minimal exposure to real live horses, but it was kind of startling when he would suddenly whinny out of nowhere. The bird noises got even more annoying. With some of the other sound effects, I often didn’t know what they meant until the subsequent text explained them, so it was just an annoyance that didn’t add anything.
He differentiated voices pretty well, so I didn’t have any issues on that score, and I thought he did well with female characters. My one complaint was with a male character whom he voiced like a female character. I don’t remember anything in the text, like mention of a girly voice, that would have given a reason for it. He wasn’t in the story that much though.
Story
The story focuses on Lerris, a young man from an isolated place called Recluce who lacks interest in learning marketable skills and is too restless to give anything the attention necessary to succeed. Recluce has a solution for people like him. They send them off on a “dangergeld” which is basically an ambiguous and unclear quest to go out into the real world and figure stuff out. In the process, he learns about order magic and chaos magic and gets bored a lot.
I got so sick of Lerris whining. Everything was boring to him, and I got bored listening to how bored he was. He constantly complained about not being given answers. The withholding of information for no good reason is a plot trope that annoys me, so I was annoyed both by that and by his complaining about it. Additionally, there were things he didn’t know that it made absolutely no sense for him not to know, considering everybody else from Recluce seemed to know it.
I also got annoyed, especially in the early half, with how Lerris would never take any initiative. He wanted everything to be spoon fed to him. He had a book that could have answered a lot of his questions and taught him things he needed to know, but he ignored it for weeks (months?). He reminded me of people I’ve worked with who were equally unwilling to research, analyze, and experiment in order to truly understand how to do their own job, using me as their auxiliary brain and their personal search engine. (The best is when you have to Google something to find readily available information and then use that info to teach somebody from another department how to do their job…!) So yeah, Lerris pushed a few buttons and made me want to punch the computer through which he was speaking. I restrained myself, if only because I knew I’d need that computer to rant and rave about him later.
He did get better later in the book, maybe around the second half or later, once he got out into the real world and started thinking about people other than himself. From that point the story was easier to listen to, but I also didn’t care that much about the character or his story by that point so it still didn’t hold my attention very well. And most of his successes seemed to be as much from luck as anything. I also never felt like I really understood why Lerris did some of the things he did. I don’t know if I was just missing some of the details because I wasn’t sufficiently engaged in the story, or if the necessary details were really missing. Maybe a combination of the two.
I’m rating it at 2.5 stars but rounding up to 3 on Goodreads. I’m not sure whether I’ll ever revisit this series in print. I didn’t hate it despite all my complaints. It had some potential, and I suspect it would be less annoying in print without all the whinnying and shrieking sound effects. Also, if the series continues to focus on Lerris, then maybe he’ll be less annoying in future books now that he’s grown up a bit. Even so, it’s also a really long series, I think 22 books and counting, and right now I can’t fathom the idea of reading 22+ books like this.
Audio Narration
The narrator is Kirby Heyborne. He wasn’t a favorite, but I think most of my issues with him had more to do with the text than with his narration. The main character is whiny, and Heyborne didn’t over dramatize that, but his voice definitely “enhanced” the whininess. I’m not sure I would have liked the character any more in print, but it was even more annoying to listen to him in audio.
I think the text must also have had a lot of spelled-out sound effects, because the narrator was constantly whinnying and making bird noises and crack, whoosh, etc. noises. His whinnying was quite convincing, at least to a person like me who has had minimal exposure to real live horses, but it was kind of startling when he would suddenly whinny out of nowhere. The bird noises got even more annoying. With some of the other sound effects, I often didn’t know what they meant until the subsequent text explained them, so it was just an annoyance that didn’t add anything.
He differentiated voices pretty well, so I didn’t have any issues on that score, and I thought he did well with female characters. My one complaint was with a male character whom he voiced like a female character. I don’t remember anything in the text, like mention of a girly voice, that would have given a reason for it. He wasn’t in the story that much though.
Story
The story focuses on Lerris, a young man from an isolated place called Recluce who lacks interest in learning marketable skills and is too restless to give anything the attention necessary to succeed. Recluce has a solution for people like him. They send them off on a “dangergeld” which is basically an ambiguous and unclear quest to go out into the real world and figure stuff out. In the process, he learns about order magic and chaos magic and gets bored a lot.
I got so sick of Lerris whining. Everything was boring to him, and I got bored listening to how bored he was. He constantly complained about not being given answers. The withholding of information for no good reason is a plot trope that annoys me, so I was annoyed both by that and by his complaining about it. Additionally, there were things he didn’t know that it made absolutely no sense for him not to know, considering everybody else from Recluce seemed to know it.
I also got annoyed, especially in the early half, with how Lerris would never take any initiative. He wanted everything to be spoon fed to him. He had a book that could have answered a lot of his questions and taught him things he needed to know, but he ignored it for weeks (months?). He reminded me of people I’ve worked with who were equally unwilling to research, analyze, and experiment in order to truly understand how to do their own job, using me as their auxiliary brain and their personal search engine. (The best is when you have to Google something to find readily available information and then use that info to teach somebody from another department how to do their job…!) So yeah, Lerris pushed a few buttons and made me want to punch the computer through which he was speaking. I restrained myself, if only because I knew I’d need that computer to rant and rave about him later.
He did get better later in the book, maybe around the second half or later, once he got out into the real world and started thinking about people other than himself. From that point the story was easier to listen to, but I also didn’t care that much about the character or his story by that point so it still didn’t hold my attention very well. And most of his successes seemed to be as much from luck as anything. I also never felt like I really understood why Lerris did some of the things he did. I don’t know if I was just missing some of the details because I wasn’t sufficiently engaged in the story, or if the necessary details were really missing. Maybe a combination of the two.
