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Terry is Currently Reading

Terry is currently reading

Return to the Whorl

by Gene Wolfe

bookshelves: fantasy, sci-fi, currently-reading

Reading for the 4th time

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Terry said: " 2023 re-read thoughts:

(4.5 stars?) In retrospect it’s strange that I’ve never realized that as far as my reading goes it does not appear that Gene Wolfe has ever written what I would call a happy story. Certainly, I wouldn’t have characterized him as 2023 re-read thoughts:

(4.5 stars?) In retrospect it’s strange that I’ve never realized that as far as my reading goes it does not appear that Gene Wolfe has ever written what I would call a happy story. Certainly, I wouldn’t have characterized him as a writer of cheerful tales, but it never struck me just how downbeat his stories tend to be. Even with that said, however, I think this one may be the most melancholy one that I have read. The story is heavily woven with a sense of regret and failure even in the midst of apparent victory. Our narrator seems to have been doomed from the start and even his actual success, strange and apparently unperceived by himself as it is, leads to the ultimate loss of his own identity (view spoiler). The merging of personalities, which is such an obsession of Wolfe’s, and which we have seen in such a comparatively straightforward (one might almost say cavalier) manner in the life of Severian, is here portrayed in a much more complex manner. There’s really no mystery about who the main character(s) are, but they way they bob and weave in and out of the narrative voice (though I would argue one is definitely predominant) keeps the reader guessing about many details.

I’ve tended to think of the connections between the Long and Short Sun books with those of the New Sun as rather tenuous (though undoubtedly extant), but they really dovetail in this final volume (even if it is still concentrated in only a few chapters at the book’s conclusion) and the ouroboric nature of the cycle almost leads me back to begin once again that difficult journey with the young torturer Severian.

Ultimately, this one kinda hits like a ton of bricks, especially as events rush to their ultimate (a word I am leery to use in relation to a Wolfe story) conclusion. Wolfe doesn’t go easy on his characters and it is certainly more than simply torture porn devised by the likes of GRR Martin. Wolfe’s characters are put through the wringer physically, emotionally, and mentally to such an extent, and even in ways that call into question their very identity, that it can be somewhat harrowing, but it all leads to somewhere believable and even possibly inevitable (and dare I say salvific?). To say that his protagonist(s) are changed by the experiences they undergo is an understatement. Oreb may cry “Poor Silk!”, but I can’t help countering with my own: “Poor Horn!”

They say beware of meeting your heroes. In some cases, it appears, the experience may just kill you.

Original review:

Well, I think this one took me longer than any of the others in my year of (re)reading Gene Wolfe. I have to admit that my enthusiasm was waning when I finally got to this volume, but having made it through all of the previous eleven volumes of the solar cycle I couldn’t let flagging interest stop me from completing the series. I think this book is better than my slow track record in finishing it would imply and that it actually might be the best of the three volumes of the Short Sun series, but I don’t know that I can fully express why, or say that on this reading I fully appreciated that. I left the book feeling as though I ought to read it again when it doesn’t feel like the end of a marathon and perhaps see it with fresher, and more balanced, eyes.

We finally get some resolutions to the myriad mysteries that have been surrounding our narrator, and his identity, and he finally manages to end his odyssean wanderings and return home to New Viron, perhaps having achieved everything he had promised, even if he doesn’t believe this to be the case. Of course Gene Wolfe is never straightforward, even when he is presenting resolutions, and so we have some new complications to deal with. To add to the time and place jumps that have kept even the attentive reader on his/her toes throughout these volumes we now have the additional issue of new narrators being introduced, sometimes in ways that are not immediately obvious aside from a subtle shift in pronouns. This obviously calls into question the ‘truth’ of the story being told in these sections as they are apparently not coming directly from the (admittedly confused) person directly experiencing them. How can we take anything we find here at face value? Oh Gene Wolfe, you tricky, tricky fellow!

As far as plot goes we have some further repetitions of the cycle of revolution and reform in the settlements that Silkhorn (the spoilerific name usually given to our erstwhile narrator by Wolfe fans on the interwebs…but if you’ve read this far this identity reveal shouldn’t be a spoiler for you) visits, this time the town of Dorp where he is held for trial by a cabal of corrupt judges that have been squeezing the town for their own benefit and are due for some Patera Silk-style justice. We also see Silkhorn continuing to wrestle with the implications of the symbiotic relationship that exists between the humans on Blue and the Inhumi that prey upon them. These elements of the corrupt nature of the human settlements on Blue and the true nature of the Inhumi are subtly intertwined and speak to Wolfe’s examination of the foundations of human nature and the problem of good and evil. Add to this the constant ruminations on the nature of godhood, the role that gods (both ‘real’ and not-so-real) play in human society & morality, and the whole mess of politics, religion, and ethics that all of this drags up and you have a very complex and weighty story.

