Conference noted::sf

    
    
    	Has anyone seen the NEW Eddings series?!? I believe its called
    The Eleniad(sp?).
    
    	Book one is out, and available at Pheasent(sp?) lane Maul(SP!!)
    in New Hampshire, and costs $18.95. Looks like it might another five
    book series (Groan! you mean I gotta wait another 5 years to see the
    conclution of this one?!?! ;^) )
    
    Personally, I'm going to wait for the rest of the Malloreon first!
    
    
    RE:-.1
    	No, book 4 isn't out here yet either (at least to my knowledge).
    
       

    I've only just started reading The Diamond Throne.  Book two will be
    titled The Ruby Knight, and book three, The Sapphire Rose. The Elenium
    is unrelated to The Belgariad and The Malloreon (of which books four
    and five are still not out yet).  Does anybody know whether Eddings has
    completed The Malloreon already even though all five books haven't been
    published?
    
    --Simon
    

    No spoilers in this note.  While Elenium is unrelated to Belgariad/
    Malloreon, there are a few similarities.  For example, the protagonist
    goes on a quest which takes him all over place.  There is a magic
    practitioner mother figure of indeterminate age.  There is this
    mysterious child whose purpose in the story is apparently not revealed
    until the next book.  It sounds like it will take three books instead
    of five to find the cure for the queen in suspended animation.
    
    Why is it that these fantasy novels favor medieval-ish worlds?
    
    The Diamond Throne and The Demon Lord of Karanda, both in hardcover,
    were in the bookstore side by side.  I almost bought both at the same
    time.  I'll definitely get the rest of The Malloreon when it comes out,
    but if I can resist, I'll get them in paperback.  The two series read
    about the same.  You can take that as a commendation if you like
    Eddings.
    
    --Simon
    

    
    
    The word through the Waldenbooks bookvine is that Eddings has written
    ALL of the Mallorean, but his publisher wants to publish it slowly,
    so that people buy the hardcovers?!  ARGH!!
    
    The new series is called The Elenium...But I also have forgotten
    the name of the first book...  I read it though, and liked it a
    lot...  Eddings and Kurtz are the only two authors I'll spend the
    money for hardcovers.
    
    David

    The new book is _The Diamond Throne_.  It shares the general interest
    and elegance of Edding's usual works, but I loved it even more than
    anything else of his I've read.  It's a more detailed and darker
    vision.
    
    The basic premise is that there are orders of militant clerics/knights
    who work to help the Queen establish justice in her kingdom--then
    someone does something nasty to the Queen and it's up to her knights,
    particularly one of them whose name naturally escapes me at this
    embarrassing time, to aid her.
    
    Read it!
    
    Cat
    

    
    
    That's right!!  The main character is Sparhawk.  He is one of those
    cynical type heroes.   It was great reading.  The book is currently
    only in hardcover.
    
    david

Personally, I felt that the characters in TDT had much less substance to 
them than the ones in The Belgariad and Mallorean series.  It was almost 
like he was just going through the motions when writing this story.  While
he is one of my favorite authors, his latest work has been a little 
disappointing to me.

John Piekos

    RE: -1;

>    Personally, I felt that the characters in TDT had much less substance to 
> them than the ones in The Belgariad and Mallorean series.  It was almost 
> like he was just going through the motions when writing this story.  While
> he is one of my favorite authors, his latest work has been a little 
> disappointing to me.

    	I agree. I bought this in hardback here in the UK and after
    spending so much money was disapointed to find it thin and vapid
    lacking either human interest, excitement or mythological creativity.
    
    	This seems to me to be a pale imitation of David Gemmel in 
        'Legend', 'The king beyond the gate' and 'Waylander' which are
    	wonderfull stuff.
    