I’m rating it at 2.5 stars but rounding up to 3 on Goodreads. I’m not sure whether I’ll ever revisit this series in print. I didn’t hate it despite all my complaints. It had some potential, and I suspect it would be less annoying in print without all the whinnying and shrieking sound effects. Also, if the series continues to focus on Lerris, then maybe he’ll be less annoying in future books now that he’s grown up a bit. Even so, it’s also a really long series, I think 22 books and counting, and right now I can’t fathom the idea of reading 22+ books like this.
November 3, 2010
Excellent world building and superb magic system with an annoyingly dense but affable young adult protagonist on a quest. Lerris is 'the chosen one' but for all the wrong reasons or completely mysterious hidden reasons until he's painted himself into a corner with his fumbling choices. Lerris isn't burdened with a prophecy, but he resists the status quo of Recluce. Lerris is just your typical young adult with attention deficit disorder (i.e., he's bored and finds everything boring), but Recluce doesn't prescribe Ritalin. Somewhat like extreme Amish, Recluce peacefully forces their misfits to either exile permanently or go on dangergeld (similar to rumspringa but with a quest attached), during which they must decide if they can return to Recluce and succumb to its creed and worldview (seeking perfection in Order). This novel follows Lerris on his journey as a dangergelder until he understands all that Recluce embodies and effects, and reaches his decision.
If you are looking for a story with character growth, Lerris' journey as an exile from Recluce will fit that bill. If you are looking for a new fantasy world with a detailed history, divergent societies, a logical robust magic system, with a different spin on the age-old struggle between angels and demons, good and evil, black and white, order and chaos, then you've come to the right story and series.
Modesitt's Recluce series reminds me of Asimov's robot stories. He sets up a scenario with some basic, seemingly simple rules (for example, Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics and Modesitt's Order/Chaos balance system as glimpsed through snippets of The Basis of Order) and proceeds to challenge those rules with his world and its characters. While each novel adds a piece of the broader puzzle, for the most part, like this first one, the books stand alone quite well.
If you are looking for a story with character growth, Lerris' journey as an exile from Recluce will fit that bill. If you are looking for a new fantasy world with a detailed history, divergent societies, a logical robust magic system, with a different spin on the age-old struggle between angels and demons, good and evil, black and white, order and chaos, then you've come to the right story and series.
Modesitt's Recluce series reminds me of Asimov's robot stories. He sets up a scenario with some basic, seemingly simple rules (for example, Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics and Modesitt's Order/Chaos balance system as glimpsed through snippets of The Basis of Order) and proceeds to challenge those rules with his world and its characters. While each novel adds a piece of the broader puzzle, for the most part, like this first one, the books stand alone quite well.
May 17, 2021
When I read this in my 20s it was sooooooooo booooooooorrrrrriiiing.
BUT! When I tried it again at age 40, it was sooooooooo boooooorrrrrrriiing still.
The bit I remembered in between the two readings was the whole thing where he has to buy some logs but has to find a reason not to buy the chaos-infested log without giving away his abilities, and then he made some chairs.
When the only thing that sticks in your mind from an epic fantasy starter is the woodworking, there's a problem.
BUT! When I tried it again at age 40, it was sooooooooo boooooorrrrrrriiing still.
The bit I remembered in between the two readings was the whole thing where he has to buy some logs but has to find a reason not to buy the chaos-infested log without giving away his abilities, and then he made some chairs.
When the only thing that sticks in your mind from an epic fantasy starter is the woodworking, there's a problem.
September 22, 2017
I'm sorry to say that this book was a DNF for me! I'm so disappointed that I didn't like this one, I really tried to give it a fair go, and I read about halfway through, but to be honest it was stressing me out and I had to leave it!
It wasn't all negative as I really did enjoy the beginning of the book. The Magic of Recluce is written in first person, and the downfall of this narration can be that it makes a book lack world building. There was none of that here! Modesitt showed himself to be skilled at world building and really weaved in beautiful details of culture and scenery into the narrative. I mean the food that was described left my mouth watering!
The main issue for me was that I really disliked the main character, Lerris. From the very beginning he does not stop moaning about everything. He finds everything boring and annoying. He constantly complained, mostly because he was never given any answers and wanted everything told to him, okay at times this was a valid reason, but it was still so frustrating to read. It actually made me bored! I know that later on Lerris does improve, but by then I really didn't care.
Another one of my biggest problems was that Modesitt used sound effects to describe things. He would use phrases like 'thwack' for fight scenes and 'wheeee eeee' to describe the sound of a horse!! My God did this piss me off! I mean it was one 'kapow' away from being like a 60s Batman tv episode! Not good! If you're going to give me a battle scene, give me the details, give me a scene to visualise. Don't give me a 'thwack' and bits of broken up conversation!
Anyway I'm still glad I tried a new author, I mean you don't know until you try right?
It wasn't all negative as I really did enjoy the beginning of the book. The Magic of Recluce is written in first person, and the downfall of this narration can be that it makes a book lack world building. There was none of that here! Modesitt showed himself to be skilled at world building and really weaved in beautiful details of culture and scenery into the narrative. I mean the food that was described left my mouth watering!
The main issue for me was that I really disliked the main character, Lerris. From the very beginning he does not stop moaning about everything. He finds everything boring and annoying. He constantly complained, mostly because he was never given any answers and wanted everything told to him, okay at times this was a valid reason, but it was still so frustrating to read. It actually made me bored! I know that later on Lerris does improve, but by then I really didn't care.
Another one of my biggest problems was that Modesitt used sound effects to describe things. He would use phrases like 'thwack' for fight scenes and 'wheeee eeee' to describe the sound of a horse!! My God did this piss me off! I mean it was one 'kapow' away from being like a 60s Batman tv episode! Not good! If you're going to give me a battle scene, give me the details, give me a scene to visualise. Don't give me a 'thwack' and bits of broken up conversation!
Anyway I'm still glad I tried a new author, I mean you don't know until you try right?
