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Five Senses #4
Wind in the Stone
Book 4: The Five Senses Set
An orphan girl battles an evil mage in this “stunningly vivid” fantasy from the New York Times–bestselling author of The Scent of Magic (Starlog).
A mage, seeking to enslave the Valley and destroy the Forest, has brutally sundered a family. A mother has fled into the woods with her infant girl-child, while the depraved sorcerer holds the babe’s twin—a boy—captive in a black tower. The mother dies but the girl survives. Adopted by the strange denizens of the Forest—safe from the mage’s malevolent influence—she grows to young womanhood, cultivating a cherished skill that has been denied the others of her kind: the ability to truly hear the sounds of her world. But her future will be fraught with trial and terror, for only she can smash the chains that shackle the Balley and its inhabitants. It is her destiny to confront sorcerer and demon minions, and to oppose the one she must conquer and free: the magician’s protégé and her most powerful adversary. Her bane and blood. Her brother.
An orphan girl battles an evil mage in this “stunningly vivid” fantasy from the New York Times–bestselling author of The Scent of Magic (Starlog).
A mage, seeking to enslave the Valley and destroy the Forest, has brutally sundered a family. A mother has fled into the woods with her infant girl-child, while the depraved sorcerer holds the babe’s twin—a boy—captive in a black tower. The mother dies but the girl survives. Adopted by the strange denizens of the Forest—safe from the mage’s malevolent influence—she grows to young womanhood, cultivating a cherished skill that has been denied the others of her kind: the ability to truly hear the sounds of her world. But her future will be fraught with trial and terror, for only she can smash the chains that shackle the Balley and its inhabitants. It is her destiny to confront sorcerer and demon minions, and to oppose the one she must conquer and free: the magician’s protégé and her most powerful adversary. Her bane and blood. Her brother.
352 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
101 people are currently reading
363 people want to read
About the author
Andre Norton
695 books1,385 followersAndre Norton, born Alice Mary Norton, was a pioneering American author of science fiction and fantasy, widely regarded as the Grande Dame of those genres. She also wrote historical and contemporary fiction, publishing under the pen names Andre Alice Norton, Andrew North, and Allen Weston. She launched her career in 1934 with The Prince Commands, adopting the name “Andre” to appeal to a male readership. After working for the Cleveland Library System and the Library of Congress, she began publishing science fiction under “Andrew North” and fantasy under her own name. She became a full-time writer in 1958 and was known for her prolific output, including Star Man’s Son, 2250 A.D. and Witch World, the latter spawning a long-running series and shared universe. Norton was a founding member of the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America and authored Quag Keep, the first novel based on the Dungeons & Dragons game. She influenced generations of writers, including Lois McMaster Bujold and Mercedes Lackey. Among her many honors were being the first woman named Gandalf Grand Master of Fantasy and SFWA Grand Master. In her later years, she established the High Hallack Library to support research in genre fiction. Her legacy continues with the Andre Norton Award for young adult science fiction and fantasy.
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August 21, 2010Copyrighted in 1999, this was probably one of the last books Norton wrote unaided.
In her later years, Norton seemed to develop a taste for the merely grotesque. She had always had implausible monsters who seemed to be merely symbolic embodiments of insatiable hunger (a pretty silly idea to begin with), but they became more bizarrely macabre over time. I think her fascination with dissolution and decay became more pronounced, not only with age, but also with the growth of criticism of her genocidal rationalizations. As if she were saying "All right, you say the villain is not evil enough to deserve annihilation? I'll show you!".
If so, this is just childish, and robs the stories of what could have been (and often was) a fine gift for limning ordinary life. The flat refusal to abandon the concept of deserved murder results in the rending of quite interesting (at least to me) Antiques Roadshow-type depictions of how people had been living at peace for some goodly time when the story started. I wanted to hear more of that--but though I haven't got very far in, it seems to have been lost quite early on. Maybe it gets better further on, but I'm not holding out much hope.
No such luck. What sin did the people of Styrmir commit to deserve their fate? They lived peacably, and didn't take up weapons. They 'forgot' that 'peace is not a right, but a privilege' (if this isn't an exact quote, it's nearly so.) They didn't 'fight for peace' (an oxymoron if there ever was one).
