Dennis L. McKiernan

[Serq]

Posted by LordGrimm
Once Upon a Winter's Night is an updated version of Norse/Swedish fairytales, not a part of the Mithgar series. The last proposed book in the series is Red Slippers which was published last year.

You're absolutely right about that. Sorry for the error.

 

[drw]

The Eye of the Hunter - Now this one is also one I loved; it goes on telling a story that was started in Tales of Mithgar; it has the best cast of characters, or at least that's how I remember it

So here is my question. Can I just jump into The Eye of the Hunter, or should I read the Tales of Mithgar story first? I assume the novel is stand-alone, but would it be a better story or more easily understood if I start with the short?

KatG. Maybe Eliza Doolittle in reverse! I happen to agree with Grawgos and enjoy your replies (particularly in the writing forum). In that particular sentence, you just seemed to.. babble!.. for awhile! Maybe I'm overly tired, but I got a laugh out of it.

DRW

 

[Grawgos]

drw, I have not read Tales of Mithgar, but I have read Eye of the Hunter and enjoyed it very much. Reading Tales would probably make it better, but I don't think it is a nessecity.

 

[Hobbit]

Late to the party..... (thanks for the reference, HE, but msmosser beat me to it...thank you for the link!)

I've got to say that actually I haven't read much McKiernan at all. His books are only available on import in the UK, so I haven't actually had any until recently. I have got recently some second hand copies but haven't got round to reading them properly yet. I've dipped into them, but little more than that so far. As Nimea says, he does admit to Tolkien references and as I understand it (and as you've said above) becomes a little more independent later.

I've never rushed out to buy them before as I've tended to see them as 'Tolkien-light'/lite, though until I've actually sat down and read a few I can't really comment further. Having said that, what's been said above has encouraged me to move them a little nearer to the top of the pile.

Hobbit

 

[KatG]

Well I'm ill, drw, and on medication, so I'm allowed to babble.

I thought you guys said that "Dragondoom" was a standalone not in the Mithgar series? Or maybe I just misunderstood. Anyway, thanks for the suggestions, Nimea. I think I'll look at the story descripts and see which one most calls me, maybe.

 

[LordGrimm]

Well I'm ill, drw, and on medication, so I'm allowed to babble.

I thought you guys said that "Dragondoom" was a standalone not in the Mithgar series? Or maybe I just misunderstood. Anyway, thanks for the suggestions, Nimea. I think I'll look at the story descripts and see which one most calls me, maybe.

Dragondoom is part of Mithgar, rather it is the "Once upon a Winter's night" that is not part of Mithgar.

Mckiernan books are generally stand alone, even being part of a larger whole. The first book I read in the series was Eye of the Hunter and for awhile, it was the only one I read (read one paperback into dust).

 

[Nimea]

So here is my question. Can I just jump into The Eye of the Hunter, or should I read the Tales of Mithgar story first? I assume the novel is stand-alone, but would it be a better story or more easily understood if I start with the short?

You don't have to read that story first . . . as far as I remember. I did so by incident and was rather excited when I found out that this story had a sequel novel.

To get the whole story-arc one would think it might be best to read all the books in the chronological order - then again, from my own experience: I would have stopped before the good bits. And really since those books are really stand-alones it is easy to just grab what interests one most. You can always go on from there. It is really nice to explore Mithgar like that, too.

So, KatG, I hope you will tell us what you chose and what you think about it?

 

[Cymric]

I tried reading the hel's crucible duology and got bored really quick. It seemed like the author spent alot of time educating his readers about his world thru the characters education of the events taking place. This while sometimes an effective tool in writing can become boring after 31 pages.

 

[yetti]

McKiernan is nothing but a blatant ripoff of Tolkien. If you've read The Lord of the Rings, there is no need to waste your time with McKiernan.

IF you read the fowards in his books he acknowledges that he tooks some inspiration from Tolkien, but the characters, plots, and storylines are completely different. Warrows and Hobbits are no alike at all...other that being small....anyways...

I would Start with the Hels Crucible Duology.....there are many things referanced in this book that will help you understand many things that are happening in other novels......

You could also start with Tales from Mithgar...this book is actually a collection of short stories that will give you a taste of his style, characters, and the world of Mithgar itself...if you like this book you will love the others.