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Spellsinger #8
Chorus Skating
The discovery of errant living notes escaped from an extradimensional symphony leads Spellsinger Jon-Tom and his otter sidekick, Mudge, on a perilous quest to rescue some spoiled princesses, battle a guerrilla gorilla, and match wits with an evil alien band
344 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 1, 1994
40 people are currently reading
703 people want to read
About the author
Alan Dean Foster
499 books2,035 followersBestselling science fiction writer Alan Dean Foster was born in New York City in 1946, but raised mainly in California. He received a B.A. in Political Science from UCLA in 1968, and a M.F.A. in 1969. Foster lives in Arizona with his wife, but he enjoys traveling because it gives him opportunities to meet new people and explore new places and cultures. This interest is carried over to his writing, but with a twist: the new places encountered in his books are likely to be on another planet, and the people may belong to an alien race.
Foster began his career as an author when a letter he sent to Arkham Collection was purchased by the editor and published in the magazine in 1968. His first novel, The Tar-Aiym Krang, introduced the Humanx Commonwealth, a galactic alliance between humans and an insectlike race called Thranx. Several other novels, including the Icerigger trilogy, are also set in the world of the Commonwealth. The Tar-Aiym Krang also marked the first appearance of Flinx, a young man with paranormal abilities, who reappears in other books, including Orphan Star, For Love of Mother-Not, and Flinx in Flux.
Foster has also written The Damned series and the Spellsinger series, which includes The Hour of the Gate, The Moment of the Magician, The Paths of the Perambulator, and Son of Spellsinger, among others. Other books include novelizations of science fiction movies and television shows such as Star Trek, The Black Hole, Starman, Star Wars, and the Alien movies. Splinter of the Mind's Eye, a bestselling novel based on the Star Wars movies, received the Galaxy Award in 1979. The book Cyber Way won the Southwest Book Award for Fiction in 1990. His novel Our Lady of the Machine won him the UPC Award (Spain) in 1993. He also won the Ignotus Award (Spain) in 1994 and the Stannik Award (Russia) in 2000.
Foster began his career as an author when a letter he sent to Arkham Collection was purchased by the editor and published in the magazine in 1968. His first novel, The Tar-Aiym Krang, introduced the Humanx Commonwealth, a galactic alliance between humans and an insectlike race called Thranx. Several other novels, including the Icerigger trilogy, are also set in the world of the Commonwealth. The Tar-Aiym Krang also marked the first appearance of Flinx, a young man with paranormal abilities, who reappears in other books, including Orphan Star, For Love of Mother-Not, and Flinx in Flux.
Foster has also written The Damned series and the Spellsinger series, which includes The Hour of the Gate, The Moment of the Magician, The Paths of the Perambulator, and Son of Spellsinger, among others. Other books include novelizations of science fiction movies and television shows such as Star Trek, The Black Hole, Starman, Star Wars, and the Alien movies. Splinter of the Mind's Eye, a bestselling novel based on the Star Wars movies, received the Galaxy Award in 1979. The book Cyber Way won the Southwest Book Award for Fiction in 1990. His novel Our Lady of the Machine won him the UPC Award (Spain) in 1993. He also won the Ignotus Award (Spain) in 1994 and the Stannik Award (Russia) in 2000.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
April 13, 2017
It's done! I've finished the Spellsinger series! It wasn't a hard series to work through, really they are "easy listening" stories, but it felt like a long time.
It's a return to form after the diversion through the 7th book (Son of Spellsinger), focusing again on the cast of the third 6 stories with a layer of "elderly" creakiness thrown on top. Really though, chronologically the cast can't be older than their early 40s so the frequent comments on dodgy backs, pained knees, and worn out fingers is a little over the top. Foster himself must have been older than that when writing this book, I hope he wasn't feeling his age quite that much!
The story follows the same rambling through the country meeting people and solving their problems motif that has been the series staple since the third book, this time focusing only on one sub-plot. This could have been a problem, but for once the new characters (because, of course, bringing back old characters would be far too dull) aren't all annoying. All of them are interesting, and the majority have a good mix of personality and motivations. It felt a little like he was trying to cram in a few more "tribes"/species to get them off his list, but it was a good variety which added to the plot rather than being entirely fluff.
My biggest gribe is the continuation of the trend towards terrible female characters. Since the midpoint in the series I think Foster went off women, and starting writing awful characters with only two possible guises - the house-proud busybody or the acquisitive wet rag. Even once strong characters from the beginning of the series are not immune, morphing into a totally different person on their reappearance. In this book the problem is multiplied by the number of female characters brought in at once. What Foster was doing, I can't imagine, but he does manage to introduce a new group with a different background to those we've seen before that I became quite attached to. Of course they are all men, since they are well written.
