Curse of the Mistwraith, Volume I (1) Wars of Light and Shadow

Five hundred years since a Mistwraith had smothered the entire world in fog and darkness, only two very different half brothers have the power to lift the Mistwraith from Athera. By the author of The Master of Whitestorm.

What promises to be a rather standard epic fantasy commences with this book, volume one in a series called The Wars of Light and Shadow. In this installment, two magic-wielding half brothers are forced by an evil geas (a delayed compulsion spell cast by the incorporeal but sorcerously potent Mistwraiths) to battle each other, nearly ripping their kingdoms asunder in the bloody fray. Arithon, Master Mage and keeper of the shadow-half of the royal magic, is a compassionate man who is constantly battling his sensitive musical nature as he struggles to come to terms with the job of ruler, which he does not want. His brother Lysaer has the power to focus light; a charming man and born ruler, he becomes cunning and devious after the Mistwraith's spell is activated. Events in the heavily foreshadowed plot conspire against the royal duo, until they are forced to pit jaded townsmen against noble barbarians in a punishing and debilitating war. They are aided in their travails by a young enchantress, Elaira, a spunky role model sure to become beloved as the series progresses, and by many wise and quirky sorcerers. Forced to do duty as a harbinger of many volumes, this tale is plot-heavy, but there are hints of the appearance of unicorns and other mythical, crowd-pleasing wonders in later installments. Veteran epic-writer Wurts ( Mistress of Empire ) brings the breadth of her experience to bear in an entertaining and readable--though not outstanding--story.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Wurts, coauthor (with Raymond E. Feist) of Mistress of the Empire (1992), etc., embarks on a massively ambitious five-book sword-and-sorcery epic involving good and evil, light and dark, and two warring half-brothers. On the ``splinter'' world Dascen Elur, the half-brothers Arithon and Lysaer grow up as deadly enemies, victims of a family feud; at last both are banished through a magical Gate; along the way they acquire 500-year lifespans, and eventually arrive on the world Athera, where both brothers are heir to mighty kingdoms. Athera, however, is afflicted with the Mistwraith, a sentient fog that hides the sun and causes climatic deterioration. Both bothers' magical powers--Arithon, Master of Shadows, was tutored in sorcery at Fauven; Lysaer, the self-taught Lord of Light, projects laser beams--are needed to defeat and confine the Mistwraith. But inbred into Lysaer is the need to seek justice, whatever the cost; into Arithon, forgiveness; and the banished Mistwraith has left behind a powerful curse, urging the brothers to their mutual destruction. After 300 pages of battles and musings, Lysaer retires to train new armies, while Arithon becomes apprentice to a master musician. A tremendous amount of hard work but no signs of genuine talent, composed of gnarled writing, a farrago of plot elements, and ideas no better than mediocre retreads. -- Copyright ©1993, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Two brothers, heirs to lands and locked in a blood feud, are drawn across a dimensional portal into a world where they are hailed as the promised saviors. As Arithon, the Master of Shadows, and his half-brother Lysaer, the Lord of Light, prepare to do battle against the Mistwraith, who has for centuries cloaked the world of Athera in darkness, they face an additional battle born of their mutual distrust of each other. Although fantasy author Wurts breaks no new ground in this series opener, her elaborate and vivid world-building and complex protagonists recommend this title to fans of epic fantasy.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

For more than 500 years the Mistwraith has darkened the world of Athera. Where once were fields, flowers, and unicorns, there now are bareness, poverty, and desperation. The curse can be lifted only by the combined powers of two half-brothers who have been raised apart as enemies. Blond Lysaer, who grew up in the castle, is a born diplomat with a strong sense of justice and latent powers of light. Dark-haired Arithon, called the Master of Shadows, is skilled in music and magic and possesses an overwhelming empathy for all living things. When the two are thrown together in exile, an uneasy bond begins to form between them, and under the guidance of the Fellowship of Sorcerers, they work toward lifting the bane. But the Mistwraith fights back by twisting their talents and turning them against each other, plunging the kingdom into a bloody conflict. Strongly sympathetic characters and a well-conceived setting will hook readers of epic fantasy, who will be pleased to note that this is the first volume of a projected series, The Wars of Light and Shadow. Candace Smith