Kevin's Watch

I wish everyone who knows anything about SRD's work would read The Gap series...if they have not, they are missing probably his best writing IMHO (however I am still very much a Mordant Fan as I feel it is the best "story") It is amazing to me how LITTLE we really get in the first book of the series, I was blown away at how large in scope the story becomes and how many different scenarios and characters come into play. It is an absolutely incredible work!

I know what you mean. there are many members within the Thomas Covenant board, and the majority of them post at least once a week. so they are obviously large fans of them, like myself.
So it begs the questions, why do the not attempt reading the Gap Series? I was quite surprised when I first observed this discussion forum, that there were few people posting here. I thinks its a shame that this post took nearly eight months to be answered. The Gap Series deserve more respect.

I read the Gap series first, before TCTC. I love them both alot, but in my mind, the characters are better in the Gap than TCTC.

I think so too Ur-Vile

It may be because of the setting. By comparison to TCTC, Gap has almost no setting a lot of the time, because so much action takes place in space. For me, he more than compensates by making the characters so much grander in The Gap. No one can look huge next to Revelstone and the Colossus. The people on Trumpet, for good or ill, are titans.

Great post Joy! and spot on.

I just bought the first book in the series... so as soon as I get thruogh the books in line ahead of it (ugh) I'll be participating a little around here.

A Dark and Hungry God Arises is my personal favorite from the Gap Cycle.

I started reading one of the books and um....certain scenes were just too disturbing for me to read.

I'm not saying that I'm a wuss that can't handle graphic scenes, I just don't feel like being depressed right now. I like to read depressive things when I feel down.

The Leper Fairy wrote:I just bought the first book in the series... so as soon as I get thruogh the books in line ahead of it (ugh) I'll be participating a little around here.

It will be nice to have you joining in, TLP, but I don't know, you might want to skim the first book and head for the second one. SRD's purpose in THE REAL STORY seems to be to establish characters who know evil intimately, from both sides. Parts of it would definitely be RSV rated for raw sexual violence.

In the second book the universe opens up, the story takes over, and the book moves so fast I can't put it down.

I loved The Real Story, and I feel it is very important as it establishes the fact that no one really knows what is really going on, or what everyone elses motivations are. This is an important part of Morn's relationships with both Angus and Nick, and key to Warden's use of Angus, Morn, Davies, Nick, Min, Hashi, Godsen and Koina in his mechanations against the Dragon.

Sum sui generis
Vs

Yes, I was just thinking it's pretty rough for a young person.

True. I was only 14 when I read it though. I'm very strange, however, so don't use me as an example to follow.

Sum sui generis
Vs

The Gap series I think is the second best series of books I have ever read, the first being TCTC, the third being T2CTC. And then there's a rather large gap between #3 and the other authors whose work seems to me to be that of a 2nd grade student when compared with Donaldson. But that's just me, others may have a higher opinion of the Lesser Authors.

Yes, like many here, I too think that the Gap series is the best realized, most demanding of the SRD novels. (But I still like 'Mordant's Need' series the best). I can still recall seeing that red cover of the first book in the bookstore display dedicated to Donaldson. I was shocked! Had no idea he had one coming out. And to my surprise and (yes) disappointment, it was sci-fi! I hate reading sci-fi! Hate it. I love watching movies of it, but for some reason, I never liked any sci-fi novel (and I have read a few...).
Well, it was SRD! So I bit the bullet and bought it.
(please keep in mind that it has been about 4 years since I read the series last...)

WoW! From the first chapter I was hooked! For such a small book, the first one had me by the short and curlies all the way through! (Damn you Donaldson for making me like a sci-fi novel!) My only critisism was the use of Morn's Gap sickness. It seemed to me a weak plot device for the character. I could still accept Teresa's severe lack of self-worth (to the point of fading) because it had a continuous purpose for plot and character throughout the novel, but not Gap sickness. That said, 'The Real Story' set the stage for a gripping rollercoaster ride told in epic strokes.

The second one did not disappoint either. I loved the way things changed, how the roles of Angus, Morn and Nick all morph in our perceptions. And as we care deeply about what happens in small scale to these characters and want to learn more about them, a larger story is being played out around the characters. Hints of a great storm coming.

