Wheel of the Infinite

Of all the books I've read so far this summer, this was the one I liked best. I haven't read everything Ms. Wells has written, but I've never been disappointed. The characters are interesting, the story flows well and is well structured, and she has created an interesting culture with memorable descriptions, and an interesting mystical magic system. Highly recommended!

I've had Martha Wells tagged as an author to watch ever since I read "City of Bones". Her latest book, "Wheel of the Infinite", is a big, ambitious fantasy story; don't be fooled by its relatviely small page count. It includes a lot if imagination, excellent world-building, and better characters than her previous efforts. After this, I'm really hoping that Wells will get the recognition she deserves as one of the premier fantasy authors alive today.The story focuses on Maskelle,a priestess who went to exile in disgrace after she misinterpreted a message from 'the Adversary', an ancient spirit that protects the world from evil, and on Rian, her bodyguard, who barely managed to escape a gruesome death in a foreign land. The society where the story takes place seems roughly based on ancient civilzations in Southeast Asia, a welcome break from the typical Mideivel Europe setting in much of modern fantasy. A rite known as 'the wheel of the Infinite' is performed every year, and Maskelle's knowledge is needed to combat an apparent attempt to destroy the wheel. The plot events is this book are densely crammed together, yet it has one of those brilliant "aha!" conclusions where everything comes together and makes sense in the end. I also liked the fact that many of the characters and concepts are highly imaginative. My personal favorite is Gisar, an evil puppet who is constantly attempting to escape from the band of traveling actors that owns him.Oh, and before I forget to mention it, the final hundred pages or so of the book are outstanding. There aren't many fantasy authors who can write sequences that are genuinely frightening, but Wells pulls it off with grand style. It's interesting that fantasy genre is currently dominated by big, bulky series that are generally incoherent and filled with lousy writing. Many of the more talented authors, however, are sticking to relatively short solitary books. Martha Wells can create more engaging characters, build a better realized world, and spin a more exciting story in three-hundred fifty pages that Jordan, Goodkind, or Lackey can do in thousands.

I've read many fantasy novels and this one still sticks out in my mind. First because Martha Wells uses an exotic city for her setting that reminds me of Angkor Wat and other South-east Asian ruins. Secondly because the novel features a main character doesn't fit the average fantasy hero description. Maskelle is a strong middle-aged woman who has weaknesses but they don't stop her from taking care of business. The storyline has mystery and mysticism blended with continuous action that is well thought-out and engrossing. I was impressed enough to check out Wells' other books which are also good. But this novel for me was special in that it opened me to search out for books that feature really unique characters and creative settings.

Martha Wells's "Wheel of the Infinite" just might be the most sensual medieval fantasy ever written. There's nothing cute about it. Nearly all the characters are adults (well, there's a strange cursed puppet and a girl in her early teens turns up at the end, and there are those strange flying things . . . ), and they act adult. Set in a tropical climate during the rainy season you'll start feeling as wet and as sleepless (the protagonists don't manage a full night of sleep during the tale, and you probably won't until you finish it) as do Ms. Wells's characters..The exiled and cursed Maskelle, "Voice of the Adversary," returns to the civil and religious capital, Duvalpore, in time for the 100-year rite, in which the wheel of the book's title is renewed. On her homeward-bound journey she acquires a swordsman, Rian, and a troupe of actors. Upon their return they are soon caught up in the usual intrigue among the civil and religious authorities and there's a murder mystery to be solved. Something bad is happening to that wheel. But what? Who? Why? Has somebody created a knockoff wheel somewhere close by? And just when it looks as if Maskelle's figured it out, you realize you're just past the middle of the book. But that's when things really start to get interesting, as it becomes increasingly clear that this world is very different from our own. Things are resolved neatly at the end, no sequel seems required (although you'll probably hope for one), and indeed in a brief interview with the author at the back none is immediately planned.Wells's smooth prose is as seductive as it is fluid (she's especially brilliant describing the landscape and architecture), and less is always more (in one scene you don't realize that teenaged girl has no clothes on until someone loans her a tunic) as the tale glides back and forth between Maskelle's and Rian's point of view. And unlike most medievaliana, the characters eschew the exaggerated forms of address and exaggerated figures of speech (Maskelle addresses her nominal superior, known as "The Celestial One" in vernacular terms) and there's plenty of bickering and wisecracking back and forth.This one's for the grownups.

hmm. Tamora Pierce recommended this book and so I can see where she's coming from, and it is very good! Not as in depth as some, but the images a lovely. Good read.