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Mordant's Need #1-2
Mordant's Need
The Mirror of her Dreams:
The daughter of rich but neglectful parents, Terisa Morgan lives alone in a New York City apartment, a young woman who has grown to doubt her own existence. Surrounded by the flat reassurance of mirrors, she leads an unfulfilled life—until the night a strange man named Geraden comes crashing through one of her mirrors, on a quest to find a champion to save his kingdom of Mordant from a pervasive evil that threatens the land. Terisa is no champion. She wields neither magic nor power. And yet, much to her own surprise, when Geraden begs her to come back with him, she agrees.
A Man Rides Through:
Aided by the powerful magic of Vagel, the evil Arch-Imager, the merciless armies are marching against the kingdom of Mordant. In its hour of greatest need, two unlikely champions emerge. One is Geraden, whose inability to master the simplest skills of Imagery has made him a laughingstock. The other is Terisa Morgan, transferred to Mordant from a Manhattan apartment by Geraden’s faulty magic. Together, Geraden and Terisa discover undreamed-of talents within themselves—talents that make them more than a match for any Imager . . . including Vagel himself.
Unfortunately, those talents also mark them for death. Branded as traitors, they are forced to flee the castle for their lives. Now, all but defenseless in a war-torn countryside ravaged by the vilest horrors Imagery can spawn, Geraden and Terisa must put aside past failures and find the courage to embrace their powers
The daughter of rich but neglectful parents, Terisa Morgan lives alone in a New York City apartment, a young woman who has grown to doubt her own existence. Surrounded by the flat reassurance of mirrors, she leads an unfulfilled life—until the night a strange man named Geraden comes crashing through one of her mirrors, on a quest to find a champion to save his kingdom of Mordant from a pervasive evil that threatens the land. Terisa is no champion. She wields neither magic nor power. And yet, much to her own surprise, when Geraden begs her to come back with him, she agrees.
A Man Rides Through:
Aided by the powerful magic of Vagel, the evil Arch-Imager, the merciless armies are marching against the kingdom of Mordant. In its hour of greatest need, two unlikely champions emerge. One is Geraden, whose inability to master the simplest skills of Imagery has made him a laughingstock. The other is Terisa Morgan, transferred to Mordant from a Manhattan apartment by Geraden’s faulty magic. Together, Geraden and Terisa discover undreamed-of talents within themselves—talents that make them more than a match for any Imager . . . including Vagel himself.
Unfortunately, those talents also mark them for death. Branded as traitors, they are forced to flee the castle for their lives. Now, all but defenseless in a war-torn countryside ravaged by the vilest horrors Imagery can spawn, Geraden and Terisa must put aside past failures and find the courage to embrace their powers
979 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1986
About the author
Stephen R. Donaldson
159 books2,575 followersStephen Reeder Donaldson is an American fantasy, science fiction, and mystery novelist; in the United Kingdom he is usually called "Stephen Donaldson" (without the "R"). He has also written non-fiction under the pen name Reed Stephens.
EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION:
Stephen R. Donaldson was born May 13, 1947 in Cleveland, Ohio. His father, James, was a medical missionary and his mother, Ruth, a prosthetist (a person skilled in making or fitting prosthetic devices). Donaldson spent the years between the ages of 3 and 16 living in India, where his father was working as an orthopaedic surgeon. Donaldson earned his bachelor's degree from The College of Wooster and master's degree from Kent State University.
INSPIRATIONS:
Donaldson's work is heavily influenced by other fantasy authors such as J.R.R. Tolkien, Roger Zelazny, Joseph Conrad, Henry James, and William Faulkner. The writers he most admires are Patricia A. McKillip, Steven Erikson, and Tim Powers.
It is believed that a speech his father made on leprosy (whilst working with lepers in India) led to Donaldson's creation of Thomas Covenant, the anti-hero of his most famous work (Thomas Covenant). The first book in that series, Lord Foul's Bane, received 47 rejections before a publisher agreed to publish it.
PROMINENT WORK:
Stephen Donaldson came to prominence in 1977 with the The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, which is centred around a leper shunned by society and his trials and tribulations as his destiny unfolds. These books established Donaldson as one of the most important figures in modern fantasy fiction.
PERSONAL LIFE:
He currently resides in New Mexico.
