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Mountain of Black Glass is the third volume of Tad Williams' highly acclaimed four-book series, Otherland. A truly unique reading experience combining elements of science fiction,fantasy, and techno-thriller, it is a rich epic tale in which virtual reality could prove the key to a whole new universe of possibilities for the entire human race—or become the exclusive domain of the rich and the ruthless as they seek a technological pathway to immortality....
I always have a hard time explaining Otherland. In today's book world, where people (especially on the sales and marketing end) usually want a description in a few words, leading to a neat category, it gets called things like "cyber-fantasy," "science-fiction virtual reality epic," and other even more hard-to-wrap-your-brain-around titles. It is science fiction, with ideas about the world that's coming soon, the future of the Net, and the shrinking distance between humans and their creations, but it's also an epic fantasy, and the virtual universe I've invented is mostly an excuse for high adventure of the getting-chased-by-monsters variety. (Although this is perhaps the weirdest and most diverse collection of monsters ever featured in one story.) Given the chance, even as an adult approaching the end of his second decade as a writer, I still really, really enjoy having people chased (and occasionally eaten) by monsters.
In Otherland, a group of everyday citizens stumbles onto a disturbing but well-hidden truth: Children all over the world, but especially those who are users of the Net (a vastly expanded version of our own Internet, which has replaced television, telephones, and most other communication media with a single worldwide system), are falling into deathlike comas. Renie Sulaweyo, a young South African teacher whose brother is one of the victims, begins to investigate, along with her student !Xabbu -- one of the last of the Kalahari bushmen. Behind this worldwide outbreak lies the shadow of a network unlike any other -- a virtual reality universe built by a group of the world's wealthiest and most ruthless people, the Grail Brotherhood. With the help of some unusual friends, Renie and !Xabbu manage to break into the Brotherhood's secret project, entering the Otherland network.
As Renie and others discover, Otherland itself is astonishingly sophisticated, its virtual reality simulations so realistic that experiencing them is just like real life -- except that real life was never so strange. With nearly unlimited budgets, the Brotherhood have built playgrounds for themselves from every point in history, literature, and imagination -- entire worlds of the past, perfect evocations of things only mentioned in books, environments as strange and original as Saturday morning cartoons. But the network and its ultimate purpose is a secret, and the Brotherhood have already proved themselves capable of murder to keep it that way. To the horror of Renie and her companions -- the sick teenager, Orlando Gardiner, who has honed his skills in dragon-and-dungeon fantasy games; the blind researcher, Martine; and the mysterious amnesiac, Paul Jonas -- they discover that once inside the Otherland network, they cannot go offline again. They are trapped in a universe of fantastical worlds, and the countless dangers they face, although computer-generated, are now terrifyingly real.
In the first book, City of Golden Shadows, Renie and the others find their way into the network. River of Blue Fire, the second volume, tells of their dangerous journey through the network along the river that ties the simulations together and deepens many mysteries. Volume three, Mountain of Black Glass, not only brings Renie and the others closer to solving the riddles of Otherland but also brings them face to face with the Other, the network's greatest riddle, and reveals their true and most deadly enemy.
In the fourth and final volume, Sea of Silver Light, a number of surprising truths will be revealed, not only about the fate of the characters but also about the fate of all humankind.
Plus, I promise, there will be several more interesting monsters...
