The Lunatic Cafe (Anita Blake Vampire Hunter)

Falling in love gives you not only the problem of dealing with your lover, but of coping with their relatives. Vampire executioner Anita Blake's discovery that her new boyfriend, Richard, is a werewolf means that she has to cope with his pack and their elaborate politics of submission and domination. In The Lunatic Cafe Laurell Hamilton deals with werewolves with the same assurance that she brought to her charming, sinister vampires.

Anita still has emotional baggage from her relationship with Jean-Claude, vampire Master of the city, and he is not yet done with her, even if she no longer has the marks that would eventually have made her his human servant. Someone is making snuff movies--one of the more appalling features of the alternate world Anita inhabits is that someone will always find a horrid way to make the differences between that world and ours the subject of profit--and Anita is determined to put a stop to it. And werewolves and other shape-changers are disappearing--and Anita and her PI friend Veronica are keen to find out why. This is an excellent thriller as solidly imagined when it deals with ordinary policemen as when it deals with a fairy-tale prince enchanted into a swan. --Roz Kaveney

Wellspring of Chaos (Saga of Recluce)

Dooon Mode

Pathfinder Tales: Death's Heretic

Soul of the Fire (Sword of Truth)

Each time Goodkind's hero and heroine save the world from supernatural menaces, there turns out to be a catch involved; what we learn, interestingly, from his particular take on fantasy is to be suspicious and cynical. Last time, in Temple of the Winds, the problem was a plague of supernatural origins; this time, it is beings of water, fire and air, who cause sudden and inexplicable death and are gradually eroding the very magic on which the structure of Richard's world depends. And there is still a crusading emperor, a variety of witch-hunters and the complex uncertainties of Richard's emotional life to deal with. It is typical of Goodkind's bleak take on the stock material of fantasy that when, after four previous volumes, Richard finally marries his beloved Kahlan, there should be terrible consequences. We get to see more of this ingeniously thought-out fantasyland--a doomsday weapon in the hands of dim young conscripts and a society whose corruption enables Goodkind to lecture us on the evils of democracy. Most heroic fantasy has an attachment to autocracy as one of its unspoken values--Goodkind is not least interesting because he tends to follow those values through to their limit. --Roz Kaveney

Soul of the Fire (Sword of Truth)

Each time Goodkind's hero and heroine save the world from supernatural menaces, there turns out to be a catch involved; what we learn, interestingly, from his particular take on fantasy is to be suspicious and cynical. Last time, in Temple of the Winds, the problem was a plague of supernatural origins; this time, it is beings of water, fire and air, who cause sudden and inexplicable death and are gradually eroding the very magic on which the structure of Richard's world depends. And there is still a crusading emperor, a variety of witch-hunters and the complex uncertainties of Richard's emotional life to deal with. It is typical of Goodkind's bleak take on the stock material of fantasy that when, after four previous volumes, Richard finally marries his beloved Kahlan, there should be terrible consequences. We get to see more of this ingeniously thought-out fantasyland--a doomsday weapon in the hands of dim young conscripts and a society whose corruption enables Goodkind to lecture us on the evils of democracy. Most heroic fantasy has an attachment to autocracy as one of its unspoken values--Goodkind is not least interesting because he tends to follow those values through to their limit. --Roz Kaveney

Soul of the Fire (Sword of Truth)

Each time Goodkind's hero and heroine save the world from supernatural menaces, there turns out to be a catch involved; what we learn, interestingly, from his particular take on fantasy is to be suspicious and cynical. Last time, in Temple of the Winds, the problem was a plague of supernatural origins; this time, it is beings of water, fire and air, who cause sudden and inexplicable death and are gradually eroding the very magic on which the structure of Richard's world depends. And there is still a crusading emperor, a variety of witch-hunters and the complex uncertainties of Richard's emotional life to deal with. It is typical of Goodkind's bleak take on the stock material of fantasy that when, after four previous volumes, Richard finally marries his beloved Kahlan, there should be terrible consequences. We get to see more of this ingeniously thought-out fantasyland--a doomsday weapon in the hands of dim young conscripts and a society whose corruption enables Goodkind to lecture us on the evils of democracy. Most heroic fantasy has an attachment to autocracy as one of its unspoken values--Goodkind is not least interesting because he tends to follow those values through to their limit. --Roz Kaveney

