Shadowmarch
Encyclopedia
Shadowmarch is the first novel in the Shadowmarch tetralogy
, by Tad Williams
. It was released in hardcover on November 2, 2004, and in trade paperback on November 1, 2005. A paperback edition was released in September, 2006. The second book in the series, Shadowplay
was published on March 6, 2007 in hardcover and on March 4, 2008 in paperback in both the USA and the UK. The third book in the series, Shadowrise, was released in hardcover on March 2, 2010. The last book in the series, Shadowheart, was published in hardcover on November 1, 2010.
meets Babylon 5
meets Lord of the Rings
". When both of these options fell through, Shadowmarch was reborn as an online serial
. Released between June 2001 and August 2002 in bi-weekly episodes, it was an ambitious exploration of what online publishing done right might mean. Despite a vibrant (and at present still thriving) community gathering around this project, a lack of subscribers willing to pay the one-time $14.99 fee necessary to read chapters beyond the five initial free ones meant that after the first year, the online project halted, with the completed first novel (and subsequent volumes) returning to orthodox publishing. The book contains additional chapters not found in the original online version, while the rest of the original material was substantially revised and edited for book publication (notably being rewritten completely to past tense, since the online project used present tense to "give it a sense of immediacy").
Initially Williams set out to write a trilogy, but work on the final installment became so complex that he and his publishers decided to split the third installment into two novels, both released in 2010.
Coupled together with this threat is the dissension and endless political maneuvering of many of Southmarch's nobles. The king of Southmarch has been captured and is imprisoned in a distant land, and when the prince regent is murdered, the burden of rule falls to the inexperienced princess, Briony, and her moody brother, Barrick. Faced with invasion, betrayal, and conniving nobles seeking to take advantage, it is up to them alone to hold Southmarch together.
released three Sneak Previews of Shadowmarch that contained teaser chapters for the upcoming book. These Sneak Previews were distributed for free and were designed to attract potential readers. They prominently featured artwork by Michael Whelan
that was originally created for Shadowmarch, but later discarded.
http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/Phantastik2006.html Nominated in 2006 for the Phantastik Preis Award (Germany), in the category of Foreign Novel.
Tetralogy
A tetralogy is a compound work that is made up of four distinct works, just as a trilogy is made up of three works....
, by Tad Williams
Tad Williams
Robert Paul "Tad" Williams, born in San Jose, California, is the author of several fantasy and science fiction novels, including Tailchaser's Song, the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series, the Otherland series, and The War of the Flowers....
. It was released in hardcover on November 2, 2004, and in trade paperback on November 1, 2005. A paperback edition was released in September, 2006. The second book in the series, Shadowplay
Shadowplay
Shadowplay is the second book in the Shadowmarch tetrology, by Tad Williams. It was released in hardcover in the US in March, 2007 and has been released with a region-specific hard cover in the United Kingdom . Book one, Shadowmarch, was published in November 2004. Book three of Shadowmarch,...
was published on March 6, 2007 in hardcover and on March 4, 2008 in paperback in both the USA and the UK. The third book in the series, Shadowrise, was released in hardcover on March 2, 2010. The last book in the series, Shadowheart, was published in hardcover on November 1, 2010.
Before the Book
Shadowmarch has had a long history before appearing in print. Originally, Tad Williams conceived Shadowmarch as an idea for a fantasy movie and later a fantasy tv series, which might have been described as "Hill Street BluesHill Street Blues
Hill Street Blues is an American serial police drama that was first aired on NBC in 1981 and ran for 146 episodes on primetime into 1987. Chronicling the lives of the staff of a single police precinct in an unnamed American city, the show received critical acclaim and its production innovations ...
meets Babylon 5
Babylon 5
Babylon 5 is an American science fiction television series created, produced and largely written by J. Michael Straczynski. The show centers on a space station named Babylon 5: a focal point for politics, diplomacy, and conflict during the years 2257–2262...
meets Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings
The Lord of the Rings is a high fantasy epic written by English philologist and University of Oxford professor J. R. R. Tolkien. The story began as a sequel to Tolkien's earlier, less complex children's fantasy novel The Hobbit , but eventually developed into a much larger work. It was written in...
