Wander” (1962). These early short episodes were
collected as Who Fears the Devil?(1963). Later in
his career Wellman began writing book-length ad-
ventures that are invariably entertaining but lack
some of the charm of the shorter pieces. The Silver
John novels are The Old Gods Waken(1979), After
Dark(1980), in which a hidden race of nonhumans
are found to be living in Appalachia, The Lost and
the Lurking(1981), whose menace is a modern-day
witch, The Hanging Stones(1982), which proves
that developers should be careful not to offend the
“real” owners of remote plots of land, and The Voice
from the Mountain(1985).
What Dreams May Come (1983) and The
School of Darkness (1985) revived John Thun-
stone, whose earlier short adventures were col-
lected as Lonely Vigils (1981). The Beyonders
(1977) is a less successful stand-alone novel in
which creatures from another dimension invade
Appalachia and are eventually repulsed. Wellman
was a very prolific writer, much of whose early
work has been deservedly forgotten. At his best he
wrote effective, efficiently plotted short stories
that move directly to their point, and his Silver
John books and stories are a unique and underes-
timated blend of folklore and contemporary super-
natural themes.
Wells, Angus(1943– )
Although the majority of Angus Wells’s published
fiction has not been in the fantasy field, he has
been an intermittent contributor whose work has
shown very obvious development with experience.
His first appearance was under the name Richard
Kirk for the Raven series of sword and sorcery fan-
tasies that began with Swordsmistress of Chaos
(1978), written in collaboration with Robert
HOLDSTOCK. Wells wrote two of the four sequels,
and Holdstock penned the remaining titles.
Wells wrote no further fantasy until Wrath of
Ashar(1988), the first volume of the Kingdoms tril-
ogy. The god Ashar is a tyrant who wishes to de-
prive humans of their freedom. He is opposed by
the Lady, another godlike being, who like Ashar
cannot intervene directly but uses human servants
to carry out her wishes. The hero is blinded at the
end of the first novel and must travel into a kind of
otherworld to confront his assailant in the second
volume, The Usurper(1989). The battle is finally
resolved in The Way Beneath(1990). The rather
similar Godwars trilogy, Forbidden Magic (1991),
Dark Magic(1992), and Wild Magic(1993) fol-
lowed. This time the malevolent god is insane but
asleep. Unfortunately, a villainous wizard is deter-
mined to waken him, and a band of adventurers
has to overcome an exciting if somewhat familiar
array of villains and dangerous situations in order
to foil his plot.
Lords of the Sky(1994) was the first of Wells’s
novels to demonstrate an ability to rise above
genre clichés. His magical land is divided into na-
tions, one of which has recently developed a primi-
tive form of aircraft, just as the international
situation drifts toward war. The novel is far more
introspective than his earlier work, and Wells takes
much greater pains to create his imagined world in
depth and detail. He also tackles moral questions
about warfare and duty to one’s country in a re-
freshing and intelligent fashion. Exile’s Children
(1995) and Exile’s Challenge(1996) are essentially
one continuous story. Another fabulous land is
threatened by external invasion, and in the after-
math former slaves seek to find a new role for
themselves. Yesterday’s Kings(2001), complete in
itself, is more conventional, the story of a belea-
guered people seeking a magical defense against
their enemies. Although Wells sometimes settles
for providing superficial backgrounds and charac-
terization, he is at his best when he takes the time
to flesh-in his creation. With more than 70 non-
fantasy novels to his credit, he has certainly proved
that he can be prolific, but his fantasy has so far
only hinted at his writing talents.Wells, Martha(1964– )
Although Martha Wells has not been a prolific
writer since her debut in 1993, she has proved
herself to be one of the most inventive new fan-
tasy writers and has quietly gained a loyal follow-
ing. Her first novel was The Element of Fire(1993),
which on its surface is yet another story of the
struggle for control of a throne, in this case occu-
pied by a weak king who lacks the will and skill to
resist his enemies. The plot is very complex, with374 Wells, Angus