The Silver Blade
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The Silver Blade (French Revolution, #2)
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3.88 of 5 stars
A stirring tale of magic and revolution- fans of The Red Necklace won't want to miss it.

The year is 1794. With his beloved Sido sa... read full description

reviews

Dec 27, 2011
Cara rated it: 4 of 5 stars
I think this one comment sums it all, "Gardner just keeps getting stranger and better." The Telegraph

The sequel to The Red Necklace certainly does not dissapoint. This one is darker in tone and there is even more dread of death upon everything. Seriously, I almost felt like I could smell the blood. Yann Margoza has become a Robin Hood of sorts. He uses his extraordinary powers to help people escape the unforgiving guillotone and becomes to be known as the Silver Blade. Sid More...
2 comments like (6 people liked it)
Apr 02, 2011
Valerie rated it: 3 of 5 stars
I'm glad I read this even though I liked the first better. Very interesting, great writing, and certainly informative in the French Revolution aspect.

The book starts a couple of months after the first ended. Yann and his crew are helping people escape France. Sido and Yann are in love still and have sent letters to each other though it is dangerous.

I believe that the villain in this one is scarier, a plus point for me. I must say he is really really bad, and evil, and wi More...
0 comments like (2 people liked it)
Nov 06, 2011
Mara rated it: 3 of 5 stars
I will start off by saying that I like The Red Necklace better than its sequel. Sally Gardner likes weird in her stories, and The Silver Blade is certainly no exception. I thought the first one was weird! Well, the weirdness factor is vamped up for this two-book series's finale. While the weirdness in The Red Necklace didn't detract from the story, it did in this one because it was so embedded in the storyline.

Kalliovski isn't dead, naturally. The devil has claimed his soul and brought More...
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Aug 04, 2011
Amanda rated it: 4 of 5 stars
In this sequel to The Red Necklace, the love story of young noblewoman Sido and magician's apprentice/Gypsy Yann continues. At this point, the French Revolution has reached its most turbulent time known as "The Terror." A time when French nobles were executed left and right by the commoner revolutionaries simply because they were aristocrats, order has turned to complete chaos, the ruling figures of the revolution turn on one another in a counter-revolution and Madame de Guillotine is More...
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Aug 03, 2011
Candice rated it: 4 of 5 stars
I finished the Red Necklace, pretty sure that no other Sally Gardner book could match up to that beautifully written novel that I cherished like maple syrup dripping on a slender white, naked banana. As I closed the Silver Blade on the last page, I was satisfied. You see, in the acknowledgements page, Gardner wrote that at one of her school tours, a little girl asked her to write more romance in the next book, like "Mr. Rochester in Jane Eyre!" she said. Sally Gardner definitely took t More...
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May 03, 2011
Savs (Savvy Escapades) rated it: 4 of 5 stars
This is the second book in the series (which I don’t think has a name), but it’s the sequel to The Red Necklace. If you like The Scarlett Pimpernel you’ll like this book:

Towards the end of the last book, Yann Margoza, gypsy assistant-magician, became the infamous and mysterious Silver Blade– a dashing hero who rescues the innocent from the guillotine. In the midst of the French Revolution he is suddenly confronted by an enemy he previously thought dead (who we know from the very e More...
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Mar 02, 2010
Mary rated it: 2 of 5 stars
This book will work best for someone who knows something about the French revolution; others with no familiarity may find it somewhat confusing. A lot goes on in this story - maybe too much. Yann Margoza is a gypsy actor in France, who was raised by a dwarf Tetu after Yann's mother was killed. Yann has magical abilities to control thoughts and movements, which he uses to try to save members of the nobility and their innocent family members who are being condemned in endless and indiscriminate nu More...
0 comments like (1 person liked it)
Feb 23, 2010
Ruth-Anne rated it: 2 of 5 stars
Yann Margoza smuggles innocent victims destined for the guillotine out of France while the Reign of Terror rages. His false front to evade the Revolutionaries is as a magician in the Circus of Follies. Yann inherits mind reading and the gift of light from his gypsy parents. After rescuing the daughter of a marquee, Sido and Yann fall in love. Her place in society drives him to become a hero in order to earn her family’s approval. Yann’s talents are sought after by the ruthless Count Kalliovski, More...
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Oct 18, 2009
Maura rated it: 3 of 5 stars
The sequel to the amazing 'The Red Necklace' was pretty good but not as good as the original. I didn't find this book slow at all, it was fast pace and like the first one the writing was brilliant and vivid and will draw you in with every word you read. What made it not so good as the original was I felt some characters who are newly introduced into the series really didn't have time to develop through the whole book so I was disappointed with that. I didn't enjoy the ending and thought it could More...
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Aug 04, 2010
Abbie rated it: 3 of 5 stars
It is 1794, and the Reign of Terror is at its height. Having disposed of many of the aristocrats, the people have turned on each other, and anyone who ever served an aristo is in danger. Yann Margoza is working with a group of trusted friends as a masked magician in the most popular show in Paris. Everyone knows him as the Harlequin, but this is just a cover for his true mission. With the help of Didier, his trusted friend, and the threads of light, he is smuggling people out of Paris to saf More...
0 comments like (1 person liked it)
Aug 25, 2011
David rated it: 3 of 5 stars
Remarkable this is blurbed as a children's book. Apart from the lack of sex, foul language and excessive violence, I don't see how that can be justified. It's pretty dark and gruesome, and deals with some heavy themes like suicide. Maybe by "children" then mean "youth".

