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I'm rereading the Death Gate Cycle
I started reading Dragon Wing (the first book of the Death Gate Cycle) yesterday because I adore that series, but I don't think I've done a complete reread for 10 or 15 years, and also because I wanted something to read that wasn't going to completely seize hold of my brain for a damn change (... this may in retrospect have been a bad idea). I was braced for the suck fairy, but actually I'm vastly relieved to discover that I still really love it. I mean, it's very early-90s-fantasy, but allowing for that, it's still a lot of fun and I want to drag more people into reading it so I have more people to talk to about it!
Death Gate Cycle, by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, is a 7-volume high fantasy series from the early 90s. I don't want to oversell it, because it IS kind of a mess in places. And very 90s. But it's also got some really fun worldbuilding (it takes place across six different worlds - four of which are based on elements, e.g. "air" is a world of floating islands and flying magical ships), characters I still really love a lot, and A+ hurt/comfort. Parts of this series are such a total idfest for me that I've more or less got them memorized.
I didn't intend to read the entire first book this weekend, but it just kinda happened. I think I'm really going to enjoy this, again.
Unfortunately I can't really think of any way to talk about the first book without spoiling the whole series, so if you're one of the people I'm trying to talk into reading it ... I'm sorry? >__> I do think this series is better read unspoiled for the character stuff, because some of it is especially neat if you don't know it's coming - at least if you're a spoiler-avoidant person. But really, everything I want to say about the first book spoils the whole series. So, uh, yeah. FUTURE BOOK SPOILERS AHEAD! Probably don't read if you're currently reading the series/planning on reading it in the near future!
(Also, if you might be thinking about reading it and want to ask me questions about it to find out whether it's your cup of tea, go right ahead! I should do a proper rec post for this series, but it's actually kind of difficult to do that at the moment because I really don't remember it very well.)
It's been long enough since I read this series that I'd forgotten most of the little stuff that happens along the way (while still remembering the major character arc stuff really well, since it pushes my buttons so hard), and it is really fun to go back through Haplo and Alfred's introduction as characters while knowing exactly who and what they are.
The first time I read the series, I really hated Haplo until Book 3 fell on me like a ton of bricks, so it's especially interesting to notice - now that I'm emotionally invested - how evil he's actually not. I mean, he has his moments (especially deciding to let Jarre fall to her death on the dragonship ramp) but in general he's a very Zuko-like villain, where he sort of tries to be evil but isn't actually that good at it. As far as I remember, the first book is the one in which he comes closest to managing to be a successful evil henchman, and he still fails to actually kill anyone and even manages to save the life of his greatest enemy, so ... yeah. Way to fail at henching, Haplo.
Among the many other things I had forgotten was the entire subplot with the unionizing dwarves (♥ Jarre! ♥), and also how obvious it is that there's something weird about the dog. I had vaguely remembered that the dog seemed more like an ordinary dog in the beginning, but it really, really doesn't. I also had forgotten that Alfred figured out the thing with the dog as quickly as he did (I mean, he figured out the dog thing before he figured out the Patryn thing).
Knowing what we eventually find out about the dog, I did find it hilarious that the dog's entire reaction to everyone it meets is a delighted "Hello, new friend!" Obviously this is normal dog behavior, but ... Haplo is apparently a gigantic closet softie. Also, I love that the dog seems to be fond of Alfred from the beginning.
(♥ ♥ I love them. ♥ ♥)
Is it just my lack of interest, or did the Bane subplot just kind of completely fizzle out in some future book?
I have also realized that I remember absolutely nothing about the second book other than something about big trees and lost ruins, so that'll be fun.
Death Gate Cycle, by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, is a 7-volume high fantasy series from the early 90s. I don't want to oversell it, because it IS kind of a mess in places. And very 90s. But it's also got some really fun worldbuilding (it takes place across six different worlds - four of which are based on elements, e.g. "air" is a world of floating islands and flying magical ships), characters I still really love a lot, and A+ hurt/comfort. Parts of this series are such a total idfest for me that I've more or less got them memorized.
I didn't intend to read the entire first book this weekend, but it just kinda happened. I think I'm really going to enjoy this, again.
Unfortunately I can't really think of any way to talk about the first book without spoiling the whole series, so if you're one of the people I'm trying to talk into reading it ... I'm sorry? >__> I do think this series is better read unspoiled for the character stuff, because some of it is especially neat if you don't know it's coming - at least if you're a spoiler-avoidant person. But really, everything I want to say about the first book spoils the whole series. So, uh, yeah. FUTURE BOOK SPOILERS AHEAD! Probably don't read if you're currently reading the series/planning on reading it in the near future!
(Also, if you might be thinking about reading it and want to ask me questions about it to find out whether it's your cup of tea, go right ahead! I should do a proper rec post for this series, but it's actually kind of difficult to do that at the moment because I really don't remember it very well.)
It's been long enough since I read this series that I'd forgotten most of the little stuff that happens along the way (while still remembering the major character arc stuff really well, since it pushes my buttons so hard), and it is really fun to go back through Haplo and Alfred's introduction as characters while knowing exactly who and what they are.
The first time I read the series, I really hated Haplo until Book 3 fell on me like a ton of bricks, so it's especially interesting to notice - now that I'm emotionally invested - how evil he's actually not. I mean, he has his moments (especially deciding to let Jarre fall to her death on the dragonship ramp) but in general he's a very Zuko-like villain, where he sort of tries to be evil but isn't actually that good at it. As far as I remember, the first book is the one in which he comes closest to managing to be a successful evil henchman, and he still fails to actually kill anyone and even manages to save the life of his greatest enemy, so ... yeah. Way to fail at henching, Haplo.
Among the many other things I had forgotten was the entire subplot with the unionizing dwarves (♥ Jarre! ♥), and also how obvious it is that there's something weird about the dog. I had vaguely remembered that the dog seemed more like an ordinary dog in the beginning, but it really, really doesn't. I also had forgotten that Alfred figured out the thing with the dog as quickly as he did (I mean, he figured out the dog thing before he figured out the Patryn thing).
Knowing what we eventually find out about the dog, I did find it hilarious that the dog's entire reaction to everyone it meets is a delighted "Hello, new friend!" Obviously this is normal dog behavior, but ... Haplo is apparently a gigantic closet softie. Also, I love that the dog seems to be fond of Alfred from the beginning.
(♥ ♥ I love them. ♥ ♥)
Is it just my lack of interest, or did the Bane subplot just kind of completely fizzle out in some future book?
I have also realized that I remember absolutely nothing about the second book other than something about big trees and lost ruins, so that'll be fun.
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*They actually managed to publish all seven books in four years? It seemed like I was waiting forever to finish the series, but time passes slower at that age.
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I would love to know what you think if you read them again. :D
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And yeah, the Bane subplot totally fizzled out.
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Haplo is totally Zuko's big brother (or little brother, or something...but yeah, the daddy-issues trying-SO-HARD-to-be-evil (and still failing)...awww!)
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And Haplo is SUCH a Zuko, omg. He's even got the overly dramatic/extra thing going on, although in a comparatively low-key way. I really adore Haplo; his arc is so great. ♥