Madrenga

by Alan Dean Foster

A vital message. A desperate queen. A hero in the making.

He is plainly too young and too inexperienced for the mission, but on the advice of her aged adviser Natoum, and with her husband off at war, the Queen reluctantly assigns the task of delivery to…

Madrenga.

Accompanied only by a runt of a pony and a scrap of a pup, he sets off to transport the royal message to its destination. No matter what it might take.

But things are not always what they seem. Heroes are sometimes made of the strangest stuff, and love is to be found in the most unexpected places.

If one doesn’t die while treading the lethal path…

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Animals, Science Fiction Fantasy, Audiobook

324 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 17, 2020

About the author

Bestselling science fiction writer Alan Dean Foster was born in New York City in 1946, but raised mainly in California. He received a B.A. in Political Science from UCLA in 1968, and a M.F.A. in 1969. Foster lives in Arizona with his wife, but he enjoys traveling because it gives him opportunities to meet new people and explore new places and cultures. This interest is carried over to his writing, but with a twist: the new places encountered in his books are likely to be on another planet, and the people may belong to an alien race.

Foster began his career as an author when a letter he sent to Arkham Collection was purchased by the editor and published in the magazine in 1968. His first novel, The Tar-Aiym Krang, introduced the Humanx Commonwealth, a galactic alliance between humans and an insectlike race called Thranx. Several other novels, including the Icerigger trilogy, are also set in the world of the Commonwealth. The Tar-Aiym Krang also marked the first appearance of Flinx, a young man with paranormal abilities, who reappears in other books, including Orphan Star, For Love of Mother-Not, and Flinx in Flux.

Foster has also written The Damned series and the Spellsinger series, which includes The Hour of the Gate, The Moment of the Magician, The Paths of the Perambulator, and Son of Spellsinger, among others. Other books include novelizations of science fiction movies and television shows such as Star Trek, The Black Hole, Starman, Star Wars, and the Alien movies. Splinter of the Mind's Eye, a bestselling novel based on the Star Wars movies, received the Galaxy Award in 1979. The book Cyber Way won the Southwest Book Award for Fiction in 1990. His novel Our Lady of the Machine won him the UPC Award (Spain) in 1993. He also won the Ignotus Award (Spain) in 1994 and the Stannik Award (Russia) in 2000.

Reviews

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Looking after them and attending to their needs can only slow you down.” “Friends never slow one down.”

A quest tale with a twist. Several twists. Foster is an accomplished wordsmith. He can tell a tale and describe a person or setting in just a phrase. Unfortunately, he exhibits a wordiness which belies his ability to do better.

“Nothing that has happened to me since leaving Harup-taw-shet has made any sense. Why should it be any different for you?”

The eponymous hero is dense and naive. The latter is more forgivable than the former. After the introduction, the story drags because Foster seems to not trust the reader to get the stupidity of Madrenga and tells us again. And again.

“The esteem reserved for elder beings as well as elder ways is being abandoned. Where once they sought improvement, now men seek only profit, and darknesses of all manner and kind stalk the land.”

Excellent close. Tied up enough ends to satisfy without telling everything.

“If I’ve learned one thing in life it’s that there are no promises. There is only hope.”

[Jeremiah · Rating 3 out of 5]

Solid Old-fashioned Magical Quest

This was a decent read - it started out really well and if it had kept the energy of the first 20-30 pages I'd have rated it five stars. Unfortunately though it started to get less interesting and a little repetitive over time, since the Madrenga character was so invulnerable to any danger. That really sucked a lot of the tension out of the story for me. However, it was still well-written and a quick read - the riddle of Madrenga's abilities didn't really hold my interest since it was kind of foreshadowed a lot throughout the book, but the secondary character Maya was a neat twist and sets up well for a sequel at some point. This book seems to work a lot better as a YA-type story, since it's not as intricate or challenging as I'd prefer for an adult-level book, but it was a fun, light read that reminds me in tone a lot of the SF/fantasy paperbacks from the 50s, 60s and 70s where authors had a lot less complex worldviews and injected much less modern political BS into their stories. There are good points and bad points about that style, imo - like I said, not nearly as challenging or thought-provoking as I'd prefer, but it also avoids the preachiness and over-politicization that plagues a lot of today's fiction, and it definitely makes for a more simplistic and easy read that younger book lovers will probably appreciate.