Soul of the Fire (Sword of Truth)

Each time Goodkind's hero and heroine save the world from supernatural menaces, there turns out to be a catch involved; what we learn, interestingly, from his particular take on fantasy is to be suspicious and cynical. Last time, in Temple of the Winds, the problem was a plague of supernatural origins; this time, it is beings of water, fire and air, who cause sudden and inexplicable death and are gradually eroding the very magic on which the structure of Richard's world depends. And there is still a crusading emperor, a variety of witch-hunters and the complex uncertainties of Richard's emotional life to deal with. It is typical of Goodkind's bleak take on the stock material of fantasy that when, after four previous volumes, Richard finally marries his beloved Kahlan, there should be terrible consequences. We get to see more of this ingeniously thought-out fantasyland--a doomsday weapon in the hands of dim young conscripts and a society whose corruption enables Goodkind to lecture us on the evils of democracy. Most heroic fantasy has an attachment to autocracy as one of its unspoken values--Goodkind is not least interesting because he tends to follow those values through to their limit. --Roz Kaveney

Naked Empire (Sword of Truth)

Naked Empire is book eight of Terry Goodkind's bestselling "Sword of Truth" fantasy series, following on directly from the events of the previous instalment The Pillars of Creation.

Richard, one of various gifted children of this world's former dark lord Darken Rahl, continues his journeying with the Sword of Truth and his wife Kahlan. Seven volumes of magical and military upheaval, and all too many desperate last-ditch measures, have left their scars: "The world was unravelling, in more ways than one. But there had been no choice".

Ancient sorcerous barriers have been accidentally toppled, freeing the unpleasant "Imperial Order" to rape, loot and pillage the rest of the world. The Emperor and his chief minion are revolting creatures whose sadism begins where Vlad the Impaler left off. Bandakar, a land of pacifists, has little chance of survival until someone gets the bright idea of giving the admired liberator Lord Rahl--that is, Richard--a dose of slow-acting poison. There is no antidote until he, personally and more or less single-handedly, frees Bandakar from the invading horde while, as pacifists, the natives will stand clear and disapprove of the slaughter. Some lessons in ethics and realism need to be learned here...

Goodkind deals in tougher issues and greater moral complexities than the typical blockbuster fantasy series, and underlines the dreadfulness of his characters' choices with unsparing descriptions of Imperial atrocity. Big trouble is also spreading elsewhere, with the Rahl homeland under siege and the fabled Wizard's Keep--a bastion that is actually the home of just two elderly magicians--threatened by magic-immune infiltrators.

Meanwhile in Bandakar, Richard and friends have greater problems than overwhelming opposition and useless allies. His personal magic "gift" is failing, he gets terrible headaches, his relationship with the Sword of Truth is in trouble, poison symptoms worsen, and the three vials of antidote are hidden in widely separated places. Worse, the local boss of Imperial forces is a soul-stealer who rides the minds of birds and beasts, watches Richard's progress through their eyes, and can gloatingly anticipate his plans. No-one said this was going to be easy.

A violent finale sees some good surprises and ingenuity, plus one cheeky deus ex machina, bringing this adventure to a neat conclusion. The greater war continues, though, and further sequels must follow. Newcomers to "Sword of Truth" may be dizzied by the number of back-story references, but the saga's legions of admirers will welcome this slickly crafted and compulsively readable episode. --David Langford

Naked Empire (Sword of Truth)

Naked Empire is book eight of Terry Goodkind's bestselling "Sword of Truth" fantasy series, following on directly from the events of the previous instalment The Pillars of Creation.

Richard, one of various gifted children of this world's former dark lord Darken Rahl, continues his journeying with the Sword of Truth and his wife Kahlan. Seven volumes of magical and military upheaval, and all too many desperate last-ditch measures, have left their scars: "The world was unravelling, in more ways than one. But there had been no choice".

Ancient sorcerous barriers have been accidentally toppled, freeing the unpleasant "Imperial Order" to rape, loot and pillage the rest of the world. The Emperor and his chief minion are revolting creatures whose sadism begins where Vlad the Impaler left off. Bandakar, a land of pacifists, has little chance of survival until someone gets the bright idea of giving the admired liberator Lord Rahl--that is, Richard--a dose of slow-acting poison. There is no antidote until he, personally and more or less single-handedly, frees Bandakar from the invading horde while, as pacifists, the natives will stand clear and disapprove of the slaughter. Some lessons in ethics and realism need to be learned here...

