In the island fantasyland of Dhrall, eight gods operate in two shifts of four: 25,000 years on, 25,000 years of peaceful sleep. The fly in the ointment is an insectile Dark Lord called the Vlagh, who lurks in the central wasteland and has bred a horde of hybrid nasties with lethal fangs and stingers. These will strike during the confusion of changeover, with the new rota of gods not yet fully awake and restored to power. The human race, generally favoured by the gods, will be wiped out to make room for hive-mind swarms...

But one God has a cunning plan. The four sleepers are wakened early, manifesting as the Dreamers: terminally cute children without knowledge of their real selves and names. Visions of the dark future haunt their dreams, which are also able to reshape the present. In their innocence these children can do the one thing forbidden to the Gods. They can kill.

Despite spies, attempted betrayals, and old rivalries between the gold-crazed mercenaries, preparations for the first defence of a God's domain go very smoothly. There's much feel-good camaraderie and enjoyable invention of warlike arts such as 3-D mapmaking and the mass manufacture of bronze arrowheads. Meanwhile, benevolent forces greater than the gods are on their side and ready to do favours for them and the Dreamers: Mother Sea, Father Earth, even the Moon. What could possibly go wrong?

Unfortunately, although the Vlagh's minions are individually rather stupid, their mass hive-mind is infinitely more cunning than anyone had suspected. There are nasty shocks in store and the initial too-cosy atmosphere of The Elder Gods begins to dwindle, with real darkness and danger looming as later volumes chronicle the three further assaults predicted against the remaining three domains of Dhrall. David and Leigh Eddings are experts in giving their fans what they want. --David Langford [close]