    Nigel
    

I'm in the interesting position of reading the first book of the Elenium trilogy
at the same time as Katherine Kurtz' _The Harrowing of Gwynedd_.  The parallels
are kind of interesting.  Both feature the conflict between religion and magic.
The churches in both stories are markedly christian (Kurtz' expressly so).  It's
interesting that Eddings remains true to the structure he uses in the Belgariad
in which he establishes his own mythological backdrop whereas Kurtz simply takes
the Roman Catholic church of the middle ages minus Rome and the Pope and adds
novel (though essentially anglic) lands and of course the Deryni element.

The orders of Knights in the Elenium (Pandion, Alcione, etc.) remind me a lot of
the Michaeline order in the Deryni books.  The Styrics are the main analog to
the Deryni, with the difference that Styrics are generally easy to distinguish
from Elenes.  That's not surprizing though considering Eddings' predilection for
strongly differentiated races.

So far, I like the book inspite of the trashing back in .30-something.  I think
some people are just mad that the Mallorean isn't cranking out faster, but I
disagree about the characterizations and the plot being substandard.  I'll be 
keeping an eye out for other parallels as I read.

Wook

    The next few replies I will post are copies of replies in topic 640
    (some of which were originally written as replies to topic 609).  This
    may not be the most elegant way to do it, but what I'm trying to do is
    to recap previous discussion of this subject, and I want to reserve
    space here, before other replies get written.
    
    --Simon
    

================================================================================
Note 640.26                       DAVID EDDINGS                        26 of 103
TALLIS::SIGEL                                        26 lines  20-APR-1989 13:05
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
              -< Malloreon and Elenium to alternate publication >-

Re .25

>    I've only just started reading The Diamond Throne.  Book two will be
>    titled The Ruby Knight, and book three, The Sapphire Rose. The Elenium
>    is unrelated to The Belgariad and The Malloreon (of which books four
>    and five are still not out yet).  Does anybody know whether Eddings has
>    completed The Malloreon already even though all five books haven't been
>    published?
    
As I understand matters, Eddings will be writing the series concurrently,
with volumes alternating between series.  So, the next four books
we can expect to see in hardcover will be:

Malloreon IV -- Sorceress of Darshiva
Elenium II -- The Ruby Knight
Malloreon V (and last) -- Seeress of Kell
Elenium III (and last) -- The Sapphire Rose

Presumably, he'll be trying to come out with two books a year, now, with
Malloreon in the fall, and Elenium in the spring.  At a guess, his
publishers were reluctant to allow too short a time between hardcover
volumes in a series, so he finessed the matter by starting a new series
to spread out hardcover release dates.  BTW, The Elenium was sold
first in Britain, then in the U.S.

				Andrew

================================================================================
Note 640.28                       DAVID EDDINGS                        28 of 103
CSCOA5::BERGH_P "Peter Bergh, DTN 435-2658"           3 lines  26-APR-1989 19:04
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                      -< Elenium vs Belgariad/Malloreon >-

    I must say that I liked the Elenium less than the Belgariad/Malloreon
    multilogy (to coin a word); the characters are less believable and
    the novel seems less well crafted.

================================================================================
Note 640.73                       DAVID EDDINGS                        73 of 103
BREW11::MASSARI "Ship-wrecked and comatose,"         48 lines  24-NOV-1989 06:47
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                             -< More spoilers ano >-

    To put all Eddings fans in the picture...        
    
    ************************ SPOILERS (sort of)*******************************

        
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
                                                                              
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    The Mallorean like the Belgariad consists of five books.
    DE has only just published the "Sorceress of Darshiva" and the final
    book "The seeress of Kell" where the ultimate choices will be made
    by Cyradis is not due for release for another year........UG!!!!!!!!
                                       
    The Elenium is a new series involving orders of religious Knights that
    have magical skills (well sort of). The story involves trolls and
    childish and surly Gods that play at being Grand.
    The first book is called "The diamond throne" - the paper back is
    due before spring in the next decade......
    Two other books will complete the series and the second is not due
    until next fall
    At the moment I can't remeber their titles but I do know that they
    involve roses and emeralds in their titles.........
    