THE GRADUAL INTERVIEW
EARLY LIFE AND EDUCATION:
Stephen R. Donaldson was born May 13, 1947 in Cleveland, Ohio. His father, James, was a medical missionary and his mother, Ruth, a prosthetist (a person skilled in making or fitting prosthetic devices). Donaldson spent the years between the ages of 3 and 16 living in India, where his father was working as an orthopaedic surgeon. Donaldson earned his bachelor's degree from The College of Wooster and master's degree from Kent State University.
INSPIRATIONS:
Donaldson's work is heavily influenced by other fantasy authors such as J.R.R. Tolkien, Roger Zelazny, Joseph Conrad, Henry James, and William Faulkner. The writers he most admires are Patricia A. McKillip, Steven Erikson, and Tim Powers.
It is believed that a speech his father made on leprosy (whilst working with lepers in India) led to Donaldson's creation of Thomas Covenant, the anti-hero of his most famous work (Thomas Covenant). The first book in that series, Lord Foul's Bane, received 47 rejections before a publisher agreed to publish it.
PROMINENT WORK:
Stephen Donaldson came to prominence in 1977 with the The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, which is centred around a leper shunned by society and his trials and tribulations as his destiny unfolds. These books established Donaldson as one of the most important figures in modern fantasy fiction.
PERSONAL LIFE:
He currently resides in New Mexico.
THE GRADUAL INTERVIEW
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
May 29, 2023
I really enjoyed this book. The first part is mostly characterization, world-building, rising of tension and court intrigue, the second is more fast-paced, it gears towards action and unravels the many plot knots with a clear touch of mischief; the writing style is poignant and the narrative has a nice rhythm throughout, my interest never wavered even during the most complex passages, and the realism, the depth of the characters and their consistent development is truly interesting, not just the main ones, Geraden and Terisa, but also the many secondary ones, friends and foes alike.
The ending was satisfying and really fitting to the prologue of the first book (one of the most catching prologues I’ve ever read, along with The Curse of the Mistwraith’s), also the achievements of the characters and the many twists of the plot, along with a good amount of bloodshed and witty remarks, made for great entertainment.
There is humor and cynicism, the tones of the book are almost never light though, nor are the themes. The story also deals with sensitive issues like rape and the objectification of women, but it does so with purpose and skill, the whole duology, which I would label as psychological epic fantasy, portrays different human types and offers a lot of fascinating explorations of their character. There is also a superb focus on self-identity, on growth, on the concept of a purpose in life, and on the nature of attraction.
The realm of Mordant, with its independent states structure, is facing a dire crisis and its aging king, the monarch who managed to unify Mordant’s states and stall the ancient conflict between Alend and Cadwal by seizing control of all the Imagers, is unheeding of his advisors’ pleas. He spends his days with his counselor Havelock, an Imager gone mad after a translation through a flat glass, and shows himself signs of senility. His Congery, the order of Imagers he once founded to end the wars, casts an augury to find an answer as how to address Mordant’s Need, and the clues lead to the necessity of bringing a champion into being through Imagery.
Terisa is a shadow, without dreams, alive only in the reflection of her mirrors. She carries on, believing in the pointlessness of what she does. It’s the images which tell her who she is and she lives passively to protect herself from reality, afraid of what the others think of her, unable to make choices, afraid to face the consequences.
“Reality had become like sand, trickling through her fingers”.
Geraden is in little better condition. He is an Apt of the Congery, an apprentice Imager, and the older ever to be still serving without earning the title of Master. An amiable fellow with an “awkward instinct for mishap” and six brothers, he’s generally considered a failure and he is embarrassingly aware of his shortcomings. “His advantages were a willing heart, ready determination, and a quality of loyalty usually ascribed to puppies”.
“He was too many things at once - a boy, a man, and everything in between - and the differing parts of himself seldom came into balance.”
Geraden is tasked to bring in the champion. Terisa may not be the manner of champion the Congery bargained for. Meanwhile, the menace threatening the peace attained by the king of Mordant is further imperiled when Alend and Cadwal make their move to gain the advantage, or to prevent a traditional enemy from conquering the unstable kingdom and its powerful Imagers. Reality blends with imagination, a woman who uses mirrors to have proof of her existence and a man whose mirrors reflect anything but reality.
“How many different kind of pains were there?”
