Blackwing
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٤٫٤ - ١٠٧ من التقييمات
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- 12٫99 US$
وصف الناشر
“A remarkably assured fantasy debut that mixes of the inventiveness of China Miéville with the fast paced heroics of David Gemmell.”—Anthony Ryan, New York Times bestselling author of The Legion of Flame
Set on a postapocalyptic frontier, Blackwing is a gritty fantasy debut about a man’s desperate battle to survive his own dark destiny...
Hope, reason, humanity: the Misery breaks them all.
Under its cracked and wailing sky, the Misery is a vast and blighted expanse, the arcane remnant of a devastating war with the immortals known as the Deep Kings. The war ended nearly a century ago, and the enemy is kept at bay only by the existence of the Engine, a terrible weapon that protects the Misery’s border. Across the corrupted no-man’s-land teeming with twisted magic and malevolent wraiths, the Deep Kings and their armies bide their time. Watching. Waiting.
Bounty hunter Ryhalt Galharrow has breathed Misery dust for twenty bitter years. When he’s ordered to locate a masked noblewoman at a frontier outpost, he finds himself caught in the middle of an attack by the Deep Kings, one that signifies they may no longer fear the Engine. Only a formidable show of power from the very woman he is seeking, Lady Ezabeth Tanza, repels the assault.
Ezabeth is a shadow from Galharrow’s grim past, and together they stumble onto a web of conspiracy that threatens to end the fragile peace the Engine has provided. Galharrow is not ready for the truth about the blood he’s spilled or the gods he’s supposed to serve…
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
McDonald's debut novel is gritty and fascinating, set in a world blasted by a war between the mysterious, powerful Deep Kings and the Nameless. Ryhalt Galharrow is a Blackwing, a servant of the Nameless entity known as Crowfoot; once a military officer of high birth, he has been ruined by mistakes and personal tragedy and now drinks heavily and hunts bounties in the terrifying wasteland called the Misery. A mission from Crowfoot reunites him with a lost love from his adolescence, powerful magic-wielder Ezabeth Tanza. Her research into the Nameless weapon that could defeat the Deep Kings' army of zombies puts her and Ryhalt afoul of powerful people in the city of Valengrad, and soon leads them to a far-reaching conspiracy with dire consequences. McDonald's postapocalyptic fantasy world, full of memorably creepy details, could have been unrelentingly, unpleasantly grim; however, its dark trappings conceal a surprising tender side, much as its embittered and scarred protagonist has never truly lost his own heroic instinct and his love for and loyalty to his friends. Tight pacing and strong writing make for a diverting debut.)
مراجعات العملاء
When the world is ending, do you run or stand with those who are right?
Ed McDonald's "Blackwing" tells the story of Ryhalt Galharrow, a rough bounty hunter, who is also a somewhat unwilling servant (aka: Blackwing) of the Nameless being, Crowfoot. Galharrow lives in a dark and broken, magical world following the clash of two powerful beings, the Nameless and the Deep Kings. This clash created a wasteland, called the Misery, which currently separates the Deep Kings from humanity and their apparent protectors, the Nameless. The wicked darkness of the Deep Kings reawakens just as Galharrow meets Ezabeth Tanza, a powerful Spinner (magician) from his past, who has discovered the Nameless's original weapon against the Deep Kings may no longer work.
I initially disliked "Blackwing" due to the language but continued reading because of the compelling story and the accuracy of the character portrayal. Galharrow can't exactly be called a hero, but he is a likable leader with a natural motivation to do what is best, even while serving Crowfoot. My initial and enduring reaction to the entirety of the book is, "Wow!" I especially liked Ezabeth and her compulsive need to prove whether or not the Nameless's weapon against the Deep Kings still works. I can't wait until the next book comes out ("Ravencry")! Based on "Blackwing", I will definitely buy it if my library doesn't get a copy.
My opinion is solely my own, but I do want to thank Goodreads, Berkeley Publishing Group of Penguin Random House, and Ed McDonald for a copy of this awesome book.