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C. S. Friedman

Black Sun Rising: The Coldfire Trilogy: Book One Paperback – 5 Oct. 2006

by Celia Friedman (Author)

337 ratings

Book 1 of 3: Coldfire

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Over a millennium ago, Erna, a seismically active yet beautiful world was settled by colonists from far-distant Earth. But the seemingly habitable planet was fraught with perils no one could have foretold, and the colonists found themselves caught in a desperate battle for survival against the fae, a terrifying natural force with the power to prey upon the human mind itself, drawing forth images from a person's worst nightmare or most treasured dreams and indiscriminately giving them life.

Twelve centuries after fate first stranded the colonists on Erna, mankind has achieved an uneasy stalemate, and human sorcerers manipulate the fae for their own profit, little realising that demonic forces which feed upon such efforts are rapidly gaining in strength. Now, as the hordes of the dark fae multiply, four people - Priest, Adept, Apprentice and Sorcerer - are about to be drawn inexorably together for a mission which will force them to confront an evil beyond their imagining, in a conflict which will put not only their own lives but the very fate of humankind in jeopardy ...

Print length

544 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Orbit
Publication date

5 Oct. 2006
Dimensions

15.5 x 3.7 x 19.9 cm
ISBN-10

1841495417
ISBN-13

978-1841495415
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Product description

Review

A magnum opus of the imagination ― Library Journal

Book Description

The first volume of the Coldfire Trilogy - an extraordinary feat of storytelling and imagination on a grand scale

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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Orbit (5 Oct. 2006)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 544 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1841495417
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1841495415
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 15.5 x 3.7 x 19.9 cm

Best Sellers Rank: 553,961 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- 13,123 in Sword & Sorcery
- 13,409 in Epic Fantasy (Books)
- 37,676 in Science Fiction (Books)

Customer reviews:
337 ratings

About the author

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C. S. Friedman

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Born in New York City in 1957, Celia S. Friedman inherited the writing bug from her father, technical writer Herbert Friedman, and has been putting pen to paper since she learned how to read. At age 12 she discovered science fiction and realized it was the ultimate form of literature in the universe; she has been writing science fiction and fantasy ever since then.

Celia's original career as a theatrical costume designer left little time for writing, but she managed to sandwich in enough work between dress rehearsals and university teaching positions to put together her first novel, IN CONQUEST BORN, which she sold to DAW Books in 1985. By 1996 she had become successful enough as a novelist that she decided to quit her job as costume designer and write full-time. She has never looked back.

To date Celia has published 14 novels, including the highly acclaimed Coldfire Trilogy (BLACK SUN RISING, WHEN TRUE NIGHT FALLS, CROWN OF SHADOWS) and the groundbreaking science fiction novel THIS ALIEN SHORE, which was a New York Time Notable Book of the Year. Her most recent novel, THIS VIRTUAL NIGHT, was included in Newsweek's list of "25 Must-Read Books to Escape the Chaos of 2020". THE DREAMING KIND is her first short story collection.

Celia lives in Northern Virginia with two very spoiled cats who insist on helping with the typing. If you find any typos in her books, blame it on them. In her spare time she LARPs, plays with molten glass, and hangs out with the Society for Creative Anachronism.

For more information please visit her web page, www.csfriedman.com

Customer reviews

5 star		68%
4 star		17%
3 star		8%
2 star		4%
1 star		4%

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Top reviews from United Kingdom

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K. Elliott

Superbly Original

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 July 2006

Verified Purchase

With so much dross out there in the genre it's a relief to know some authors can still turn out a novel with fresh ideas. The setting for the novel is unique and believable with a frightening alien world and terrifying magic like abilities simultaneously depriving a previously advanced civilization of its technology. The threats faced are dark and ominous, much like the rest of the novel and the internal and external struggles and conflict between the main characters are delightful, especially given the complexity of certain of those characters. This is an excellent start up to a thrilling and absorbing series. Great stuff.

