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Ancient Blades #2
A Thief in the Night
Circumstance made him a criminal.
Destiny may make him a hero.
As a thief, Malden is unparalleled in the Free City of Ness, and happy there. But by saving the life of the knight Croy, Malden has bound himself to an ancient, noble brotherhood . . . and he now possesses one of only seven Ancient Blades capable of destroying demons.
Malden fears accompanying Croy and the barbarian MÖrget on their quest to dispatch a foul creature of nightmare . . . nor does he want to disturb the vengeful dead. But with an assassin on his heels, the young cutpurse is left with no choice. And there is the comely sorceress, Cythera, to consider—promised to Croy but in love with Malden—not to mention
the fabulous treasure rumored to be hidden in the depths of the demon's lair . . .
Destiny may make him a hero.
As a thief, Malden is unparalleled in the Free City of Ness, and happy there. But by saving the life of the knight Croy, Malden has bound himself to an ancient, noble brotherhood . . . and he now possesses one of only seven Ancient Blades capable of destroying demons.
Malden fears accompanying Croy and the barbarian MÖrget on their quest to dispatch a foul creature of nightmare . . . nor does he want to disturb the vengeful dead. But with an assassin on his heels, the young cutpurse is left with no choice. And there is the comely sorceress, Cythera, to consider—promised to Croy but in love with Malden—not to mention
the fabulous treasure rumored to be hidden in the depths of the demon's lair . . .
533 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 27, 2011
23 people are currently reading
446 people want to read
About the author
David Chandler
5 books61 followersDavid Chandler was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1971. He attended Penn State and received an MFA in Creative Writing.
In his alter ego as David Wellington, he writes critically acclaimed and popular horror novels and was one of the co-authors of the New York Times bestseller Marvel Zombies Return. The Ancient Blades trilogy is his first foray into fantasy. He says he wrote the books “to appease my inner thirteen year old, the kid who grew up in the 80s reading the best of fantasy and science fiction. The kid who never stopped loving those books. The kid who longed to escape into a world of adventure and excitement, to get away, if just for a while, from his boring suburb and wander through worlds that could never be.”
For more information on his horror novels, see David Wellington.
In his alter ego as David Wellington, he writes critically acclaimed and popular horror novels and was one of the co-authors of the New York Times bestseller Marvel Zombies Return. The Ancient Blades trilogy is his first foray into fantasy. He says he wrote the books “to appease my inner thirteen year old, the kid who grew up in the 80s reading the best of fantasy and science fiction. The kid who never stopped loving those books. The kid who longed to escape into a world of adventure and excitement, to get away, if just for a while, from his boring suburb and wander through worlds that could never be.”
For more information on his horror novels, see David Wellington.
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September 9, 2011
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I am never excited to write a negative review. Last month I reviewed the first book in the Ancient Blades Trilogy titled Den of Thieves. David Chandler's first foray into high fantasy had its problems. I regret to report problems have continued into A Thief in the Night albeit not always the same ones. After finishing the novel I wondered why I didn't like it? Harper Voyager liked it enough to purchase the entire trilogy and release them over three months. Is it possible there's something fundamentally flawed in the way I read the novel? Are my expectations out of whack?
I'm 30 years old and I've read a lot of fantasy over the last twenty years. My first fantasy novel was in the 7th grade - Lloyd Alexander's The Chronicles of Prydain. I moved on to The Sword of Shannara, The Lord of the Rings, The Belgariad, The Dragonlance Chronicles, and every other book I could lay my hands on that was available at the Vista Campana Middle School library in Apple Valley, California. I wanted sweeping epic fantasy with dwarves, elves, and all kinds of other fantastic constructions conveyed in straight forward no nonsense prose. The farm boy prophesied to save the world was the end all be all for young Justin.
Somewhere along the road to adulthood I decided I wanted a little more from my fantasy and modern fantasy has delivered. Of course, fantasy has always had ambition - Robert Holdstock's Mythago Wood, John Crowley's Little, Big, Peter Beagle's The Last Unicorn, to name a few. But, for the most part, the development of more ambitious epic/high fantasy is recent. Authors like George R.R. Martin, Joe Abercrombie, Daniel Abraham, and Steven Erikson have brought a great deal more depth to the sub-genre. Elves and dwarves are largely gone and the farm boy is more likely to get a sword through the stomach before he gets far enough into the game to impact anything. Abraham has even gone so far as to turn the farm boy paradigm into a female alcoholic banker. These authors led me full circle back to Holdstock, Crowley, and Beagle who have in turn led me to Gene Wolfe, Carthrynne Valente, and China Miéville.
And yet, I very much enjoyed James Barclay's The Raven Chronicles and Michael J. Sullivan's Riyria Revelations both of whom in terms of world construction and character archetypes bear close resemblance to Chandler's Ancient Blades Trilogy. I guess what I'm saying is that while I may have developed tastes that take me beyond elves, dwarves, and straight forward narratives, it doesn't mean that I'm not up for a simple adventure romp from time to time. If that's true, and my expectations aren't broken, then why didn't I enjoy the first two installments in Chandler's series?
I'm so glad I asked - because they just aren't as good. The prose is fine and even quite good in places if a bit overwritten. The stories themselves aren't terribly contrived, at least no more so than "comparable" novels like the aforementioned Barclay and Sullivan. But, and it's a big one, I cannot ignore a novel whose plot and characers just aren't interesting. It's unfortunate that Chandler has fallen into this category because I actually think there's a lot of potential in the world he's created - which is interesting.
Based on a serf/lord model of medieval Europe, it's a world where most folk are oppressed. In the free-city of Ness, where Den takes place entirely and Thief begins, everyone is free to choose their own destiny - albeit options are rather limited. Magic is based on the summoning and harnessing of demonic energy. To combat this threat to the fabric of reality seven blades were created and seven warriors were chosen to wield them. But demons have almost been exterminated and the ancient blades aren't quite sure to do with themselves. Cool premise, no? Once things move beyond world building though, the whole thing falls flat.
