The Empire Trilogy by Raymond E. Feist & Janny Wurts | Book Report
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- Опубликовано: 18 сен 2024
- Okay, I know this channel is mainly about film reviews, but I said right from the beginning that I may do other stuff as well, as the mood takes me. And so, as a LIMITED side-branch, I've decided to review some of my favourite books.
These are ADDITIONAL content. They are NOT a change of format for the channel. Normal film review content will continue as before.
In this episode, I discuss the Empire Trilogy by Raymond E. Feist and Janny Wurts - a standalone trilogy contained within the epic 30-book Riftwar Saga. These are my favourites of Feist's vast body of work, and I re-read them on a regular basis.
The whole set is listed below:
The Riftwar Saga
1.Magician (1982), later republished in two parts in the United States as Magician: Apprentice (1986) and Magician: Master (1986)
2.Silverthorn (1985)
3.A Darkness at Sethanon (1986)
The Empire Trilogy
1.Daughter of the Empire (1987) with Janny Wurts
2.Servant of the Empire (1990) with Janny Wurts
3.Mistress of the Empire (1992) with Janny Wurts
Krondor's Sons
1.Prince of the Blood (1989)
2.The King's Buccaneer (1992)
The Serpentwar Saga
1.Shadow of a Dark Queen (1994)
2.Rise of a Merchant Prince (1995)
3.Rage of a Demon King (1997)
4.Shards of a Broken Crown (1998)
The Riftwar Legacy
1.Krondor: The Betrayal (1998)
2.Krondor: The Assassins (1999)
3.Krondor: Tear of the Gods (2000)
4.Jimmy and the Crawler (2013) - a novella replacing the cancelled novels Krondor: The Crawler and Krondor: The Dark Mage.
Legends of the Riftwar
1.Honoured Enemy (2001) with William R. Forstchen
2.Murder in LaMut (2002) with Joel Rosenberg
3.Jimmy the Hand (2003) with S. M. Stirling
Conclave of Shadows
1.Talon of the Silver Hawk (2002)
2.King of Foxes (2003)
3.Exile's Return (2004)
The Darkwar Saga
1.Flight of the Nighthawks (2005)
2.Into a Dark Realm (2006)
3.Wrath of a Mad God (2008)
The Demonwar Saga
1.Rides a Dread Legion (2009)
2.At the Gates of Darkness (2010)
The Chaoswar Saga
1.A Kingdom Besieged (2011)
2.A Crown Imperiled (2012)
3.Magician's End (2013)
As usual with my videos, everything is unscripted, unplanned, unrehearsed, and unrefined. Therefore, some of what I say could be wrong! However, I do my best to check facts as I go. This system is NOT infallible!
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This is the best trilogy I have ever read.
Agreed. There are others that I love, but this is the one I keep coming back to. 😊
The first chapter of Daughter of the Empire still gives me chills every time I read it. Magnificent. The most underrated fantasy books I've come across.
I agree. It’s the best in the series. Janny carries it, she is all about details, emotions and imagery Feist is not. I can only imagine how amazing the rest would have been if she had been involved from beginning to end.
Absolutely. You nailed it Janny would have made the rest of Feist's books infinitely better. Her work on the Empire Trilogy really highlights Feist's inadequacies. She made those books the joyous read that they are. 😊
I'm reading the first book in the riftwar saga and enjoying it thoroughly!👍👍👍📚🤖🚀🐲🔥
You mean Magician? Excellent book. But this video is about the Empire Trilogy, beginning with Daughter of the Empire. Did you mean that, or actual Riftwar proper, beginning with Magician? Either way, I hope you love it as much as I did. Enjoy! 😁👍
Just finished rereading them. Absolutely brilliant.
Thanks, Mark. Yes, they're way better than one might expect. And infinitely re-readable too, in my experience. Glad you enjoyed them. 😊
I named my daughter Mara, 100% due to this book series.
Congratulations, and I fully approve of your daughter's name. Excellent choice. x
Absolutely love these books and a great and accurate review-
Thank you so much! It's always a delight to meet other people who love these as much as me! 😁
I think I have now read all of Fiest's books and the spin offs and this trilogy is my definite favourite of them all. Its been a while so I expect I will reread them very soon.
