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Atlanton Earth

Squaring the Circle: The Circle of Light, Book 4 by Niel Hancock

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Squaring The Circle Of Light-4 by Hancock, Niel. 4 1/4 x 7. 9th ptg.

Unknown Binding

First published January 1, 1977

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176 people want to read

About the author

Niel Hancock

15 books26 followers
Niel Hancock started out from the Panhandle of Texas in 1941, and was on the ground when the Sky Riders went down outside Roswell, New Mexico. Even as a lad, that tweaked his curiosity, and then they touched off the Atom Bomb at Trinity Site, which put him on the trail of the Road to the Sacred Mountain, young as he was.

He grew up in that wilderness, always looking for clues to the Mystery, then drifted on to the University, then Europe... He was then welcomed into the ranks of the U.S. Army... in 1965. Niel was drafted, and after his basic and advanced training, was assigned to the 716th MP BN, Viet Nam in July of 1967. He served through July of 1968, and was a survivor of the Tet Offensive of that year. In the aftermath of the war, he spent time in the Virgin Islands, then California, running with the wild musicians that fueled those later years of the '60's, and finally ended up in the desert of Chihuahua.

He came off the outlaw trail there, through a small miracle of friendship and having bottomed out on alcohol and drugs, and began to do the one thing he had always wanted, which was to write yarns and tales of the things he'd seen and done.

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5 stars
56 (21%)
4 stars
85 (33%)
3 stars
87 (33%)
2 stars
22 (8%)
1 star
7 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
Profile Image for David Cain.
488 reviews16 followers
March 8, 2017
This, the fourth and final volume in the Circle of Light series, was a fine conclusion to the saga. Broco the Dwarf emerges as the primary character in this story, and some of the other favorites take a decided back seat as the events set in motion in earlier volumes come to a conclusion. I did find Dwarf's descent into paranoia and madness somewhat tiresome. Yet again, the major plot elements take their inspiration from Tolkein, although the conclusion was refreshingly unique. I was happy to finally read the entire series approximately thirty years after the books first found their way to my shelf. I would recommend this series primarily to younger fantasy enthusiasts, and I imagine I would have rated these books more highly had I read them with a fresher mind several decades ago.
15 reviews
September 7, 2021
A really good series, although tedious more often than not. Wonderful use of the language to describe the world of Atlanton Earth, its peoples and characters. Mythology relies heavily on Tolkien and Lewis, sometimes annoyingly so. All in all The Circle of Light didn't suffer for it's faults and I'd recommend to readers of the genre.
Profile Image for Joris.
43 reviews
March 5, 2021
now that you're into the story and it's (shape) shifting characters,
this episode reads like a pageturner - because you want to know how/if they'll succeed in their quest
some hard time following the different lines, as some characters switch sides
fulfilling end
Profile Image for Lois.
282 reviews8 followers
October 15, 2019
I really enjoyed this fantasy series, reminds me of Tolkein.
Profile Image for MisterFweem.
375 reviews18 followers
October 20, 2010
Bravo, Mr. Hancock.

I'm usually very leery of any book that brags on its cover ". . . for all who love The Lord of the Rings." And with the first book or two in Hancock's Circle of Light series, I was sure my wariness was correct. But Squaring the Circle erased that. Certainly, he doesn't approach the depth that Tolkien hit, but this is some good high fantasy, especially this last installment. Lots of machinations familiar to those fantasy fans, so perhaps the ending is a little pat. Still, an enjoyable read.
Profile Image for Tim.
860 reviews51 followers
June 5, 2011
The last of Hancock's original series generally satisfies, but never left me with a hunger for more from him.
Profile Image for Kaethe.
6,552 reviews530 followers
July 16, 2014
I've been moving the box set around for almost thirty years now, and for the life of me, I can't remember whether I enjoyed reading these or not.
24 reviews8 followers
December 31, 2016
The last book of a fun series - not too complex, not to simple - just right
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews

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