Rating: 
Summary: I don't know if I liked these or not
Review: I had a hard time reading this series. I found them incredibly wordy, metaphorical, and descriptive. The characters were well rounded. You really got to know them and the Land. Although I did get tired of the main character whining. These books are very moody and meloncholy and there was not and ounce of humor in these books. It was a series that I had a love/hate relationship with, one minute I loved the book and the next minute i just wanted to throw the book in a corner and never pick it up again. The author has a unique and intelligent writing style. But I couldn't help but wonder if the author has a problem with women? I wouldn't recommend this series to anyone who is looking for some light reading. But They are page turners none the less, and they did get better later on in the series. Definitly like the last one the best.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic series worth problems with 1st book
Review: I don't want to put anyone off this series, just the opposite. Be aware that Lord Foul's Bane is by far the least of the Covenant series. Donaldson's inventiveness shows itself early on in the presentation of the Land. But his early clumsiness in ripping off Tolkien on a number of occasions is quite distressing. More bothersome is the extremely poor handling by Donaldson of the rape that occurs early in the book. The characterizations initially are more confused than complex. Donaldson corrects most of these problems in the later books. But the mother of the victim, for example, is terribly written and totally unbelievable, lacking in depth and in having inexplicable motives. And Covenant becomes so unlikable that many people I have asked about the book put it down midway through Lord Foul's Bane.There are other blind spots in this book, and even a huge fan of the series like myself has to force my way through many sections of Lord Foul's Bane. But here's the point of this review: the rest of the series is worth the trouble! By midway through The Illearth War, any fantasy fan will be totally caught up in the depth of Donaldson's characters and his unbelievable inventiveness. And many readers that did not believe they were fantasy fans will have their minds changed. The Power that Preserves just gets better. If you can possibly put the series down at the end of the 1st Chronicles, you will miss some of the greatest science fiction writing ever, especially in The One Tree. The 1st book of the 2nd Chronicles, The Wounded Land, resembles Lord Foul's Bane by being the least of the three books in the series (although it is much superior to Lord Foul's Bane). The One Tree has everything, from a hugely complex and moving love story, to some of the best plot twists ever written. Donaldson is a writer that is worth the trouble of the first book. Those that dislike Covenant so intensely that you have trouble finishing the book, I empathize with you. But Donaldson will more than reward your efforts later on!
Rating: 
Summary: On the short list of great achievements in fantasy...
Review: I have nothing new to add to the positive reviews here. I only would say that I read this series when it was first released, and I bought each new novel after Lord Foul's Bane as soon as they came out. Donaldson is one of our best Sci-Fi/Fantasy writers, and this is his seminal work. Thomas Covenant is so intriguing because he probably the ultimate reluctant or "anti" hero. Add the character to a fantastic world full of unique creatures, characters, and conflicts and you have the recipe for great epic fantasy. If you haven't read Donaldson, this is the place to start.
Rating:
Summary: One of the Greatest
Review: Well, I first read Lord Foul's Bane approximately 6 years ago, and I quickly read the remaining Chronicles of Thomas Covenant. These books are extraordinary. Thomas Covenant is quite possibly the ultimate anti-hero, with the exception of Elric, of course. He is not a likeable man, but we can sympathize with him to a certain extent: Thomas Covenant was a successful man; he had it all - a beautiful wife, a son, a bestselling novel, and, unbewknownst to him, leprosy. When leprosy takes the last two fingers of his right hand, his wife becomes scared and leaves him, taking their son with her. Covenant becomes a social pariah, an "outcast unclean", despised in a town where previously people have loved him. Covenant is (unwillingly) thrust into a fantasy land when he is hit by a car; his leprosy is magically healed, and people hail him as a hero reborn because of his half-hand and white gold wedding band. Covenant refuses to believe in this world, and so is title the Unbeliever. Caught in one of his own fantasies (is it? If you think it's real, then read VERY carefully...), quite possibly lying in a gutter almost dead, Covenant is dragged unwillingly through the landscape of his imagination. The writing is superb, although you'll probably need a dictionary - Donaldson has a rather large vocabulary. The lessons on hope, love, fear and Despite that one takes away from this trilogy will last with you a lifetime.
Rating:
Summary: short and sweet
Review: This is the best series I've read, and the first book is a great example why. If you are looking for a long, very involved fantasy series with a sprawling story line and all the best of the major trappings of the genre, but with an Anti-hero lead in place of the standard cliche "young unaware but born-for-greatness wizard (this is NOT Harry Potter; think more like Frodo if he were older and terribly bitter), then you're there!
