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essinink's review against another edition
5.0
Look. I know I'm giving out a lot of 5-stars lately. I know. But this is deserved, I swear.
The first Morgaine book, Gate of Ivrel was one of the first two manuscripts Cherryh sold, and with how hard I bounced off [b:Brothers of Earth|57091|Brothers of Earth (Hanan Rebellion #1)|C.J. Cherryh|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1226884555l/57091._SY75_.jpg|1185235], I was very nervous about picking it up. Much to my surprise, it turned out to be grimly enchanting, captivating in a way that almost all fantasy attempts but very little succeeds.
There is a particular stroke of brilliance in that the 'main' character Morgaine is semi-opaque to the reader. You never see the story from her perspective, but rather read through the eyes of Vanye--an exiled warrior. Through a quirk of culture and an overdeveloped sense of honor, Vanye finds himself bound to Morgaine's service, a fate which he believes puts him in peril of losing his soul. And yet Vanye's state is such that all he has left is his oath, and he will not break it. In time, Vanye and Morgaine understand each other better, and so too does the reader.
It's frequent in fiction to have surface conversations about 'the greater good.' Often the concept is derided. Morgaine (and to lesser degree Vanye) do terrible, terrible things on their quest, and yet... the stakes here are so high that I can't even fault them. The setting in Well of Shiuan is a literal apocalypse, and yet it pales next to what might happen should Morgaine fail her quest.
Grim, but enchantingly written. A cohesive trilogy and a sequel that adds to the story instead of being either reductive rehash or total disconnect. I strongly recommend the omnibus, or that you have all four books handy.
Bravo to Cherryh for a series that stands the test of age. Wish I'd read it sooner.
"That is my task, to seal Gates. I shall go until there are no more--and I shall not know that, I fear, until I step out the last one and find nothing there."
The first Morgaine book, Gate of Ivrel was one of the first two manuscripts Cherryh sold, and with how hard I bounced off [b:Brothers of Earth|57091|Brothers of Earth (Hanan Rebellion #1)|C.J. Cherryh|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1226884555l/57091._SY75_.jpg|1185235], I was very nervous about picking it up. Much to my surprise, it turned out to be grimly enchanting, captivating in a way that almost all fantasy attempts but very little succeeds.
There is a particular stroke of brilliance in that the 'main' character Morgaine is semi-opaque to the reader. You never see the story from her perspective, but rather read through the eyes of Vanye--an exiled warrior. Through a quirk of culture and an overdeveloped sense of honor, Vanye finds himself bound to Morgaine's service, a fate which he believes puts him in peril of losing his soul. And yet Vanye's state is such that all he has left is his oath, and he will not break it. In time, Vanye and Morgaine understand each other better, and so too does the reader.
It was not her custom to argue; and this was the measure of her arrogance, that she disputed with no one, not even with him, who had given her more than his oath.
It's frequent in fiction to have surface conversations about 'the greater good.' Often the concept is derided. Morgaine (and to lesser degree Vanye) do terrible, terrible things on their quest, and yet... the stakes here are so high that I can't even fault them. The setting in Well of Shiuan is a literal apocalypse, and yet it pales next to what might happen should Morgaine fail her quest.
"It is risk makes immortality bearable--to know that personal calamity is possible, oh very possible, and tranquility, what time it exists, is precious."
Grim, but enchantingly written. A cohesive trilogy and a sequel that adds to the story instead of being either reductive rehash or total disconnect. I strongly recommend the omnibus, or that you have all four books handy.
Bravo to Cherryh for a series that stands the test of age. Wish I'd read it sooner.
alanbaxter's review against another edition
5.0
This series blew my mind as a teenager and I decided to reread it, so it was a bonus to discover a brand new omnibus edition. And it's still an absolutely mind-blowing read. Massive and epic and dark and just so beautifully written. I can't really understand why this isn't a more popular and talked-about series. It really should be. Intelligent, dark science fantasy of the highest order. I wonder if there'll be any more? Cherryh is 73 now, and Exile's Gate was written in 1988, after the previous three books written in the 70s. So all that points to it being very unlikely we'll see more of Morgaine and Vanye, but I would dearly love to read their further adventures. Their story is far from over.
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