The two points of view Chandler writes from - Malden and Croy - undergo a shift in Thief where they betray the mores built up throughout the series. To me, it all felt very forced as though the characters changed because the author needed them to. Brent Weeks, author of the Night Angel Trilogy and the bestseller The Black Prism wrote:
"My characters are mine. They must do what I have decided they will do. If you get to a point in the story where you realize your characters will not do that thing and remain true to themselves, you have a couple of options: you can just make them do it for the sake of the story, and your story will suck. Or you can sit there and wrestle with it. "
For me, Chandler swung and missed at this. I understand where he wanted to take his protagonists. I just didn't buy it.
I also struggled with Chandler's use of magic throughout the novel. Cythera - Malden and Croy's mutual love interest - has an ability to absorb curses. This absorption manifests itself as tattoos on her body. In the first novel Cythera cannot be touched lest this magical energy be unleashed. Lo and behold, come Thief she can release such energy at anyone/thing she likes. Brandon Sanderson in his treatise on magic (which I highly recommend) said:
"If we simply let ourselves develop new rules every time our characters are in danger, we will end up creating fiction that is not only unfulfilling and unexciting, but just plain bad."
For example, Thief takes the merry band of adventures to an ancient city that's been entombed beneath a mountain. The entrance is chained shut with magical chains that (it seems) will strike anyone dead who touches them. Cythera, being magically cursed, touches them, absorbs their power, and channels it to burn a hole in the door. Snazzy, right? Of course, she couldn't do this in Den and I didn't see any explanation about this new found ability. I suspect this scene was included to setup how a much more pivotal conflict is resolved in the novel's conclusion (actually, in EXACTLY the same way). Instead, a few sentences about how Cythera has been learning to control her ability and using a well established capability of another party member to open the door (say... I don't know the master engineer of a dwarf maybe?) would have been more interesting and set up the later scene just as well.
Ok, so I think it's fairly obvious that I really didn't like A Thief in the Night (or Den of Thieves for that matter) and I don't want to further belabor the point. The truth is, they're not bad books. I read them both quickly and never cast them aside. However, as a reviewer advising my readers about what is worth their time, or not, I believe there are far better options available.
I am never excited to write a negative review. Last month I reviewed the first book in the Ancient Blades Trilogy titled Den of Thieves. David Chandler's first foray into high fantasy had its problems. I regret to report problems have continued into A Thief in the Night albeit not always the same ones. After finishing the novel I wondered why I didn't like it? Harper Voyager liked it enough to purchase the entire trilogy and release them over three months. Is it possible there's something fundamentally flawed in the way I read the novel? Are my expectations out of whack?
I'm 30 years old and I've read a lot of fantasy over the last twenty years. My first fantasy novel was in the 7th grade - Lloyd Alexander's The Chronicles of Prydain. I moved on to The Sword of Shannara, The Lord of the Rings, The Belgariad, The Dragonlance Chronicles, and every other book I could lay my hands on that was available at the Vista Campana Middle School library in Apple Valley, California. I wanted sweeping epic fantasy with dwarves, elves, and all kinds of other fantastic constructions conveyed in straight forward no nonsense prose. The farm boy prophesied to save the world was the end all be all for young Justin.
Somewhere along the road to adulthood I decided I wanted a little more from my fantasy and modern fantasy has delivered. Of course, fantasy has always had ambition - Robert Holdstock's Mythago Wood, John Crowley's Little, Big, Peter Beagle's The Last Unicorn, to name a few. But, for the most part, the development of more ambitious epic/high fantasy is recent. Authors like George R.R. Martin, Joe Abercrombie, Daniel Abraham, and Steven Erikson have brought a great deal more depth to the sub-genre. Elves and dwarves are largely gone and the farm boy is more likely to get a sword through the stomach before he gets far enough into the game to impact anything. Abraham has even gone so far as to turn the farm boy paradigm into a female alcoholic banker. These authors led me full circle back to Holdstock, Crowley, and Beagle who have in turn led me to Gene Wolfe, Carthrynne Valente, and China Miéville.
And yet, I very much enjoyed James Barclay's The Raven Chronicles and Michael J. Sullivan's Riyria Revelations both of whom in terms of world construction and character archetypes bear close resemblance to Chandler's Ancient Blades Trilogy. I guess what I'm saying is that while I may have developed tastes that take me beyond elves, dwarves, and straight forward narratives, it doesn't mean that I'm not up for a simple adventure romp from time to time. If that's true, and my expectations aren't broken, then why didn't I enjoy the first two installments in Chandler's series?
I'm so glad I asked - because they just aren't as good. The prose is fine and even quite good in places if a bit overwritten. The stories themselves aren't terribly contrived, at least no more so than "comparable" novels like the aforementioned Barclay and Sullivan. But, and it's a big one, I cannot ignore a novel whose plot and characers just aren't interesting. It's unfortunate that Chandler has fallen into this category because I actually think there's a lot of potential in the world he's created - which is interesting.
Based on a serf/lord model of medieval Europe, it's a world where most folk are oppressed. In the free-city of Ness, where Den takes place entirely and Thief begins, everyone is free to choose their own destiny - albeit options are rather limited. Magic is based on the summoning and harnessing of demonic energy. To combat this threat to the fabric of reality seven blades were created and seven warriors were chosen to wield them. But demons have almost been exterminated and the ancient blades aren't quite sure to do with themselves. Cool premise, no? Once things move beyond world building though, the whole thing falls flat.
The two points of view Chandler writes from - Malden and Croy - undergo a shift in Thief where they betray the mores built up throughout the series. To me, it all felt very forced as though the characters changed because the author needed them to. Brent Weeks, author of the Night Angel Trilogy and the bestseller The Black Prism wrote:
"My characters are mine. They must do what I have decided they will do. If you get to a point in the story where you realize your characters will not do that thing and remain true to themselves, you have a couple of options: you can just make them do it for the sake of the story, and your story will suck. Or you can sit there and wrestle with it. "
For me, Chandler swung and missed at this. I understand where he wanted to take his protagonists. I just didn't buy it.