". When both of these options fell through, Shadowmarch was reborn as an online serial
Webserial
Web fiction is written work of literature available primarily or solely on the Internet. A common type of web fiction is the webserial. The term comes from old serial stories that were once published regularly in newspapers and magazines...
. Released between June 2001 and August 2002 in bi-weekly episodes, it was an ambitious exploration of what online publishing done right might mean. Despite a vibrant (and at present still thriving) community gathering around this project, a lack of subscribers willing to pay the one-time $14.99 fee necessary to read chapters beyond the five initial free ones meant that after the first year, the online project halted, with the completed first novel (and subsequent volumes) returning to orthodox publishing. The book contains additional chapters not found in the original online version, while the rest of the original material was substantially revised and edited for book publication (notably being rewritten completely to past tense, since the online project used present tense to "give it a sense of immediacy").
The Shadowmarch Saga
- Shadowmarch, November 2004.
- Shadowplay, March 2007.
- Shadowrise, March 2010.
- Shadowheart, November 2010.
Initially Williams set out to write a trilogy, but work on the final installment became so complex that he and his publishers decided to split the third installment into two novels, both released in 2010.
Plot summary
The first Marchlands kingdom, Southmarch (commonly called "Shadowmarch"), lies directly on the edge of the mysterious Shadowline, a shroud of endless mist that marks the entrance to the realm of the fairy-folk, the Qar. Crossing the Shadowline is said to drive any human mad, but, as far as anyone knows, the line has not moved any further south for centuries. Now, inexplicably, it has begun to creep slowly but surely deeper into the lands of Southmarch, bringing an unknown menace with it.Coupled together with this threat is the dissension and endless political maneuvering of many of Southmarch's nobles. The king of Southmarch has been captured and is imprisoned in a distant land, and when the prince regent is murdered, the burden of rule falls to the inexperienced princess, Briony, and her moody brother, Barrick. Faced with invasion, betrayal, and conniving nobles seeking to take advantage, it is up to them alone to hold Southmarch together.
Primary Characters
- Barrick Eddon - the prince of Southmarch; Briony's twin brother; one of the main protagonistProtagonistA protagonist is the main character of a literary, theatrical, cinematic, or musical narrative, around whom the events of the narrative's plot revolve and with whom the audience is intended to most identify...
s - Briony Eddon - the princess of Southmarch; Barrick's twin sister; one of the main protagonists
- King Olin Eddon - King of Southmarch & father of Barrick and Briony Eddon. Kidnapped and held for ransom.
- Chaven - the physician of the royal family
- Chert Blue-Quartz - a Funderling
- Ferras Vansen - captain of the Royal Guard.
- Flint - a mysterious child from beyond the Shadowline, Chert Blue-Quartz's ward.
- Hendon Tolly - brother of Gailon and cousin to the Eddon twins
- Qinnitan - An acolyte of the Hive in Xis
- Avin Brone - lord constable of Southmarch, unofficial advisor of the Eddon twins
- Matthias "Matty" Tinwright, a court poet to Briony Eddon
- Shaso dan-Heza - the master of arms of Castle Southmarch.
- Sulepis Bishakh am-Xis III - monarch of the powerful Xandian nation of Xis. Revered as a living god.
- Yasammez - Qar noblewoman. Also known as the "Scourge of the Shivering Plain", or "Lady Porcupine" & General of the Qar armies.
Secondary Characters
- Kendrick Eddon - the prince regent of Southmarch
- Gailon Tolly - the duke of Summerfield, brother of Hendon and cousin to the Eddon twins.
- Jeddin "Jin" - captain of the Autarch's Leopard Guard.
