The Riftwar Cycle

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The Riftwar Cycle is the name given to the series of books authored or co-authored by Raymond E. Feist that revolve around the fantasy worlds of Midkemia and Kelewan.

Contents

The Riftwar Universe

The majority of Feist's works are part of The Riftwar Universe, and feature the worlds of Midkemia and Kelewan. [1] Human magicians and other creatures on the two planets are able to create rifts through dimensionless space that can connect planets in different solar systems. The novels and short stories of The Riftwar Universe record the adventures of various people on these worlds.

Midkemia was originally created as an alternative to the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) role-playing game. When Feist studied at the University of California, San Diego, he and his friends created a new role-playing game based on their own original world of Midkemia. They called themselves the Thursday Nighters, because they played the Midkemia role-playing game every Thursday evening. After some time, when the group changed and began meeting on Fridays, they became known as the Friday Nighters. The original group have since formed a company called Midkemia Press, which has continued publishing campaigns set in that universe. [2]

Feist acknowledges that the Tekumel setting from M. A. R. Barker's Empire of the Petal Throne was the source for much of Kelewan. The original D&D campaign which he based his books on had an invasion of the Midkemia world by Tekumel. As a result, much of the background of Kelewan – the Tsurani Empire, the lack of metals and horses, the Cho'ja, the pantheons of 10 major and 10 minor gods – comes from Tekumel. Feist claims to have been unaware of this origin when he wrote Magician . [3] [4]

Works

Several books of the Riftwar Cycle although "A Darkness in Sethanon" should be placed after "Silverthorn". Riftwar.JPG
Several books of the Riftwar Cycle although "A Darkness in Sethanon" should be placed after "Silverthorn".

Most Riftwar novels' stories occur in chronological order following the publishing order, with a few exceptions. The Empire Trilogy starts during Magician and concludes after A Darkness at Sethanon. The Riftwar Legacy occurs between the Riftwar Saga and Krondor's Sons. The Legends of the Riftwar novels occur between Magician and Silverthorn.

Novels are grouped into their respective series, with series ordered by the publishing date of the first novel in the series.

Short stories

Other media

The videogames Betrayal at Krondor and Return to Krondor were developed with input from Feist and take place during the Riftwar cycle, their stories were also novelized by Feist as part of his Riftwar Legacy books.

On February 2, 2022, Six Studios, a production company started by Jeff Huang and Carl Choi, announced it would develop the first six books in The Riftwar Cycle into a TV series. Hannah Friedman, Jacob Pinion and Nick Bernardone are attached to write. [5]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raymond E. Feist</span> American fantasy author (born 1945)

Raymond Elias Feist is an American fantasy fiction author who wrote The Riftwar Cycle, a series of novels and short stories. His books have been translated into multiple languages and have sold over 15 million copies.

<i>Betrayal at Krondor</i> 1993 video game

Betrayal at Krondor is an MS-DOS-based role-playing video game developed by Dynamix and released by Sierra On-Line in the summer of 1993. Betrayal at Krondor takes place largely in Midkemia, the fantasy world developed by Raymond E. Feist in his Riftwar novels. The game is designed to resemble a book, separated into chapters and narrated in the third-person with a quick-save bookmark feature.

<i>Magician</i> (Feist novel) 1982 fantasy novel by Raymond E. Feist

Magician is a fantasy novel by American writer Raymond E. Feist. It is the first book of the Riftwar Saga and of the wider Riftwar Cycle. Magician was originally published in 1982. The book is set in a Dungeons & Dragons–style fantasy world called Midkemia, originally invented by Feist and his friends during college. The story follows the early life of friends Pug and Tomas as their world is overtaken by war against alien invaders who appear via portals.

Janet Inglis "Janny" Wurts is an American fantasy novelist and illustrator. She has written several standalone novels and series, including the Wars of Light and Shadow, The Cycle of Fire trilogy and the internationally best-selling Empire trilogy that she co-authored with Raymond E. Feist. Her short story collection That Way Lies Camelot was nominated for the British Fantasy Award in 1995. She often illustrates her own books, and has won Chesley Awards for her artwork.

<i>The Riftwar Saga</i> American fantasy novel series

The Riftwar Saga is a series of fantasy novels by American writer Raymond E. Feist, the first series in The Riftwar Cycle.

<i>Empire Trilogy</i> Series of fantasy novels by Raymond E. Feist and Janny Wurts

The Empire Trilogy is a collaborative trilogy of political fantasy novels by American writers Raymond E. Feist and Janny Wurts, set in the fictional world of Kelewan. It is the second trilogy in Feist's The Riftwar Cycle.

Geoff Taylor is an English fantasy artist.