January 20, 2012
This isn't pathbreaking fantasy, and it suffers from issues of pacing, prose and characterisation, but it's an engaging and sometimes moving story for all that.
A coming of age novel set in a fantastic world (aren't they all?), The Magic Of Recluce often seems bogged down in diurnal detail: meals at inns, distances travelled, long hours of discomfort, but I can also see how Modesitt felt the need to include these things as a way to ground his fantasy narrative, give it a lived-in feel. The prose itself is serviceable, but ever so slightly awkward. Sometimes it's hard to tell exactly which character is being referred to, or who just spoke and Modessit's reliance on onomatopoeia to convey action can get tiresome as well as opaque. The characters are broad archetypes to the point of cliche, but Modesitt goes beyond the traditional gender roles of a lot of fantasy.
Despite the fact that things often move too slowly for the narrative's good, the plot is actually very well shaped and highly effective, setting up a central conflict and then successively raising the stakes, along with interludes to gather energy. It all builds up to a magnificent sorcercous confrontation in a forbidden castle - pure fantasy overdrive. Along the way, we're exposed to complex and compelling political currents and an interesting, nuanced conception of magic.
This book also features the single most awesome pony in all of fantastic fiction.
So there you go: a middling epic fantasy novel that offers an interesting take on magic, a richly imagined world, a predictable but exciting plot, some infelicities of style and a certain shallowness of charaterisation. Quite a few rungs above Eddings and certainly more genuinely imaginative and original than Jordan.
A coming of age novel set in a fantastic world (aren't they all?), The Magic Of Recluce often seems bogged down in diurnal detail: meals at inns, distances travelled, long hours of discomfort, but I can also see how Modesitt felt the need to include these things as a way to ground his fantasy narrative, give it a lived-in feel. The prose itself is serviceable, but ever so slightly awkward. Sometimes it's hard to tell exactly which character is being referred to, or who just spoke and Modessit's reliance on onomatopoeia to convey action can get tiresome as well as opaque. The characters are broad archetypes to the point of cliche, but Modesitt goes beyond the traditional gender roles of a lot of fantasy.
Despite the fact that things often move too slowly for the narrative's good, the plot is actually very well shaped and highly effective, setting up a central conflict and then successively raising the stakes, along with interludes to gather energy. It all builds up to a magnificent sorcercous confrontation in a forbidden castle - pure fantasy overdrive. Along the way, we're exposed to complex and compelling political currents and an interesting, nuanced conception of magic.
This book also features the single most awesome pony in all of fantastic fiction.
So there you go: a middling epic fantasy novel that offers an interesting take on magic, a richly imagined world, a predictable but exciting plot, some infelicities of style and a certain shallowness of charaterisation. Quite a few rungs above Eddings and certainly more genuinely imaginative and original than Jordan.
September 27, 2017
I first read this over 25 years ago & it hooked me on the Recluce series. It's the first published, but 17th in the chronology (C17, P01). It was a real journey of discovery that first time as Modesitt built the complicated world through Lerris' eyes, a young, disaffected man who was ignorant of so much. My one real issue with the book is how much he suddenly understood toward the end. I guess he's a lot smarter than I am.
My favorite parts were the woodworking & the horse (large pony). I'm a woodworker &, if it isn't obvious from my profile picture, ride a large pony of my own & even use a hackamore on him. Both require a lot of work that is generally ignored by authors. There were some obvious oversights in both, but Modesitt does a far better job than most & at least he tried hard.
IMO, this book reads a lot better in chronological order than published order. The whole series does. For a list of the current chronology of this series, see my review here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
My favorite parts were the woodworking & the horse (large pony). I'm a woodworker &, if it isn't obvious from my profile picture, ride a large pony of my own & even use a hackamore on him. Both require a lot of work that is generally ignored by authors. There were some obvious oversights in both, but Modesitt does a far better job than most & at least he tried hard.
IMO, this book reads a lot better in chronological order than published order. The whole series does. For a list of the current chronology of this series, see my review here:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
May 7, 2018
I liked this book well enough, but it really didn’t distinguish itself. Young Lerris gets sent off to do what is called dangergeld because he is bored with his perfect, utopian life. As per usual in this kind of story, he discovers that he has talents he never suspected, that his parents aren’t who he thought they were, and that non-utopian life can be rather difficult. You know, the usual in these fantasy epics. (See The Belgariad by David Eddings, The Riftwar Saga by Raymond Feist, or Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn by Tad Williams or even the King Arthur legend).
There is some attempt made to produce meaningful female characters, but unfortunately they are only there as foils and props for Lerris. When he needs someone to bring him down a peg or two, there’s Tamra. When he needs a romantic interest, there’s Krystal. But they retreat into obscurity when they are not needed for some plot point. It’s nice that they’re intelligent and talented, but they don’t get to shine, at least in this first book. They don’t even really talk to one another, except to discuss Lerris a little bit.
I’ve cheated a bit and peeked at the Wikipedia entry for this series—if that’s accurate, I have some hope for the series. Two technologically advanced cultures are marooned on this world and have very different world views. That reminds me of Julian May’s Saga of Pliocene Exile enough to pique my curiosity and send me looking for at least the second book in the series.
Book number 282 in my Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading Project.
There is some attempt made to produce meaningful female characters, but unfortunately they are only there as foils and props for Lerris. When he needs someone to bring him down a peg or two, there’s Tamra. When he needs a romantic interest, there’s Krystal. But they retreat into obscurity when they are not needed for some plot point. It’s nice that they’re intelligent and talented, but they don’t get to shine, at least in this first book. They don’t even really talk to one another, except to discuss Lerris a little bit.
I’ve cheated a bit and peeked at the Wikipedia entry for this series—if that’s accurate, I have some hope for the series. Two technologically advanced cultures are marooned on this world and have very different world views. That reminds me of Julian May’s Saga of Pliocene Exile enough to pique my curiosity and send me looking for at least the second book in the series.
