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David Gemmell
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Since I've bought every single work of David Gemmell, and am eagerly awaiting his future works, you could say that I'm a big fan of his. His stories are a delightful read; they are not deep and mind-boggling, but they own each of them a special magic that is for a large part due to Gemmell's engaging heroes. Superficially, the leading characters may seem to be archetypal heroes, but underneath a human side simmers through, which makes them special and easily to empathize with.
The stories also remind us of a higher goal in life. In some ways, it is a kind of escapism to a world where heroes still exist, whether they come in the form of a thief or a common soldier. On a psychological level, one could argue that his stories teach us that every one of us, rich or poor, have something of a hero deep within ourselves, that we have the ability to rise to the occasion. I've never actually thought about this, but now I've come to think of it, that must be one of the reasons why I love his books. :)
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Ghost King
[The Stones of Power Cycle #1]
First Published in 1988.
Synopsis
"Chaos and terror stalked the realm. The king had been slain by traitors, and the Sword of Power had been lost beyond the Circle of Mist. Armies of Saxons, Angles, Jutes, and Brigantes cut a gory swath across the land, led by puppets of the ruthless Witch Queen--whose minions included dark, bloodthirsty creatures and a savage, undead warrior.
All hope lay with young Thuro--in whose veins flowed the blood of kings. He would have to defeat the Witch Queen's monsters and travel to the land of the Mist, there to seek a ghostly army. And the only one who could prepare Thuro to achieve his birthright was the mountain warrior Culain, the one man who knew the queen's deadly secret . . ." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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Last Sword of Power
[The Stones of Power Cycle #2]
First Published in 1988.
Synopsis
"The Goths followed a bloodthirsty new leader, one who sought to open the Gates of Hell: Wotan. His immortal power stemmed from human sacrifice and dark sorcery, and no sword could touch him. He rode the winds on a leather-winged steed, while his armies cut a deadly swath across the northern kingdoms. Even death's icy hand could not stop them.
Only Uther Pendragon could save Britannia. To do so he must wield his birthright--Cunobelin's blade, the legendary Sword of Power.
But Uther was chained in Hell, the sword lost in swirling Chaos. All hope lay with the warrior known as Revelation, with the magic of the Sipstrassi Stones, and with Anduine, a blind girl possessed of arcane powers. Only if these unlikely allies united could they hope to stop the invincible foe before the world plunged into darkness." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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Wolf in Shadow / The Jerusalem Man
[The Stones of Power Cycle #3] A Jon Shannow Adventure.
First Published in 1987.
Synopsis
"John Shannow, The Jerusalem Man, lived in a world that had toppled on its axis. Civilization had been replaced by ruthlessness and savagery. Relentless in his quest for peace, Shannow followed a path that led only to bloodshed and sorrow.
Abaddon, the Lord of the Pit, sought to plunge mankind into a new Satanic era. His Hellborn army spewed forth from the Plague Lands with an unholy force stemming from human sacrifice. For it was the blood of innocents that fueled the corrupted Sipstrassi Stones of Power--the source of Abaddon''s might.
But the Hellborn made a fatal mistake--they took the woman who had stolen Shannow''s heart. He
would move Heaven and Earth to save her or he would die trying." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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The Last Guardian
[The Stones of Power Cycle #4] A Jon Shannow Adventure.
First Published in 1989.
Synopsis
"While the Earth quaked, a deadly power burst forth from ancient Atlantis. For the gate of time had been torn open, freeing a cataclysmic evil.
Only the last guardian, Jon Shannow, the legendary pistoleer, could shut the deadly portal. But to accomplish this he would have to find the shining Sword of God, said to be floating among the clouds in the perilous lands beyond the wall, where beasts walked like men and worship a dark goddess. As Shannow embarked on his impossible quest, demons gathered in wait.
And--somewhere--a golden-haired woman was dreaming of blood . . ." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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Bloodstone
[The Stones of Power Cycle #5] A Jon Shannow Adventure.
First Published in 1994.
Synopsis
"After 20 years, Jon Shannow, the legendary Jerusalem Man, returns for a deadly showdown with the fiendish Deacon, the vicious Jerusalem Riders, and a monstrous god that feeds on souls." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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Legend
[Drenai Saga #1]
First Published in 1986.
