Lord Foul's Bane (The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, Book 1) (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author) "SHE came out of the store just in time to see her young son playing on the sidewalk directly in the path of the gray,..." (more)
Key Phrases: laval eyes, heartwood chamber, leper outcast unclean, High Lord, Lord Foul, Mount Thunder (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

The first book in one of the most remarkable epic fantasies ever written, the Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Unbeliever.
He called himself Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever because he dared not believe in the strange alternate world in which he suddenly found himself. Yet he was tempted to believe, to fight for the Land, to be the reincarnation of its greatest hero....
THE CHRONICLES OF THOMAS COVENANT THE UNBELIEVER
Book One: LORD FOUL'S BANE
Book Two: THE ILLEARTH WAR
Book Three: THE POWER THAT PRESERVES

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

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 496 pages
• Publisher: Del Rey; 34th printing edition (June 12, 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345348656
• ISBN-13: 978-0345348654
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (356 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #30,402 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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• This is item 1 in The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, Unbeliever Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

51 of 60 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you question life, this series is for you, November 30, 1999

By	Bryan Tannehill (Jacksonville, FL USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Lord Foul's Bane (The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever, Book 1) (Paperback)

This series of books is remarkable. The characterisation of Thomas Covenant is detailed, tortured, and realistic. For anyone who has struggled in life with situations that are arduous , demeaning, and seemingly hopeless, Covenant's cynical thoughts ring true.

The world he finds himself in is a literary wonder. The prose with which Donaldson describes The Land is evocative. I first read this series when I was 13, and I still feel a sense of awe and longing every time I re-read them. The Giants of Seareach, the unending deathless service of the Haruchai, the vast impenetrable majesty of Revelstone, and the symbiotic relationship of the people to The Land inspire joy, melancholia, awe, wonder and longing. The emotions wrought by Donaldson's words are each vivid and distinct, yet varied and surprising.

What set this series apart from others was more than an unusual anti-hero protagonist or a richly described, memorable setting, or even the the well written characters like Saltheart Foamfollower. What makes them unforgettable is that if you read these books, you will be forced to think, or put the book down. The lines of thought are deep, and seemingly limitless. What is morality? What makes a hero? What would I do in a world that despises me? Would I accept things that could kill me? What is reality? Is reality dictated by what we perceive, or what we believe? Can your loyalty be to something that may have no meaning more than a fevered dream? What is courage? What is cowardly? Is pacifism the only way to respect life, or does the good of the many out weigh the needs of the few, to the extent of violence? Other books have asked similar questions, but only Donaldson allows the reader to draw his or her own conclusions.

In the end, this series is a classic on the order of Tolkien, Dostoyevsky, or JD Salinger. If you pay attention and savor the characters, images, emotions, and questions these books provide, they will remain with you for years to come. For the critics of this book, read through the other reviews. Notice how many readers have been profoundly affected by this series, and have read it over and over again, as I have? Perhaps you missed something important.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A decent start, but the series gets better, December 26, 2002

