Sword of Caledor (2)

Tyrion & Teclis #2

by William King

Tyrion – Unparalleled swordsman and tactician.

Teclis – Greatest natural sorcerer of the age, his power rivalling that of fabled Caledor.

Together these twins are the greatest high elf heroes to still walk the earth.

Tyrion and Teclis venture into the deadly jungles of Lustria on a desperate hunt for the lost sword of Caledor Dragontamer, the fabled Sunfang. While they search for this ancient artefact, the Witch King Malekith continues his assault on Ulthuan, sending the deadly assassin Urian Poisonblade to kill the Everqueen. And in the Realm of Chaos, the sorceress Morathi makes a pact with another enemy of Tyrion and Teclis – the sinister daemon N’Kari.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 2012

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

Reviews

[Bookwraiths · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally reviewed at Bookwraiths.

Sword of Caledor is not only a great Warhammer story, but also a worth reading for anyone who loves sword and sorcery affairs. Well-written, realistic, and gritty yet still possessing a mythical, legendary feel, this second installment of the Tyrion & Teclis series expands upon the excellent foundation the author, Willaim King, built in the first volume.

Taking place a century after Blood of Aenarion, the twins Tyrion and Teclis have developed into gifted and renowned High Elves. Tyrion is now a legendary warrior, having fought numerous battles and raided the very coasts of the hated Drucchi, as well as growing into a budding politician, who eyes a future focused upon becoming the next Phoenix King. Meanwhile, Teclis has spent the years developing his sorcerous powers, turning his innate abilities into fabulous skill; the days of his lingering on the edge of death due to continual illness a distant memory, as his health has (at least, in part) been restored through magic and alchemy.

Though their paths have taken these brothers in different directions, they are still very close. Each keeping the other in his thoughts at all times. Whenever they can arrange it, the two venture off on epic quests together, taking joy in the other’s company and in aiding their sibling to accomplish yet another personal goal. And as Sword of Caledor begins, the twins are off on exactly one of these kind of adventures.

Surrounded by the lush wilderness of the jungles of mysterious Lustria, Tyrion and Teclis’ expedition continually faces sudden death. Whether it be the native wildlife or the deadly lizardmen or the elements themselves, this unexplored wilderness is deadly. Yet, the twins are undaunted by the danger, for they are searching for the ruins of an ancient Slan city said to be hidden from sight for millennia. Their goal the fabled sword of Aenarion, which Caledor Dragontamer forged in the early days of the Elves and which has been lost untold ages. This weapon something a future candidate for the throne of the Phoenix King would love to have in his possession.

Unknown to the twins, however, away in the far north of the world, Malekith the Witch King of Naggaroth stirs. Too quiet has the accursed son of Aenarion been and for far too long. Now, though, he has fitted into place the final piece of his grand scheme to unleash his might upon Ulthuan, crush the High Elves once and for all, and take back what has been withheld from his rightful grip. And, no one can stand against him!

For a sword and sorcery fan, there was a lot to like in this story. Gritty action. Amazing world building. Intriguing heroes. Devious villains. Vile plots. But my favorite element of Sword of Caledor was the characters themselves, who really captured my attention and kept me rooted to my seat.

William King does an excellent job of continuing to mold and develop our heroes Tyrion and Teclis here. These two have changed dramatically from where book one left them; each a mature elf now with their own distinct and very different personalities, motives, and flaws; the days of their immature, angst ridden youth left far behind. This story gives them room to showcase that newfound growth, struggle through their own issues, and attempt to rise to the occasion, as threats surround them from beginning to end. Real evolution in their personalities taking place from chapter to chapter.

Even with that said, I have to admit my favorite sections of the book were those focusing on Malekith and his mother Morathi. Gaining a glimpse into their demented minds, seeing their bizarre relationship, and discovering more about their motives and desires really made them rise above cookie cutter villain status for me. Quickly, these two grew into the epitome of grand villains; people whose behavior sickened and disgusted me, but whose reasons for it all almost made me empathize with them. Talk about scary.