Anyway, the book itself was a good read without being a great one. The setting (18th century France)was intriguing as where the magical elements. I thought it lacked real tension and suspense. Having More...
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Jan 27, 2010
Cindy rated it: 5 of 5 stars
The Red Necklace left us with Sido safely in London after the heroic rescue by Yann Margoza. The Silver Blade begins as the French Revelution is at a nightmarish state. Hundreds are being executed with out cause and Yann is doing all he can do to save the innocent. Sill working with his theater group, Yann disappears to preform acts that are now escalating him to hero states. It is so important to the cause that no one discovers the true identity of the Silver Blade. The story takes some ve More...
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Aug 13, 2009
Aarti rated it: 3 of 5 stars
The Silver Blade is the sequel (and I think there may only be two books in the series because the story wraps up pretty neatly here) to Sally Gardner's The Red Necklace. It is historical fantasy set during the French Revolution. It centers mainly around a Yann, a gypsy with the power to move objects and read people's minds and his lady love Sido.

The plot in this book was darker and more supernatural than its predecessor. The villain, Count Kalliovsky, is truly evil and just... distur More...
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Jul 22, 2010
DeEtte rated it: 2 of 5 stars
I will quickly review this book, along with it's prequel "The Red Necklace" so I only have to write one review.

I will preface my harsh review by saying that, unfortunately for Sally Gardner, I had just finished re-reading "Deathly Hallows" right before I started these books...and I'm sure that had quite a lot to do with me being completely underwhelmed by these books. She's definetely no J.K. Rowling. Okay, onto it:

I was so ready to really like these More...
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Jun 10, 2010
BOOK BUTTERFLY rated it: 5 of 5 stars
It’s 1794 and the French Revolution rages on in Paris; each day more and more victims falling claim to the ravenous jaws of the guillotine. While most of the “decadent aristocracy” have long ago fled from the city, others have not been so fortunate. But during this dark time, hope is not all lost. Rumors have begun to circulate in Paris- hushed murmurings about a man, one they call The Silver Blade. Word has it that before the Revolutionaries even know what hits them, The Silver Blade swoops in More...
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Oct 02, 2010
Tweller83 rated it: 3 of 5 stars
Very descriptive language. I found it just OK but I don't like historical fiction all that well. I'm sure it is a good book, and the romance is nice.