Synopsis
"Druss, Captain of the Axe, was the stuff of legends. But even as the stories grew in the telling, Druss himself grew older. He turned his back on his own legend and retreated to a mountain lair to await his old enemy, death. Meanwhile, barbarian hordes were on the march. Nothing could stand in their way. Druss reluctantly agreed to come out of retirement. But could even Druss live up to his own legends?" (Excerpt from bn.com)
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The First Chronicles of Druss the Legend
[Drenai Saga #2]
First Published in .
Synopsis
"He was called Druss. Captain of the Axe. The Deathwalker. Though the blood of merciless butchers coursed through his veins and made him an outcast among men, Druss had finally found a fragile peace through his love for beautiful, mystical Rowena. In their small village on the edge of the Drenai land, the young married couple lived a simple life...until the day Druss returned from the forest to find everyone dead, massacred by slavers who had stolen the young women to sell for gold, Rowena among them. Armed only with his family's deadly heirloom, a darkly powerful double-bladed axe called Snaga, Druss went after Rowena. His journey would carry him to strange kingdoms, from the highest thrones of power to the deepest dungeons of depravity. Along the way, he would win empires and nearly lose his mind, battle savage monsters and descend into terrifying lands of black magic and demons. Yet one thing was certain, Druss would have victory...or death." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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The Legend of Deathwalker
[Drenai Saga #3]
First Published in 1988.
Synopsis
"Druss the Legend, the dark axman known as the Deathwalker, must join the warrior Talisman on a
mission of blood and glory. Only the stolen Eyes of Alchazzar--mystic jewels of power--will save Druss''s dying friend, then unite the Nadir tribes against the evil of the Gothir. Druss agrees to help look for the twin gems--hidden for centuries in the shrine of Oshikai, the Demon-bane, the Nadir''s greatest hero.
It has been prophesied that with the recovery of the stones, there will come the Uniter, a magnificent fighter who will free the Nadir from brutal oppression. But Garen-Tsen, the sadistic power behind the Gothir throne, also seeks the gems. To control them, he will send five thousand men against a handful of savages, Talisman, and the one Drenai warrior." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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The King Beyond the Gate
[Drenai Saga #4]
First Published in 1985.
Synopsis
"Once the mighty fortress had stood strong, defended by the mightiest of all Drenai heroes, Druss, the Legend. But now a tyrannical, mad emperor had seized control of the fortress, and his twisted will was carried throughout the land by the Joinings --- abominations that were half-man, half-beast. Tenaka Khan was a half-breed himself, hated by the Drenai for his Nadir blood and despised by the Nadir for his Drenai ancestry. But he alone had a plan to destroy the emperor. The last heroes of the Drenai joined with him in a desperate gamble to bring down the emperor -- even at the cost of their own destruction." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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Quest for Lost Heroes
[Drenai Saga #5]
First Published in 1990.
Synopsis
"The Drenai stronghold had fallen. Now blood-hungry Nadir hordes spread desolation and despair
across all the lands...even tiny Gothir, where slavers seized a young girl while the villagers looked the other way--all but the peasant boy Kiall. His unlikely rescue attempt would lead across the savage steppes and on through the Halls of Hell. The youth would face ferocious beasts, deadly warriors, and demons of the dark; he would emerge a man--or not emerge at all. But Kiall would not face these dangers alone. Heroes out of legend joined his quest: Chareos the Blademaster, Beltzer the Axeman, and the bowmen Finn and Maggrig. And one among their company hid a secret that could free the world of Nadir domination. That one was the Nadir Bane, the hope of the Drenai. That one was the Earl of Bronze. Thus did a search for a stolen slave girl become a quest that would shake the very world." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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Waylander
[Drenai Saga #6]
First Published in 1986.
Synopsis
"All of Waylander''s instincts had screamed at him to spurn the contract from Kaem the cruel, the killer of nations. But he had ignored them. He had made his kill. And even as he went to collect his gold, he knew that he had been betrayed. Now the Dark Brotherhood and the hounds of chaos were hunting him, even as Kaem''s armies waged war on the Drenai lands, intent on killing every man, woman, and child. The Drenai soldiers were doomed to ultimate defeat, and chaos would soon reign. Then a strange old man told Waylander that the only way to turn the tide of battle would be for Waylander himself to retrieve the legendary Armor of Bronze from its hiding place deep within a shadow-haunted land. He would be hunted. He was certain to fail. But he must try, the old man commanded--commanded in the name of his son, the king, who had been slain by an assassin... Waylander was the most unlikely of heroes--for he was a traitor, the Slayer who had killed the king..." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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In the Realm of the Wolf / Waylander II
[Drenai Saga #7]
First Published in 1992.