Yeah, Janny really helped make this way better than the other stuff. Very excellent books. Thanks for watching.
I agree with you completely 100%
Janny has that magical touch to her writing skills. Oh I miss the era of Wurts, Anne McCaffery, Mercedes Lackey. The Empire Series is my go to books to the point of them getting quite fragile now. Feists other collaboration with S.M Stirling- “Jimmy the Hand” is another favourite alongside “Krondor the Betrayal “
Thank you so much. I'm delighted that you agree. As for the fragile condition of your trilogy, I suffer from the same affliction. Luckily, I became a Kindle convert, so now all my best-loved books are for display purposes only on my bookcase, and I re-read them in the safety of a digital form - which, as it turns out, is easier on my tired old eyes too. 😁😁
@@kitsworld have you read Faerie Tale ? Awesome!
@@palominojoy1899 Yes, but not since it was new, and it isn't a favourite, tbh. I don't love fantasy set in the real world, and with Feist I really need him to stick to Midkemia and/or The Empire. I am embarrassingly limited in what I like, partly due to Asperger's, I guess. I heavily compartmentalise my authors, and need them to stay in their lane! Lol
Such a fantastic series! My favourite! The build and the politics and magical things and how it links together in the end! True magic
Yes, it's the best trilogy in the genre, imo. It ticks every box, and does it all so well. I love it.😁
Gday there. Magician was the first Fantasy novel I’d ever read (back in 1990g, and as such, Feist is the stick I measure other writers against. I very quickly devoured the Riftwar Saga as well as the Empire series. They are still my favourite series, even after having discovered writings from Eddings, Gaiman, Pratchett, Jordan, Sanderson and Tolkien, plus many others.
You are so right in saying that Mara is an amazingly strong character, plus I found that I could never hate the Tsurani people, even as invaders of Midkemia. Feist and Wurts have an amazing ability to show both sides of a story, with neither being wrong or right. Similar to how I came to love both the Northeners and Krasians in Peter V Brett’s wonderful Demon Cycle saga.
Gday Mike, thank you for watching, and for such a detailed comment. I totally understand your Feist measuring stick. I had discovered fantasy long before Magician, so I have a variety of sticks used for measuring different aspects, I guess. But for me, the biggie is probably Katherine Kerr and the Deverry series, to which no other fantasy measures up - with the notable exception of the Empire Trilogy - which stands above the rest of Feist's work due to, I assume, the added input from Wurts. I am not familiar with Peter V Brett. I must have a look. 😊
From The Magician onwards I had to wait for each book to be written and published, some gaps were far too long I was worried he'd stopped, so I re-read those I had while waiting for the next.
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In the end, it was worth the wait, I felt like I was in those books as an observer.
I know what you mean. They're completely immersive. Such magnificent stories and characters. I love them. 🥰 Thanks for watching. 😊
Shogun meets Game of Thrones. Great series.
Thank you. ☺ I agree.
Kit your video is very insightful & funny! I just finished Daughter of the Empire and now I am looking forward to finishing the next two!! I loved the Magician but I too think Wurts must have mainly wrote this trilogy!
Thank you, Heidi. I'm really pleased you enjoyed it. I do hope you enjoy the next two - I'm sure you will. Glad you agree about Wurts' contribution. She definitely brought skills and finesse to the table! Happy reading. 😊😊
@@kitsworld The fantasy booktube community just started an Empire Trilogy read along in July, so besides myself , many people are reading it right now. I am telling many of these booktubers to view your review as it is fantastic!!!
@@heidi6281 Wow! I love that people are organising to read these amazing books. I sincerely hope they all find as much joy in their reading as I did. And thank you for your kind words about my review. Lovely to still be hearing from viewers so long after posting. 😊😊
I'm a woman and, despite not being menopausal or possessing a heaving bosom, I absolutely love these books. It's my favourite fantasy series hands down, with the political intrigue and positioning the stuff I absolutely dream about writing! I can't believe how few people have read the trilogy, and I'm psyched to find someone else that found them just as good. Nice video man, keep it up!