[Julie Moran · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my first Alan Dean Foster book. And I can see now, it will most certainly NOT be my last.

From start to finish, what an amazing tale. As a connoisseur of fantasy, this one grabbed me quickly and didn’t let go. The story took me so many different directions I never once guessed where the courier to the Queen would lead me next. The one constant, Madrenga, captured my heart and imagination, and never once did I see where the boy--or not--- his pup and pony--or not--were heading next. Even to the surprise ending where the mystery of Madrenga’s lineage unfurled in such a way that I audibly gasped.

And speaking of “audible”, the audible by Tim Gerard Reynalds is one of his best performances. He brought the unusual boy-man to life and painted an effusive tapestry of characters for him to engage. I’ve listened to many of his narratives but this was his best work.

Pick this one up, whether you get the audible or not, the book is amazing and will leave you wanting more!

[Kathleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enjoyable stand-alone fantasy tale in audiobook, narrated by the talented Tim Gerard Reynolds. Themes: Magic, love, courage, loyalty, duty. Growing up. Accepting yourself.

The main character, Madrenga, is an orphan, about 17 years old, and quite likable. So are his “pets” — an adorable runty puppy and a weak little pony. Other characters: a few non-human sentient species, queens, councilors, sailors, witches, warlocks, giants, ghosts, demons....

There is a twist in the book midpoint. Some parts of the book smack of video games: complete the task, brave the dragon, win the newest ability....

There is a very slight whiff of romance. There is also an almost continuous undertone of dry humor. I laughed aloud once or twice.

This book probably won’t stay with me. I probably won’t read it again. Nonetheless, I enjoyed the time spent in Madrenga’s magical world.

[Stanislas Sodonon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well. I finished this one too, against all odds.
I was tempted many a time to just drop this, for reasons that I am rather ashamed of. It felt like a type of book I should not be enjoying anymore.
But when something is fun to read, you keep reading, right?

The style was particularly interesting. It reminded me a lot of Senlin Ascends by Josiah Bancroft. The airy polish in the phrasing, going on slight sophistication, was a bit disconcerting at times, as it went counterpoint to the action.

The MC is OP personified, but it's OK. The book isn't really about his achievements, but about the intrigue behind his identity, that is slowly revealed as the book progresses. It is a shame that we don't actually make much of the final reveal, since it comes at the end of the book. In fact, the ending is a bit anticlimactic, considering the book-long buildup. That's where the 4th star went.

I would still recommend it though. It's an easy read, a return to the classic, if you will. We all need such once in a while.

[Charles MacCracken · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alan Dean Foster is extraordinarily prolific. I have enjoyed his Pip & Flinx, Spellsinger and Humanx series. Madrenga was not the equal of his previous books. It was entertaining and I enjoyed reading all the solutions to unlikely situations. Madrenga is lighthearted and otherworldly. CMac

[Kanootcha · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was running at a solid 5 stars and I was absolutely enthralled with it, right up until it all went to Pitt. (This switch was so out of the blue that it's barely even a spoiler)
It was such a terrible change that, for me at least, the book lost all of the unique atmosphere and build-up of the solid first two thirds and irretrievably tore me out of the world.
I can't believe that this was planned, or if it was it was extremely poorly executed. I am more inclined to believe that half-way through ADF found out that someone in his family/friend circle was sick and changed the book to provide comfort, or possibly even more sadly or believably allowed a 14 year old niece (I don't even know if he has one, of course) to finish the book and jam herself into the action.
Whatever happened, it was a tragedy and mostly for the ending of the book.