I still don't think I can recommend the Spellsinger books to any particular group, or type of fan. They aren't good fantasy stories, they aren't good adventure stories, and I don't think they are good "anthropamorphic animal" stories (although I'm no expert in that genre). I was able to enjoy them though, and this is one of the better ones for sure. I will miss one or two of the characters - but all the best characters left after their respective book never to be seen again anyway so I'm used to that.
It's a return to form after the diversion through the 7th book (Son of Spellsinger), focusing again on the cast of the third 6 stories with a layer of "elderly" creakiness thrown on top. Really though, chronologically the cast can't be older than their early 40s so the frequent comments on dodgy backs, pained knees, and worn out fingers is a little over the top. Foster himself must have been older than that when writing this book, I hope he wasn't feeling his age quite that much!
The story follows the same rambling through the country meeting people and solving their problems motif that has been the series staple since the third book, this time focusing only on one sub-plot. This could have been a problem, but for once the new characters (because, of course, bringing back old characters would be far too dull) aren't all annoying. All of them are interesting, and the majority have a good mix of personality and motivations. It felt a little like he was trying to cram in a few more "tribes"/species to get them off his list, but it was a good variety which added to the plot rather than being entirely fluff.
My biggest gribe is the continuation of the trend towards terrible female characters. Since the midpoint in the series I think Foster went off women, and starting writing awful characters with only two possible guises - the house-proud busybody or the acquisitive wet rag. Even once strong characters from the beginning of the series are not immune, morphing into a totally different person on their reappearance. In this book the problem is multiplied by the number of female characters brought in at once. What Foster was doing, I can't imagine, but he does manage to introduce a new group with a different background to those we've seen before that I became quite attached to. Of course they are all men, since they are well written.
I still don't think I can recommend the Spellsinger books to any particular group, or type of fan. They aren't good fantasy stories, they aren't good adventure stories, and I don't think they are good "anthropamorphic animal" stories (although I'm no expert in that genre). I was able to enjoy them though, and this is one of the better ones for sure. I will miss one or two of the characters - but all the best characters left after their respective book never to be seen again anyway so I'm used to that.
September 21, 2018
9/20/2018 - 2/10
Unfortunately the final Spellsinger book didn't get any better. It seemed like a bunch of sloppy writing to cash in on a series. There's stupid inconsistencies: in the 6th book Mudge has a lot of kids, but in the 7th it's just twins; in the 7th the female kid is Neena, in the 8th she becomes Noctor? The premise is forced and contrived - Jon-Tom and Mudge are bored, having a midlife crisis, and need to have a "dangerous" quest. This devolves into another series of disjoint adventure stories that just aren't interesting or very readable (telling jokes to escape a maelstrom just seemed like lazy writing). The whole arc with the princesses is pretty damn annoying and sexist ( OMG, no fish sauce...the horror!). Plus the old married guys that are so besotted they can't function around the princesses is pretty creepy. The plot is sloppy too. The premise of chasing some lost music, and Caz just popping up all the time leads to a very underwhelming conclusion with a poorly written antagonist of Hinckel. The only reason this is not a 1/10 is that it wasn't too tough to read and I did complete it without throwing my kindle against the wall.
Unfortunately the final Spellsinger book didn't get any better. It seemed like a bunch of sloppy writing to cash in on a series. There's stupid inconsistencies: in the 6th book Mudge has a lot of kids, but in the 7th it's just twins; in the 7th the female kid is Neena, in the 8th she becomes Noctor? The premise is forced and contrived - Jon-Tom and Mudge are bored, having a midlife crisis, and need to have a "dangerous" quest. This devolves into another series of disjoint adventure stories that just aren't interesting or very readable (telling jokes to escape a maelstrom just seemed like lazy writing). The whole arc with the princesses is pretty damn annoying and sexist ( OMG, no fish sauce...the horror!). Plus the old married guys that are so besotted they can't function around the princesses is pretty creepy. The plot is sloppy too. The premise of chasing some lost music, and Caz just popping up all the time leads to a very underwhelming conclusion with a poorly written antagonist of Hinckel. The only reason this is not a 1/10 is that it wasn't too tough to read and I did complete it without throwing my kindle against the wall.
didnotfinish
June 5, 2020Time of death: page 176. It feels a shame to have read more than half of this, only to give up on it, but I just can't any longer. The basic idea of two older adventurers setting out to help a stray musical phrase was cute. The world was also cute, with its myriad of talking animals. I was having an amusing, if not super stimulating time. However, about the time that the guys rescue some princesses, it quickly went completely downhill. The characters begin to alternate between creepy staring and rampant sexism, and the narrative does nothing to challenge that sexism in any way. I can only take so many "Haha, aren't girls so pretty and stupid?" moments before I give up. Thanks, but no thanks.