    
    I wish he would write a bit faster.
    
    Cheerio
    Tasmanian beer atom
    

  RE:  .41:

>   This will be in hardback only and is entitled : The Ruby Knight??
>   - to All Elenium Readers - any idea as to who this might be???

  -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= Possible Spoiler =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=

 D
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 i
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 o
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 E
 a
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  That would be Sir Sparhawk (a reference to his ring).

  -- Bill B.

    I am currently in the enviable position of rereading the Diamond
    Throne without remebering the particular details from my first reading.
     
    As with his other series I found that the first reading of the Diamond
    Throne caused me to like the tale but not to be enthusiastic about
    it.
    
    On my second reading I seem to be attracting a lot of attention
    form fellow passengers on the Bus or wherever I happen to be - the
    book is hillarious. Many of the relationships in the book are based
    on Jovial relationships made healthy by the use of a stout stick
    or two - BRILLIANT....
    
    **********************SPOILER WARNING*************************
    
    Relationships
    
    One of the more interesting relationships is that of Sparhawk and
    Faran his war horse - the reaction of Sparhawk to Faran's first
    bite is brilliant:
    
    Misquoted:
    
    "I explained to him that he was not to do that again"
    "Talked to Him???"
    "I used to stout stick to persuade him"
    
    There are many such scenes in the book that just leave me in stiches
    - it is the style in which they are presented..
    For real killers look out for conversations between:
    
    Kalten and Sparhawk                              
    
    Kalten, Sparhawk and the Tynian the Alcione Knight who's relish
    for hacked bodies is almost parallel to kalten's.
    
    Sparhawk and Faran
    
    Sparhawk and Kurik
    
    and many many more.
    
    Plot Unfolding - My theories
    
    I haven't finished reading the book through for the second time
    but I have come up with an intersting theory. At the start of the
    book we are told that Aphrael a young Styric Goddess stole the rings
    from Ghwerig the Troll. Sephrenia admits that she worships a styric
    goddess that is a member of the younger gods. Furthermore Sephrenia
    suddenly turned up one day and took up the teaching of the Styric
    ways amongst the Pandion Knights.
    
    I have a feeling that her presence in this tale is more than
    conicidence and I think that she knows where the rings are - if
    indeed the ring Sparhawk has is not one of them (ruby instead of
    pale diamong like sapphire). I also think that her goddess is indeed
    Aphrael and that a manifestation of her may be Flute.
    
    Another theory is that Flute is the next teacher and that Sephrenia
    will infact die before Ehlana is cured and takes her rightful place.
    
    Finally is anyone willing to bet that Sparhawk will become Ehlana's
    consort and perhaps leader of the Pandion Knights? Or will Kalten
    take that role?
    
    Will Talen become a Pandion Knight or at least begin training seeing
    as he has the gift of being a sensitive??
    
    Will there be a second series following in the footsteps of the
    Belgariad and its sequel the Mallorean - if this happens who might
    the story revolve around this time?
    
    I think I leave these burning questions for the discussion in future
    replies to this topic....
    
    Cheerio
    
    	Tahi_ship-wrecked_and_comatose

	So far, I haven't started the Mallorean, OR this one. I gave up reading
`stories' that I must finish over a period of several years. My original
intention was to wait until the Mallorean was complete, buy all the books, and
read them in one swell foop. However, after reading much of the discussion
which has been generated, I have a feeling that I could just re-read the
Belgariad and call it good.

Mike JN

    re: .43
    
    Spoiler Warning *************************
    
    Big BooBoo. There I was thinking I had solved one of the Great
    misteries of the Eosian World and what had really happened was that
    I couldn't remember having read it in the book first time - Confused?
    
    Simple referring to my clever deduction that Sparhawk's ring might
    be one of the Bhelliom shards rings...You find that out at the end
    of the book anyway!
    
