The Book of Swords

Sir Hereward and Mister Fitz #7 - A Long, Cold Trail

by Gardner Dozois (Editor), K.J. Parker (Contributor), Robin Hobb (Contributor)

Fantasy fiction has produced some of the most unforgettable heroes ever conjured onto the page: Robert E. Howard’s Conan the Barbarian, Michael Moorcock’s Elric of Melniboné, Fritz Leiber’s Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. Classic characters like these made sword and sorcery a storytelling sensation, a cornerstone of fantasy fiction — and an inspiration for a new generation of writers, spinning their own outsize tales of magic and swashbuckling adventure.

Now, in the Book of Swords, acclaimed editor and bestselling author Gardner Dozois presents an all-new anthology of original epic tales by a stellar cast of award-winning modern masters — many of them set in their authors’ best-loved worlds. Join today’s finest tellers of fantastic tales, including George R.R. Martin, K.J. Parker, Robin Hobb, Ken Liu, C.J. Cherryh, Daniel Abraham, Lavie Tidhar, Ellen Kushner, and more on action-packed journeys into the outer realms of dark enchantment and intrepid derring-do, featuring a stunning assortment of fearless swordsmen and warrior women who face down danger and death at every turn with courage, cunning, and cold steel.

Contents:
- The Best Man Wins by K.J. Parker
- Her Father’s Sword by Robin Hobb
- The Hidden Girl by Ken Liu
- The Sword of Destiny by Matthew Hughes
- "I Am a Handsome Man", Said Apollo Crow by Kate Elliott
- The Triumph of Virtue by Walter Jon Williams
- The Mocking Tower by Daniel Abraham
- Hrunting by C.J. Cherryh
- A Long, Cold Trail by Garth Nix
- When I Was a Highwayman by Ellen Kushner
- The Smoke of Gold Is Glory by Scott Lynch
- The Colgrid Conundrum by Rich Larson
- The King’s Evil by Elizabeth Bear
- Waterfalling by Lavie Tidhar
- The Sword Tyraste by Cecelia Holland
- The Sons of the Dragon by George R.R. Martin

Genres: Fantasy, Short Stories, Anthologies, Fiction, Audiobook, Adult, Short Story Collection

522 pages, Hardcover

First published October 10, 2017

About the author

Gardner Raymond Dozois was an American science fiction author and editor. He was editor of Asimov's Science Fiction magazine from 1984 to 2004. He won multiple Hugo and Nebula awards, both as an editor and a writer of short fiction.
Wikipedia entry: Gardner Dozois

http://us.macmillan.com/author/gardne...

Reviews

[Sean Barrs · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantasy is pervaded by legendary weapons, by weapons of awesome power and history: the kind that belonged to kings, queens and heroes. However, fantasy is also full of ordinary swords, swords that belonged to the common man defending his family, ceremonial swords that have caught the eye of infamous thiefs and swords that are worn and dull having spent years in service to a solider in numerous battles.

What the writers here do is take the idea of the sword and play with it, showing its significance in a rich variety of situations. I was glad not all the writers chose to depict incredible blades with a razor sharp edge, and chose to explore how significant a sword can be in a number of situations to a number of different people. Had they not done so this collection would have been a somewhat repetitive and unimaginative bunch of stories. That being said though, not all the stories used the sword as well as others. Some were barely mentioned and for others it was the absolute essence of the story.

For example, George R.R Martin’s The Sons of the Dragon wasn’t really about a sword, but about two Targaryen princes. The story is an excellent piece of writing; I cannot fault it, though it shows the looseness of the model the writers followed. I implore readers to look beyond this and enjoy the stories for what they are. I enjoyed them all and, naturally, Martin’s was my favourite. I loved hearing about Maegor the cruel, how he got his name and how absolutely ruthless he was towards his own family. It’s no wonder the Targaryen dynasty suffered so much over the years.




-This image is from the fantastic The World of Ice & Fire: The Untold History of Westeros and the Game of Thrones.

Whilst George R.R Martin stole the show and sold the book to me, as he did with Rogues and Dangerous Women, there are many other good stories in here. I particularly enjoyed Scott Lynch’s entry about a thief along with Mathew Hughs’ story. The Robin Hobb story was also rather excellent; it felt incredibly grimdark for her and centred on the horrors of the Red Ship Wars with a young FitzChivalry attempting to save a bunch of villagers who would not heed his warnings about the oncoming wave of forged ones.

Overall, this is a really strong collection from a strong group of writers. I would recommend it to all fantasy fans. It’s certainly good to get a taste of other writers across the field. For fans of A Song of Ice and Fire I think the book is worth the purchase for George R.R Martin’s story alone.

[Lala BooksandLala · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Best Man Wins by K.J. Parker - 5★
An absolutely perfect kickoff to the theme. Read like a classic fable.

Her Father's Sword by Robin Hobb - DNF
I didn't feel particularly welcomed into the story. If I had read from Robin Hobb before, I have no doubt I would have had an easier time getting into it.

The Hidden Girl by Ken Liu - 5★

The Sword of Destiny by Matthew Hughes - 3★

”I Am a Handsome Man,” said Apollo Crow by Kate Elliott - 3★
Love this character, would have preferred to see them in a different setting/plot.

The Triumph of Virtue by Walter Jon Williams - 4★
Felt like a fun side quest. For someone unfamiliar with the established world and character here, I got just enough background information to feel properly welcomed into the story.

The Mocking Tower by Daniel Abraham - 4.5★

Hrunting by C.J. Cherryh - 2★

A Long, Cold Trail by Garth Nix - 4★

When I Was a Highwayman by Ellen Kushner - 5★
This was just good fun with plenty of twists and turns for its length. The perfect reprieve from the action-heavy plots that bookend this story. Good on the editor for this attention to organization.

The Smoke of Gold Is Glory by Scott Lynch - 4★

The Colgrid Conundrum by Rich Larson - 5★
Would read a series of novellas following this duo. Loved the pace.

The King's Evil by Elizabeth Bear - 2★

Waterfalling by Lavie Tidhar - 3★
I wanted to love this more. The horror vibes were very intriguing. The plot itself less so.

The Sword Tyraste by Cecelia Holland - 3★

The Sons of the Dragon by George R.R. Martin - Unread

Read for the Busy Bee Book Club. Liveshow here https://www.youtube.com/live/TEtS4NhDXGg

[Terence · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Book of Swords is a compilation of short stories. I list my reviews in the order I read them, not the order they appear in the book. These aren't reviews for all the short stories, but rather the ones I found interesting.