[James Stein · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now and then a book like this is needed

During this pandemic books provide us everything from knowledge to escape to comfort. Often we get into books of a certain type like murder mysteries or science fiction or historical fiction or fact but there comes a time when you decide to take a chance on something that may be different - which this book turned out be, for me, a definite difference, and an easy and fun read. Aft.the first few pages I thought I've been here before but then some originality appeared and the fantasy developed.

[Lars · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful surprise

It has been awhile since I have read a book by Alan Dean Foster and felt like I couldn’t put it down. He has done it with this book. A fantastic lark of a book that is an excellent reminder of that which is true and just. It’s also a reminder of why I fell in love with fantasy fiction.
Thank you, Alan, that was a much needed refreshing addition to my library.

[John E · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another new world

I discovered Alan Dean Foster when Flinx and Pip was first released. After reading hundreds of the "free" prime reading books these last few years, it was refreshing to read a novel by a master wordsmith . The last third of the book happens too fast and in a strange direction but this short tale is another magnificent reminder that heros and heroic actions can be found in any manor of personages.

[Roh Bawt · Rating 1 out of 5]

I really like the character writing. Its not the best but its solid. But the actual story writing... Its just bad. Repetitive. It doesn't stretch credulity. It utterly destroys it.

[Christofer Haraldsen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is impossible to review without spoilers. What begins as a light-hearted fairytale bildungsroman gradually gets weirder and darker – with light elements of LitRpg – until it takes an abrupt turn where it goes full isekai. The final chapters escalate in tempo and end very suddenly without much closure on the mystery. Considering how long the author dwells on some events of less importance earlier in the book it almost feels like he lost patience by the end.

Sometimes the reader will get thoughts and feelings of other characters which is jarring to me. It was the same in Dune I believe. I'm way too used to one point of view per chapter/sub-chapter. Everyone is of course different.

The titular primary protagonist is likeable with a naïvete that border on stupidity. And yet he's pretty damn clever at times. The secondary protagonist, Maya, is mysterious yet relatable. The description of her view on the terminal disease that is killing her feels true.

The frequent deus ex machinas get somewhat explained by the conclusion but some mysteries remain unresolved which is a thing I absolutely hate in stories. Spoon-feed me, authors! I'm too dense to speculate and interpret and too curious to just let it go.

I give this book a strong three stars. It's surprisingly fresh, good fun with clever prose and I recommend it to everyone that wants a relatively short stand-alone novel. I doubt I will ever reread it but if there's ever a sequel I'll give it a go for sure.

[MasterSal · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

This is a pretty odd duck of a book and I am a little confused about whether I liked it or was bored.

I did read it for a challenge to read a book with animals companions and there are two here - a horse and a puppy so that it there.

The book functions more like a fairy tale journey - with our hero journeying to deliver a message and getting into various scrapes along the way. The characters were quite flat and there wasn’t much tension in the encounters, but much in the same way there are none in Aladdin fighting the evil magician.

I feel this book would have been better if it been a third shorter. I liked the tone in the beginning and was aboard for the absurd adventures, even if they were predictable. But the book overstayed its welcome especially with the late introduction of a new character which felt very odd. It was like someone tacked on a new story in the hope for a sequel. Unfortunately because the story tone was more like a Grimm fairy tale I am not sure I would continue with the series if there ever was one.

On the positive side the writing was fun with this archaic quality in places which I liked. It’s not the most nuanced tale but the first half is definitely fun and in context, it’s short enough to get through. Better than fine but I did start rolling my eyes near the end.

[M.H. Thaung]

I’ve read quite a few of Foster’s books over the years. This one has a very similar flavour to his “Journeys of the Catechist” trilogy. The story covers a journey towards a simply defined objective, meeting characters, creatures and cultures along the way. There’s an episodic feel with a mild sense of curiosity about what odd thing will happen next along the pre-ordained path. However, I don’t get much sense of each element building on the previous ones, and the “challenges” could be interchanged or omitted without detriment. Despite quite a lot of gore and guts, there was little tension.

