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Fal the Dragon Harper
Fal, master harper of the Delming, becomes compelled to know the secret of the North, and, against all advice, sets out on a journey of exploration. Along the way he encounters the full force of natural and supernatural elements and overcomes pain and fear as well as experiencing triumph and joy
Paperback
Published January 1, 1993
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
February 10, 2021
An enjoyable fantasy following Fal and his quest. A peaceful ending at the last, though many roads we travel to brain it. Very pleasant company by the fireside of an evening, this take.
August 1, 2016
Fal The Dragon Harper is high adventure and excitement in the tradition of great high fantasy. Magic, legends of old, quests to far away portions of the land, transformations, this has all the elements it needs to be successful. And it is. Fal is the master harper of the Delming, a magical Forge-city where the skilled make items with patterns of mystical energy and importance. Fal hears of the ruined city at Lune, in the far northern Waste, and decides to go and discover what caused the Waste and how to restore the world to health and beauty. In this way, it is a classic high fantasy plot, with evil sorcerers and good magicians and spirits of more and less helpful natures. It has some exciting innovations in the patterning and the focus on that and on music as a source of magical effects, but the magical properties are not fully explained in any sort of meaningful way. I was left with not much better understanding of the complex rules of magic when I finished the novel than I had at the end of the first chapter.
The story was very concerned with balance, using the idea of a balance between various opposites--sadness and joy, deprivation and gluttony, and so on--as hinges throughout. This is interesting and well-integrated with the adventure, but does not offer any particularly exciting insights.
My one big issue is that about halfway through the book--for reasons explained in the text--it suddenly shifts to first-person and ceases to follow Fal for the rest of the story--although Fal does still play an extremely important role. This is aggravated by a sudden shift to a different first-person narrator in the last few pages of the book, which is somewhat surprising and difficult to follow.
The story was very concerned with balance, using the idea of a balance between various opposites--sadness and joy, deprivation and gluttony, and so on--as hinges throughout. This is interesting and well-integrated with the adventure, but does not offer any particularly exciting insights.
My one big issue is that about halfway through the book--for reasons explained in the text--it suddenly shifts to first-person and ceases to follow Fal for the rest of the story--although Fal does still play an extremely important role. This is aggravated by a sudden shift to a different first-person narrator in the last few pages of the book, which is somewhat surprising and difficult to follow.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews