![]() At least it isn't that long, but almos every book ends like a cliffhanger, because it's part of a larger storyline. (!) Again, this is like Amber, since they just published all of those books into one volume recently. They're still both greater than 800 pages long. The Memory, Sorrow, Thorn series is a great example of this.Īnd yeah, it's really funny to read the notice at the front of the last book in paperback, that says basically "due to publishing constraints, we had to split this into two books for paperback". Reading one of his books as opposed to a 300-page book is like reading the 300-page book instead of seeing the movie. His books are very long, but they seem more real than many other books I've read just because of his attention to detail. I think that for the futuristic perspective novels, I like Tad Williams almost as much as I like David Brin (for Earth, which was awesome, and still pretty possible-amazing in that genre!).īut really I like Tad's vivid depictions of reality. ![]() I was just reading Amber again, which (of course) has to do with some pretty realistic "virtual worlds" (shadows), and everybody loves The Matrix, even if it isn't Neuromancer. Regardless, the "trapped in a realistic virtual world" plot still hasn't run out of steam yet. I just love that futuristic computer stuff D&D-style virtual gaming worlds, yeah! I need to read the third book of Otherland, (it's not out in paperback yet, is it?) and I liked the second one, but I think I liked the first one better. Philosophical and literary analysis aside, is it entertaining? Quite so! The mixture of enigma and revelation, imagination and technical whiz-bang makes a very satisfying texture.įor a thoughtful, less-dystopian-than-cyberpunk but still epic take on virtual reality, identity, and conspiracy, check out the Otherland. It's refreshing to see him choose a less-than-superhuman antagonist (though the Heliopolis simulation and the Other may turn out to be more important - and less "human" - in the end). You'll find ancient conspiracies, shady deals with unknown forces, enlightened groups of scholars working in the background, and the question of responsibility. Williams fans may notice themes also present his "Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn" series, which itself expanded on ideas present in his debut work To his credit, a plot diagram of River of Blue Fire would fit the traditional form much more closely than one of City of Golden Shadow.) (In the introduction, Williams promises his fans that he will try to avoid the sort of cliffhanger ending that the first book had. This can be frustrating, as the most intriguing character receives the least attention. Consequently, even in a book of nearly 700 pages, four chapters may separate sequential events. While there's still a lot of action, it's divided between five major groups of characters and settings (the latter given a very loose interpretation) and at least five other, minor threads. On the whole, there is less action than in the previous book, but more plot. True to Williams' plot-twisting style, these bring up new questions. Plotwise, the motivations of and divisions within the Grail Brotherhood are explored, and partial explanations of sleeping sickness are given. ![]() Light and the Grail project enters its final stages.Īs fits the second book in this series of four, some mysteries are solved and many more are discovered. Reality and Otherland start to feed off of each other as dark secrets come to The real world is packed with intrigue too, as the forces opposing the Brotherhood (both knowingly and unknowingly) plan and plot and move their pieces into position. It's a quest that will take them through a land of giant insects, Venice, Ancient Egypt, a twisted Kansas under invasion from decaying Oz, and other exotic, The intrusion and act to protect their secrets.įrightened and confused, the party's only chance for survival is to follow the quasi-metaphorical river that flows through each simulation, connecting the private domains of each member of the Brotherhood. It would be only a matter of time before the shadowy Grail Brotherhood, masters of Otherland, could discover In this playground for the rich, the reclusive, and the powerful, the small band was shocked to learn that it was trapped. Tad Williams explores global conspiracies surrounding a perfectly realized virtual world in the continuation of his Otherland saga.Īt the end of Otherland: City of Golden Shadow, Tad Williams had dumped most of his protagonists into the convincing virtual reality known as the Otherland. This book is Otherland: River of Blue Fire, which is the book after Otherland: City of Golden Shadow. Chromatic, already a reviewing fixture and well-known AfterY2k junkie, has sent us a quick review of the latest book in Tad Williams' Otherland series. ![]()
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