And what did they suffer for the heinous sin of failure to strive? Slavery, murder, loss of fertility (of the land, and to a lesser extent, the people), rape, torture, robbery... And while some of this suffering is inflicted by the (not very competent) renegade from the Place of Learning (and his reluctant minions), some is deliberately inflicted by 'forces of Light'. For example, in the middle of the book, a boy (he isn't old enough to claim manhood) is brainwashed into an unconscious rape. He is then callously and heartlessly murdered by his own foster-brother, in 'revenge' for an act that wasn't plausibly his fault; and he himself believes that there is no other possible response. And it's more than hinted that he was deliberately driven to the unconscious rape not only by the 'villain' Irasmus, but also by the scholars of Valarian. To justify their own vile behavior, the agents of 'Light' use the tired old 'surgical' metaphor.
Let's lay this in its long-overdue tomb right now. Surgery of the body is (very occasionally) enough better than the disease being treated to be worth the (often crippling, and sometimes fatal) effects of the surgery itself. As a metaphor, it's one of the most dangerous fallacies afoot. In Lifton's The Nazi Doctors, one of the Nazi doctors is asked how, though he is personally kindly, he can justify sending thousands of people to their deaths. His reply? "Jews are the gangrenous appendix of humanity." It's this kind of terrible use of metaphor that caused Lifton to add the subtitle 'Medical Killing And The Psychology of Genocide' to The Nazi Doctors.
Norton (so far as I know) never put these appalling doctrines into practice. But she continually hammered away at the ideas, and was too good a writer to do so harmlessly. Even I took quite a while to see through the pretensions to the cruelty beneath--and I was never inclined to hearken to the logic of redemptive bullying. What impact has such abusive reasoning had on more susceptible minds?
In her later years, Norton seemed to develop a taste for the merely grotesque. She had always had implausible monsters who seemed to be merely symbolic embodiments of insatiable hunger (a pretty silly idea to begin with), but they became more bizarrely macabre over time. I think her fascination with dissolution and decay became more pronounced, not only with age, but also with the growth of criticism of her genocidal rationalizations. As if she were saying "All right, you say the villain is not evil enough to deserve annihilation? I'll show you!".
If so, this is just childish, and robs the stories of what could have been (and often was) a fine gift for limning ordinary life. The flat refusal to abandon the concept of deserved murder results in the rending of quite interesting (at least to me) Antiques Roadshow-type depictions of how people had been living at peace for some goodly time when the story started. I wanted to hear more of that--but though I haven't got very far in, it seems to have been lost quite early on. Maybe it gets better further on, but I'm not holding out much hope.
No such luck. What sin did the people of Styrmir commit to deserve their fate? They lived peacably, and didn't take up weapons. They 'forgot' that 'peace is not a right, but a privilege' (if this isn't an exact quote, it's nearly so.) They didn't 'fight for peace' (an oxymoron if there ever was one).
And what did they suffer for the heinous sin of failure to strive? Slavery, murder, loss of fertility (of the land, and to a lesser extent, the people), rape, torture, robbery... And while some of this suffering is inflicted by the (not very competent) renegade from the Place of Learning (and his reluctant minions), some is deliberately inflicted by 'forces of Light'. For example, in the middle of the book, a boy (he isn't old enough to claim manhood) is brainwashed into an unconscious rape. He is then callously and heartlessly murdered by his own foster-brother, in 'revenge' for an act that wasn't plausibly his fault; and he himself believes that there is no other possible response. And it's more than hinted that he was deliberately driven to the unconscious rape not only by the 'villain' Irasmus, but also by the scholars of Valarian. To justify their own vile behavior, the agents of 'Light' use the tired old 'surgical' metaphor.
Let's lay this in its long-overdue tomb right now. Surgery of the body is (very occasionally) enough better than the disease being treated to be worth the (often crippling, and sometimes fatal) effects of the surgery itself. As a metaphor, it's one of the most dangerous fallacies afoot. In Lifton's The Nazi Doctors, one of the Nazi doctors is asked how, though he is personally kindly, he can justify sending thousands of people to their deaths. His reply? "Jews are the gangrenous appendix of humanity." It's this kind of terrible use of metaphor that caused Lifton to add the subtitle 'Medical Killing And The Psychology of Genocide' to The Nazi Doctors.
Norton (so far as I know) never put these appalling doctrines into practice. But she continually hammered away at the ideas, and was too good a writer to do so harmlessly. Even I took quite a while to see through the pretensions to the cruelty beneath--and I was never inclined to hearken to the logic of redemptive bullying. What impact has such abusive reasoning had on more susceptible minds?
