/lit/ - Literature

>>22618331
Black Sun Rising, Coldfire Trilogy #1 - C.S. Friedman (1991)

Damien Vyrce, a knight of the order of the Golden Flame, is a sorcerer in service to the Church. He has traveled far to the east to Jagganoth under orders to assist their patriarch. Upon his arrival he first visits the Fae Shoppe, which sells both items mundane and Worked (magical). He's immediately smitten with its proprietress, Ciani of Faraday. She's an adept, a person born with an innate connection to the Fae, which makes them natural sorcerers of far greater and exclusive ability. Soon after disaster strikes and Ciani has much of all that she is ripped from her. The only way for her to regain what was lost is to kill the one who did it to her. Damien, Ciani, and her sorcerer assistant Senzei Reese, set off in search of their quarry.

The main draw to me was the character dynamics. I don't remember when I last read such a contentious party who have so many competing emotions about their companions. That's especially the case for the character shown on the cover, who later joins, because at best he's a fallen hero, though it's probably more accurate to call him a villain. In reductive terms, he's an amoral vampire with a complex history. Somehow he's also the one who has the most character development, despite his age and desire to be set in his ways. Damien is extremely conflicted about his presence, though by the end there isn't much that he isn't conflicted about.

I also greatly enjoyed everything about the world. Unlike some other series, this one doesn't obfuscate. Everyone seems to know that humanity came to this planet, Erna, 1,200 years ago after 10s of millennia in cold sleep on a generation ship. Unfortunately, due to the nature of the planet, they had to make the Great Sacrifice and give up almost all of their technology. The animistic force that's omnipresent is called Fae and allows for emotions and beliefs to affect reality. It also allows for what's called magic for simplicity's sake. At the time of their arrival humanity were the only known sapient species. That didn't last long because humanity's intense beliefs caused a rapid evolution in several species and one in particular. If humanity was created in God's image, then this newly sapient species was created in humanity's image. War soon began. Elsewhere it wouldn't have been much of a conflict, but the problem with technology was if it wasn't fully understood and believed in, it often catastrophically failed.

I enjoyed everything about this except the plot, which I found to be too simple and convenient. It also failed to do enough with its setting and the backstories of its world and characters. The set-up for the next book also displeased me, but was more understandable. Simply put, I felt the plot was contrived and the weakest aspect by far. I had to think for a few days how to rate this, but there wasn't any doubt that I'd read the rest of the trilogy.

Rating: 3.5/5 (4)

>>22463844
that is not what I had clipboarded...

I checked the recommended fantasy charts but this book had mixed response. Some approved, others put it in shit tier. Is it worth reading? If you could go into detail as to why then I would appreciate it. Thanks.