The Sons of the Dragon by George R.R. Martin

Aegon the Conqueror had two sisters who were also his wives. With each of his wives he had one son. His oldest son and heir Aenys was born to Rhaenys. His youngest son Maegor was born to Visenya. The Sons of the Dragon tell the history of the sons of Aegon the Conqueror.

George R.R. Martin is back with another fake history story. I have to admit I do find them interesting even though I'd rather he'd write another Dunk and Egg over the fake history if he's not ready to release another book in the main series. Aenys becomes King when his father dies, but he's no warrior or great decision maker. He fails to understand why everyone doesn't love him. Maegor on the other hand is a character whose name and reputation stand out to me from the main series. There are more than a few mentions of Maegor the Cruel and his well deserved nickname. For instance Maegor slaughtered the men who constructed the Red Keep in order that no one could reveal the keep's secrets. Maegor also hanged knights naked after they turned over their leader and opened the gates to him.

The Sons of the Dragon is another piece of Westerosi history for those interested in such things. It's quite comparable in quality to the stories in The World of Ice and Fire.

3.5 out of 5 stars


The Best Man Wins by K.J. Parker

A young man comes looking for a sword-smith and asks for the best sword ever made.

The Best Man Wins is my first time reading anything by K.J. Parker and all I can say is I don't want to judge an author on a short story. The story was entertaining enough, but it largely felt like a prologue to a larger tale. No names are shared until nearly the end of the story so the characters are simply the smith and the young man. The young man wants the best sword ever and stays to watch it being forged. The smith despite learning the young man was ignorant when it comes to swords, still does his best to create such a masterpiece. He does so largely for money, but also so his name can spread for creating such a sword. A mild twist caps the tale which ends in an average at best manner.

3 out of 5 stars

The Smoke of Gold is Glory by Scott Lynch

One night a year a former thief and current storyteller vows to tell the truth about his last quest. Climbing the mountain in the Dragon's Anvil in order to steal the dragon's treasure.

The Smoke of Gold is Glory is overall a straightforward treasure quest. Famous thief Tarkaster Crale has run out of luck. His reputation and unwillingness to work with the proper guilds has left him an outsider with an empty stomach along with empty pockets. He heads to Helfalkyn in desperate hope to do what's never been done, steal the dragon's treasure. He runs into some old friends and heads to the mountain.

I can't say I found any part of this tale particularly interesting. I have little appreciation for the classic quest tropes like this one. None of the characters particularly stood out either which didn't help anything. The ending was unexpected, but not particularly satisfying.

The Smoke of Gold is Glory isn't what I expected from Scott Lynch. I would have preferred a short story on Locke Lamora. It's been so long since Lynch has had a new story featuring him and Jean that reading a pale imitation in Crale was simply unsatisfying.

2.5 out of 5 stars

Her Father's Sword by Robin Hobb

Her Father's Sword is a familiar tale of a village that has just been Forged. It was raided during the Red Ship Wars. The story follows Taura, a young woman who saw her father taken by the raiders. The tale centers around her anger that her mother gave away her father's sword for shelter. The whole tale should be obvious for anyone who has read any of Fitz story. No one believes their loved ones would come back as selfish zombie like beings, until they see it.

3 out of 5 stars

The Hidden Girl by Ken Liu

A general's daughter helps a nun with a challenging problem. After completing the task, the nun steals the young woman and trains her to steal lives as an assassin.

The Hidden Girl was really enjoyable. This is only the second writing of Ken Liu's I've read and I feel like I should see what else he has published. I can't say I totally understand what I just read, but it's Buddhist origins provide some compelling storytelling and abilities that are quite different than what I'm used to reading.

4 out of 5 stars

Final thoughts

I have to admit I don't really enjoy anthologies that much and The Book of Swords is no exception. Each time I read an anthology it's for the exact same reason. The book has a story from an author I really like set in their popular world. In this book it was George R.R. Martin's The Sons of the Dragon. I read that first and then head back to the glossary to see if there are any other stories from authors I like. I read those stories next especially when they are set in a world I enjoy. After that I go to the beginning and read through the other stories. I've rarely ran into an anthology that I've known more than 7 authors of which I probably only like 3 of them.

Short stories are not, in my opinion, the best way to get interested in an author's work as their novels can vary considerably from their short stories. Short stories seem to be a good way for authors to dabble with genres that they usually don't write in, which is fine. My preferred short stories are in world novellas that tie into the world providing greater back story or history. That type of short story is generally what gets me to crack an anthology in the first place.

The Book of Swords, like every anthology I've ever read, was a mixed bag that had some interesting stories and many forgettable ones.

[Велислав Върбанов · Rating 5 out of 5]

С голямо удоволствие препрочетох „Книга на мечовете“! Това е най-добрият фентъзи сборник, който съм чел до момента... Гарднър Дозоа е подбрал разнообразни и супер въздействащи разкази, както и написал чудесно въведение. Всички истории в книгата много ми харесаха, но като най-любима бих определил „Димът на златото е слава“ на Скот Линч. Силно препоръчвам сборника на всички почитатели на жанра...а пък мечовете и магиите винаги ще бъдат значима част от всяка хубава приказка! ❤️

[Metodi Markov · Rating 4 out of 5]

Сборник с разкази "Меч и магия".

Всъщност това са искали да стане, но не им се е получило на съставителите съвсем!

Предговорът на Дозоа за развитието на поджанра е интересен - и аз помня времената, в които бе трудно да се намери нещо увлекателно за четене. В България на подобна литература не се гледаше с добро око и се издаваха минимален брой заглавия и често не особено добри.

5* за:

"По-добрият печели" от К. Дж. Паркър - автор, чиито романи не са превеждани на български, което отчитам като пропуск. Разказът е разположен в света на единствената книга, която съм чел от писателя на английски - "Остриета".
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

""Аз съм красив мъж", каза Аполон Врана" от Кейт Елиът. Доста оригинални герои е събрала авторката в този разказ, който е по-скоро в жанра "алтернативна история".

"Дълга, студена диря" от Гарт Никс. Не за пръв път се срещам с героите на австралиеца - сър Хиъруорд и неговата магическа кукла Фиц, приключенията им винаги ми носят удоволствие. Това е последният хронологично за сега разказ с тях, имам ��а прочит първите три на английски.

"Димът на златото е слава" от Скот Линч. Чудесен разказ, жалко, че Скот сериозно е зациклил с четвъртата част от серията "Лъжите на Локи Ламора", която очаквам�� вече години, защото иначе той пише отлично.

