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The Darkness That Comes Before (The Prince of Nothing, Book 1) Hardcover – June 3, 2004

4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 1,797 ratings

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Many centuries ago, the world was nearly destroyed by the dark wizards of the Consult, and the High King's family was wiped out--or so it seemed. Then from the wild, uncharted north comes a mysterious and extraordinarily powerful philosopher-warrior, Anasurimbor Kellhus, descendant of the ancient High Kings. But the return of the king's bloodline is little cause for rejoicing. For Kellhus's appearance may signal the overthrow of empires, the destruction of the sorcerous schools, the return of the Consult demons--and the end of the world.

The Darkness that Comes Before is a strong, impressive, deeply imagined debut novel. However, this first book of an epic fantasy series is not accessible; it reads like a later volume of a complicated ongoing series. Author R. Scott Bakker has created a world that is very different from J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle Earth, yet in depth of development comes closer than most high-fantasy worlds. In addition to providing five appendices, Bakker attempts to make his complex world clear to readers by filling the prologue and opening chapters with the names of characters, gods, cities, tribes, nations, religions, factions, and sorcerous schools. For many readers, this approach will have the opposite effect of clarity. It's like demonstrating snowflake structure with a blizzard. --Cynthia Ward

From Publishers Weekly

Canadian author Bakker's impressive, challenging debut, the first of a trilogy, should please those weary of formulaic epic fantasy. Bakker's utterly foreign world, Eärwa, is as complex as that of Tolkien, to whom he is, arguably, a worthier successor than such established names as David Eddings and Stephen Donaldson. Bakker creates an extraordinary cast of nationalities and races involved in an enormous holy war set off by an unseen prophet, Maithanet. (Appendices help keep the history and personalities straight.) He casually drops for half the story an increasingly important character, Anasûrimbor Kellhus (aka "the Prince of Nothing"), who finally returns without a breath of exposition. The amiable and wise sorcerer spy Drusas Achamian binds the myriad narrative threads together. Drusas's love for Esmenet, a too-experienced prostitute, provides some tenderness amid the abundant slaughter. In the book's most harrowing scene, which fans of gentler fantasy will find too graphic, Esmenet is raped by a creature who, despite its human appearance, is likely demonic. If this ambitious novel lacks the beauty of Tolkien as well as the sense of pure evil that suffused Middle-earth with genuine terror, its willingness to take chances and avoid the usual genre clichés should win many discriminating readers.
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Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ The Overlook Press (June 3, 2004)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 608 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1585675598
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1585675593
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.1 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5 x 1 x 8 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 1,797 ratings

About the author

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My books are the sum of four decades spent wandering fantastic worlds and philosophical worldviews. In an age where algorithms sort everything, I belong nowhere. Some days I write in a three-piece suit, and others, in my underwear.

These are the characters closest to my heart, those trapped between warring tribes. I despise easy answers. I write of ancient wars and long-dead philosophers, extinct races and poets whose words crack walls as readily as hearts. I mourn the worlds I once believed in, and I fear the planet we have become. The themes in my books teeter on the radical edge of the most pressing issues of our day. Among other venues, my philosophical critiques have been featured on CBC Ideas and in The Journal of Consciousness Studies.

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4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
1,797 global ratings

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