Rise of a Merchant Prince
Raymond E. Feist's stunning national best-seller Shadow of a Dark Queen reestablished his reputation as an unparalleled storyteller and a major name in the fantasy field. And now he returns us once again to the wondrous, perilous world of Midkemia.
The hideous Sauur have invaded the beleaguered planet through a dimensional fault. A dread race of serpents, they continue their merciless conquest of the farther reaches of Midkemia, on a seemingly unstoppable drive to enslave the entire population.
Friends since childhood, noble Erik and cunning Roo have survived numerous trials to bring a warning to the rulers of the Empire, and are now free to pursue their individual destinies. Ever loyal, Erik chooses to remain in the army to confront Midkemia's enemies. Roo's ambitions, however, are for wealth and power. And through a combination of skill, luck, diplomacy, and bare-knuckled boldness - and a timely marriage to the daughter of a wealthy merchant - the crafty charmer rises high and fast in the world of trade... and attains riches beyond his dreams.
But with luxury come carelessness and a vulnerability to the desires of the flesh - as the ruthless machinations of a beautiful seductress threaten to obliterate everything that Roo has built and all that he has become by summoning catastrophe into his future - and terror into his world.
Raymond E. Feist
Raymond Elias Feist (born 1945, Los Angeles, California) is an American author, mostly specialising in fantasy fiction.
Feist was raised in Southern California. He was born with the surname Gonzales, before being adopted by Felix E. Feist.
He graduated with a B.A. in Communication Arts with Honors in 1977 from the University of California at San Diego. During that year Feist had some ideas for a novel about a boy who would be a magician. He wrote the novel two years later, and it was published in 1982.
The Serpentwar Saga
The Serpentwar Saga consists of four books. The current recommended reading order for the series is provided below.
Main series The Riftwar Cycle
Book Reviews
This book is quite nice. The book is totally different than other books in Serpentwar Saga. I imagine that not all the people like this book, but since i like stories that involve money and getting rich, this book is my favorite of this series. This books is about a mans struckle to become rich, his personal life and about the war around.
It is a small wonder to begin with that I even picked up this book after the previous one (Shadow of a Dark Queen) had been such a disappointment. The start wasn't promising either, in fact, it was pretty terrible.. So, it was another miracle that I actually got past the first two chapters. As a whole, I would compare this novel to a runner, who after a slow and clumsy start accelerates to rather nice speed, clearing some difficult hurdles with impressive skill just to fall flat on his face before the finish line. Surprisingly the middle was this novel's best section. Even while keeping in mind that this book is a part of a series, I think the transitions from the previous story to the next one were handled poorly. The beginning and the ending were, sadly, very bad writing. Another thing that irked me was the repetition of expressions. If I had played a drinking game whenever someone 'exchanged glances' or 'an ample bosom' sailed in view, I'd be having serious problems with my liver right now. A slight improvement compared to the first installement, recommended for readers who are already fans of Midkemia.
Rise of a Merchant Prince is the second book of The Serpentwar Saga. I enjoyed reading this book and thought that it was much better than Shadow of a Dark Queen. This book is a bit different and that's a good thing. If you enjoy reading Raymond E. Feist's books, you should read this book.