Customer Reviews

The Sorceress of Karres

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4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

'Sorceress' is the second sequel of Schmitz' classic 'The Witches of Karres', picking up a bit after 'The Wizard of Karres'. This book digs deeper into a number of the background events in 'Witches' but in a novel way, with linked story lines the current time and fourteen years in the past, the latter bringing an almost-marriageable Goth together with a younger Pausert to not only foil some bad guys trying to steal an alien map and resolve an inheritance problem left dangling by Pausert's great-uncle Threbus but set up Goth as Pausert's first love. Yes, we know where this is going but it's still fun to watch things unfold. With the knowledge she picked up in the past, Goth and the current, adult Pausert are able to shut down a galactic menace or two. There are also a few, to me underdeveloped, hints of new Klatha powers for Goth, so expect more stories in this universe. Goody, goody!!

Whereas 'Wizard' for the most part kept to the external, no frills narrative style of 'Witches', 'Sorceress' has a somewhat different texture, with more exposition and a deeper view into characters' motivations. This caught me at first, since I've re-read the first two books many times and so expected more of the same. Once I got farther into the story, I came to appreciate the clearer view (fewer "OK, what did he mean by that?" moments) and the necessity of doing so with a plot that takes place simultaneiously in different timelines. Flint & Freer deserve a lot of credit for putting together another great installment in the series.

The third episode in the posthumous series based on James H. Schmitz's "The Witches of Karres" is far better than the second, leading me to believe that Mercedes Lackey was the superfluous chef who spoiled the soup in "the Wizard of Karres.". Gone are the sidetrips into elf-fantasy and a contrived circus adventure: in their place is a welcome return to a universe that has more of the flavor of Schmitz's 1966 original, which earned a Hugo nomination.

Set in the same regions of space as the original novel, "The Sorceress of Karres" also provides a look back into Captain Pausert's youth on Nikkeldepain where Goth has time-traveled to save him from an untimely death. We switch back and forth from that past to a present where Pausert and The Leewit are on a mission to learn why ships are still being lost in the Chaladoor.

With the exceptions of Moander and Hantis, the Nartheby Sprite, almost the entire casts of the first two novels return in "The Sorceress of Karres." Captain Pausert, Goth and The Leewit are back and we get a cameo appearance by Maleen, now married and a mother-to-be. This seems to be catching as former Imperial agent Hulik do Eldel is carrying the next generation of the hexaperson and heir apparent to the Daal of Uldune, who has become Hulik's husband (husbands?). Vezzarn is more like his old, larcenous self. Toll and Threbus play larger roles than they did in either of the previous books but they are consistent with the characterizations Schmitz created 44 years ago. Himbo Petey makes his return, along with the entire cast of the Petey, Byrum & Keep as authors Eric Flint and Dave Freer smoothly blend them into the storyline.

One of the things I like most about this book is the way Flint and Freer were able to advance the continuing story of the Captain and his crew while providing insights into Pausert's background and even some glimpses of Threbus' past life. We learn more about the dreaded Megair Cannibals as Pausert, Goth and The Leewit battle against a mind-controlling plant that threatens the Empire.

While the second novel left me thinking Schmitz's original should have been left to stand on its own, this third book makes me hope Flint and Freer can come up with another tale from the wonderful worlds created by James Schmitz.

While Captain Pausert has a lot to do in this story, it's really the now teenaged Goth who leads the way.Karres precogs have forseen a danger coming from a mysterious region in space. Pausert is dispatched to investigate while Goth is sent via the Egger Route to 14 years in the past where she finds herself entagled with the much younger Pausert, whose life is in danger. Fans can observe how Goth gets to learn more about the man she has decided to eventually mary on more or less equal terms.This is a fun story with lots of action and romance where with the help of a vatch or two, good triumphs.Hopefully, there's more to come.

The Sorceress of Karrres, Eric Flint and Dave Freer, 2010.

