The Burning Stone

Mages of Garillon #1

by Deborah Turner Harris

Book

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Magic

320 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

About the author

Deborah Turner Harris (born 1951 in Pennsylvania), is an American fantasy author, best known for her collaborations with Katherine Kurtz. She lives in Scotland and is married to Scottish author Robert J. Harris.

Reviews

[LAURENCE O GORMAN · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very enjoyable read. I am now on the 2nd book in the trilogy and it's very good too. I got Deborah Turner Harris books as I think the Adept books written with Katherine Kurtz are some of the best books I have ever read, and I am enjoying the Mages of Garrillon a lot. Does anybody know if there are any new books in the pipeline from Deborah or any new Adept books planned? I hope both will be forthcomg. The Mages of Garrillon and The Adept books definitely recommended.

[Brian Durfee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved loved loved these books when I was a teenager! Alas I lost my copies and they are all out of print now.b

[Lizzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is with a touch of sadness that I've finally read this book, as my mum lent it to me a couple of years ago and kept reminding me of her recommendation, but I didn't get around to reading it before she died a couple of months ago.

It is a lot of fun, shorter than usual (300 pages) for epic fantasy, with short chapters and lots of POVs although the story revolves mainly around a few compelling, likeable young characters. I will say though that the head hopping can be a bit jarring, and although I usually prefer shorter chapters, I think immersion would have been a bit easier if they were longer, slower moving chapters in a single POV each, and perhaps less POVs too. I also never felt quite settled or up to speed in terms of the magic and society in this world, either, it kinda hits the ground running and doesn't really take enough time to explain things, although that is also a benefit (no infodumping).

I am hoping we have more of Morgath in the rest of the trilogy compared to this one. I loved her straight away from ch1 but then we don't get to see much more of her until towards the end. I have found book 2 secondhand cheap on eBay (the trilogy is out of print) and am looking forward to reading it when it arrives.

[Dylan Reay · Rating 3 out of 5]

This has good prose and dialogue. It minded me of GoT quite a bit at times. I didn't fly through it but it does have a good sense of the world it wants to create. Some of the names are a bit long - I enjoyed it though.

[Aerine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, the back of the book pretty much says it: Barely gives the readers time to stop and take a breath!
Warning, DO NOT READ without having the other two close to hand.
You get very emotionally involved with the characters, and it is very hard to put the book down because, it is as if reading, you can prevent them from getting into more trouble. Definitely a page turner.

[Stuart Schneider · Rating 4 out of 5]

While this book is being read about almost 40 years after I purchased it, it takes me back to the old days of fantasy, where the minutae details of everything were not as important as the storyline and the details of the plot itself. This was easy to keep track of names, places, events and such. I was able to guess at the real mystery as soon as the wand was used to trace a person (the question of why at the inn will obviously be answered in the next installment) but I enjoyed the storyline and look forward to the next installment.

[Solim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Surprisingly good! Nice twist as well!

[TheWearyWanderer · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[Brett · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fantasy

[★ gwiz ★ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I had pulled the series off my bookshelf and read this excellent series much earlier than I had.

[Jazz Feylynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I had pulled the series off my bookshelf and read this excellent series much earlier than I had. I will be rereading it in the future.

[Reforming · Rating 3 out of 5]

Decent YA novel. First in a trilogy.