Althea M. (althea) reviewed Return to the Whorl : The Final Volume of 'The Book of the Short Sun' (Book of the Short Sun) on + 774 more book reviews
The Final Volume of the Book of the Short Sun.
This follow-up to On Blue's Waters and In Green's Jungles continues the saga of the man who calls himself Horn, and his quest to find the political and spiritual leader, Patera Silk, and bring him back to settle political unrest in his hometown.
As in the previous two books, Wolfe uses an unreliable narrator, who speaks of things happening in multiple places and times, and whose perspective on events seems to frequently shift and disagree with that of other characters. Philosophical themes include musings on identity, religion, and the various sorts of bonds that there are between people...
Although it's not absolutely that a reader be familiar with Wolfe's works The Book of the Long Sun, and The Book of the New Sun to read this (though it wouldn't hurt, either), I would say that one absolutely has to have read the two previous books in this particular series for the story to make any sense whatsoever.
Having read them, I enjoyed this conclusion very much - a few story arcs I wish could have been drawn together in a more dramatic and satisfying way - but, on the other hand, it fits with the style to not wrap everything up into a neat package.
This follow-up to On Blue's Waters and In Green's Jungles continues the saga of the man who calls himself Horn, and his quest to find the political and spiritual leader, Patera Silk, and bring him back to settle political unrest in his hometown.
As in the previous two books, Wolfe uses an unreliable narrator, who speaks of things happening in multiple places and times, and whose perspective on events seems to frequently shift and disagree with that of other characters. Philosophical themes include musings on identity, religion, and the various sorts of bonds that there are between people...
Although it's not absolutely that a reader be familiar with Wolfe's works The Book of the Long Sun, and The Book of the New Sun to read this (though it wouldn't hurt, either), I would say that one absolutely has to have read the two previous books in this particular series for the story to make any sense whatsoever.
Having read them, I enjoyed this conclusion very much - a few story arcs I wish could have been drawn together in a more dramatic and satisfying way - but, on the other hand, it fits with the style to not wrap everything up into a neat package.
