From archive (archive) Subject: WARRIORS OF THE STORM by Jack L. Chalker From: holloway@drivax.UUCP (Bruce Holloway) Organization: Digitalis Research, Inc. Date: 10 Aug 87 22:59:44 GMT WARRIORS OF THE STORM [***+] Jack Chalker "Warriors of the Storm" is the third volume (of four) in the "Rings of the Masters" serial. The first book, "Lords of the Middle Dark", introduces a future Earth where every segment of the population has reverted to a pre-technological state under the loving guidance of the Master System, a computer charged, long ago, with protecting humanity from itself, no matter what the means. But the programmers left themselves an out - five rings which, when brought together in a certain place, would give their wielders control of the Master System. The Master System does not wish these rings to be used, but it is forced by its core routines to protect the rings, and to see that they remain always in the hands of prominent humans, although nothing says they should be told of their function. The first book follows "Walks With the Night Hawks", known familiarly as "Hawks", as he learns about the rings, and his mission to find the one known to be on Earth. The owner of that one sends him into space to find the others. The second book, "Pirates of the Thunder", concerns their escape from the Master System to the colony worlds the computer set up to handle the bulk of humanity that couldn't be reduced to savagery (far too many of them!). At the end of "Pirates", the protagonists have survived a battle with the Master System, and are casing a planet to get their first ring... "Warriors" opens almost immediately after, and starts introducing some more of the standard Chalker plot devices - such as shape-changing and parodies of Earth cultures. But unlike his more recent efforts, most notably the "Soul Rider" series, he manages to transcend these gimmicks and fit some real plot into the book. The characters tend to be a bit stiff, even characters than in earlier books were real individuals. Possibly because there are so MANY minor characters left over from the second book. Chalker begins focusing on a few main ones again, but not until we're hopelessly confused. This passes, though. The real hero of this book is Vulture, an artificially created being that can "swallow" another being and exactly duplicate it, memories included. This character is a walking "deus ex machina"... the group wouldn't have a prayer of succeeding without it. The characters realize this, and wonder why things are going so well for them, and this leads into an intriguing subplot. The book is well-written, and a good page turner. If Chalker hadn't explored many of these same plot devices in previous books, it'd have gotten even higher marks. If you haven't read the first two books, they're necessary for this one. I give this one a qualified recommendation - if you haven't liked previous Chalker books, you won't like this series. And if you have - the trappings that surround the plot devices are what make this book good. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- FYI - Standard Chalker Plot Devices =================================== WC = Web of the Chozen DD = And the Devil Will Drag You Under JS = A Jungle of Stars WW = Well World FL = Four Lords of the Diamond DG = Dancing Gods RM = Rings of the Master SR = Soul Rider DN = Downtiming the Night Side IM = The Identity Matrix MC = The Messiah Choice GD = G.O.D. Inc. WS = War of Shadows o Shape-changing (WC, DD, JS, WW, FL, DG, RM, SR, DN, IM) o Sex changing (WC, WW, FL, DG, RM, SR, DN, IM, MC) o Body Swapping (DD, JS, WW, FL, DG, RM, SR, IM) o Drugs causing behavior modification, usu. sexual (WW, WS, GD, RM, SR) o Artificial Intelligences (WC, WW, RM, SR, MC) o Parodies of Earth Cultures (WC, DD, WW, FL, RM, SR, GD) o Consciousness as part of the body (GD, RM, SR) o Nymphomania (WC, FL, RM, SR, GD) o Pregnancy Compulsion (SR, RM, FL, WC) The following are not present in the "Rings of the Masters" series - yet. o Intelligent Microorganisms (WW, FL) o Humans in Alien Suits (WC, JS, WW, FL, IM) -- Bruce Holloway - Terminal Netnews Addict {seismo,sun}!amdahl!drivax!holloway ALBATROSS, ATARI*TROS @ Plink ALBATROSS @ Delphi >>> HI, KARL! <<< From archive (archive) Subject: When the Changewinds Blow by Chalker From: haste+@andrew.cmu.edu (Dani Zweig) Organization: