Announcement

I just wanted to inform everyone of a very exciting thing: NEW DAVID GEMMELL NOVEL. I am weird, I know, but I can tell you for a fact that it is 17 days before the new book comes out. The sequel to Lord of the Silver Bow, which I reviewed not too long ago, I am really excited to read Shield of Thunder.

The second exciting novel in the bestselling Troy trilogy. Interlacing myth and history, adventure and love, this is epic storytelling at its best.

The war in Troy is looming, and all the kings of the Great Green are gathering, friends and enemies, with their own dark plans of conquest and plunder.

Into this maelstrom of treachery and deceit come three travellers — Piria, a runaway priestess nursing a terrible secret, Kalliades, a warrior with a legendary sword, and Banokles who will carve his own legend in the battles to come.

Shield of Thunder takes the reader back into the glories and tragedies of Bronze Age Greece, reuniting the characters from Lord of the Silver Bow — the dread Helikaon and his great love, the fiery Andromache, the mighty Hektor, and the fabled storyteller, Odysseus.

Sadly, Americans are going to have to wait a bit longer, but Canadians, it will be in book stores on October 24th! And yet, finding a picture of the cover is really hard considering it will be out soon.

Ghost King - David Gemmell [September/06]

I mentioned this book in a previous post, as it was one of the books I received earlier this week as a gift. I have been trying to read David Gemmell for a while because he really is a very well-written author, and so far I have really enjoyed reading books by him. Ghost King is the first in the Stones of Power duology.

From the back of the book:

Rebellion and invasion have plunged Britannia into the Dark Ages. Chaos and terror stalk the land, the King slain by traitors, the great Sword of Power vanished beyond the Circle of Mist. Saxons, Angles, Jutes and Brigante tribesmen mass together to destroy the realm, aided by the powers of the Witch Queen and the Lord of the Undead. Against them stands a weakling boy, and an old mountain warrior. But the boy has the blood of kings, and the warrior is Culain, the legendary Lord of the Lance. And he alone knows the dread secret of the Witch Queen.

I read this book because a friend of mine suggested it to me. I was just finishing up his Troy book that I read last month, and talking about how I would like to read more by him. That was when she told me about this duology. She knows I really like Arthurian retellings, and that is what this is. With that knowledge in hand, I bought the two books to further add to the Arthurian novels I have read.

Anyways, I must point out, that I spent the book looking for Arthur. Good thing to note, he is not alive yet, this is a story about the generation that came before him. I assume he enters the novel in the next book. Merlin is in the novel, but his name is spelled differently, so I just assumed that the main character was Arthur with a different name. I was wrong, which became clearer as the book goes on. It takes a different spin on the Arthurian legends, makes Merlin's character even more interesting and then add in Culain, who add a different touch to the novel, and you have a very interesting spin on the legend.

I really enjoyed this relatively short novel. So many Arthurian tales concentrate on Arthur, it is always good to see the focus change a bit. It also sets up book two very well, at least for me, who was looking for Arthur through the whole novel. And if Arthur doesn't show up in book two, it is still a worthwhile read. I must point that while the main female character in here has her failings, she is a much stronger character than Guinevere can be written as. When the men go to war, she is right there with them instead of home praying. Guinevere has her strong points, but I liked the character in this book better.

This is an adventure story that will have you wondering what will be happening next.

4/5

Troy: Lord of the Silver Bow - David Gemmell [August/06]

I bought this book when it first came out with good intentions of reading it right away, but like always, stuff kept getting in my way. So, when I finally sat down and read it, I was mad at myself for letting such a good book sit unread for so long. It is supposed to be a trilogy, but with the recent death of David Gemmell, no one knows the fate of book 3 except the powers that be. I hope it gets completed because it is a very engaging story.

From the back of the book:

Three lives will change the destiny of nations.

Helikaon, the young prince of Dardania, haunted by a scarred and traumatic childhood. The priestess Andromache, whose fiery spirit and fierce independence threatens the might of kings. And the legendary warrior Argurios, cloaked in loneliness and driven only by thoughts of revenge.

In Troy they find a city torn apart by destructive rivalries. And beyond its fabled walls blood-hungry enemies eye its riches and plot its downfall.

It is a time of bravery and betrayal.

A time of bloodshed and fear.

