RIP

Author and Grand Master Gene Wolfe, 1931-2019

Wolfe went on to write over 30 novels, with his best best-known work, The Book of The New Sun, spanning 1980-1983. The series is a tetralogy set in the Vancian Dying Earth subgenre, and follows the journey of Severian, a member of the Guild of Torturers, after he is exiled for the sin of mercy. Over the course of the series the books won British Science Fiction, World Fantasy, British Fantasy, Locus, Nebula, and Campbell Memorial Awards. In 1998 poll, the readers of Locus magazine considered the series as a single entry and ranked it third in a poll of fantasy novels published before 1990, following only The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit.

I know Wolfe is supposed to be one of the true greats. I could not get into The Book of the New Sun, though granted, that was a long time ago and I’ve probably changed a good deal as a reader since then.

I always put off trying another of Wolfe’s books. I have a couple on my Kindle, though. Maybe this would be a good year to dust them off, open them up, and give them a try.

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