Carnegie Mellon University Date: 27 Aug 87 19:34:48 GMT If you like typical Chalker, you'll like "When the Changewinds Blow". And contrariwise. The world is reminiscent of that of the Dancing Gods (without the silly humor) and the characters are more reminiscent of those of the Soul Rider books. (Seeing as I've just given away everything but some of the plot, I suppose I should have typed "spoilers" in 60-point font.) ----- Dani Zweig haste+@andrew.cmu.edu (arpa, bitnet, or via seismo) The surface of the strange, forbidden planet was roughly textured and green, much like cottage cheese gets way after the date on the lid says it is all right to buy it.--Scott Jones From @asterix.liu.se,@majestix.liu.se:matoh@prefix.liu.se Sun Sep 6 01:33:31 1987 Received: from asterix.liu.se by obelix.liu.se; Sun, 6 Sep 87 01:33:31 SDT Received: from majestix.liu.se by asterix.liu.se; Sun, 6 Sep 87 01:28:45 +0200 Received: from prefix.liu.se by majestix.liu.se; Sun, 6 Sep 87 01:31:15 +0200 Received: by prefix.liu.se; Sun, 6 Sep 87 01:26:01 +0200 Date: Sun, 6 Sep 87 01:26:01 +0200 From: Mats Ohrman Message-Id: <8709052326.AA02325@prefix.liu.se> To: mats@obelix.liu.se Status: RO Path: liuida!enea!mcvax!seismo!uunet!husc6!rutgers!ames!amdahl!drivax!holloway From: holloway@drivax.UUCP (Bruce Holloway) Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf-lovers Subject: Re: When the Changewinds Blow by Chalker Message-ID: <2300@drivax.UUCP> Date: 1 Sep 87 22:33:44 GMT References: Reply-To: holloway@drivax.UUCP (Bruce Holloway) Organization: Compact (was DRI) Lines: 38 In article haste+@andrew.cmu.edu (Dani Zweig) writes: >If you like typical Chalker, you'll like "When the Changewinds Blow". And >contrariwise. The world is reminiscent of that of the Dancing Gods (without >the silly humor) and the characters are more reminiscent of those of the Soul >Rider books. (Seeing as I've just given away everything but some of the >plot, I suppose I should have typed "spoilers" in 60-point font.) I was going to post a review of this book, but decided not to. It's TYPICAL CHALKER (good description, Dani). There's nothing new in this book, it follows the standard Chalker Plot Development with the Standard Chalker Fantasy Elements (as opposed to the Standard Science Fiction Elements). Overall impression: Some nice details. Hell, a lot of nice details. But it's the main focus that's out. We saw most of this in the Soul Rider series... but in this one, Suzl has been split into the two main characters. One of the pair (and they really are to be considered one person, a point Chalker hammers home often) is transformed into a sexy geisha girl, the other flirts briefly with being male, then has a brush with a demon to obvious ends. The plot is Standard Quest - characters are set in strange surroundings, and gradually meet other people who (for a time, at least) travel with them. Said characters in the Quest Plot almost always know more than the main characters (Tolkien, Eddings, et.al.), and the Quest is at some point completed. But not in this book. No, this is one of a series, and after a minor climax, the book ends, with the Standard Intra-Series Hook of revealing a little extra information to the reader. ("Pirates of the Thunder", "Four Lords of the Diamond", "Soul Rider", et.al.) All things considered, typical Chalker. - Bruce -- ******************************************************************************* * Bruce Holloway - Terminal Netnews Addict{seismo,sun}!amdahl!drivax!holloway * * ALBATROSS, ATARI*TROS @ Plink ALBATROSS @ Delphi * ******************************************************************************* From rec.arts.sf.reviews Sun May 8 03:34:58 1994 Xref: liuida rec.arts.sf.reviews:568 rec.arts.books:85350 alt.books.reviews:3287 Path: liuida!sunic!ugle.unit.no!trane.uninett.no!eunet.no!nuug!EU.net!uknet!doc.ic.ac.uk!agate!remarque.berkeley.edu!mcb From: Evelyn.Chimelis.Leeper@att.com (Evelyn C Leeper) Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.reviews,rec.arts.books,alt.books.reviews Subject: HOTEL ANDROMEDA by Jack Chalker Followup-To: rec.arts.sf.written Date: 7 May 1994 23:07:08 GMT Organization: University of California, Berkeley Lines: 36 Approved: mcb@postmodern.com (rec.arts.sf.reviews moderator) Message-ID: <9405021517.ZM6818@mtgpfs1.mt.att.com> NNTP-Posting-Host: remarque.berkeley.edu