I also struggled with Chandler's use of magic throughout the novel. Cythera - Malden and Croy's mutual love interest - has an ability to absorb curses. This absorption manifests itself as tattoos on her body. In the first novel Cythera cannot be touched lest this magical energy be unleashed. Lo and behold, come Thief she can release such energy at anyone/thing she likes. Brandon Sanderson in his treatise on magic (which I highly recommend) said:
"If we simply let ourselves develop new rules every time our characters are in danger, we will end up creating fiction that is not only unfulfilling and unexciting, but just plain bad."
For example, Thief takes the merry band of adventures to an ancient city that's been entombed beneath a mountain. The entrance is chained shut with magical chains that (it seems) will strike anyone dead who touches them. Cythera, being magically cursed, touches them, absorbs their power, and channels it to burn a hole in the door. Snazzy, right? Of course, she couldn't do this in Den and I didn't see any explanation about this new found ability. I suspect this scene was included to setup how a much more pivotal conflict is resolved in the novel's conclusion (actually, in EXACTLY the same way). Instead, a few sentences about how Cythera has been learning to control her ability and using a well established capability of another party member to open the door (say... I don't know the master engineer of a dwarf maybe?) would have been more interesting and set up the later scene just as well.
Ok, so I think it's fairly obvious that I really didn't like A Thief in the Night (or Den of Thieves for that matter) and I don't want to further belabor the point. The truth is, they're not bad books. I read them both quickly and never cast them aside. However, as a reviewer advising my readers about what is worth their time, or not, I believe there are far better options available.
May 12, 2020
I read the first book in this series, Den of Thieves, years ago, but the plot of that book was so simple and straight-forward that it carried straight over to this one and the small scattered hints in this book was enough for me to remember the whole thing. My initial thoughts when I started to read this book was that it read like a D&D adventure and the characters were pretty straight-forward D&D stereotypes; the sweet but dense knight, the sly thief, the cunning dwarf, the wise magic apprentice, and the barbarian who solves everything with violence. But just like in the last book I fell in love with Malden and I discovered that every part of the book that was just Malden, Cythera and Slag were amazing, and every part of it involving Croy and Mörget a lot less so. It read like a D&D adventure all the way through, but when the mystery evolved just over halfway through the book (around 275 pages in) things started to get really interesting and I found the book hard to put down. It's a good many-layered mystery reaching through the ages and those are great. There were a few instances where I was just waiting for the characters to catch up, where I had figured out where the story was going and they didn't know yet, but I wasn't so much further ahead of the characters that it became annoying. The caught up pretty quickly. All in all I did enjoy this book and I will pick up the third part eventually.
March 26, 2013
If the first book in this series was mostly a heist story, this book was basically a dungeon crawl, in the vein of the classic Conan the Barbarian movie. "Group of adventurers go down a deep hole in search of treasure. Mayhem ensues."
The good: the pacing and plotting continues to be pretty tight. Dialog is snappy--the characters have nicely individual voices, and they play off of each other well for the most part. Another fun, easy read.
The bad: I felt like the author was straining a bit to keep everything in check. A few of the plot points kind of came out of nowhere, and were never adequately explained, even afterwards. It's possible that this is mostly setup for the last book of the trilogy, but even if this turns out to be the case it just means that this one fares more poorly as a stand-alone book. And characterization was not as well established in this book-- the new protagonist stays consistent only because he's fairly poorly defined (although the epilogue was a pretty good payoff), and the recurring characters seem to be suffering from a touch of "because the plot said so" in terms of their motivations. At a couple of points it really began to bother me that a character would act in a way that seemed to have no justification, and in the case of some of the protagonists, even contrary to their previous characterization.
The roundup: Characterization As mentioned above, the dialog and plot maintain a high level of quality. The setting gains some definition-- just enough world-building to justify the events of the book, leaving you without any burning questions.
The postscript: I appreciate that getting serious proofreading for this kind of novel is a lost cause, but at the same time, please remember that a spell-checker is not infallible. Your character may indeed suffer a grizzly fate, but only if there are bears around. Otherwise it's just grisly.
The good: the pacing and plotting continues to be pretty tight. Dialog is snappy--the characters have nicely individual voices, and they play off of each other well for the most part. Another fun, easy read.
The bad: I felt like the author was straining a bit to keep everything in check. A few of the plot points kind of came out of nowhere, and were never adequately explained, even afterwards. It's possible that this is mostly setup for the last book of the trilogy, but even if this turns out to be the case it just means that this one fares more poorly as a stand-alone book. And characterization was not as well established in this book-- the new protagonist stays consistent only because he's fairly poorly defined (although the epilogue was a pretty good payoff), and the recurring characters seem to be suffering from a touch of "because the plot said so" in terms of their motivations. At a couple of points it really began to bother me that a character would act in a way that seemed to have no justification, and in the case of some of the protagonists, even contrary to their previous characterization.
The roundup: Characterization As mentioned above, the dialog and plot maintain a high level of quality. The setting gains some definition-- just enough world-building to justify the events of the book, leaving you without any burning questions.
The postscript: I appreciate that getting serious proofreading for this kind of novel is a lost cause, but at the same time, please remember that a spell-checker is not infallible. Your character may indeed suffer a grizzly fate, but only if there are bears around. Otherwise it's just grisly.
December 27, 2016
Chandler surprises me at every turn with his worldbuilding and his unique take on classic fantasy elements. His descriptions of monsters never fails to make shudders go down my spine. Malden is a wonderful character being pushed past his limits and learning where he chooses to draw the line. What a wonderful world to explore!
Read
March 6, 2016I loved this book!!!!! Awesome story .. can't wait to read the final book in the trilogy.
April 30, 2023
Very interesting story and gripping narrative. However, the only main female character is in a love triangle for the majority of the book, which is quite frustrating.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 5, 2012
Sword and sorcery may be the lowest form of fantasy. When it's a book like A Thief in the Night, by David Chandler, that's a really, really great thing. Bad boys doing bad things for all the wrong reasons. Sounds like fun because it IS fun!