"Колгридската главоблъсканица" от Рич Ларсън. Една по-скоро стиймпънк история, но много добре написана.

"Злото на краля" от Елизъбет Беър. Хареса ми, необичайни персонажи и приключения - смес от китайска и пиратска реалност.

4* за:

“Скритото момиче” от Кен Лиу. Хубав разказ, в съзвучие с тези от сборника му издаден и на български - “Хартиената менажерия”.
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Първият класически разказ "Меч и магия" в сборника - "Мечът на съдбата" от Матю Хюз.

"Хрунтинг" от К. Дж. Чери - свързан със скандинавския мит за Беоулф разказ.

"Водопадино" от Лави Тидхар. По-добре се справя с фентъзито, отколкото с фантастиката.

3* за:

"Тържество на добродетелите" от Уолтър Джон Уилямс

"Присмехулната кула" от Даниел Ейбрахам

"Когато бях разбойник" от Елън Къшнър

"Мечът Тираст" от Сесилия Холанд. Приличен разказ с викингски мотиви.

1* за:

"Мечът на баща ѝ" от Робин Хоб. Главната героиня е уникално куха, разказът не е лошо написан, но дразни доста. Чел съм трилогията ѝ за Шута отдавна, и тя си е средна хубост.

"Синовете на дракона" от Дж. Р. Р. Мартин. Това не е разказ, а част от досадната хроника на Таргариен, излязла миналата година като отделна книга.

Според мен, този сборник е далеч от жанра "Меч и магия". Доста произволно подбрани разкази, често не съвпадащи с обявената основна идея. Преводаческите бъгове също не помагат...

Обща оценка 3,5*, закръглени нагоре!

P.S. Върн:
- Джорджи, дай нещо, за да мога да лепна името ти на корицата и да продам още няколко десетки хиляди копия от сборника?
- Няма проблем друже, взимай тая скука и успех!

[Karl]

The anthology has strengths and weaknesses, but many readers will pick it up just for a new George R.R. Martin short story tied to the Song of Ice and Fire series.

Contents:

xi - Introduction - Gardner Dozois
003 - “The Best Man Wins” by K. J. Parker
033 - “His Father’s Sword” by Robin Hobb
061 - “The Hidden Girl” by Ken Liu
089 - “The Sword of Destiny” by Matthew Hughes
121 - “‘I Am a Handsome Man,’ Said Apollo Crow” by Kate Elliott
153 - “The Triumph of Virtue” by Walter Jon Williams
185 - “The Mocking Tower” by Daniel Abraham
213 - “Hrunting” by C. J. Cherryh
243 - “A Long, Cold Trail” by Garth Nix
275 - “When I Was a Highwayman” by Ellen Kushner
299 - “The Smoke of Gold Is Glory” by Scott Lynch
345 - “The Colgrid Conundrum” by Rich Larson
381 - “The King’s Evil” by Elizabeth Bear
415 - “Waterfalling” by Lavie Tidhar
453 - “The Sword Tyraste” by Cecelia Holland
477 - “The Sons of the Dragon” by George R. R. Martin
523 - Story Copyrights
525 - About the Editor

[Димитър Цолов · Rating 5 out of 5]

Макар да е порядъчно награждаван и за личното си творчество, Дозоа постига най-големи успехи именно като съставител и редактор на фантастични антологии. Печелил е петнадесет награди Хюго, трийсет и четири Локус, Световната награда за фентъзи... изобщо внушаващи респект цифри. Вече бях чел две негови подборки - Разбойници и Старият Марс, затова подходих с добри очаквания към това тухле, съдържащо произведения в един много любим мой фентъзи поджанр - Меч и Магия.

В годините преди да се появи Властелинът на пръстените, за да изкове епичните рамки на жанра, пък и две-три десетилетия след него доста фентъзи автори творят на парче за различни списания - кратки форми (разкази и новели) смислово самостоятелни, но с общ сетинг и герои (т.нар fix-up похват), а по-късно, когато натрупат достатъчно материал за Вселената си, ги събират в сборници или префасонират в романи. Разкошният предговор на Гарднър Дозоа отдаде почит именно на тези култови имена (Робърт Хауърд, Фриц Лейбър, Майкъл Муркок, Джак Ванс...), към повечето от които родният издател все още има неизплатен дълг...

Но да се върнем на настоящата антология. Гарднър Дозоа споделя, че за нея е издирил съвременни автори, обърнали се към корените си и ни е подготвил разкази, издържани в най-добрия дух на Меча и Магията. Сега, малко след като съм затворил последната страница, смея да заявя, че тази селекция наистина се оказа безкомпромисно добра.

Единствената творба, която лекинко ме придразни беше последната - Синовете на дракона на Джордж Р. Р. Мартин Бактън от тия връщания назад във времето, далеч преди началото на Игра на тронове, издържани в духа на телефонен указател... На 40 стр. се изредиха купища имена - кой изплющял сестра си, кой убил племенника си... айде нема нужда... Да сяда да си финализира поредицата, или ако ще се рови в миналото, поне да го да прави като хората, както стори с великолепната Рицарят на седемте кралства.

Сега за останалите разкази:

В 1/5 от тях: По-добрият печели / К. Дж. Паркър, Тържеството на добродетелите / Уолтър Джон Уилямс и Когато бях разбойник / Елън Къшнър на практика нямаше фантастични елементи, но след Джо Абъркромби вече сме навикнали на такива пинизи. Отмъщения, заговори, интриги... Историите бяха прилични и четивни, отчитам и факта, че вероятно са част от по-мащабни сетинги, които, уви, не познавам.

В 3/5 от тях: Мечът на баща ѝ / Робин Хоб, Скритото момиче / Кен Лиу, Мечът на съдбата / Матю Хюз, "Аз съм красив мъж", каза Аполон Врана / Кейт Елиът, Присмехулната кула / Даниел Ейбрахам, Хрунтинг / К. Дж. Чери, Злото на краля / Елизабет Беър, Мечът Тираст / Сесилия Холанд и Колгридска главоблъсканица / Рич Ларсън имаше всичко, което може да си пожелае лакомият фентъзи читател - любопитно изградени светове, страховити магии, скоротечен екшън, тук там се мяркаха и митологични персонажи... може би само Рич Ларсън не се вписа в каноните на поджанра с неговия индустриален сетинг и липсата на какъвто и да било меч, пък дори само така за цвят, но... това са бели кахъри.

В 1/5 от разказите преживях приключения, които буквално ме изкъртиха.

