Thomas Covenant

TR, as I have said, has started the Thomas Covenant series reading the first book, Lord Foul's Bane.  He has come to this kicking and screaming.  After reading a series of nine books written by Steven King (his favorite author), he began to tell me he loved the "horses and swords fantasies."  I said, he can't say that if he has not read Thomas Covenant (Stephen Donaldson) or Lord of the Rings (JRR Tolkien).  He said they were chick books with fairies in them.

"No, TR, neither of them have fairies in them (Lord of the Rings does have elves), and The Dresden Files has fairies in it, which you love." 

"They are girlie books."

Well, then he read a short prologue to something that Steven King wrote in which he said that Donaldson and Tolkien were major inspirations.  He decided he would try the Thomas Covenant series.  But all during the first half of the book he has been saying, "I hope the story starts soon.  All there is is description.  Nothing is happening."

"The first book mainly introduces 'the land.'  Learn as much as you can about the land...everything you learn will be used.  Learn to love the land in this first book."

Now, finally, a bit more than half-way through, he says, "I love that the horses choose who can ride them." 
:-)  

"They do much more than that...they are not horses as we know them...they are magical people in horse suits."

I think, maybe, he is going to like these books.  If he doesn't, I'll never get him to read Tolkien!