• Assassin of Gor

  • Gorean Saga, Book 5
  • By: John Norman
  • Narrated by: Ralph Lister
  • Length: 16 hrs and 47 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (454 ratings)

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Assassin of Gor  By  cover art

Assassin of Gor

By: John Norman
Narrated by: Ralph Lister
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Publisher's summary

Welcome to Gor, a parallel Earth, where social norms are exotic and the way of life is brutal. In the fifth book in the Gorean Series, the deadly assassin Kuurus is intent on a bloody mission of vengeance. His adventure takes him from the caste of the pleasure-slaves, which are rigorously trained in the rules and techniques of sexual ecstasy, to the brutal arenas where humans participate in deadly hand-to-hand combat. He witnesses violence, conflict and uncertainty, as the inhabitants of Counter-Earth are forced to confront their destinies…no matter how exalted or debased.

©1971 John Norman (P)2011 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

What listeners say about Assassin of Gor

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  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars

wow writing styles have changed...

This was OK. This was my first book by John Norman I know this one is smack dab in the middle of a huge series but I didn't feel lost at all.

I did have a problem with the writing style, the I said she said back and forth got REALLY old. I also felt there was WAY too much description, don't get me wrong you need a good amount but it seems like the author would go off on tangents on descriptions of things that I didn't need to or care to know.

The love scenes, at least by today's standards, was non existent.

The narrator was ok but for the female voices he just sounded like a drag queen (nothing against drag queens) and so I had a hard time listening to the female voices, lucky it is told mostly in first person.

Overall an interesting read that I am not sad I purchased but would not purchase any more from John Norman, it's just not my cup of tea.

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7 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Hella sexist!!

The first of this series and second even are tolerable but the third and fourth are so sexually detrimental to women that it is downright disturbing. This series was written in the 60’s and the author really takes it there as far as women being enslaved. All women are enslaved all the time and are supposed to like it in these books. I literally began hating men from listening to these books. Awful.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Gorean Saga

The Gorean series is basically Conan the barbarian meets a smut novel on another world. There's lots of violent battles and vicious giant man eaters with a dash BDSM. The series gets a little repetitive as the books go on but not to badly for a 20 plus book series. If you liked the John Carter in 'A Princess of Mars' series most likely you'll enjoy these books there very similar. I prefer the Gorean series myself, except the ones narrated by women which I haven't bought so don't know if there good or not I personal dislike women narrates.

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4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wow.. I mean... Wow

I love this series. Thank you for bringing it to us. I am a a bit saddened that I only have one left to listen to.. Please complete the series for us!

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

When a Plan Comes Together

The previous book, Nomads, has the best character development and this book serves as well-plotted. You can see the plot lines and what is happening a mile away - not too many surprises, but still its' very clear every character throughout the long saga of story is like a chess piece - and will play an important role in the end game. it's well planned.

Nice touches in this one include Tarl getting in over his head and a return of a favorite animal and leader. At the same time - more of the tragedy of Norman's long-winded dialogues and repetitive scenes as well. Norman writes battle scenes well -- but thinks he writes slave scenes well (when it's all the same scene - -"I am smart and hate slavery, I want to be a slave. I love you Tarl Cabot. I am free but want to be a slave for you tarl cabot." ). Sadly he cuts a great scene (his first tarn tournament as Gladius by just saying "Gladius won that tournament" then goes into a 30 page description of stave training techniques.)

Too much of the wrong details. Seriously - when Vella said, "There are 104 ways for a stave to enter a room" I almost cried because I thought I was going to have to listen to them all. Fortunately, he only describes 3. So, good plotting (every character has a purpose) but repetitious and tedious description.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    1 out of 5 stars
  • J
  • 09-07-13

Not the target audience!

I love a good surprise, and I thought this book might be it, from the reviews; however, it was a drag...slow and meandering without much of a plot or point.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

IT GOT ME EMOTIONALLY INVOLVED...

I've been a fan of these book for 51 years. I was 14 when I picked up Tarnsman buying it from a discount book store with the allowance I made at baby sitting (do teens do that any more?); I would haunt second hand bookstores to buy books I thought I would love reading at a discount price. I read Tarnsman (was taken in by the Boris Vallejo cover) and was hooked, drowning in an adventure on Earths counter part, invisible because our sun is in the way. :) Can it really be 51 years?