Дълга, студена диря / Гарт Никс е история от цикъла Сър Хиъруорд и господин Фиц. Сърът се оказа нещо като колега на Гералт от Ривия, а господин Фиц, наглед безобидна кукла, обладаваше могъщи магически способности и въртеше умело ками и игли. Двамата се впуснаха в задъхано преследване на надигнало се забравено божество, което поглъщаше душите на всичко живо в радуис на сто разкрача от себе си. Прелест!

Димът на златото е слава / Скот Линч - втора среща (първата е била в "Разбойници" и явно не е оставила траен спомен) с това фентъзи копеле с уникално чувство за хумор, та, усещам, много скоро ще се посяга към трилогията за джентълмените. Четирима разбойника тръгнаха да изкачват планина, пълна с опасности, за да се докопат до най-голямото златно съкровище на света, охранявано от могъщ дракон. Звучи като абсолютно клише, но беше прелест на квадрат!!!

Водопадино / Лави Тидхар безапелационно се добра до титлата фаворит на сборника!!! Тук също нямаше мечове, главният герой, Горел от Горилис, стрелец и наркоман, въртеше чифт пистолети, но както самия Дозоа уточнява в предговора с мечове или без, историите за Г. от Г. са верни на духа на "Меча и Магията"... особено силно ми напомнят за ранните разкази на Хауърд за Конан Варварина. Те са почти чиста есенция на "Меча и Магията" - много насилие, вихрено действие, скорост на изтърван от контрол товарен влак, политически некоректни, социално неспасяеми и безочливи. Какво повече да добавя - РАЗ-КО-ШО-ТИЯ!!! Горещо се моля някой ден да видим преведен на български пълния цикъл за Горел, който към момента включва новелата Горел и шкембестия бог Gorel and the Pot-Bellied God и сборника Целувката на черните богове Black Gods Kiss.

[حسین · Rating 5 out of 5]

به کمتر آدمی به اندازه‌ی جورج مارتین حسودی‌ام می‌شود. نثر ِ سطر به سطر داستانش آدم را از حسادت و حسرت به گریه می‌اندازد.ـ

داستان ِ این کتاب مربوط به شاهانِ اولیه‌ی خاندان تارگارین در هفت‌پادشاهی/وستروس است؛ داستان دو پسرِ شاه ایگون یکم، ملقب به اژدها. مثلِ داستانِ «شاهدخت و شهبانو» این داستان هم تاریخ‌نویسی است و قالب ِ معمولِ قصه را ندارد.ـ

[Alina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, a total rating of 3.4. Unfortunately at least half of the stories are total fillers, but I'm glad I also found some really really good works here. Below, each story with its own rating and a few words about it.

The Best Man Wins by K.J. Parker - 4/5★
Parker’s witty, direct and ironical style strikes a chord in me, no matter what the story is about. This time, it is about a blacksmith, his past and his talents. Strangely, the detailed process of making a sword didn’t bother me at all, nor that the ending was quite predictable, but, as I am a curious person, it kind of annoyed me that I didn’t find out why the blacksmith was made to leave the Ultramar.

Her Father's Sword by Robin Hobb - 4/5★
Set in the Farseer Universe, this is the drama story of a village caught in the Red Ship Wars, its citizens kidnapped and returned Forged.

The Hidden Girl by Ken Liu - 4-/5★
A story about trained assassins who can enter a 4th dimension; although a bit peculiar, the images Liu depicts are wonderful. (learned about a new - for me, ofc - style: wuxia)



The Sword of Destiny by Matthew Hughes - 4.5/5★
A wizard’s henchman, sent to steal the Sword of Destiny, encounters some obstacles and the story becomes more intricate than we expect. I very much liked the setting and the pace, and I loved the witty tone. I’ll definitely check some more of Matthew Hughes’s works.
P.S. It seemed to me that the riddles were a refference/tribute to Tolkien. The author explained that the riddles are inspired/adapted from the tales of Nasruddin and the ancient riddle of the Sphinx.

”I Am a Handsome Man,” said Apollo Crow by Kate Elliott - 3.5/5★
Despite the alternate Roman empire setting and the boastfulness of the ‘hero’, which I didn't like at all, I really enjoyed the fantastical beings and the idea of the curse.

The Triumph of Virtue by Walter Jon Williams - 2.5/5★
Court intrigue, a lawyer apprentice chasing an assassin, a kind of love story, dueling - seemed to me more of a wanna-be Dumas thing, not really succeeding..

The Mocking Tower by Daniel Abraham - 2/5★
I have Daniel Abraham on my to-read list with his series The Dagger and the Coin and Long Price Quartet, and I hope those ones will be much much better than this short story. It started promising, with a thief coming for a special sword, but it became surreal and kind of boring too soon..

Hrunting by C.J. Cherryh - 3/5★
Short story set some decades after Beowulf slayed Grendel and his mother. Requests some knowledge about the anglo-saxon epic poem, but a quick search on the internet will provide the necessary info and will let one enjoy this ‘sequel’ of sorts.

A Long, Cold Trail by Garth Nix - 4.5/5★
I really liked this story of a wandering knight and his strange companion, a living puppet with a papier-mâché head. I’ll clearly have to try some of his other works, and especially those staring Sir Hereward and Mr. Fitz

When I Was a Highwayman by Ellen Kushner - 2/5★
A swordsman and a good pickpocket and con-artist try to make a living, he also tries a job as a highwayman, there’s some homosexuality and some tantrums, not a bad subject, but the execution – meh..

The Smoke of Gold Is Glory by Scott Lynch - 5/5★
A clumsy thief is tricked into joining a group of adventurers set to steal a dragon's hoard treasure. I really liked the writing style, the characters and how the story was developed, must clearly read more of Lynch.

The Colgrid Conundrum by Rich Larson - 4.5/5★
Two thieves employ a renowned locksmith to open a safe, but to get the needed help, they are requested to perform a tricky job.

The King's Evil by Elizabeth Bear - 1.5/5★
A team of three (two humans and a kind of golem) embark on an adventure to raid a king's tomb/castle found on an island guarded by giant wasps. Although an interesting subject, I got hard into the story and it didn't quite manage to grasp my attention all the way..

Waterfalling by Lavie Tidhar - 3/5★
I have mixed feelings about this one, as I found the idea of the story highly interesting and the writing quite good, but the setting is very complex and I felt I missed a lot by not reading some previous stories..