OMG! Was I talking about bosoms and menopause? WTF! I am really sorry if I said anything offensive, insulting, or in any way out of line. I have no recollection of anything I said in that video. It was one of the first I ever filmed (long before I ever got round to editing and uploading it) and it was a complete stream of consciousness. At the time, I thought I was a film review channel - I hadn't even heard of BookTube. I filmed three book review videos as an exercise in speaking to the camera (the other two being the Borribles and the Deverry reviews), and much later I decided to upload them, just to see what would happen. And they were all instantly more popular than the film reviews, and that's how I discovered BookTube, and started transitioning my channel more in that direction. So, at the time of filming, I had no idea that anyone would actually see them. (Not that that's any excuse for making inappropriate comments). I will re-watch the video today to see if I need to put any warnings or apologies in the description.)
All of that being said, I am really pleased that you liked (and agreed with) the rest of my thoughts regarding the books. And it is very exciting to meet another of Mara's fans!!! I don't feel that I am smart enough, or articulate enough to accurately portray just how fantastic this trilogy is, or how good it makes me feel to read. So its fabulous to meet someone else who "gets it" without me needing to explain further. The journey that Mara takes, from 17-year-old novice priestess to preeminent woman, beloved ruler, and personal champion of the gods, not to mention mother of the Emperor... it's just so exciting! And Arakasi!!!! What a character!!!! I could go on and on.... These books are such an epic read, and so rewarding... you know what, I'm going to start reading them again TODAY! lol. Thank you. Great to meet you.
@@kitsworld Oh I'm so sorry if you thought I was being critical! That wasn't my intention at all haha. The comments were regarding the typical watchers of Outlander (which I guess is the demographic you described? Which is not all that far off given my Mum is an avid fan hahaha). Droughtlander is frankly hilarious, and yeah, the comments were a little confusing at first, and maybe the slightest bit off, but truly I didn't take offense! I've filmed a couple of videos over the years when I've been trying to hype myself up to make a channel - still haven't, you're a braver man than me - and wow. Some of the things that came out of my mouth?! No recollection saying them at all. Please don't take the video down, you don't need to do that, and I think it'd be a real shame.
All THAT said oh my goodness it is so nice to meet another fan of Mara! And Arakasi too, those two have to be some of my favourite characters ever, across all genres. (If you haven't read Ender's Shadow, then please do, because Bean is right up there for my top 3, but read Game first obvs). Mara is so beautifully written, and SO clever holy shit I can only dream of being as brave and committed and intelligent as her, she's incredible. The odds were SO stacked against her, and yet she overcomes them all through brains, no deus ex machina in sight!
It honestly blows my mind that more people don't read and recommend this series, especially given the success of political fantasy with ASoIaF. But hey! We'll just have to keep trying to get the word out, and then sit back on our laurels once the wider public wakes up to what an incredible character she is.
Subscribed; I look forward to discovering more gems thanks to your channel. All the best!
Phew, yes, I've just re-watched the video, and despite it being embarrassing because I look like a fat, ranting goblin, and I hadn't yet realised that glasses have reflections (grrr!!!) I'm okay with what I said. It's a little confusing, because I did a lot of editing around that particular section, as I was discussing similarities between the characters Kevin of Zun, and Jamie Frazer (from Outlander) and it may have seemed that I was suggesting plagiarism - so I made some cuts which caused the remaining comments to lack context. The "heaving bosom", for example, was referring to corsets worn by 17th century women in books that are often written by, and for, self-described menopausal women. But I'm glad you weren't offended, despite my clumsiness in the edit.
As for the other stuff... I am so thrilled to read everything you say about these books. It's like you and I share a brain! I wish I'd thought to describe Mara's situation as having the odds stacked against her. So much neater and more eloquent than my inarticulate babble about "turmoil and strife, and turmoil and strife" - head slap! And the fact that she overcomes the odds with no deus ex machina in sight. Wish I'd said that, too.
I know I wax on and on about the Deverry books (by Katharine Kerr) a lot on my channel, but I really think you would like them, based on everything we've been discussing. It's a lot - 16 books so far, and more to come - but so worth it. You need to start at the beginning, and there are no standalone books in this series, but I passionately recommend giving Daggerspell a try, and taking it from there. I did another babbly incoherent review of that series, which fails to properly explain the books, but if you haven't seen it, it may give some idea of the flavour. Anyway... I'm babbling.
