Players of Gor: The Twentieth Book of the Tarl Cabot Saga [Paperback]

John Norman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 6, 1984

The games of Gor are diverse, as are their players. There are the games of planetary politics, in which worlds are contested. And those of cities and ubarates, of ponderous cavalries and fleets of lateen-rigged ships. And smaller games, bloody games, played on a square of sand, in which the counters and pieces are edged weapons. And, too, there is Kaissa, common on Gor, played with pieces of wood, on a board of a hundred squares. One might think little would depend on the outcomes of such a benign recreation, but one could be wrong. The major land power in the northern latitudes of known Gor has long been the imperium of mighty Ar. Against her hegemonies on the continent, plans by her major enemies, the maritime ubarates of Cos and Tyros, have been carefully drawn, projectively to involve attack from without and subversion from within. Cabot, once of Earth, is drawn into these intrigues. A foiled plot laid against his life leads him to the port city of Brundisium, where he obtains not only satisfaction, but keys to enciphered documents germane to the machinations of Cos and Tyros. These should be delivered to Ar. But the armada of the maritime ubarates is already entering the collaborating port of Brundisium. Coinciding with the 40th anniversary of the first book of the Gorean Saga, TARNSMAN OF GOR, E-Reads is proud to release the very first complete publication of all Gor books by John Norman, in both print and ebook editions, including the long-awaited 26th novel in the saga, WITNESS OF GOR. Many of the original Gor books have been out of print for years, but their popularity has endured. Each book of this release has been specially edited by the author and is a definitive text.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 396 pages
• Publisher: DAW; First Edition edition (March 6, 1984)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879979143
• ISBN-13: 978-0879979140
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #864,920 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars good book underneath, June 4, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Players of Gor (Paperback)

This one had alot of that female slave philosophy. It was perhaps most annoyingly shown in the cheap predictable plays the Players held, where every single free woman was either a slave in disguise or ended up as one, and of course deep down wanted to be one anyway. The wiping of fingers in slave girl's hair was particulary vile.

Having said that, this book was still a valuable Tarl Cabot book that continued the story line and had many good parts that warranted the overall 5 stars.

For one it starts out with the oddest mystery. The Priest kings want Tarl dead. What this means we don't know certainly it might mean that Misk, Tarl's loyal brave and modest Priest king friend is dead and there was change in regime. Or perhaps it's another Kurii trick.

Either way Tarl ends up fleeing Port Kar and going incognito a while. Without giving away the details he ends up investigating a strange city with the help of some Players (actors/musician/Kaissa players) caste of Gor. It seems as if a Kur is being held there. We later find out this Kur's true story and the Cos/Tyros plot to finally conquer Ar begins.

The side characters are particulary good in this Gor novel. Scormus of Ar and Boots and the actor that plays the General of Ar at the end are great. Boots when he is not sprouting slave dogma is probably one of the funniest characters Norman has created in the cycle.

3.0 out of 5 stars Not the best or the worst., October 4, 2008

By 

M. Werner (California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Players of Gor (Paperback)

Players of Gor is neither the best not the worst of the Gor series. While it has an excess of dialog about woman slavery, it does have its good moments. There ample action and humor.

2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Just plain excelent, November 9, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Players of Gor: The Twentieth Book of the Tarl Cabot Saga (Paperback)

Another excelent edition to an excelent series. It has more of a comedic edge then the other novles in this series. It's a nice change.