Customer Reviews

The Spriggan Mirrror (Ethshar)

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As an unabashed Lawrence Watt-Evans fan, I'd been looking forward to the release of The Spriggan Mirror for quite some time. I'm happy to report that it definitely lived up to my high expectations. Like many of the author's main characters, Gresh has no intrinsic magic or other supernatural powers. He depends on intelligence, humanity, and a willingness to think problems through for any successes he achieves - a remarkable novelty in a genre where far too many protagonists rely on epic magic, ridiculous swordplay and apparent invincibility to win the day.

It may not be the best place to start for newcomers to the series, however, as characters and events from "With A Single Spell" and "The Spell of the Black Dagger" are central to the plot.

Lawrence Watt-Evans's latest offering in his popular Ethshar series does not disappoint. Like the Spell of the Black Dagger, this one features the return of the wizard Tobas of Telven and his unusual family in a strong supporting role. At last we learn just what went wrong with Lugwiler's Haunting Phantasm and what Spriggans are.

Fans of the series will love it. Those who aren't yet fans of the series should start out with The Misenchanted Sword and With A Single Spell and work their way through this thoroughly enjoyable and unique fantasy series.

The Spriggan Mirror (2007) is the ninth fantasy novel in the Ethshar series, following Ithanalin's Restoration. In the previous volume, Kilisha struggled through various trials and tribulations while learning to overcome her immaturity. At the end, she saved the Overlord's life and reanimated her master. Everyone was impressed by her talents and sense of responsibility.

In this novel, Gresh is a supplier of goods and ingredients to wizards and other magicians in Ethshar of the Rocks (and elsewhere). Dina -- his eldest sister and a wizard -- wakes him to buy some blood of an unborn child for a spell that she is preparing. He will have to open the vault since Twilfa -- his apprentice and youngest sister -- cannot remove the explosive seal.

As he is talking to his sisters in his shop, a customer enters and introduces herself as Karanissa of the Mountains. She claims to be a witch and one of the wives of Tobas the wizard. They wish Gresh to recover a mirror that generates spriggans.

Gresh has Karanissa wait as he sells the blood to Dina and sends Twilfa to fetch Tira -- another sister and a witch -- to check out the truth of Karanissa's story. Witches can always tell if another witch is lying.

After learning as much of the story as Karanissa cares to tell, Gresh asks her to return that evening with her husband and the other wife. When they return, he learns more of the story and is told that the Wizards' Guild is providing funding. Tira tells him that Karanissa is telling the truth as she understands it, so Gresh demands a fee of eternal life in addition to costs plus ten percent.

Guildmaster Kiligir visits Gresh and confirms that the Guild will pay his stated fee. However, they have certain conditions. They will freeze all his business transactions until the mirror is recovered. Still, they agree to prepare certain potions that may well expedite the recovery.

In this story, Gresh flies to the Small Kingdoms on a flying carpet owned by Tobas. They are accompanied by Karanissa, the other wife Alorria, and her child Alris. The trip is surprisingly boring. Gresh decides that he should have brought something to read, although the constant wind would blow the pages around.

Tobas first takes them to Ethshar of the Sands, then to Dwomor in the Small Kingdoms. Tobas lands the carpet on a specially made shelve in the castle of Alorria's father, the King of Dwomor. Tobas and his wives live in tower with three floors. They settle Gresh in a guest room and then take him to supper.

The next day, Tobas and Gresh fly out to the nearby mountains looking for spriggans. Strangely enough, Gresh does not find any spriggans in the castle or along the way toward the mountains. Finally he notices one within the mountains and then several more. Finally, they discover a meadow with a multitude of spriggans.

This tale explores the origins and status of spriggans in the world. Gresh learns that all spriggans have come from the mirror. He is surprised to learn that the spriggans can talk and that they cannot be killed by ordinary methods, but might be vulnerable to magical means. Then he is told that there are about half a million spriggans in the world.

Gresh soon finds the mirror and eventually discovers the way that the spriggans are generated by the mirror. But then he runs into some ethical issues. Nonetheless, he performs his mission and finds a woman that he wants to marry. Best of all, his sisters approve of her. Enjoy!