Entertaining, but ultimately disappointing. 3*

1949 Witches of Karres, The Story, published in Astounding. Instant classic, a sweet "little" tale set against a deep background, of Captain Pausert and three very unusual sisters whom he "rescues" from unpleasant masters and returns to their home world of Karres, amid some exciting but not galaxy-altering adventures. I'm not quite old enough to have read it when it came out, but probably found it a few years later in "The Astounding Science Fiction Anthology". On amazon's 5* scale, an easy 10*'s. [For those who have only read the later novel, this story takes us up to the point where Pausert makes his escape from Nikkeldepain with an unexpected assist from the Sheewash drive, discovers Goth has stowed away due to a "premotion" of trouble (Goth volunteered, having picked him for her future husband anyway), and he is looking up Karres in the Regulations.]

1966 The original story had ended with a perfect hook to hang more tales on. Schmitz continued it as a novel of high, dimension-spanning, space opera. The grand schemes of the novelized addition didn't grab me as much as the more intimate, magical, 1949 story, but there is a lot of the patented Schmitz inventiveness and style. Maybe 4.5*'s.

2004 The Wizard of Karres OK, I'd give it 4*'s, at least partly for nostalgia's sake. Though not exactly Schmitzian, it does have a breezy, almost flip, style that is at least a recognizable imitation of the original Witches. A bit disappointing that it's about another Big Space Plague.

2010 Sorceress of Karres. Another Grand Scheme space opera, and as with the old Doc Smith Lensman series, the schemes get grander and vaster, and even less like the original. Maybe due to the lack of Mercedes Lackey, the style has even less of the feel of James Schmitz. There are some nice points ... Goth's trip back to the Nikkeldepain of Pausert's youth and the growth she experiences is well done, though un-Schmitzian; and the growing character and role of the mini-vatch and her friends is delightful and worthy of the Master himself. But there are enough problems that I can't in good faith give this more than 3*'s. To wit ---

One wonders if the authors, or at least both the authors, have read the original lately. There are two glaring and grating errors that are repeated over and over ...but not consistently, which is what makes me think perhaps they're due to only one author.
First, yes, the youngest witch is indeed "THE Leewit," like "the Captain", as described in 1949. You would say "The Leewit blasted the Megair cannibals," not simply "Leewit blasted the cannibals." But in Witches, and indeed even in Wizard, the second person has always been "Leewit," sans "the." Just as you'd say "Hello, Captain" and not "Hello, the Captain", you say "Leewit, blast the cannibals," not "The Leewit, blast the...." But throughout Sorceress, although oddly not quite all the time, "The Leewit" is used for the second person, and this just sounds wrong -- it's not how Schmitz did it, as well as not being proper English. It's as if someone remembered the "the Leewit" explanation, but not the rest of Witches.
Second, the plain old Venture is now being referred to repeatedly as the "Venture 7333". The number was used once or twice in the original, but 99% of the time it was simply the Venture. And in Wizard it was also (almost?) always simply the Venture. Yet now, way too often if not always, it's "Venture 7333." What gives? It's not as grating as the innapropriate "THE Leewit"s, if only because Venture, with or without the 7333, is used less often, but it still sounds awful and shows a carelessness and disregard for the original.

Then there is the whole claim that what we're dealing with here is a "series" beginning with Witches.
First off, this strikes me as immense hubris, kind of like claiming that a set of Sherlock Holmes pastiches form a series, not in their own right but including the originals of John Watson. Wizard and Sorceress are not part of the Canon, whatever their virtues. (Looking at my copy of Wizard, I see that the same "series" claim was made there. I'm not sure why it bothers me more this time around. Perhaps because as the "series" expands, the original is becoming buried in the ersatz? or that the featured reviewers buy into that claim without thinking? or perhaps most annoying, and this affects the book itself, ....
Second, there are frequent .. and always awkward ... recaps of bits from the Witches and Warlock, most often during the first hundred pages or so, but throughout (e.g. when they meet Olimy on p. 229). These are unnecessary for anyone who has read those volumes, but don't provide enough actual background info for anyone who hasn't. Even if deemed necessary or useful, the catch-up could certainly have been more smoothly done; less announcing "this is a book," perhaps weaving the information into dialogue. Even more, they just seem like stroking the fans, like the over the hill singer tossing out the first lines of familiar songs in a concert to milk applause ("Scooby doobie doo...", "Strangers in the daaa, da da da da da..."), little reminders that this is indeed part of a series.

