The Riddle-Master of Hed

Reading "The Riddle-Master of Hed" is like trying to solve the riddle of someone else's partially-glimpsed dream. You enter a rich world of metaphor, sometimes baffling but always beautiful. A standard hero's quest is overgrown with fabulous beasts, children of stone, and death-dealing harps. When Land-Ruler Morgon of Hed wins a bride and a crown in a riddling contest with a ghost, he wipes the cow manure off of his boots and sets sail from his tiny island kingdom. Unsure as to whether his beautiful, red-haired prize has any interest in marrying a farmer-king, Morgon sets course for the College of Riddle-Masters at Caithnard, where he was once a student and where his bride's brother still resides. His companion for the journey is Deth, the thousand-year-old High One's harpist. Morgon and Deth are shipwrecked, and once Morgon regains his memory he discovers that he has unknown, shape-changing enemies who will stop at nothing to destroy him. As he flees through the kingdoms of his world, he is befriended by the various land-rulers and is gifted with a harp and a sword that are decorated with three stars--identical to the birthmark of stars on his forehead. He also learns how to change his own shape into beasts and trees. Finally Morgon makes his way to Erlenstar Mountain with Deth, the harpist, hoping that the High One will solve the riddle of his stars and defend him against his implacable enemies. Warning: don't read "The Riddle-Master of Hed" without the last two books of the trilogy at hand. The ending of the first book is a completely unexpected sucker-punch, and although "Heir of Sea and Fire" ends by reconciling Morgon with his bride Raederle, they are both still being pursued by a very nasty wizard and an equally nasty horde of shape-changers. You have to read to the very end of this absorbing trilogy before you find even a tentative glimmering of peace and happiness at the end of "Harpist in the Wind."

As other reviewers have said, "The Riddle Master of Hed" is an extremely complex book with many plots. The book is a short novel but due to the amount of plots, characters, and scenes this book seems like it is much longer as it feels like a massive epic. The novel goes by very quickly and it will seem that you're done with the book in absolutely no time. The novel is the first book of an epic fantasy series, titled "The Riddle Master Trilogy," and due to my fondness of this book I will most definitely read the next to books of the trilogy. Morgon of Hed is a Riddle Master (read the book to see what these are) that has three stars on his head. Morgon has no clue what the stars represent and when he takes a trip and discovers that he is the only one that can play a harp with the same three stars that are on his forehead, he is curious to see what the stars mean. Meanwhile, darkness is brewing in the world and shadow figures that look like people he knows are trying to kill him. Morgon takes a quest with friend Deth to see what Morgon's stars are about. Along the way Morgon learns a lot about the world that he lives in. As with other books by Patricia McKillip the world in the book is very original and is not cliched with elements from other novels. Everything in her world is astoundingly original, especially the Riddle Masters. Morgon's quest in the world is very believable and does not seem like a dumb quest with no purpose. I'm sure that the next two books of the series will advance on the importance of Morgon of Hed's quest. Morgon is a hero that everybody can relate to. He is in a world where there are problems and things that happen to him have effects on him, good and bad. Morgon is developed very well and is very, very believable. Other characters that pop in the book, such as Deth, are believable as well and are well developed. McKillip's descriptions and prose are, as always, superb. It is a true pleasure to read about what is going on because of McKillip's easy to read writing style. Children and adults will enjoy "The Riddle Master of Hed" equally. This is a very original fantasy novel that any lover of the genre will appreciate. This is easily one of the better fantasy novels that have been written.Happy Reading!

I disdain much of the world of adult fantasy, which is populated by sword-and-sorcery Tolkien ripoffs. Patricia McKillip is one of the few authors who are truly worthy of being called a writer of epics and classics.Her world is a relatively simple yet complex one, in which the Prince of the poor farming country of Hed, Morgan, is found to have solved the mysterious Riddle of Peven, an old King who had to give up his crown to Morgan. Also, the man who solves the Riddle will also get to marry a princess, Raederle, the second-most beautiful woman in the world. (She is also the star of book two)But as Morgan ventures away from Hed, he learns that strange things are happening. Sinister shapechanging creatures are creeping in like a plague, and he begins to question the history of his world. Long ago, there were wizards in the city of Lungold, and now there are none. Their knowledge is left behind in the riddles that often crop up during the book -- but Morgan begins to suspect that the man who founded Lungold, Ghisteslwchlohm, is still alive. Why Ghisteslwchlohm destroyed the city, and whether he is alive are only two of the strange mysteries (riddles?) that Morgan must face. Accompanied by Deth, the harper of the High One (a person who reads lots of McKillip knows that she loves harps), Morgan sets off to find the mysterious High One at Erlenstar Mountain. And the people he meet along the way help reveal the strange destiny that he has: the Star-Bearer, for the three stars on his brow. He learns new skills of shapeshifting and magic along the way to Erlenstar Mountain, where a shock awaits him...Frankly a summary can't really express the complexity of this novel. This is only the bare bones of it. McKillip's prose in this book is not as lush or dreamy as her future books, but what there is in this relatively slim book (no 900-page tomes, thank God) is amazing. Like Tolkien, the villains of her books are more nebulous than cackling men in silly black armor -- the shapechangers are all the more sinister for their creepy lack of presence, but their effect on the lands in the book. The scene where a shapechanger sings a song about Hed to Morgon is one of the creepiest I've seen in ages. There are no elves, dwarves, faeries, or similar fantastical creatures in this book. It came to me with a bit of a shock at the end that there were only humans in this -- humans who can learn magic, who make mistakes and who have to search for the truth instead of having it handed to them on a plate. The magic is learnable -- and isn't flashy or show-offy, but subtle and pervasive. Similarly, the shapechangers' menace isn't overdone -- a few passages, a couple of sinister confrontations that seem almost dreamlike. And this makes them all the more freaky.McKillip's fondness for little in-jokes shows here, as the riddling Morgan is the prince of "Hed"; he comments in one scene that "Deth harped at his father's wedding". And she doesn't do overwrought, complex names like N'g

Be warned. If you are a reader that prefers fast-food fantasy -- where everything is action-packed, color is delivered simply by creating a more outlandish 'species' than other writers have, and the characters' thoughts, motives and feelings are spelled out and defined for you -- then you will not like these books. McKillip does not insult her readers in that way. (Don't get me wrong, there is plenty of action, color, and character.) I have read this trilogy many times, and each time it grips me just as strongly, while it reveals something I hadn't noticed before. But it isn't the action that grips you. It's the quiet moments of doubt, vulnerability, and wondering. Moments when it seems that eternity is holding it's breath, waiting silently for it's fate to be read. Believe me, it's not as corny as I make it sound. Read the book (if you're an intelligent reader). The characters will become more real to you than many of the people you know.

I first read 'The Riddle-Master of Hed' some years ago, and loved it then. But as our library didn't have the sequels, and I hadn't then heard of inter-library loan, I gave up on finding the rest of the trilogy. A few days ago, however, I stumbled across the whole thing in my aunt's house, and she lent them to me. I read all three books less than a day; I simply couldn't get out of them. I'm convinced Patricia McKillip is one of the finest fantasy writers in the field. Not only are her plots tight and skillfully and imaginatively woven, but her imagery and writing style are one in a million. I can only think of Robin McKinley as a comparison. I found myself cheering Morgon and Raederle along, sharing in their confusion and sorrow and joy. I heartily congradulate Ms. McKillip for contributing such wonderful books to literature. Anyone who reads 'The Riddle-Master of Hed' will never be the same.