    Slight nit pick: In the first pages of the book we are told that
    the rings were fashioned from shards of the Bhelliom (A Sapphire)
    that shone blue. The rings turned almost diamond when they came
    in contact with the rose so why are they Ruby Red now - this is 
    mentioned at some point in the book can't remember where though!
         
    Blaffled_Again_Tahi

    I am afraid that in the UK only the large print softback has been
    released. 
    I have already read the book in hardback - I'd rather pay for a
    hardback than a large print softback anyway. The reason I buy the
    hardbacks is that I re-read D.Eddings ovber and over again and I
    am not good with softback books - I kill them in a first read let
    alone multiple ones.
    
    On a different note I have put a note in the Mallorean about actors
    we think would fir the parts we love if a film were ever made -
    response has been quite brilliant.
    
    What is the opinion for Sprahawk and co in the Elenium. 
    My personal favourite for Sparhwak is Rutger Hauer - the main problem
    being that he is blond but perhaps he could dye his hair for that
    event.....
    
    I think I'll go a swoon quietly 

    For those of you who play D & D, I think that Sparhawk and his
    men are what "paladins" in the game really should be.
    They are religious knights in dedicated service to their 
    church.  Other churches and paladins are not as important as
    their own, unless they seek the same goal.  I might re-read the
    first book and see if I get more out of it.  It has potential...
    
    B.

    
    
    Does ANYONE know when the "Ruby Knight" will be showing up on our
    book store shelves? I'm getting discouraged. I keep asking at all
    of the book stores that I frequent and so far, there's no reference
    as to when the book is to be published. So, again, my question is
    "Any news of the Ruby Knight?".
    
    .................................LL 

    I caught a look at the Dec-May "Forthcomming Books" and neither the
    Elenium or Mallorean next-in-series books is  listed.  That means 
    that (as of about November), there was no publication commitment from
    Edding's publishers.  The next "Forthcomming Books" will be out the
    middle of next month.
    
    BobW

         
         Maybe I should know this but where can one find the
         'Forthcoming Books' list.
         
         			---Jack
         

                Most  book    stores   will  have  the  lists  on
                microfiche and can  look up books currently being
                published and forthcoming books.
                
                

Forthcomming Books, Books in Print, and Books Out of Print are the three guides 
that most booksellers use to determine the status of bookstocks.

The can usually be found at libraries or major booksellers. (I found the copy
I use at the Chinook book shop in Colorado Springs.)  Each of these guides comes
out about every 6 months and are ordered by subscription. Some booksellers
may have these on Microfiche or may have condensations provided by their book
distributors (eg, Walden Books).  If they are available on fiche, you can 
expect an employee of the store to do the lookup(s) for you.  Some places 
are real touchy about your using their copies of BIP, etc.  If they are, they
are probably not the kind of bookseller you want to do business with, anyway.

The catch is that you need to know that these volumes exist and ask (usually)
to be allowed to use them.  I say "usually", because Chinook has them sitting 
out on one of the reading tables, for the asking.

BobW

    I wondered into a W H Smith bookshop today and in their forthcoming
    book lists THE RUBY KNIGHT is scheduled for the 11th of October
    her in the UK. 
    
    I should imagine that the worldwide release will be around that
    date as well,
    
    Tahi

Re .56

>    I wondered into a W H Smith bookshop today and in their forthcoming
>    book lists THE RUBY KNIGHT is scheduled for the 11th of October
>    her in the UK. 

The U.S. isn't that lucky.  The Del Rey hardcover is scheduled for
January 1991 release.  Of course, given the increased selling around the
Holidays, I wouldn't be at all surprised to see the book in the stores
in early December, or perhaps even sooner than that.

				Andrew

    To all hopefuls out there NEWSFLASH
    
    THE RUBY KNIGHT is now on sale in the UK - I found a hardback copy in
    London in a bookshop called Sherratt. It was the only one left
    
    Regards
    
    	Tahi

  "The Ruby Knight" is now available in the US. I bought the hardcover
at Brentano's in Natick MA.