Terisa is truly a complex character; she is an adult yet unsure of her own being. A woman with no real experience of life, of its joy or its sorrow, she finds substance only in the approval of others and her reflected image. She has no self-respect and nothing she believes in, and then she is suddenly translated into Orison, the capital of Mordant, a place she is completely ignorant about, yet “a place where she mattered”. Taught for years never to stand up, she clings to whoever seems to see her, to make her feel real. How can a woman who is so unsuited and so seriously screwed-up make sense of the machinations and betrayals which embroil Mordant, or address its need?
Terisa is firstly defined by the circumstances of her appearance, then by her gender. It’s interesting to see the various characters’ reactions to her presence, and their degree of suspicion or interest or lack thereof, also how the arrival of a new piece can influence the ongoing power game. Some ignore her, some try to convince her of their ideas, some to utterly manipulate her and some to actively kill her. She is also a woman in a male-dominated society, and with this added burden she has to navigate the endless interests and schemes that surround Mordant’s need. The other main female characters, Saddith, Myste and Elega, also offer interesting answers as to how a woman can find her purpose, or achieve power, in such an environment. Like for Geraden, almost no one expects her to be someone who can make a difference and this leads many to underestimate her, while she slowly comes out of her apathy and engages her brain, her wits, uses her charm and finally the power of her choices to act. If she can be defined by those choices, what will those be?
“Problems should be solved by those who see them”
Fully caught in the game, and throughout inspired by a healthy dose of self-preservation, Terisa soon discovers falsehood may be her only weapon and she hates herself for it. Still shaken by all the emotional disruption in her life, she slowly builds a sense of identity, attracted to people with charisma and unsure of whom to trust.
"I can’t spend my whole life just sitting on my hands and wondering when I’m going to fade. I can’t. That’s worse than doing something wrong. Isn’t it?"
The whole cast is the real gem of this book. The characters are usually well-developed, even the more stereotyped ones play important parts in the story, moreover their motivations are often unclear (sometimes even to themselves), and with many layers of purpose.
Mordant’s Need is original and compelling, the book has all the elements I like in a mystery/court intrigue fantasy story: convoluted agendas, strategies, feints, thrusts, assassinations and deceit, treachery, policy, ambition, pride, revenge, plots and counterplots, alliances, manipulation, divided loyalties, ambiguity, double crossing, change of tactics, betrayals, friendships, family bonds, opposed desires and an ever developing situation. It is mainly character-driven with an interesting romance subtheme but the action scenes are really pacey, it is like following an elaborate multi-player strategy game with many fronts, high stakes, no clear lines, and a question, “What good are friends who treat you just like your enemies do?”
The ending was satisfying and really fitting to the prologue of the first book (one of the most catching prologues I’ve ever read, along with The Curse of the Mistwraith’s), also the achievements of the characters and the many twists of the plot, along with a good amount of bloodshed and witty remarks, made for great entertainment.
There is humor and cynicism, the tones of the book are almost never light though, nor are the themes. The story also deals with sensitive issues like rape and the objectification of women, but it does so with purpose and skill, the whole duology, which I would label as psychological epic fantasy, portrays different human types and offers a lot of fascinating explorations of their character. There is also a superb focus on self-identity, on growth, on the concept of a purpose in life, and on the nature of attraction.
The realm of Mordant, with its independent states structure, is facing a dire crisis and its aging king, the monarch who managed to unify Mordant’s states and stall the ancient conflict between Alend and Cadwal by seizing control of all the Imagers, is unheeding of his advisors’ pleas. He spends his days with his counselor Havelock, an Imager gone mad after a translation through a flat glass, and shows himself signs of senility. His Congery, the order of Imagers he once founded to end the wars, casts an augury to find an answer as how to address Mordant’s Need, and the clues lead to the necessity of bringing a champion into being through Imagery.
Terisa is a shadow, without dreams, alive only in the reflection of her mirrors. She carries on, believing in the pointlessness of what she does. It’s the images which tell her who she is and she lives passively to protect herself from reality, afraid of what the others think of her, unable to make choices, afraid to face the consequences.
“Reality had become like sand, trickling through her fingers”.
Geraden is in little better condition. He is an Apt of the Congery, an apprentice Imager, and the older ever to be still serving without earning the title of Master. An amiable fellow with an “awkward instinct for mishap” and six brothers, he’s generally considered a failure and he is embarrassingly aware of his shortcomings. “His advantages were a willing heart, ready determination, and a quality of loyalty usually ascribed to puppies”.