Book number 282 in my Science Fiction and Fantasy Reading Project.
May 21, 2015
Klasican Modesit. Pun detalja sa interesantnom postavkom i malim brojem likova. Nazalost likovi nisu suvise duboko razredjeni ali opet dosta se lako cita ako ne smeta spor napredak radnje.
December 9, 2023
EDIT: After having time to process this a little more I'm bumping up to 4⭐ This book has had a great aftertaste and I find myself thinking about it and the world often. You know it's certainly more special than a 3⭐ if that's happening. Can't wait to read the second book. OG review below, unchanged.
A solid 3 ⭐ Nothing that I thought was mind blowing but a fun ride throughout.
The Magic of Recluse is a book (and series) that I have wanted to get to since the 00's. What finally pushed me over the edge to read it? Well I went down south to visit one of my oldest and best friends. While we were perusing thrift and book stores we (and by we I mean I. I love making deals with my buddies.) decided that we would each pick a book for each other. I picked Legend for him to read and he picked this one. I hear I am finally having read the book.
Now that you got a story you didn't ask for. How was the book? Well it was good. And that's about it. There was nothing overly exciting about this book. But there was nothing overly boring either. Except the main character, Lerris, who thought everything was boring. Which then turned into a big walkabout on a completely different continent. You see, the continent of Recluse is ruled, strictly, by order. Every other continent isn't as hardcore about order and has chaos intertwined in it. Lerris, being bored by everything, forced to then join the dangergelders to see if he could even live on Recluse anymore or be banished in exile.
He leaves, with his group of people that were also dangergelders, and embarks on a journey to find himself. And in the process learn more about our magic system of Order and Chaos. The magic system is very interesting. While not completely fleshed out in this first book, it was interesting to see how the magic truly flows in and out of everything and everyone. Even if you aren't a wizard, you are still dominated by one or the other. And what turned out to be not that interesting at first, slowly built up to be a quite fascinating system. For one cannot live without the other and the balance of both is imperative.
It was fun to watch the growth of Lerris in this book. And while it seems that this series has many books (24 to date to be exact) it sounds like many of them follow tons of different characters. I'm not sure how I feel about that since I grew to really like Lerris. I hoping that I get to see him again in other books in this series. Because yes...
I will be continuing on in this series. While this book didn't exactly blow me away, it left me with enough desire to see how this world evolves. It has a sense of progression fantasy that could be very enticing if I'm reading into this correctly.
Minor complaints about the prose: At some point I got extremely annoyed with the sounds of animals or doors closing. Always prefaced with a creeeeak or a wheeeee...eeee... I would end up just skipping over those. And sometimes trying to decipher what noise was what was infuriating. And while it was always followed up by what that noise was I would just skip over it and read the next sentence to figure it out. Other than that everything was fine. Although it was very 90's, which I know would bother some, but for me it was just straight up comfort food from my past.
Overall an interesting read with a slow burn but interesting magic system to a world I'm definitely going to come back to.
A solid 3 ⭐ Nothing that I thought was mind blowing but a fun ride throughout.
The Magic of Recluse is a book (and series) that I have wanted to get to since the 00's. What finally pushed me over the edge to read it? Well I went down south to visit one of my oldest and best friends. While we were perusing thrift and book stores we (and by we I mean I. I love making deals with my buddies.) decided that we would each pick a book for each other. I picked Legend for him to read and he picked this one. I hear I am finally having read the book.
Now that you got a story you didn't ask for. How was the book? Well it was good. And that's about it. There was nothing overly exciting about this book. But there was nothing overly boring either. Except the main character, Lerris, who thought everything was boring. Which then turned into a big walkabout on a completely different continent. You see, the continent of Recluse is ruled, strictly, by order. Every other continent isn't as hardcore about order and has chaos intertwined in it. Lerris, being bored by everything, forced to then join the dangergelders to see if he could even live on Recluse anymore or be banished in exile.
He leaves, with his group of people that were also dangergelders, and embarks on a journey to find himself. And in the process learn more about our magic system of Order and Chaos. The magic system is very interesting. While not completely fleshed out in this first book, it was interesting to see how the magic truly flows in and out of everything and everyone. Even if you aren't a wizard, you are still dominated by one or the other. And what turned out to be not that interesting at first, slowly built up to be a quite fascinating system. For one cannot live without the other and the balance of both is imperative.
It was fun to watch the growth of Lerris in this book. And while it seems that this series has many books (24 to date to be exact) it sounds like many of them follow tons of different characters. I'm not sure how I feel about that since I grew to really like Lerris. I hoping that I get to see him again in other books in this series. Because yes...
I will be continuing on in this series. While this book didn't exactly blow me away, it left me with enough desire to see how this world evolves. It has a sense of progression fantasy that could be very enticing if I'm reading into this correctly.
Minor complaints about the prose: At some point I got extremely annoyed with the sounds of animals or doors closing. Always prefaced with a creeeeak or a wheeeee...eeee... I would end up just skipping over those. And sometimes trying to decipher what noise was what was infuriating. And while it was always followed up by what that noise was I would just skip over it and read the next sentence to figure it out. Other than that everything was fine. Although it was very 90's, which I know would bother some, but for me it was just straight up comfort food from my past.
Overall an interesting read with a slow burn but interesting magic system to a world I'm definitely going to come back to.
July 30, 2024
I just realized The Magic of Recluce is chronologically second to last book in a 24-book series. Modesitt took the meaning “deep dive” quite literally, I guess. I have read multiple prequel trilogies and series, but 22 books of prequels? Obviously, I have questions before I open next book – and now I have no clue which one should it be.
Are all these standalones? Do we go to a certain starting point in time and then progress from there? Should I read in chronological or publishing order?