Rating: 
Summary: Good but not Great
Review: This first book of Donaldson's Covenant series would've been wonderful were there not so many either obvious hooks for the stereotypical male reader of fantasy or faults in donaldson's memory. He has created some interesting cultures (honestly, I think the Giants and the Bloodguard are the only reason to read this series) but I have always been irked by the fact that the charcter Lena is apparently slender and delicate when everyone of her people/race/tribe are described as these strong, broad shouldered, earthy people-- i know suspension of disbelief and all, but that kept gnawing at the back of my mind as i read this. However, it is a nice light imaginative read, and if you have time on your hands, his race of giants are worth getting to know.
Rating:
Summary: Finially! An Adult Fantasy
Review: If you've been longing for a mature, adult fantasy series, Donaldson delivers. Lord Foul's Bane is the first of two (and going on three?) triologies which breaks the mold which contiues to plague fantasy today--they all seem to be written for 15 year old boys. if you can get past Donaldfson's irritatingly complex style (and a boring first 40 pages), you are in for a treat. More than any other modern fantasy, Donaldson challenges his readers, brings them into a vivid world which pointedly asks some very tough questions. And all the while with adventures, battles, and magic. Each book of the series gets better. The story starts slow, but the suspense and action build whith each book. By the end, I was devouring dozens of pages at a time.
Rating: 
Summary: I must be honest - it is not well written
Review: I agree with what a lot of the other reviewers say - Thomas Covenant is a great anti-hero, and the whole series is filled with fantastic philosophical insight that leads one to think. In that respect, this series is close to being great, classic literature. It just doesn't make it, though, on two counts. One, the characters aren't quite compelling enough to really get one to react to them intellectually, morally, emotionally, etc. Secondly, and this is my biggest problem with the series, is that it is simply very poorly written. I read it in high school, I read it in college, I read it in seminary when I was 30 - I felt the book deserved an attempt at different growth stages in my life - but never liked it, and I won't try anymore. The story is not written in a compelling way, I didn't care about the characters, the dialogue felt unreal, it drones on and on, it never bothered me to set the book down - in fact I really forced my way through to the end, simply as an act of self-will to see if I could do it (and I love Joyce and German writing, and Wagner operas, so it's not that I don't like long, slow movement - but it should be interesting). Not to say it isn't a great story - it's wonderful. But it's a poorly executed story, and that cost it all the stars. In terms of its importance in the fantasy genre, this is a very important series to read because it is a foundational, common knowledge series that all fantasy buffs should be familiar with. So I give it one star, but I tell you to read it anyway.
Rating:
Summary: This book will capture you...
Review: The main character, Thomas Covenant, is a man who has contracted leprosy and lives reluctantly as an 'unclean' hermit, outcast and pariah amid a society that has rejected him. In his protest of his neighbors paying his bills for him (in their attempt to keep him from ever having to leave the house) he ventures forth to pay his phone bill in person, only to find the bill is already paid. On his return walk to his home he is hit by a speeding police car and awakes in a different world called 'The Land'. His first encounter is with the Despiser, Lord Foul whom the people of the land call the 'Gray Slayer'. Lord Foul desires to escape from 'The Land' and eradicate all hope from the Earth, but can only do so if he possesses white gold, which carries with it unusual and invincible power in the land, the very substance of Thomas Covenants wedding ring. Only Lord Foul cannot take it, it must be relinquished by Covenant for him to make use of the power. The white gold is the most powerful substance in the land, but the trouble is that Covenant has no idea how to use it! Covenant becomes the reluctant hero in a story he does not want to be a part of, or believe. He is thus called the 'Unbeliever' and the story unfolds. There is an incredible mixture of characters in the book by Donaldson that will capture your heart and soul. From the 'Blood Guard' warriors, who are self-appointed body guards to the most important people in the land, to the mighty giants longing to return home, this book has some of the most imaginative characters in fiction. Donaldson has accomplished the greatest challenge faced by any writer in this work by creating an entirely new fantasy world that will dismay your imagination. My first impression was that I disliked Thomas Covenant, but as I read on through all three books in this series, and the three in the second series, my viewpoint changed. Covenant grows with this story, as does the reader and you will find yourself emotionally captured in the struggle for freedom with the characters within these pages. This book is a brilliantly creative work that you will thoroughly enjoy, and is the first book in the entire series of six.
Rating:
Summary: THE BEGINNING
Review: This book along with the Sword of Shannara by T. Brooks, are what hooked me to SF and Fantasy my senior year of high school. That was 1980. I've loved reading ever since. I personally think the first Donaldson trilogy is the best ever writen. Yes, even better than Tolkien. I've read the series twice and I'm sure I will read it again. It's pure fantasy, a pure joy to read. It's one of the first books I mention for someone who hasn't read fantasy to read, to get them hooked as I was. On a scale of 1 - 5 it's really a 6!
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