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A review by andrewdmth
Curse of the Mistwraith by Janny Wurts
5.0
As I read Curse of the Mistwraith I thought several times how much I wished I had discovered Janny Wurts earlier, but honestly, this book came at the right time in life for me. (I was a lad when they first came out…)
I’m not going to go into this review spoiling plot. But I can say this: don’t read this book expecting a bunch of tropes. You won’t find any. You’ll see moments of familiarity you might recognize in other fantasies. I mean, why wouldn’t there be? It’s a fantasy.
There will be travel, but not without purpose. There will be wizards. But not goofy old codgers. I’d say there is more Saruman or Raistlin about them than Gandalf the Grey. There will be political intrigue that very much overturns expectations. And there will be two half-brothers you’ll want to box around the ears more than once. All you need do is read for yourself and see that Janny Wurts is a master of her craft. She will have you expecting one thing, and with her bardic skill, twist and answer it with something new and in a way that makes more sense than you first expected. This is no cup game. You are the listener and she is the bard, playing at strings, both silver and heart, with a prose and word choice that will have you wanting to send excerpts from every page to send to friends.
There is a continual plangency (thank you for teaching me a new word Janny!) that runs through the entire book from beginning to end. And the descriptions of music by bards will draw emotion from you more moving than any other book description of a bard’s music I’ve read.
It’s a travesty that Wurts is not already and continually on everyone’s minds when lists of fantasy greats are named along with plenty of other authors I’m not going to bother listing here. But the fact is, there is a timelessness to Wurts’ writing that I feel fails in other respected authors from yesteryear. It’s time we seek out and read authors like Janny Wurts and ensure her legacy continues right now. (Especially as the final book in this series is set to come out next year.)
5+/5 stars
I’m not going to go into this review spoiling plot. But I can say this: don’t read this book expecting a bunch of tropes. You won’t find any. You’ll see moments of familiarity you might recognize in other fantasies. I mean, why wouldn’t there be? It’s a fantasy.
There will be travel, but not without purpose. There will be wizards. But not goofy old codgers. I’d say there is more Saruman or Raistlin about them than Gandalf the Grey. There will be political intrigue that very much overturns expectations. And there will be two half-brothers you’ll want to box around the ears more than once. All you need do is read for yourself and see that Janny Wurts is a master of her craft. She will have you expecting one thing, and with her bardic skill, twist and answer it with something new and in a way that makes more sense than you first expected. This is no cup game. You are the listener and she is the bard, playing at strings, both silver and heart, with a prose and word choice that will have you wanting to send excerpts from every page to send to friends.
There is a continual plangency (thank you for teaching me a new word Janny!) that runs through the entire book from beginning to end. And the descriptions of music by bards will draw emotion from you more moving than any other book description of a bard’s music I’ve read.
It’s a travesty that Wurts is not already and continually on everyone’s minds when lists of fantasy greats are named along with plenty of other authors I’m not going to bother listing here. But the fact is, there is a timelessness to Wurts’ writing that I feel fails in other respected authors from yesteryear. It’s time we seek out and read authors like Janny Wurts and ensure her legacy continues right now. (Especially as the final book in this series is set to come out next year.)
5+/5 stars