“He was too many things at once - a boy, a man, and everything in between - and the differing parts of himself seldom came into balance.”
Geraden is tasked to bring in the champion. Terisa may not be the manner of champion the Congery bargained for. Meanwhile, the menace threatening the peace attained by the king of Mordant is further imperiled when Alend and Cadwal make their move to gain the advantage, or to prevent a traditional enemy from conquering the unstable kingdom and its powerful Imagers. Reality blends with imagination, a woman who uses mirrors to have proof of her existence and a man whose mirrors reflect anything but reality.
“How many different kind of pains were there?”
Terisa is truly a complex character; she is an adult yet unsure of her own being. A woman with no real experience of life, of its joy or its sorrow, she finds substance only in the approval of others and her reflected image. She has no self-respect and nothing she believes in, and then she is suddenly translated into Orison, the capital of Mordant, a place she is completely ignorant about, yet “a place where she mattered”. Taught for years never to stand up, she clings to whoever seems to see her, to make her feel real. How can a woman who is so unsuited and so seriously screwed-up make sense of the machinations and betrayals which embroil Mordant, or address its need?
Terisa is firstly defined by the circumstances of her appearance, then by her gender. It’s interesting to see the various characters’ reactions to her presence, and their degree of suspicion or interest or lack thereof, also how the arrival of a new piece can influence the ongoing power game. Some ignore her, some try to convince her of their ideas, some to utterly manipulate her and some to actively kill her. She is also a woman in a male-dominated society, and with this added burden she has to navigate the endless interests and schemes that surround Mordant’s need. The other main female characters, Saddith, Myste and Elega, also offer interesting answers as to how a woman can find her purpose, or achieve power, in such an environment. Like for Geraden, almost no one expects her to be someone who can make a difference and this leads many to underestimate her, while she slowly comes out of her apathy and engages her brain, her wits, uses her charm and finally the power of her choices to act. If she can be defined by those choices, what will those be?
“Problems should be solved by those who see them”
Fully caught in the game, and throughout inspired by a healthy dose of self-preservation, Terisa soon discovers falsehood may be her only weapon and she hates herself for it. Still shaken by all the emotional disruption in her life, she slowly builds a sense of identity, attracted to people with charisma and unsure of whom to trust.
"I can’t spend my whole life just sitting on my hands and wondering when I’m going to fade. I can’t. That’s worse than doing something wrong. Isn’t it?"
The whole cast is the real gem of this book. The characters are usually well-developed, even the more stereotyped ones play important parts in the story, moreover their motivations are often unclear (sometimes even to themselves), and with many layers of purpose.
Mordant’s Need is original and compelling, the book has all the elements I like in a mystery/court intrigue fantasy story: convoluted agendas, strategies, feints, thrusts, assassinations and deceit, treachery, policy, ambition, pride, revenge, plots and counterplots, alliances, manipulation, divided loyalties, ambiguity, double crossing, change of tactics, betrayals, friendships, family bonds, opposed desires and an ever developing situation. It is mainly character-driven with an interesting romance subtheme but the action scenes are really pacey, it is like following an elaborate multi-player strategy game with many fronts, high stakes, no clear lines, and a question, “What good are friends who treat you just like your enemies do?”
November 1, 2010
I understand why so many people love these books. How can anyone think of this story without a feeling of amused warmth? My status updates reveal my progress as I read it, I think.
The writing is impeccable, the structure perfect, the story inventive and original within the framework of boy meets girl, girl follows boy, both stumble around trying to find themselves, both are in danger, they discover their true talent, they fall in love, they fight together for the right, they live together in the peaceful kingdom happily ever after.
The 'couldn't say shit if she had a mouthful' heroine finds her voice and says 'oh, shit' when she needs to. The clumsy puppy of a hero stops stumbling around and becomes a man. The villain comes to a fitting end, amusing and ironic.
The concept of 'image translation' is inventive. I'm not that widely read in the fantasy literature realm, but I've never read anything like it before.
My only complaint is the size and heft of the book. If I had it to do over, I would have read the two books separately. It was heavy and awkward, my arms got tired, I feared the pages would get torn as I turned them against my stomach. Finally I laid the book on a pillow in my lap and that made it a little easier.
Great read!