Goodkind deals in tougher issues and greater moral complexities than the typical blockbuster fantasy series, and underlines the dreadfulness of his characters' choices with unsparing descriptions of Imperial atrocity. Big trouble is also spreading elsewhere, with the Rahl homeland under siege and the fabled Wizard's Keep--a bastion that is actually the home of just two elderly magicians--threatened by magic-immune infiltrators.

Meanwhile in Bandakar, Richard and friends have greater problems than overwhelming opposition and useless allies. His personal magic "gift" is failing, he gets terrible headaches, his relationship with the Sword of Truth is in trouble, poison symptoms worsen, and the three vials of antidote are hidden in widely separated places. Worse, the local boss of Imperial forces is a soul-stealer who rides the minds of birds and beasts, watches Richard's progress through their eyes, and can gloatingly anticipate his plans. No-one said this was going to be easy.

A violent finale sees some good surprises and ingenuity, plus one cheeky deus ex machina, bringing this adventure to a neat conclusion. The greater war continues, though, and further sequels must follow. Newcomers to "Sword of Truth" may be dizzied by the number of back-story references, but the saga's legions of admirers will welcome this slickly crafted and compulsively readable episode. --David Langford

Naked Empire (Sword of Truth)

Naked Empire is book eight of Terry Goodkind's bestselling "Sword of Truth" fantasy series, following on directly from the events of the previous instalment The Pillars of Creation.

Richard, one of various gifted children of this world's former dark lord Darken Rahl, continues his journeying with the Sword of Truth and his wife Kahlan. Seven volumes of magical and military upheaval, and all too many desperate last-ditch measures, have left their scars: "The world was unravelling, in more ways than one. But there had been no choice".

Ancient sorcerous barriers have been accidentally toppled, freeing the unpleasant "Imperial Order" to rape, loot and pillage the rest of the world. The Emperor and his chief minion are revolting creatures whose sadism begins where Vlad the Impaler left off. Bandakar, a land of pacifists, has little chance of survival until someone gets the bright idea of giving the admired liberator Lord Rahl--that is, Richard--a dose of slow-acting poison. There is no antidote until he, personally and more or less single-handedly, frees Bandakar from the invading horde while, as pacifists, the natives will stand clear and disapprove of the slaughter. Some lessons in ethics and realism need to be learned here...

Goodkind deals in tougher issues and greater moral complexities than the typical blockbuster fantasy series, and underlines the dreadfulness of his characters' choices with unsparing descriptions of Imperial atrocity. Big trouble is also spreading elsewhere, with the Rahl homeland under siege and the fabled Wizard's Keep--a bastion that is actually the home of just two elderly magicians--threatened by magic-immune infiltrators.

Meanwhile in Bandakar, Richard and friends have greater problems than overwhelming opposition and useless allies. His personal magic "gift" is failing, he gets terrible headaches, his relationship with the Sword of Truth is in trouble, poison symptoms worsen, and the three vials of antidote are hidden in widely separated places. Worse, the local boss of Imperial forces is a soul-stealer who rides the minds of birds and beasts, watches Richard's progress through their eyes, and can gloatingly anticipate his plans. No-one said this was going to be easy.

A violent finale sees some good surprises and ingenuity, plus one cheeky deus ex machina, bringing this adventure to a neat conclusion. The greater war continues, though, and further sequels must follow. Newcomers to "Sword of Truth" may be dizzied by the number of back-story references, but the saga's legions of admirers will welcome this slickly crafted and compulsively readable episode. --David Langford

Naked Empire (Sword of Truth)

Naked Empire is book eight of Terry Goodkind's bestselling "Sword of Truth" fantasy series, following on directly from the events of the previous instalment The Pillars of Creation.

Richard, one of various gifted children of this world's former dark lord Darken Rahl, continues his journeying with the Sword of Truth and his wife Kahlan. Seven volumes of magical and military upheaval, and all too many desperate last-ditch measures, have left their scars: "The world was unravelling, in more ways than one. But there had been no choice".

