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Classic Wuxia Novels


paimeifist

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1 hour ago, Chu Liu Hsiang said:

The 4th volume of Legends of the Condor Heroes: A Heart Divided was postponed to April 2021.

I just now discovered that Libraire You Feng has  published tomes 4 and 5 of Tian Long Ba Bu (Semi-Gods and Demi-Devils) which is great timing as I am close to finishing tome 2. 

Heyne Verlag published the first volume of Legend of the Condor Heroes as Die Legende der Adlerkrieger so it's now also available in German.

 

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Wow ! Great news, thanks ! I need to complete this collection, then, since I already bought the first books !

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On 5/21/2020 at 7:08 PM, whitesnake said:

I just found this on Amazon.com - Wuxia, 88 Tales of Chinese Chivalry and Martial Arts, translations from the classics by Hwong Seng, August 24, 2019, Kindle Edition, $5. Amazon lets you take a look inside. I might finally get a Kindle.

WUXIA, 88 Tales of Chinese Chivalry and Martial Arts: translations from the classics by [HWONG SENG]

 

Great news, thanks.

But...it forces people to buy a kindle...:bs_firey:

Well...I tried to take a look inside and never found where to do so...:bs_angry::angry

:monk_crying:

Edited by ShawAngela
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Chu Liu Hsiang
22 hours ago, ShawAngela said:

 

Well...I tried to take a look inside and never found where to do so

It should work if you click on "feuilletter" above the picture of the book. It's a nice feature (provided it works). What I also like about kindle is that for most books you can get a free extract sent to your device, which is long enough to decide if one wants to buy the book or not. Maybe other  providers offer this too.  

feuilleter.jpg

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2 hours ago, Chu Liu Hsiang said:

It should work if you click on "feuilletter" above the picture of the book. It's a nice feature (provided it works). What I also like about kindle is that for most books you can get a free extract sent to your device, which is long enough to decide if one wants to buy the book or not. Maybe other  providers offer this too.  

feuilleter.jpg

Oh, thank you ! Actually, I was on amazon.de or amazon .uk and I was unable to take a look, but on amazon.fr, yes, I got it !!

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Glad to see this thread, as Wuxia is my favorite genre! I'm waiting for Volume 4 of Legend of the Condor Heroes in English. I'm hoping they will complete the entire Condor Trilogy, as I love Heaven Sword & Dragon Saber. 

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Didn't realize there was a thread for this, posted some stuff in the Gu Long adaptations thread and the what are you reading thread, but probably worth repeating here that you can find a lot of classic wuxia fan translations at wuxia society.  I've been a bit distracted by other stuff, but so far I really enjoyed Condor Heroes from Jin Yong as well as Gu Long's Joyous Hero for a more casual wuxia hangout novel.

I've been very slowly trying to learn Mandarin and Cantonese so its been fun to get Mandarin audiobooks for these and listen along while reading the translation.  I know there's a lot of untranslated wuxia authors I want to try in the future when my language is better as well as some earlier untranslated stuff.  Also found a lot of older Cantonese radio dramas for a lot of these (maybe some were produced alongside the television adaptations?).  Overall lots of fun to continue exploring wuxia stuff since being obsessed with the movies for so long.

Edited by YnEoS
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Chu Liu Hsiang

Legend of the Condor Heroes seems to sell well in German translation too, the 2nd volume is announced for May 2021. 

 

41JCbibt20L._SX328_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg

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2 minutes ago, Chu Liu Hsiang said:

Legend of the Condor Heroes seems to sell well in German translation too, the 2nd volume is announced for May 2021. 

 

41JCbibt20L._SX328_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg

That's great news! I'm just surprised it took this long (especially after Jin Yong's passing) for The Condor Trilogy to receive official translations. 

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Chu Liu Hsiang

I just received my copy of the 4th volume of Legends of the Condor Heroes. The last page of the book is titled Return of the Condor Heroes and very briefly describes the plot setting of ROCH so I assume and hope they will publish it too, as was their inital plan. This initial plan had also included publication of Heaven Sword, Dragon Sabre.  

https://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/jin-yong-remembered/

A Hero Born, the first volume of LOCH has been included to the Time Magazine's List of the 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Times. 

https://www.maclehosepress.com/maclehose-press-news/2020/10/16/jin-yong-among-the-fantasy-greats/

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Iron_Leopard
On 3/27/2021 at 10:33 AM, Chu Liu Hsiang said:

I just received my copy of the 4th volume of Legends of the Condor Heroes. The last page of the book is titled Return of the Condor Heroes and very briefly describes the plot setting of ROCH so I assume and hope they will publish it too, as was their inital plan. This initial plan had also included publication of Heaven Sword, Dragon Sabre.  

https://www.the-tls.co.uk/articles/jin-yong-remembered/

A Hero Born, the first volume of LOCH has been included to the Time Magazine's List of the 100 Best Fantasy Books of All Times. 

https://www.maclehosepress.com/maclehose-press-news/2020/10/16/jin-yong-among-the-fantasy-greats/

I want to read The Condor Trilogy but I'm so intimidated by how many characters and martial arts sects there are. I don't know if I would be able to keep up with it all.

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7 hours ago, Iron_Leopard said:

I want to read The Condor Trilogy but I'm so intimidated by how many characters and martial arts sects there are. I don't know if I would be able to keep up with it all.

Just take a piece of paper and takes notes on the sects and their main members, maybe it would help.

I confess that I didn't do it and I haven't even finished to read all of the books I was able to find in French language...