The writing is impeccable, the structure perfect, the story inventive and original within the framework of boy meets girl, girl follows boy, both stumble around trying to find themselves, both are in danger, they discover their true talent, they fall in love, they fight together for the right, they live together in the peaceful kingdom happily ever after.
The 'couldn't say shit if she had a mouthful' heroine finds her voice and says 'oh, shit' when she needs to. The clumsy puppy of a hero stops stumbling around and becomes a man. The villain comes to a fitting end, amusing and ironic.
The concept of 'image translation' is inventive. I'm not that widely read in the fantasy literature realm, but I've never read anything like it before.
My only complaint is the size and heft of the book. If I had it to do over, I would have read the two books separately. It was heavy and awkward, my arms got tired, I feared the pages would get torn as I turned them against my stomach. Finally I laid the book on a pillow in my lap and that made it a little easier.
Great read!
October 16, 2018
I found this book to be an odd mixture of the intriguingly innovative and the very conventional. It presents a bit of a riff on the well-worn "person from contemporary Earth gets zapped to fantasy world in trouble" plotline, by making the "normal Earth person" heroine (Terisa Morgan) someone who not only has seemingly no special powers or abilities, but is also extremely passive and socially awkward. (The book wisely never advances any kind of diagnosis, but modern readers will probably tag her as suffering from depression, anxiety or similar.) Her summoning is the result of a mistake by a put-upon apprentice (Geraden, the second protagonist) who assumes that since she lives in an apartment full of mirrors (used for magic/Imagery in his world), she must be a powerful person. This isn't played for laughs, as it would be in a comedic send-up of fantasy tropes.
Making the protagonists a nervous shut-in and a screw-up could be an absolutely terrible approach to a serious story - a passive, "useless", protagonist (especially a female one) is a common complaint in negative book reviews. Here, however, it is actually used quite skilfully, allowing for situations where a genre-savvy reader can have a much better idea of what's going on than Terisa does, without this being a disadvantage. She and Geraden also, crucially, come across as actually sympathetic rather than misery-lit abuse victim and comically inept magician stereotypes. In general, the focus, at least early on, is more on character development and interaction rather than actually solving any of the problems and mysteries of the plot. In particular, I thought the identity of the main villain was pretty obvious to the reader, just not to the characters, and this actually worked, which was surprising.
The nature of magic - or "Imagery" in the setting is also a plus, being based around summoning things or creatures through mirrors, which the Imagers have to not only use but make themselves. Given the premise, obviously the book explores the ramifications of summoning intelligent beings from other dimensions for tasks, which is unusual. It also takes a sci-fi twist, with a futuristic power-armoured warrior being summoned from a third universe as an alternate "champion" in place of Terisa. This goes...poorly.
Unfortunately, not all of the book is this fresh and interesting, and the overall execution isn't as good as it could be. The fantasy world feels very medieval-European-fantasy generic, and the author never really (as far as I can see) addresses the major question of why the Imagers don't simply take over the world themselves as opposed to allowing ordinary kings to push them around. The cast of characters is also a bit large, with a lot of different intriguing nobles, Imagers and servants being introduced fairly rapidly. Not all the intrigue is "on screen" because of the choice of protagonists, but this didn't entirely work for me.
The later parts of the book, I think, are where things break down a bit, partly because of the need to actually bring the many plot threads towards a resolution.
Making the protagonists a nervous shut-in and a screw-up could be an absolutely terrible approach to a serious story - a passive, "useless", protagonist (especially a female one) is a common complaint in negative book reviews. Here, however, it is actually used quite skilfully, allowing for situations where a genre-savvy reader can have a much better idea of what's going on than Terisa does, without this being a disadvantage. She and Geraden also, crucially, come across as actually sympathetic rather than misery-lit abuse victim and comically inept magician stereotypes. In general, the focus, at least early on, is more on character development and interaction rather than actually solving any of the problems and mysteries of the plot. In particular, I thought the identity of the main villain was pretty obvious to the reader, just not to the characters, and this actually worked, which was surprising.
The nature of magic - or "Imagery" in the setting is also a plus, being based around summoning things or creatures through mirrors, which the Imagers have to not only use but make themselves. Given the premise, obviously the book explores the ramifications of summoning intelligent beings from other dimensions for tasks, which is unusual. It also takes a sci-fi twist, with a futuristic power-armoured warrior being summoned from a third universe as an alternate "champion" in place of Terisa. This goes...poorly.