Highly recommended for Watt-Evans fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of various magics, uncommon sense, and a touch of romance.

-Arthur W. Jordin

Is this fantasy or is it science fiction?
This novel does an unusually good job of portraying scientific approaches to analyzing magic (better than the two other Lawrence Watt-Evans novels I've read).So in a sense it ought to be treated as science fiction about a world whose laws of physics happen to resemble those of many fantasies.
It provides a good example of how humans ought to treat a species of beings who are less intelligent than humans but capable of understanding a good deal of human language.
It also raises some unusual questions about personal identity.

You should read With a Single Spell and possibly others in the Ethshar series before reading this.

Gresh has been supplying wizards with hard-to-get but necessary items for their arcane rites for years, and has built up the reputation of being a man who can get anything desired. And so, when a witch and a wizard come to him, wanting him to find a certain magical mirror that has been lost for years, he is intrigued. It seems that this magic mirror is the source of all of the irritating little spriggans that have been plaguing Ethshar for several years now. But, searching for this mirror might just lead him to ideas he had never even suspected before.

I have been a great fan of Lawrence Watt-Evans for years - devouring his Lords of Dus books, his Worlds of Shadow books, and especially his Ethshar books. Overall, I found this book to be very good. Admittedly, it does lack the grand adventure of The Spell of the Black Dagger or The Night of Madness, or even the small but intense adventure of With a Single Spell or Ithanalin's Restoration. What it is is a fun and magical romp across Ethshar, filled with magic and a little bit of mystery - sort of Sherlock Holmes dropped into Middle Earth.

I found this to be a fun read, one that is sure to please any Lawrence Watt-Evans fan. I really enjoyed this book, and do not hesitate to recommend it.

Tobas of Telven is the inept wizard with an unsual family who was first introduced in WITH A SINGLE SPELL. Here the Wizard's Guild has become concerned with his latest faux pas which was the miscasting of Lugwiler's Haunting Phantasm onto a hand mirror which is now producing the troublesome little pests called Spriggans. The mirror had since fallen into the possession of the Spriggans who have absconded with it to parts unknown.

Spriggans are tiny creatures under a foot tall who emerge periodically from the mirror itself and who in search of fun cause a great deal of mischief for the humans of the three Ethshars. The Wizard's Guild has charged Tobas with the task of recovering the mirror promising him a magical tapestry that will hopefully alleviate the tension caused by having two wives. Having tried all manner of sorcery to no avail he has decided to recruit the merchant Gresh, a man well known for his ability to successfully procure the most unusual supplies required by various practitioners of magic.

After much consideration Gresh agrees to take on the task on the condition that his reward be fitting of the task required - a spell of eternal youth. One the fee is agreed upon Gresh uses his common sense to get a general direction before embarking on their quest. With all their knowledge of spells and potions no one had ever considered actually questioning a Spriggan before! And it is thus that Gresh embarks on a his journey aboard a magic carpet, with Tobas, his wives Karanissa and Alorria and their child to solve the mystery of the Spriggans. And a mystery it is, for the solution is not something so simple as finding and destroying the mirror as the Guild had requested.

THE SPRIGGAN MIRROR is a light, humorous fantasy with a touch of romance which keeps the reader engrossed as the plot unwinds in unexpected ways. Gresh is faced with numerous challenges from the allure of his first taste of magical power to that of a woman who belongs to another man. In the end Gresh proves himself to be logical, ethical and humane. The ending which suggests that his success may have earned him an additional benefit is both satisfying and leaves the door open for additional tales. An enjoyable read.

Reviewed for PNR Reviews

Mind Candy. Tied up the last 3 books--which didn't really need tying together, but hey, now it's all neat and precise. Not really as good as his older work but it was a nice little read.

This novel tells of a storekeeper who sells magical reagents -- mundane items used by wizards -- who is hired to find a magical mirror that is causing immense problems by spitting out indistructable creatures. The characters are cute, and the plot straight forward. Altogether, though, I was simply borred. Watt-Evans is an experienced author, but his latest few novels seem to lack passion.

This book was a delightful continuation of life in the Hegemony of the Three Ethshars. It was a good read and very fun and enjoyable.