In conclusion, I have to end this review by admitting that the greatest thrill of reading Sword of Caledor was getting to return to this amazing fantasy setting. The depth of history, unique personalities, intriguing characters, and earth-shattering magic captures my imagination every time I pick up a Warhammer story, creating in me a deep desire to learn even more about this place, meet even more of the legendary figures of this world. Perhaps this is a feeling only I have about this fantasy setting with its elves, dwarfs, and other traditional fantasy races, but I really don’t believe that. The brand of gritty sword and sorcery Warhammer offers is timeless in my opinion, and I believe the Tyrion & Teclis saga is a great place for any newcomers to sample its fantastical fantasy flavor.

[Gavin Gates · Rating 3 out of 5]

The second book curse, similar to the second album curse for a musician rears it's ugly head here. Unfortunately following on from 'Blood of Aenarion' was always going to be a horrible task to undertake, and 'Sword of Caledor' suffers here. As with the first the writing is exceptionally well done and the character interaction is also, again, perfect but where this one seems to fall a little flat is there is now just a lot of filler and no real action to follow. The promise of big events went by very quickly with no real conclusion or conviction and there was, to me, an odd change of personalities within key characters which wasn't really explained.
With this being the middle part of a trilogy I'm holding out hope that it is more of a case that this section of an obviously big tale has just set in place something that will be explained and then built upon in the closing novel. With the quality of writing on display I do feel a little sad to say that this one just did not hit the mark.

[ElGoblinVolador · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mucho mejor que la primera entrega.
Continuamos con la historias de los dos gemelos más famosos del Viejo Mundo y como cada uno llegó a ser quien fue.
Muy interesante la primera parte buscando un objeto mágico y característico de un personaje a la vez q nos muestran una ciudad-templo de los hombres lagartos
El final nos deja en vilo para continuar con el tercer y último libro de esta saga q espero no tardar mucho en leerlo xa no perder el hilo de la historia

[Mick · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Elven twins Tyrion and Teclis return in Sword of Caledor, William King's sequel to Blood of Aenarion.

Sword of Caledor is far better. A big part of this is in seeing how the characters have developed - Tyrion has become a skilled sea-raider and duellist, while Teclis continues his mastery of wizardry - while exploring the nature of Elven society. Warhammer's Elves are most definitely not "nice". They are capricious, cruel, and ruthless, and it's easy to see the Dark Elves - featured heavily here - as no different to their kin in Ulthuan except for some political differences.

Another way in which Sword of Caledor is an improvement on the first novel in this trilogy is an increased focus on action, which is where William King excels. The novel begins with a mad Indiana Jones style adventure in Lustria, with the Elves and their human allies fighting dinosaurs and lizardmen to find a lost city in the jungle, which was a lot of fun. This is followed by the trial to select the next consort to the Everqueen - in which Tyrion is taught some much needed humility - and a massive invasion of Ulthuan by the Dark Elves and Chaos-worshipping humans led by Malekith, the big bad of this series.

The story ends just as the action is really ramping up, but it's something I'm willing to forgive if it means the next in the series - Bane of Malekith - will have a more direct action focus. However, I enjoyed this second book in its own right, as a fun and fast-paced sword and sorcery set in a world that I love.

[Rock · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sword of Caledor dived deeper into character development, and also expanding further into the world of the Elves. I see through the thoughts of both antagonists and protagonists, which is interesting. Author has made them feel much alive in the story than the first book did.

Yet, the book suffers from a very slow-paced plot. Throughout the story, enemy was preparing a giant fleet of daemons and dark elves ready for battle. But when was it going to happened? That was the question. I rushed through the end hoping to see the final invasion...but it dragged along plenty of non-life threatening plot that didn't concern the whole point of the main story. Friendly tournament, political talk and even horse fencing didn't help to save the world as much as I understand.

