The Basement

. . . I don't think I'm going to be able to read that. It sounds entirely too much like my own childhood.

Toast, in that case, you want to read PA and then go on to read the sequel, asa kraiya. It's about how he heals.

I think I might have read a couple other Fifth Millennium novels, but this is new to me. I'll have to check it out once I find time.

I second this story--it's one of my two most anticipated reads, these days. Chevenga is nearly as much of a badass as Toast He's very much an idealist and his unflagging determination gets him far. Sure, there's plenty of difficulty but he keeps on trucking and always overcomes. There's also his innate joy, his unflagging exuberance. He's also really cool and a lot of fun to hang out with. ...Chevenga, I mean.

The story is well-written and the universe well-established. The plot is engaging but the story is first and foremost character driven--as we read primarily from Chevenga's memoirs the story is first person, which allows us a lot of insight into how he views and reacts to the world. The world is a mix of sci-fi and fantasy and Chevenga is certainly fantastic in some regards, but it doesn't detract from the story for me.

Toast - I wouldn't be surprised if you have a gift for chiravesa, a state of mind described early in the story.

Hey guys, I hope I can put my two cents it... I love reading it because Karen does intensity so well. Of course, I'm biased because I write with the woman...

Hey guys, I hope I can put my two cents it... I love reading it because Karen does intensity so well. Of course, I'm biased because I write with the woman...

Okay, I read the first many chapters. I kind of envy Our Hero, in that he was at least brought up in a society consistent with his talents and beliefs, but that just means that, unlike many fictional people disquietingly similar to myself, I do not hate him.

We are different in a few ways. I'm going to last a little longer than him, I was four years older when I lost my virginity and five years older when I severed my first femoral artery, and my skill set is somewhat broader and does not include swordplay (but does include very similar-seeming unarmed techniques). This is good; if we were identical I'd get all paranoid and start looking for the author over my shoulder.

Oh, and while my parents were indeed warriors and civil servants, and my mother will indeed outlive me, I will not inherit any position of authority. If I desire one, I must carve it for myself.

Enough about me; let's talk about the story. Emotional verisimilitude is extremely difficult but is here achieved with an easy grace that staggers me. The action scenes are a bit thinky, but as it's written in the form of memoirs it's understandable that Our Hero has had time to reflect on and philosophize about his actions. I like the so-far-post-apocalyptic-we've-come-right-back-around-to-swords-and-horses fantasy setting. I like it a lot. The nation based on the ruins of the Ark Corporation was particularly amusing.

The fantasy linguistics are consistent and complete, Tolkein-style, but unlike Tolkein Ms Wehrstein knows how to tell a story as well as how to build a world, so they rarely grate, and a hypertext glossary is much more convenient than The God Damned Silmarillion.

That's all I have for tonight. More as I complete more.

I am setting out right now to acquire the estate of J.R.R. Tolkien just so that I can properly rename it to your amazingly accurate title...

Hi all:

> Emotional verisimilitude is extremely difficult but is here achieved with an easy grace that staggers me.

Toast: (Taking a deep breath) To a writer, there's only one thing better than extremely fulsome praise: extremely fulsome praise that is extremely well-written. Mind if I quote this on my website? And are others here okay with their praises here being cited there?

I'm tempted to quote this also:--

>The fantasy linguistics are consistent and complete, Tolkein-style, but unlike Tolkein Ms Wehrstein knows how to tell a story as well as how to build a world, so they rarely grate

...but don't know that I want to piss off all the Tolkien fans out there. It's a whole thread topic, isn't it? "Did Tolkien know how to tell a story?" You can't get that popular and have that much influence on the literary field without doing *something* right...

TLOU: thanks for the welcome! And again, it's people connecting to the story and being moved by it that is my external creative sustenance.

Lightdefender, I am curious as to which Fifth Millennium novels you have read. Even if you can remember a bit of plot-line only, I should be able to identify.

Blushing thanks to all of you. This whole thread is giving my ego multiple orgasms. Plus record hits yesterday.

You may of course quote me: my name is at the bottom of my every post in the non-public areas of this forum.

If my words are too harsh, (and they indeed are, for comic effect; I loved The Hobbit and managed to finish The Lord of the Rings and even own a copy of The Adventures of Tom Bombadil) then let me ameliorate them for you: "Unlike Tolkein, Ms Wehrstein never forgets that she is telling a story in addition to building a world, so they rarely grate."

If anybody argues with that, I have four words for them: The God Damned Silmarillion.

Amelioration and real name recorded, thank you, Toast!

I think as Tolkien got older he just went more and more towards what he loved doing, in his professorial sort of way: cataloguing that which was fascinating to him. Whereas most of us want some, you know, action... tension... conflict... change... those story things.

I admit that when I read LoTR as a teen, I put it down and thought, 'Okay... so what?' But I did *not* get that when I watched the (most recent) movie, because the visuals were so awesome... heck, just the shot of Gandalf and the Balrog falling was worth the price of admission.

But to get back on topic (me! Me me me!) emotional verisimilitude is very important to me (in my work and in that of others, so that I'll quickly lose interest in any work that lacks it) as is plausibility in other areas (which is why V and I are having an interesting email discussion about hang-gliding...)

Oh, let's see. It was a trilogy, and I think the title of the second was The Cage. The leader of a major trading house was kidnapped and sold into slavery halfway around the world (or across an ocean, I forget precise details). In the first book, she hooks up with the woman who later becomes her lover and they escape. In the second back, she goes home seeking revenge on the rival who kidnapped her and took over the trading house. In the third book, she and her girlfriend go to rescue her son who'd previously been sold into slavery, and long-thought dead.

I read (and collected) all eight (well, technically, seven) of the Fifth Millennium books as they were published and have greatly enjoyed them all, although I must confess that I find the Shkai'ra and Megan stories to be the most engaging. Perhaps it's just the "distaff Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser" vibe, but I just love (and respond to) the way those two characters play off each other. Of course, the Shkai'ra, Megan and Chevenga trifecta Shadow's Son was literally the last word on those characters, but I've hoped there might be more stories yet to be told about them.

I suppose it's too much to hope that you (Karen Wehrstein), Shirley Meier and S.M. Stirling might get the band back together again for another outing?

Barring that, what are the odds of Megan making cameo appearances in either or both of your and Shirley's online sagas?