The Sword Tyraste by Cecelia Holland - 3/5★
A story with nordic/viking flavor, a boy who joins an invader king's army in order to revenge his brother.

The Sons of the Dragon by George R.R. Martin - 3.5/5★
This was not a story pers say, but a piece of Westeros history, which I’ve already read in The world of ice and fire, so nothing new here ☹ Rated it 3 because it reads more like a story than history, but I soooo wanted some new action in this world..

[Книжни Криле · Rating 5 out of 5]

Чели сме какви ли не фантастични антологии през годините, включително и такива, върху които с големи букви са изписани и имената на известни съставители като Нийл Геймън или Робърт Силвърбърг. Има обаче един човек, чиято работа не просто като писател, но и като редактор и съставител му е спечелила хиляди верни почитатели, но и впечатляващ брой от най-престижните награди за фантастична литература. Хюго, Локус, Небюла и каквото се сетите още, той ги има в колекцията си във внушителни количества. Гарднър Дозоа ни напусна на 27 май тази година, но работата му за кратката фантастична форма е наследство, което остава. А част от това наследство е и антологията „Книга на мечовете”, на чиито страници със свои разкази се изявяват Дж. Р. Р. Мартин, К. Дж. Паркър, Робин Хоб, Скот Линч, Кен Лиу, К. Дж. Чери, Даниел Ейбрахам, Лави Тидхар, Елън Къшнър и др. 16 истории, 16 пътувания до далечни, необозрими светове, където властват меча и магията. Прочетете ревюто на "Книжни Криле": https://knijnikrile.wordpress.com/201...

[Silvana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Anthologies are tricky, they say. For me, it's a gamble that over the years I found myself more on the losing side. This particular anthology, despite having many well-known authors, just cemented that conviction. I really should stop buying this time-wasting stuff, and focus more on story collection by a single (familiar) author instead.

In terms of enjoyment, I absolutely loved GRMM's story (which I read last year and briefly reviewed below) as well as Scott Lynch's The Smoke of Gold is Glory (my favorite of the whole bunch) and Daniel Abraham's The Mocking Tower (which world building I'd like to see more of). Is it coincidence that all of them are my favorite authors? Of course not.

Another story I enjoyed was CJ Cherryh's Hrunting, which was my first Cheryyh's work as well. The others were ranging between 1 to 3. The 1s were just boring and/or the style do not suit me. Lavie Tidhar's story Waterfalling was a bit disappointing since it was so convoluted and tried to pack too much. Rich Larson's The Colgrid Conundrum was alright (thank goodness) but I still wonder why it was included in this collection (no sword). But then, some stories also have no swords. I just don't buy the editor's note on one particular story still having 'the spirit of sword and sorcery'. But, what do I know, right?

So....yeah. This is probably going to be my last anthology with mixed authors. I'll play it safe next time after so many disappointment. I wish the publishers also sell individual stories instead.

----------------------------------------------------------

The Sons of the Dragon - George R.R. Martin
I finally caved in to the very strong urge of reading this not-so-new material of fake history. It is indeed a rough draft. There are some typos still. We will definitely see a more polished version of it in the Fire and Blood book whenever it comes out (it might be before The Winds of Winter if you believe George's blog). There are many, many new names, but I just need to applaud George for creating small but memorable characters. Dick Bean and Poxy Jeyne Poore are among them, no less than the more active and exposed characters like Tyanna of the Tower, Queen Alyssa Velaryon, and the badass Rhaena Targaryen.

In terms of plot, there's nothing new or unexpected. Maegor lived up to his nickname, The Cruel, ruling the land with fire and blood and his brother Aenys...was still a bad king nonetheless. Martin, however, paints his monsters with more than just one color. Even with most hated characters like Cersei Lannister, Joffrey Baratheon (or Waters?), Ramsay Bolton, and Gregor Clegane, Martin's villains had depth and weren't always clear-cut once you know their history.

Anyway, there's anything disappointing in this novella, maybe the lack of dragon duels considering the contenders for the crown still had lots of dragons. Balerion still rocked, though.

[Clay Kallam · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The Book of Swords” (Bantam, $30, 521 pages) is yet another Gardner Dozois compilation, and this one focuses on what he refers to as “sword and sorcery.” For the most part, this means pre-industrial fantasy with magic, and a certain mythic undercurrent that gives the stories a little more heft.

As always with such compendiums, there are winners and losers, and the most surprising loser is the George R.R. Martin story “The Sons of the Dragon” that concludes the volume. Martin seems like he had a contract to fulfill with this one, and stuffed the turkey with a rote story that had all the urgency of Tolkien’s “Silmarillion,” which is to say it’s like reading a boring history book except the history isn’t real.

One thing I discovered that I didn’t expect to was an introduction to several authors that I hadn’t encountered, and Dozois was helpful in listing their books and backgrounds. K. J. Parker, Matthew Hughes and Kate Elliott were all pleasant surprises, and for the most part, the contributions from more familiar (to me, at least) writers such as Elizabeth Bear, Scott Lynch and Walter Jon Williams were up to their standards.

I was especially happy to see Cecelia Holland included, as she is better known for her marvelous historical fiction, but also has written some wonderful fantasy as well.

Overall, then, “The Book of Swords” is a clear winner, and would be welcomed under the Christmas tree by any fan of “sword and sorcery.”

[Jamie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not a collection of sword and sorcery stories as one might believe, but rather stories literally about swords or featuring a sword in one fashion or another.

Some of the highlights here for me include:

The Best Man Wins by K. J. Parker (3.5) - A veteran sword maker offers a young man lessons in the finer points of sword making and sword fighting. Not all that much actually happens, and I could see the ending coming from a mile away, but the writing is excellent, crisp and resonant, painting a grim, compelling portrait of a man with a dark and bloody past.

The Hidden Girl by Ken Liu (4.0) - A delightful story of a girl abducted at a young age and trained as an assassin. Ken Liu is an amazing story teller, with a beautiful and evocative style that is magical in and of itself.

The Mocking Tower by Daniel Abraham (4.0) - Wonderfully crafted world of an empire in turmoil, with royal intrigue, war, bizarre wizardry and otherworldly forces. And in the middle of it all a supernatural sword and an emperor's heir seeking his legacy. I'd love to see more of this world as part of a longer story.

The Sword of Destiny by Matthew Hughes (3.0) - A thief is sent to steal a magical sword and ends up a demonic sacrifice of sorts. I'm a big fan of Hughes. His writing is consistently great, and often demonstrates a keen, acerbic wit and punchiness. I also love his Dying Earth settings.