Was hoping the final trilogy gave me a great aftermath

[Abhinav · Rating 3 out of 5]

You can read the full review over at my blog:

https://shadowhawksshade.wordpress.co...

When William King returned to the Black Library some years ago after taking a long break writing various Warhammer fiction, his first trilogy for the fantasy arm was the Tyrion & Teclis trilogy that told the origin story and the adventures of two of the most famous High Elves of the Old World, the twins Tyrion and Teclis, one a warrior and the other a mage. In the High Elven lore, they are both great champions and much has been written of them, but this was the first time we got up close and personal. And it proved to be a decent enough experience as a reader, although there were definitely moments where I felt that the story and characters missed their mark.

The story starts off as we go back in time to the earliest days of Elven history, when Aenarion, the ill-fated first Phoenix-King, fought to save the Elven people from the armies of Chaos that ran rampant throughout their island kingdom. It was a time of great myths and great deeds and great heroes and great villains, a truly formative time for the Elves that would reverberate down the ages thousands of years later. The key part here was that we saw Aenarion vanquish the Slaanesh Greater Daemon N'kari, whom he'd already killed before when he discovered that the infernal daemon had murdered his family. That is the central story of these novels: N'kari's vengeance against all those who are descended from the line of Aenarion. And slowly, this turns into a story about how Aenarion's son by the sorceress Morathi, the Witch-King Malekith, plans to return to Ulthuan and reclaim the throne that was denied to him ages ago.

It is a long story told in three parts, but no less enjoyable for that. As purely a story about some of the most defining characters and events in High Elven lore, Tyrion & Teclis is a great read. We learn so much about the twins and their various enemies, and King certainly has a good grasp on the politics and culture of Ulthuan and Naggaroth alike. If for nothing else but this, the series deserves a read. If you like straightforward action fantasy with a dose of sword-and-sorcery, then these novels are for you.

[Alysia · Rating 5 out of 5]

My favourite book of the trilogy.
I don't know how many times I have read this book, I call it my comfort book, it's the book I read when I really need to disconnect, I always find something new, don't know how!
Teclis is my favourite character, here we get to know him better. William King did a fantastic job describing Saphery and the White tower of Hoeth, my fav places in Ulthuan.

[Waltrius · Rating 4 out of 5]

Après Blood of Aenarion j'étais curieux de voir comment les deux jumeaux avaient grandi et leurs nouvelles aventures. Le résultat avec Sword of Caledor est plutôt réussi.

Clairement, le roman à un goût de transition entre un Blood of Aenarion très (trop ?) origin story et un Bane of Malekith qui s'annonce épique, mais il reste plaisant à lire. Le style de William King passe toujours aussi bien et on s'attache à ses personnages. Il prend le temps de les poser, de les approfondir, de mettre en avant leurs doutes, leurs peurs, etc, et c'est bien. C'est probablement aussi bien la force du roman que sa faiblesse puisqu'au final, il ne se passe pas énormément de choses, mais ce n'est jamais un frein à la lecture.

J'ai aimé lire Sword of Caledor qui fait délicieusement monter la pression jusqu'à un acte final qui laisse augurer le meilleur pour Bane of Malekith.

[Jordan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not quite up to the showstopper ending of its predecessor, but the varied pace and a good look at some lesser-seen places (Lustria, the Tower of Hoeth) and characters (most of the Elven big names) made this fun. Even a middling Bill King is still Bill King, after all.

[Martin · Rating 4 out of 5]

When I had finished reading 'Blood of Aenarion' I knew that Bill King was BACK!!!

I hadn't read or seen any of his works for Games Workshop / The Black Library for a few years, I had thought he had retired from writing. But it was great to see him return to the fantasy genre of the Warhammer World as I really think it was him who got me hooked on the genre in the first place. The Gotrek and Felix short story 'The Dark Beneath The World' for example really caught my imagination as a kid, them great adventures that could be had in a world that was so incredibly ancient and varied as well. Humans, Dwarfs, Elves, Orcs, Goblins to name but a few; the potential for great adventures were always available with just another turn of another page.