It was lovely to meet you. Do, please, stay in touch.
Kit. xx
No need to buy them, they already enjoy a place on my permanent collection shelf. I rarely find people who love these books as much as me and her I am, watching two in one night! I saw this video mentioned in a comment over on Talking Story's video '5 Reasons You Should Read THE EMPIRE TRILOGY (Spoiler Free)', and I just had to come check it out. I enjoyed it immensely and, since I also like film reviews, I immediately hit that subscribe button.
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I agree, these are much better written than the Riftwar Saga. I enjoyed Feist's books but The Empire Trilogy is one of my fave fantasy series'. I suspect, however, that my opinion of the rest of the books may have been coloured by the fact that I read these three first, leaving me just slightly disappointed with the rest.
Thanks a lot for introducing these books to me. I read the Riftwar saga last year and then continued with the Empire trilogy bcs of your video. I'm pleased to confirm that the books r awesome. One of the best political fantasy I've ever read. I finished the Mistress today. The first part of it was a bit too slow for me, but it paid off in the second half with a very satisfying end. Overall, lovely reading. 😊
This comment made my day! Thank you. And by coincidence you catch me halfway through the trilogy again myself, for the umpteenth time. And it never gets old. 😁x
This is my favourite series of the bunch. I began with the first of Feist's books when they were new in the bookshops during the 1980's. This series is the only time where I "bit the bullet" and paid full price for hardcover because I didn't want to wait for the cheaper version or discounts to come out a few months later (those days hardcovers came out before paperbacks where I was). I wanted to continue and was not disappointed.
These days I can see some readers might be a little disappointed with Magician, given it's trope that's now been done to death (poor orphan becomes someone grand) and it's LOTR influence which many have now moved away from. (I'd even say there are similarities to Wheel of Time, although this was published nearly 10 years before that began with Eye of the World). I say if a reader is only prepared to read one series then this is it, but I always recommend them to start from the beginning, knowing that Magician is his first book and has its flaws, simply because of all the tie-ins that add depth to all the books.
I agree with everything that you said. It makes sense for people to start at the beginning, and slog their way through Magician, flawed as it is, because the story is so good and leads into so many even better stories. But the Empire Trilogy are by far my favourite, in terms of story, writing, and overall satisfaction. The added input of Janny Wurts really made a huge difference to the quality of the work. 😊
I've recently started hearing Feist (I'm not much intro reading. Love Audiobooks tough), starting at Magician/ the Riftwar Triology. I'm still uncertain about the Books. I absolutely enjoyed many Parts a lot, but I lost Interest in entire Sections.
Since I didn't know what to listen to next anyway, I decided to give him another Shot with Daughter of the Empire, as I still enjoyed many Parts of the Riftwar Saga. I just the First Book and I was absolutely blown away. This was one of the best written Books I've ever listened to. I just started Servant of the Empire and can't wait to see, how the Story around Mara and the Politics continue.
I'd say having experienced the Riftwar Saga helped me with the Books, since I wouldn't have Knowledge about many things. For Example what the Hell those Rifts are, what is going on with this War or why those Magicians, that aren't present a lot in the First Book are above the law, and what that means anway.
On the other Hand, those Topics aren't the Focus of this Series. This is "just" Politics. Heck, while there are those Magicians, strange Creatures and Alien Culture, you could basically strip out most of the Fantasy Parts and place the Events on Earth, where in an Alternate Timeline, Culture emerged as such. So altough I haven't read 2/3 of the Triology yet, if this Trend continues, I'd say reading Magician or the Entire Riftwar Saga isn't really required for this Book.
Thank you, great review.
This trilogy is definitely up there with LoTR, Hyperion cantos and Dune (the original pentalogy) for me. That is the highest accolade I can give to a book.
Thank you, Lazarus. 😊 It's so good to see how many people agree about the excellence of these books. They really do tick all the boxes. 😊
I have just listened to audio copies of my old friends the riftwar saga. In terms of my precious printed books I believe i moved from Darkness at Sethanon to Prince of the blood, somehow missing this trilogy completely. Thank you for the review I now look forward to reading them.
