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nation's review against another edition
2.0
I had truly loved this book when I was younger, and forgotten both the author and title, and in fact everything about it except that it was a fantasy book in which magic works by poetry (a concept I still believe to be excellent). Unfortunately, little besides the concept has stood the test, not of time, but of age.
I can still see why I liked it so much. It's breezy and action-packed, the main character is honest and self-deprecating despite his new-found magic, and there is a strong system of morality which presents itself as Stasheff opens his world. What I did not notice as a young reader, however, is that Stasheff's system of morality does not simply present itself through his world; like most propaganda, it imposes itself upon the world and upon its readers.
In the land of Merovence, "Good" and "Evil" are not simply two ends of a very long, very complicated spectrum; they are, instead, the only two choices one can make. There is no such thing as a decision that is partially right and partially wrong. It is a world of absolutes. This is fairly standard in most hack fantasy novels, and in most hack fantasy novels I wouldn't fuss to raise a comment. I do not, however, believe Stasheff is a hack fantasy writer. He is a good fantasy writer. He also happens to be a propagandist.
The morality of Stasheff's fiction is absolute not because he couldn't bother an original idea; he could and did. The morality of his fiction is absolute because he made it that way on purpose, and insists on reminding us of it at every opportunity. I find nothing wrong with a sermon, but I do not typically take my sermons with a side of fantasy literature. If you think you might like to, this may be the book for you.
I can still see why I liked it so much. It's breezy and action-packed, the main character is honest and self-deprecating despite his new-found magic, and there is a strong system of morality which presents itself as Stasheff opens his world. What I did not notice as a young reader, however, is that Stasheff's system of morality does not simply present itself through his world; like most propaganda, it imposes itself upon the world and upon its readers.
In the land of Merovence, "Good" and "Evil" are not simply two ends of a very long, very complicated spectrum; they are, instead, the only two choices one can make. There is no such thing as a decision that is partially right and partially wrong. It is a world of absolutes. This is fairly standard in most hack fantasy novels, and in most hack fantasy novels I wouldn't fuss to raise a comment. I do not, however, believe Stasheff is a hack fantasy writer. He is a good fantasy writer. He also happens to be a propagandist.
The morality of Stasheff's fiction is absolute not because he couldn't bother an original idea; he could and did. The morality of his fiction is absolute because he made it that way on purpose, and insists on reminding us of it at every opportunity. I find nothing wrong with a sermon, but I do not typically take my sermons with a side of fantasy literature. If you think you might like to, this may be the book for you.
jeremybost's review against another edition
4.0
A great book. Only one POV, and the main character had some great powers. The only think I didn't quite like was the magic system. :)
abe25's review against another edition
5.0
nice book of what a man from our world would do with magic in defence of the innocent.
valentijn's review against another edition
4.0
Hackneyed and fun. Really engaging magic system which makes use of rhyme and gives a reason for the protagonist to shine in the new world. The book does feature a lot of Catholic religious themes, which didn't get too grating until the end. Overall I think it is a cool idea to include real-world religions and belief systems into a fantasy world in this way. It allows for an exploration of theological thought in a modern age that is approachable to both religious folks as well as atheists like me.
seasick_pirate's review against another edition
What I expected: a light-hearted fantasy story about a clumsy University student suddenly thrown in a fantasy world where dragons can get drunk on their own fire and magic spells have to be in rhyme.
What I got: a sermon. Like, a literal sermon about sin and atonement and resisting temptation.
...But for some reason the author couldn't resist the temptation to describe the boobs of every single female character that showed up in the book?
What I got: a sermon. Like, a literal sermon about sin and atonement and resisting temptation.
...But for some reason the author couldn't resist the temptation to describe the boobs of every single female character that showed up in the book?
pandaorb's review against another edition
4.0
I think most of this is worth three stars, but end was nice, so I'll give it four.
mirandaleighhhh's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.25
I don’t know where to begin.
Most of the plot sort of happens within Matt’s head. He will think about the problem and then somehow immediately solve it with poetry spells? And yet there is little to no actual character development for him. You barely hear about his life or who he was before this, and you don’t get anyone else’s perspective on him either. He barely runs into any real issues he can’t immediately fix. Its also an insane party! A wizard, a princess, a dragon that gets drunk when he breathes fire, a priest that is actually a horny werewolf, and a lust witch. There were also a lot of comments regarding women that I did not care for- “possessing” a woman, women being full of temptation…..ew. I will admit that the princess isn’t a damsel in distress which is good, and there were some aspects of other female characters that I enjoyed. I do think it is interesting that the author wanted to challenge some religious ideals, but it felt like he didn’t really challenge them because Matt just submits to the world he is in. By the end, I wasn’t upset about having read this, but it’s completely wild and I can’t recommend it.
Most of the plot sort of happens within Matt’s head. He will think about the problem and then somehow immediately solve it with poetry spells? And yet there is little to no actual character development for him. You barely hear about his life or who he was before this, and you don’t get anyone else’s perspective on him either. He barely runs into any real issues he can’t immediately fix. Its also an insane party! A wizard, a princess, a dragon that gets drunk when he breathes fire, a priest that is actually a horny werewolf, and a lust witch. There were also a lot of comments regarding women that I did not care for- “possessing” a woman, women being full of temptation…..ew. I will admit that the princess isn’t a damsel in distress which is good, and there were some aspects of other female characters that I enjoyed. I do think it is interesting that the author wanted to challenge some religious ideals, but it felt like he didn’t really challenge them because Matt just submits to the world he is in. By the end, I wasn’t upset about having read this, but it’s completely wild and I can’t recommend it.
slferg's review against another edition
5.0
Matt Mantrell is supposed to be working on his doctoral thesis. But he has found a bit of parchment in an old manuscript that he is sure has something important if he can only translate it - figure out what language it is and what it means. He is concentrating so intensely in the coffee shop one morning when it begins to make sense, that he is dazed to wake up and find himself in another world - another universe - that is medieval. And in this universe good and evil clearly matters and counts for a lot. People are convinced he is a wizard and he can make things happen by reciting poetry, but "how" does it work? and what goes into making an effective spell? And when he calls for light in a dungeon cell (tossed their by the kingdom's sorcerer), he ends up summoning a dragon. Then finds the deposed princess is in a cell nearby. That won't do....he has to help her.
vaderbird's review against another edition
3.0
5 star - Perfect
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish
4 star - i would recommend
3 star - good
2 star - struggled to complete
1 star - could not finish