The Smoke of Gold Is Glory by Scott Lynch (5.0) - A down on his luck thief teams up with some old comrades to plunder the legendary treasure horde of the last living dragon. Lynch's grim style, evocative prose and flashes of humor make this a treasure.

[Anton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Okay... I started leaving comments after every story I read, but quickly abandoned this idea. As with any anthology you get some good and some bad apples in the same basket.

To keep it brief, I think it is worth buying this book just for these incredible five stories:

The Best Man Wins by K.J. Parker: 5/5+
Quintessential KJ Parker. If you are not familiar with his writing (quick interjection: why not?!) - this is a perfect place to start. Intricate story, attention to detail, immersive despite its length - all rounded delight. KJ Parker in my eyes is an absolute 'master & commander' of the short form. His short stories and novellas (and anthologies with his stories/novellas) became a non-decision for me. It is a matter of how quickly I can get hold of them!

The Hidden Girl by Ken Liu: 4/5
Enjoyable wuxia story. A little predictable but masterfully crafted.

The Smoke of Gold is Glory by Scott Lynch: 5/5
Glorious story of the party going on a dragon hunt in his own lair. Just perfect.

The Colgrid Conundrum by Rich Larson: 4/5
Slick steampunk tale about a couple or thieves. Very enjoyable.

The Sons of the Dragon by GRR Martin: 4/5

Martin’s new legendarium tale, this time about the times of Maegor the Cruel. A bit dry but if you liked stories from Rogues and Dangerous Women - you will like this one too.


Everything else, frankly, was quite underwhelming. I was really looking forward to stories from Hobb, Cherryh, Bear and Abraham but ended up disappointed 😞

[Phee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall a good anthology of stories about Sword and sorcery. There are some big names in here. Robin Hobb, Scott Lynch, K.J Parker, GRRM and plenty more.
Some stories are better than others as one would expect from this sort of book. I’m not going to rate each one individually or review each one. Ultimately an anthology is put together for a reason, everyone is going to have a different opinion on each story.
And some of them I didn’t feel strongly about either way.

Obviously I really enjoyed Robin Hobb’s story. It wasn’t the best and I think that the Wilful Princess and the Piebald Prince was 10x better. But I enjoyed seeing my Fitzy again, especially as when that story takes place, Fitz brushes over most of the detail.
The standout story for me was actually the first one in the book and that was ‘The Best Man Wins’ by K.J. Parker. I really enjoyed it and loved the writing style. It made me even more excited to start the book of his that I already own.

I’d recommend this book to you if you are a fan of fantasy or short fiction as you get some big names for your money here. But also if you are new to ‘sword and sorcery’ fantasy you may like this as a way to dip your toes into some of the genres greats without having to commit to massive series.

[Mona · Rating 4 out of 5]

OVERVIEW OF THE ANTHOLOGY

Overall rating of the anthology: 4
Overall rating of the audio: 4

As with any anthology coordinated by the
late, great Gardner Dozois, this one contains a varied assortment of well written stories by solid fantasy and/or science fiction writers. All the stories are meticulously edited.

My main quibble was that many of the
stories seemed a trifle too long. But I
guess these were really novellas or
novelettes, rather than short stories.

The stories were high quality. But somehow,
reading through lots of short fiction can seem like
more of a slog than reading a novel.

Still, I’m glad I read this. Anthologies
introduce me to new writers and reintroduce
familiar ones. Plus,few people read them, so
many anthologies are immediately available
at the library.

The theme here is, obviously, swords (or rather,
swords and sorcery). Dozois really set the standard
for excellent genre anthologies.

The accompanying audiobooks often have a variety
of top drawer audio narrators.

Arthur Morey reads the intro and author bios on the audio.

P.S. The audio readers’ names were not announced
before each segment (as I wish they were), but
quickly, en masse, at the beginning.
The audio narrators for each story were
announced during the credits at the audio’s
end. I got the individual audio reader’s name for each tale from the data on my library’s website.

Here’s a summary and review for each story:


THE BEST MAN WINS by K.J. Parker

Audio reader: John Lee

4

A curmudgeonly master sword maker creates a fine sword for a young nobleman who shows up at his shop. The reader is given very detailed descriptions of the sword maker’s craft.

Then, at the customer’s request, the surly artisan teaches the younger man to fight.

I saw where this was going pretty quickly. So there were no surprises.

Still, the story was crafted with as much
precision as a fine sword.

John Lee read the audio perfectly. At his best,
he’s an outstanding reader.

HER FATHER’S SWORD by Robin Hobb

Audio reader: Katherine McEwan

4

I’m a huge fan of Robin Hobb.

I nearly gave this a lower rating, because it was
much too slow to get started. The story
probably should have been cut so it was shorter.

Besides, anyone who’s familiar with her epic
Farseer fantasy series will know the story
of the Red Ship War and the Forged.

The Red Ships invaded coastal villages and
took away many of their residents.
They were returned as the Forged: soulless,
heartless, selfish, violent predators who care only about their own survival.

FitzChivalry Farseer (the king’s bastard grandson and
the memorable main character from
from most of Hobb’s epic fantasies), has only
a minor role here. He tries to warn the residents
of this village about the Forged, but they angrily
refuse to believe him.

The title refers to the sword belonging to
the father of a young woman, Taura, who
is central to the story. Her father, Burk,
disappeared during the Red Ships’ raids
on her village. The sword was supposed to
have been Taura’s inheritance, but Taura’s
mother gives it to someone else.

The ending packs a punch, making up for
the very slow start.

Although Katherine McEwan reads well, for
much of the story her tone seemed overly
dramatic. The story is sufficiently dramatic
that a quieter tone would have been more
effective. (Also, she gave Fitz a weird accent,
which didn’t help). However, she read the
ending well.

Hobb uses simple language to great effect here.

THE HIDDEN GIRL by Ken Liu

Audio reader: Kim Mai Guest

3

A young girl in an ancient Oriental land
resembling China trains as an assassin.
As part of her training, she learns about
unseen dimensions.

There’s some beautiful writing, but the
story was too long and the ending
unsatisfying and anti-climactic.

Actress Kim Mai Guest was well cast as the audio reader.


THE SWORD OF DESTINY by Matthew Hughes

Audio reader: Elliott Hill

3.5

Baldemar is sent by his employer, the wizard
Thelerion the Exemplary, to steal the Sword of
Destiny.

But things don’t work out the way they were supposed
to and Baldemar has a series of adventures involving
other wizards, nasty little guard beasts called erbs,
a magical flying platform, a selfish duke, and a
demon (among other participants).

