Orthe (Gollancz Sf S.) [Paperback]

Mary Gentle (Author)

Book Description

Series: Gollancz Sf S. | Publication Date: April 11, 2002

The distant world of Orthe is littered with spectacular remnants of the Golden Empire, an ancient and technologically advanced civilisation extinct for two thousand years. Now their Orthean descendants have turned away from the technology which nearly destroyed them, and from their ancestors, the Golden Witchbreed. Then Earth envoy Lynne de Lisle Christie arrives and, all too quickly, finds herself the victim of intrigue and conspiracy, embroiled in a conflict that threatens to explode into war - and which puts her own life in deadly peril ...

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

SALES POINTS The classic fantasy duology from the author of the bestselling ASH 'A spectacular and wonderfully evocative novel ... she is a writer who knows politics and human nature' Julian May 'A rare narrative talent' C.J. Cherryh 'So gloriously alien. Wow!' Anne McCaffrey

Product Details

• Paperback: 992 pages
• Publisher: Gollancz (April 11, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0575072873
• ISBN-13: 978-0575072879
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,996,966 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read!, February 16, 2009

By 

C. Weaver (Rusk, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: Orthe (Gollancz Sf S.) (Paperback)

Have always wanted both the novels by Mary Gentle about Orthe in one place. Both books are great but I tend to like the first one best. Sort of a romantic. What can I say.....

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars An unexpected ending...Chronicles of Orthe, August 22, 2010

By 

KRBConsulting "karibunch com" (Dallas TX) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Orthe (Gollancz Sf S.) (Paperback)

I read the first book, THE GOLDEN WITCHBREED of this series (?- is it a series if only 2 books?) many many many years ago. I loved it. The Witchbreed, the Ortheans, the British Envoy Christie who wasn't always heroic, but nonetheless a hero...the marsupial fenborn, the descriptions of the Orthean World and the introduction of a sex-neutral pronoun were all part of a wonderful sci-fi book that captured my heart. I always wondered why no followup.

Recently, I found out there was a followup, or concluding novel, but it had only been published in England/Europe. In the Chronicles of Carrick V (which contains BOTH novels, GOLDEN WITCHBREED and ANCIENT LIGHT), Mary Gentle again demonstrates a carrying ability throughout a story that takes place over months of spaceship, water ship, pack animal and foot travel on a post-industrial/post-technological world. The new characters and the old combine to make the intrigue of Orthe come alive all over again. And right up until the last chapter or two, I am into it. But then it was if she had a conclusion, but lacked a true ability to express it. Our hero from before, Prior-Envoy/now-Company Rep Christie seems very tired all the time for a 36 yr old woman and truly does show her unhappiness with her dual roles as a commercial company adviser on whether to exploit this world for resources, when her true nature is against it.

***SPOILER***I am still not sure if the old leviathan in this story, the old Golden Witchbreed technological weapons actually destroy the planet or not. There are scenes of dream-memories at the end that are fascinating but make the ending unclear. Later I read that others were also dissatisfied with this ending. The last chapter has another Envoy coming to Orthe and getting lost to himself in the inner city of Kasabaarde, a place of no expectations, and just staying on there, avoiding his duties. But there is no clue when this took place - after the climax of the book when it looked as if they would fail in holding back the planetary weapon of mass destruction or after. And that is worthy of an Orthean intrigue game of ochmir, but confusing for the book reader. I suppose that like Ortheans, a hard conclusion isn't necessary in their story. Ortheans themselves are very contradictory in their natures as well.

I wish Mary Gentle could revisit this and maybe conclude it for us humans who need hard and fast conclusions...It really is a unique world and is peopled with awesome characters, sexy, fearless, traitorous and heroic, but the completion is yet to be had.