Legends Vol. 3 (Legends: Stories by the Masters of Fantasy) [Abridged, Audiobook, Unabridged] [Audio Cassette]

Robert Silverberg (Author), Sam Tsoutsouvas (Reader), Frank Muller (Reader), Kathryn Walker (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 27, 1999 | Series: Legends: Stories by the Masters of Fantasy (Book 3)

Legends, the landmark series of unabridged fantasy audio, continues with this latest collection of the genre's most popular authors, spinning all-new adventures set in the fantastic worlds they created in their best-selling series.

In this astonishing third volume, Terry Goodkind's “Debt of Bones,” tells of the origin of the border between the warring realms in his The Sword of Truth series. Ursula K. Le Guin, in a sequel to her famous books of Earthsea, portrays a woman who wants to learn the divine secrets of magic in “Dragonfly.”And Tad Williams tells a dark and enthralling tale of a great and haunted castle in an age before Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn in “The Burning Man.”

The Legends series spans four audio volumes and includes unabridged short novels from the greatest living writers in all fantasy. Look for other Legends volumes with stories from: Stephen King, Robert Silverberg, Robert Jordan, Terry Pratchett, Orson Scott Card, Anne McCaffrey, George R.R. Martin and Raymond E. Feist.

Terry Goodkind's first novel, Wizard's First Rule, established him immediately as a major voice on the epic fantasy scene. The “Sword of Truth” series includes Stone of Tears, Blood of the Fold, and most recently, Temple of the Winds.

Ursula K. Le Guin's award-winning body of work features such acclaimed classics as The Left Hand of Darkness, The Lathe of Heaven, and The Dispossessed.

Tad Williams's Memory, Sorrow and Thorn trilogy includes The Dragonbone Chair, Stone of Farewell, and To Green Angel Tower.

Sam Tsoutsouvas performs Debt of Bones. Kathryn Walker performs Dragonfly. Frank Muller performs The Burning Man.

Volume Four, coming in April 1999, includes Pern: Runner of Pern by Anne McCaffrey, performed by Kathryn Walker, The Riftwar Saga: The Wood Boy by George R.R. Martin, performed by Sam Tsoutsouvas and A Song of Ice and Fire: The Hedge Knight by Raymond E. Feist, performed by Frank Muller.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

These are Volumes 2 and 3 of the four planned unabridged audiobook programs that together comprise the new fantasy anthology Legends: Stories by the Masters of Modern Fantasy, edited by Silverberg (see Vol. 1, Audio Reviews, LJ 11/1/98). The anthology contains new and original works from famous writers of epic fantasy, with each set in an established fictional universe. Conveying this large anthology as four separate volumes, containing two to three stories each, is a double-edged sword: it allows the consumer to pick and choose only the programs that appeal but makes the entire work rather pricey. Volume 2 contains Robert Jordan's "The Wheel of Time: New Spring," Terry Pratchett's "Discworld: The Sea and Little Fishes," and Orson Scott Card's "Tales of Alvin Maker: The Grinning Man." Volume 3 adds Terry Goodkind's "The Sword of Truth: Debt of Bones," Ursula K. Le Guin's "Earthsea: Dragonfly," and Tad Williams's "Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn: The Burning Man." Frank Muller, Sam Tsoutsouvas, and Kathryn Walker are the skilled and imaginative readers here. Although the performances and production are impeccable, the stories vary somewhat, if not in quality then in the facility with which they engage a listener who is uninitiated to the corresponding epic cycle. The packaging provides one- to two-line descriptions, but other contextual material available in the printed book (e.g., the introduction by Silverberg, listings of all the books in the series to date) are absent. Still, both volumes are recommended for all fantasy fiction collections.AKristen L. Smith, Loras Coll. Lib., Dubuque, IA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Robert Silverberg has won five Nebula Awards, four Hugo Awards, and the prestigious Prix Apollo. He is the author of more than one hundred science fiction and fantasy novels -- including the best-selling Lord Valentine trilogy and the classics Dying Inside and A Time of Changes -- and more than sixty nonfiction works. Among the sixty-plus anthologies he has edited are Legends and Far Horizons, which contain original short stories set in the most popular universe of Robert Jordan, Stephen King, Ursula K. Le Guin, Gregory Benford, Greg Bear, Orson Scott Card, and virtually every other bestselling fantasy and SF writer today. Mr. Silverberg's Majipoor Cycle, set on perhaps the grandest and greatest world ever imagined, is considered one of the jewels in the crown of speculative fiction.

Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: HarperAudio; Unabridged edition (January 27, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0694520837
• ISBN-13: 978-0694520831
• Product Dimensions: 7.1 x 4.2 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,883,751 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful to see some old friends, December 21, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Legends Vol. 3 (Legends: Stories by the Masters of Fantasy) (Audio Cassette)

LEGENDS is a wonderful collection of new, short novels that tie into the most established, well-loved fantasy series, written by the premiere authors of the genre. Stephen King leads off with THE LITTLE SISTERS OF ELURIA, an ancillary to THE DARK TOWER line. There are prequels and additions to other wonderful series, and seeing some of them, like Ursula LeGuin's EARTHSEA addition and Robert Silverberg's MAJIPOOR, was like having old, dear friends come to visit. Also included are Robert Jordan's prequel to THE WHEEL OF TIME, which gives wonderful insight into the saga for anyone who did not get on board at ground zero, and even for the tried-and-true who did. Also among the winners are novellas by Raymond E. Feist [THE RIFTWAR SAGA], Terry Pratchett [DISCWORLD], Orson Scott Card [TALES OF ALVIN MAKER] Tad Williams [MEMORY, SORROW AND THORN] and George R.R. Martin [A SONG OF ICE AND FIRE]. Silverberg, also the compiling editor of the volume, has managed to coax new work out of the best fantasy writers, though it is not always their best work. I was disappointed primarily with the inclusion of Terry Goodkind's SWORD OF TRUTH offering, which depicts an earlier time in his series but has the same inane dialog and sense of constant, annoying desperation, and Anne McCaffrey's PERN addition, which I wanted to like but didn't. On balance, however, it is a fine collection and a must for every dyed-in-the-wool fantasy buff.