The Truthsayer's Apprentice (The Loregiver Series, Book 1) (Paperback)

by Deborah Christian (Author) "A BITING WIND fresh off the Spires caught the Truth-sayer's apprentice where he huddled in the cavern mouth, awaiting his master's summons..." (more)
Key Phrases: travel rune, elvish woman, selkie folk, High Councillor, King's Road, Lan Loros (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Launching her new Loregiver fantasy series, this role-playing walkabout leaves Christian's earlier Mainline setting for a Tolkien-derivative northern universe devoid of any flights into convincing Faerie. Adolescent-angst-filled farm boy Dalin suddenly finds himself alone when a mysterious band of invaders hurls his master, Truthsayer Grannar, from his icy aerie and makes off with the Truthsayer's cloak of office. Dalin follows the band onto a treacherous slope only to be ambushed and left to die by Hanno, a renegade runemaster who plots to steal the cloak from his erstwhile allies. Conveniently saved by a high-ranking elf and the Guardian of the Thorn, who are themselves in pursuit of the garment, Dalin flounders from one predictable scrape to another, until at last he learns to master his innate magical powers. Christian calls up all the usual Old Norse paraphernalia--shape-shifters, selkies, dwarfs, runestones, dragonship. But her story line miscarries, for its characters lack depth and the questing often seems pointless. Though pleasant enough for a little harmless escapism, this excursion into high fantasy is a pedestrian one. Agent, Chris Lottis. (Dec.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
When raiders murder Granmar the Truthsayer and steal his magical robe of office, young Dalin of Nevi--Granmar's apprentice--sets out on a perilous journey to recover the robe and avenge his master. Christian's (Mainline) use of alternating chapters to follow the progress of Dalin and his quarry provides a close look at the motivations and personalities of both the hero and his adversaries. An abundance of magic, from elemental sorcery and runic spellcasting to priestly healing and nature summonings, adds variety to this series opener set in a world flavored with images from Norse and Icelandic mythology. A good choice for most fantasy collections.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 396 pages
• Publisher: Tor Books (December 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312865163
• ISBN-13: 978-0312865160
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #6,931,434 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Did I miss the first book in the series?, December 23, 2001

By	Phome "phome" (NY, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Truthsayer's Apprentice (Loregiver Series, Book 1) (Hardcover)

The Truthsayer's Apprentice begins with the apprentice, Dalin, who is sent out on a mission by his master. But his travels are interrupted early on when he spots an evil looking gang. The unlikely travellers in this remote corner of the world are unusual and Dalin follows them to consequently witnesses the murder of his master. Unsure what to do, Dalin follows the group. However, the runemaster and leader of the group discovers him and leaves him (nearly) for dead.

Dalin is saved by a second group of travelers to this remote area, and joins them in their search of the magical Robe that was stolen during the murder. The rest of the book follows the story of Dalin's pursuit to avenge his master's death and retrieve the Robe. We also learn the reasons why the different groups of people all seek possession of the magical Robe.

Christian's writing is simple to understand although the plot and storyline are not as clear. The development of characters is jolted and my personal opinion is that too many were introduced at once, making it difficult to keep track of who is who and what their backgrounds are. It was even difficult to remember which elves, dwarves and humans belonged to which group as Christian introduces a great many tribes and peoples. In the end, it made for tedious reading - although the book definitely picked up towards the end, when readers get more insight into the situation.

Reading the book, I felt like I had maybe somehow skipped a prequel to it; such is the assumption by the author that you understand the background and peoples. The characters are underdeveloped and it is therefore difficult to be sympathetic to their causes, with the exception perhaps of Dalin. The setting is both imaginative and interesting, but unfortunately, we are not provided with any details of this magical world.

It is not the story, setting or characters in themselves that I find lacking, but probably the structure and development of the book itself. I feel that Christian ought to think more carefully about how she introduces characters, histories, and plots to the reader. Christian obviously put a lot of thought into this world, judging by the detail of the appendix at the end - if she had applied the same sort of dedication to the writing, this book would have been a lot better (and a lot fatter).

The book deserves three stars for the amount of effort that seems to have gone into it and because Christian has plenty of imagination, although it borders on a 2-star construction for me.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Love the Characters, February 9, 2002

By	"fuzz_boo" (Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Truthsayer's Apprentice (Loregiver) (Mass Market Paperback)

I accidentally bought the Truthsayers Apprentice one day, I thought it was a new book by Deborah Chester, it wasn't till I got home that I relized I had picked up a book by an author I had never heard of. I hesitated about reading it, but eventually I just had to pick it up (I can't resist an interesting looking book). Well, it has turned out to be one of my favorite stories. It had adventure, excitement, and all the other stuff needed for a good book. Often authors make their characters unhuman like by making them perfect, other times authors make their character too full of mistakes to the extent that you no longer like or respect the character. Christian's characters are real in the sense they make human mistakes, but they always manage to redeam themselves in some way or another, making it possible to enjoy the story without hating the characters. My one complaint about the book was that it seemed to be part of a series, yet no where on the book did it say what series it was a part of. I suppose that I will have to search out more of Christian's books and hope I happen upon more in that series (if it does happen to be part of a series).

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars New Rising Star, February 12, 2000

By	J B DeBlanc (Austin, TX USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Truthsayer's Apprentice (Loregiver Series, Book 1) (Hardcover)

With "The Truthsayer's Apprentice", Deborah Christian truly comes into her own.

An enjoyable plot, a group of complex, believable characters, and a world of shape-shifters and avatars, what more could you ask for in a fantasy novel. One of the most enjoyable new books I've read since "The Baker's Boy". I can't wait for the next one in the series.