—Tad Williams
Anonymous
Posted July 30, 2012
Keep your hunger for the journey sedated
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted August 24, 2011
I'm really puzzled as to why the third and fourth volumes in this series have been published to ebook format before the first and second volumes...I'd like to re-read this series (EXCELLENT story, well-written, btw, hence the 5 stars), but I'd really like to start at the beginning, not in the middle.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted April 9, 2011
When I first picked up the first book in this four book series by Tad Williams I was a little confused at first about the overall direction this series would eventually take. After the first few chapters that confusion was replaced by curiousity.After completing 'City of Golden Shadow' I could not wait to delve into the next book in the series. The series has held my attention fully through three well written books and I can't wait to read the final book in the series. A true fan of the mixed genre of sci-fi and fantasy will enjoy this book as well as it's two predecessors.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
Was this review helpful? Yes NoThank you for your feedback. Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.The third installment in the Otherland series adds a mountain of information to the already complicated story. The main characters all continue to develop further into themselves, with some becoming a little too mushy towards each other. Dread continues to live up to his name, delighting in the pain and suffering he inflicts on others. While Rennie and Martine flip from heros to mindless victims several times throughout the book. Really enjoyed the visits in the recent similations. I think I enjoyed this version of Troy to the original poem. Some of the old characters fall off in this installment, not sure if some one will be back to finish the tale or not, or if it will make a huge difference either way. Can't wait to finish the last book to see where it all leads to.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted June 1, 2001
Tad Williams has spawned an amazing series in Otherland. It incorperates many believable future societal possibilities. Not only does his strong use of detail amaze any reader, but Mr. Williams does a beautiful job at 'setting up' his next and final book of the series. The ending is very moving and powerful. It's a curveball that not many would suspect. A must read. p.s. Not only are his books good, but his personality is golden. I had a chance to meet Mr. Williams a few weeks ago and was delighted to find that he is one of the nicest individuals that I have come in contact with.
1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.
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Posted May 20, 2013
Great at tying up all the loose ends
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Posted August 18, 2001
I read this book as well as the previous two. I loved them. The virtual reality worlds are described incredibly well. The characters draw you into the book. Due to being a poor college student I'm waiting excitedly for the Otherland IV to come out in paperback.
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Posted March 23, 2001
Mountain of Black Glass continued this exciting story of a virtual reality where people interact via simulations -- but are susceptible to harm and death. All the mysteries quietly laid out in the preceding two books begin to be resolved as the characters all come closer to the confrontation between The Grail Brotherhood and the heroes found by Sellars. A mysterious house, a large-scale battle in an Egyptian simulation, a kidnapping, and even the death(?) of one of the villains are just some of the events occurring within. I have enjoyed this series immensely, even down to the creative 'head-line news' which precede every chapter! The series grabs you, and there are elements of both science fiction and fantasy expertly molded together, and the series reads like a dark and possible future. These books are even better than Mr. William's excellent fantasy series ending with the 'Green Angel Tower' books.
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Posted January 17, 2001
When I started the first book in the searies, I was just a little confused. I read on out of curiosity (plus I had nothing better to do) and I became swept up in story. As I rounded the corner to the third book, I was starting to appriciate the charecters, they seemed almost alive. As I finished the third book, I was disapointed, they weren't all alive in the end. When Orlando Gardener died, I was hoping he would be ressurected by the otherworld network, like the old men were supossed to do. I can only hope that something great happens in the next book.
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Posted January 30, 2001
This books still has the 'what's going on' quality of the other two, but the action seems almost predictable at times. This novel also spends too much time with each character before going to the next character, only changing veiwpoints when the action gets to a climax. I'm still impressed by the grand scape of things, but I'm worried it will end up like Heinlien's 'number of the beat' where the worlds get sillier and sillier until they reach an obscure ending. Still the scope is astounding, and his harsh detailing of reality is gripping. I wait patiently for book 4.
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Posted November 4, 2000
Wow! Tad does it again! The first part of the Otherland series got me interested in this great tale and the second part kept me steadily going, and now, the third part has brought it to a new level! This is a must. Tad builds op the tension steadely until it reaches a dramatic and confusingly original end. I cannot wait to get my hands on the (final?) fourth part!
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Posted November 1, 2000
This is a really good book. If you have reas the previous books this is the best one yet. Even if you have not read the previos books it is still a good read.
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Posted December 11, 1999
This series is just getting better! Mountain of Black Glass has all the elements of storytelling. It's characters are so complex and real that I can indentify with many of them. The imagination and the realization that these things are possible are very captivating. God, I love this book, and I cannot wait for Book 4!!
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Posted November 26, 2008
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Posted November 9, 2008
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Overview
Mountain of Black Glass is the third volume of Tad Williams' highly acclaimed four-book series, Otherland. A truly unique reading experience combining elements of science fiction,fantasy, and techno-thriller, it is a rich epic tale in which virtual reality could prove the key to a whole new universe of possibilities for the entire human race—or become the exclusive domain of the rich and the ruthless as they seek a technological pathway to immortality....