Ancient sorcerous barriers have been accidentally toppled, freeing the unpleasant "Imperial Order" to rape, loot and pillage the rest of the world. The Emperor and his chief minion are revolting creatures whose sadism begins where Vlad the Impaler left off. Bandakar, a land of pacifists, has little chance of survival until someone gets the bright idea of giving the admired liberator Lord Rahl--that is, Richard--a dose of slow-acting poison. There is no antidote until he, personally and more or less single-handedly, frees Bandakar from the invading horde while, as pacifists, the natives will stand clear and disapprove of the slaughter. Some lessons in ethics and realism need to be learned here...

Goodkind deals in tougher issues and greater moral complexities than the typical blockbuster fantasy series, and underlines the dreadfulness of his characters' choices with unsparing descriptions of Imperial atrocity. Big trouble is also spreading elsewhere, with the Rahl homeland under siege and the fabled Wizard's Keep--a bastion that is actually the home of just two elderly magicians--threatened by magic-immune infiltrators.

Meanwhile in Bandakar, Richard and friends have greater problems than overwhelming opposition and useless allies. His personal magic "gift" is failing, he gets terrible headaches, his relationship with the Sword of Truth is in trouble, poison symptoms worsen, and the three vials of antidote are hidden in widely separated places. Worse, the local boss of Imperial forces is a soul-stealer who rides the minds of birds and beasts, watches Richard's progress through their eyes, and can gloatingly anticipate his plans. No-one said this was going to be easy.

A violent finale sees some good surprises and ingenuity, plus one cheeky deus ex machina, bringing this adventure to a neat conclusion. The greater war continues, though, and further sequels must follow. Newcomers to "Sword of Truth" may be dizzied by the number of back-story references, but the saga's legions of admirers will welcome this slickly crafted and compulsively readable episode. --David Langford

Faith of the Fallen (Sword of Truth)

In the sixth volume Faith of the Fallen of Terry Goodkind's "Sword of Truth" series, things have, as usual, gone from bad to worse. Richard Rahl, understanding that the sanctimonious Imperial Order of Jagang is too vast for him to defeat by military might, has retreated into the wilderness to think things through, and to allow his beloved Kahlan to heal from nearly fatal injuries, and left his supporters to fight for their own freedom. Part of the point of Goodkind's series has been that people need to work out their own salvation ; Jagang, with his creed of universal mutual support and habit of committing atrocity to bring it closer, is just as sincere a messiah, after all, as Richard. And then Richard is kidnapped by Nicci, a Sister of Darkness, who has Kahlan magically hostage and is determined to persuade him that Jagang is right by taking him to the heart of the Empire and showing him how it works. Goodkind's tic of aphorism, and some laboured Libertarian satire on the welfare state, do not prevent this being an effective continuation of this popular series. Battles, revolts and the creation of art are things Goodkind does well--and there are plenty of them here. --Roz Kaveney

Faith of the Fallen (Sword of Truth)

In the sixth volume Faith of the Fallen of Terry Goodkind's "Sword of Truth" series, things have, as usual, gone from bad to worse. Richard Rahl, understanding that the sanctimonious Imperial Order of Jagang is too vast for him to defeat by military might, has retreated into the wilderness to think things through, and to allow his beloved Kahlan to heal from nearly fatal injuries, and left his supporters to fight for their own freedom. Part of the point of Goodkind's series has been that people need to work out their own salvation ; Jagang, with his creed of universal mutual support and habit of committing atrocity to bring it closer, is just as sincere a messiah, after all, as Richard. And then Richard is kidnapped by Nicci, a Sister of Darkness, who has Kahlan magically hostage and is determined to persuade him that Jagang is right by taking him to the heart of the Empire and showing him how it works. Goodkind's tic of aphorism, and some laboured Libertarian satire on the welfare state, do not prevent this being an effective continuation of this popular series. Battles, revolts and the creation of art are things Goodkind does well--and there are plenty of them here. --Roz Kaveney

Faith of the Fallen (Sword of Truth)