A Thief in the Night is the second book of The Ancient Blades. If you're curious about book one, Den of Thieves, read this first. Book three, Honor Among Thieves, will be published in late November, 2011, and I'm very grateful to the publisher and Net Galley for letting me have a review copy. I'd hate to be waiting until after Thanksgiving to see how it all turns out. I dislike "middle-book syndrome" on general principles. Enough said.
When last we left our heroes (I've always wanted to write that), they had just removed an evil sorcerer and his corrupted knight from the Free City of Ness. Permanently and with extreme prejudice. Malden, the thief of the title, had also learned more than was good for him about the way the city really works. In Malden's case, if a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, a lot of knowledge is downright life-threatening.
Sir Croy, the Ancient Blade, won the freedom of his lady-love, Cythera the witch's daughter. At the beginning of Thief in the Night, Croy believes they will finally be married. There are a few problems with his plan. Their betrothal signing is interrupted by a bar-room brawl. Started by a Northern Barbarian. One who holds yet another Ancient Blade. Said Barbarian wants Croy to help him hunt down a demon. Croy loves demon hunting even more than he loves Cythera, so Croy leaves the betrothal unsigned to start outfitting the demon hunt. Cythera is just fine with the interruption, because that's the other problem. Croy thinks she'll be a good little knight's wife once their married, and she's not so sure about that. And anyway, she's in love with Malden. Oops.
About that demon. The demon is holed up in the Vincularium. For those who read Tolkien, think of it as the Mines of Moria, only with a worse backstory. The dwarves buried a secret in the Vincularium, one they'll do anything to keep buried. The humans buried one there too. History is written by the victors, or so it is said. In Malden's world, where we say, "dead as a doornail", they say, "dead as an elf". The Vincularium is where the elves died. All the elves. Betrayed by their dwarven allies and killed by the humans.
But the Ancient Blades are sworn to kill demons. So Croy is going. His new friend Morget the barbarian is going. Cythera says she's going. No one has signed those betrothal papers yet, so she's still a free woman. And Malden, our thief--he wasn't going. No profit in it. But...about those secrets. Someone in Ness wants him dead. Painfully. Sacrificed to the Bloodgod. Going to the Vincularium suddenly looks like the less painful option. Or at least a delay of the painful option. Delaying death is always good.
Escape Rating A: One of the things I love about sword and sorcery is the way that it turns high fantasy tropes upside down. The central character here is Malden, the thief. He is not a hero, and he doesn't want to be. He's a survivor. Croy is a typical hero, and he's naive to a fault. Malden's voice is much more fun to listen to, he's sharper and smarter. Also more of a smart-ass.
Cythera is also a survivor. She was a virtual prisoner for many years. Croy represents safety and security, marrying him is the safe option. He will protect her. But he is incapable of understanding her. And yes, Malden loves her too.
I enjoyed watching every one of the starting assumptions get knocked down. The demon isn't exactly a demon. The dwarves aren't just clever artificers and merchants--they are prevented from being warriors by treaty, and only as long as it suits them. The elves weren't the villains that humans have always been taught. "Dead as an elf" isn't actually correct, either. Dealing with the fallout from that is going to be fun in the next book.
A Thief in the Night is the second book of The Ancient Blades. If you're curious about book one, Den of Thieves, read this first. Book three, Honor Among Thieves, will be published in late November, 2011, and I'm very grateful to the publisher and Net Galley for letting me have a review copy. I'd hate to be waiting until after Thanksgiving to see how it all turns out. I dislike "middle-book syndrome" on general principles. Enough said.
When last we left our heroes (I've always wanted to write that), they had just removed an evil sorcerer and his corrupted knight from the Free City of Ness. Permanently and with extreme prejudice. Malden, the thief of the title, had also learned more than was good for him about the way the city really works. In Malden's case, if a little knowledge is a dangerous thing, a lot of knowledge is downright life-threatening.
Sir Croy, the Ancient Blade, won the freedom of his lady-love, Cythera the witch's daughter. At the beginning of Thief in the Night, Croy believes they will finally be married. There are a few problems with his plan. Their betrothal signing is interrupted by a bar-room brawl. Started by a Northern Barbarian. One who holds yet another Ancient Blade. Said Barbarian wants Croy to help him hunt down a demon. Croy loves demon hunting even more than he loves Cythera, so Croy leaves the betrothal unsigned to start outfitting the demon hunt. Cythera is just fine with the interruption, because that's the other problem. Croy thinks she'll be a good little knight's wife once their married, and she's not so sure about that. And anyway, she's in love with Malden. Oops.
About that demon. The demon is holed up in the Vincularium. For those who read Tolkien, think of it as the Mines of Moria, only with a worse backstory. The dwarves buried a secret in the Vincularium, one they'll do anything to keep buried. The humans buried one there too. History is written by the victors, or so it is said. In Malden's world, where we say, "dead as a doornail", they say, "dead as an elf". The Vincularium is where the elves died. All the elves. Betrayed by their dwarven allies and killed by the humans.
But the Ancient Blades are sworn to kill demons. So Croy is going. His new friend Morget the barbarian is going. Cythera says she's going. No one has signed those betrothal papers yet, so she's still a free woman. And Malden, our thief--he wasn't going. No profit in it. But...about those secrets. Someone in Ness wants him dead. Painfully. Sacrificed to the Bloodgod. Going to the Vincularium suddenly looks like the less painful option. Or at least a delay of the painful option. Delaying death is always good.
Escape Rating A: One of the things I love about sword and sorcery is the way that it turns high fantasy tropes upside down. The central character here is Malden, the thief. He is not a hero, and he doesn't want to be. He's a survivor. Croy is a typical hero, and he's naive to a fault. Malden's voice is much more fun to listen to, he's sharper and smarter. Also more of a smart-ass.
Cythera is also a survivor. She was a virtual prisoner for many years. Croy represents safety and security, marrying him is the safe option. He will protect her. But he is incapable of understanding her. And yes, Malden loves her too.