Unfortunately, not all of the book is this fresh and interesting, and the overall execution isn't as good as it could be. The fantasy world feels very medieval-European-fantasy generic, and the author never really (as far as I can see) addresses the major question of why the Imagers don't simply take over the world themselves as opposed to allowing ordinary kings to push them around. The cast of characters is also a bit large, with a lot of different intriguing nobles, Imagers and servants being introduced fairly rapidly. Not all the intrigue is "on screen" because of the choice of protagonists, but this didn't entirely work for me.
The later parts of the book, I think, are where things break down a bit, partly because of the need to actually bring the many plot threads towards a resolution.
July 25, 2012
I first read the two books that comprise Mordant's Need (The Mirror of Her Dreams and A Man Rides Through) many, MANY years ago. I loved them then, and I still love them now. Stephen Donaldson paints an unusual, perhaps unique, system of magic that I find refreshing and intriguing. The magic system aside, world-building is a little on the light side, but you get enough history of Mordant and its neighbours - and their conflicts - to give a satisfying background to the story.
For me, the primary strength of these books is in their characters - not just Terisa and Geraden, the central characters, but all the supporting cast as well. Many of them appear somewhat one-dimensional and clichéd to begin with, but the more you learn about them the more interesting they become. Each has their strengths and weaknesses, talents and flaws which influence everything they do.
If you like good old-fashioned fantasy, with just enough darkness to give it a bit of spice, then I highly recommend this book (or books, depending on whether you get the omnibus edition or not).
For me, the primary strength of these books is in their characters - not just Terisa and Geraden, the central characters, but all the supporting cast as well. Many of them appear somewhat one-dimensional and clichéd to begin with, but the more you learn about them the more interesting they become. Each has their strengths and weaknesses, talents and flaws which influence everything they do.
If you like good old-fashioned fantasy, with just enough darkness to give it a bit of spice, then I highly recommend this book (or books, depending on whether you get the omnibus edition or not).
May 21, 2017
The best of Donaldson's fantasy creations. Can't read this too many times. It is easy to be one of the characters and live the book. It is my go to book when I am feeling low and want to escape.
June 2, 2014
I absolutely loved these books. I read them years ago, but remember them with a fond longing that makes me want to pick them up and experience them all over again. Such a unique world, with a twisted and touching story, I just loved living it again and again.
August 28, 2014
10/10
Fleshed out, multi-dimensional characters and vivid imagery are the trademarks of this wonderful story. Donaldson is at his very best here. This is gripping storytelling and wonderful world creation. Fantasy at its best.
Fleshed out, multi-dimensional characters and vivid imagery are the trademarks of this wonderful story. Donaldson is at his very best here. This is gripping storytelling and wonderful world creation. Fantasy at its best.
August 15, 2016
A re-read for me of an all time favorite classic fantasy self discovery and love story. Who wouldn't want to be transported from a drab and problematic life into a vibrant complex technicolor world?
November 14, 2021
Very similar to Thomas Covenant but, in many ways, quite different as well. A good alternative for those who didn't (or maybe did) like Thomas Covenant.
June 24, 2012
I read the two books that comprise Stephen R. Donaldson's "Mordant's Need" in college and did not find them as engaging as his "Thomas Covenant" series. I decided to re-experience these books ("The Mirror of Her Dreams" and "A Man Rides Through") in the unabridged audio edition, narrated by the superb Scott Brick. I enjoyed them much more this time around. Donaldson revisits his familiar theme of examining how damaged people cope and adapt with their (mostly psychological) shortcomings, but in a different way than he has done with the Covenant books. This series does not quite reach the same level as the Covenant saga achieves, but it is still very good high fantasy.
August 26, 2012
can I add a 6th star?
March 30, 2013
i read this not long after it came out originally, decided to get it for my kindle and re-read it really re-enjoying it.
August 17, 2018
Well, finally finished reading this.
I’ve tried and stopped a couple times over the years based on all the positive recs but I guess this just wasn’t the book for me.
The first half, or the first novel, is directionless. There’s lots of background work, character introduction, expositional dialogue, and attempted murder to hint at plot points, but the mc, Teresa, spends it mostly spinning her wheels and trying to disappear into the peacock wallpaper. She was exasperating to have to read and events happened to her, sweeping her along without much explanation beyond that it was what was meant to happen.