Synopsis
"A mighty warrior and a feared assassin among the Drenai, Waylander the Slayer is now a man hunted by his own people--with a fortune in gold offered as grim reward for his murder. But this is only one of many evils closing in on Waylander and his daughter, Miriel, the beautiful and deadly Battle Queen of Kar-Barzac.
For, once separated, father and daughter face certain death as the sorcerers and demons, soldiers and shamans of three empires summon their blackest, most destructive powers in an effort to annihilate these two most gifted Drenai warriors." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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Winter Warriors
[Drenai Saga #8]
First Published in 1997.
Synopsis
"The prophecy was clear. Upon the death of three kings the world will be plunged into chaos, and all the cast-out demons of history will return to bring blood and horror to the world. Two kings are dead. The third, about to be born, is hunted by the Demon Riders of the Krayakin, Lords of the Undead. All the terrifying forces of evil range against a pregnant queen at bay in a haunted forest. But she is not alone. Three warriors stand with her: the last remnants of the once proud Drenai army. Three old men, ancient heroes, discarded by the king: Nogusta the Swordsman, Kebra the Bowman, and the hulking fighter, Bison. The fate of empires rests on their fading skills as they journey through a tormented world on a perilous quest to save the unborn king." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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Lion of Macedon
[The Greek Books #1]
First Published in 1991.
Synopsis
"Over and again, the aged seeress Tamis scried all the possible tomorrows. In every one, dark forces threatened Greece; terrible evil was poised to reenter the world. The future held only one hope: a half-caste Spartan boy, Parmenion. So Tamis made it her mission to see that Parmenion would before the deadliest warrior in the world -- no matter what the cost.
Raised to manhood in Sparta, bullied and forced to fight for his life every day, Parmenion had no notion of the unseen dimensions of magic and mystery that shaped his fate. He grew in strength and cunning. His military genius earned him the title Strategos in Sparta. His triumphs for the city of Thebes made him a hero. And finally his fate led him to the service of Philip of Macedon.
As Tamis had foreseen, Parmenion's destiny was tied to the Dark God, to Philip, and to the yet-unborn Alexander. All too soon the future was upon them. Parmenion stood poised to defeat evil -- or to open the gate for the Dark God to reenter the world."
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Dark Prince
[The Greek Books #2]
First Published in 1991.
Synopsis
"The chaos spirit had chosen the child Alexander to be its human host. But Parmenion, most powerful warrior of ancient Greece, had won a small victory over the darkness that sought to rule through Alexander. The boy's soul had not been destroyed by evil, but instead had merged with it -- and now Parmenion aided Alexander in the battle between light and dark that constantly raged within him.
But there was another world, where the creatures of Greece's legends still flourished. There, the chaos spirit already ruled, through a demon king. In this Greece, there was a prophecy that a child of great power, the legendary golden child, would come and restore the fading magic of the land to the creatures of myth. The demon king believed also that devouring the heart of this fabled child would give him immortality. He believed Alexander, with the power of the chaos spirit within him, to be that child. And so he called Alexander into his world . . .
Only Parmenion, guided by the seeress Derae, his lost love from another life, could hope to save Alexander from the demon king. But who could save the young prince from the chaos spirit that threatened to conquer his soul?"
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Morningstar
[Vampyre Books #1]
First Published in 1992.
Synopsis
"From the internationally bestselling author of Lion of Macedon and The Dark Prince comes an action-filled new epic fantasy based on the classic Robin Hood legend. Jarek Mace, a thief who preys upon wealthy nobles, is hailed as a hero. But is he a soldier of honor, or just a mercenary?" (Excerpt from bn.com)
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Knights of Dark Renown
[Vampyre Books #2]
First Published in 1993.
