Lord Foul's Bane

Don't be put off by the appearance of this series being somewhat similar to Lord of the Rings. Yes, there are certainly similarities, but, consider them genre only. The series is an excellent read, with the trials and tribulations of The Unbeliever taking many surprising twists. Certainly one of the better fantasy series. I enjoyed the idea of the series being an alternate reality extreme variation, only barely recognisable from its origin inspiration.

I wish to touch on another aspect of the books. I read them a long time ago, and can remember little of the details, but what does stay is what impacted me at the time. Besides thoroughly enjoying and reading the entire series in one go, there's a deeper mystique to the stories.

I always felt a decided More to the writing. Like the author had wild personal experiences, too wild for normal telling and was forced to re-format them into this tale and the fantasy format. In particular, the white-gold connection. At the time I was not aware of it's alchemical and scientific significance, but my impression then was decidedly that there's much more going on than the story directly states.

The series has a spiritual quality, adding to the enjoyment. While certainly not overt, it's there nonetheless. A connection to a something, what precisely not easy to say, but there. A bonus which enhances the series tremendously. I felt the same with LotR, but different. With Tolkien, I recognised it at the time as an unspoken connectedness of all things, and of all that's done and said, especially if energy, attention and Intent are involved. With Donaldson however, the spiritual, or perhaps metaphysical aspect, is more complex, and subtle. A fine layered mystery which permeates the story and writing.

Amazing read, couldn't put the book down. Some people say it is a copy of The Lord of the Rings, but it is actually quite different (although there are similarities). If you like fantasy, this series is a must!

I recall thinking this was bad. Tolkien attempt gone wrong.

This is such a weird series. The prose is mediocre, the mechanics are trite and the plot is slow. But it is an amazing series that explores some unique ideas I've never seen addressed anywhere else, and it's worth reading at least once.

I am also a sucker for stories with epic histories and epic-sounding names, and “The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever and White Gold Wielder” does it for me.

This book is not perfect. It is difficult, somewhat overwritten, and presents an incredibly unlikeable protagonist who does altogether too much navel-gazing.

Lord Foul's Bane attempts to distance itself from LotR while simultaneously drawing heavily from it (shepherds of the forests, a magic ring, a mighty stone fortress, Ravers who serve Lord Foul, and the ineluctable march toward ruin).

However, it and the rest of the books in the Chronicles of Thomas Covenant are rewarding, rich, and compelling, and I find myself drawn to them. What is belief? “Any belief that puts itself beyond doubt nurtures its own collapse.” What does disease do to the soul? Where do we put our faith? Without beauty, how do we combat despair? This is a morally complex book that is more than its superficial genre earmarks. For that I come back to it over the years.

Well, thank goodness that's over!
This is a re-read, I probably originally read this about 18 years ago. Somehow I read all of the books in the series. This time I struggled to get even a few pages in.

To begin with the protagonist, Thomas Covenant, is just horrible. A self-pitying creep who sees woman as objects (always with the pert breasts) and then actually rapes a child. “I actually don't know if I can justify reading on with this absolute tosh” I wrote as an aide memoire whilst I forced myself to keep reading.

On finishing I surprised myself by awarding 2 stars to such a grim experience. This is solely because I am slightly enamoured by the story of The Land. However, I don't want to spend anymore time in Covenant's company.

My advice to those yet to read this, just don't. It's not worth it.

Rating is 3.5

Overall:
The world Donaldson has created holds lots of promise. Thomas Covenant is a tortured and at times very frustrating character to read, but when he makes progress it feels very touching and real. The beginning of the book really grounds TC's character, it helps to explain why he is the way he is, this was critical to appreciating the character growth. Lord Fouls Bane is controversial to many, but for what it is I think the fantasy genre is much better with it, and all that has sprung from it, than without it.

Minor cons:
The narrative is blatantly structured like The Lord of the Rings, so make sure you read it after a long rest from Tolkien and classic high fantasy narratives. Donaldson's prose is at times rough, and the long passages without dialogue can test ones patience. In the end I still enjoyed this story and the character arc of Thomas Covenant. I'm hoping the writing improves.

Picked this up again after having read it as a teen. Unfortunately it did not hold up. The story and world building is fine, but the constant internal dialogue the protagonist has going round and round and round makes the read a slog at best.

I enjoyed his prose and the inner conflict of Thomas Covenant. His struggle with himself, his purpose, and reality was all very intriguing.

The drop from 4 to 3 stars was the central immoral event that Thomas commits. It stayed with me throughout the rest of the book, sickening me of his character.

I really liked this book: the beginning is intense, the fantasy material is as original as its reputation would lead you to believe. The thing keeping me from really loving this book is that most of it is travel, and the scenes bleed into each other without much clear setup. That's just a stylistic thing that you can expect from a lot of seventies fantasy. If you would like to see what a great writer Donaldson is without this aspect, I highly recommend The Mirror of Her Dreams, which has a more modern feel. I am interested in reading more Covenant books, and despite the trudging, I do recommend reading this one.

Possible the best book about how it feels like to be a leper. The book is very well written, but if the author spent so much time in this introduction about a man with leprosy, I wonder how many pages he dedicated to other uninteresting facts.

He's always so miserable. I can't root for him at all. But I'm rooting for the Land.