Lyonesse III: Madouc

by Jack Vance

Book Overview

Wicked King Casmir cannot control Madouc, the wild and willful changeling secretly switched at birth with Prince Dhrun, rightful heir to the throne. So Casmir ordains a quest: whosoever brings him the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0441505325
• ISBN13: 9780441505326
• Release Date: August 1991
• Publisher: Ace Books
• Length: 426 Pages
• Weight: 0.55 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.1" x 6.8"

Customer Reviews

Perfect Fantasy!

First off let's put the books in order. 1.Suldruns Garden 2.The Green Pearl (despite what the digital version says in its title) 3.Madouc Now that that is out of the way! Oh, to see the trilogy end! But what a great ending. A fantastic denouement. All things resolved with wicked cleverness and justice dealt to every corner. Jack Vance has got to be one of my favorite authors of all time. Maybe top of the list even. He writes with his imagination set on stun and with a wit to keep you giggling. I just can't understand the out of print-ness of this trio. If you enjoyed this Vance work then you will love, The Dying Earth, The Demon Princes, and Night Lamp. Maybe if we could all get together and get Peter Jackson to sign on for the movie rights.... Ah a girl can dream can't she? Hope this was helpful!

Some corrections on the Publisher's Weekly review.

The previous reviews spoke to the main points, but the summary... did they actually read the book?Casmir is not Madouc's uncle, he is suppossedly her grandfather. Suldrun, the woman believed to be Madouc's mother was his daughter, making his treatment of her all the more monstrous. Persilian's prophecy is that his grandson, not Casmir himself, shall sit on the throne, and to a man of Casmir's ambition, that is unacceptable.

A Charming Changeling

Madouc, the third book in Vance's Lyonesse Trilogy, is probably the best. The first two books, Suldrun's Garden and The Green Pearl, are wonderful, but the title character, Madouc, and her search for her pedigree, are among the most charming characters and quests in fantasy. She steals the show.Casimir, the relentlessly scheming king of Lyonesse, has learned the child he thought was his grandaughter, Madouc, is in fact a fairy changeling. That is somehow wrapped up in the mystery of Dhrun, son of King Ailias of Troicenet, of whom it was prophecied by a magic mirror that he would be the king of all the Elder Isles. Not if Casimir can help it. He wants that throne for himself.And there are much larger, darker schemes afoot, as the evil magician Tamurello and the mysterious witch Desmei plot against Murgen, the Elder Isle's greatest wizard, who alone keeps the Elder Isles from sinking into the sea. And into this web of political and magical intrigue wanders Madouc, determined to learn her pedigree, possessed of a bit of her fairy mother's magic and a truly wonderful charm all her own. It is Madouc who sets this novel apart from other fantasies. Vance does a splendid job creating a central figure who will beguile and amaze you.Vance blends myths from half a dozen cultures into a seamless whole. The Elder Isles are saved, if at a terrible cost. The kingship is resolved, after a terrible war. And Madouc even learns her pedigree. The book is full of surprises, and sly references to other legends. As just one example, you will learn how the Holy Grail got to where Sir Gallahad could find it...You should read the whole Trilogy. If for some reason you cannot, read Madouc. It's a wonderful conclusion to a wonderful trilogy.

superb

the superb end of and outstanding triologie... if you look at the reviews of the first book of the triologie you'll get a glue that this is a must read. I don't want tell too much only that in my opinion this is the best of the three books. so follow my instructions to read this books and in the end you'll don't know if you are shimrod the mage or a reader in the 20th century. search for your best chair, take a bottle of your finest alcohol, put in your favorite music and start reading, you won't stop until its finished...(any critics to my english welcome as long as they are written in german ;))

this book is supreme.

Fantasy-lovers, take heed! Madouc is third in one of the greatest fantasy trilogies ever written. You will fall in love with the fairy changeling/royal princess whose search for her heritage takes you on a merry chase. Read all three of the Lyonesse books by Jack Vance-you won't regret it. A note: Madouc won the award for Grand Fantasy in the year 1990.