March 3, 2013
I bought this book because it had pretty cover art by Kinuko Craft (who’s done art for most of Patricia McKillip’s books). However, the old cliché holds true – even if sometimes in reverse: you can’t judge a book by its cover. More effort (and probably time) went into the cover than the story. Andre Norton has written some very entertaining novels. This is not one of them. It reminded me of some of the most generic fantasy of the 70’s (although it was published in 1999).
Long ago, a ‘Covenant’ was formed between ‘Dark and Light,’ keeping an agrarian community at peace. Now, a rogue ‘Mage’ has left the ‘Place of Learning,’ and, summoning up some ‘gobbes’ (goblins) embarks on a Reign of Terror, quickly becoming the ‘Dark Lord.’ (Why? Who knows.) Although the peasants have largely forgotten their magic, the ‘Wind’ (an embodiment of ‘She’ (goddess)) is there to help them, and of course Fateful Twins are born.
Don’t get me wrong, I can often enjoy this kind of cheesy stuff, but I do ask that it come bundled with characterization, plot structure, and general coherency. Here, it doesn’t.
Long ago, a ‘Covenant’ was formed between ‘Dark and Light,’ keeping an agrarian community at peace. Now, a rogue ‘Mage’ has left the ‘Place of Learning,’ and, summoning up some ‘gobbes’ (goblins) embarks on a Reign of Terror, quickly becoming the ‘Dark Lord.’ (Why? Who knows.) Although the peasants have largely forgotten their magic, the ‘Wind’ (an embodiment of ‘She’ (goddess)) is there to help them, and of course Fateful Twins are born.
Don’t get me wrong, I can often enjoy this kind of cheesy stuff, but I do ask that it come bundled with characterization, plot structure, and general coherency. Here, it doesn’t.
July 6, 2020
Always, a story of good against evil, for men forget and they come to believe that peace and prosperity are rights rather than privileges hard won that must be vigorously warded.
December 9, 2021
This book was enjoyable, but really seemed to be one of the lesser works of Ms. Norton.
January 10, 2017
I am working through the five senses novels, and this is my least favorite thus far. The first three, though formulaic (girl is in trouble, girl meets boy, girl saves world with aid of boy, girl and boy probably end up together), feature strong female characters that I enjoyed identifying with, and worlds that intrigued me for their characteristics.
And then comes Wind In the Stone.
I found this story extremely difficult to follow. I tried to blame it on the poor editing quality of the kindle copy I read, but I really wonder if Ms. Norton's age was showing in this work. The story begins almost disjointed. It is difficult to spend enough time with characters to decide if you're in love with them or not. And worst of all, there are major gaps in the storytelling and the world-building.
And then comes Wind In the Stone.
I found this story extremely difficult to follow. I tried to blame it on the poor editing quality of the kindle copy I read, but I really wonder if Ms. Norton's age was showing in this work. The story begins almost disjointed. It is difficult to spend enough time with characters to decide if you're in love with them or not. And worst of all, there are major gaps in the storytelling and the world-building.
June 14, 2020
Disappointing. I found it difficult to really engage with any of the characters, and felt for almost the full length of the book that I was still reading a prologue. Then suddenly we were racing through a finale which wrapped up far too quickly, skimming over any genuine character or concept development. Worse - the handling of 'good' vs 'evil' concepts and consequences was disturbingly shallow. Something of Norton's talent for world-building does come through however, for which I raise my overall rating to two stars.
January 24, 2024
Read this again after several decades. As I remembered, it was only an okay read. The books written late in her career could be hit-or-miss, and this was, for me, a miss.
But it's like this: when I was a nerdy 12 year old spending all my available birthday and babysitting money on the early Witch World novels, Andre Norton was my favorite. And some less than great books, I am looking at you Voorloper, has never changed my mind.
But it's like this: when I was a nerdy 12 year old spending all my available birthday and babysitting money on the early Witch World novels, Andre Norton was my favorite. And some less than great books, I am looking at you Voorloper, has never changed my mind.
February 19, 2022
This book was one of the last of Ms Norton's works, this time set in a world which bears a resemblance to that one created for the "Witch World" series, but if so is in a far distant future. Magic is greatly beaten down, and many people are treated less than gently if they are found to have magic. They are not abused or tortured, just not welcome are the fireplace.
