Spellbinding start to a marvellous series - Rated 
This is the first volume in the first of two marvellous fantasy quartets.
The first series, "A man of his word" has titles taken from Keats' "Ode to a nightingale" and the titles perfectly match the themes of the books.
The lines which inspired the titles are as follows -
"The voice I hear this passing night was heard
In ancient days, by Emperor and Clown ....
... The same that oft-times hath
Charmed magic casements, opening on the foam
of perilous seas, in Faery lands forlorn"
The four books of the first quartet are
The Magic Casement
Faery Lands Forlorn
Perilous Seas
Emperor and Clown
These four books tell one complete story and are best read in this order.
There is a sequel quartet, set 15 years later in the same universe, which is called "A handful of men" and has its titles taken from Masefield's poem, "Tomorrow." The four books in that story are
The Cutting Edge
Upland Outlaws
The Stricken Field
The Living God
All eight books are set in a world of Gods and Sorcerers, where magic abilities are conferred by the knowledge of words of power. The descriptions of magic powers and how they work are far more effectively and consistently thought through than in the typical fantasy novel, and as the hero and heroine travel through a strange and diverse world a picture both of that world and the serious threat which it faces gradualy takes shape.
The Magic casement opens in the sleepy town of Krasnegar, where Inos is the only daughter of King Holindarn. Her best friend is the stableboy, rap. A divine apparition warns her to "Seek the Good" and adds "If you do not trust in love, all will be lost."
Initially this message is taken as meaning that Inos must marry, and her father sends her to the Imperial capital to learn how to be a lady. But this is only the start of her travels, and strange adventures, throughout a strange, beautiful, and dangerous world.
The original paperback editions of the "A man of his word" quartet had beautiful covers painted by Don Maitz, and the books would almost have been worth buying for these covers if they had not also comprised a beautiful story.
This is a fantastic book! - Rated
This book is absolutely fantastic! You don't realise you are turning pages as you read it and find yourself surprised by how far you have come in the past 10 seconds! I recomend it to any Fantasy Fan and I look forward to reading the second book in this marvelous seiries! The style of his writting is so fluid and natural that you don't see words but the pictures that they create! A definate must have!
This is a fantastic book! - Rated
This book is absolutely fantastic! You don't realise you are turning pages as you read it and find yourself surprised by how far you have come in the past 10 seconds! I recomend it to any Fantasy Fan and I look forward to reading the second book in this marvelous seiries!
I love this book!! - Rated
This was the first real fantasy book I ever read, and it has remained my favorite despite 10 years of reading *tons* of other fantasy novels. When I picked up this book I just couldn't put it down! I was fascinated by the world Duncan created and how thoroughly he thought out the social system. I loved the strength of Inos and Aunt Kade. Neither of them is the wilting wait-for-some-man-to-save-me kind of woman. What truly captured me was the love between Rap and Inos. I was 13 at the time I first read this, and the way Rap felt about Inos was the way I wanted to be loved someday. And yet the relationship between Rap and Little Chicken was almost as engrossing. (And scary.) Even those of my friends who didn't really like to read were sucked into this book. I really recommend this story!!!
Great book - Rated
This book is great, but as the series goes on, the quality declines. Sorry!
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