I enjoyed watching every one of the starting assumptions get knocked down. The demon isn't exactly a demon. The dwarves aren't just clever artificers and merchants--they are prevented from being warriors by treaty, and only as long as it suits them. The elves weren't the villains that humans have always been taught. "Dead as an elf" isn't actually correct, either. Dealing with the fallout from that is going to be fun in the next book.
June 13, 2014
A Thief in the Night, the second in the 'ancient blades' trilogy is a book that on paper would seem hackneyed and trite, and yet manages to be both thoroughly enjoyable and interesting.
Picking up where the last book left off we have the three 'principal' characters of the last piece, centred around the titular thief and scoundrel, Malden. He is now working for the city of Ness guild-master as a recruiter. The 'Ancient Blade', Knight, and all around fairy-tale hero incarnate Sir Croy is planning on marrying Cythera, his lady love, though also Malden's secret paramour. Into this entertaining love triangle is dropped a quest by a mysterious stranger from the Eastern Barbarians. A Demon that has fled into the depths of a long-lost dwarven city, also the site of the late betrayal of the now extinct elves.
Okay, so simply put that all sounds very... well tropic. Dwarves... Elves... Long lost abandoned cities? Barbarians? Thieves and Knights? How many tropes of D&D and thus classic fantasy can be at work here? And yet, they work. Perhaps partly because the central conceit of the book, focusing on the thief, rather than the 'hero' character we would expect gives the book a sort of seedy, yet interesting undertone. The morally upright heroic knight often comes across as just stupid in compared to Malden's more 'modern' and cynical sensibilities. We have a host of conventions here at play, but they all fit together well and are utilized in interesting ways. Indeed parts of this book feel like a 'Dungeon Crawl' and yet each element furthers the plots. Undead Elven corpses that are actually a clue to a deeper secret. Dwarven traps that seem too new to possibly have been set centuries ago before the thing was sealed. There are revelations, both about the world and about the characters, and they slowly unfold in a way that by the end was satisfying. They aren't mysterious in a 'twist' sort of way. The revelations at the end I saw coming, but they had enough about them that rather than feel 'oh well, saw that...' it left more a rewarded feeling for figuring it out.
While the first book of this series was very focused on traps, on cleverness, and was essential a series of heists in fantasy format, this one, while having some of the same, ups the ante and expands the world and the characters. Leaving one or two dangling elements at the end to wet the appetite for the final in the trilogy(it's a trilogy... of course).
My one big criticism of it is that an event occurs about two-thirds into the book that leads a character to something that seems so uncharecteristic that it broke my suspension of disbelief. I kept waiting to find out if magic, or something else was involved, because it seemed so bizarre that the character would act this way. It didn't ruin the book for me, but it was a week turn in what was otherwise an excellent work that I feel like I enjoyed more than I should have.
So fantasy fans, grab this readily readable work if you liked the first, or even if you kind of were 'meh' about it.
Picking up where the last book left off we have the three 'principal' characters of the last piece, centred around the titular thief and scoundrel, Malden. He is now working for the city of Ness guild-master as a recruiter. The 'Ancient Blade', Knight, and all around fairy-tale hero incarnate Sir Croy is planning on marrying Cythera, his lady love, though also Malden's secret paramour. Into this entertaining love triangle is dropped a quest by a mysterious stranger from the Eastern Barbarians. A Demon that has fled into the depths of a long-lost dwarven city, also the site of the late betrayal of the now extinct elves.
Okay, so simply put that all sounds very... well tropic. Dwarves... Elves... Long lost abandoned cities? Barbarians? Thieves and Knights? How many tropes of D&D and thus classic fantasy can be at work here? And yet, they work. Perhaps partly because the central conceit of the book, focusing on the thief, rather than the 'hero' character we would expect gives the book a sort of seedy, yet interesting undertone. The morally upright heroic knight often comes across as just stupid in compared to Malden's more 'modern' and cynical sensibilities. We have a host of conventions here at play, but they all fit together well and are utilized in interesting ways. Indeed parts of this book feel like a 'Dungeon Crawl' and yet each element furthers the plots. Undead Elven corpses that are actually a clue to a deeper secret. Dwarven traps that seem too new to possibly have been set centuries ago before the thing was sealed. There are revelations, both about the world and about the characters, and they slowly unfold in a way that by the end was satisfying. They aren't mysterious in a 'twist' sort of way. The revelations at the end I saw coming, but they had enough about them that rather than feel 'oh well, saw that...' it left more a rewarded feeling for figuring it out.
While the first book of this series was very focused on traps, on cleverness, and was essential a series of heists in fantasy format, this one, while having some of the same, ups the ante and expands the world and the characters. Leaving one or two dangling elements at the end to wet the appetite for the final in the trilogy(it's a trilogy... of course).
My one big criticism of it is that an event occurs about two-thirds into the book that leads a character to something that seems so uncharecteristic that it broke my suspension of disbelief. I kept waiting to find out if magic, or something else was involved, because it seemed so bizarre that the character would act this way. It didn't ruin the book for me, but it was a week turn in what was otherwise an excellent work that I feel like I enjoyed more than I should have.
So fantasy fans, grab this readily readable work if you liked the first, or even if you kind of were 'meh' about it.
June 24, 2012
I enjoyed this book, and the star rating is based solely on my enjoyment of the book. There were flaws, but they were ones I was willing to overlook and find enjoyment in the story.
That isn't to say that the people who gave the book a bad review are too picky, or reading the book wrong, or whatever. The book did have a lot of issues and it's perfectly reasonable for people to not like it.
Justin's review brings up all the issues with the book in a very clear and concise way and I really enjoyed reading it because I noticed all of those things about the book too.
I'll be brief. Cythera's new way of working magic made me raise an eyebrow more than once. It was clear in the first book that she could release the curses on another person, or someone who tried to attack her or cause her ill will through physical contact. Now though it appears she can release it at any time on or towards any object. Its a new dynamic that works for this story, but it also means that the previous story is now invalid.
It's a set up to only move the plot forward without searching for other alternatives while still following the rules that were set up in the first book. It bothered me.
