F/SF

Egads, this was a terrible book. I found and enjoyed the first four books in this series in the library my late teens, just before the last four were released...so I somehow missed all the interim books. If they're all like this no wonder.

The half-fantasy, half sci-fi premise works when it's in a pseudo-medieval setting, but the space stations and planetary colonies that Stasheff imagines are pretty lame in closeup, and the fact that he over explains every little thing doesn't help. Seriously--half of this book could disappear and it would STILL be too wordy and boring.

The new characters are one dimensional, the characters we know are boorish, uninteresting and inconsistent by turns and I miss the presence of the Gallowglass kids.

There's a plot and a very labored set up for all of this, but I'll skip explaining it here because if you've gotten far enough into the series to be on this book, you already know it. And if you haven't--then don't read this book! Go back and start with The Warlock In Spite of Himself, which is interesting and far better written than this. ( )

Warlock Roderick Gallowglass and his wife and witch Gwendylon need to go out on a date. Having 4 talented children cramps you a bit at home. It's supposed to be a romantic ride through to a magical pool in the woods, but when they get there, they get caught in a time vortex and wind up on another planet and can't get home. At least they are together, but it's not going to be so easy to get home.

I'm glad I read this one after Escape Velocity, as you meet up with many of the same characters and worlds. I would suggest if you are reading this series, to save that one to read before or after this. It is a prequel, but it makes more sense to read it around the same time as this one. Otherwise it will just confuse you. ( )

This reread was triggered by reading The Warlock's Companion, so I'm focusing on the history parts. I know that I liked this book when I read it in sequence with the other Warlock books because it (somewhat) breaks the formula - the quest is...just a bit different. So - Rod and Gwen get kidnapped by their time-traveling enemies, and dumped out...on Wolmar, shortly after Dar and Sam leave. One odd thing, reading this right after Escape Velocity - the society Rod and Gwen encounter is a lot more fragile and rather nastier (and somewhat more complex) than that depicted in Escape Velocity - four tribes of Wolmen rather than one, soldiers being sloppy, attacks on women. Probably more realistic, but odd because the earlier depiction seemed a lot more advanced. Whatever. Plots pile on plots, intending destruction to Rod and Gwen (and preferably, to the society building on Wolmar as well) and, of course, being defeated. They get off Wolmar and go to Otranto, a pleasure planet; there they pick up Whitey and a few more (nice to see Whitey and Stroganoff again) and defeat more plots, intentionally and accidentally. Gwen demonstrates an immense capacity for instant learning and the practical applications of same. There's a stop on Maxima which isn't depicted (I want to know if Rod figured out he's descended from Tod Tambourin!), then more or less the same on Terra. Some interesting atmospherics, Gwen being even more spectacular (and Rod having a hard time with it), and they get away. They return home and Rod finally admits his problems with Gwen's new abilities, and she manages (I think) to convince him it isn't a problem. Rod's lack of self-esteem is a perennial problem throughout this series; this is a new manifestation, but annoying. And the final scene brings them back to their home where they discover that their children have been up to a considerable lot while the two of them were gone - read The Warlock is Missing to find out exactly what! The book is still somewhat preachy on the subject of education and democracy, coincidence plays a lot of major parts, and the sequence of events is often quite silly - it's still fun to read, though. Not often, but every once in a while. ( )

I'm mixed on this book. The first half to three quarters was very blah to me. Rod and Gwen are assaulted, subdued and tossed into a time/space machine where they are dumped on Wolmar a couple of years after the events of Escape Velocity. The events on Wolmar were fine - nothing terribly exciting or interesting. Although the exchange between Shackler and Gwen was somewhat amusing.

For my money, things start to get interesting when the gang returns to Terra. You know how I was a big fan of the whole righteous anger that we found in The Warlock Enraged? Well this is better. Because it's Gwen. She goes all fired up and basically blows through the Terran HQ. I really enjoyed that part.

So we had a little bantering - mostly with Yorick who I liked a lot better in this story than I did in King Kobold Revived. We run into Cholly, Shackler and Whitey/Tom from Escape Velocity again which was nice. I enjoyed that. Overall, though, we didn't have enough playful dialog.

As far as social commentary goes, this one focuses quite a bit on eduction, particularly educating the masses without them necessarily knowing that they're being educated. There was a little more about mass media making those who consumed it zombies and more susceptible to the commands of authority.. But that was about it.

All in all, slow to start but enjoyable at the end.

Read 7/2007 ( )