And Bill King was perhaps one of the best authors I was reading at the time. I'm not sure why he left the scene for so long and gave up his creations like Gotrek and Ragnar Blackmane to other authors, but it's good to see him back on top form.

'Blood of Aenarion' started off the Tyrion and Teclis trilogy and I've just gotten round to finishing the second chapter 'Sword Of Caledor'. After finishing 'The Sundering' Trilogy by Gav Thorpe, which you could describe as the origin of the High Elf race, it was refreshing to see a new take on the High Elf race set some thousands of years later. The elves I had previously pictured in my mind as being all prissy with their whiter than white armour and holier than thou attitude, it was refreshing to see King introduce some new life into them.

In short: Tyrion and Teclis are the descendants of the great Elven hero Aenarion. They're twins. One is skilled with the sword and one is a master of magic. In the first book, they're no older than teenagers, but here in the second book of the series they truly come into their own. They're the heroes I remember as a kid when I saw them as small lead miniatures in the Games Workshop window.

King expands the world he introduced us to in the first book, the threat has grown higher, the enemies of the High Elves are everywhere and it seems the only two people who can do anything about it are the two brothers. The great thing I liked about 'Sword Of Caledor' is that it took it's time. The characterisation was there for all of the characters, even those that only have roles that take place on the periphery of the story. Perhaps the only downside is that the book suddenly ends just when the shit hits the fan. Now I've got to wait for December 2013 to get my hands on 'Bane of Malekith'.

(Don't get me started on that guy!)

[Dartigeres · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book; the author takes times to at least check the current source books before writing this one.

The title of the book sword of caledor refers to sunfang. You get a peek into the witch king and Morathi's mind as they are getting ready to invade Ulthuan.

A few centuries have passed since the first book, and you find Tyrion and Teclis in the jungle of Lustria looking for sunfang. They have assembled a motley crew of humans to help transverse the jungle (most are Norse) and one not so sane guide. The guide knows where the sword is as it was lost during his last foray into the jungle and into a slann city. Most of the humans die by the time they reach the city which according to Teclis is somewhat corrupted by Chaos. More deaths insure with the triggering of a trap in a room full of slann treasure and prophecies (very convenient and happens though out the book) they get the sword and head back home where they find that the previous everqueen has been slain (though they don't know that.)

While all of that is happening the witch king is summoning N`Kari and binding him to his will. He remembers what he heard when N`Kari was on Ulthuan last and intends to use that to his advantage, though it appears the high elves do not though it will nag at Tyrion a little.

Teclis being more attuned to magic notices a greater warp taint to magic even with lesser spells on Ulthuan though not on Lustria. During his ride to the tower of Hoeth he sees the ghost of Caledor, but slightly dismisses it at a dream until late when he sees him again. The second time he see Caledor is in the tower's library, where Caledor tells him some of the things that are going on.

Tyrion has been ordered by his family to attend the tournament to become the new everqueens champion. He is not really sure he wants to do this, but since he hates to lose he goes along. The everqueens magic seems to have the opposite effect on Tyrion than on everyone else, which leads to him having a few problems. He does well in the tournament and it comes down to him and another prince, but before that happens the tournament get attached by druchii during the worst possible time at night when most are drunk (this is a reoccurring theme in some of kings books). Tyrion rescues the everqueen and the book ends just when it’s starting to get good.