April 15, 2020
I kind of burned out on this series many years ago so I never read this book. Then, I started reading some other works by Alan Dean Foster and this one kept popping up. Finally, I decided to give it a try. It was an amusing read. I've always loved the character Mudge and he really didn't disappoint. Jon-Tom however is still a bumbling failure who usually saves the day with bad luck rather than good. I had hoped he would have progressed somewhat by now. I gave it 4 stars because it did entertain.
June 4, 2022
This book was the last of the series of the spellsinger, The characters were likable and well done but the story had that traveling feel that the lord of the rings had that when overdone led to such critical satires as Bored of the rings filled with pages of, "And they walked and walked and walked ect." though the book was really not that bad it still felt like an old person holding your arm while finishing the story they were making you listen to. Yet I would still have to say compared to many stories I have endured this was still a good read.
November 5, 2017
Much better than the previous book about the children's adventure. It was easy reading and I would recommend to anyone who wanted to wrap up the series.
It is pretty weird to read a couple of books in the series decades after I read the first 5 or 6... At times though, I was reminded of my reading the earlier books in the 1980s.
It was about what I expected.
It is pretty weird to read a couple of books in the series decades after I read the first 5 or 6... At times though, I was reminded of my reading the earlier books in the 1980s.
It was about what I expected.
June 13, 2019
This one went back to the original formula with Jon-Tom and Mudge going adventuring. A welcome return and much preferred to the last book with their children. I loved this one not only for the preferred characters but for the humor: I laughed out loud several times, especially in the end few chapters. Read it for that or read it for the musical references. But do read it. Recommended.
April 24, 2024
There was a certain enjoyability in going back to a familiar world and characters - but part of the charm of the spellsinger series was the use of 'real world' songs in a fantasy world, and the ensuing unpredictable results and this is missing from this volume.
July 9, 2024
Jon Tom is bored, and encouraged by his mentor Clothahump he sets out to solve a small mystery of a musical apparition that wants someone to follow it. This adventure gradually grows until a real problem needing the spellsinger is revealed. A fine adventure is had by all - good reading!
August 4, 2017
A nice conclusion.
August 5, 2018
Outstanding as are all Alan Dean Foster books. I have started !
my son reading this and other of Fosters series. I hope he enjoys them as much as I have. Keep writing.
my son reading this and other of Fosters series. I hope he enjoys them as much as I have. Keep writing.
January 16, 2020
Follow the music, few lost chords. Scary evil. Mudge dances in happy youth, brings smiles. Insectoid scientist appears sporadically.
Typo: c17 p25 Kludge is Mudge
Typo: c17 p25 Kludge is Mudge
December 9, 2021
This series wasn't too good to begin with, but by the end of it just becomes too bad. I had to drag myself through books 7 and 8, those are not interesting at all. I'm glad I'm finally finished with them.
[upd.] I realised one of the worst things about this book for me was the casual violence. All those "and (s)he went around cutting throats of the unconscious guards" type of sentences really got to me. It was too dismissive of thee act. Another bad thing that annoyed me was Jon-Tom's "white saviour complex". Dude, just fucking chill.
The only thing that made me finish the series at all was the fact it was a Graphic Audio production. Which is QUALITY.
[upd.] I realised one of the worst things about this book for me was the casual violence. All those "and (s)he went around cutting throats of the unconscious guards" type of sentences really got to me. It was too dismissive of thee act. Another bad thing that annoyed me was Jon-Tom's "white saviour complex". Dude, just fucking chill.
The only thing that made me finish the series at all was the fact it was a Graphic Audio production. Which is QUALITY.
November 10, 2019
Alan Dean Foster’s final Spellsinger story opens with Flagyr the badger and his friend Invez the serval hearing a musical phenomenon, which is visible. Meanwhile, human spellsinger Jon-Tom and his otter friend Mudge are fishing while their wives are away, with their efforts at housekeeping largely being a mess. One of the cleaning sprites, Fugwheez, stands out, with Jon-Tom, desperate for a new adventure, visiting the turtle wizard Clothahump, who tells them of the wizard holiday Crixxas and the mentioned visible music, to which the spellsinger and his lutrine companion give chase.
The two encounter things such as intelligent paperwork and toll-takers Phembloch the ratal and Tack the shrew, who receive a more fanciful gate to defend through spellsong. Jon-Tom and Mudge soon meet the mongoose Lieutenant Naike, who seeks his country’s missing princess, the travelers agreeing to help. The grizzly bear Manzai holds several princesses hostage, with the company rescuing them and continuing on their way in chase of the fleeing music. The company eventually find a swamp buggy from Earth that conveys them across Karrakas. At the fishing village of Mashupro, they hear of a plague killing music, and incidents cause them to flee.
