Thorn and Needle

by Paul B. Thompson and Cleo Qian

En route to a perfect city to carry out their mission--to destroy a strange, new god--two intriguing travelers do not question the rightness of their cause. Original. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1560763973
• ISBN13: 9781560763970
• Release Date: January 1992
• Publisher: TSR
• Length: 309 Pages
• Weight: 0.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.1" x 7.0"

Customer Reviews

Nothing is what it seems

The situation is thus: a young nobleman and his shifty manservant enter the far-flung colonial city of Miyesti claiming to be tourists; they actually have a more serious mission. Much of Miyesti's populace is under the influence of a new god known as the Fact, whose worshippers have assumed political control of every aspect of life in the city. In return for the worship of the citizenry, the city benefits from a plethora of astounding, seemingly magical labor-saving devices, courtesy of the Fact. The mystery is twofold: what is the nature of the Fact and where did it come from, and what are the intentions of our protagonists? To say more would be to give away too much, for Thompson's novel is driven by a series of surprising twists and revelations; nothing here is quite what it seems, and some things are nothing like they seem. And yet, none of the sudden shifts in the reader's understanding of events are drastic enough to warrant crying foul; there is a logic beneath all of Thompson's duplicity. It's virtually guaranteed that the attentive reader will successfully predict some of the twists, but most likely not all of them. Likewise, an experienced consumer of speculative fiction will be able to make educated guesses at the true nature of the Fact, but even those guesses that are generally correct will likely fall short. I can't say much else; the nature of Thompson's novel requires that the reader experience it for himself, as a synopsis would either be completely useless or give everything away. I will say that although Thorn and Needle is not destined for immortality, it is good; clever manipulation of the reader, as well as some original touches placed upon classic ideas, insures that it is an enjoyable read, even if you think you've got everything figured out. In the interest of fairness, I would also point out that, although Thorn and Needle was published by TSR, its setting is original and not tied to any of the Dungeons and Dragons worlds. In other words, this is not "gaming fiction," and I would hate for anyone to pass it up by assuming such. TSR published a great many non-game-related novels in the 1980s and early 1990s, many of which were quirky and original and some of which were rather good; though Thorn and Needle falls short of membership in the former category, it fits comfortably within the latter.

Really pretty good

I really liked, then immediately lost it. I only have vague memories of what happened, so I won't spoil the finish.