Waylander gave up his dark life as an assassin years ago–or so he thought. When an ancient magic gateway begins to break down and evil beings from another world set out to reconquer the lands of Kydor, Waylander finds himself caught up once again in the cycle of war and bloodshed.
Waylander joins forces with Kysumu, a rajnee warrior who has been training all his life to be the best swordsman, and Ustarte, an escaped changeling experiment who has come from the demon world to organize a resistance. But when the spirit of Qin Chong comes from the past to aid the fledgling resistance, he comes to the unlikeliest person of all–the ditch-digger Yu Yu Liang. As Kysumu wrestles with envy over the spirit’s choice, he comes to understand what it truly means to be a hero.
This book was good. Way good. Not only was it a thrilling action/adventure story, it was full of deep, wonderful insights into the nature of courage and cowardice, life and death, good and evil, and true heroism. David Gemmell’s books are full of wonderful insight, and deliciously complex in the way they deal with life’s most important and meaningful questions.
I read the last hundred pages at a breathless sprint. So many of the characters died! Yet even though the story was very violent, I didn’t feel that it was excessively so. The violence always had a reason to be there, and added something to the story.
What really surprised me was how Gemmell redeemed even some of his most evil characters. Just when you think one of the main antagonists is soulless and outright evil, he shows you another side of the character and makes you rethink him/her entirely. Amazing.
Not only where the “good guy” characters imminently likeable, they were surprisingly relatable. I felt like I understood exactly how Kysumu felt, having spent his whole life training to be the best warrior, only for the spirit of Qin Chong to choose a clumsy, shameless commoner. As he struggled with his jealousy, I felt I knew exactly what he was going through. Interesting stuff.
Waylander, too, was very interesting. Even though he was the best warrior out of anyone in the book, he was far from invulnerable or perfect. He had a dark side that was very believable–not too gritty or over the top. In fact, I think Waylander was originally an antagonist in the earlier books in the series.
When I read White Wolf, I had issues with the plot structure and excessive use of flashbacks. Not so with this novel. The plot progressed wonderfully, keeping me engaged and interested the whole time. The twist ending was delicious! Wonderfully satisfying.
Above all else, this is a book that means something, that actually says something. I came away from this book satisfied, not only because of the excellent, entertaining story, but because of the way the story made me think. Gemmell is an expert at creating depth to his characters and his stories, pulling you beneath the surface to glimpse at things that are really important and meaningful.
