A harmless comparison

[Cail]

I never thought I'd say this, but I think The Gap is better. The story's more concise, SRD's writing is much better, and Nick is the baddest bad guy ever written.

[zwdaniel]

I prefer Gap too

[Sorus]

I voted for the Gap, not a hard choice though it is a difficult comparison. I did read the Gap first, but I don't think that had any influence on the decision. The Gap was just so real, so utterly visceral (though certainly it was intellectual as well), and I never quite felt that with TC or MN, much as I enjoyed them.

[Variol Farseer]

I voted for TCTC, though it's a difficult choice. It's a question of contrasts. The Gap is painted in much darker colours overall, seldom brightened by more than a streak of reflected light. Whereas in TCTC the presence of evil, both in Lord Foul's machinations and in the characters' own hearts and deeds, is made that much more ominous by the bright beatific hues of the background.

An ambiguous character like Covenant stands out in stark relief against the backdrop of the Land; in The Gap, he'd be just another anonymous face in the angst-ridden crowd. And in the Second Chrons, the forlorn heroism of characters like Sunder, Hollian, Honninscrave, and Memla stands out brilliantly against the hellish background of the Sunbane.

It is not true that light and darkness require each other. But it is true that we require the presence of both to fully appreciate either one of them. The mind's attention is more readily drawn to differences than similarities, as a rule. If on a black background you draw five white circles and one red one, the eye will be instantly drawn to the red one. Not because red attracts the eye: for if you draw five red circles and one white one, the eye will go straight to the white one. So it is with TCTC. The presence of such concentrated evil in the midst of good, or of good in the midst of evil, makes them visible and vivid in a way that the monochromatic moral composition of The Gap can't quite equal.

The Gap, of course, has its own virtues, being better textured and much more psychologically convincing. The characters are much more like people, whereas in TCTC they often seem to exist only as bit players in a preconceived psychodrama. But it is the moral element in fiction that particularly draws me — the contrast of good and evil, courage and cowardice, and the immense consequences of even small actions on all of us who dwell in the shadowy band between — and for that reason, I just find TCTC more appealing. I don't expect others to agree with my conclusions, and still less with my reasons.

[Revan]

book sets of books test you in different ways. Thomas Covenant, in my opinion, tests your ability to empathize with the characters and situations. The Gaps however test you both on an emotional scale and intellectual one as well.

Also, the Gaps character can be consider, in come circles, to be much more intersesting that the Thomas Covenant novels. The reason I say this is because they are very different types of characters. For example, Thomas Covenant, Good and Evil are very defined and the lines are very clear as to who is bad and who is good; with a few exceptions.

The Gap, however, is entirely different. The characters which are considered Good and Evil differ from reader to reader. Angus can be considered entirely evil in some peoples eyes just a guy who is suffering. Nick's treatment of Morn can be considered just, and yet also considered vile to others. That is what is so amazing about the Gap novels. And the types of books where the "Good and Evil characters" are hard to define are my favourites; GRRM does it, and I love his books, as much as Donaldson's.

[Dragonlily]

Brilliantly done, Farseer.

Doesn't change the fact that Gap is still my favorite, but it's a beautifully reasoned analysis.

(Still wish you would come over and review for my site.)

[danlo]

And in the Second Chrons, the forlorn heroism of characters like Sunder, Hollian, Honninscrave, and Memla stands out brilliantly against the hellish background of the Sunbane.

your list is not complete without Cable Seadreamer.

I loved both for what they were.

Fantastically written sets of books in my two favorite genres!

[Cail]

I think there are a couple of clinchers for The Gap.

While the endings of the First and Second Chrons were satisfying when I first read them, in hindsight they seem a little hollow.

The pacing of the Chrons can't hold a candle to the mad dash through the last two books of The Gap.

Trivial as it may sound, the character names in The Chrons are just hokey. Not bad when I was 12, nearly painfull as an adult.

[danlo]

The names are just fine! **bashes Cail on the head! **

[Cail]

Doesn't bother me, I'm currently feeling no pain.

But "Lord Foul" as a bad guy? Come on, that's just weak.

[Loredoctor]

Yes, it is a weak name.

[kevinswatch]

Heh, ok, put me down for the Gap.

Although it's been so long since I've read both series, it doesn't seem right for me to compare the two.

Plus, I have read the Gap series more recently than Covenant, which may have helped it out, heh.

The Covenant series is definitely an amazing and great story, with great characters. Which is why everyone here likes it.

But the Gap...when I read the Gap series three summers ago, it was like reading a work of art... I think I managed to read all 5 books over the course of the summer, a reading speed I don't think I'll ever be able to match again, heh.

But I remember reading those last two Gap books with my mouth hanging open. The speed and the action and the story were just incredible. I still remember the ending to Book 4 causing my head to explode, heh. It's impossible to comprehend how SRD put all of it together. And it all seems to fit together so nicely by the end of the series, heh.

The thing that I appreciate about all of SRD's work though is his ability to write good characters. In both Covenant and the Gap he does a great job at developing characters.

Oh, and "This Day All Gods Die" is simply the coolest title I've ever seen for a book. Heh.

It's a shame that The Gap series has not gotten the recognition it deserves.-jay

[Cail]

Jay, you're absolutely correct. Why on Earth was The Gap largely ignored? I bought all 5 books from Ebay, and read them in about 3 weeks (and I think I spent the most time with The Real Story.

As much as I love The Chrons, there's no question in my mind that The Gap is SRD's masterpiece.

[kevinswatch]

Yeah, I think that's the worst part of this whole debate. We all agree that the Gap is an amazing story, and yet it is largely ignored by even the science fiction community.

Heh, I was looking over the topics in this forum, and you can see that it took me about 3 months to read all 5 books in the Gap series. I started around June of 2002 and finished around September 2002.

And yet it's been about 11 months since Runes has been out, and I'm STILL only halfway through that thing. Hehe.-jay

[Cail]

Hey, you're pacing yourself. We're still 12-18 months away from the next book, so why rush?

[kevinswatch]

Heh, that's what I keep telling myself. I also try to keep telling myself that I don't really have some sort of reading disability, and that Runes is really just boring as dirt. Heh.-jay

[Cail]

I ripped through it quickly, but I'm in no rush to read it again. I think your instincts may be right.

[Loredoctor]

Yeah, I think that's the worst part of this whole debate. We all agree that the Gap is an amazing story, and yet it is largely ignored by even the science fiction community.

However, almost every bookstore in south east Queensland is selling the Gap books. It must have sold well.

[Cail]

Funny, I thought SRD referred to it as a "dismal failure" in the GI.

[Loredoctor]

If it was a failure, why did they continue with the series?; you would think the publisher would have dropped the series.