Another thing was the simplistic story, I wasn't surprised by any of the reveals behind the book but I liked that the characters had to question their own beliefs. All but Croy. I wished there had been more about his struggle with the elves here.
I like the writing style, the quick pace, and the fact that this book isn't bogged down by hundreds and hundreds of unneeded pages. The book takes off and stays in the air the whole time. Its a nice change to the 700+ books in the fantasy genre now that spend more than half of those on needless details, pointless monologues, and the like.
Overall I did like the book. It's simple but enjoyable. It's a plot that isn't exactly new but it manages to be refreshing.
That isn't to say that the people who gave the book a bad review are too picky, or reading the book wrong, or whatever. The book did have a lot of issues and it's perfectly reasonable for people to not like it.
Justin's review brings up all the issues with the book in a very clear and concise way and I really enjoyed reading it because I noticed all of those things about the book too.
I'll be brief. Cythera's new way of working magic made me raise an eyebrow more than once. It was clear in the first book that she could release the curses on another person, or someone who tried to attack her or cause her ill will through physical contact. Now though it appears she can release it at any time on or towards any object. Its a new dynamic that works for this story, but it also means that the previous story is now invalid.
It's a set up to only move the plot forward without searching for other alternatives while still following the rules that were set up in the first book. It bothered me.
Another thing was the simplistic story, I wasn't surprised by any of the reveals behind the book but I liked that the characters had to question their own beliefs. All but Croy. I wished there had been more about his struggle with the elves here.
I like the writing style, the quick pace, and the fact that this book isn't bogged down by hundreds and hundreds of unneeded pages. The book takes off and stays in the air the whole time. Its a nice change to the 700+ books in the fantasy genre now that spend more than half of those on needless details, pointless monologues, and the like.
Overall I did like the book. It's simple but enjoyable. It's a plot that isn't exactly new but it manages to be refreshing.
September 28, 2016
Libro fantasy classico.. un cavaliere, un ladro, un nano, una maga, un guerriero che alla ricerca di un demone decidono in intraprendere la caccia all’interno di una montagna dove una antica città di nani abbandonata da 800 anni fa da prigione ad antichissimi misteri e leggende.
Insomma un po come quando Gandalf e compagnia si trovano a Moria
Chiaramente ispirato a quel tratto di storia del capolavoro di Tolkien, il libro risulta divertente e carico di azione. Ispirato, perchè l'autore non si prende sul serio e il libro e pieno di una leggera ironia che rende molto piacevole la lettura
inoltre Chandler è davvero bravo a descrivere le scene tanto che non è per nulla difficile immaginarsi tutta la situazione che vivono i protagonisti.
Protagonisti che sono poi il punto forte della storia. Malden il ladro, Croy il cavaliere, Slag il nano, Cyteria la strega e Morget il barbaro… 4 personaggi principali così diversi tra loro che proprio per questo funzionano e le loro diverse visioni del mondo rende alcuni tratti del libro davvero piacevoli…
Se poi ci aggiungiamo Goblin e demoni, elfi e antiche leggende, una vecchia storia che man man viene rivelata, un assassino psicopatico, spade magiche, non morti, filtri d’amore e maledizioni, fantasmi e trappole.. insomma il risultato non affatto male.
Peccato che non finisce… se il primo libro poteva considerarsi autoconclusivo, questo no.. finisce si la storia principale, ma alcuni sviluppi importanti vengono lasciati in sospeso
Ottimo fantasy, che non annoia, che diverte e chi mi ha ricordato perché mi piace così tanto leggere questo genere.
due parole sull'edizione.
Den of Thieves (covo di ladri)
A Thief in the Night (un ladro nella notte)
Honor Among Thieves (onore tra ladri)
Ora la Newton Compton (che cmq ringrazio per aver portato il libro in Italia) decide di chiamare il primo La Profezia della Torre Nera e il secondo La Maledizione della Torre Nera (per il terzo chissà se mai vedremo l’edizione tradotta, visto che già ci ha messo 2 anni per pubblicare il secondo volume).
Inutile dire che di torri nere in entrambi i libri nemmeno l’ombra.. forse forse il primo, ma il secondo?
Insomma un po come quando Gandalf e compagnia si trovano a Moria
Chiaramente ispirato a quel tratto di storia del capolavoro di Tolkien, il libro risulta divertente e carico di azione. Ispirato, perchè l'autore non si prende sul serio e il libro e pieno di una leggera ironia che rende molto piacevole la lettura
inoltre Chandler è davvero bravo a descrivere le scene tanto che non è per nulla difficile immaginarsi tutta la situazione che vivono i protagonisti.
Protagonisti che sono poi il punto forte della storia. Malden il ladro, Croy il cavaliere, Slag il nano, Cyteria la strega e Morget il barbaro… 4 personaggi principali così diversi tra loro che proprio per questo funzionano e le loro diverse visioni del mondo rende alcuni tratti del libro davvero piacevoli…
Se poi ci aggiungiamo Goblin e demoni, elfi e antiche leggende, una vecchia storia che man man viene rivelata, un assassino psicopatico, spade magiche, non morti, filtri d’amore e maledizioni, fantasmi e trappole.. insomma il risultato non affatto male.
Peccato che non finisce… se il primo libro poteva considerarsi autoconclusivo, questo no.. finisce si la storia principale, ma alcuni sviluppi importanti vengono lasciati in sospeso
Ottimo fantasy, che non annoia, che diverte e chi mi ha ricordato perché mi piace così tanto leggere questo genere.
due parole sull'edizione.
Den of Thieves (covo di ladri)
A Thief in the Night (un ladro nella notte)
Honor Among Thieves (onore tra ladri)
Ora la Newton Compton (che cmq ringrazio per aver portato il libro in Italia) decide di chiamare il primo La Profezia della Torre Nera e il secondo La Maledizione della Torre Nera (per il terzo chissà se mai vedremo l’edizione tradotta, visto che già ci ha messo 2 anni per pubblicare il secondo volume).
Inutile dire che di torri nere in entrambi i libri nemmeno l’ombra.. forse forse il primo, ma il secondo?
February 3, 2015
It took me about three months to finish this book.
