''The Prince of Nothing'' is a series of three
fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures.
The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...
novels by
Canadian
Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...
author
R. Scott Bakker, first published in 2004, part of a wider series known as ''The Second Apocalypse''. This trilogy details the emergence of monastic warrior Anasûrimbor Kellhus, and was followed by the four-book series ''
The Aspect-Emperor''.
Bakker has mentioned that this series was primarily influenced by the works of
J. R. R. Tolkien
John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''.
From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlinson ...
and
Frank Herbert
Franklin Patrick Herbert Jr. (October 8, 1920February 11, 1986) was an American science-fiction author, best known for his 1965 novel Dune (novel), ''Dune'' and its five sequels. He also wrote short stories and worked as a newspaper journalist, ...
.
Novels
''Prince of Nothing'' series
* ''
The Darkness That Comes Before
''The Darkness That Comes Before'' is the first book in the ''Prince of Nothing'' series by R. Scott Bakker. It was published in 2004.
Characters
:''Drusas Achamian'' (Droo-sass Ah-kay-me-on), a 47-year-old Mandate sorcerer. He is plagued by re ...
'' (2003)
* ''
The Warrior Prophet'' (2004)
* ''
The Thousandfold Thought'' (2006)
'' The Aspect-Emperor''
* ''
The Judging Eye'' (2009)
* ''
The White-Luck Warrior'' (2011)
* ''
The Great Ordeal'' (2016)
* ''
The Unholy Consult
''The Aspect-Emperor'' is a four volume series of fantasy novels written by Canadian author R. Scott Bakker. It is part of his ''Second Apocalypse'' series, and takes place twenty years after the events of his debut trilogy ''Prince of Nothing, The ...
'' (2017)
Background
The ''Prince of Nothing'' series takes place in the fictional continent of
Eärwa, which is separated from another continent to the east (mentioned but unseen), called Eänna. The main inhabitants of Eärwa are human, but were preceded by the Nonmen (or Cûnuroi), immortal beings who went mad with the accumulation of centuries of memory, and the Inchoroi, alien beings who crash-landed in northern Eärwa. These creatures' machinations led both to the downfall of the Nonmen and, with the aid of a group of human sorcerers known as the Consult, the summoning of Mog-Pharau, the No-God. This event, known as the First Apocalypse, caused the collapse of most of human civilization, but was stopped by the efforts of the sorcerer Seswatha and Anasûrimbor Celmomas, the last of a line of royalty. Society was eventually rebuilt after this event, which became more legend than history. Nonetheless, the Consult still endeavored to bring back the No-God and finish the plan they had begun thousands of years before.
The action of the series is confined to the Three Seas area, home of multiple human nations, ethnicities, and religions. The first novel opens with the start of a Holy War, pitting the Inrithi kingdoms and the Thousand Temples against the "heathen" Fanim, followers of a prophet who broke from Inrithism hundreds of years previously. The goal of the war is to retake Shimeh, a city venerated by both faiths, although as the war progresses its goal is subtly warped from the inside by the machinations of Anasûrimbor Kellhus.
Characters
The novels follow the point of view of several characters on the Inrithi side of the Holy War. Most of the characters are of the Ketyai ethnicity, common to the western and eastern Three Seas. Their
surname
In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...
s usually precede their
given name
A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a f ...
s, like the order commonly used in
Hungary
Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
,
China
China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, and
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
.
* Drusas Achamian is a member of the Mandate School, who joins the Holy War by order of his superiors. There, he meets and teaches Anasûrimbor Kellhus in secret, while slowly discovering his place in the coming Second Apocalypse. Achamian also meets his old students Nersei Proyas, Prince of Conriya, and Krijates Xinemus, the Marshal of Attrempus.
* Esmenet is a whore in the city of Sumna, and is Achamian's lover. She follows him into the Holy War and falls under the influence of Kellhus along with Achamian.
* Anasûrimbor Kellhus is the mysterious Dûnyain warrior whose power over those around him brings him control of the Holy War and its people. He was sent by his sect to find his father, Anasûrimbor Moënghus, who lives in the city of Shimeh, the Holy War's destination.
* Cnaiür urs Skiötha is a Scylvendi barbarian chieftain of the Utemot tribe, whose relationship with Moënghus 30 years previously makes him the only character with knowledge of the Dûnyain. He is also the first to meet Kellhus, and accompanies him to Momemn to join the Holy War.
* Sërwe is a slave claimed by Cnaiür as a prize, and who is used by Kellhus to control Cnaiür.
* Ikurei Conphas is a prideful Nansur general and nephew to that nation's Emperor. His victories over the Scylvendi make him the foremost choice for leader of the Holy War, before Cnaiür takes that position from him.
* Anasûrimbor Moënghus is Kellhus' father, and left the Dûnyain 30 years before the series begins.
Historical influences
R. Scott Bakker drew upon many cultures
Interview with R. Scott Bakker (2004-07-18)
/ref> as inspiration—notably Hellenistic Greece
Hellenistic Greece is the historical period of Ancient Greece following Classical Greece and between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the annexation of the classical Greek Achaean League heartlands by the Roman Republic. This cul ...
, Scythia
Scythia (, ) or Scythica (, ) was a geographic region defined in the ancient Graeco-Roman world that encompassed the Pontic steppe. It was inhabited by Scythians, an ancient Eastern Iranian equestrian nomadic people.
Etymology
The names ...
, the Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...
, and other European and Middle Eastern cultures—for the Three Seas region of Eärwa.
''The Aspect-Emperor''
The Second Apocalypse series is continued in the '' Aspect-Emperor'' tetralogy, which describes events taking place 20 years after the conclusion of Prince of Nothing. The first book of the series is '' The Judging Eye'', and was first published in 2009. The second is '' The White-Luck Warrior'' and was published in 2011. The third is '' The Great Ordeal'', published in 2016. Finally, the fourth is ''The Unholy Consult
''The Aspect-Emperor'' is a four volume series of fantasy novels written by Canadian author R. Scott Bakker. It is part of his ''Second Apocalypse'' series, and takes place twenty years after the events of his debut trilogy ''Prince of Nothing, The ...
'', published in 2017.
References
External links
Official R. Scott Bakker Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prince Of Nothing
Fantasy novel series