Mavin keeps her new ability to shift a secret from all but her man-beleaguered elder sister which gives her just time enough to plan and escape that fate. This compact adventure is a gem, only hampered a bit by being trimmed to precede the original 3 novels of the True Game. ( )

Finished this book so easily! I can just step right into Sheri's worlds and trust that I won't get out until I am ready. Usually that means that I take my time with her books and enjoy the stay, but this was a quick read and I got to the end before I realized! Mavin is a wonderful character, so wise at such a young age. I just love how she goes against the grain of traditional teaching to figure out her own way of being, which causes her to become so much more.

I just love Sheri S. Tepper. Plain and simple. This book is linked with the King's Blood Four series but more of a prequel. It explains how Mavin Manyshaped comes to be and I just love the character. She is definitely a strong female lead! I'm about a quarter of the way in.... ( )

This was a pretty original fantasy tale that got into some dark territory early on and then swayed away from it. I feel like there's probably a very complicated world behind this story, but we only get a glimpse of it. The "Gamesman" part of it didn't seem very fleshed out, as if she got too distracted with the action and just went with it.

I did like the fact that there are 3 books, but the first book has closure on almost all the issues. Since they're so short I will probably get to the other 2 at some point, but I don't feel like I HAVE to read them right away. ( )

Early Tepper!
This has been kicking around under my ownership for a while, and I decided to read it now because the title character was mentioned, in passing, in the last Patricia McKillip book I read (Od Magic). This made me go, "Huh, is Mavin a mythological character, not just a fictional character?" No. It's just an homage.
Still, it deserves an homage.
I really liked this book. It does show that it's an early work (1985, her 4th or 5th novel, I believe). This is both good and bad. The prose is less masterful and some elements of the plot are more 'typical' than in her later works. However, while the strong feminist elements that Tepper is known for are indubitably here, the tone is less didactic than in her more recent books.
Mavin is a young woman who has grown up in an isolated community of rather inbred shapeshifters. This generation, the group is experiencing a severe lack of women. When the rather naive Mavin finally realizes what this situation will mean she is expected to do when she comes of age, she decides to break with tradition and set off on her own to gain her independence and discover her abilities. Unexpectedly, she is soon caught up in an adventure involving plots, politics, plague, and a legendary race of beings called 'shadowpeople.' ( )

Read as the first book in the omnibus edition, "The Chronicles of Mavin Manyshaped" ( )