Ultimately I came away from this book most noticebly with a sense of sadness. There is such an air of strange tragedy around the story of Patera Silk (in both the Long Sun and Short Sun books), and of Horn whose life becomes inextricably intertwined with that of his hero...to his own doom. This set of books is perhaps, then, more than anything a rumination on the pitfalls of the role of ‘hero’, especially when that role involves both a moral and a political angle. Patera Silk, as we know from the first lines of the Long Sun series, was enlightened on the ball court and granted something few humans can boast of, an intimate connection with the Divine. Yet this turns out to be as much (or more?) a curse as a blessing. Silk’s insight into the true nature of reality, and humanity’s inability to live up to it, tied with his inherent love and pity for those around him, leave Silk in a tragic place of near-despair for much of his life. And what of Horn, the boy then man who idolized this figure as a hero and, in his attempts to emulate him and bring salvation to his world, ends up losing himself? Perhaps, given Wolfe’s well-known position as a Catholic writer, he has simply expressed the biblical statement of Jesus that “He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.” (Matthew 10:39) Is it then perhaps a comedy (in the classic sense) and not a tragedy? I guess that depends ultimately on your point of view.

Overall I’d have to say that I’ve come away from the solar cycle with the impression that the Long Sun-Short Sun parts (which really need to be read together to fully appreciate them) are perhaps the most complex, nuanced, and deep-delving books of the series, but I side with the apparent consensus that the New Sun part of the cycle is really Wolfe’s masterwork and is, in some ways at least, more satisfying. Both 'sets', though, definitely leave you with a lot to chew on after you've closed the final pages. ...more "

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(page 305 of 416)
— 22 hours, 11 min ago

Nov 21, 2023 06:56AM · see review

Terry is currently reading

Algernon Blackwood Horror Stories (Gothic & Fantasy)

by Algernon Blackwood

bookshelves: currently-reading, fantasy, horror, occult, short-stories

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— Jun 14, 2026 01:24PM

Jun 09, 2026 04:26AM

Terry is currently reading

Clouds End

by Sean Stewart (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: fantasy, canadian, currently-reading

Reading for the 3rd time

read in January 2011

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Terry said: " 2018 re-read thoughts:First off I should perhaps state that I don’t fundamentally disagree with anything I said in my original review of _Clouds End_ ,except for perhaps one point, and I feel that this book deserves a four star rating, not my origina 2018 re-read thoughts:First off I should perhaps state that I don’t fundamentally disagree with anything I said in my original review of _Clouds End_ ,except for perhaps one point, and I feel that this book deserves a four star rating, not my original 3 which was a bit stingy all things considered.

I’ve probably said it in every Sean Stewart review I’ve done before and I’ll say it once again because it needs saying: it’s a damn shame that Sean Stewart isn’t writing novels anymore. He is, without a doubt, one of the best authors I’ve ever had the privilege of reading. He excels from nearly every angle I view his work whether it be craft, characterization, or the realization of a ‘real’ fictional world. He is an incredible stylist who somehow manages to create writing that is poetic without being flowery; stylistic without being ornate or overwrought. His deft hand with characters allows him, with only a few broad strokes, to create even minor characters that seem to breathe with life and personality. All of Stewart’s characters are real people whose lives are as complex and difficult as our own. Their ‘reality’ is as fraught with pain, anger, joy, and sadness as any I have seen in the real world so that even when they only appear for a few moments or pages, a minor piece of ‘set dressing’ in any other author’s hands, all of his characters provide his vivid worlds with realistic anchors amidst the often wild and amorphous magic that surrounds them. And magic? No one writes magic as convincingly as Stewart. He has a way of expressing the wonder, awe, and pure danger that comes about when the numinous intrudes into the mundane world that I’ve never seen equaled. What is that line from C. S. Lewis in regards to Aslan? “He’s wild, you know. Not like a tame lion.” Well Stewart’s magic is just as wild and even more convincing.

I will forego giving any kind of description of the story and characters here, you can find that in my original review linked above, instead I’d like to discuss my major complaint from the aforementioned review: namely that Stewart was less than fully successful in his attempt to create a truly epic fantasy. Well, from a conventional perspective I still think this is mostly true. The climax or resolution of the main conflict, the war between the Islanders and the Woodlanders, seems too easy, too quickly resolved, but my re-read has prompted me to consider that perhaps this is because it is not the true conflict of the story after all. The real struggle is the one between Brook and Jo after the twinning at the beginning of the novel and all else is merely (is that too strong a word?) a pretext for this to play out. The ‘great war’ that is a backdrop is really just a reiteration of the conflict between magic and the mundane that lies at the heart of Brook and Jo’s story. Now, does this perhaps still mean that the tale is a little less than ‘epic’? Perhaps, but perhaps it would be more fair to say that the ‘epic’ has to be qualified. It is the epic that lives in the contrast between the ‘great’ events of the world at large and everyday life, or as Stewart says himself in the book: “Great fires fall to ash, and great stories turn to small ones.” The great can be a mirror of the small just as easily as the other way around and the two types of story intermingle and grow from each other in a symbiotic way as Stewart implies in the book when he speaks of leaf stories on the one hand and root on the other: the Mist-time tales of great magic and adventure that blaze into life like autumn leaves and demand our attention, as well as the ‘real’-time stories of our mundane lives which are more boring perhaps, but also more solid and the very things that nourish and produce the other type.