A time for heroes.

I don't know how many times I have said this, but Troy and Arthurian history is probably my favourite part of history. I am drawn to novels set in this time period more than any other. David Gemmell is one of those authors that I have always meant to read. He has a lot of books that sound good, but I just never got there. Then one day, back in April, this book was peeking out at me from the fantasy section. I probably would have bought it back when it was available in hardcover, it looked so good, but the bookstore here rarely gets hardcover books in. So, I bought it, and then I got busy and read other things.

I now know that I love David Gemmell's writing style. It is hard to take a well-known legend and make it your own, but Gemmell does a fabulous job with this. I was engrossed in the novel the whole way. So much so that I am getting book 2 as soon as it comes out, and I have been looking up other David Gemmell novels that I want to read. Like Jack Whyte, I find myself drawn into Gemmell's world. Gemmell has totally rewritten that Troy myth, and I think he did a very good job.

We have the main hero, Helikaon. He is the king of the seas, and a prince of Dardania. Treated horribly by his father, he is still battling the scars of his childhood. One minute he is like a god, people look up to him, but then he loses his temper and everyone that has scorned him had better watch their back. He gets his revenge in very ghastly ways. He has assasins on his back, but he always seems able to stay one step ahead of them, even if it means help from the people that become his friends. Helikaon is a great character, even when he does wrong, because he has the good of his people in his heart.

Then we have Andromache. What a character. She is the strong female sort that I am always looking for in novels. It is a male dominated world, ancient Greek and Rome, but Gemmell, like Whyte, manages to include females that are above ordinary for the time. She is her own person, and you know she is dominant when she refuses to bow for the King of Troy. She is well-respected by her peers and goes above and beyond other women in this novel. She too has a shaky past, but seems to have discovered a way to rise above it.

Argurios was not someone I expected to like at the beginning of the book. He is actually Helikaon's enemy, but he is loyal. When he is a passenger on Helikaon's ship, he defends Helikaon instead of doing the low thing and taking advantage of his passage to kill him. He falls in love in this novel, and with this love we discover the man that was underneath the hard exterior. He refuses to give into charity, but he will do anything he possibly can for the woman he loves. The enemy in love with the king's daughter, it opens the most amazing possibilites and leads to one of the saddest moments in the book.

These are just three of the characters that parade across the pages of Gemmell's novel. At the end of the book, when Troy is attacked by their enemies, it is these three that rise above the others and take command. It is them that are the heroes of the novel in many ways. They have all faced so much, but in the end they are able to rise above it in the most amazing ways. This is an action-packed novel that will leave you wishing for more.

5/5

I'm alive!

I have been rather quiet. The network card in my pc is fried, so I am computerless for the moment. I am borrowing computer use at the moment.

Things are interesting right now. I have a lot of reviews to catch up on. I don't really have the time right now to spend writing the reviews up, but I am trying. I put the Patricia Briggs one up today. That's an accomplishment.

A few things are going on lately. David Gemmell, a god, died back in July. That's sad in itself, but the thing that is must upsetting me is that he died with an unfinished trilogy on Troy. I am reading book one right now, Lord of the Silver Bow, and book 2 comes out in the fall. Book 3 was supposed to come out next year, but who knows if it will. I am sort of reading book 1 slowly, because I don't want to get to the next one, have it end suddenly, and then not have a conclusion. So, I am waiting for some sort of announcement. I will read them anyways, but I want to be prepared. I can't see the trilogy not being finished, and I really really am liking book one. So, hope all will be well on that front. I am still very sad that he died, my plan is to go on a Gemmell read and try and read all his books between now and next fall. Wish me luck!

Anyways, I plan to make a list of the 25 best books I have ever read. The meme has been going around. I wasn't very interested at first because most people were doing romance books, which I don't read, but then I thought I would just do non-romance. People are doing that also. I think it is going to take some major thinking, at least five of them will come from this year alone thanks to all the wonderful blogs I have been reading, I have read a lot of GREAT books.

Other than that, just wanted to give a shout out to Heather from A High and Hidden Place who is expecting, hope everything goes well on that front! Dance Chica has voting and suggesting going on for her classic book club. I never did get around to The Scarlet Pimpernal.

I will try and have some more exciting book reviews up soon!