Most Helpful Customer Reviews
128 of 129 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great, but you need to read all nine books in the series!, November 6, 1998
This review is from: The True Game (Paperback)
When I saw this book I thought it was going to be all nine True Game books in one volume. Alas it is only the first three. I have all nine and treasure them! I went to some obscure used bookstores to complete the set. For those who want to try to find them all, here are the titles of all nine books in the order in which they should be read: 1. Kings Blood Four(1983) 2. Necromancer Nine (1983) 3. Wizard's Eleven (1984) 4. The Song of Mavin Manyshaped (1985) 5. The Flight of Mavin Manyshaped (1985) 6. The Search of Mavin Manyshaped (1985) 7. Jinian Footseer (1985) 8. Dervish Daughter (1986) 9. Jinian Stareye (1986). In addition, she also wrote another unusual trilogy after the true game books. They are great but also out of print: 1. Marianne, The Magus, and the Manticore (1985) 2. Marianne, The Madame, and the Momentary Gods (1988) 3. Marianne, The Matchbox, and the Malachite Mouse(1989). Good luck!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
36 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Truly Grand Adventure, July 30, 2002
This review is from: The True Game (Paperback)
This is actually a sequence of nine books, starting with King's Blood Four, Necromancer Nine and Wizard's Eleven. They've been out of print awhile, but there's an omnibus paperback of these three novels published a few years back, which may be easier to find, called simply The True Game. They start off with that semi-cliched pretext of living chessmen, of people with fantastical psi-powers waging battle on various scales with each other...But it quickly escalates into truly grand adventure. Peter is an orphan in a Schoolhouse, a supposedly-safe nursery for the children of noble Gamesmen and Gameswomen. They spend their days learning the dizzying list of Talents, the multitudinous combinations of gifts of seeing, moving, healing, shapchanging, etc. Predictably, but excitingly, Peter lands in adventures of all kinds as his own Talent becomes known... The second trio of books deal with Mavin Manyshaped, Peter's long-lost mother. Incredibly unworldly settings---my favorite is the culture hidden away in a deep rift valley overshadowed by great trees and filled with roots and mists. The third trio is narrated by Jinian Footseer, a Wise-Ard (read 'wizard') whose mission of world-healing reveals startling facts about the origin of the Talents and the Gamesmen and the world. Tepper truly excels at world-building. I'm always glad to read anything with her name on it.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Tepper Delivers AGAIN!, December 14, 1999
This review is from: The True Game (Paperback)
I've said it before (and I'm sure I'll say it again), Tepper is one of my favorite authors. This collection is interesting for the "historical" sense that it was her first effort. At a minimum, all one can say, is that she came out of the gate with a bang with her writing career. Note: I was almost put off by the "professional" reviewers that talk about this collection anticipating the Dungeon and Dragons craze because I then thought that the books would be focusing on "Dungeons and Dragons" somehow. The only similarity is that in Tepper's lands some people have different types of Talents (firestarting, mindreading, shapeshifting, to name a few) and the people with these talents can band together and battle (or as the book describes it "call game" with one another). So with that knowledge you can say these books don't anticipate D&D anymore or less than Tolkein did. The story line is a little more staight forward and with a smaller cast of characters than in some of her more recent books which makes it an easier read in that sense. But don't worry, if you are a long time Tepper fan, it is not all lite - there are still the good ol Tepper philosphical questions wound into the story that makes us enjoy her so much. With all that said, I think this collection is better than "standard". It's GREAT. Wizards and mindreaders, dragons, and "magical" talents galore. If you enjoy fantasy stories you'll enjoy this. If you have never read her, this is a great series to get introduced by (even though all of her books are great to be introduced to her by).
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
|
Most Recent Customer Reviews
|
