White Gold Wielder - Book Three of The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant [Hardcover]

STEPHEN R. DONALDSON (Author)

Book Description

Series: The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Bk. 3 | Publication Date: March 12, 1983

A continuation of the adventures of Thomas Covenant that began in "The Wounded Land" and "The One Tree".

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

These books have never received the recognition they deserve. It's one of the most powerful and complex fantasy trilogies since Lord of the Rings, but Donaldson is not just another Tolkien wanabee. Each character-driven book introduces unexpected plots, sub-plots, and a host of magical beings so believably rendered you'd believe you might bump into them on your way to the bookstore.
                                                --Alex Klapwald, Director of Production --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

From the Inside Flap

Thomas Covenant knew that despite his failure on the Isle of The One Tree, he had to return to the Land and fight. After a long and arduous journey, fighting all the way, he readies himself for the final showdown with Lord Foul, the Despiser, and begins to understand things he had only just wondered about before.... --This text refers to the Mass Market Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 485 pages
• Publisher: Del Rey; 1st edition (March 12, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345303075
• ISBN-13: 978-0345303073
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.7 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #130,815 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Triumphant Ending for an Extraordinary Series, July 23, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: White Gold Wielder (The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

I first read the Chronicles of Thomas Covenant over ten years ago, and each successive revisit only increases my appreciation of this series. Be warned that it is not a saga to embark upon lightly: I am a voracious reader, but it can take months for me to get through the six books, partly because Donaldson's style begs to be savored, not hurriedly swallowed, and partly because the sheer amount of angst experienced in seeing the Land corrupted in the second trilogy occasionally necessitates putting it aside for a few days in favor of something lighter. Sound painful? It is - exquisitely so.

*White Gold Wielder* is a stunning conclusion to the Chronicles, both in its power and in the unexpectedness of its method of resolution. It is especially refreshing in the wake of the drawn-out and sometimes seemingly pointless sea journey of *The One Tree* - Donaldson gathers up all the loose threads and weaves them seamlessly into a climax in which everything is seen to have its purpose after all. I would compare it favorably to the end of The Lord of the Rings, my favorite fantasy series, although detailing the parallels would spoil the plot. It is completely plausible in the context established and immensely satisfying.

I would like to add that Donaldson made a brilliant choice in bringing Linden Avery into Covenant's one-man antiheroic crusade. She is the perfect foil, and not just because she reminds us of Covenant's initial incredulous reaction to the fantastic Land. Covenant is caught, Hamletlike, between his belief in his own powerlessness and the Land's need for a saviour; Linden is terrified of using her power because she dreads the monster she knows herself capable of becoming. That these two flawed and unlikeable characters ultimately become deeply sympathetic and convincing heroes speaks volumes for Donaldson's genius.

Bottom line: If you enjoy dark, philosophical, challenging fantasy, complex characters, and a compelling Good-vs-Evil story in the tradition of Tolkien, allow this series to make your world a sadder, wiser, but more beautiful place.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Covenant finally puts an end to it, August 29, 2003

By 

Ritesh Laud (Houston, TX USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: White Gold Wielder (The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

White Gold Wielder is the final member of Donaldson's series of six Thomas Covenant novels. In this one, our hero finally gets around to fighting the Despiser himself. But first he has to take care of the Banefire burning from out of Revelstone. So in this book we get two climactic battles and they're both actually quite exciting with unexpected outcomes. I won't give anything away except to mention that the Sandgorgon Nom from The One Tree is back in fine form. Nom was possibly the most interesting character from that book. The One Tree is, in my opinion, the best novel in the second trilogy. White Gold Wielder, though satisfying, doesn't quite match it nor does it compare to The Illearth War (the second book of the first trilogy). It is, however, a much better finish than The Power That Preserves was to the first series.

Unfortunately, characterization takes somewhat of a nosedive from the previous books in the series (though not near as bad as the atrocious nosedive between the two books of Dan Simmons's Endymion series). The Giants in this novel are more than ever before like machines: impossibly strong and devoid of character flaws for the most part. Linden is a headcase and doesn't resemble anyone I know. The "romance" between Covenant and Linden, if you can call it that, seems ridiculously artificial and contrived. These two people never lighten up! They're stone-faced serious at all times and argue with each other more than anything else. Donaldson doesn't manage to convince the reader that they're actually lovers and I think that he should have abandoned the whole relationship from the start and just focused on the action.

The action is done very well and brings this book up to a solid four-star rating. As in all five previous books, Donaldson's development of the swords and sorcery is excellent. The first half of the book is somewhat slow, but the tension builds well as the party gets closer to the waiting enemy. The long sequence under Kiril Threndor will have you turning pages late into the night to find out what happens next.

I'm glad I read through this series. Though not quite as complex as some other offerings in the fantasy genre, the generally dark mood of the prose gives the Covenant novels a unique touch. I think that those in their late teens would get the most enjoyment out of these books.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Maybe the second series surpasses the first., February 8, 1998

By 

The Chalcenteric Kid (Boca Raton) - See all my reviews

This review is from: White Gold Wielder (The Second Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

There is so much to like in The Second Chronicles Of Thomas Covenant. Linden Avery is a totally believable and ( for me ) sympathetic character. I like Vain, the Sandgorgons, the meeting with Elena in Andelain; that tears my heart out every time. I like the Bloodgaurd's admonition to Linden, "You must give him succour. We see that he holds you in his heart". I like the camorra for the Giants at the end of "The Wounded Land". Strangely, I like the Second Chronicles more than the First, even though, yes, I realize that events in the first trilogy have big consequences in the second. The six books that comprise the Thomas Covenant novels stand out as the best that sf/fanatsy has to offer. I put them up there with Frank Herbert's 'Dune' and that is no mean company to be in.