Originator: mcb@remarque.berkeley.edu HOTEL ANDROMEDA by Jack Chalker Ace, ISBN 0-441-00010-X, 1994, 248pp, US$4.99. A book review by Evelyn C. Leeper Copyright 1994 Evelyn C. Leeper If this is the kind of book you like, then you will like this book. Jack Chalker collects (has commissioned, one suspects) twelve stories of alien goings-on in an intergalactic hotel. There may be a serious story in here, but the ones I sampled seemed of the variety that plays better as a Marx Brothers comedy on screen than on the printed page. The most prestigious author included is Kristine Kathryn Rusch; other well-known contributors include Esther M. Friesner and Janet Kagan. The goal, so far as I can tell, is entertainment without concern for content, or even a plot, but it didn't grab me enough to make me plow through it. It is, of course, remotely conceivable that picking this up immediately after finishing JANE EYRE was too much of a shock to my system, but it didn't seem to deliver the sort of GRAND HOTEL story I was expecting. Then again, I don't read Terry Pratchett either. %A Chalker, Jack %T Hotel Andromeda %I Ace %C New York %D February 1994 %G ISBN 0-441-00010-X %O US$4.99 %P 248pp, pb -- Evelyn C. Leeper | +1 908 957 2070 | Evelyn.Leeper@att.com "The Internet is already an information superhighway, except that ... it is like driving a car through a blizzard without windshield wipers or lights, and all of the road signs are written upside down and backwards." --Dave Barry Path: news.ifm.liu.se!news.lth.se!feed2.news.luth.se!luth.se!arclight.uoregon.edu!logbridge.uoregon.edu!feeder.qis.net!news-peer1.sprintlink.net!news-backup-west.sprintlink.net!news.sprintlink.net!rpi!gatech!18.181.0.27.MISMATCH!sipb-server-1.mit.edu!senator-bedfellow.mit.edu!usenet From: "Aaron M. Renn" Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.reviews Subject: Review: Priam's Lens, Jack L. Chalker Followup-To: rec.arts.sf.written Date: 15 Jun 1999 17:44:38 -0400 Organization: GNU's Not Unix! Lines: 65 Sender: wex@tinbergen.media.mit.edu Approved: wex@media.mit.edu Message-ID: NNTP-Posting-Host: tinbergen.media.mit.edu X-Newsreader: Gnus v5.3/Emacs 19.34 Xref: news.ifm.liu.se rec.arts.sf.reviews:2377 Priam's Lens by Jack L. Chalker Review Copyright 1999 Aaron M. Renn Conclusion: Worth Reading With the exception of the recent Wonderland Gambit trilogy, which I plan to pick up soon, I own every SF book Jack L. Chalker has written. Priam's Lens is just about the only one that isn't a transformation novel. Well, there's some transformation in there, but it's minor enough to barely even rate a subplot. A few other of the Standard Chalker Plot Devices are present though -- drug-induced behavior modification, pregnancy compulsion, and artificial intelligences, if you're keeping score at home -- for those fans who need their fix. On the whole, I enjoyed this book quite a bit, though it is not a particularly deep experience. The setting is about 1000 years in the future. Humans are the dominant sentient life form in our galactic spiral arm - until the Titans come along. They have a method of draining all power from human technological devices enabling them to easily conquer human worlds. Virtually nothing is known about them. The Titans refuse to answer any communications and indeed seem to almost ignore humanity. Once they drain all engery from the planet, humans mostly die out due to an inability to get along without their scientific devices. The Titans then re-terraform the world into a permanent tropical zone and proceed to basically just plant flowers. For all humanity knows, they are just interstellar gardeners. One of the conquered worlds contains the remains of a weapon that just might stop the Titans - Priam's Lens. The book is the story of a motley crew of specially selected adventurers who dare to seek out this weapon in an effort to save humanity. The premise was interesting I thought, and the story entertaining. The characters were also pretty well drawn. The pace of the action was quick and appropriate. I was glad this was a standalone novel, a rarity for Chalker. Apparently he pitched it as a trilogy and condensed it to a single volume to please the publisher. I thought the story was much the better for being complete in one book. I'd personally like to see him do more standalones and fewer series since I