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Chu Liu Hsiang
7 hours ago, ShawAngela said:

Just take a piece of paper and takes notes on the sects and their main members, maybe it would help.

 

I always do that for books with complex personnel, it's really useful. Sometimes I also note down the page where that character/ clan etc.  is introduced, to be able to re-check details quickly.

Actually the first volume does not have that many characters/ sects, and they do not all get introduced at the same time. Each volume contains a list of main characters, and explanation of some terms. 

Go for it @Iron_Leopard reading wuxia is really a great experience. 

 

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On 4/18/2021 at 9:01 PM, Iron_Leopard said:

I want to read The Condor Trilogy but I'm so intimidated by how many characters and martial arts sects there are. I don't know if I would be able to keep up with it all.

I don't think its so much an issue, the only part I found a bit confusing was in the first several chapters it was a bit disorienting where the crux of the story was going to be, i.e. you're not introduced to the main characters and conflict until a little while in.  But characters are introduced gradually enough that its not too much to take in at once.  But after you're past the early section you pretty much know the main players and its not too tricky to follow.

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Iron_Leopard

My Dad surprised me yesterday by buying and sending me the first book "Legend of the Condor Heroes". 

I'm starting it this weekend. Wish me luck lol.

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Iron_Leopard

Finished "A Hero Born"! Could not believe how good it was.

"A Bond Undone" should be here tomorrow or Wednesday from Amazon. 

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Chu Liu Hsiang

I'm glad you enjoyed it, and will continue with the other volumes! Do watch the BRAVE ARCHER movies right after finishing with the books. Usually I am not keen on movie adaptions of books I really like but with wuxia novels it's another thing. Such fun to see what they made of it, and last not least the fighting, of course. 

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Does anyone know if the source material for The Magic Blade (assuming it was a published novel and not a story treatment) was adapted into any other movie?

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Chu Liu Hsiang

MAGIC BLADE is based on Gu Long’s “Horizon, Bright Moon, Sabre”, there are several tv series but I am not aware of another movie adaptation. However, there is at least one other movie version of “Bordertown Wanderer” (the novel on which the other Shaw Fu Hong Xue vehicle PURSUIT OF VENGEANCE is based), the 1993 production A WARRIOR’S TRAGEDY which also stars Ti Lung. 

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Chu Liu Hsiang

Unofficial English translations of three Gu Long novels (Dragon King With Seven Stars, The Seven Killers, Heroes Shed No Tears) can be downloaded for free on writer/ translator Jeremy Bai's website  https://jeremybai.com/

He also posted them on spcnet board but being able to download them to computer or ebook reader with one click makes reading much more comfortable. Very much appreciated!!

 

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whitesnake
Posted (edited)

The Investiture of the Gods, Part 1, Book 1 of 1, written by Jeff Pepper, in English, is based on the 16th century Chinese novel, Fengshen Yanyi, "a romanticised retelling of the overthrow of King Zhou, the last ruler of the Shang dynasty... Battles are waged between the kingdoms of Shang and Zhou, with both sides calling upon various supernatural beings -  deities, immortals, demons, spirits, and humans with magical abilities." (Wikipedia)  Movies based on the story include The Story of Chinese Gods (1976, with animated Bruce Lee as Erlang, on Youtube), Na Cha and the Seven Devils (1973, Shaw Brothers, on Youtube), Na Cha the Great (1974, starring Fu Sheng),  League of Gods (2014 movie with Jet Li, released in 2017 by Well Go), Ne Zha (animated film released by Well Go in 2020), Jiang Ziya (animated film released by Well Go in 2021) and Creation of the Gods 1 (of 3): Kingdom of Storms (Cine-Asia Blu-ray release in UK in August 2024).

This Jeff Pepper paperback version (with chapters 1-50) was published by Imagin8 Press in November 2023), available in paperback and Kindle. I don't know how good this edition is, since I only found it on Amazon this afternoon. The price is reasonable. Jeff Pepper also wrote the Last King of Shang, Books 1 (chapters 1-17), 2 (chapters 18-34, and 3 (chapters 35-50): Based on Investiture of the Gods by Xu Zhonglin, in Easy Chinese, Pinyin, and English (with translator listed as Xiao Hui Wang), Kindle editions, 2023. Kindle editions available on Amazon. Na Cha (fire wheels and all) is in the lower left of the cover. 

Update: So I bought the book off Amazon and discover that the original version of the novel, Creation of the Gods, translated and published in English in two volumes by New World Press in 1992, actually had 4 books in those 2 volumes. This new translation by Jeff Pepper only has Book 1 (of 4). He does say that the original New World Press complete translation is online for free at www.tinyurl.com/FengShenBang-2 and the original Chinese text is free at www.tinyurl.com/FengShenBang-1 (I don't know how these tinyurl things work)  

The Investiture of the Gods, Part 1

Edited by whitesnake
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Chu Liu Hsiang
Posted (edited)

Two Gu Long novels in English language available as paperback and ebook, translated by Chen Faxing.

 

aka Sentimental Swordsman, Ruthless Sword

image.png

image.png.301aa24cbbbe2d9563a28b7af1977d93.png

 

aka Divine Sword of the Sky

image.png.922e935eed8551f4ff9cdf523fa91200.png

image.png.359fc70dc2052168d24e480216518712.png

 

Edited by Chu Liu Hsiang
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Yihetuan
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Jesse Smooth

Are there any novels that are set in the Republican era? Not wuxia, but gung fu? Boxer novels?

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