The plot, which picks up somewhat in the second half is that Mordant is the servile buffer country between two warring countries, King Joyse rose up and united Mordant’s disparate Cares to form an independent country through force of will, arms, and Imagery. Imagery is this worlds magic, never fully explained or explored, that allows users to make mirrors into other worlds and translate them out or in. Basically portal guns across dimensions. Sounds fine, but Joyse, now much older starts acting like a doddering fool to draw in unknown enemies to attack. All this according to an augury done when Joyse was a baby. This works. Terisa somehow is an arch Imager with no explanation or teaching necessary. She gets with the clumsy, supportive Geraden, neutralizes Eremis, the sleaze ball would be mastermind, affirms her own reality, and gets a happily ever after. Skipped most of the middle, but was it necessary?
How a book manages to both be too descriptive (there’s only so many times I need to know what they’re eating, wearing, or decorating with) and vague (why and how are characters capable of some of their intuitive leaps and powers?) is boggling. It’s not a hard read and some of the world building is appreciated. But I had to read this in parts with other books to prevent the loss of interest and he distaste of Eremis. More happy for it to have ended because the ending was obvious.
I’ve tried and stopped a couple times over the years based on all the positive recs but I guess this just wasn’t the book for me.
The first half, or the first novel, is directionless. There’s lots of background work, character introduction, expositional dialogue, and attempted murder to hint at plot points, but the mc, Teresa, spends it mostly spinning her wheels and trying to disappear into the peacock wallpaper. She was exasperating to have to read and events happened to her, sweeping her along without much explanation beyond that it was what was meant to happen.
The plot, which picks up somewhat in the second half is that Mordant is the servile buffer country between two warring countries, King Joyse rose up and united Mordant’s disparate Cares to form an independent country through force of will, arms, and Imagery. Imagery is this worlds magic, never fully explained or explored, that allows users to make mirrors into other worlds and translate them out or in. Basically portal guns across dimensions. Sounds fine, but Joyse, now much older starts acting like a doddering fool to draw in unknown enemies to attack. All this according to an augury done when Joyse was a baby. This works. Terisa somehow is an arch Imager with no explanation or teaching necessary. She gets with the clumsy, supportive Geraden, neutralizes Eremis, the sleaze ball would be mastermind, affirms her own reality, and gets a happily ever after. Skipped most of the middle, but was it necessary?
How a book manages to both be too descriptive (there’s only so many times I need to know what they’re eating, wearing, or decorating with) and vague (why and how are characters capable of some of their intuitive leaps and powers?) is boggling. It’s not a hard read and some of the world building is appreciated. But I had to read this in parts with other books to prevent the loss of interest and he distaste of Eremis. More happy for it to have ended because the ending was obvious.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 17, 2018
I once read a review of Twilight where they referenced the main character as "pants". They meant that the character was so generic that anyone could picture themselves as the MC. How I wish this had even slightly been the case with this character. The MC, Terisa, might as well have been a tv that we watch the story unfold through. She has no redeeming traits, takes barely any actions, and is constantly rescued by men.
If you can get past the dislike of Terisa and accept that she is just a tv, then you may be able to read the story. The other characters actually have personalities and it's interesting to watch the King's plans for saving Mordant unfold. However, I found myself wishing for more perspective from Elga and Myste's points of views and wanted to travel with them as they went on their own journeys.
Overall I give the book a 2. It was very hard to get past my hate for Terisa and they story seemed to drag at the end. It would have gotten 1 star, except for the fact that there were some well thought out characters in the book.
If you can get past the dislike of Terisa and accept that she is just a tv, then you may be able to read the story. The other characters actually have personalities and it's interesting to watch the King's plans for saving Mordant unfold. However, I found myself wishing for more perspective from Elga and Myste's points of views and wanted to travel with them as they went on their own journeys.
Overall I give the book a 2. It was very hard to get past my hate for Terisa and they story seemed to drag at the end. It would have gotten 1 star, except for the fact that there were some well thought out characters in the book.