“Gardner’s sequel to 'The Red Necklace'stands alone, a lush historical romance with great appeal for teen readers” (PW). With his beloved Sido safely in England and the Reign of Terror at its height, the mysterious Yann Margoza returns to revolutionary France in 1794 to smuggle out aristocratic refugees who will otherwise face the guillo More...
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May 21, 2010
Ashley rated it: 4 of 5 stars
Wow, this book was totally awesome. Just one point makes me really angry: that it doesn't say anywhere on the book that this is a sequel!! The whole time I was reading it, I kept thinking, "Gee, there's this whole complex back story going on here. Sure seems like there must've been a book before this one." I searched the book a few times for a "sequel to ..." note, but there wasn't one. On the cover, it just says "By the author of The Red Necklace." What it should s More...
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Oct 02, 2010
Alyssa rated it: 3 of 5 stars
Good continuation of the first book "The Red Necklace," but now the main characters are more developed. Not a fan of the helpless girl, but her hero is pretty awesome so it makes up for it. The bad guy is pretty bad in this book too-a ceiling made of bones and has this fascination with what the guillotine leaves behind. A lot of the action and suspense comes from the time this story is set in-the French Revolution-so I can understand it but still think it's a bit much. (Do we really ca More...
0 comments like (1 person liked it)
Feb 14, 2011
Megan D. rated it: 3 of 5 stars
The Silver Blade by Sally Gardner takes place during the height of the French Revolution, and is actually the sequel to The Red Necklace. It continues the story of Yann Margoza, a gypsy who uses his magical skills and theater connections to rescue people from the Guillotine, a la Scarlet Pimpernel. The love of his life, Sido is safe on English shores, but is she? As the two lovers struggle to maintain a relationship through smuggled letters to each other, someone powerful is seeking to destroy Y More...
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Aug 02, 2010
BAYA rated it: 4 of 5 stars
In this sequel to The Red Necklace, the French Revolution is full blown and Yann, the hero from the first book, is helping aristocrats escape to England. His beloved Sido is safely ensconced there, but the villainous Count Kalliovski has gained more power and is still after her. A secret hangs in the air and Yann begins to question his gypsy roots and love for Sido. This book doesn’t move as quickly as the first but is still satisfying with even darker characters and more fantasy. Readers who lo More...
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Jun 28, 2010
Patricia rated it: 2 of 5 stars
This is the sequel to The Red Necklace. I really liked the first book. This book has two shifts in the story that I did not care for. First, it seemed that the protagonist shifted from Yann to Kalliovski. I do not like reading books where I dislike the protagonist and, of course, I disliked Kalliovski. Second, while the French Revolution was actually a bloody and terror-filled time (and that is the setting for both book 1 and book 2), this book introduced many creepy, supernatural things th More...
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Nov 10, 2010
711leah rated it: 4 of 5 stars
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here
8 comments like
Nov 29, 2009
Amelia, the pragmatic idealist rated it: 4 of 5 stars
* Usually when it comes to sequels, I like the first book better, but in this case, I would have to say that I found The Silver Blade much more action-packed and gripping than its predecessor. That's not to say that The Red Necklace is boring, but this book has a much more amplified story. It's a teen-version (and generally less-boring version) of The Scarlet Pimpernel and I have reasons to think that Sally Gardner intended it that way: at one point in the story, a character is surprised at the More...
6 comments like (2 people liked it)
Jun 21, 2011
Alkyoni ~ Kingfisher of books rated it: 4 of 5 stars
Fine. I’ll be clear. This book, hands down, gets four stars from me. Four. Stars. One star more than it’s previous one. And frankly? I don’t regret giving it that one extra star not a one bit. In my mind, it deserved it.
The plot takes up a few years after the point were the previous book left us and Sido and Yann are still apart. Sido lives with her uncle and aunt in London, while Yann lives in Paris, working as an actor by day and smuggling people out of France. It’s not just aristocr More...
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Mar 14, 2011
Rebecca- rated it: 4 of 5 stars
Okay. First if you haven't read THE RED NECKLACE which is the first book in this series, you may find some spoilers in this review. Maybe. Though some of the things might be slightly obvious and anyway, to be honest, you don't really have to have read the first book to read this book anyway. But just thought I'd put that just incase someone decides that their comment is an abusive one about ruining the book. :)

It's a good book I must admit. The language and the way it all links is do More...
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Jan 10, 2011
Clare rated it: 4 of 5 stars
An intriguing and original story that poignantly combines historical fiction with fantasy.

Set in the French Revolution, Yann is a French gypsy intent on saving people from the terror of the guillotine. He and his group of collaborators hide under the cover of a popular theatre house, actors by day and saviours by night. He possesses a gypsy magic that enables him to control the 'threads of light', a mysterious power to guide the will of people and objects. He is intent on only using More...
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Nov 22, 2010
Page (One Book At A Time) rated it: 4 of 5 stars
I really enjoyed The Red Necklace, so I was eager to read the sequel and rejoin the world of Sido and Yann. I particularly like the setting of the French Revolution in this book. I think it gives the story an edge.

I liked how Yann is the focus in this story. I think Sido received her closurer in the first book and if it weren't for the fact that she's tied to Yann, we wouldn't even really need to see her in the book. I liked the mystery of the silver blade. It's impressive that Yan More...
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Oct 07, 2010
Jess rated it: 4 of 5 stars
What is it with me and silver? Sheesh. Anyway, this is the sequel to The Red Necklace. J'ADORE the Red Necklace. That's right, I love it so much it's worth French. This book? A little bit of a letdown. Just a little, but it was still there. Yann spends a little too much time pining over Sido. I mean, I didn't want him to just keep moving even though he misses her, but this was a little indulgent. I could of forgiven that. The way the villain is finally defeated was not good enough for More...
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Mar 20, 2010
Teresa rated it: 5 of 5 stars
Do you ever pick up a book and actually shake with the anticipation of it being as good as the author’s previous books and then as soon as you start reading it you never want it to end? Well, that’s how I felt about The Silver Blade.

In this sequel to The Red Necklace, we are reacquainted with Yann Margoza, the young Romany magician and Sidonie de Villeduval, the young aristocrat orphan as well as a host of other familiar characters we have grown to love or hate, including the dwarf More...
0 comments like (1 person liked it)
Dec 02, 2011
Lawral rated it: 5 of 5 stars
In France The Revolution rages on, claiming more victims each day. Just about anyone with royal aspirations has long since left the country or already died in its name. But there are still some left in France who are at great risk: those with titles, remote but dangerous connections to the royal family, or the air of financial success. They will do anything to get to England safely. Rumor has it that the man for the job is The Silver Blade. His clients disappear right under the noses of the Revo More...
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