Magician by Raymond E Feist (Riftwar Saga: Book 1)

Duncan from Scotland

I have read many, many fantasy novels and this was one of the first. I find that this is still one of the best. The fact that the story concerns two worlds makes this one of the most interesting, thought-provoking and enjoyable novels. A must read for any fantasy fans but it is a shame that Raymond E Feist never reached these heights again.

Ed from Nottingham

If anyone is new to the fantasy genre and doesn't really know what book to start with - this is the one! This is an enjoyable, exciting book which is well written - and is very easy to read. The character development is probably the best in any book I have ever read, and you really feel for the main character and share the experiences.

Dan from Tunbridge Wells

This book is superb and I still remember writing a letter to the publisher after I read it (I was 15, so perhaps a little over-keen), suggesting he write sequels. Little did I know what was already in the pipeline.... All - most - of the Midkemia and Kelewan stories have been fun, but some part of me wishes he'd stopped at either the end of Magician or A Darkness At Sethanon. Everything since then has lessened the impact of this book somewhat. It's been a great cash cow, but it would have been good if he'd been able to write about a completely different universe. That said, I'm looking forward to reading Wrath Of A Mad God... albeit a library copy

Dean from Portsmouth

A great book with a free flowing and exciting narrative. One of the best of Feist's stories alongside the Mistress of the Empire series.

Sam from Chicago

An absolutely horrific novel. I have to admit, the plot is acceptable. Yet the others, especially Feist's writing is almost unbearable, and his characters are too shallow and undeveloped. For instance, Feist describes Arutha as quiet and sly, and Lyam as cheerful and adorable, yet as far as the dialogues go, Arutha talks as much as Lyam. I can't even detect the slyness of his character in any part of the book except when Feist states he is sly. Another example is how Feist describes the elves. He states they "had pointed ears." Well duh! It is obvious elves have pointed ears. That's their trademark. His bad writing is even more evident in the dialogues. The characters are talking like robots, and they seemed to be talking to the readers more than to each other. For instance, Laurie does not need to say Katala is prettier than Almorella, because he or Pug does not need to know this fact. However, it is necessary for Feist to establish to the reader that Pug's girl is hotter than any other girl in the world, so he placed it there, although he probably knows clearly that the phrase is unnecessary. (Here's a funny test you should take when you read this book. Just cover up the characters' names in every dialogue and try to figure out who's talking what. Trust me, you wouldn't know who is talking what because they all talk in the same tone, language, etc." Another glaring problem with this book is that it has virtually no description. For instance, when Feist is describing the waves of Tsurani soldiers attacking Crydee, he just describes it as "And they still came." What kind of description is that? It could be described vividly like, "a horde of black-armoured men like demons from hell, ripped through the thick fabric of silence that lingered above the battlefield with their cries, and marched up to the walls in tight columns, their boots scathed through the earth like ploughs in the desert...etc." Phrases like this could always use some descriptive juices, and it would put more emphasis on the battle scenes. And the character development is too superficial and unrealistic. For instance, Roland became a man in just two chapters and was able to snag Carline with only a few choice words. Nobody matures that fast, even characters in Hollywood movies. This is just an example of bad writing, as Mittelmark in "How not to write a novel" describes it as "The Underpants Gnomes", where crucial steps are omitted since the author does not know how to get from point A to point B, in this case from a immature Roland to a mature Roland. The last problem with this book is that the worlds Feist's portrays in his book are just plainly undeveloped. They do have potential, yet Feist failed to develop them vividly. For instance, the Tsurani world is just another form of Eastern Asia, and nothing of his creation, therefore is uninteresting. And to cover this up, he creates creatures like the Then, and insect-men that are not appealing so that it appears as though he created the world. I'm not saying one cannot base off of something else. All writers do, even Joyce and Bradbury. However, in the case with Feist, it has gone offhand. Architecture, every clothes they wore (excluding armour), and their customs are all of those from Asia. To be acceptable, the book needs to create a more concise hierarchical system, and a new form of government and kingdoms that is nothing similar to Asia. He is welcomed to use the appearances of Japanese to describe the Tsurani. But Japan's institutions, and its customs should be left untouched, if that is the case. Otherwise, it makes the readers wonder where the credibility of this creation lies. Overall, Feist's failure to display a realistic view of his world to his readers, write a well developed sentences and paragraphs to enrapture the readers' attention, and show clearly the development of his numerous characters that are like stick figures in the book made me rate this book one star out of ten.

Fantasy Reader

Fast pace, good characters and long plot coming together at the end. What more can you ask of a fantasy story?