Age of Magic - Midkemia

<BODY> <H1>Midkemia (Raymond E. Feist)</H1> <P>Raymond E. Feist burst onto the fantasy scene with <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0586217835/ageofmagic">Magician</A>, an epic thousand-page novel, drawn in part from a fantasy role-playing campaign that he had run for some years beforehand. The stories are set in the world of Midkemia, a mediaeval European type world, where the Kingdom of Krondor sits in uneasy peace with its huge Southern neighbour, the Empire of Kesh. A magical bridge or rift opens between Midkemia and another world Kelewan (based on mediaeval Japan) and a war starts between the Kingdom of Krondor and invaders from across the rift. The first story, Magician, revolves around two boys, Pug and Tomas, from a backwater town who grow into the most powerful magician and warrior of their day, and takes in elves, dwarves, thieves, assassins, magicians, mystery and adventure. </P> <P> Two sequels then make up the rest of the Riftwar saga: <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0586064176/ageofmagic">Silverthorn</A> (which deals with a quest to save a poisioned princess), and <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0586066888/ageofmagic">A Darkness at Sethanon</A> (in which the heroes must save the world from the forces of evil).</P> <P> Co-written with Janny Wurts is a series of books set at the same time as the Riftwar trilogy which deal with politics across the Rift in Kelewan, where house is pitted against house and a girl fights for the survival of her house. The story is in three action-packed volumes: <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0586074813/ageofmagic">Daughter of the Empire</A>, <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0586203818/ageofmagic">Servant of the Empire</A> and <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0586203796/ageofmagic">Mistress of the Empire</A>.</P> <P> A couple of one-off sequels followed the Riftwar saga: <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0586071407/ageofmagic">Prince of the Blood</A> is set twenty years after the Riftwar and deals with the exploits of two young princes on a diplomatic mission to Kesh, and <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0586203222/ageofmagic">The King's Buccaneer</A> which involves the princes' younger brother chasing pirates, a shipwreck and conquest, and lays the foundation for the Serpentwar series. </P> <P> The Serpentwar series is set many years after the Riftwar and deals with the threat of invasion from across the ocean. <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0006480268/ageofmagic">Shadow of a Dark Queen</A> (which deals with two condemned men forced to fight for Krondor across the ocean), <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0006497012/ageofmagic">Rise of a Merchant Prince</A> (which deals with one of the characters developing a fortune and the continued wars across the ocean), <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0006482988/ageofmagic">Rage of a Demon King</A> (which deals with the invasion and destruction of much of Krondor), <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0006483488/ageofmagic">Shards of a Broken Crown</A> (which deals with the aftermath of the invasion and the old threat from Kesh returning).</P> <P> The latest series of books (the Riftwar Legacy series) are set between the Riftwar series and Prince of the Blood, and are further exploits of some of the best characters from the Riftwar series and explain some of the references in the Serpentwar series. The stories are: <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0002246996/ageofmagic">Krondor: the Betrayal</A>, <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0002247003/ageofmagic">Krondor: the Assassins</A> and <A HREF="http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0002246805/ageofmagic">Krondor: Tear of the Gods</A>. </P> </BODY>