My usual M.O. for reading books is that I take them to work with me and start reading them on my lunch breaks. Usually after three or four days I can't stand it anymore and have to know what happens next, so the book gets dragged out of my purse as soon as I get home and finished in a night.
I tried doing that with this book but found I really couldn't read more than four or five chapters in one sitting. In some ways it wasn't a bad thing. This book was written in nice short chapters that I could read four or five of and feel like I was ready to go back to work.
But still. It took me about three months to finish this book.
Initially I liked this book better than the first in the series. Some of that might have been because we didn't have to go through the tedious intros that all first of a series have to go through. Some of it was because I liked that relationships seemed to have developed between our main characters.
But man, after a reasonable beginning, the pacing of this book just lagged. It almost reminds me of those annoying TV commercials "But wait! There's more!" It was one thing after another after another. They find this in the cave. They find that in the cave. They find this other thing in the cave. But wait! There's more! They get separated. They get back together. They go off on different adventures. They fear for their lives. But wait! There's more!...
By the end of the story I was at a point where I almost didn't care anymore. Someone kill someone/something and let's end this already.
And so I just kept plugging away at it for three months. It was good enough that I didn't totally want to abandon it. But not so good that I wanted to devour it. I will probably read the final book, but I'm guessing it'll be June before I finish it...
My usual M.O. for reading books is that I take them to work with me and start reading them on my lunch breaks. Usually after three or four days I can't stand it anymore and have to know what happens next, so the book gets dragged out of my purse as soon as I get home and finished in a night.
I tried doing that with this book but found I really couldn't read more than four or five chapters in one sitting. In some ways it wasn't a bad thing. This book was written in nice short chapters that I could read four or five of and feel like I was ready to go back to work.
But still. It took me about three months to finish this book.
Initially I liked this book better than the first in the series. Some of that might have been because we didn't have to go through the tedious intros that all first of a series have to go through. Some of it was because I liked that relationships seemed to have developed between our main characters.
But man, after a reasonable beginning, the pacing of this book just lagged. It almost reminds me of those annoying TV commercials "But wait! There's more!" It was one thing after another after another. They find this in the cave. They find that in the cave. They find this other thing in the cave. But wait! There's more! They get separated. They get back together. They go off on different adventures. They fear for their lives. But wait! There's more!...
By the end of the story I was at a point where I almost didn't care anymore. Someone kill someone/something and let's end this already.
And so I just kept plugging away at it for three months. It was good enough that I didn't totally want to abandon it. But not so good that I wanted to devour it. I will probably read the final book, but I'm guessing it'll be June before I finish it...
January 28, 2013
There was plenty to like about this book. For starters, its a good old fashioned dungeon crawl. There were times when I found myself imagining the scene from the Lord of the Rings where the Fellowship are in Moria. The parallel makes sense because in this story the characters are also exploring a long abandoned Dwarven city that could be the home of a demon.
Unsurprisingly the abandoned city is far from empty. It is filled with challenges, from fiendish dwarven traps, to creatures both undead and alive, and of course there's the demon to deal with as well.
Thief in the Night is a fun romp in what could easily be considered a cliché fantasy environment, but the characters give the story a point of difference. Being the second book in the series we are once again joined by familiar faces, but this book also introduces two new characters and fleshes out a minor character from book one. All of which I believe will feature further in the third book.
There were, however, some aspects of the story that I didn't like so much. The party is formed in Ness and departs a few days later with only the merest pretence bringing them together, that bit all seemed a bit contrived. The love triangle between Malden, Cythera, and Croy was clumsily done - there were some truly cringe worthy moments in there I can tell you. Also the ease with which Croy was manipulated into becoming a psychotic murderer just didn't sit well with me.
Putting it all together. Thief in the Night was a fun read and definitely did not cause me to abandon the series because of the issues I mentioned above. If you enjoyed book one then book two will keep you entertained.
Unsurprisingly the abandoned city is far from empty. It is filled with challenges, from fiendish dwarven traps, to creatures both undead and alive, and of course there's the demon to deal with as well.
Thief in the Night is a fun romp in what could easily be considered a cliché fantasy environment, but the characters give the story a point of difference. Being the second book in the series we are once again joined by familiar faces, but this book also introduces two new characters and fleshes out a minor character from book one. All of which I believe will feature further in the third book.
There were, however, some aspects of the story that I didn't like so much. The party is formed in Ness and departs a few days later with only the merest pretence bringing them together, that bit all seemed a bit contrived. The love triangle between Malden, Cythera, and Croy was clumsily done - there were some truly cringe worthy moments in there I can tell you. Also the ease with which Croy was manipulated into becoming a psychotic murderer just didn't sit well with me.
Putting it all together. Thief in the Night was a fun read and definitely did not cause me to abandon the series because of the issues I mentioned above. If you enjoyed book one then book two will keep you entertained.
January 2, 2018
Well-written and compelling, though I'm not sure Cythera's powers make any sense at this point.
Chandler also gets away with not explaining things in a very clever manner. For example, without spoilers, Croy at some point recognizes a battle formation and then instead of describing the formation, he reflects on how he knows it from his past training and thus how he knows how to escape it, so Chandler clearly worked his way around actually having to research any battle formations. I'm not sure if I'm annoyed or extremely impressed. This happens on a few occasions, that something should have been researched, but was worked around.
Much like the first book, the romance remains feeble at best and I'm not sure how much I like most of the characters. Worldbuilding and culture are touched on but mostly on the surface. Yet Chandler remains excellent at keeping the mysteries and the suspense up throughout, and saving the best reveals for the end.
Not a masterpiece, but a fun and entertaining read.
Chandler also gets away with not explaining things in a very clever manner. For example, without spoilers, Croy at some point recognizes a battle formation and then instead of describing the formation, he reflects on how he knows it from his past training and thus how he knows how to escape it, so Chandler clearly worked his way around actually having to research any battle formations. I'm not sure if I'm annoyed or extremely impressed. This happens on a few occasions, that something should have been researched, but was worked around.