Madrenga doesn’t strike me much as a personality. He’s simply the character who experiences the journey rather passively. He literally grows as the story progresses (as do his companions), but he doesn’t seem to learn from experience. I found myself rolling my eyes more than once. For someone with supposed street smarts from growing up in poverty, he loses his caution far too often and too easily, in a very telegraphed (belaboured by the author) way.

Still, a fun read as long as you don’t expect a thought-provoking tale that will linger.

[Tssn · Rating 1 out of 5]

Foster is obviously a talented writer from a grammatical technical sense but this plot is so incredibly dull. A protagonist with no personality who magically mystically grows to fix every problem in his path makes for one of the lowest stakes "hero's journey" progressions of all time. instead of creating intrigue and mystery the lack of exposition only really serves to distance the reader and also add confusion. I've spent the whole read thinking "why should i care?" and the answer is, I don't. 80% through Foster attempts a sort of bizarro multidimension crossover non-event so poorly executed I had to put down my phone. Adding in a last minute character and spending three pages telling me how much she and the protagonist have been bonding doesn't lead to any magical mystical connection on my part. whipped through this out of sheer spite. 3hours 27min

[Gmc · Rating 5 out of 5]

Madrenga (Kindle Edition) by Alan Dean Foster
324 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 17, 2020

Madrenga is a young street urchin, he has a runt horse and a puppy. Hie lives a very hand to mouth existence. The Queen and her councilor send him as a courier to the Queen of Daria, in a faraway land. Madrenga meets many obstacles, and many friends and villains along the way.
I loved this book:)

[Cynthia Slaughter · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantasy adventure

Madrenga is a coming of age story about a young boy, selected to act as a courier for royalty. His only companions are his pony and puppy. As he crosses continents and faces challenges of all kinds they all change and grow together. Madrenga is his name and what he is.

[Melody · Rating 5 out of 5]

It has been a few years

Since I read Alan Dean Foster. What a delight it has been. His use of language is unparalleled. This is a fairy tale for the modern age and thoroughly enjoyable

[Raymond Marshall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Demons are not all bad.

A different type of story than I have read from Mr Foster. I very much enjoyed it, but it was a little uneven. The tale seems to jump from one type of style to others. An interesting read.

[Tony Fecteau · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a short novel and it was a pleasure to read. What occurs during Madrengas' task is quite unbelievable. Just when you think you figured out the story, the author crafts a brand new branch that you did not even think of.

[Lance Mertz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Starts strange ends interesting

This is NOT your typical fantasy novel. It grabbed my attention early and kept it. More twists than most books and the characters are very well drawn.

[kathy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book! Great fantasy story. Fun light reading with a very active plot. I do enjoy the author’s other books. I’ve read the Pip and Flinx books. Also, I have read several of his standalone novels like this one. Though the way this one ended, he could do a sequel!

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the realistic characters, the descriptions, the dialogue, the pace, and most of the plot in this novel. I don't like that some of the sentences in this novel aren't grammatically correct. Four stars.

[Kevin Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Simple but Entertaining Tale

I enjoyed the book although parts of it was predictable and the characters were two dimensional. The hero, for once, was genuinely heroic.

[stacy goff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Always a great story

Mr. Foster is a master story teller and succeeds again in creating a fantastic story that leaves me wanting more.

[Henry Cosgrove · Rating 5 out of 5]

An enjoyable read

I’ve read many of Alan Dean Fosters works, I enjoy his style. This one was a great adventure to have in this time of Covid stay at home.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read.
Great action and mystery. A youth becomes a courier, but he may be something more. Twists turns, magic, and mayhem. You can always count on Foster for a good story.

[JB25 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed it

I liked the book and the mc. His mysterious power, which I won't give away, came to the rescue too many times which detracted from the story.

[Ralph Trickey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent Fairy tale

[Joe Sutherland]

I didn't like it at all and didn't get more than 20 pages into the book before I gave up.