hate have to wait years to finish reading a story. There were a few things not to like about the story. For example, right away we are told that humans have the power to make stars go nova, but cannot even seem to get the attention of the aliens. If I were running the show, I would have made the star of one of the conquered worlds go nova. That certainly world have gotten their attention! Also, Chalker borrows heavily from Heinlein's Starship Troopers to develop a super- awesome combat suit used by hardened space marines - then has the wearers abandon it as useless because the Titans can drain the suit's power. That was about 40 pages wasted. But on the whole the book was a solid effort. Chalker fans will definitely want to pick it up. For those who have never read him, this is a good introduction to his work. %A Chalker, Jack L. %T Priam's Lens %I Ballantine Books/Del Rey %D 1999-05 %G ISBN 0-345-40294-4 %P 422 pp. %O mass market paperback, US$6.99 C$8.99 -- Aaron M. Renn (arenn@urbanophile.com) http://www.urbanophile.com/arenn/ Path: news.ifm.liu.se!news.lth.se!feed2.news.luth.se!luth.se!nntp.primenet.com!nntp.gctr.net!hermes.visi.com!news-out.visi.com!newsfeed.direct.ca!cyclone.bc.net!cyclone.mbnet.mb.ca!canopus.cc.umanitoba.ca!newsflash.concordia.ca!pitt.edu!gatech!18.181.0.27.MISMATCH!sipb-server-1.mit.edu!senator-bedfellow.mit.edu!usenet From: "Aaron M. Renn" Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.reviews Subject: Review: The Wonderland Gambit Trilogy by Jack L. Chalker Followup-To: rec.arts.sf.written Date: 28 Jul 1999 13:20:09 -0400 Organization: GNU's Not Unix! Lines: 95 Sender: wex@basil.media.mit.edu Approved: wex@media.mit.edu Message-ID: NNTP-Posting-Host: basil.media.mit.edu X-Newsreader: Gnus v5.5/Emacs 20.3 Xref: news.ifm.liu.se rec.arts.sf.reviews:2407 The Wonderland Gambit Trilogy by Jack L. Chalker Review Copyright (c) 1999 Aaron M. Renn Conclusion: Worth Reading This trilogy was the only Chalker SF I didn't own. It fell victim to my recent tendency to take a pass on series until all books are out in paperback, by which time I've usually completely forgotten the thing even existed. When Priam's Lens came out a couple months ago, it prompted me to check up on what other Chalker I might be missing, and sure enough out popped the Wonderland Gambit. Wonderland is a "what is reality?" story in a modern virtual reality setting. Cory Maddox was a hotshot designer in the world of wireless networking. When the company he works for gets sold out from under him, he ends up working for a government VR project. Well as he discovers, his own "real" world is itself a VR universe. He and several others are trapped inside of computer simulation. How they got there nobody seems to know. Maddox rapidly discovers that he's just about the most ignorant of the "real" people in this VR world, and is caught in the crossfire between two rival factions each struggling to sieze control of the master computer running things. I had very high hopes for this series at first. As Maddox learned more and more about what was going on, I felt the "oh, this is cool" feeling of watching an interesting mystery unfold, along with the tension of wondering what would happen next. However, about half way through the first book it turned into Yet Another Chalker Transformation Novel. Obviously I don't think that's a bad thing, because I own them all, but this series repeated far too many of the same elements and situations from previous ones. I was browsing through the Chalker entry in the Linkoping SF Archive, and was amazed at how many of the Standard Chalker Plot Devices were present in Wonderland. It's got Shape and Sex Changing, Body Swapping, Artificial Intelligence, Parodies of Earth Cultures, and Nymphomania. Not only that, the archived Usenet posts actually nailed a surprisingly large number of very detailed elements. I felt like I was playing buzzword bingo. "magic is really mathematics involving communications with an entity that is really a computer" - Ding! "strong, able bodied character turned into sex slave" - Ding! "women who are fat (Ding!), blind (Ding!), stupid (Ding!), and sex addicted (Ding!)" "transformed male ends up with gigantic penis" - Ding! It all gave me a "haven't I read this before?" feeling that I really didn't enjoy. Plus you get the classic Chalker world gone mad