- Prusus - Scotarch of Xis, chosen heir of Autarch Sulepis
- Puzzle - ancient court jester to the Eddons
- Queen Upsteeplebat - Rooftopper monarch
Races and Peoples
- Funderlings, a little people, similar to dwarves, who are skilled in stonecraft; also known as 'Delvers'
- Rooftoppers, tiny beings who dwell on the roofs of Southmarch castle and are known only to a few
- Skimmers, fishlike people who live mostly in seclusion from the rest of Southmarch Castle
- Qar, an ancient race of non-humans who were once the inhabitants of much of the known world
- Tuani, the dark-skinned human natives of Tuan
- Xis, the war-like people of the southern continent
Sneak Previews
Prior to the publication of the book in November 2004, Tad Williams' US publishers Daw BooksDAW Books
DAW Books is an American science fiction and fantasy publisher, founded by Donald A. Wollheim following his departure from Ace Books in 1971. The company therefore claims to be "the first publishing company ever devoted exclusively to science fiction and fantasy." The first DAW Book published was...
released three Sneak Previews of Shadowmarch that contained teaser chapters for the upcoming book. These Sneak Previews were distributed for free and were designed to attract potential readers. They prominently featured artwork by Michael Whelan
Michael Whelan
Michael Whelan is an American artist of imaginative realism. For more than 30 years he worked as an illustrator specializing in science fiction and fantasy cover art...
that was originally created for Shadowmarch, but later discarded.
Foreign Editions
- Shadowmarch: An Epic Fantasy. Orbit Hardcover (ISBN 1-84149-288-4, 656 pages). November 2004.
- Shadowmarch: Die Grenze. Klett-Cotta Hardcover (ISBN 3-608-93717-X, 814 pages). July 2005. Translated into German by Cornelia Holfelder von-der Tann.
- De Schaduwgrens. Luitingh Fantasy Paperback (ISBN 90-245-5603-1, 799 pages). April 2006. Translated into Dutch by Erica Feberwee.
- Marchia Cienia. Rebis (ISBN 83-7301-770-4, 723 pages). May 2006. Translated into Polish by Pawel Kruk.
- Slottet i Sydmark: Skuggmark 1. B. Wahlströms (ISBN 13: 978-91-32-33289-0, 327 pages). October 2006. Translated into Swedish by Ylva Spangberg.
- Varjojen marssi 1: Lauluja kuusta ja tähdistä. Karisto Oy (ISBN 951-23-4782-2, about 420 pages) August 2006. Translated into Finnish by Auli Hurme-Keränen. Varjojen marssi 2: Pimeä kaupunki. Karisto Oy (ISBN 951-23-4783-0, about 420 pages). September 2006. Translated into Finnish by Auli Hurme-Keränen.
- Stínové pomezí. Laser-books (ISBN 80-7193-216-7, 754 pages). November 2006. Translated into Czech by Petr Kotrle.
- Les Royaumes des Marches 1 : Chateau d'Ombre t1. Calmann Levy (ISBN 978-2-7021-3792-5, about 350 pages) March 2007. Translated into french by Jean-Pierre Pugi.
- Les Royaumes des Marches 1 : Chateau d'Ombre t2. Calmann Levy (ISBN 978-2-7021-3803-8, about 350 pages) March 2007. Translated into french by Jean-Pierre Pugi.
- Sjenovita međa, I. dio. Algoritam (ISBN 978-953-220-548-0, 664 pages). August 2008. Translated into Croatian by Tajana Pavičević.
- Tündérvidék: A qarok háborúja. Alexandra Hardcover (ISBN 978-963-370-174-4, 686 pages). 2007. Translated into Hungarian by Császár László.
Reviews
- Review by Paul Skevington Computercrowsnest, 1 January, 2005.
- Review by William Thompson The SF Site, 2005.
- Review by Sandy Auden The Alien Online, 19 December, 2004.
- Review by Edward Carmien SFRevu, November 2004.
- Review by Cheryl Morgan Emerald City, November 2004.
Awards and honors
- SF Site Best SF and Fantasy Books of 2004: Readers' Choice #9 for Shadowmarch.
- Locus Magazine 2004 Recommending Reading List. Shadowmarch subsequently placed 15th as Best Fantasy Novel in the annual Locus Awards.
- Best of 2004 Emerald City by Cheryl Morgan.
- Shadowmarch was also long-listed for the Quill Award and the British Fantasy AwardBritish Fantasy AwardThe British Fantasy Awards are administered annually by the British Fantasy Society and were first awarded in 1971. The membership of the BFS vote to determine recommendations, short-lists and winners of the awards...
.
http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/Phantastik2006.html Nominated in 2006 for the Phantastik Preis Award (Germany), in the category of Foreign Novel.