<i>Krondors Sons</i>

Krondor's Sons is a series of fantasy novel by American writer Raymond E. Feist. The books are part of The Riftwar Cycle and set on the fictional world of Midkemia. The two novels are set between riftwars and explores Midkemia beyond the borders of the Kingdom of the Isles. The main characters are the three sons of Prince of Krondor Arutha ConDoin, Borric, Erland, and Nicholas. According to Feist, the series was originally meant to be a trilogy, with The Return of the Buccaneer being the third volume. However, following The King's Buccaneer Feist changed publishers, and his new editors wanted a brand-new series rather than a continuation of the old one.

<i>The Darkwar Saga</i>

The Darkwar Saga is a series of fantasy novels by the American writer Raymond E. Feist.

<i>Honoured Enemy</i>

Honoured Enemy is a fantasy novel by American writers Raymond E. Feist and William R. Forstchen. It is the first book written in the Legends of the Riftwar and is the only one of the series to be coauthored by William R. Forstchen. The story is set in the fantasy world of Midkemia, which Feist uses as the setting for the majority of his books.

<i>Jimmy the Hand</i> (novel) 2003 fantasy novel by Raymond E. Feist and S. M. Stirling

Jimmy the Hand is a fantasy novel by American writers Raymond E. Feist and S. M. Stirling. The third and final book in Legends of the Riftwar it forms part of Feist's Riftwar Cycle set in the fictional world of Midkemia. The book explores part of the early life of one of the main characters of The Riftwar Saga, Jimmy the Hand, and sits chronologically during the events of Magician.

<i>Krondor: The Betrayal</i> 1998 novel by Raymond E. Feist

Krondor: The Betrayal is a fantasy novel by American writer Raymond E. Feist. The first novel in The Riftwar Legacy, it was first published in November 1998. It is a novelization of the computer game Betrayal at Krondor.

<i>Krondor: The Assassins</i>

Krondor: The Assassins is a fantasy novel by American writer Raymond E. Feist. It is the second book in The Riftwar Legacy and was published in 1999 by HarperCollins under their Voyager imprint. It was preceded by Krondor: The Betrayal and followed by the third book in the saga, Krondor: Tear of the Gods.

The Riftwar Legacy is a series of fantasy novels by American writer Raymond E. Feist, part of The Riftwar Cycle. The series occurs between the Riftwar Saga and Krondor's Sons series chronologically in the universe of the Riftwar Cycle, though it was published much later, and focuses on Squire James and other characters as they combat dark powers threatening the Kingdom of the Isles. The first and third novels in the series are novelizations of the computer games Betrayal at Krondor and Return to Krondor, respectively.

<i>Rage of a Demon King</i>

Rage of a Demon King is a fantasy novel by American writer Raymond E. Feist, the third book in his Serpentwar Saga and the eleventh book of his Riftwar cycle. It was published in 1997 in the United States by Avon Books and the United Kingdom by HarperCollins. At the opening of the novel Erik Von Darkmoor is helping to train soldiers for The Kingdom's armies while Rupert, at the height of his trading success, is coerced into financing the war. Meanwhile the forces of the Emerald Queen are approaching Krondor, and it is discovered her target is the "Lifestone", the legendary device discovered by Pug and his cohorts in A Darkness at Sethanon.

<i>The Demonwar Saga</i>

The Demonwar Saga is a series of fantasy novels by American writer Raymond E. Feist.

<i>The Chaoswar Saga</i>

The Chaoswar Saga is the final trilogy in the Riftwar Cycle series of fantasy novels by Raymond E. Feist.

The Legends of the Riftwar is a series of fantasy novels by American writer Raymond E. Feist along with three different co-authors William R. Forstchen, Joel Rosenberg and S. M. Stirling.

<i>Jimmy and the Crawler</i>

Krondor: Jimmy and the Crawler is the fourth story in The Riftwar Legacy by fantasy author Raymond E. Feist. It is a novella combining concepts outlined for 2 additional novels which were intended and subsequently canceled due to issues with Sierra, the producers of the Krondor computer games.

This is a complete bibliography of the works by American fantasy fiction author Raymond E. Feist.

References

  1. "Writer: Raymond E. Feist (1945 - , United States)". www.scifan.com. Archived from the original on 2008-05-09. Retrieved 2008-06-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. Claire E. White (2000-03-01). "A Conversation With Raymond Feist". WritersWrite.com. Retrieved 2008-06-14.
  3. Shannon Appelcline (2012-02-05). "Designers & Dragons: The Column #13: Midkemia Press, 1979-1983". RPG.net. Retrieved 2012-07-21.
  4. Arthur B (2007-07-06). "The Reading Canary On: The Riftwar Saga". FerretBrain.com. Retrieved 2012-07-21.
  5. Andreeva, Nellie (2022-02-02). "'The Riftwar Cycle': TV Series Adaptation Of Fantasy Books In Works At Newly Launched Six Studios". Deadline. Retrieved 2022-02-02.