effect where one wacky thing after another happens that makes it damn near impossible to figure out what's going on. In this book at least I'm sure that's intentional. I don't want to sound like I'm slamming this series because I actually liked it despite the repetitive elements. I was interested enough to finish the three books in only four days. Chalker might use the same devices and tricks over and over again, but at least he uses them to novel effect. He's also a solid writer and storyteller. But I do think this is a series that will appeal mostly to those who are already big Chalker fans. If you're a Chalker newbie, read Priam's Lens instead. %A Chalker, Jack L. %T The Cybernetic Walrus %S The Wonderland Gambit %V Volume One %I Del Rey %D 1996-06 (original publication 1995-11) %G ISBN 0-345-38847-X %P 322 pp. %0 mass market paperback, US$5.99 %A Chalker, Jack L. %T The March Hare Network %S The Wonderland Gambit %V Volume Two %I Del Rey %D 1996-12 (original publication 1996-06) %G ISBN 0-345-38848-8 %P 323 pp. %0 mass market paperback, US$5.99 %A Chalker, Jack L. %T The Hot-Wired Dodo %S The Wonderland Gambit %V Volume Three %I Del Rey %D 1998-02 (original publication 1997-02) %G ISBN 0-345-38849-6 %P 323 pp. %0 mass market paperback, US$6.99 Reviewed on 1999-07-22 Aaron M. Renn (arenn@urbanophile.com) http://www.urbanophile.com/arenn/ Path: news.ifm.liu.se!news.lth.se!feed2.news.luth.se!luth.se!cam-news-hub1.bbnplanet.com!news.gtei.net!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!senator-bedfellow.mit.edu!dreaderd!not-for-mail Sender: wex@deepspace.media.mit.edu From: "Aaron M. Renn" Approved: wex@media.mit.edu Subject: Review: The Sea is Full of Stars by Jack L. Chalker Organization: GNU's Not Unix! Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.reviews Followup-To: rec.arts.sf.written Date: 27 Dec 1999 15:14:30 -0500 Message-ID: X-Newsreader: Gnus v5.5/Emacs 20.3 Lines: 60 NNTP-Posting-Host: deepspace.media.mit.edu X-Trace: dreaderd 946325673 22878 18.85.23.65 Xref: news.ifm.liu.se rec.arts.sf.reviews:2546 The Sea is Full of Stars by Jack L. Chalker Review Copyright 1999 Aaron M. Renn Conclusion: Worth Reading Jack Chalker's latest return to the Well World is a pretty solid effort, but it doesn't feature Nathan Brazil or Mavra Chang, and it doesn't even reach the Well World until half way through, so I wonder how fans will react. I for one was satisfied. The book starts with a motley collection of passengers on a star liner who get swept up in a plot to exchange stolen property. There's the two management consultants; the lonesome Captain Jeremiah Wong Kincaid, still seeking his nemisis; the gangster and the nun; the fixer; and just possibly the long missing Emperor Josich Conqueror Hadun, the most evil creature in the history of space. After a few mad adventures they all end up You Know Where. If you don't know where, that's the Well World, a very interesting place indeed, but one I have no intention of spoiling for you. This book takes Chalker's fondness of depictions of sexual torture to a new level. Whether that's a new high or a new low depends on your point of view. But I was struck that one particular scene involving two women and a master crime lord at his remote fortress is basically a sado-masochistic fantasy. I'm convinced that if I took it, cut out some of the fluff, and posted it to alt.sex.stories or alt.torture, there would be horny freaks jerking off to it by the end of the day and messages back to the newsgroups telling me what a genius I am. Chalker may not personally be a sick guy, but he's sure got a thing about sick stuff. If he keeps writing like this bookstores will have to start stocking his work behind the counter in a plastic wrapper. Chalker is rightly dinged for reusing the same plot devices over and over, and since this novel is set in the Well World universe, it will only provide more ammo for his critics. While I'd like to see a bit more variety myself, the fact is his books are more than just the same five things recycled. This one is shaping up to be a good mystery, and with Chalker one thing's for sure - I won't be able to guess how it will all turn out. If you're a Chalker fan, get it while it's hot. His last book (Priam's Lens) sold out in two months and Dey Rey let it go out of print. He's apparently been in some long running feud with them, and soon they will be parting ways. No familiarity with previous Well World novels is required. Note that this is book one of a two book sequence and does not work particularly well as a standalone. %A Chalker, Jack L. %T The Sea is Full of Stars %I Del Rey %D 1999-11 %G ISBN 0-345-39486-0 %P 342 pp. %O mass market paperback, US$6.99 Reviewed on 1999-12-15 Aaron M. Renn (arenn@urbanophile.com) http://www.urbanophile.com/arenn/ Path: news.ifm.liu.se!news.lth.se!feed2.news.luth.se!luth.se!nntp.primenet.com!nntp.gctr.net!news.maxwell.syr.edu!newsswitch.lcs.mit.edu!