"The truth is a riddle wrapped in an enigma--or sometimes in a nice piece of hot flat bread fresh from the oven. That's my friend Etjole." So surmises the boisterous sword-swinger Simna Ibn Sind, one of three fantastical companions that the seemingly simple Ejtole Ehomba has gathered in his wanderings through the three-book Journeys of the Catechist series (preceded by Into the Thinking Kingdoms and Carnivores of Light and Darkness--_Triumph of Souls_ concludes the series). But as every fan knows (at times, unfortunately, to the point of eye-rolling), the self-effacing Ehomba only seems simple: Alan Dean Foster's answer to Baron Von Munchhausen is a modest, humble sheperd who talks with dolphins, fights tornadoes, summons man-eating sharks out of the air, and plays music that will make the snow dance. And that, predictably, is not the half of it.
Fulfilling the dying-gasp request of Tarin Beckwith from book 1, Etjole is finally getting around to rescuing the Visioness Thermaryl of Laconda from the evil clutches of Hymneth the Possessed, a very disagreeable sorcerer-type. Along with Simna and his two other companions, the big talking cat, Ahlitak, and the hulking man-beast, Hunkapan Aub, Etjole dutifully heads west to rescue the damsel, but must first control the four winds, get his ship towed by a jet-propelled Kraken (for, literally, the price of a big cup of coffee), stare down skeletons, dupe demons, and all other sorts of such likable nonsense. --Paul Hughes
From Publishers Weekly
In the concluding installment to the epic Journeys of the Catechist fantasy trilogy, Etjole Ehomba and his companions--Simna ibn Sind (a swordsman), Ahlitah (a giant black cat) and Hunkapa Aub (a large, furry manlike beast)--continue their quest to rescue the Visioness Thermaryl from the evil Hymneth the Possessed. As Ehomba leads his gang through a series of bizarre situations and exotic dangers with curiosity and cultural wisdom, Foster demonstrates his playful narrative skill: as his protagonists cross the uncrossable Semordria Ocean, they get trapped in a watery valley, meet a seaweed man who introduces them to a truly regal king crab and get captured by (and lose their faces to) the Faceless People. Their journey across dry land is no less imaginatively crafted: they confront armies of slaughterous skeletons, deal with dangerous dreams, escape pyro-predators through tunnels made by creatures who live in the space between colors, defeat demons and survive a lethal salt plain. Set in a magical world with prehistoric overtones, the novel offers more wit and wandering than plot, but the inventive situations are engaging and the characters far more complex than they first appear. The ending is clever and will satisfy those who have made the fantastic trek through Foster's whimsical world. (Mar.) Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Description:
Amazon.com Review
"The truth is a riddle wrapped in an enigma--or sometimes in a nice piece of hot flat bread fresh from the oven. That's my friend Etjole." So surmises the boisterous sword-swinger Simna Ibn Sind, one of three fantastical companions that the seemingly simple Ejtole Ehomba has gathered in his wanderings through the three-book Journeys of the Catechist series (preceded by Into the Thinking Kingdoms and Carnivores of Light and Darkness--_Triumph of Souls_ concludes the series). But as every fan knows (at times, unfortunately, to the point of eye-rolling), the self-effacing Ehomba only seems simple: Alan Dean Foster's answer to Baron Von Munchhausen is a modest, humble sheperd who talks with dolphins, fights tornadoes, summons man-eating sharks out of the air, and plays music that will make the snow dance. And that, predictably, is not the half of it.
Fulfilling the dying-gasp request of Tarin Beckwith from book 1, Etjole is finally getting around to rescuing the Visioness Thermaryl of Laconda from the evil clutches of Hymneth the Possessed, a very disagreeable sorcerer-type. Along with Simna and his two other companions, the big talking cat, Ahlitak, and the hulking man-beast, Hunkapan Aub, Etjole dutifully heads west to rescue the damsel, but must first control the four winds, get his ship towed by a jet-propelled Kraken (for, literally, the price of a big cup of coffee), stare down skeletons, dupe demons, and all other sorts of such likable nonsense. --Paul Hughes
From Publishers Weekly
In the concluding installment to the epic Journeys of the Catechist fantasy trilogy, Etjole Ehomba and his companions--Simna ibn Sind (a swordsman), Ahlitah (a giant black cat) and Hunkapa Aub (a large, furry manlike beast)--continue their quest to rescue the Visioness Thermaryl from the evil Hymneth the Possessed. As Ehomba leads his gang through a series of bizarre situations and exotic dangers with curiosity and cultural wisdom, Foster demonstrates his playful narrative skill: as his protagonists cross the uncrossable Semordria Ocean, they get trapped in a watery valley, meet a seaweed man who introduces them to a truly regal king crab and get captured by (and lose their faces to) the Faceless People. Their journey across dry land is no less imaginatively crafted: they confront armies of slaughterous skeletons, deal with dangerous dreams, escape pyro-predators through tunnels made by creatures who live in the space between colors, defeat demons and survive a lethal salt plain. Set in a magical world with prehistoric overtones, the novel offers more wit and wandering than plot, but the inventive situations are engaging and the characters far more complex than they first appear. The ending is clever and will satisfy those who have made the fantastic trek through Foster's whimsical world. (Mar.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.