Much like the first book, the romance remains feeble at best and I'm not sure how much I like most of the characters. Worldbuilding and culture are touched on but mostly on the surface. Yet Chandler remains excellent at keeping the mysteries and the suspense up throughout, and saving the best reveals for the end.
Not a masterpiece, but a fun and entertaining read.
May 19, 2014
J'ai passé un agréable moment de lecture avec ce roman, mais je reste persuadée qu'il aurait gagné à être plus court.
Avis en français sur mon blog : http://imanbooks.blogspot.fr/2014/05/...
In english :
Same opinion as for the book1 : simple story, great and clear scenes, great characters ( i kind of like malden ^^), and a lot of action ! I could even say too much action/repetition as the 3/4th of the book is going on 3 days and at the same place.
Another thing is that the author made his three books completely independent, therefore he has repeated a great deal of the book1 in the 2nd, which I found a little annoying as I had just read the first. But that's just my opinion. And the last thing I had trouble with was the language of the dwarves who spent their time swearing and saying rude words.
Anyhow I won't say much, I still loved it !
I'm curious on how the Book3 will end for Malden and the woman he loves.
Avis en français sur mon blog : http://imanbooks.blogspot.fr/2014/05/...
In english :
Same opinion as for the book1 : simple story, great and clear scenes, great characters ( i kind of like malden ^^), and a lot of action ! I could even say too much action/repetition as the 3/4th of the book is going on 3 days and at the same place.
Another thing is that the author made his three books completely independent, therefore he has repeated a great deal of the book1 in the 2nd, which I found a little annoying as I had just read the first. But that's just my opinion. And the last thing I had trouble with was the language of the dwarves who spent their time swearing and saying rude words.
Anyhow I won't say much, I still loved it !
I'm curious on how the Book3 will end for Malden and the woman he loves.
August 27, 2014
As a thief, Malden is unparalleled in the Free City of Ness. But he has no desire to take up arms against the forces of horrific evil. Yet by saving the life of the knight Croy, Malden has bound himself to an ancient, noble brotherhood and he now possesses a magical weapon forged at the dawn of time, one of only seven swords with incredible powers.The plot of A Thief in the Night is just like Den of Thieves and not at all predictable. Chandler’s writing makes you form a mental conclusion for the end of the novel but manages to leave you with mouth open forming an “I didn’t expect that to happen”. Still, I felt a little let down by a thief novel turning into a more Indiana Jones style adventure. But A Thief in the Night still kept me excited to find out how the end of the story unfolds in book 3, Honour Among Thieves. Well worth the time and effort in reading this series.
January 12, 2012
A fantastic and interesting story with brilliant characters.
The story continues as we follow the exploits of our loveable thief Malden as he flees from a cunning assassin and ends up with a motley crew, including the women he loves. They all find more than they bargained for as they undertake the task of finding and dispatching a terrible creature hiding in the bowels of a place the dwarves believe should be left forgotten.
A great second book.
The story continues as we follow the exploits of our loveable thief Malden as he flees from a cunning assassin and ends up with a motley crew, including the women he loves. They all find more than they bargained for as they undertake the task of finding and dispatching a terrible creature hiding in the bowels of a place the dwarves believe should be left forgotten.
A great second book.
January 15, 2016
Closer to the epic quests of old, still a good book. I am biased against things with elves and the like, and these elves are as true to the trope as you could imagine, but Chandler's history and evolution of Skrae give them a chance to stand their ground.
This book sets up the third book's progress more solidly, and comes with threads of sub-plots that benefit the plot as they should.
Enjoy this one, and be prepared to enjoy the last.
This book sets up the third book's progress more solidly, and comes with threads of sub-plots that benefit the plot as they should.
Enjoy this one, and be prepared to enjoy the last.
February 3, 2012
If you enjoyed the first book of the Ancient Blades trilogy, Den of Thieves, then you'll love this. It's basically a dungeon crawl and the author's zombie-writing experience comes in handy... But they're not zombies; they're revenants. Just as creepy and tons of fun! The book contains a preview of book #3. Whatever you do, don't read it prematurely, it'll spoil the plot.
December 21, 2013
A lackluster followup to the entertaining Den of Thieves. Poor characterization, a slipshod reliance on Dungeons & Dragons stereotypes, and the storyline reads like a trope quest from Forgotten Realms novelist Salvatorre. If you can get through this the third book in the series is actually much better.
January 13, 2015
I kept reading because I just kept thinking that it had to get better, then it was so close to the end that I had to keep reading to see how it ended and after 490 pages(the last 10 pages being the acknowledgments) I only really liked the last 10 pages of the book. I will not waste my money on book 3.
February 1, 2015
Formula sword and sorcery style fantasy but reasonably well put together and a decent distraction if you like this kind of thing. Boof-head knight, clever thief, grumpy dwarf and attractive lady predictably end up on a bit of a quest. Predictable, but with nicely drawn and reasonably well rounded characters.
January 14, 2013
This is the second of a trilogy but the story doesn't really follow-on in any sense except chronologically. Malden's character continues to develop and you find out a little bit more about one of the minor characters from the 1st book.
February 13, 2015
I finally finished this book. It took me quite a long time but I did enjoy it. I wasn´t as good as the first one , in my opinion, but it certainly uncovered several mysteries I wanted to know.
Great book.
Great book.
Read
July 20, 2012Honestly only bought this book as I bought the whole trilogy at once. The characters and story just aren't as interesting as they could be. Not a horrible book but baseline sword&sorcery.
January 16, 2013
A nice light read with easy humour.
Read
September 2, 2013I am enjoying the adventures of Malden, Cythera and Croy....and so shall continue with the third book in this series...
April 4, 2024
Not as good as the first book.
January 29, 2014
This is a fun little series. The characters have some interesting personalities that go outside of the usual stereotypes.
April 6, 2014
After reading the 3rd installment...i just want to finish the trilogy, but the ending was good, no surprises, since again, i have read the final book first before this one.
Read
October 14, 2014This was a fun read. It is the second volume of a trilogy. While it didn't capture me as reader as much as the first volume it was still a good read.
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