Books written by: Glen Cook
Glen Cook: Annals of the Black Company
I am well read in the Fantasy genre, where the storyline is basically the same-old same-old, but Glen Cook does a masterful job in breaking the traditional mold. His use of the first-person perspective is a refreshing approach. He spends is time developing the plot, and he causes the reader to become almost emotionally involved with the story. The main character has, at first, the rather cynical outlook of one who believes in nothing, but who finds the true cause for which to give his life to. The grim realism is most enthralling, and the resolution of the conflict comes with a price. After six books Cook has never run out of story and had to resort to taking the mystery from his characters by explaining everyday of their lives to readers who really don't want to know. Remember, these are mercenaries. You are not supposed to know their secrets. If you've got to have every detail spelled out for you then pass this one by. But, if you want a challenging read with great characters that you will remember for years, a world that you cannot stay away from and a story that will keep you waiting patiently for years to be continued then grab a copy and hold on to it, mine's almost unreadable now. I'll be checking park benches looking for yours soon.
Silver Spike
Note: Although Silver Spike is missing cover art all are available at Amazon.Com
Glen Cook: The Black Company "Glittering Stone Saga"
In "The Glittering Stone Saga" Cook continues his enjoyable excursions into the minds and secrets of mercenaries (and, especially, Murgens) and wizards with this latest installment in the Black Company series. He continues his masterful use of an "implied description" style of writing, forcing his readers into that enjoyable state of using the imagination to fully grasp what is happening in his world (almost the polar opposite of Tolkien's "ultra-descriptive" style, yet he achieves, through his minimalism, almost the same fullness and richness of place and event, even if, or perhaps, because, we never have a real sense of the history or geography of his "middle earth"). This isn't some flowery fantasy ala Eddings. It can be brutal. There is no definite line between Good and Evil...just like in our reality. An excellent series...get them all!
All are available at Amazon.Com
Glen Cook Hot Links
The Glen Cook Fan Page
The Black Company Homepage
The Official Glen Cook Bibliography.