By	M (new jersey) - See all my reviews

3 1/2 stars

Having reread Lord of the Rings in anticipation of the films last year, I recently also paid a visit to another fantasy series that I enjoyed while in middle school: Thomas Covenant. Nearly 20 years later, I appreciate the books more. The themes are very adult and while I enjoyed the books as a child because Donaldson creates a great fantasy-world that will interest and draw in readers of all ages, I am better able to understand what Donaldson was trying to accomplish now that I'm older.
In some ways, I think this particular book is more enjoyable when you're younger. Donaldson was just getting a grip on his writing style with the first book, and I find it to be noticeably less of a quality read than some of the later installments. Donaldson doesn't quite have his "flow" yet, and he does not quite develop Thomas Covenant enough to paint him as anything more than an annoying crank. You see what he is *trying* to do, but the overall effort falls kind of short.
Furthermore, there are simply too many similarities between this book and Lord of the Rings for comfort. In both series, we have a quest story of a reluctant hero who is the bearer of a powerful ring (even the talisman is the same!) that neither can use, which is coveted by a "dark lord," who lives in the East (the bad guys always live in the East; an allusion to Cold-War era politics?) and for whom physical form is an uneccesary addendum to their existence. And in both books, if the bad guys ever get the powerful rings, it will mean the end of the world. The minions of the bad guys in both Middle Earth and The Land are genetically created life forms (Orcs and Ur-Viles/Cavewights), and the Thomas Covenant series even goes so far as to re-create the Gollum character in the Cavewight Drool Rockworm. Drool even talks in broken English like Gollum, and is described as looking very much like him as well. Like Gollum, a power that was not meant for him has twisted him physically, and, like Gollum, he has selfish, child-like qualities (though he is two-dimensional; whereas the conflicted Gollum was pitiable, Drool is simply evil). There are even living forests in both books, although the specific characteristics of them are somewhat different.

Of course, there are lots of differences, too: Frodo is heroic enough that his infrequent bouts of weakness are forgivable; Covenant is annoying, self-pitying and pathetic enough that his infrequent bouts of positive, decisive action come off as teases and aberrations. Also, there are metaphysical components to Lord Foul that do not exist with Sauron, and the Ravers are much more interesting "lieutenants" than Tolkien's Ring-wraiths are (although they don't play a large role in this first volume). What ultimately makes this book worth a recommendation (besides the fact that you need to read it before getting onto the more superior later books) is the twist Donaldson puts on the series insofar as to the reality of The Land. Is it a dream? Is Covenant simply living out a Freudian wish-fulfilment, or is he actually a chosen weapon by the Creator of the Universe to keep His archenemy at bay? These issues are always playing in the mind of the reader, and they push this occasionally otherwise-derivative book into a worthy standing.

45 of 55 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Best modern fantasy I've found, January 7, 2000

By	Christopher Dudley (Laurel, MD USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"Lord Foul's Bane" has many strengths to recommend it. It also has a number of shortcomings I would be remiss in not mentioning. I personally loved the series, moreso the second time around.

Donaldson's hero, Thomas Covenant, is a leper and an outcast in his own world. He has resigned himself to his life of disease (there was no cure for leprosy when this was written) and solitiude, and desires nothing more than to be left alone to live out his sentence. After an accident in town, he finds himself transported to a fantastical place known only as the Land where his disease is cured, and the most evil being in the Land challenges Covenant to stop him from destroying the world. Much of this first book in the series is spent on making Covenant as contemptible as possible, making him cowardly, a rapist, selfish, and inconsiderate, but most of all disbelieving in the world he has found himself in. Although Covenant just wants the nightmare to be over, he finds that people see him as a reincarnation of a long-dead hero, and put their faith in him. But in his contemptiblity, Covenant is pitiable. It's hard not to feel bad for him at times when people blame him for things that aren't his fault, or refuse to understand his remorse at things that are.

The weaknesses of the story lie in Donaldson's reliance on his Thesaurus and the fact that a contemptible character scares a lot of readers off. As to the language, he does at times go into a pointless string of synonyms, using words that no normal person uses in conversation. I think of this as a weakness in the novel, but not one that affects my overall view of it. More of a quirk of the author.

I've thought about the question of whether or not Covenant was actually taken to a fantasy Land or just imagined it in his diseased brain. Most readers I've spoken with believe that we, the readers, are to accept that the Land exists independently of Covenant and that he is simply taken there because he is their legendary hero. I feel, however, that there is no evidence to back this up, and there is a great deal of evidence to support the idea that the Land is all in his head, and all the people and parts of it are metaphorical representations of aspects of Covenant's mind.

Either way, the story is a great epic fantasy series, and I encourage people to put personal judgement of the character aside (he's SUPPOSED to be despicible!) and enjoy the series for its own merit.