I must say, I am tempted – to my better judgement and 5 minutes of google research giving back polarizing results – and continue in chronological order.
When it comes to Magic of Recluce, upon second read, thoughts and feelings remain the same. Lerris and his boredom. Or perhaps, Leland and his insistency to beat us over our heads how Lerris finds any semblance of order boring. Any situation Lerris felt challenged with, conversation with a common folk or reading a book, Leland prescribed it to boredom.
Not until half of the book, when he actually started to think for himself and seek for answers instead of expecting to be provided with them on a silver platter, did both Lerris and Leland stopped with petulant “this is so boring” argument. And by the time we manage to have some progress with his character, where we aren’t annoyed by him and start carrying for him, the story is nearly over.
The story, magic and lore also suffer, since we are bound with Lerris in the basement of ignorance and any chance we get for answers, both Lerris and reader are brushed off with vague explanations. And since Lerris is petulant, we do not progress to any discovery until last 50 pages or so when he finally accepts that he actually needs to think for himself.
I’m not sure if Leland will continue in future books with his unnecessary practice of writing sounds and onomatopoeia, since it really throws me off.
Let’s say there was a scene in the book: “Lerris sneezed and wiped his nose. He urged his horse forward, who whined in protest.”
It’s such a simple action, which in its simplicity described more than enough.
However, the way Leland writes it is something like this: “Ahhchcuuww’, Lerris sneezed and wiped his nose. ‘Yeee Haww’, he urged his horse forward ‘Weee eeee’, who whined in protest.”
We all know the sound of sneezing, goodness gracious, and no horse sounds in my head as “Weee eeee”. I’m not even sure if anything sounds like it.
It’s interesting that someone relies on reader to imagine entire worlds in their heads, but thinks they are somehow limited when it comes to sounds made in them.
Are all these standalones? Do we go to a certain starting point in time and then progress from there? Should I read in chronological or publishing order?
I must say, I am tempted – to my better judgement and 5 minutes of google research giving back polarizing results – and continue in chronological order.
When it comes to Magic of Recluce, upon second read, thoughts and feelings remain the same. Lerris and his boredom. Or perhaps, Leland and his insistency to beat us over our heads how Lerris finds any semblance of order boring. Any situation Lerris felt challenged with, conversation with a common folk or reading a book, Leland prescribed it to boredom.
Not until half of the book, when he actually started to think for himself and seek for answers instead of expecting to be provided with them on a silver platter, did both Lerris and Leland stopped with petulant “this is so boring” argument. And by the time we manage to have some progress with his character, where we aren’t annoyed by him and start carrying for him, the story is nearly over.
The story, magic and lore also suffer, since we are bound with Lerris in the basement of ignorance and any chance we get for answers, both Lerris and reader are brushed off with vague explanations. And since Lerris is petulant, we do not progress to any discovery until last 50 pages or so when he finally accepts that he actually needs to think for himself.
I’m not sure if Leland will continue in future books with his unnecessary practice of writing sounds and onomatopoeia, since it really throws me off.
Let’s say there was a scene in the book: “Lerris sneezed and wiped his nose. He urged his horse forward, who whined in protest.”
It’s such a simple action, which in its simplicity described more than enough.
However, the way Leland writes it is something like this: “Ahhchcuuww’, Lerris sneezed and wiped his nose. ‘Yeee Haww’, he urged his horse forward ‘Weee eeee’, who whined in protest.”
We all know the sound of sneezing, goodness gracious, and no horse sounds in my head as “Weee eeee”. I’m not even sure if anything sounds like it.
It’s interesting that someone relies on reader to imagine entire worlds in their heads, but thinks they are somehow limited when it comes to sounds made in them.
March 19, 2012
This wasn't bad, but I don't think it was particularly what I was looking for. The writing was good and the story had some neat magical elements to it, but I found it to drag a bit too much and I was not as happy with the coming of age nature of the plot. It could be a case of me just choosing the wrong book so taker this review with a grain of salt. I just found it to be too long and too dry to make up for the moments of sizzle.
September 10, 2020
The first in a huge fantasy series. A young man who finds his homeland of Recluce boring is sent out into the world to find his place in the world and find the answers to the questions he has about himself and the world. Chaos versus Order. Well done. The page count in this series is imposing.
December 4, 2007
"The Magic of Recluce" is the first book in L.E. Modesitt's long-running "Recluce" saga. This series has grown to encompass 14 books.
The denizens of Modesitt's world are all human beings. The magic system of this world is based on order and chaos. Chaos wizards enhance the chaos in people and things while order wizards enhance the order in people and things. Chaos is classified as an "evil" magic and order as a "good" magic. It's a pretty cool and logical system, although I was disappointed that each branch of magic had a morality attached to it. To me, it would seem that the magics themselves would be amoral, and the morality of their use dependent upon the individual using the magic, with a balance between order and chaos being the preferred, happy medium.
The Plot
Recluce is an island nation consisting of order wizards and those who live under their rule. Citizens who are dissatisfied with this order in any way have two choices: Exile or Dangergeld.
Lerris, our protagonist, decides on a dangergeld, which is a form of public service where a citizen is trained to survive in the world outside Recluce and then sent on some kind of mission. Presumably, while performing this mission, the dangergelder will come to find his or her place in the world and come back to Recluce, or find a spot in the outside world to live after the mission is accomplished.
Lerris gets trained, leaves Recluce, and the fun begins.
The Good
As stated before, the magic system is logical and cool: Order magic is more focused on strengthening that which already exists and Chaos magic is more focused on weakening existing things.
Other reviews have said that the story keeping track of the character's money and their financial struggles was dull. However, I liked this aspect of it. Too often, stories depict square-jawed heroes venturing forth with no consideration as to the financial or logistical elements of such a journey. Either the protagonist is independently wealthy or the author just doesn't write about how a character lives day to day. In the Recluce novels, the characters have to work to survive.