Well, you are perfectly primed for these then. It's good that you've done it this way. I would love to hear what you think of them. Thank you for watching, Emma. 😊
Would it be practical to read these two trilogies at the same time since the events occur concurrently? IE: Magician -> Daughter -> Silverthorne -> Servant -> Darkness -> Mistress.
This is a fascinating question. Thank you. I think it boils down to personal tastes and preferences. Myself, I like to keep them separate, as the Empire books are written in a completely different voice and style, and are - in my opinion - superior works. I think it would spoil my enjoyment of them to interrupt their flow by interspersing them with the others. And the concurrent events don't NEED to be read concurrently. I prefer to know the events from the Riftwar books, but then enjoy them in the Empire books, if that makes sense. But that's having read the Riftwar, Serpentwar, and other books before discovering the Empire Trilogy and then going "wow" when events in the Empire books intersected. I honestly can't advise on this. It depends how YOU want to experience it. Really, they should work whichever way you do it, but I strongly advise reading the Empire Trilogy as one solid block, since they flow smoothly from one to the next, and are supposed to, imo. Thanks for an interesting question, though. You really got me thinking. 👍👍😊😊
Been a riftwar fan since the beginning. The scope of the first 4.. And then the Empire trilogy was phenomenal. But I highly encourage reading the serpent war saga as well. It absolutely matches rift, empire, in writing and detail. And does an even better job of really understanding battle tactics. After reading you will believe that you would.know exactly how to fortify a small encampment and use merely 50.men to hold off a thousand lol
Joshy, have no fear, I have read the Serpent War saga as well, and many, many others. I have an almost complete Feist collection. I just rant endlessly about the Empire Trilogy because they're my favourites. But I agree with everything you say. I just think Janny Wurts added a little extra something to the Empire books that makes them stand out. Thanks for watching. 😊
@@kitsworld and I agree. The attention to the smallest detail in empire is amazing. Not only world building.. but even description of the food on the plates, the fabric they wear. It's one of the most deaciptively fleshed out fantasy stories there is. And was needed. The stand alone about little brother was "ok" .. but the twins story absurdly wrapped up in the last 5 pages.. I was disappointed. The newer Jimmy the hand book also disappointed me.. being that jimmys in about half the book.. And again it tried to wrap everything up in a few paragraphs.
@@joshythehand2960 Yes, there is some lazy and sloppy writing in some of the later books, and more than once I could almost hear Feist's dice rattling as he made his decisions about various outcomes! The world building (much of it from gaming with his friends) has created an epic and endlessly enjoyable environment in which to base books, but the storytelling and quality of writing has been somewhat uneven. However, when it works (and when Feist applies himself) the stories are utterly compelling and addictive, filled with detail, nuance, depth, and adventure. And, with Wurt's contributions, Empire managed to perfectly capture the best of Feist's storytelling and tick all the boxes, leaving out all the minor irritants that marred some of the other books later in the series. Btw, I also played the PC game too, about a million years ago, and thoroughly enjoyed it. I doubt it would stand up well nowadays! lol
@@kitsworld I totally concur. I too have read every book. Literally went and bought silver thorn the day it came out.. And thus nicknamed myself joshy the hand at age 12 lol. So maybe I'm a bit snobbish in pointing out the few books i thought were a bit rushed. Although I still say the serpent war is underrated by many. Especially merchant prince. The idea of a financial and business bases story in the middle of a high fantasy epic.. it took balls and out of the box thinking. Trust me on this.. DECADES before it was written in stone, I would tell every reader i could that there is a must read series rivaling middle earth. Have converted many lol. Now.. if I can just convince ray to write one final prequel.. about a bald little man 200 years before.. traveling the lands we haven't heard of.. far east of roldem.. And sleeping with scrolls under his pillow. You see where I'm going
. Lol
On
@@joshythehand2960 Oh, I couldn't agree more. Merchant Prince was a masterpiece, and I too was blown away at the time to read epic fantasy with scenes in coffee houses discussing commerce! And Roo was definitely one of my favourite characters. And that certain bald little man - yes!
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