In the end I think one could still argue that Stewart did at least ‘side-step’ the epic in this tale if not fully miss it, but I am more inclined to be sympathetic, especially given how excellent the story is overall, and knowing that I am not likely to get any new ones from this master again.

Original review: I love Sean Stewart and I wish he hadn't given up on writing fantasy. His books are always a treat and pay back tenfold the effort put into them by the reader. _Clouds End_ was Stewart's "pure fantasy" novel, not the mixed urban fantasy with science fictional elements type of story that the majority of his works seem to fall into. I have to admit that the first time I tried to read this book I didn't like it. I still think that Stewart wasn't fully successful in realizing what he was attempting , but this novel still has some of Stewart's best writing, character development, and a truly marvellous vision of a magical world.

Stewart has said that he wanted to write an epic fantasy in the mould of Tolkien, but from his own agnostic perspective as opposed to the religiously infused one of Tolkien. The world he creates is truly magical. We start out on the island of Clouds End, a place that exists on the very edge of the magical otherworld known as the Mist. The Mist is the place from which mankind draws their myths and stories, both good and evil, and seems to interact with the human psyche in some sort of symbiotic way, bringing to life the unconscious dreams of those on its periphery. In this sense it is something like Ryhope Wood as seen in Robert Holdstock's classic _Mythago Wood_, though it seems to be creating the world around it in a much more concrete fashion even as it participates in the generation of myths and heroes; for the Mist produces gods and powers, giving physical substance to the folk heroes and villians of mankind. It also changes any humans who enter its depths, making them into Haunts, something akin to the preternatural fae of our more traditional mythologies. We see examples of the former in the world changing figures of the Gull Warrior and Sere, one apparently a folk hero of the island dwellers, the other a trickster god of fire and chaos; the latter comes directly into the story in the form of Jo, a human who had entered the Mist and became a shapeshifter who now longs to regain a human soul.

The main characters are a group of four young friends, all inhabitants of Clouds End, who are drawn into a quest when one of their number, Brook, is "twinned" by Jo and is now mystically bound to her. They decide to follow Jo in her quest to the mainland and become embroiled in a war undertaken by the Emperor of a far land under the malign influence of the fire-god Sere. As usual with Stewart each of these characters are fully realized and interesting people, from the uncertain and apprehensive Brook and solid and dependable Rope, to the adventure seeking and rash Shale and the mercurial and love-lorn Foam. As well, true to form, Stewart's depiction of magic is spot-on. Magic is seen as a numinous and capricious force that touches human lives in unexpected and usually dangerous ways. This is not simply science by another name, it is the unknown and the unknowable taking part in our everyday lives; our dreams and nightmares come to life.

The story is full of exceptional scenes and characters and I found it a joy to read simply for the sake of Stewart's prose, but I have to admit that I don't think it ultimately worked as an example of epic fantasy. The supposed reason for the overall quest, the war being waged by the empire of the forest dwellers against the islanders, seems to peter out without really requiring any intervention on the part of the main characters. It is actually their individual stories that hold more interest, and follow much more reasonable arcs, than the supposed meta-plot of the novel and I think Stewart would have been better served to have simply told their stories without attempting to force them into the context of an 'epic fantasy quest'. Still, I think Stewart has written a worthy book in _Clouds End_ and it is exceptional both for its similarities to his other work and, perhaps moreso, because of its differences.

Also posted at Shelf Inflicted ...more "

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(page 117 of 360)
— Mar 27, 2026 06:37PM

Mar 24, 2026 10:19AM · see review

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Terry ’s Quotes

“And he at once determined on going to find Gilbert, who was residing at Versailles, but who, without having revisited the queen after the journey of the king to Paris, had become the right hand of Necker, who had been reappointed minister, and was endeavoring to organize prosperity by generalizing poverty.”
― Alexandre Dumas, Ange Pitou, Volume 2

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“But you, by the grace of an ordeal in the night which stripped you of all that was not intrinsic, you discovered a mysterious creature born of yourself. Great was this creature, and never shall you forget him. And he is yourself.”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

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“Looking at them words going down on this paper right this minim I know there aint no such thing there aint no only my self you all ways have every 1 and every thing on your back.”
― Russell Hoban, Riddley Walker

tags: interdependence

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“Message reads: 'Houston, be advised: Rich Purnell is a steely-eyed missile man.”
― Andy Weir, The Martian

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“Let teachers and priests and philosophers brood over questions of reality and illusion. I know this: if life is illusion, then I am no less an illusion, and being thus, the illusion is real to me. I live, I burn with life, I love, I slay, and am content.”
― Robert E. Howard, Queen of the Black Coast: Robert E. Howard's Saga of Conan the Barbarian

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