Need help identifying a book.

Claw Shrimp

Hi guys. There's something that's been bugging my friend all day. She's trying to think of the name of a book she's read a while ago, but can't quite recall what it is. Her description of the book is as follows:

"Ok it's a fantasy novel. It starts out with a guy getting broken down/brainwashed into becoming some type of monk. If I remember correctly the names are really asian sounding in it.... And one of the big things of the book is that he figures out how to use magic to use these gates that can lead to different places... Normally you can only do it from specific gate places, but I think he figures out a way to do it from anywhere"

Anybody have any idea what she's talking about?

Thanks.

MurphysParadox

Wheel of Time! No wait, that lacks part 1 of your description... and is also not the right answer any way.

Can't say I've heard of this one. Some might say "why bother posting?", to which I say "to keep conversation flowing".

benholio

It sounds like something from The Magician series by Raymond E Feist.

Glaeal

That could very badly describe Endymion and Rise of Endymion, the second half of the Hyperion Cantos.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hyperion_Cantos

But that's not fantasy, so it's probably not it.

Tarantio

It does sound a bit like Pug's training in Magician. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magician_(novel)

I don't really want to spoiler anything, but everything seems to fit, to the best of my memory.

clsCorwin

Its sort of reminiscent of Riftwar, except for the specific location to use the gates. There was never anything in that series that said a rift can only be opened at X. Other than that, sounds like Riftwar.

benholio

The Riftwar saga and The Magician series are the same set of books. They are really good.

The books are:

Magician
Silverthorn
A Darkness at Sethanon

clsCorwin

I'm aware that they're the same set of books. My comment was at those who suggested it may be Magician.

Darkewolfe

Sounds vaguely like some of the stuff from the Deathgate Cycle. Vaguely.

SideAffects

Oh I know! It's that series by Weiss and Hickman with Halpo the rune warrior dude...Death's Gate Cycle!?


IIRC:

The main character in the first book is an assassin that I'm pretty sure started out as a monk with a vow of silence. The first world that we learn about is made of two main floating continents, one populated by elves that are more mechanically-magically driven (flying dragon ships) and the other continent has men who are more natural and ride real dragons. In between is some sort of maelstrom, and at the bottom of it is a floating island that houses a huge machine that is self sufficient to do "something" except for the gnomish/dwarfish creatures that live inside it and maintain it.

edit: person above beat me to it

Darkewolfe

SideAffects wrote: »

Oh I know! It's that series by Weiss and Hickman with Halpo the rune warrior dude...Death's Gate Cycle!?


IIRC:

The main character in the first book is an assassin that I'm pretty sure started out as a monk with a vow of silence. The first world that we learn about is made of two main floating continents, one populated by elves that are more mechanically-magically driven (flying dragon ships) and the other continent has men who are more natural and ride real dragons. In between is some sort of maelstrom, and at the bottom of it is a floating island that houses a huge machine that is self sufficient to do "something" except for the gnomish/dwarfish creatures that live inside it and maintain it.

edit: person above beat me to it

Owned. ;P You gave an actual description, though.

25 gates and still running.

clsCorwin

You know, Death Gate can to mind first, but I dismissed it for some reason. Too fuzzy about it.