  Having read it, I think I can say the following without spoilers.

  Many of the things that one may have guessed from "The Diamond Throne"
turned out to be true.

  The books is neither Edding's worst book not his best.

  David Eddings' sense of geography and chronology are driving me batty.
(I'm already crazy.) Sometimes he has his characters do the equivalent
of going from New York to Washington by way of San Francisco in 3 days.
Sometimes they go from Buda to Pesht (spelling?) by the direct route in
3 months. I do tend to exaggerate. Anyway his eleventh fantasy work "The
Ruby Knight" finally offers an explanation - sorceror and gods can play
with time - but I don't buy it. 

                                                        Phil


Note: (for the geographically uninclined) Budapest originated as two 
towns - Buda and Pesht - divided by a river.

    Its also available at Waldenbooks for 15% off and another 10% if you
    have their Preferred Reader card.
    
    Peg
    

    Finally read through the RK.  Despite the fact that Eddings is another
    one of those folks who seems to feel he has to heap viler and viler
    horrors on top of each other I like the book.  I especially like the
    ending... :-)
    
    
    J

Does anyone know if Ruby Knight will be released through SFBC?  I've see the QPBC
listing, but already started the series in hardback.

Wook

	The last book in the Elenium (The Sapphire Rose) is out in
	hardcover at Waldenbooks (at least in NJ). The tail end of the
	epilogue is a teaser for another series in this universe, to be
	called "The Tamuli", with Sparhawk and the same characters. For 
	those who don't want ANYTHING mildly spoiled, I'd recommend
	hitting NEXT UNSEEN now (mild spoilers to follow)...



	This book takes a somewhat predictable course. With the recovery
	of Bhelliom at the end of the Ruby Knight, the company returns and
	restores Queen Ehlana to health (with amusing side effects), then
	presses on to prevent Annias from taking over the Archprelacy. The
	end of the book shows the travels to Zemoch to face down Otha and
	Azach with Bhelliom.

	The ending is quite different from either the Belgariad or Malloreon,
	it is definitely NOT a "they all lived happily ever after" scenario,
	as Eddings throws a few curves. It left me fairly somber.

	A new character is introduced after Ehlana is restored, a female
	bodyguard who is an "Atan warrior from the Tamul Empire on the 
	Daresian continent", if I remember correctly. Think
	of a female the size of Toth from Kell, but armed in interesting
	ways and EXTREMELY dangerous. It looks like Eddings will be taking
	us on a tour again and expanding his Eosian world just like he did
	in the Malloreon.

    Figures the last book came out...The Ruby Knight just came out
    in paperback...
    
    B.
    

    	
    	I know this notes file is about Eddings, but I would like to tell
    Edding fans to try Robert Jordan (see note 943).   He has about the
    same sytle of writing as Eddings but just slight different.  Since I am
    a Eddings fan and I enjoy Robert Jordan because of the similarties.
    
    Terry H

    reply priors
    
    I have often thought of how to compare Eddings works with Tolkien's. I
    think I have it now.  Eddings characters have a sexual side to them,
    which Tolkien's never do, except for procreation.  Also I find Eddings
    protagonists much less noble than their counterparts in Tolkien. 
    
    Compare Sparhawk to Arragorn. They are both men's men, but Sparhawk is
    a moral sleazebag.  In a fight between Sparhawk and Arragorn, I would
    bet on the Hawk, cuz he would fight dirty.
    
    

    There's actually a fair amount of romance in Lord of the Rings: 
    Eowyn and Faramir, Aragorn and Arwen, even Sam and Rosie.  It's
    not a high percentage compared to say, swordfights, but hey,
    these are busy people.  The romance is described in a chaste way,
    but sexual description would not have fit the bardic style that
    Tolkien was using or, for that matter, any respectable style of
    the 1940s.  It's the 90s now, though, and you have to throw in some
    extra spice to make your Tolkien leftovers seem tasty.
    