[Alexander Draganov · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second entry in the Tyrion & Teclis series seems to be a setup for the third book, but it is still very good. 100 years have passed since the battle between the two brothers and their hated enemy N'Kari, the Keeper of Secrets and once of the most powerful Slaaneshi daemons. Now Tyrion and Teclis have discovered Sunfang, the legendary blade of Aenarion, forged by the ancient mage Caledor. But when they return, dark omens speak of unspeakable evil coming to their land. The Everqueen is murdered and the new one, Alarielle, is still simply a maiden, who needs a new champion. And who better than Tyrion, who is sent to become one in a tournament of the greatesr elven warriors of the age. Meanwhile, Teclis travels to the Tower of Sorcery to deshipher and ancient scroll, who warns of impending doom. Soon, both brothers, as well as all Elves of Ulthuan will learn the truth - that their most bitter enemy, the Witch King, has found a powerful new ally, who will help him conquer Ulthuan once and for all - and this is none other than N'Kari himself. But Morathi, the mother of the Witch King, has even more ambitious plans...
The book is not as action-packed as "Blood of Aenarion", because it's largely a bridge to "Bane of Malekith", but it is very well written and develops the characters of the two Elven brothers nicely. William King is considered to be a legend of the Black Library and now I start to understand why.

[Traci Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have gushed over William King before. I'm a huge fan. This book continues my love affair with his work. This is the 2nd book in a trilogy about the High Elves Tyrion and Teclis. (This is a Warhammer fantasy universe book. I've written other reviews giving an idea what this universe is like. If you are unfamiliar with the Warhammer world, I would suggest checking out the following Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Warhamme... .) I have been a fan of Teclis since he first appeared in one of Gotrek and Felix's adventures (also written by King). He is powerful as well as knowledgeable. I didn't care so much for his twin brother, Tyrion. The first book in this series really made me understand Tyrion better and become a fan, a feeling which continued through this book. I read through it in record time, and even though I knew it would end on a cliffhanger, I was so disappointed when that end came. I'm not sure when the 3rd book will be released, but it is certainly too far away! These books are a must read for fans of Warhammer or the high fantasy genre. What is better than elves?

[Delray Beach Public Library · Rating 4 out of 5]

Many years have passed since the twin brothers defeated the daemon N’Kari at the Holy Shrine. Now they fight in the great jungles filled with dangerous lizard men for a sword of great power, the Sword of Caledor. But even if they find this weapon, it may not be enough to stop the upcoming threat.

In the far north, the dark elves ready themselves for the invasion of the twins people and lands. At the head of the invasion is the evil witch king, Malekith. The evil king has also summoned the twin’s greatest enemy, the same daemon they fought long ago. Will the twins be able to return in time to save their people from the oncoming invasion? Or will the dark elves prevail and the chaos forces will be released unto the world?

Discover the conclusion of the epic conflict by picking up a copy from the library today!

For more information about the book, visit the author’s website at:
http://www.williamking.me/

Reviewed by Wyatt Rutherford, TAB@DBPL Reader Advisor since 2012

[April · Rating 3 out of 5]

I preferred the first book in this trilogy more than this one. The story was explained to me for far too long over the course of several chapters as opposed to it being shown to me through the dialogue or actions of the characters. I guess I wanted for more dialogue. The action did exist in the fighting through Lustria and in the arena of the Everqueen--the ending certainly piqued my interest and has made me excited about finishing the trilogy. Bottom line, however, is that "Sword of Caledor" didn't engage me quite as much as the first; however, I am eager to begin the third book, which, so far, has not left me disengaged.

[Luke Nyland · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was, as I'd hoped, better than its prequel. There was a lot more going on, a lot more information about characters leading the reader to become far more invested in their progress, and a much larger scale of story.

It's quite rare for me to finish a book in this amount of time, but I just couldn't put this down!

A great book, and I can't wait til December for the next installment!

[Kevin Coleman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Once again, through Sword of Caledor, Bill King demonstrates why he is the undisputed master of Warhammer Fantasy fiction! The book flows like drinking a glass of water but keeps you thirsty for more!

Highly recommended for any fantasy reader, especially if you fancy Elves!

[Stefan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked this book. The action bits where actually a nuisance at times because I was to enthralled with the toughts and motivations of Tyrion & Teclis and how their activities between book 1 and book 2 were explained.

[Rik · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good sequel, but I felt it waffled a bit in places.