Afterward, the wayfarers endure a storm on the new craft for which they trade, although almost immediately after they escape it, they encounter an intelligent whirlpool that takes kindly to jokes. On one of the many islands they visit, they find a band from Earth that briefly tags along, after which they meet the main villain, Hieronymus Hinckel, a battle with him concluding the novel. Overall, this is an enjoyable conclusion to the Spellsinger saga, although many readers won’t get the musical references, and as with its predecessors the eighth entry references technology that didn’t exist when Jon-Tom first entered the novels’ world.
The two encounter things such as intelligent paperwork and toll-takers Phembloch the ratal and Tack the shrew, who receive a more fanciful gate to defend through spellsong. Jon-Tom and Mudge soon meet the mongoose Lieutenant Naike, who seeks his country’s missing princess, the travelers agreeing to help. The grizzly bear Manzai holds several princesses hostage, with the company rescuing them and continuing on their way in chase of the fleeing music. The company eventually find a swamp buggy from Earth that conveys them across Karrakas. At the fishing village of Mashupro, they hear of a plague killing music, and incidents cause them to flee.
Afterward, the wayfarers endure a storm on the new craft for which they trade, although almost immediately after they escape it, they encounter an intelligent whirlpool that takes kindly to jokes. On one of the many islands they visit, they find a band from Earth that briefly tags along, after which they meet the main villain, Hieronymus Hinckel, a battle with him concluding the novel. Overall, this is an enjoyable conclusion to the Spellsinger saga, although many readers won’t get the musical references, and as with its predecessors the eighth entry references technology that didn’t exist when Jon-Tom first entered the novels’ world.
November 14, 2014
The title pretty much illustrates the type of humour in this book, puns of all sorts. I hadn't read anything else by this author so it took me a while to realise that the world in this series is a world of animals and magic can be worked through music. The magician behind the duar (guitar), however is a sometime law student, sometime rock musician, from San Francisco who arrived by accident in the first book of the series. He takes songs he knows from the world of rock & pop, twists the words to suit the situation and sings it. He's a little erratic, however, so he can't guarantee the results, as his friend the otter is forever reminding him. The two friends set out to help a phrase of music find its composition because they are bored with inaction, but the pleasant summer trip is interrupted by the need to rescue a group of princesses from a collector who has them caged in his country house. They have everything they could want except the right to leave and that's the one thing they do want: the bonobo princess, the otter princess, the mountain gorilla princess, the ocelot princess, etc. It's full of puns, rock songs, animal jokes and magic. Lots of fun. (There's even the "Badges? We don't need no stinkin' badges!" adapted perfectly to the narration and I will never forget the pin stripe suited owl and his brief case full of bureaucratic bumpf.)
February 5, 2016
This was a pretty good send-off to the Spellsinger series. Jon-Tom and Mudge are thankfully back to being the protagonists, and we're back to rock and roll rather than rap as the basis for the magic. There's definitely a big theme of aging and ending here, as the plot is sparked by Jon-Tom having a bit of a midlife crisis. He realizes that he's wasting his talents on housework rather than going on adventures like he used to. He and Mudge thus go chasing after a cloud of lost music in what at first seems a small adventure, but turns out to be a pretty big deal - magic is disappearing all over the world, and only they can stop it. Along the way, there's the usual wacky characters and adventures, including death by bureaucratic owl and a maelstrom with a sense of humor. The threat to the world doesn't become apparent until a bit more than halfway through, but there's enough wackiness and fun that I was kept entertained the whole time. It was nice to see Jon-Tom and Mudge going on one last adventure, and I was pretty pleased to see that the cover of the paperback edition actually is relevant. All in all, I've had a lot of fun reading the Spellsinger series, and while I'm a bit disappointed that this is the last one, it's a pretty good note to end on.
February 21, 2016
Erm. Well. having just found out there even was an 8th volume in this series that I read and loved when I was a teenager. This was really just a crushing disappointment. I'm sort of shelving my plan to re-read the first 6 in the series.
(Let us just forget the monstrosity that is Son Of Spellsinger even exists.)
So... maybe the original books were decent, and the last two were just shite... But, yeah, I think I will leave my happy memories in the past, and not risk spoiling them.
(Let us just forget the monstrosity that is Son Of Spellsinger even exists.)
So... maybe the original books were decent, and the last two were just shite... But, yeah, I think I will leave my happy memories in the past, and not risk spoiling them.
February 16, 2012
Not one of his better books but still engaging.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews