Made it sixty pages, and just could not bring myself to read further, not even stuck on the train with nothing else to read. Too many viewpoint characters, too few of them interesting or sympathetic, too heavy-handed world-building and way too pedestrian prose. Sixty pages, and I'm not sure it couldn't have made a more compelling narrated prologue. But more importantly, sixty pages, and not a single emotional connection with this book that makes me reconsider pulling out the bookmark. ( )

Book 1 of the Terra Incognita series is definitely epic fantasy even though there is very little magic involved. That's because the scope of the story that Anderson is creating is so far reaching. Spanning several different story lines across over a dozen years the story and setting is truly epic in reach.

The characters that Anderson introduces us to are, for the most part, people with a history and background that gives them depth. We get to see the world through the eyes of everybody from kings to fishermen and this allows you to experience different aspects of the story from different perspectives. Even though there are so many characters, with a complex story, they are compelling and I wanted to find out more about them. I do have a couple of faults with the characters though. 1.) There are a few minor characters who crop up with their own chapters that actually could have been edited out without a great loss to the story lines of the main characters. This would have trimmed the book and sped up the pacing in a few places. 2.) Sometimes it feels like a main character is forgotten as the story arcs of other characters become the focus of the book. Then, they are picked up again with little information as to what has happened to them in the past year or more of time that has elapsed in the story.

Despite my concerns about some of the character arcs, what really sets The Edge of the World apart for me is the world building that Anderson has done. He has created a unique world filled with ancient legends, myths, and complex cultures and peoples. Most of the story focuses on the people and events that swirl around a growing religious war between the two main civilizations, and the complex history of the two religions is evident.

I recommend The Edge of the World for anybody who likes large, encompassing stories that involve a large cast. It is truly epic fantasy set on a complex and well-planned world. ( )

If this book was decades old, from an era when women did not expect to feature in fantasy novels except as pretty princesses and waifs in distress, it might have earned a full 5 stars from me. I liked the world Anderson set up in this book, though it is all very sexist, racist and full of stupid, self-centered, closed-minded people. I did not find myself liking any of the protagonists by the end of this book except the hermit sailor who spends most of his life on a mountain with his sheep. The women in this book are too willing to fall into their pre-scripted roles, as are the men, and they all seem far too bloodthirsty and eager to kill and be killed. I know real people can be like that, but this world seems too extremely volatile in that respect. As a more minor note, I also had issues with the mechanics of Anderson's world. The big fancy ship that sails off to explore the world travels west (or maybe east, I forget exactly) and somehow the sailors find themselves under totally new constellations, yet with the layout of their known world, one would expect that a polar cap lies above the cold part of the northern continent, suggesting that the planet spins on a north/south axis. If so, the constellations shouldn't change much travelling east or west, right? I was also perturbed that the expeditions to explore the far seas and find distant lands never plan to carry multiple back-up chartsmen.
So, I had issues enough with this book to not give it 5 stars, but it seems like it might still be a series worth reading. I may not for a while, since my library only owns bits and pieces of this author's series, but I may read the rest eventually. ( )

I gave up reading this book of one dimensional characters and bland story lines... not a good read for me ( )

DNF(Did NOT Finish!) Just couldn't get into it. Loved his collaborations with Neil Peart of the rock band RUSH, but just couldn't get into this one. I tried... ( )