At one time I had to move and I got rid of all of my books except two, my Bible and Assassin of Gor. I loved the book that much, (not as much as the Bible but the story stayed with me) rereading it several times until the pages became loose, like my Bible (that I had since I was around 10 years old) but, like the Holy book, I couldn't throw it away. It's still with me, I really need to get a new one before the pages start falling out.:) Strange combo right? :)

I couldn't put down Assissin, it had me ensnared from the beginning to the closing pages. I think I possibly could have read the entire book without eating, and because I had to get up in the mornings to go to school, I had to go to sleep, no matter how much I didn't want to. LOL As soon I got home, however, I was back in the adventure.!

I do not want to give to much away in case you have never read it, suffice it to say it will keep you involved. How do I give an over view without saying anything about the plot? It's starts with a murder and ends with justice being served. How's that? :)

Norman brings the Glorious City of Ar alive. I configure it with ancient Rome, except the buildings are cylinders, rising tall and magnificent above the people below on the street, two arenas; one for men and slaves and smaller animals and sea creatures to compete and die in, and another for tarn races. Oh! The tarn races! Would I wouldn't give to see one in reality! :) Those majestic, fantastic birds flying through those rings, vying for position to be the winner of the race!

Since it had been a little while since I'd read the book, I'd forgot the passage where'd I cried, yes really cried, at the lose of someone that Tarl came to know. The character, Elizabeth Cardwell, who is also in this book (introduced in Nomads), Ho-Tu, Mip, the tarn keeper (and so much more), slaves from Earth: Virginia and Phyllis; Sura, Melanie, Relius, Ho-Surl, Hup the Fool, (smarter than he is thought to be), the great Kaissa (a type of chess game) player Scormus, (there is a twist in his story), the blind player Qualius, Murmillius (a surprise character from an earlier book), Cernus, slaver of Ar with a brief introduction to Samos of Port Kar who shows up in later books.

I remember hating Cernus when I read it the first time, my feelings have not changed. I dispise him! He needed to be beaten until he couldn't breathe any longer and although I hate anyone being tortured and hurt, trust me, Cernus would deserve it. Until Darth Vader came along, he was the number one villian in my mind. At least with Vader, Luke saw the light side in him, Cernus, however, was evil through and through. There was no helping him and changing his mind, so to speak.

Now it's time for me to get to the elephant, or rather, bosk in the room: the Master /slave portion of the book. At 14 I had no problem with it. How the some.n were treated, and so forth. Norman does go into greater depth in regard to the enslavement of females. I didn't mind at 14 and I don't now. Why? They're fine in the respect the it's not a real world. It's imaginary and I feel that people have blown it all out of proportion. "Tarl" keeps saying; "It's a harsh, cruel world", which it is. Norman is NOT responsible with how readers take his books, interpret them. All he's done is bring his imagination alive in the books. You either like them or hate them, but not publish them because they offend some idiotic people? No. They are a joy to read, or in this case, listen to. I'm glad I'm refreshing my memory, although, to be honest, I remember the books quite clearly as it's being read. The same goes with the Star Wars trilogy, I can view the movies and say the dialog word for word even after all this time (since '77 to '83).

So if that makes me a weird female, then I'm a weird female. :) I really don't care. I throughly enjoyed Listers reading of the book. Funny enough, just like I see Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker, Ralph Lister is Tarl Cabot to me. :)

Til my review of Raiders...

I wish you well.


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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Horrible Narration

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

Another poor listening experience, the characters voices are terrible at bess. I bought this and won't listen to it ever again.

Any additional comments?

Don't buy

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars
  • M
  • 01-10-24

Intrigue in the City of Ar

Tarl Cabot infiltrates a slave house in order to avenge his own assassination attempt. Along the way the City of Ar experiences government upheaval, and Tarl finds himself in the midst of barbarian battles, chess matches, and tarn races.

Full-disclosure, I read many of the Gor books back in the 1980's, and was quite pleased to see them arrive on Audible. I ceased reading the series with this very book, and looking back as I listened to the story this time, I can see why. John Norman has a penchant for in-depth description in such a way that he could make anything tedious in the belabored rendition. While I can appreciate that he has put a lot of thought into the when, where, how, and why the world operates as it does, please let me discover those things through periodic tidbits sprinkled through the story. Diving into a 30-minute tangent in the middle of an action scene really serves to kill the mood.

My wife and I both finished reading this book, and were unimpressed with this one. Normans ability to write plot is excellent, and the forethought he puts into his world building serves to create a well rounded, rich world with constantly shifting tides and sands. This book is no exception. Regardless of how predictable it was.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

great story

great adventure story with plenty of action and adventure. you do have to get past all the slavery stuff. i think of it as similar to earths Roman society with citizens and slaves. dont let that part put you off from a good story.

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