A Wizard in War

Rogue Wizard #4

by Christopher Stasheff

The medieval planet of Maltroit seems to be repeating Earth's bloody history in the worst possible manner. It's up to the Rogue Wizard to give the downtrodden a crash course in democracy, so before you can say "Magna Carta," he's bent the course of history by teaching the nobles the rudiments of democracy, and schooling the peasants in the basics of radical politics.

Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Fiction, Wizards, Science Fiction Fantasy

224 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1995

About the author

The late Christopher Stasheff was an American science fiction and fantasy author. When teaching proved too real, he gave it up in favor of writing full-time. Stasheff was noted for his blending of science fiction and fantasy, as seen in his Warlock series. He spent his early childhood in Mount Vernon, New York, but spent the rest of his formative years in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Stasheff taught at the University of Eastern New Mexico in Portales, before retiring to Champaign, Illinois, in 2009. He had a wife and four children.

Reviews

[Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gar (known to his family and friends like us as Magnus, heir to Graymayre's head warlock) and his new sidekick Dirk (from Bedlam, the previous volume) find a new planet upon which to sew rebellion from oppression and freedom for the common people... It's a fun story, a fairly representational volume of the series with nothing in particular standing out. Stasheff was a master of clever, formal dialog while illustrating or satirizing political situations. His style was at home in fantasy and science fiction scenarios equally, and he blended the genres most capably.

[Kurtbg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gar and Dirk continue their campaign of toppling subversive governments by starting a whisper campaign to instill democracy and accountability and obligations between king, to lords, and serfs.


No government can be expected to stay intact, viable, and legitimate without accountability and vigilance.

Every generation has to fight for freedom, as all political systems are always under attack by profiteers, and the power hungry.

[Roger Hillman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tale with a (not very) hidden message.

A solid yarn that strings together the key elements of an engaging story with Stasheff’s continuing themes of respect for learning, literature and a life lived well. May not be everyone’s cup of tea, particularly if you favour cannon fodder and mindless slaughter. Don’t be fooled by the title, this book argues that peace is better than war, and in everyone’s best interest, but we have to be willing to take a constant stand together to achieve it.

[R J Royer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It was amazing fun to see what happened to the people that our otherworldly friends decided to help and the people they helped where pretty smart as well. The style and writing are amazing as well.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

[3.5*]

[Nathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kept me quite intrigued to see how the revolution would occur.

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

So it would appear that Magnus/Gar has taken on a sidekick. Of course, we knew that was coming at the end of A Wizard in Bedlam. Gar keeps Dirk and together they seem to be the ultimate, unbeatable tag team. The injuries they take in full-on medieval battle are naught but flesh wounds, the ladies all want to seduce either of the gentlemen, and they seem to have already established inside jokes (which the reader can guess at if they have read A Wizard in Bedlam).

True to the pattern I identified in my review of A WIZARD IN BEDLAM, as this is an even numbered novel, Magnus/Gar is back to abstaining from using his mental powers ... which is just as well.

So, why the three stars? Well, this didn't feel like a fresh plot. This felt like the re-imagining of A Wizard in Bedlam given different conditions: the lack of an established resistance network (though the same rules were put in to play once our fateful heroes established one), the lack of Magnus/Gar's mental powers, and the early trust put in our daring duo from the aristocracy so that they were in a different location from the start. Also, the book felt shorter. Not only was I reading the same story a second time, but it went by so quickly as to not even leave me with a twinge of book hangover. Unacceptable!

I will read on through the series and won't let this book deter me, but I do believe that it is skip-able to anyone else wishing to read through the series.

[Frank Taranto · Rating 2 out of 5]

The rogue Wizard visits aother planet.