Elliot Hill narrated this tongue-in-cheek fairy tale.
He was a good audio reader here.

”I AM A HANDSOME MAN,” SAID APOLLO CROW
by Kate Elliott

Audio reader: Steve West

3.5

Shape shifters and strange magic during the waning
days of the Roman Empire.

The Roman emperor hires Apollo Crow for an undercover task.

No one in this story is who they appear to
be (except the Emperor).

There was a sword in this story, but here it was
a bit player in the tale.

Steve West, reading with a posh, aristocratic,
English accent, was a good fit for this
story.

THE TRIUMPH OF VIRTUE by Walter
Jon Williams.

4

Audio reader: Elliott Hill

The title is ironic.

Quillifer is a young lawyer’s apprentice who
has a married lover.

His Queen, Berlauda, also has a married lover,
the Viscount Broughton.

One day someone attempts to murder someone
at court.

Quillifer tries to help catch the criminal and gets caught in the cross fire.

There are swords and daggers in this story.

THE MOCKING TOWER by Daniel Abraham

Audio reader: Richard Brewer

3.5

I think I like Abraham’s writing better when he’s
part of the James S.A. Corey team that wrote
the “Expanse” novels.

Abraham’s a very versatile writer; I’ll give him that.

At times the fantasy, the story, and the language seemed too elaborate and intricate to deliver a fairly simple message. This detracted from the story’s power.

The story was about the eternal war for power
and the failure of a new generation to learn anything
from the previous one.

King Raan appears to die and his offspring go to war over the throne.

There’s a sword at the center of this story.

The Mocking Tower of the title is a magical tower that
constantly changes its appearance. It’s a place of
illusion and sleight-of-hand.

The story and language reminded me a bit of Zelazny.

I liked the sly ending. It was the best part of the story. And it tied up the tale nicely.


HRUNTING by C.J. Cherryh

4

Audio reader: John Lee.

This compelling story tells what happens a generation after Beowulf’s epic adventure. Beowulf slew the monster Grendel and his mother after they
attacked Heorot, the great hall of Hrothgar,
King of the Danes.

You need to know the Beowulf myth or the story
makes no sense.

Halli’s grandfather has just died.

The grandfather, Unferth, lost the family treasure, the hero’s sword Hrunting, by giving it to Beowulf. (In the
epic poem, Beowulf could not hurt Grendel’s mother with Hrunting, which was supposed to never
fail in the hands of a hero).

Halli revered his grandfather. The rest of the village despised Unferth, blaming him for the loss of Hrunting and the subsequent decline of Denmark.
So, Halli’s family are the despised village outcasts.

This is mainly the tale of Halli’s heroic
quest to retrieve the lost sword Hrunting.
In some ways, Halli’s story parallels Beowulf’s.
Halli also learns the true story of Beowulf,
which the epics did not report.

The lilt and cadence of the language in
Cherryh’s story are reminiscent of the sound of a Norse epic poem.

At times, the Norse names and terms were a tad
confusing. I had to look up many of them in
Wikipedia. But in the end, it all made sense.

John Lee narrates the audio brilliantly.

A LONG, COLD TRAIL by Garth Nix

Audio reader: Nicholas Guy Smith

4

In this humorous and ironic tale,
Sir Hereward and his sorcerous puppet associate, Mr. Fitz, take on a nearly invincible, soul sucking
godlet named Xavva-Tish-Laqishtax. (How
does Nix come up with these funny names?)

The useless idiot Fyltak comes to their “aid”.
At least he brings fresh coffee and pastries
to the middle of a bloodbath. But Fyltak also
has an unusual sword…

P.S. In the midst of all the action, Mr. Fitz
the puppet finds time to write a haiku.

Actor Nicholas Guy Smith read the audio
perfectly.

WHEN I WAS A HIGHWAYMAN by Ellen Kushner

Audio reader: Kirby Heyborne

4

A story about Richard St. Vier, the swashbuckling,
dashing, bisexual swordsman who is the main
character of Kushner’s novel, Swordspoint.
St. Vier is a great and obsessively dedicated swordsman, and can be deadly with a blade.

This story might be a prequel to Swordspoint.
I actually liked this story better than the full length
novel.

St. Vier is a very young man who’s just come
to the city to seek his fortune as a swordsman.
He makes some bad mistakes.

Actor Kirby Heyborne reads this very expressively
in his tenor voice. Great audio narration.

THE SMOKE OF GOLD IS GLORY by Scott Lynch

Audio reader: Ralph Lister

4

A thief, Tarkaster Crale, runs into three former
compatriots: a warrior, a sorceress, and another
thief. They decide to go on a dangerous
quest to find the fabled treasure
horde of the dragon Glimraug. It’s reputed to be
in or on a mountain called The Anvil, which looms
above the town of Helfalkyn. Many have preceded
them and none have ever returned.

There were no special swords in this story,
although there were an abundance of swords and
other weapons: spears, knives, fire, etc.
Also there’s a place called the Fields of
Swords and Roses, where heroes are supposed
to go after they die.

A great story of dragons and heroes.

Ralph Lister generally reads this well, but he makes
the sorceress Gudrun sound like a wheezy little girl,
which doesn’t work.

THE COLGRID CONUNDRUM by Rich Larson

Audio reader: Mark Deakins

3

Maybe it was me (it was getting late and I was tired), but this tale of theft, drugs, revenge, double crossing, and murder seemed promising at first. But then I suddenly lost interest.

Also, there wasn’t a single sword, so I’m not
sure what this story was doing in a sword and sorcery anthology.

(The two main characters, Crane and Gilchrist,
did inadvertently steal a royal object. That’s the
only sword and sorcery connection I could see).

Mark Deakins was a fine reader. It was the story
itself that was the problem.

THE KING’S EVIL by Elizabeth Bear

Audio reader: Julia Whelan

4

No swords in this one, either, although there
were machetes, knives, guns, etc. So
technically this story didn’t belong in this
anthology.

But it was an enjoyable tale.

It reminded me a bit of the Wizard of Oz.
But instead of Dorothy, the Tin Man,
and the Lion, our adventurers are a
lady scientist (Dr. Lady Lzi), a gentle metal
strong man (the Gage), and a veiled
mercenary (called “The Dead Man”).

They are seeking an ancient treasure
on a tropical island. Instead of
The Wizard of Oz and The Wicked
Witch, they encounter other antagonists, including disgusting, giant insects.