Synopsis
"Once the legendary knights of the Gabala defended the nine duchies. Their hearts were beautiful; their armor was beyond compare. They were greater than princes, more than men. But they were gone, disappeared through a demon-haunted gateway between worlds. Only one held back -- Manannan, whose every instinct told him to stay. Now he was the coward knight, and in torment. Murder and black magic beset the land. Rumors circulated that the king was enchanted, changed, that his soul was dead . . . and that a reign of terror was about to begin. Now Manannan realized he would have to face his darkest fears: he had no choice but to ride through that dreaded gate and seek out his vanished companions. And the secret he would learn there would tear his soul apart . . . ." (Excerpt from bn.com)
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Ironhand's Daughter
[The Hawk Queen Books #1]
First Published in 1995.
Synopsis
"After the battle of Colden Moor, the warlike Highlanders have lost their independence and live in subservience to the Outlanders. Only a teenage girl survives to represent the line of kings: Sigarnio. Huntress, whore, princess - all of these she is called."
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The Hawk Eternal
[The Hawk Queen Books #1]
First Published in 1995.
Synopsis
"Sigarni, the Hawk Queen, arrives in an alternative version of her own universe through a gate in space and time. Taliesen, last of the gatekeepers, has no idea why she has arrived, but knows that heroes are needed."
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Dark Moon
First Published in 1996.
Synopsis
"The peaceful Eldarin were the last of three ancient races. The mystical Oltor, healers and poets, had fallen before the dread power of the cruel and sadistic Daroth. Yet in one awesome night the invincible Daroth had vanished from the face of the earth. Gone were their cities, their armies, their terror. The Great Northern Desert was their only legacy. Not a trace remained for a thousand years...
The War of the Pearl had raged for seven years and the armies of the four Duchies were exhausted and weary of bloodshed. But the foremost of the Dukes, Sirano of Romark, possessed the Eldarin Pearl and was determined to unravel its secrets.
Then, on one unforgetable day, a dark moon rose above the Great Northern Desert, and a black tidal wave swept across the land. In moments the desert had vanished beneath lush fields and forests and a great city could be seen glittering in the morning sunlight.
From this city re-emerged the blood-hungry Daroth, powerful and immortal, immune to spear and sword. They had only one desire: to rid the world of humankind for ever.
Now the fate of the human race rests on the talents of three heroes: Karis, warrior-woman and strategist; Tarantio, the deadliest swordsman of the age; and Duvodas the Healer, who will learn a terrible truth."
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Echoes of the Great Song
First Published in 1997.
Synopsis
"The Avatars were immortal and lived like kings - even though their empire was dying. Their immortality was guarenteed by magic crystals, crystals whose influence was now waning, overwhelmed by the power of a great flood and a freak ice age. But when two moons appeared in the sky, and the ruthless armies of the Crystal Queen swarmed across the land, bringing devestation and terror, the Avatars united with their subjects to protect their universe.
As the cities faced imminent destruction, three heroes emerged. Talaban, a warrier haunted by tragedy, Touchstone, the mystic tibesman seeking his lost love, and Anu, the Holy One, the Builder of Time. And when all seemed lost, two others entered the fray: Sofarita, the peasant girl who would inspira a legend, and the madman, Viruk, who would become a god."
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Sword in the Storm
[The Rigante Series #1]
First Published in 1998.
Synopsis
"Deep in the green mountain lands of the Rigante lies the settlement of Three Streams, whose people worship the gods of Air and Water, and the spirits of the Earth. Among them lives a boy whose destiny is written in starlight. He is Connavar, the Demonblade, born in a storm that doomed his father.
A man with the makings of greatness will always have enemies and from the start of this epic chronicle it is prophesied that the Armies of Stone will one day cross the water ... and that their coming will be like an avalanche.
Even as that terrible time draws near, another story is told. One that links the price of glory with the loss of a witch's powers, and with the abiding hurt of a broken promise. Here the strangest forces, wise and evil, play their allotted part - from the Ghost General and the malignant Morrigu to the Woods whose magic harks back to a world before the coming of Man."
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Midnight Falcon
[The Rigante Series #2]
First Published in 1999. Gemmell's latest published work.
Synopsis
"Seventeen-year-old Bane, illegitimate son of King Connovar, comes to the city of Stone, a place of gladiatorial combat, corruption, and religious terror. Embittered by his father's refusal to acknowledge him, Bane's wildness leads to bloodshed before friendship and betrayal force him to accept the complexities of power and responsibility. The novel builds to an epic climax, as Bane must accept who he is in order to lead his people in a desperate battle for their very survival."
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