    /jlr

    Have read the first trilogy...and though I did enjoy it, I think it
    just doesn't stack up to the Belgariad/Mallorean.  The characters seem
    similar, but shallower.  I couldn't develop near the same amount of
    affection for Sephrenia that I did for Polgara.  And to be blunt,
    Flute/Aphrael (sp?) really annoyed me pretty consistently.
    **mini-spoiler**
    
      I thought it was a cop-out to have her magic her way into being
    Sparhawk and Elhana's daughter.  (Though, to be even more honest I'm
    usually hostile to the idea(s) of reincarnation.  The thought of each
    person not being a true individual with a single soul bothers me
    tremendously.  Guess I'm just "too" Catholic! :-) :-)
    
    I know he's writing a second set of books (like the Mall. was to the
    Bel.) and I'll read them, though I'm not as anxious as I am for another
    Deryni book or the last Melani Rawn book.
    
    --Tricia

    Flash****
    Just saw the first book in Eddings follow-up series to the Elenium in
    B. Dalton a couple of nights ago.
    
    Tricia

    
    David Eddings New Series has just come out.  Bellow find the insert for
    the book and it's name.
    
    Terry H.
    
    BOOK ONE OF THE TAMULI:  DOMES OF FIRE SEQUEL TO THE ELENIUM
    
    	BOOK INSERT:
    
    	Six years had passed since the redoubtable knight Sparhawk had
    triumphed over the evil God Azash and retured to Elenia with Queen
    Ehlana, his bride.  And now a new danger has arisen to threaten the
    peace of Ehlana's realm.
    
    	The trouble had started quietly.  At home, bandits began to plague
    the hill country.  In neighboring Lamorkand, the customary political
    unrest turned ominous with whispers that the bloody heroes of old soon
    would rise again.  and travelers reported that the Trolls had all
    disappeared from the icy northern haunts of Thalesia.
    
    	Simple problems, apparently unrelated -- until an ambassador
    arrived from the far-off Tamul empire, beggin Sparhawk's aid.  For
    these same dangers that stalked Ehlana's kingdom had already struck his
    realm full-force.  The fabled ancient warriors of Tamuli had indeed
    returned -- intent on carnage.  Monsters and fell magics had followed,
    and the havoc and terror they spawned were tearing the empire apart.
    
    	The emperor had sent for the Pandion Knight who had killed the God
    Azash.  If Sparhawk wanted to stop this danger before it could savage
    his own land, he now must lend his aid.
    
    	Sparhawk, Ehlana, and their daughter, Pricess Danae, agreed to make
    the grueling trek to the far-distant empire of the east.  They traveled
    in company with a handful of trusted companions: the stalwart champions
    of the four Militant Orders, the knight Berit, Mirtai the gaintess, and
    the young thief Talen.
    
    	With the child-goddess Aphrael to speed their journey, they began
    the treacherous traverse of the utmost reaches of the Daresian
    continent, to Tamuli's distant capital.  There, in the emperor's
    glittering court, they would encounter corruption, teachery -- and a
    greater danger than any man has faced before !.
    
    

    Just checked this out of the public library--read it in less than 3
    days (Eddings reads fast, not just well!)
    
    I felt it was up to his usual standards, though nothing break-through
    or astounding.  
    
    I would be interested in hearing opinions of anyone else who has read
    this--wasn't the ending an non-cliff-hanging cliffhanger?  Would there
    be a reason Bhelliom couldn't solve everything in an eyeblink?
    
    Tricia
    
    P.S.  Aphrael *still* drives me crazy; she is too annoying!!!

    Well i'm in the middle of reading book three of the Tamuli and so far
    it's standard Eddings.  No suprises yet but when I'm finished I'll be
    sure to let you know how it was.