As Cray Ormoru, son of the enchantress Delivev,
grows to be a man in magical Castle Spinweb, he yearns to find his father, who
disappeared years before on a heroic mission. And so Cray sets out on the
journey which would take him from town to castle to a fortress of bronze,
totally unprepared for the sorrows and dangers that lie ahead. For the fate of
Cray's father would only be discovered by the light of demon fire..
After the sorceress Delivev Ormoru rejects his marriage
proposal, sorcerer Smada Rezhyk becomes worried that she's out to get him. In
order to reduce her powers so that he'll have time to weave himself a
protective gold shirt, Rezhyk sends his demon slave Gildrum to impregnate
Delivev with Rezhyk's own seed. Gildrum takes on the form of a handsome young
knight (Mellor) and shows up injured at Delivev's doorstep. As expected,
Delivev falls in love with Mellor, but unexpectedly, Gildrum (who doesn't even
have a heart) falls in love with her, too. However, Gildrum must return to
serve Rezhyk. He doesn't tell Delivev that he's really a demon -- he lies and
tells her that he'll come back after he delivers a message.
Sure enough, Delivev becomes pregnant and gives birth to
Cray. And, of course, Mellor never returns. When Cray becomes a teenager, he
decides to find out what happened to the father whom his mother still loves.
This leads to a series of adventures which create more questions than answers.
Phyllis Eisenstein's Sorcerer's Son is a pleasant
coming-of-age novel. The writing, for the most part, is lovely -- it flows well
and is not overdone or pretentious. The dialogue, however, (and there is more
of it than their needs to be) is sometimes stilted and unrealistic.
The plot of Sorcerer's Son is original and interesting --
especially the parts in which Delivev or Rezhyk appear. Delivev has control
over nature -- particularly snakes, spiders, and ivy. Rezhyk summons and
enslaves various types of demons who live in a complex world and follow strict
rules about summoning. These parts are very creative and entertaining and I
found that I have developed a respect for Phyllis Eisenstein's imagination.
Description:
As Cray Ormoru, son of the enchantress Delivev, grows to be a man in magical Castle Spinweb, he yearns to find his father, who disappeared years before on a heroic mission. And so Cray sets out on the journey which would take him from town to castle to a fortress of bronze, totally unprepared for the sorrows and dangers that lie ahead. For the fate of Cray's father would only be discovered by the light of demon fire..
After the sorceress Delivev Ormoru rejects his marriage proposal, sorcerer Smada Rezhyk becomes worried that she's out to get him. In order to reduce her powers so that he'll have time to weave himself a protective gold shirt, Rezhyk sends his demon slave Gildrum to impregnate Delivev with Rezhyk's own seed. Gildrum takes on the form of a handsome young knight (Mellor) and shows up injured at Delivev's doorstep. As expected, Delivev falls in love with Mellor, but unexpectedly, Gildrum (who doesn't even have a heart) falls in love with her, too. However, Gildrum must return to serve Rezhyk. He doesn't tell Delivev that he's really a demon -- he lies and tells her that he'll come back after he delivers a message.
Sure enough, Delivev becomes pregnant and gives birth to Cray. And, of course, Mellor never returns. When Cray becomes a teenager, he decides to find out what happened to the father whom his mother still loves. This leads to a series of adventures which create more questions than answers.
Phyllis Eisenstein's Sorcerer's Son is a pleasant coming-of-age novel. The writing, for the most part, is lovely -- it flows well and is not overdone or pretentious. The dialogue, however, (and there is more of it than their needs to be) is sometimes stilted and unrealistic.
The plot of Sorcerer's Son is original and interesting -- especially the parts in which Delivev or Rezhyk appear. Delivev has control over nature -- particularly snakes, spiders, and ivy. Rezhyk summons and enslaves various types of demons who live in a complex world and follow strict rules about summoning. These parts are very creative and entertaining and I found that I have developed a respect for Phyllis Eisenstein's imagination.