In the sixth volume Faith of the Fallen of Terry Goodkind's "Sword of Truth" series, things have, as usual, gone from bad to worse. Richard Rahl, understanding that the sanctimonious Imperial Order of Jagang is too vast for him to defeat by military might, has retreated into the wilderness to think things through, and to allow his beloved Kahlan to heal from nearly fatal injuries, and left his supporters to fight for their own freedom. Part of the point of Goodkind's series has been that people need to work out their own salvation ; Jagang, with his creed of universal mutual support and habit of committing atrocity to bring it closer, is just as sincere a messiah, after all, as Richard. And then Richard is kidnapped by Nicci, a Sister of Darkness, who has Kahlan magically hostage and is determined to persuade him that Jagang is right by taking him to the heart of the Empire and showing him how it works. Goodkind's tic of aphorism, and some laboured Libertarian satire on the welfare state, do not prevent this being an effective continuation of this popular series. Battles, revolts and the creation of art are things Goodkind does well--and there are plenty of them here. --Roz Kaveney

Chainfire (Sword of Truth)

Chainfire is the ninth book in Terry Goodkind's grimly inventive Sword of Truth fantasy saga, which began in 1994 with Wizard's First Rule.

It's a tradition of long-running drama series that sooner or later, some character will suffer from amnesia. Goodkind gives this a neat paranoid twist when everyone except our hero Lord Richard Rahl forgets the existence of his beloved wife Kahlan. The more he protests that she was real, the more his sorceress and Amazon-warrior friends nervously humour him.

Meanwhile the apocalyptic background story continues, with evil Emperor Jagang's vast, fanatical armies moving to devastate cities and countries liberated by Richard's forces. The Emperor's latest terror weapon is an invincible, unkillable, many-shaped monster whose sole purpose is to find and destroy Richard.

Additionally, something has gone badly wrong with the prophetic books--whole libraries of them--that foretell a Last Battle where only Richard can save the world. Now, with Armageddon imminent, the prophecies have developed a rash of blank pages, as though some vital person has been erased from reality ...

Tough choices confront Richard when he abandons the defence of a key city to seek out a very unreliable authority and ask what's happened to Kahlan. All he's offered is cryptic advice with a high price tag, roughly equivalent to handing over the One Ring to Gollum. And what could "Chainfire" mean?

Of course there are many exciting action set-pieces en route. That nemesis monster strikes again and again, in horrifically random ways. The top sorceress confronts an entire wizard-led Imperial army. Closely guarded boxes of doomsday magic, locked away in Richard's own impregnable palace, come under unexpected threat.

Eventually we learn what happened to Kahlan and why. But there's no final closure in this installment, and Sword of Truth fans must wait in suspense for volume ten. Goodkind continues his mixing of adventure fantasy with dark moral complexity. --David Langford

Chainfire (Sword of Truth)

Chainfire is the ninth book in Terry Goodkind's grimly inventive Sword of Truth fantasy saga, which began in 1994 with Wizard's First Rule.

It's a tradition of long-running drama series that sooner or later, some character will suffer from amnesia. Goodkind gives this a neat paranoid twist when everyone except our hero Lord Richard Rahl forgets the existence of his beloved wife Kahlan. The more he protests that she was real, the more his sorceress and Amazon-warrior friends nervously humour him.

Meanwhile the apocalyptic background story continues, with evil Emperor Jagang's vast, fanatical armies moving to devastate cities and countries liberated by Richard's forces. The Emperor's latest terror weapon is an invincible, unkillable, many-shaped monster whose sole purpose is to find and destroy Richard.

Additionally, something has gone badly wrong with the prophetic books--whole libraries of them--that foretell a Last Battle where only Richard can save the world. Now, with Armageddon imminent, the prophecies have developed a rash of blank pages, as though some vital person has been erased from reality ...

Tough choices confront Richard when he abandons the defence of a key city to seek out a very unreliable authority and ask what's happened to Kahlan. All he's offered is cryptic advice with a high price tag, roughly equivalent to handing over the One Ring to Gollum. And what could "Chainfire" mean?

Of course there are many exciting action set-pieces en route. That nemesis monster strikes again and again, in horrifically random ways. The top sorceress confronts an entire wizard-led Imperial army. Closely guarded boxes of doomsday magic, locked away in Richard's own impregnable palace, come under unexpected threat.

Eventually we learn what happened to Kahlan and why. But there's no final closure in this installment, and Sword of Truth fans must wait in suspense for volume ten. Goodkind continues his mixing of adventure fantasy with dark moral complexity. --David Langford