I know it doesn't have anything to do really with the book itself, but the cover art on this and Wizard is really tacky and garish, the sort that makes one want to get a brown paper wrapper for your book so you don't confirm every stereotype of oddball "sci fi" reader. And the faces of what I presume are Goth and (Maleen? The Leewit? Hulik?) don't seem at all like anything Schmitz described (or even the "series" authors). My impression of the Witches was that they were standard stock, not with these pointy ears, swoosh eyebrows, back swept hair and prominent widow's peaks, and,seemingly, acromegaly, which would surely have been mentioned by Schmitz.

When Captain Pausert returns to the dangerous Chaladoor region of space, he knows he's in for danger. After all, an entire battle fleet has recently vanished there. When he finds out he'll have to go without Goth, the teenage witch who's announced that she'll marry him some day, he wonders if he's bitten off more than he can handle. Still, he does have 'the Leewit' along and she's no chump of a witch herself, although she is still a child.

As for Goth, she really wanted to be with Pausert, but she has a mission of her own...and it's with Pausert, but the teenage version of himself. Goth's father, who is also Pausert's great-uncle, has left a complicated estate which Pausert and his mother can't access but which includes, apparently, something that the mysterious and dangerous plant-people are seeking. Goth has to protect the youthful Pausert, discover what it is that the plant-people are looking for, and deal with a completely different relationship with the young Pausert than the one she had with the grown Captain.

Authors Eric Flint and Dave Freer continue the series kicked off by author James H. Schmitz in his wonderful THE WITCHES OF KARRES. Reader favorite characters such as the Vezzarn, the mysterious Sedmon, vatches, and, of course, the three young witches all return (Maureen only in a cameo role, unfortunately).

THE WITCHES OF KARRES desperately needed a sequel. This classic SF tale combined elements of fantasy and space opera together with the character of Pausert with whom readers could easily identify. By continuing the series, Flint and Freer not only let us know what happened to much-loved characters, they also invite readers who are to young to have caught WITCHES in its first edition to catch up with it now. I have mixed feelings about this particular sequel, however. Certainly Flint/Freer pay homage to the master, not only bringing back characters but working in plot elements from throw-away lines in the original WITCHES and continuing to evolve the complicated relationship between the still-too-young Goth and the adult Pausert. Sometimes, however, this homage seemed to beat the reader over the head with information (did we really need to hear about the seven Sedmons quite so often) and the writing clunked when Flint/Freer tried to deal with Schmitz's line about the youngest witch being 'the Leewit' rather than simply Leewit. As for the young Pausert, he seemed a one-dimensional character. If I'd been Goth, I would have reconsidered my marriage plans after spending time with him.

WITCHES is a classic. I'm happy that Flint/Freer are keeping the franchise alive and exposing new readers to this wonderful book and the characters it introduced. SORCERESS is only okay. It's not bad, certainly readable, but it just doesn't compare with the original.

The original witches of karres was superb, the two sequels have been intertaining even not if as well written as the first. I enjoyed the book and would happily buy any subesquent novels.

The Sorceress of Karres (2010) is the third SF novel in the Karres series, following The Wizard of Karres. In the previous volume, Pausert escaped from Alorn by hooking the big vatch. Then he set the Ventura down on Porlumma, despite losing a tube liner just before landing. The drive system had to be fully replaced, as was the electric butler.

At the Imperial Capital, Pausert and friends attended the Carnival Ball. Vezzarn picked a lock and Pul found the Empress. Then Pausert led the vatches to lots of dream-candy.

