Some Summer Lands

The world changed for me when I read the Atlan series. I found a true soul mate in the protagonist. Cija seemed to be my mirror reflection in an endlessly fascinating fantasy world. Cija is like no other hero or heroine. She is supremely real, perfectly flawed, she suffers, she makes mistakes, witnesses terrible tragedy, and moves on. From age 14 (when I first read The Dragon- yes out of order) to now, age 40, I have turned to this series to comfort me, to guide me (" Never, never let anybody know that you are 'cynical' as they call it: they will at once feel inferior to you and that will make them hate you. Always pretend to be more innocent than you are-it is very useful to be among people who underestimate you." -The Serpent), and to distract me from all the messiness of my own wandering life. The end of the series was like cutting off a life line for me. Still, if Cija can make a new life amidst bandits and mud, still waiting for her "one" to find her, so can I. I have no way to contact the author, but if she ever finds this review, I want to express my enormous gratitude. Ms. Gaskell, because of these books I have had a friend to travel through life with, and in all the darkest times I have never really been alone. Thank you.

The final story in the ATLAN SAGA has many differences from the rset - Cija's daughter, not Cija, narrates it. This time around we have a five-year-old narrator, who manages to be more cynical and insightful than her rather innocent mother, and this offers a whole new angle on the Atlan Saga. The old characters return but they learn their lessons, some in rather memorable ways. The destruction of Atlan is moving and beautiful as is Cija's "rebirth". However, while the first three books in the series were pretty shocking, this one breaks the mold. There are some rather unsavoury moments. While the characters are excellent, there are some flaws- no mention is made of Cija's foster family, by all logic, Judz the Atlantean should have died with his country and again Cija forgets friends from previous installments somewhat, including the father of her third child. But all in all, this book puts a fresh twist on an artistically brilliant series. You are not a serious collector of fantasy titles if you don't have these books!

In this, the last of the books of the Atlan Saga, the reader gains a clearer perspective on Cija's wild adventures. Through the eyes of Cija's mute daughter Seka, we follow Cija through yet more and wilder blunders and triumphs. Brilliant and clearsighted Seka's tale is poignant and believable, and always gripping. Loaded with the same shocking detail as all the books in the Saga, this one manages somehow to be even better.

An interval of roughly 10 years between "the City" and this book - with a real cliffhanger ending to "the City" - presents a challenge to the author and the reader. I'm a real Cija fan from way back and "SSL" doesn't disappoint. Plenty of action, adventure - and sex. As told through the eyes of Cija's mute and most-observant daughter Seka. The Atlan Saga stands alone in fantasy. No other heroine fascinates like Cija, and Gaskell's style is peerless.