July 7, 2020
I love this story. I don't read very much because my mind isn't usually held long enough by fiction to get though it but Donaldson in general and this story in particular are complete class. I love the way the characters start out as completely flat as if constructed by a high school student doing a written English project but are then developed throughout the entire story. In a way this discovery by the reader is a mirror of the discovery of the lead characters of themselves. I've read it and listened to it a couple of times now and I still think it would be worth reading again. For me this is one of the only stories up there with the Gap for writing quality and detail. Fantastic :-)
September 21, 2023
I wanted to like this book so badly. Whilst the idea of having a protagonist riddled with self-doubt and depression is relatable, it was utterly to this story's detriment. I was unable to care about this morose, boring protagonist and the villain was disappointing. The characters I did want to read more about vanished into the aether as a side story. Never looked into whether there was a further book about those particular characters as this book made me so angry. I did, however finish it. Personally I prefer my depressed protagonists to have a balancing trait of sarcasm or humour.
May 27, 2022
Didn't have the character depth that previous SD books have had. The world seemed slightly cartoon like and the events slightly Scooby Doo ish. Some good imagination going on and the completely new environment was created well. In the end I felt a little disappointed in the writing and would probably have put it down hid i not had loyalty to the author through his fantastic Covenant series.
December 26, 2023
Read many years ago and just picked it up again. Fast moving good read. Interesting story, good characters but the female lead needed some more gender type attention to her thinking and reactions, a bit shallow. Writing was solid as all his work. Did l leave me wanting more books from this world.
January 3, 2020
3.5 Very slow start, really didn't like the whining of the Terisa and being told again and again how insecure, out-of-place, terribly raised she was. I got that after the first ten times.
Still, the story was good, nice magic with the mirrors.
Still, the story was good, nice magic with the mirrors.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 6, 2018
Simply the Best
I must say that this is by far the most enjoyed book I've ever read, and I read a lot.
I must say that this is by far the most enjoyed book I've ever read, and I read a lot.
December 3, 2018
Interesting characters and good world building. Detailed magical laws and some gruesome magical creatures. While I found some parts a little tiresome, this was still an enjoyable read.
December 1, 2018
These 2 books are IMHO 2 beautiful, powerful books by one of the best authors alive today. They are lost among the Chronicles of Thomas Covenant and The Gap Series. Stephen Donaldson with his amazing plots, wonderful characters and elegant writing style are all on show in these 2 books.
They are certainly in my top 5 books by Stephen Donaldson. If you are a fan or new to his books. These 2 books are some of his best work and well worth the time and money.
Shaun Wallace
They are certainly in my top 5 books by Stephen Donaldson. If you are a fan or new to his books. These 2 books are some of his best work and well worth the time and money.
Shaun Wallace
February 5, 2017
Reluctantly abandoned at chapter 21.
Why? Not the writing, but the weight!
I borrowed "Mordant's Need", which is the omnibus edition containing both books, from my local library. I am 60yo with weakening grip in my hands. I just couldn't hold the book for any length of time. So I just bought the original hardbacks second hand on amazon and will review each independently. If you share my difficulties you should probably avoid omnibus editions of all of Donaldson's work, he's no lightweight.
Why? Not the writing, but the weight!
I borrowed "Mordant's Need", which is the omnibus edition containing both books, from my local library. I am 60yo with weakening grip in my hands. I just couldn't hold the book for any length of time. So I just bought the original hardbacks second hand on amazon and will review each independently. If you share my difficulties you should probably avoid omnibus editions of all of Donaldson's work, he's no lightweight.
January 27, 2011
The first part of this book was sluggish to get through but it improved greatly in the second half. Overall I think that this book could have been much shorter and more condensed, this would have made it a much better read.
October 21, 2012
I found it mild compared to his White gold Wealder epic. The idea of transportation through the mirror is a good one but found this particular book hard going. Maybe if I read it again, now, some 20 years later I might feel different.
September 29, 2013
Classical hero all-ends-well fantasy story filled with mystery and intrigue as well as love. Wonderful, easy and entertaining thing to read. I both loved and hated the main hero, Terisa, through out her travel in becoming a real person, who can make her own decisions.
April 25, 2008
Stephen Donaldson has the knack for vividly imagined scenarios and crafting very sympathetic characters. The Mordant's Need Omnibus continues in this tradition. Worth it..
July 6, 2009
This series is a bit on the pulpy side, but it is a classic of the pulp fantasy genre. Also, I always think of these books when I smell cloves
April 15, 2015
DNF. I gave up on this book after 28% read. I just couldn't get into it & found it a little boring.
April 20, 2022
My first fantasy-novel that I absolutely loved. The world wasn't the same after I finished them. The five stars comes from the 14 year old heart.
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