In the third book, the front of the storm hits, and we learn a lot more about the large scale threats, but are still focused wonderfully on the small scale characters involved. But here is where the series started to lose it for me. There were many elements that I didn't like, focus of story that I thought should have had less or more attention. One of the elements which I loved in idea but not in execution, was Morn's child, Davies. I especially did not like the chapters that were from his POV.

And by the fourth book, I was very disappointed. The elements of sci-fi which I disliked where being played out in these books. Where elements of 'space opera' were becoming more promenant in all their cliched glory. For me, we were losing the facinating elements of character in Morn, Nick and Angus. In 3 and 4 there were some wonderful bits, like 'Bill'... loved this character! and the story at his outpost. And also Dios and Min Donner story lines with Holt were becoming more interesting than what was happening in space. (I loved Min!) I suddenly loved those characters by books 3 and 4, as the books as a whole were disappointing me.

(I read in the SRD page in his GI that sales were going terribly and he was going through a bad emotional time, so maybe that might explain it)

OK, book 5. Thank god for book 5! Totally restoring my faith in SRD, he writes this masterpeice which brings everything back. Almost everything is fantastic. The politics, the action, the characters! all beautifully written. I have only one complaint, that I am sure has been discussed many times in this site (for or against): I hated Angus. And I don't mean on a level that everyone should hate him for the dispicable character that he is, but I hate him for the way Donaldson seemingly tried to 'redeem' him. If this was his intent, I think he failed miserably! Unlike Thomas Covanent, I finished the series never once feeling that Angus had done anything to warrant that kind of response from a reader. I don't care how many flashbacks to a horrendous childhood we are given, Angus was a dispicable character that did not illicit any kind of lasting sympathy in my mind.

That said, book 5 was overall so satisfying that I rate it the best book of the series (tied with 'The Real Story') and nearly up there as the best book SRD has written.

OK, now having said all this, and admitting that it has been over 4 years since I read the series last (read the series as a whole twice, but some books, like the first, perhaps 5 times), I will now go back and read the series again. But this is the impression of the series that has stayed with me after 2 readings.
I will attempt to post again after each book, giving my 'fresh' perspective, and view the other opinions of this august group. But, like SRD says, I too am a slow reader, so..........

I read the Gap series before I read the chronicles, so when I read the chronicles I was a bit disappointed because I expected them to be the same kind of stuff as the gap and they weren't.

I'm not sure quite what it was about the characters in the gap, but I cared what happened to each and every one of them. Not because I liked them, not because I hated them, but because they seemed real to me, real in a way the covenant character didn't. I felt very few characters in the chronicles seemed real (mhoram and Troy being a member of that group) because their motivations came from strange places. I had the same problem with Terisa's misbelief in herself for about half of the mirror of her dreams.

The gap will always be my favourite series of books. Partly because it was the first Donaldson I ever read and partly because the characters are all so damned understandable, everything they all did seemed to make perfect sense to me and you got an insight into everyone that is missing in most stories (even in the chronicles you don't really get to know what the hell foul is thinking all the time).

I read the Gap series first, too. I totally agree with you, Nathan!

yeah, the gap is great, i re read the gap far more than i do the covenant books i think

i dont know if its better or worse than TCTC but its definately got more charechtor detail

I do get the feeling that GAP has been overlooked by many TC fans. I agree with other posts here that SRD is on top form when he put the series together. I remember (mid 90's) waiting for each new book to come out with the same level of anticipation we are all experiencing now (for FR).

A lot of reviews I've read of GAP bang on about how dark the story is and how girm the characters are...OK true, there is not much laughter to be heard on TRUMPET. However the power of the story drives you to keep reading. SRD is a master of making you care for characters, so when bad things happen it does strike you.

I recommend GAP to older readers. Younger boys and girls may want to wait a few years. (Having said that I read LFB at 13, so maybe I should not patronise!)

Favourite bit of GAP? Angus jury rigging his computer core

The Gap is SRD's best. I love TCOTC, and I couldn't get into Mordant's Need, but The Gap is just outstanding.