The Runes Of The Earth
The Last Chronicles of Thomas Covenant
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4.7 • 27 Ratings
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- £4.99
Publisher Description
The return of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever!
In 1977, with the publication of THE CHRONICLES OF THOMAS COVENANT THE UNBELIEVER, Stephen Donaldson created a true phenomenon: an epic fantasy instant bestseller that has now sold millions and millions of copies across the world.
Thomas Covenant is mysteriously struck down by a disease believed eradicated; abandoned by his wife and young son, he becomes a pariah. Alone, despairing, Covenant falls - and is drawn into a mysterious new world where gentle people work magic and the earth itself brings healing. He is welcomed as the reincarnation of a legendary saviour, but Covenant is convinced he's having delusions. At the end of the sixth book, as Covenant battles to save the world, he is killed - in both worlds - as Dr Linden Avery, his horrified companion, looks on.
Now comes the book every fantasy reader has been waiting for. It's ten years later and Linden Avery thought she would never see the Land, or Covenant, her beloved, again. But Lord Foul has stolen her adopted son, and is unmaking the very laws of nature.
And though she believes Covenant dead, he keeps sending Linden messages: 'Find me', 'You're the only one who can do this' and 'Remember that I'm dead'. The Land is in turmoil, and Lord Foul has plans for them all ...
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Six fantasy novels featuring Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever appeared between 1977 and 1983, but Donaldson shows that his epic series still has the power to surprise in this richly imagined start of a final quartet. Covenant died at the end of White Gold Wielder (1983), and at this novel's outset so does his lover, Linden Avery, in a violent confrontation with Joan and Roger Covenant as they kidnap her son, Jeremiah. Linden awakens once again in the Land, where she finds Lord Foul scheming to escape the Arch of Time with the help of Joan and Roger while using Jeremiah as a pawn. The 10 years since Linden's last visit have been centuries by Land time, and in that interval Anele, with whom she teams, has lost the Staff of Law, plunging the world into chaos. Linden's only hope for saving the Land and reclaiming Jeremiah is to gather a crew from the Land's numerous races and surf a caesure, or time rift, to retrieve the Staff. Nevertheless, she can't shake her fear that all this has been plotted by Foul as part of his malignant design. Donaldson's saga has transformed tremendously since initial volumes offered startlingly original antiheroic fantasy resonating with echoes of both Tolkien and Philip K. Dick, but the engaging humanity of his characters still compels attention. A new generation of readers may find this episode's midstream plunge into the saga bracing, while fans of Covenant's past chronicles will welcome a return to the Land.
Customer Reviews
Marvellous return to the Land
Greatly enjoyable return to the legends and stories of the Land and the peril it faces from the Despiser. Warm and comfortable in it's familiarity, the plot is not original but enjoyable nonetheless. Even Donaldson's continued addiction to the untrod recesses of the thesaurus are pleasurable reminders of my distant student days when Covenant held my fascination.