Fire Sea is book 3 of 7 in The Death Gate Cycle. The Death Gate Cycle is set in the far future, a post-apocalyptic world that looks a lot like traditional fantasy worlds—full of humans, elves, and dwarves—but with a twist more in keeping with science fiction. A war between two other races, Patryns and Sartans (demigods in their own minds), led to the Sundering of the world. The world was split into four—one for each of the old elements, and the Patryns were imprisoned in the hellish Labyrinth. The Death Gate Cycle follows a Patryn escapee from the Labyrinth, Haplo, as he explores the four worlds on behalf of his lord. It’s those four disparate worlds that make the Death Gate Cycle special. Weis and Hickman tread heavily on the well trodden ground of fantastic racism. But the four worlds allow them to examine it from four different perspectives in rapid succession as the first four books focus on a different world. The Death Gate Cycle is epic fantasy but the nature of the worlds allows the introduction of tropes from post-apocalyptic and science fiction, injecting much-needed originality into the genre. It makes for one of the more underrated epic fantasy series in my opinion.Fire Sea takes place on Abarrach, the world of stone. It’s a dark world encased in solid rock, full of lava and poisonous gases. Haplo finds that while the world’s mensch (elves, humans, and dwarves) did not survive long, Sartan have survived on this world, albeit much worse for the wear. He also discovers Alfred, the sole Sartan he discovered in book 1, has stowed away on his ship. Most chillingly, he learns the Sartan of Abarrach practice the lost art of necromancy. Fire Sea differs from the first two books of the Death Gate Cycle in that, instead of merely being presented with seemingly unrelated mysteries, we begin to learn things that answer questions and begin to tie the worlds together. There is a pessimism and apathy to Fire Sea, perhaps due to the lack of mensch, not present in the earlier books, even after the genocide wrought by the Tytans in Elven Star. Fire Sea also suffers from its lack of the smaller story-within-a-story the first two books featured, even though those stories weren’t integral to the larger story. The Patryns and Sartans aren’t human and it shows; the mensch are always more relateable and that’s something a story needs.
Questo è uno dei miei cicli fantasy preferiti. In sette libri viene creato un sistema di mondi coerente ed intrigante, in cui si muovono personaggi non sempre pienamente consapevoli delle loro azioni. Tutto è permeato da una sorta di patina fascinosa e magica, un'atmosfera avventurosa come se ne vedono poche. Dimenticatevi le piatte caratterizzazioni di DragonLance e la sua noia mortale: *questo* è vero fantasy.Tra i primi 4 libri, che sono una sorta di prologo per la vera guerra che si combatte negli ultimi 3, il migliore è IMHO il secondo ("La stella degli elfi"). Innanzitutto per la genialità della concezione di questo mondo; in secondo luogo per i personaggi particolarmente ispirati; ci sono anche ben due storie d'amore "incrociate", tra umani ed elfi (tranquilli, non è uno spoiler, se non siete ciechi ve ne accorgerete dopo una manciata di pagine ^_^ ).Nella seconda parte della storia, l'ultimo libro ("La settima porta") è sicuramente il più valido, anche perchè si tirano i fili di tutta la vicenda.Molto buona, a livello di narrazione, anche la seconda metà del sesto volume ("Nel labirinto"): io me la sono "bevuta" praticamente in una serata. Vengono risolti i destini di alcuni personaggi che erano rimasti in sospeso addirittura dal secondo volume.Vengono strette nuove alleanze, alcuni divengono consapevoli del proprio potere, si allacciano definitivamente amicizie, e vecchi accordi cadono, forse per sempre.Il terzo libro invece ("Mare di fuoco"), pur dando una scossa "dark" alla saga, è IMHO un poco fuori dal contesto. Non so, stride un pò con il resto del Ciclo, è un pò fuori dall'armonia del tutto.Chi vuole una costruzione perfetta, senza dettagli lasciati al caso, troverà quel che cerca in questo Ciclo. Gli autori hanno creato un mondo complesso senza mai perdersi per strada, esponendo ottimamente non solo la geografia dei quattro mondi, ma anche un background storico solido e credibile.Secondo me, come realizzazione di un mondo, siamo ai livelli di Tolkien.Sconsigliato a chi non apprezza il fantasy.
Do You like book Fire Sea (1992)?
After a veryyyyy long time the book is done, but now I'm back into reading once again :)The book tells the story of Abarrach, the world of stone. This book has a grim atmosphere as the unfortunate events of Sartan history unfolds, and weis and hickman did a good job delivering it. Alfred and Haplo are the main characters and they make a very interesting "team" together. There’re some supporting characters, but they are not as good as those in the former book. All in all, it’s a good book, and I enjoyed reading it (even though the last quarter lasted forever).4.25/5
—Nimrod Daniel
You know, whenever I'm lucky enough to find a reasonably literate person who has read some fantasy novels, I'm always surprised by the fact that - as far as I can recall - none of them have read The Death Gate Cycle. Granted, I had some holdover nostalgia from the Dragonlance Chronicles for Weis and Hickman, and so I probably had more cause to read them than most, but, even solely on their own merits, these are really excellent books. They're filled with interesting and nuanced characters - Hugh the Hand is still one of my favorite characters ever - and the plotlines are expertly interwoven. The real mastery, though, is in the novels' 5 distinct - geographically, sociologically, politically, ethnically - worlds. People who enjoyed Harry Potter or Tolkein should give these books a shot.
—Matthew
Abarrach, the Realm of stone. Here, on a barren world of underground caverns built around a core of molten lava, the lesser races -- humans, elves, and dwarves -- seem to have all died off. Here, too, what may well be the last remnants of the once powerful Sartan still struggle to survive. For Haplo and Alfred -- enemies by heritage, traveling companions by necessity -- Abarrach may reveal more than either dares to discover about the history of Sartan... and the future of all their descendants. From the Publisher Abarrach, the Realm of stone. Here, on a barren world of underground caverns built around a core of molten lava, the lesser races -- humans, elves, and dwarves -- seem to have all died off. Here, too, what may well be the last remnants of the once powerful Sartan still struggle to survive. For Haplo and Alfred -- enemies by heritage, traveling companions by necessity -- Abarrach may reveal more than either dares to discover about the history of Sartan... and the future of all their descendants. From the Inside Flap Abarrach, the Realm of stone. Here, on a barren world of underground caverns built around a core of molten lava, the lesser races -- humans, elves, and dwarves -- seem to have all died off. Here, too, what may well be the last remnants of the once powerful Sartan still struggle to survive. For Haplo and Alfred -- enemies by heritage, traveling companions by necessity -- Abarrach may reveal more than either dares to discover about the history of Sartan... and the future of all their descendants.
—Ward Bond