I liked how Modesitt would change writing styles during the story. When Lerris, the protagonist, is narrating, Modesitt writes in first person past tense ("I walked down the muddy road"). When scenes without Lerris occur in the story, Modesitt changes to third person present tense ("She walks down the muddy road"). I thought this was really cool and original.
The Bad
I didn't like that Order was equated with good and Chaos was equated with bad. I prefer the morality of magic being determined by the person using it. In order for the world to work properly, it seems to me that both Order and Chaos is needed, working in a kind of balance; not only in the world, but in an individual as well.
The novel kind of addresses this, but not really to my satisfaction.
Another place the novel falls flat are the characters. The only really compelling character is Lerris, the protagonist, which is certainly a good thing. The other notable characters were the antagonist and the gray wizard, Justen. Pretty much all of the other characters seemed to meld together and it was difficult to tell one from another.
Conclusion
If you are an avid fantasy novel reader, you should check the Recluce series out. It's not the "flash bang" of the more popular series out there, but it is an entertaining read.
I wouldn't recommend the Recluce novels to dabblers in fantasy reading, or to those looking for a gateway into fantasy literature. There are parts of this novel that are just too dry.
If you're looking for your next fantasy fix, though, I say try out the first novel. If it's to your liking, you may want to try the rest.
The denizens of Modesitt's world are all human beings. The magic system of this world is based on order and chaos. Chaos wizards enhance the chaos in people and things while order wizards enhance the order in people and things. Chaos is classified as an "evil" magic and order as a "good" magic. It's a pretty cool and logical system, although I was disappointed that each branch of magic had a morality attached to it. To me, it would seem that the magics themselves would be amoral, and the morality of their use dependent upon the individual using the magic, with a balance between order and chaos being the preferred, happy medium.
The Plot
Recluce is an island nation consisting of order wizards and those who live under their rule. Citizens who are dissatisfied with this order in any way have two choices: Exile or Dangergeld.
Lerris, our protagonist, decides on a dangergeld, which is a form of public service where a citizen is trained to survive in the world outside Recluce and then sent on some kind of mission. Presumably, while performing this mission, the dangergelder will come to find his or her place in the world and come back to Recluce, or find a spot in the outside world to live after the mission is accomplished.
Lerris gets trained, leaves Recluce, and the fun begins.
The Good
As stated before, the magic system is logical and cool: Order magic is more focused on strengthening that which already exists and Chaos magic is more focused on weakening existing things.
Other reviews have said that the story keeping track of the character's money and their financial struggles was dull. However, I liked this aspect of it. Too often, stories depict square-jawed heroes venturing forth with no consideration as to the financial or logistical elements of such a journey. Either the protagonist is independently wealthy or the author just doesn't write about how a character lives day to day. In the Recluce novels, the characters have to work to survive.
I liked how Modesitt would change writing styles during the story. When Lerris, the protagonist, is narrating, Modesitt writes in first person past tense ("I walked down the muddy road"). When scenes without Lerris occur in the story, Modesitt changes to third person present tense ("She walks down the muddy road"). I thought this was really cool and original.
The Bad
I didn't like that Order was equated with good and Chaos was equated with bad. I prefer the morality of magic being determined by the person using it. In order for the world to work properly, it seems to me that both Order and Chaos is needed, working in a kind of balance; not only in the world, but in an individual as well.
The novel kind of addresses this, but not really to my satisfaction.
Another place the novel falls flat are the characters. The only really compelling character is Lerris, the protagonist, which is certainly a good thing. The other notable characters were the antagonist and the gray wizard, Justen. Pretty much all of the other characters seemed to meld together and it was difficult to tell one from another.
Conclusion
If you are an avid fantasy novel reader, you should check the Recluce series out. It's not the "flash bang" of the more popular series out there, but it is an entertaining read.
I wouldn't recommend the Recluce novels to dabblers in fantasy reading, or to those looking for a gateway into fantasy literature. There are parts of this novel that are just too dry.
If you're looking for your next fantasy fix, though, I say try out the first novel. If it's to your liking, you may want to try the rest.
March 29, 2010
Bleh. Technically I shouldn't mark this as "read," since I've only made it through about 175 pages or so.
I've seen these books praised by fantasy readers, and am lucky enough to have a set signed by the author. But I can't really see the appeal. This is a book in dire need of a more merciless editor. It's turgid past the point of forgiveness. Everything moves so. Slow. That. I. Find. Myself. Not. Giving. A. Damn.
Modesitt takes great care to describe each room his characters enter in excruciating detail, down to the grain of the floorboards. But the descriptive language doesn't stop there; we also get detailed breakdowns of lunches, ablutions, and aimless wanderings. Conversations of no particular importance are faithfully recorded, even if they don't consist of anything but some "oh"s, "well"s, a few ellipses, and some onomatopoeia. Which wouldn't be so bad if any of the characters were likable, but sadly, with one exception (Sammel) they are all extremely irritating. Especially Lerris. See, here's the thing: if the main character is bored and annoyed all the time for no particular reason, it makes for a pretty boring and annoying read that doesn't seem to be going in any particular direction.
In the meantime, the magical and fantastic stuff gets completely glossed over in the beginning, making it hard to understand just what in the hell is going on. I like the idea of this growing from unexplained occurrences to a fully realized magic system, but I really didn't feel it was executed well.
The strangest thing is that when I finally got to some action, it was horribly contrived and written with nearly no emotion at all. It was almost as if we were in a hurry to get back to walking around and remarking on the colors of buildings.
The world itself is obviously deep and seems interesting enough. Maybe when I have fewer books on my to-read pile, I'll try to slog through this lumbering mess again to see if it gets any better.
I've seen these books praised by fantasy readers, and am lucky enough to have a set signed by the author. But I can't really see the appeal. This is a book in dire need of a more merciless editor. It's turgid past the point of forgiveness. Everything moves so. Slow. That. I. Find. Myself. Not. Giving. A. Damn.
