I made the decision this year not to read novels over 250 pages, because I read so slowly, and I tend to lose interest. Plus, a lot of longer novels just really could be cut down a lot. But I started this one, and it actually kept me engaged. Big ideas. The plot certainly has a bit of "Forbidden Planet" element to - not copied at all, just in the same tradition. Anyway, it moves really well and is a lot of fun. No wonder this series was on every bookstore SF shelf I ever saw back in the 1980s. I'll probably read more from this series. ( )

Fantasy/Sci-fi books are my favorite genre. I particularly like the character of Nathan Brazil and how he ends up on the Well World. There are quite an imaginative number of creatures throughout the book, and I'm looking forward to reading more in the series. ( )

This book and I have a history. My parents were both huge fans of Chalker and this book in particular. To hear my mom tell, I was very nearly named Nathan, after the protagonist Nathan Brazil. Then I actually read this as an impressionable teenage nerd which kinda kicked off a whole science fiction obsession. I was a very popular high schooler. Not. lol

Just re-read. Showing its age in some ways but holds up pretty well. The concept is a genuine mindbender, very imaginative. Story breezes along, although I wish there had been one more revision to tighten up the prose. ( )

Chalker, Jack L. Midnight at the Well of Souls. 1977. Well of Souls No. 1. Baen, 2002.
Jack Chalker’s first novel, Midnight at the Well of Souls, was an immediate hit and elevated him from a fan and hobbyist to a professional at the top of his field, a position he maintained for more than two decades, powered mainly by the Well World series. Science fiction fans knew him as one of their own. Protagonist Nathan Brazil is a grizzled old freighter captain ferrying his cargo and a few passengers between stars. A distress call forces him to land on an uncharted planet, where he discovers a group of murdered humans. Then his shuttle disappears, and he and his party are led into a labyrinth of multiple biospheres run by a planet-scale AI with the ability to alter their bodies and transfer their consciousnesses at will. Nathan Brazil, it also turns out, is not what he seems. Chalker’s influences were many. Among those he cites are Jack Vance, with whom he shared a penchant for blending myth and science. Like most science fiction authors of the time, he was also influenced by Robert Heinlein, from whom learned something about giving his characters individualized voices. He also notes the influence of James White, with whom he shared the ability to create precisely described alien biology and large-scale artificial habitats. Midnight at the Well of Souls was published just a few years after Larry Niven’s Ringworld and Arthur C. Clarke’s Rendezvous with Rama, both of which offer models for large-scale multiple biospheres. Brazil is a wonderful character, and I remember that when I first read Midnight, I became impatient whenever he was offstage. Chalker is not as much read these days, but I enjoyed getting reacquainted with him. Four stars. ( )

This was a really tough book to rate. I loved the world that the author created, but I don't think I can give the book higher than 3 stars, as the writing (Chalker abused adverbs throughout) and plotting was a bit clunky at times. That aside, I'll still probably try the next book in the series. ( )