This is really just a couple of chapters from The Illearth War, so it's not even a novella. It also makes no sense outside the context of the Chronicles.

So why did I give it a 3/5? Because I absolutely love the first and second chronicles, and Gilden Fire adds some interesting details about the bloodguard like how they came to serve the lords.

But it's a very short book, and is only really worth considering if you want the extra details. I think it should be a free download really, as it's really extra content rather than a separate work, but obviously that wasn't an option when this was published in the 1980s. ( )

This is very short, really a short story or novelette. As Donaldson himself describes it, it is a segment of 'The Illearth War' that was removed because it didn't really fit in with the rest of the book. Even so, its an excellent story, one of my favorite of the First Chronicles of Thomas Covenant. In fact, reading it is important background for the latest trilogy. ( )