Modesitt takes great care to describe each room his characters enter in excruciating detail, down to the grain of the floorboards. But the descriptive language doesn't stop there; we also get detailed breakdowns of lunches, ablutions, and aimless wanderings. Conversations of no particular importance are faithfully recorded, even if they don't consist of anything but some "oh"s, "well"s, a few ellipses, and some onomatopoeia. Which wouldn't be so bad if any of the characters were likable, but sadly, with one exception (Sammel) they are all extremely irritating. Especially Lerris. See, here's the thing: if the main character is bored and annoyed all the time for no particular reason, it makes for a pretty boring and annoying read that doesn't seem to be going in any particular direction.
In the meantime, the magical and fantastic stuff gets completely glossed over in the beginning, making it hard to understand just what in the hell is going on. I like the idea of this growing from unexplained occurrences to a fully realized magic system, but I really didn't feel it was executed well.
The strangest thing is that when I finally got to some action, it was horribly contrived and written with nearly no emotion at all. It was almost as if we were in a hurry to get back to walking around and remarking on the colors of buildings.
The world itself is obviously deep and seems interesting enough. Maybe when I have fewer books on my to-read pile, I'll try to slog through this lumbering mess again to see if it gets any better.
June 9, 2010
Another big long book, and the start of one of those giant epic fantasy sagas.
However, again, I'm not going to go get the sequels.
I like fantasy because it has such potential to expand our concepts of what human society can be, in different and unusual, often dramatic situations.
One can tell, reading this book, that the author is conservative, christian, and non-feminist. This only occasionally intrudes jarringly into the story, but there's absolutely nothing in here that would stretch the comfort zone of the most typical inhabitant of stereotypical middle-America.
The main character is a bored young man who lives in a utopian society of peace and plenty (where women know their place). But he's bored.
His family sends him to a center where the various disaffected (the bored, criminals, feminists) are trained and then sent out of the lovely, ordered kingdom of Recluce to make their way in the dangerous wide world, only possibly to ever return.
Our protagonist goes questing and along the way discovers he has the potential to be a super-powerful wizard. MORE TO COME.... in the sequels, of course.
However, again, I'm not going to go get the sequels.
I like fantasy because it has such potential to expand our concepts of what human society can be, in different and unusual, often dramatic situations.
One can tell, reading this book, that the author is conservative, christian, and non-feminist. This only occasionally intrudes jarringly into the story, but there's absolutely nothing in here that would stretch the comfort zone of the most typical inhabitant of stereotypical middle-America.
The main character is a bored young man who lives in a utopian society of peace and plenty (where women know their place). But he's bored.
His family sends him to a center where the various disaffected (the bored, criminals, feminists) are trained and then sent out of the lovely, ordered kingdom of Recluce to make their way in the dangerous wide world, only possibly to ever return.
Our protagonist goes questing and along the way discovers he has the potential to be a super-powerful wizard. MORE TO COME.... in the sequels, of course.
September 12, 2017
Read with the #MagicalModesitt group-read organised by Jacob.
"Chaos is concentrated anarchy, if you will. Order is diffused by nature. They have to balance."
Wow. What an interesting magic system. Yin/Yang balance, Order vs Chaos, Black vs White, philosophy of mind, consequences, Newton' 3rd law... and all the gray in between! I like it!
Recluce will now be added to my #FinishTheSeries TBR. When I have time to update it. Lol.
[Pending Review]
"Chaos is concentrated anarchy, if you will. Order is diffused by nature. They have to balance."
Wow. What an interesting magic system. Yin/Yang balance, Order vs Chaos, Black vs White, philosophy of mind, consequences, Newton' 3rd law... and all the gray in between! I like it!
Recluce will now be added to my #FinishTheSeries TBR. When I have time to update it. Lol.
[Pending Review]
November 30, 2019
Not quite 3.5 stars.
I didn’t know what to expect going into this book. I knew it was the first of a long series and the ratings/reviews had me wondering. The pace of the book is pretty slow. It involves a lot of daily life type of descriptions. I thought that this would make me lose interest. There were times that I felt this everyday life events could have been shorted to move the book along, but overall I came to enjoy it. It felt comfortable to me and relaxing, which I wasn’t expecting. The book did have exciting parts also. I enjoyed the character development and felt that I got to know them well. The magic system was interesting and refreshing from a lot of other fantasy novels. I enjoyed the writing style of the author. The book flowed well and was easy to read. I will continue in the future with this series to see how it evolves.
I didn’t know what to expect going into this book. I knew it was the first of a long series and the ratings/reviews had me wondering. The pace of the book is pretty slow. It involves a lot of daily life type of descriptions. I thought that this would make me lose interest. There were times that I felt this everyday life events could have been shorted to move the book along, but overall I came to enjoy it. It felt comfortable to me and relaxing, which I wasn’t expecting. The book did have exciting parts also. I enjoyed the character development and felt that I got to know them well. The magic system was interesting and refreshing from a lot of other fantasy novels. I enjoyed the writing style of the author. The book flowed well and was easy to read. I will continue in the future with this series to see how it evolves.
March 2, 2025
I went back and forth between 3 stars and 4 stars.
It's strange, this book is actually pretty boring but not in a bad way. Things kind of just happen to Lerris, the main protagonist, and he mostly goes with the flow. I haven't really read any other books quite like it, which is cool. The magic system was interesting.
The author loves onomatopoeia, which grates on a few people apparently. I didn't mind it - it serves as a kind of very compact description and it is absent in nearly all other adult fiction I have read.
I also think this book would be an easy 5 stars for my grandad as he always wanted to be a carpenter when he was younger (and has been something of an amateur carpenter for most of his life), and a good 50% of this book is just woodworking.
