Age of Swords
Book Two of The Legends of the First Empire
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
The gods have been proven mortal and new heroes will arise as the battle continues in the sequel to Age of Myth—from the author of the Riyria Revelations and Riyria Chronicles series.
In Age of Myth, fantasy master Michael J. Sullivan launched readers on an epic journey of magic and adventure, heroism and betrayal, love and loss. Now the thrilling saga continues as the human uprising is threatened by powerful enemies from without—and bitter rivalries from within.
Raithe, the God Killer, may have started the rebellion by killing a Fhrey, but long-standing enmities dividing the Rhunes make it all but impossible to unite against the common foe. And even if the clans can join forces, how will they defeat an enemy whose magical prowess renders them indistinguishable from gods?
The answer lies across the sea in a faraway land populated by a reclusive and dour race who feel nothing but disdain for both Fhrey and mankind. With time running out, Persephone leads the gifted young seer Suri, the Fhrey sorceress Arion, and a small band of misfits in a desperate search for aid—a quest that will take them into the darkest depths of Elan. There, an ancient adversary waits, as fearsome as it is deadly.
Magic, fantasy, and mythology collide in Michael J. Sullivan’s Legends of the First Empire series:
AGE OF MYTH • AGE OF SWORDS • AGE OF WAR
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In Sullivan's second Legends of the First Empire fantasy epic (after Age of Myth), the conflict between the human Rhune and the elven Fhrey threatens to involve the entirety of both races. In retaliation for events in the first volume, the Fhrey send giants, lightning, and hail to destroy the human settlement of Dahl Rhen. Persephone, new leader of the Rhen clan of humans, calls upon the other clan chieftains to meet and select a keening to lead all of the clans against the Fhrey. Other Rhen women include Brin, the Keeper of Ways; Suri, the only human to wield magic; and Roan, a genius inventor. Persephone leads her small group of women to bargain with the dwarves for weapons to face the Fhrey. In return, the dwarves ask that they defeat the demon that has occupied the dwarven ancestral city. Humans in these tales have only barely discovered bronze, and within these pages Roan invents both the wheel and the bow and Brin invents writing. The unusual technological level and prevalence of thoughtful women as leading characters set this apart from other fantasies.
Customer Reviews
Finely crafted, irresistibly captivating
If you have read any other book by this author, you already know what a master craftsman he is. This second book in this series weaves patterns as intricate and surprising as a string hand puzzle.
Although it is a work of fantasy-fiction, the story feels like true history.
I could not put it down.
Feminist propaganda
Every character of importance in this book is female, or a dysfunctional male. Normally you can ignore this but the strong independent woman trope gets old after you’ve seen it 20 times.
On top of the books underlying feminist theme, it’s poorly written. I found myself skipping through the middle chapters because nothing was happening and the author was just prattling on about feelings or something. The characters are difficult to relate to and there were literally dozens of spelling and grammar mistakes.
Could have been a great book if someone had smacked the editor a few times. I’ll not be reading the rest of the series.