3 people found this helpful

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stuw13

Superb premise but poorly executed

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 August 2016

Verified Purchase

Loved the idea of a world colonised from Earth but with its own rules of evolution. The system of magic and history had real potential but a boring quest with limited character development killed the book for me. Disappointed.

One person found this helpful

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BabboT

Pretty good

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 12 March 2016

Verified Purchase

Compelling characters if a bit well trod, and the editor needs to learn the difference between 'affect' and 'effect'. The magic model feels unexplained a bit, fae, working, etc.

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Saza

lives up to it's reputation

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 May 2014

Verified Purchase

A very enjoyable read as long as you are prepared to stick with it in the earlier chapters until you become accustomed to the strangeness of the world and the magic.

One person found this helpful

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Amazon Customer

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 27 May 2015

good read

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 22 November 2014

Verified Purchase

Excellent

Helpful

Enjoyable, but grim and humourless.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 October 2007

Verified Purchase

Twelve hundred years ago, a sleeper ship from Earth deposited several thousand colonists on the wild, untamed world of Erna. Seismically active Erna is a harsh planet to survive on, made worse by the presence of the Fae, a source of energy that permeates the elements and can be harnessed by certain humans to further their own ends. Unfortunately, the Fae can also be manipulated subconciously, resulting in the people's fears and nightmares taking on solid form.

With all high technology lost in the birth of a new religion, the colonists of Erna have descended to a Renaissance level of technology, although retaining certain advanced medical, astronomical and scientific knowledge. Damien Kilcannon Vryce, a warrior-priest of the Church and one of the few churchmen able to wield the Fae, arrives in the city of Jaggonath to adopt a new and difficult role in the Church hierarchy. However, when a local Fae-wielder is brutally attacked and her ability to wield the Fae is neutralised, Damien is drawn into a lengthy quest that will lead into the dangerous rakhlands to confront a powerful sorcerer. Along the way Damien is forced into a most uneasy alliance with the cold and arrogant Gerald Tarrant, a powerful wielder of the Fae who has secrets of his own...

Black Sun Rising (1991) is the first novel in Celia Friedman's Coldfire Trilogy. This SF-epic fantasy hybrid was very highly regarded upon its initial release in the United States, but oddly it wasn't until a year or so ago that Orbit finally published the first UK edition.

The novel is a mixture of the familiar and the use of more original tropes, although the familiar does win out in the end. This is a quest story, with an interesting band of 'heroes' setting out to right a great wrong and travel across a vast chunk of countryside in the process. The world of Erna has some interesting facets to it but the travelling makes for the more tedious part of the book, especially the endless mucking around in caves. Page after page of description of rocks and tunnels does not make for entertaining reading.

Fortunately, Friedman's characters are an interesting, if largely unlikeable bunch. She isn't afraid to kill off major characters and paints them in convincing detail. Less impressive is that secondary characters are not very well developed at all. The rakhs' motivations in particular could have been fleshed out more and one key character who hangs around for a good 150-200 or so pages doesn't even get a name.

The plotline is intriguing and there's no denying that the worldbuilding is quite well-thought-out. The cliffhanger ending comes out of nowhere and the enforced humour at the end of the book doesn't really work as well as intended. That said, the book was enjoyable enough to make me look forward to picking up the second volume, When True Night Falls.

13 people found this helpful

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Jollycat

One of my all time favourite books and now available on Kindle

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 2 June 2013

Verified Purchase

This is a wonderful book with an imaginative and well-thought out setting. This is quite dark fantasy right from the start but although dark it isn't gratuitously nasty. There is plenty of action and the setting is well-established but the relationship between the main characters is the heart of the book (and the remainder of the trilogy). It is the kind of book where you find yourself thinking about the characters and the world they live in long after you've finished it - If you like a great anti-hero then this is for you.
The first time I read this (in paperback) I was so gripped by it I had to go back to the beginning and read it again whilst waiting for the next two books to arrive!

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