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!senator-bedfellow.mit.edu!dreaderd!not-for-mail Sender: wex@deepspace.media.mit.edu From: "Aaron M. Renn" To: wex@media.mit.edu Subject: Review: The Moreau Factor by Jack L. Chalker Organization: GNU's Not Unix! Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.reviews Approved: wex@media.mit.edu Followup-To: rec.arts.sf.written Date: 26 Mar 2000 16:49:44 -0500 Message-ID: X-Newsreader: Gnus v5.7/Emacs 20.4 Lines: 34 NNTP-Posting-Host: deepspace.media.mit.edu X-Trace: dreaderd 954107386 2957 18.85.23.65 Xref: news.ifm.liu.se rec.arts.sf.reviews:2672 The Moreau Factor by Jack L. Chalker Review Copyright (c) 2000 Aaron M. Renn Conclusion: Worth Reading This standalone from Chalker starts out like an X-Files episode and ends like a Chalker transformation novel. Much as with The Wonderland Gambit trilogy, I liked this one better at the beginning than at the end. This is not because of the transformation elements. Instead, at the start, there's a conspiracy/mystery we're trying to figure out. But once all hell breaks loose, any hope of that fades and the reader is pretty much just along for the ride. Chuck Vallone is an over-the-hill, one-time-Pulitzer-prize-winning reporter in Baltimore/Washington. He's headed to a hotel to meet up with a scientist who promised him the story of the century. But before he can meet said scientist, the poor chap is ripped to shreds in his room by some almost impossible mechanism - or is that some impossible creature? I expect Chalker fans to snap this one up as with all of his novels, but I doubt The Moreau Factor is likely to make any new converts. %A Chalker, Jack L. %T The Moreau Factor %I Del Rey %D 2000-02 %G ISBN 0-345-40296-0 %P 342 pp. %O mass market paperback, US$6.95 Reviewed on 2000-03-11 Aaron M. Renn (arenn@urbanophile.com) http://www.urbanophile.com/arenn/ Path: news.ifm.liu.se!news.lth.se!feed2.news.luth.se!luth.se!newsfeed.online.be!europa.netcrusader.net!205.252.116.205!howland.erols.net!bloom-beacon.mit.edu!senator-bedfellow.mit.edu!dreaderd!not-for-mail Sender: wex@deepspace.media.mit.edu From: "Aaron M. Renn" Approved: wex@media.mit.edu Subject: Review: Ghost of the Well of Souls by Jack L. Chalker Organization: GNU's Not Unix! Newsgroups: rec.arts.sf.reviews Followup-To: rec.arts.sf.written Date: 25 May 2000 12:12:52 -0400 Message-ID: X-Newsreader: Gnus v5.7/Emacs 20.4 Lines: 33 NNTP-Posting-Host: deepspace.media.mit.edu X-Trace: dreaderd 959271174 10902 18.85.23.65 Xref: news.ifm.liu.se rec.arts.sf.reviews:2731 Ghost of the Well of Souls, Jack L. Chalker Review Copyright (c) 2000 Aaron M. Renn Conclusion: Worth Reading Not much to say here. It's a Chalker Well World novel and thus a known quantity. Faithful fans already have it, most others probably don't care. Ghost is the second and final part of the story begun in "The Sea is Full of Stars." Mad emperor Josich and his crew are loose on the Well World creating havoc. We quickly discover exactly what it is Josich is after, namely an artifact left behind by the Well World's creators called the "Straight Gate". It's not exactly clear what our Evil Overlord plans to do with this, but it can't be anything good, thus he must be stopped. We're treated to a few entertaining episodes reminiscent of a Dungeons and Dragons adventure where diverse groups of people attempt to sieze various parts of the Gate. After a sufficient volume of this, however, we rapidly move to a Chalkeresque conclusion. I liked it and thought it was an entertaining read. %A Chalker, Jack L. %T Ghost of the Well of Souls %I Del Rey %D 2000-04 %G ISBN 345-39485-2 %P 342 pp. %O mass market paperback, US$6.99 Reviewed on 2000-05-17 Aaron M. Renn (arenn@urbanophile.com) http://www.urbanophile.com/arenn/