Subject: The Sorceress and the Cygnet - Review by SKS

From: [email-masked]!sksircar (Subrata Sircar)
Date: 23 Dec 91 20:05:21 GMT

THE SORCERESS AND THE CYGNET
by Patricia McKillip
Review by Subrata K. Sircar

Patricia A. McKillip has written some real gems in the past; some of my
favorites are The Riddle-Master of Hed series and The Forgotten Beasts
of Eld.  Both stood out from the fantasy field due to some different ideas,
such as the great beasts out of legends and tales, proud and mighty,
being called to a zoo in TFBOE.  This latest offering draws heavily on
"primitive" oral legends such as the Plains Indians of America passed on,
and is very intriguing.

In tone, it reads much like TFBoE.  The pace is quick, and the sorcerous
mysteries involved are somehow unfolded at just the right pace, revealing
just enough to keep the reader interested, yet not enough to spoil the next
twist.  The overall craftsmanship on the book is up to Ms. McKillip's usual
standards.  Descriptions are terse enough to prevent boredom, but lush enough
to give me a good picture of what I was being told.

The overall plot concerns a young nomad who is foolish/unluckey/fated enough
to wander into a living legend, concerning the Gold King and his house of 
stars and why he lies imprisoned theirin.  The Gold King bribes him to find 
a certain object with the life of his tribe and his lady-love, and off he is 
pushed into a quest for the heart of the Cygnet, the mystical being who holds 
the Gold King imprisoned - or so it appears.  As usual, it's not quite that 
simple.

The characterization is reasonable, although the hero is somewhat
one-dimensional (dominated as he is by his curiosity, that may have been
unavoidable).  Other characters are quite well fleshed out, including the
mystical sisters who become the focus of the later part of the book.  They
have personalities which stand up to inspection, and actually have opinions
on things not central to the plot.

Overall, this book continues my inclination to pay close attention to books
written by McKillip; everything I've read has delivered an entertaining and
exciting story.

Rating:  6.5 out of 10.

          %A   Patricia A. McKillip
          %T   The Sorceress and the Cygnet
          %D   January 1992
          %G   ISBN 0-441-77567-5
          %I   Ace Books, Berkeley Publishing Group
          %K   Fantasy
          %O   Paperback $4.50
          %P   248 pages

-- 
Subrata Sircar [email-masked]|Prophet & SPAMIT Charter Member
	I don't speak for Princeton, and they don't speak for me.
"I wish people wouldn't instantly assume that I am an idiot." (Valentine)
"A restaurant is a whorehouse that does food instead of sex." (Roger Lustig)