It's strange, this book is actually pretty boring but not in a bad way. Things kind of just happen to Lerris, the main protagonist, and he mostly goes with the flow. I haven't really read any other books quite like it, which is cool. The magic system was interesting.
The author loves onomatopoeia, which grates on a few people apparently. I didn't mind it - it serves as a kind of very compact description and it is absent in nearly all other adult fiction I have read.
I also think this book would be an easy 5 stars for my grandad as he always wanted to be a carpenter when he was younger (and has been something of an amateur carpenter for most of his life), and a good 50% of this book is just woodworking.
April 7, 2018
Fun. I'll eventually pick up the rest of the related novels ("series").
The Seasonal Reading Challenge Task 15.4
(This task normally requires two books, but if you can make one book both of the parts, it counts!
Part 1: single author initials (L.E.M.) found in "Acropolis Museum"
Part 2: book title initial letters (TMOR) found in "Metropolitan"
Also, with the MMPB at 501 pp. don't forget that this is a Big Book!
The Seasonal Reading Challenge Task 15.4
(This task normally requires two books, but if you can make one book both of the parts, it counts!
Part 1: single author initials (L.E.M.) found in "Acropolis Museum"
Part 2: book title initial letters (TMOR) found in "Metropolitan"
Also, with the MMPB at 501 pp. don't forget that this is a Big Book!
February 10, 2016
Too much shrugging, too many ellipses, and more importantly, the main character is a lowkey misogynist. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
March 22, 2012
This was an enjoyable read. Nothing spectacular, definitely not five stars for me, but it could have at least been four stars if not for one very annoying component... But more on that later.
The characters - I liked them. Some of the relationships that formed between them seemed a little unbelievable and/or unnatural to me, but it wasn't so bad as to interfere with my enjoyment of the story. The magic system - interesting, I liked the idea of order versus chaos and all of the rules that went with each side. The world was also interesting to me, I found myself wanting to keep reading so that I could learn more about Recluce and unravel the mysteries surrounding it. The plot was sort of so so.. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed reading it.. But for most of the book it just sort of meandered along. The plot was advancing, but I had no idea what it was advancing towards. It only really started coming together and wrapping up in the last third or quarter. But like I said - the ride to get there was interesting, I just would have liked some more hints as to what the overall plot was a little earlier on.
Now back to the annoying component.. The sound effects. What the heck was up with those sound effects? They were so awkward and out of place in the story! Some examples of what I mean...
Thwup, thwup, thwup... thwup, thwup, thwup... The paddles churned, dipping into the water with increasing speed, and a heavier and thicker plume of whitish smoke billowed from the stack.
... clink... clink... clunk... Sweat was pouring from his face, and he was breathing hard.... clink... clunk... Crack!... Whsssttt... "Aiiieee...!" Clank..
Thrummmm... thrumm... Splatt... splattt... The cold raindrops on my head prompted me to complete my recovery of the cloak and to replace the pack behind the saddle.
Seriously.. What is up with that? They are completely unnecessary, annoying, and everywhere. They didn't really show up right away, which is good because I probably would have dropped the book right away if they had. By the time they did show up I was already interested in the story, so I pushed through. But seriously.. They almost ruin the story.
So overall - the story/characters/magic/world in general gets four stars, but I have to take off a star for the sound effects. I will likely read on in the series, but I'm definitely keeping my fingers crossed that the sound effects go away.
The characters - I liked them. Some of the relationships that formed between them seemed a little unbelievable and/or unnatural to me, but it wasn't so bad as to interfere with my enjoyment of the story. The magic system - interesting, I liked the idea of order versus chaos and all of the rules that went with each side. The world was also interesting to me, I found myself wanting to keep reading so that I could learn more about Recluce and unravel the mysteries surrounding it. The plot was sort of so so.. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed reading it.. But for most of the book it just sort of meandered along. The plot was advancing, but I had no idea what it was advancing towards. It only really started coming together and wrapping up in the last third or quarter. But like I said - the ride to get there was interesting, I just would have liked some more hints as to what the overall plot was a little earlier on.
Now back to the annoying component.. The sound effects. What the heck was up with those sound effects? They were so awkward and out of place in the story! Some examples of what I mean...
Thwup, thwup, thwup... thwup, thwup, thwup... The paddles churned, dipping into the water with increasing speed, and a heavier and thicker plume of whitish smoke billowed from the stack.
... clink... clink... clunk... Sweat was pouring from his face, and he was breathing hard.... clink... clunk... Crack!... Whsssttt... "Aiiieee...!" Clank..
Thrummmm... thrumm... Splatt... splattt... The cold raindrops on my head prompted me to complete my recovery of the cloak and to replace the pack behind the saddle.
Seriously.. What is up with that? They are completely unnecessary, annoying, and everywhere. They didn't really show up right away, which is good because I probably would have dropped the book right away if they had. By the time they did show up I was already interested in the story, so I pushed through. But seriously.. They almost ruin the story.
So overall - the story/characters/magic/world in general gets four stars, but I have to take off a star for the sound effects. I will likely read on in the series, but I'm definitely keeping my fingers crossed that the sound effects go away.
June 8, 2017
The first in a series about the battle between two opposing forces: chaos and order. Recluce is a city of almost pure order, where people who compromise that order are exiled. The main character, Lerris, is dissatisfied with never getting straight answers and hopelessly bored. I was reminded a bit of Milo from A Phantom Tollbooth. such a person. But, like any good heroic fantasy, this reluctant, unlikely hero does save the day.
The book started very slowly, until Lerris is sent for training, where Modesitt started the world building. His magic system was unorthodox: black wizards are good and white wizards are evil, for example. Once Lerris got settled, the pacing improved.
The book started very slowly, until Lerris is sent for training, where Modesitt started the world building. His magic system was unorthodox: black wizards are good and white wizards are evil, for example. Once Lerris got settled, the pacing improved.
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