However, there comes a man who has studied in a place of learning which greatly resembles Lormt, of the same "Witch World", and while there this man, named Irasmus, studied the most evil magics he could. Then he leaves with his knowledge and his loot of stolen scrolls and books, to set himself up as a Dark Lord.
From there the tale varies from the more kind books from past works by this author, where evil deeds are described as having happened but without graphic details. Her works have always had that appeal in that they reach for the good and bring it out in people of vastly different characters and upbringings. This one, for me, was a bit of a twist, because a young man goes very bad and destroys multiple lives in so doing.
One of the negatives about this story is that the point at which the 'going bad' happens is quite a ways in, with much build up before. We don't learn of the pair in the cover summary until about half way in, where there has already been evil, murder, rapine, pillaging and near genocide among a group of people.
From there, a slow build to show the reader just how vile the 'lord' is, and how he plans to be even worse. However - we also see where others who are good, or as the author would say, of the Light. Multiple groups and powerful ones are shown or referred to even as the twins mentioned on the cover grow and learn and gradually find their power and possible positions in their worlds.
The outcome wasn't totally unexpected from the slow growth and the strong reactions of the young people. One of the few things that did surprise was the reaction of several people who participated in very evil things - murder by mob - actually expressed deep regret and a wish to at least try to amend for their ill doings.
Recommended for the thinking reader, not so much for someone who is just trying to mark it read.
However, there comes a man who has studied in a place of learning which greatly resembles Lormt, of the same "Witch World", and while there this man, named Irasmus, studied the most evil magics he could. Then he leaves with his knowledge and his loot of stolen scrolls and books, to set himself up as a Dark Lord.
From there the tale varies from the more kind books from past works by this author, where evil deeds are described as having happened but without graphic details. Her works have always had that appeal in that they reach for the good and bring it out in people of vastly different characters and upbringings. This one, for me, was a bit of a twist, because a young man goes very bad and destroys multiple lives in so doing.
One of the negatives about this story is that the point at which the 'going bad' happens is quite a ways in, with much build up before. We don't learn of the pair in the cover summary until about half way in, where there has already been evil, murder, rapine, pillaging and near genocide among a group of people.
From there, a slow build to show the reader just how vile the 'lord' is, and how he plans to be even worse. However - we also see where others who are good, or as the author would say, of the Light. Multiple groups and powerful ones are shown or referred to even as the twins mentioned on the cover grow and learn and gradually find their power and possible positions in their worlds.
The outcome wasn't totally unexpected from the slow growth and the strong reactions of the young people. One of the few things that did surprise was the reaction of several people who participated in very evil things - murder by mob - actually expressed deep regret and a wish to at least try to amend for their ill doings.
Recommended for the thinking reader, not so much for someone who is just trying to mark it read.
July 12, 2019
Typical Norton in some ways - strong story telling, interesting characters. Similar in "feel" to Witchworld but with strange choruses of mages and others who comment rather than acting - but somehow it works, like a chorus in a Greek play or even the repeated refrain of a ballad. And Norton doesn't use the cod-archaic language that mars some of the Witchworld novels. A tale, as often with her, of an evil mage seeking more and more tainted knowledge held to account by a trio of young people who turn to the Light.
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January 4, 2020This book went on forever. Extremely long set up [half the book, in terms of page length] and extremely short denouement [maybe a page. maybe.] Enjoyable, in the end, but I’m glad to be sending it back to the library.
That said, I only just now (adding this to GoodReads in 2020) learned that it's the fourth in a series...so maybe that added to my frustration?
That said, I only just now (adding this to GoodReads in 2020) learned that it's the fourth in a series...so maybe that added to my frustration?
June 3, 2020
I read this to appease a girl I liked in high school, or else I wouldn't have finished it. It was a bit dull, and I never cared about the characters.
September 17, 2020
Really didn't care for this one. It was pretty dark, although most of the issues were resolved in the end.
August 17, 2021
Why is this not a movie? It would be up there with lord of the rings!!! Brilliant
not-planning-to-read
August 30, 2023Eh. Setting this aside for now.
June 9, 2024
Old school fantasy that didn’t age well.
July 25, 2025
Somewhat darker than usual.