In this novel, Pausert is a captain and navigator. He is competent in all aspects of shiphandling except takeoffs. He also has Klatha talents, particularly in handling vatches.

Goth is a witch and the second daughter of Therebus and Toll. She has declared her intentions to marry Pausert. Pausert worries about that now and then.

The Leewit is a witch and the third daughter of Therebus and Toll. She has several kinds of whistles. Unless properly shielded, the whistles can shatter inanimate objects and damage animate bodies.

Vezzarn is a highly experienced spacehand, mechanic and picklock. He originally came aboard the Venture as an agent of the Daal. He has stayed with the Venture, but tends to leave witchery to the witches.

In this story, Pausert has a new assignment from the Karres Council. He is acting as bait within the Chaladoor. Something has been causing problems recently in that troubled region.

Unfortunately, Goth has another assignment. She takes the Egger Route into the past of Nikkeldepain to guard Pausert as a young boy. When she arrives, Goth finds Pausert hiding within the Xenobiology Botanical Gardens of the Therebus Institute of Xenobiology.

Pausert has a key to the Gardens given to him by his great-uncle Therebus. He comes to the place to hide out. Today he is avoiding a gang from his school.

Pausert is very concerned about this strange girl who appeared suddenly out of nowhere within the Gardens and then has some type of fit. He offers to fetch medical help, but Goth demurs. He gives her his name and she tells him to call her Vala.

Goth soon discovers that two men and a woman are surveilling Pausert. She uses her klatha talents to fool their sight and then follows them. She finds that they are working for a rich xenoarchaelogist named Mebeckey. They apparently are looking for an alien map showing the homeworld of the Illtraming.

Meanwhile, Pausert, the Leewit and Vezzarn find a marooned sailor in the Chaladoor. He claims to have been stranded by a xenoarchaelogical expedition that ran into trouble. He says his name is Mebeckey.

Pausert learns that the Mebeckey expedition was infested by alien spores from a stasis box. The plants growing from the spores possess and control their human hosts. Yet the plants cannot reproduce within humans. They can only reproduce within Melchins or their Illtraming offshoots.

This tale presents the Karres Witches with a large problem. The alien plants are telepathic, sharing their thoughts with each other. All the plants are effectively a single sentient organism.

The Witches haven't even finished clearing out the nanite plague and now they are faced with another threat. This time Goth is the prime operative. Read and enjoy!

Highly recommended for Schmitz fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of high adventure, psionic talents, and true romance. If anyone has not previously read this series, the initial volume is The Witches of Karres.

-Arthur W. Jordin

I really enjoyed this book but I am curious as to how much older than Goth the captain actually is? The cover illustration makes him look grey-haired and almost middle-aged but he seems quite young in the original story.

Reviews (I don't think it says this anywhere in the book) refer to a 14 year time jump to the past when Pausert was 14, but Mebeckey claims to have been stranded for 'more than 12 years' (if it was 13 or 14 he'd say so)and surely that conflicts with the plot timeline as the villains wouldn't have been around on Nickeldepain 14 years before?

I think this makes Pausert 26 and Goth 14 at the end of 'Sorceress'...

The Sorceress of Karres returns readers to the world of Karres begin in WIZARD OF KARRES and tells of Captain Pausert, who again finds himself facing danger when the Empress sends him on a secret mission to stop the nanite plague and save the galaxy. Politics and danger meld in a riveting story perfect for science fiction and fantasy collections.

Simply put, this is not classic Schmitz. The authors seem not to have read The Witches of Karres. There are frequent typos, such as sometimes using "Syrians" instead of "Sirians" - an example of poor editing and poorer writing. Moreover, they make slips like confusing the Venture with the Millenium Falcon as far as flight characteristics. In fact, all of the Sorceress reads more like Star Wars than Schmitz. If you want classic Schmitz, re-read his novels and short stories. If you want Star Wars, go back to the original. If you want a mishmash mixing up the two, then go for this.