About this title: Gil's dreams of an evil encroaching upon the world seem to have some basis in reality, or at least "a" reality, according to a wizard who shows up in her kitchen one day. This is the first volume in the Darwath series.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Ballantine Del Rey Books, New York
Date Published: 1982
ISBN-13:9780345319654ISBN:0345319656
Description: Fair. No dust jacket as issued. Ex-library. 1982 Del Rey paperback. Typical ex-lib stamps, labels, reinforced spine, cardholder. Clean, lightly toned pages with some reading wear, creased spine, moderate to heavy edgewear, some cover scuffing, chipping... Glued binding. 263 p. Book One of The Darwath Trilogy. read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Ballantine Del Rey Books, New York
Date Published: 1982
ISBN-13:9780345319654ISBN:0345319656
Description: Good. No dust jacket as issued. 1982 Del Rey paperback. NOT EX LIB! Clean, lightly toned pages with some reading wear, barely creased spine, store stamp inside front cover, black line across bottom edge, light edgewear & cover scuffing. Glued binding. 263 p. Time of the Dark, 1. read more
Description: Good. Spine is well creased. Covers show wear at the edges and corners. Good Grade C average reading copy. Binding is Mass Market Paperback. Pages tanning. Used books may have price stickers. Most orders ship on the next business day. read more
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Del Rey, Westminster, Maryland, U.S.A.
Date Published: 1988
ISBN-13:9780345319654ISBN:0345319656
Description: Fine. 0345319656 Mass market paperback, previously read used book in like new condition, some very minor shelf wear, no rips or tears. _ read more
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Date Published: 1988
ISBN-13:9780345319654ISBN:0345319656
Description: Mattingly, David. Fair. 12mo. {006116} The Time of the Dark by Barbara Hambly. Illustrated by David Mattingly. ISBN 0345319656. Published by Ballantine Books in 1988. MASS MARKET PAPERBACK 12mo Sci-Fi {Book Condition} FAIR {Book Condition Details} Binding: slightly frayed ends, Cover: soiled, edge wear, soiling, heavy creasing on Spine, heavy creasing, scuffing, End Papers: owner inscription(s) on front paste down, Text: tanning, soiled page edge(s). {Keywords} FICTION FANTASY DARWATH IMAGINARY ... read more
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
Publisher: Del Rey
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780345319654ISBN:0345319656
Description: Acceptable. Overall below average used book. May have highlighting, underlining, notes, price sticker on cover, or be an ex-library book. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Date Published: 1983
ISBN-13:9780345296696ISBN:0345296699
Description: Grade: C. Catalog: Fiction Fantasy Synopsis: 263 pages. Night after night, Gil found herself dreaming of an impossible city where alien horrors swarmed from underground lairs of darkness to destr... read more
Binding: Mass-market paperback
Publisher: Del Rey Books
Date Published: 1982
ISBN-13:9780345296696ISBN:0345296699
Description: Mattingly, David B. Very good. No dust jacket as issued. may have price &/or marks on book. book tight pages vg. Mass market (rack) paperback. Glued binding. 263 p. Darwath Trilogy, 1. Audience: General/trade. read more
Description: Good. Light shelf wear and minimal interior marks. Millions of satisfied customers and climbing. Thriftbooks is the name you can trust, guaranteed. Spend Less. Read More. read more
Description: Good. Light shelf wear and minimal interior marks. Millions of satisfied customers and climbing. Thriftbooks is the name you can trust, guaranteed. Spend Less. Read More. read more
Description: Good. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Description: Good. Former Library book. Shows some signs of wear, and may have some markings on the inside. Shipped to over one million happy customers. Your purchase benefits world literacy! read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Del Rey
Date Published: 1982
ISBN-13:9780345296696ISBN:0345296699
Description: A well read paperback. front cover and front pages prevously repaired with clear tap but intact. Handwritten price inside front cover. 0345296699. Darwath, Bk. 1 Series, Mass Market PB, 266 p. read more
Binding: Softcover
Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
Date Published: 1984
ISBN-13:9780345319654ISBN:0345319656
Description: Good. An average used book that has all pages intact. Could have some creasing on the spine or covers. Our ultimate goal is to provide you with a satisfying customer experience. read more
It is my comfort read: the book I pick up when I am too tired to read something new. That sounds odd given the subject matter, but within moments of picking it up, Hambly's prose is invisible to me and I am trudging down the road with the refugees, blinded by snow, freezing and wondering what's out there in the darkness....
I can recommend this book on so many levels. The characters are people you come to know, like friends. Their voices become familiar, their mannerisms comforting. The setting is rich and gritty, you can smell the animal dung, taste the bitter smoke on the breeze and hear the chitter of the dark as they float between the trees.
In many ways this is an archetypal fantasy book. It contains all the fantasy tropes, the wise mage and his apprentice, the warrior, the princess. Yet each of these is new and fresh, even ten years later. Each develops throughout the book, and the series as a whole, so that by the end we feel we've grown with them.
For the writers among you, especially those writing fantasy, this is a lesson in how it's done. The real challenge will be maintaining a critical view without getting lost in the story and waking up four hours later thinking, "where did the time go?"
There are so few books I read ten years ago that have stood the test of time. My tastes have changed and my standards have risen. This remains, though, one of my all time favourites. If you've never read fantasy and you want an introduction that will bring the genre sharply into focus and leave you hunting for more, this is a great place to start."
"This book, like The Silent Tower is a trilogy of great fun reads! Somewhat similar in plot context, but doesn't matter because it's just for a non-reality fix!"
"The first time I read this book I was in my early twenties. I found the Dark were quite frightening, however rereading it in my thirties the Dark didn't alarm me at all. In fact I felt sympathetic towards them.
The thing I like about the trilogy is the mystery involved; why have the Dark risen, why do they want Ingold, will memories reveal the secret to defeating them, and how are ancient magical artifacts used against them?
I didn't mind the training in combat and magic. The theory behind the magic wasn't bad, however the combat could have been better researched to seem more plausible and interesting.
Alot of the political struggles create tension, however at times get a little old. The "goodies" can seem to do no wrong, whereas the "baddies" tend to be unrealistically shallow which became slightly trite. I am being a little pedantic there. Romance parts, I tended to skirt over. i'm not one for schmulz.
All in all "The Time of the Dark" is quite fast paced, multi-layed, and retains reader interest. As with the rest of the books in the trilogy a reasonably rich world is created, but most of all the mysteries kept me turning pages. The occasional breakthroughs are tantalizing. One of the most readable Fantasy trilogies out there. A few holes in it, but enjoyable none-the-less."
"3.5 stars. I almost gave this one four stars, but decided to stick with 3.5 as it just didn't pull me in like some of the other books I have read recently (The Warded Man by Peter Brett and Iron Sunrise by Charles Stross to name just two recent reads that I would highly recommend). That said, Barbara Hambly is an excellent writer and I will certainly read the next book in the trilogy."
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