The Complete Ivory

Anthropology student Theodora of Pyrene is stranded on Ivory, the one planet in known space where magic works. She is hired as an apprentice by a rich, handsome sorcerer... okay, the plot has been used before, but so what? These books are pretty near perfect. *Very* snappy and amusing dialog (and monolog): ...I had a major scare. There was blood on the boulder I'd been sitting on... I was shocked and frightened, sure that I was hemorrhaging internally... I'd taken a couple of steps back to the camp when I remembered there was another and less harmful cause of bleeding in a female... I'd had the usual implants, right on the dot, every three years... It occurred to me that, besides the inconvenience, I was now capable of becoming pregnant - *involuntarily* pregnant. What a concept! [end quote] I can't think of anyone in SF who writes better light action-adventure - I don't know why her books haven't gotten more attention. I've just finished re-reading "Gates" (which prompted this review) and enjoyed it more than the first time. Egan has a very nice website, which I bet you can find. As "Jane Emerson" she's also written the impressive space-opera "City of Diamond", also recommended. Happy reading-- Peter D. Tillman Review first published at SF Site

The stories told in this series are my favourite EVER. I adore Theodora, I adore the world of Ivory, and can anyone sponsor my trip there? Unfortunately, the binding of this paperback compilation is pretty bad. By the time I got to the third book, most of the third book had fallen out of the binding. If it's your first read and you want a taste of Ivory, go ahead and buy it, it won't hurt you. But if you LOVE the story, buy all three seperately. They're available used in very good condition, with much sturdier paperback binding.

The Ivory series is one of my favorite trilogies and I was thrilled to see them back in print, for those who missed them the first time around. It's hard to described the Ivory series exactly. There are magical elements. Ran Cormallon for instance, is a sorcerer, and magic does play it's part, but it's almost used almost off-handedly, since to the Ivorians, it is an everyday fact of life. For rational, Athenian scholar Theodora of Pyrene though, it's a uncomfortable thorn in the side of her scientifically based world-view. In any case, magic isn't really the main issue, nor are the science-fiction elements (interstellar liners, life on other planets, etc.) The real focus of these books is on following the adventures (and occasional mishaps) of Theo, a detached scholar, trained in myths and folklore, stuck on the backward planet of Ivory. Bribery, murder and a psychotic level of distrust is the norm, as is sorcery. Half the fun of the ride is reading about her coping with numerous challenges and seeing a new and exotic culture through her eyes. It's so enjoyable because Theodora of Pyrene is as individualistic and as interesting a voice in SF as you're likely to meet. She has a wonderfully wry way of looking at things and if sometimes she identifies a little too closely with anyone and everyone she meets, say outlaws for instance, well she can be forgiven seeing as she's just a tymon - or foreign barbarian without manners.The first book introduces Theo and her plight. She's stuck on Ivory, telling fake fortunes in the marketplace and trying to figure out how many years she'll have to work before making enough to earn her passage home. Imagine her joy when she's offered a wealthy commission by Ran Cormallon- but it's not without it's dangers! The book follows Theo as she's has her nice, neat world-view changed, learns to live in her own body, meets a wanted outlaw, and discover some truths about herelf she maybe would prefer not to. A cultural tour de force through an alien land. Books two and three continue Theo's adventures, although she's half-married to Ran (local custom) and adjusting her worldview to a permanent stay on Ivory and debating whether Ran is really the same species. Could they have kids? Book two is a favorite, as Theo and Ran, only partially married, are shanghied into helping a notorious band of outlaws. Only Theo could integrate herself so well in so little time with a ruthless band of thieves and murderers - they like her stories. When she tells them all about Robin Hood, the Northwest sector and outlawry will never be the same.The third book is probably the weakest of the three, but still enjoyable, as Theo and Ran work a little closer to home. They are plunged into solving a murder-mystery. Friends from their outlaw days make an appearance and poor Theo will have to suffer through her allergy to cats. Make that an 'aversion to' since on Ivory they don't understand allergies. And of course, Theo makes more inappropriate frie

this is one of the typical exclamations of the heroine, Theodora, when she finds herself in deep trouble in the alien, exotic and baroque world of Ivory, where, by the way, she is living by no design of her own --she was deserted there by her travelling companions, after having been abduced and robed. Theodora, alone and helpless in the Ivoran mercyless society, tries to save money to pay her journey back to her original planet (the orderly, rational, scholarly Athena) while, and this is really tough,keeping the Athenan moral standards. The story that ensues is a delightfully funny tale of discovery and misunderstandings, the clash of two very different ethical systems which we witness while Theodora gets deeper and deeper in trouble. BUT this is only the first of the novels in the trilogy, because the author does what I had never thought could be done: while never losing the witty sense of humour -you'll keep chuckling like crazy- that characterizes the narrator/protagonist and makes her so endearing, the second novel is a high adventure story, complete with outlaws; and the third novel is a murder mystery with our dear Theodora (now definitely living in Ivory) as a reluctant sleuth. In this trilogy there is humour, adventure, ethics, love, scholarly pursuits, magic, interplanetary trips... Kanz! Why hadn't I heard of it before? A page-turner, definitely worth reading.

I bought the first book of this series, "The Gate of Ivory", a few years ago and really enjoyed it. However with college, and several moves in between the first and subsequent books, I never got around to reading the whole series. I grabbed this omnibus edition as soon as it hit the shelves! I just finished reading it and have to say I still enjoyed the first book as much as I did the first time I read it several years ago. The only difference was this time there was more story to enjoy. The second and third books are every bit as good as the first. The books are a full of adventure, magic, murder, thievery, and romance.(Not neccessarily in that order.)