Customer Reviews

Rhinegold

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I deeply enjoyed and appreciated "Rheingold" when I first read it. It's a well worded retelling of the myths, to be sure. But the main strength here is the sincerity and devotion to detail. Grundy writes as one who respects and knows the people and Gods that the myths deal with. One probably needs to be Forn Sidh/Asatru to fully sympathize with the spirit this book is writen in. True, the Gods are presented mythically as well as mystically, but the devout will approach this book with holy recognition. At the least, one should have a background in migration era Teutonic culture to see the well used details.

True, Grundy will probably never be as good a writer as Wagner was a musician. But Wagner's christianized, Romanticized, bowdlerized wanna-be Ring Cycle plot is far flatter than the mythic awe Grundy compells. (I love HEARING the Ring Cycle, but the libretto is egregious.) What Wagner treated with sublimated condescention, Grundy exposes and reverently handles. That alone is worth the ticket for those who see the greater truths in the stories.

If one is looking for a "sword and sorcery" romp, "Rheingold" is bound to be a disappointment. Many historical novel types will probably be neutral on it's metaphysical emphasis as well. It's a specific and special audience that will understand "Rheingold"'s importance.

I've read all the reviews here thus far and now figure that you either love it or hate it. I loved it as well as the sequal Atillas treasure. I can see how the charachters can get tiresome as some of the reviews have said, but Grundy is also working from the Nebeilungelied here and has made a good atempt to stick to Myth.

You may also be intererrested to know that this author has writen other books about Asatru(norse religion) under another penname.....the books are Teutonic Religion and Teutonic Magic. I reccomend both of those although his style is a bit flowery on the rituals for my taste.

I love this book.It was the first book on mythology that I ever read.For me it has a special place in my heart.At times of great tragedy of wagnerian proportions in my life I find myself turning to this book.I am just reading it again after about 8 years and still enjoying every minute of it.It reminds as that today we need a hero of Sigifreids scale.Top class story telling

The book drew me in with its descriptions and dramatisations of ancient Germanic culture. The mixture of mundane politics and the otherworld inhabited by gods and dragons reflected, for me, the mind set of the ancient Germans. For a person wanting to know what it felt like to live in the 5th Century CE, this is a good historical fiction novel. The hardback edition is a beautiful book, worth searching for.

Much as I love this stuff and thought that Grundy has done a more than credible job in creating modern text to retell this ancient Nordic myth cycle, I had to admit, after reading about three quarters of the way through, that the material just doesn't lend itself to the novelistic form which Grundy utilized. Perhaps it's not entirely the author's fault -- others have taken similar challenges on with no better results -- but in the end this book flops. In 816 pages of quite respectable prose, the tale of the gold which Odin and Loki stole from the dwarves, and the curse placed upon it (which wreaks havoc on generations of Germanic men, culminating in the destruction of the hero Sigfried the Dragon Slayer by his Burgundian allies) unfolds before the reader. It has some very good sections, particularly at the start, but Grundy's characters grow tiresome after a time, perhaps because they are not his at all but rather his versions of figures best left to the myths they came from. Difficult dwarves, sneaky gods, grasping sorcerers and the heroes they engage may do better, in the end, in their own milieu. A tighter plot line would also have been preferable -- though it would not have been true to the myth cycle either. Perhaps that's why Homer only recounted events surrounding a single incident toward the end of the siege of Troy when he worked with that legendary cycle (yes it was even legendary in his time) rather than attempting to capture it all in a single work of fiction. Well perhaps the sequel, Attila's Treasure (or something like that) is better than this book. But I'm not about to shell out the cash to find out. By Stuart W. Mirsky (mirsky@ix.netcom.com

I'm currently reading Rhinegold for the second time and I can't put it down. I wish I had picked up a hardcover copy when I had the chance. If you are a fan of Tolkien or fantasy in general you owe it to yourself to pick up a copy of Rhinegold.It may take a little effort to keep track of all the characters and how they relate to the story but the effort is well worth the reward of this rich tale.

Grundy brings the epic tale of Sigurd to life in his own way. An excellent telling and completely absorbing. I couldn't put it down and it made me search long and hard for other versions of the tale as well as other Norse myths and Germanic stories.

Grab this one and read it, it won't disappoint!

Stephan Grundy seems to have gotten much better at writing by the time he got to 'Attila's Treasure'. The characters and dailogue are a little weak here, but he has done a superb job of making a coherent and consistent narrative given the diversity of the sources and their contradictory nature.
Overall, the story is presented and told very well. Grundy's strong point is his proficiency at creating imagery with words.

The single best Novel based on the Volsung Saga I have ever read. A very literate style [perhaps dry to some readers] and a brisk pace make this an instant classic. Compare this to other lame "modernized" retellings and it becomes clear that Grundy is more akin to Walter De LaMare and Robert Graves than any modern author. HIGHLY recommended, as well as it's sequel.

If you like to read about vikings, this one's for you. I was swept away by it, Grundy made me feel like I was there.