You've got to be kidding, Bill. I first read the BC in 1986. I was checking bookstores every month waiting for Shadow Games to be released. Every year since then (with a few exceptions) I have re-read the entire series.
However, I enjoyed your comment about envying me. There is never that spark after the first time you read a great novel. I remember the first time I read the Hobbit, almost 25 years ago. It was, pardon the pun, a magical experience. It was the same way with BC. During the early 80s there was such a rash of tolkien wannabes that the grittiness of the BC was refreshing. It's almost a shame that we have become so familiar with the characters. I am like many others on the list in that I finished SL in about three days. I didn't take the time to savor it. That's why I started the series again. I want to go through the entire story, slowly. It might take me until the end of the year, but it will be worth it.
Subject: RE: RE: (glencook-fans) deaths in SOLDIERS
First, let me apologize if my email is not quoting previous mails correctly...I'm using AOL's web client and I can't see the original message when I reply...
SPOILER
I mentioned this earlier (or maybe I just thought it). Think about wishes granted by genies. What if the Howler's power was so rooted in his handicap that when Shivetya "cured" him, it stripped him of some of his power. It would be just like him. The golem doesn't care what happens in the different worlds.
Taking that one step further. Croaker assumes Shivetya's powers because he can study to his heart's content. What if the ability to filter out the activities in different worlds is difficult. Now Croaker can sense everything that is going on, but at the same time. He would not be able to sift the wheat from the chaff. It would be like the Twilight Zone...all these books and a pair of broken glasses.
