Customer Reviews

Dark Castle, White Horse

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Dark Castle, White Horse is actually an omnibus edition of two unrelated YA fantasies by the versatile Tanith Lee.

Castle of Dark is a rather dark fantasy dealing with the mysterious curse of Lilune, a girl who has had practically no experience of the outside world due to her confinement by two hags and her strange inability to stand sunlight. When she escapes with the aid of the harper Lir, all sorts of strange incidents happen in her wake. Overall, quite enjoyable, though I would have liked a bit more sympathetic heroine.

Prince on a White Horse is an almost frivolously light fantasy offering from Lee that reminded me quite strongly at bits of The Phantom Tollbooth. There's an odd cast of idiosyncratic characters including three types of vicious animals (Buzzles, Beezles and Bezzles), a prince who can't remember his name or purpose, three moons (none of which are round) and a wise talking white horse that continuously insists that horses don't talk. It's a quest type adventure to rid the world of the menace Nulgrave, of whom everyone is afraid though they don't know why. I liked this better than Castle of Dark; it was just more fun to read.

All in all, quite a worthy 2-in-1 book. If you can find it and like Tanith Lee's YA fantasy, Dark Castle, White Horse should be thoroughly enjoyable.

This is actually a combination of two short novels, most likely YA novels.

"The Castle of Dark" gives you all the elements of a Tanith Lee classic. You have an amoral heroine, dark forces and prophecies. The hero harpist who falls for the heroine is an interesting touch, most likely for the YA audience, but he's a rather likeable sort. The fact that the heroine is possessed by a weird demon thing (which is WHY she's being imprisoned in the castle you idiot harpist, so don't free her!) makes for some fun reading. And unlike her more adult fare of the same ilk - Vivia or Darkness, 1: 3rd in the Blood Opera Sequence - Tanith Lee manages to give a happy ending.

"Prince on a White Horse" on the other hand is just a fun little romp. The prince doesn't know who he is. The horse keeps directing him all the while insisting that he's not talking to a horse. Ladies come up to him to warn him of dark forbidding evils and he plans on steering clear only he keeps going anyhow. It's no Terry Pratchett but it's no Piers Anthony either. ANd either way it's short so you get the humor and that's it.

Great little book. Definitely should buy it for the prices Amazon is now offering. Not her best, but for from her worst.