Amazon.com: The Elder Gods (The Dreamers, Book 1): David Eddings, Leigh Eddings: Books

The Elder Gods (The Dreamers, Book 1) (Hardcover)

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David and Leigh Eddings introduce readers to their newly minted Land of Dhrall with The Elder Gods, the first book in the four-book Dreamers Saga. Dhrall is under the gentle rule of four gods representing the four compass points. These gods are reaching the end of their terms of power when the god of the North brings four children who are destined to take over for them into his siblings' lairs. The children are dreamers and able to see the possible outcome of battles in a coming war with the evil creature that controls the wasteland at the center of Drahll's map. Thus, the gods and their young charges undertake quests to hire mercenary armies and thwart the initial invasion into their lands.

The book unfolds like a children's primer. This pedantic style proves to be heavy-handed for adult readers and will quickly try their patience. If the Eddings were trying to concoct a book that would be suitable for reading aloud to fifth graders they've succeeded, but even the most die-hard fantasy fan will tire quickly of the sing-song approach and plot twists that can be sniffed out from miles away. --Jeremy Pugh

From Publishers Weekly
Only die-hard fans of the bestselling Eddings duo (The Belgariad series) will enjoy this slow-moving, low-tension epic fantasy, the first in a projected four-book series. The Land of Dhrall dwells under the stewardship of four gods, each oriented with one of the four compass directions. Dahlaine and his brother, Veltan, rule the North and South, while their sisters, Zelana and Aracia, rule the West and the East, respectively. Dhrall's center is a wasteland under the control of That-Called-the-Vlagh, a dark, inhuman thing of vast patience, power and ambition. Prophesy speaks of the Dreamers, children whose dreams will defeat the Vlagh by controlling the natural forces of Mother Sea and Father Earth. Dahlaine and his siblings each raise a baby Dreamer; only after the precocious children start to dream does he reveal that they are actually fellow gods in the world's life cycle, reborn with no memory of their previous lives. Dahlaine and his siblings hire human mercenaries, who eventually meet the Vlagh's forces in battle, but the dark armies prove unexpectedly resourceful. Despite a variety of characters (pirates, gods, aboriginals, soldiers, etc.), all speak in the same unlikely, bland manner, and dialogue generally replaces action. The authors will have to pick up the pace in the next volume to keep readers interested.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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