The usual slow built story climaxing into a well written destiny. The master does not disappoint as usual. My thanks. What a prodigious talent.
The usual slow built story climaxing into a well written destiny. The master does not disappoint as usual. My thanks. What a prodigious talent.
February 25, 2015
I have mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I did enjoy it when it finally hit its stride, the only issue was that it took roughly half of the book to reach that point. All the intriguing story synopsis that is seen on the jacket/rear cover? Yeah, that describes the latter half of the story. The first part is extremely slow. There is very little world-building: we see a Place of Learning (college for mages) and the valley of Styrmir, and its surrounding forest where the action takes place. Not much else is revealed about the world around these settings, which makes for a very insular-feeling read. The characterizations aren't very deep, either, and to be honest, I am having some trouble remembering a few character names, even though I finished the book fifteen minutes before starting this review.
Maybe I'm reading this book out of order? I know that it is part of the "Five Senses" series, and though it can stand as a complete work on its own in terms of story, I wonder if I have missed some important world-building in a previous series entry? I plan to read the rest, eventually, so I guess I will find out!
Overall, I think I prefer Ms. Norton's earlier work over her later stories. As another reader mentioned in their review, she does tend to be unnecessarily gruesome in this work, and it can be a bit over-the-top and depressing at times.
Maybe I'm reading this book out of order? I know that it is part of the "Five Senses" series, and though it can stand as a complete work on its own in terms of story, I wonder if I have missed some important world-building in a previous series entry? I plan to read the rest, eventually, so I guess I will find out!
Overall, I think I prefer Ms. Norton's earlier work over her later stories. As another reader mentioned in their review, she does tend to be unnecessarily gruesome in this work, and it can be a bit over-the-top and depressing at times.
November 9, 2016
I don't know if my memory of Andre Norton's work has a veneer of quality lent by the years since I last read something written by her or if it was just the age I was at the time. Wind in the Stone definitely did not live up to that memory though. The narrative felt rushed and disjointed and there was no real fleshing out of any of the characters. The big bad was little more than a moustache twirling villain and the "heroes" were little more than cardboard cutouts with no depth or character of their own. It was almost like reading a Cliff's Notes summary of a hero's tale, the essential details are provided but nothing more.
Unfortunately I only found out this was the fourth book in a quintet after starting it. I will be reading the rest but hold little hope of them living up to my memory of Ms. Norton's works of fantasy if this one is representative of the rest of the series.
Unfortunately I only found out this was the fourth book in a quintet after starting it. I will be reading the rest but hold little hope of them living up to my memory of Ms. Norton's works of fantasy if this one is representative of the rest of the series.
September 8, 2009
It definitely was not the story I was expecting it to be. The summary on the back of the book lead me to believe that Falice would be the main character, but she was only introduced halfway through and even then she was one of several important parts to the story.
However, the plot was well delivered and the events flowed well into each other. There wasn't much action, humor, or romance but there was a lot of thinking and planning for the characters to do.
Nothing special, really.
However, the plot was well delivered and the events flowed well into each other. There wasn't much action, humor, or romance but there was a lot of thinking and planning for the characters to do.
Nothing special, really.
December 29, 2009
I never quite got into this. The story never quite blossomed, either--it needed to be a lot more epic to support the characters and their destinies. I never felt like the book was leading me towards something greater, and the climax didn't feel that grand.
March 5, 2015
It's been a long time since I last stopped reading a book halfway through. This read like a rough draft. There were some great ideas, but the characters were flat and the world they inhabited was barely even sketched out.
March 15, 2008
This book was complex and confusing. I finally figured out what was going on by the end of the book, and it was generally enjoyable if not a little frustrating.
June 23, 2009
I started it on the flight to Germany and never finished it. I recently dug it out and I will finish it!
March 28, 2009
I remember finding this book a little confusing and hard to get in to, but ultimately enjoying the story.
May 28, 2009
Got a little boring.
April 1, 2012
Didn't like this book..difficult to follow, tried to cover too many years, and too many people...good plot, didn't care for execution.
May 5, 2014
Not at all what I thought it would be it was so dry and took forever to go nowhere
March 4, 2016
so boring, I couldn't finish it. I got a 100 pages in though when I finally gave up.
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October 11, 2009Four Stars and very entertaining. Kept the suspense going till the end.
April 15, 2014
5/10. Another scrap of "light-good vs. dark-evil".
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews