G.Wolfe _Shadow of the Torturer_

R o d Johnson · 26 Jul 1991, 02:52 · from rec.arts.sf-lovers.1991.mbox

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From: rjohnson at vela.acs.oakland.edu (R o d Johnson)
Subject: Re: G.Wolfe _Shadow of the Torturer_
Date: 26 Jul 91 02:52:57 GMT
Message-ID: <8340 at vela.acs.oakland.edu>
Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf-lovers
References: <9107221851.AA00898 at nowalls.UCSD.EDU> <1991Jul23.164922.11000 at leland.Stanford.EDU>

repnomar at leland.Stanford.EDU (Janet M. Lafler) sez:

>There are four books in the series, _The Shadow of the Torturer_, _The Claw
>of the Conciliator_, _The Sword of the Lictor_ and _The Citadel of the 
>Autarch_.  There is also a companion volume, _The Urth of the New Sun_,
>which I haven't read but have been reliably informed is awful.

Awful!  I think it's great, the capstone to the series.  And I'm
reliable too, so there.

Seriously, if you dislike the religious side of Wolfe, you might find
"Urth" less satisfying than the others, as it's more foregrounded
there.  And it's certainly more confusing (*even* more confusing) than
the others.  But it ties up some pronounced loose ends from the
tetralogy in as neat a way as one could want, has the usual bizarre
and convoluted running around, a couple genuinely arresting images,
and the usual great prose.  Give it another chance.

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