Actress Julia Whelan was a good audio reader.
But she mispronounced at least one
word that I caught. I really wish audio
readers were less careless.

WATERFALLING: A Guns and Sorcery Novelette
by Lavie Tidhar

Audio reader: Mark Deakins

3.5

Gorel, a thief, drug addict, and assassin for
hire, is used by others to advance their
own schemes. There are schemes within
schemes, like nesting Matryoshka dolls. Gorel can be heartless himself. I sympathized with Gorel, although he is very flawed.

A fast paced, compelling, and well crafted tale. But
not my favorite Lavie Tidhar story.

Mark Deakins was an excellent audio
narrator.

Here’s what editor Gardner Dozois said about this
story. This would explain his inclusion
of other swordless tales in this collection:

I had to think hard about whether it was proper to include one of Lavie Tidhar’s tales of “guns & sorcery,” featuring the bizarre and often ultraviolent adventures of Gorel of Goliris, a “gunslinger and addict” in a world full of evil sorcery and monstrous creatures. Did a story without swords belong in a Sword & Sorcery anthology? But swords or no swords, the Gorel stories are true to the spirit of Sword & Sorcery, and their antecedents are clear—there’s the strong influence of Stephen King’s Gunslinger stories, obviously, but equally strong are the traces of C. L. Moore, Michael Moorcock, Jack Vance, and Robert E. Howard.
The Gorel stories especially remind me of Howard’s early Conan the Barbarian stories. What they are is almost the pure essence of Sword & Sorcery—violent, action-packed, paced like a runaway freight train, politically incorrect and socially unredeemable, in your face. They’re also a lot of fun, and yet another example, along with the work of many of the other writers here, of the interesting and sometimes surprising directions this particular subgenre is evolving in as we progress deeper into the twenty-first century.

So let yourself be swept along with Gorel on his latest dark and twisted quest, but buckle your seatbelts—it’s going to be a bumpy ride.

THE SWORD TYRASTE by Cecelia Holland

Audio reader: Steve West

4

A good old fashioned tale where the good
guy triumphs, for a change.

And there is a magical sword in this one. It’s
called Tyraste, as the story’s title tells us.

Vagn Akason vows to avenge the deaths of
his brothers, whose ships are sunk and
pillaged. Teenaged Vagn is the only survivor, and
he has guts. He’s no meek sheep.

This tale seems to take place in Viking
times and lands.

Actor Steve West reads this perfectly.

THE SONS OF THE DRAGON by George R.R. Martin

Audio reader: Ralph Lister

3

Much as I’m a fan of George R.R.
Martin, I found much of this story both
boring and brutal (even by Martin’s standards;
and much of his work is violent and bloody).

It’s a history of two early Targaryen rulers:
two brothers, sons of Aegon: Aenys first,
followed by his half brother, Maegar the Cruel.

There are two famous Targaryen swords in
this story: Blackfyre and Dark Sister.

Plus there are lots of dragons.

There’s an endless succession of meaningless
names and titles of people supporting and
opposing each of these kings; long lists of nobles, knights, clergy, battles, etc. Yawn..

The over the top villainy of some of the main
characters is the only thing that rescues the
story from utter dullness.

Ralph Lister’s somewhat monotonous audio
reading didn’t help matters. Plus he apparently
has difficulty voicing female characters.

[Matt Quann · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm always picking away at some rather large short story collection between my longer form reads. While, so far, 2023 has been a year populated by literary fiction and some more challenging reads, I felt the need to scratch an itch the last month. For some people it's books covered with a bare chested man holding a scantily clad woman, but for me, a comfort read is always going to involve swinging swords and spells.

There's lots of terrific stories in this collection by very well known authors of the genre, but Scott Lynch's The Smoke of Gold is Glory is perhaps my all-time favourite fantasy short. Seriously, it's worth tracking down on its own, but more than makes the price of this collection worth it. GRRM gives us what I assume was an early excerpt from Blood & Fire, Robin Hobb a Realm of the Farseer-set story, and lots of other authors land solid stories of magic, vengeance, or just a plain old heist.

I also appreciated Dozois' editorial choice to make this an anthology about Swords & Sorcery (effectively the short form and ancestor of epic fantasy) rather than swords in particular. There's a Gunslinger-esque story from Lavie Tidhar that features next to no swords, but feels at home in the collection. What the anthology does well is capture the general feeling of the genre, which made coming back for a story an always pleasant experience.

Well worth the time of any fantasy fan looking to dip their toes into various authors' styles. Now, I've just got to get started on The Book of Magic!

[Joseph · Rating 4 out of 5]

First point: Despite what Gardner Dozois says in the introduction, I don't think I'd necessarily regard this as a collection of sword & sorcery stories in the same way as Paula Guran's recent Swords Against Darkness, or even Jonathan Strahan & Lou Anders' Swords & Dark Magic: The New Sword and Sorcery. I'd consider it more of a spiritual successor to Robert Silverberg's Legends anthology, or, I'm guessing, some of the other Dozois anthologies (Warriors, Rogues, Dangerous Women, etc.) that I admit I haven't read yet -- a collection of mostly secondary-world fantasy stories, mostly lying somewhere in that nebulous border region between sword & sorcery, adventure fantasy, high fantasy and epic fantasy.

Second point: With that out of the way, I thought this was a fine collection of stories indeed, and well worth your attention.

As always in a collection like this, some stories will be better than others; as always in a collection like this, which stories are better than others will vary from reader to reader. For me, highlights included (but were not limited to) K.J. Parker's wry, cynical "The Best Man Wins", Matthew Hughes' decidedly Vancean "The Sword of Destiny", C.J. Cherryh's Beowulf deconstruction "Hrunting", Garth Nix's "A Long, Cold Trail", Ellen Kushner's Riverside prequel "When I Was a Highwayman", Scott Lynch's "The Smoke of Gold is Glory" and Elizabeth Bear's "The King's Evil", featuring the Gage and the Dead Man from her recent The Stone in the Skull. Which list is almost half of the stories in the book, and if I let myself I could easily have listed a solid three quarters or more of same; some of the stories were less to my taste than others, but there wasn't a bad one in the bunch.

OK, just to list the rest of the authors, there were also stories by Robin Hobb, Ken Liu, Kate Elliott, Walter Jon Williams, Daniel Abraham, Rich Larson, Lavie Tidhar and Cecelia Holland.

And the one you're really curious about, of course, is George R.R. Martin's The Sons of the Dragon, which was less of a story than an extract from a Westerosi historical annal giving the history of the reign of Maegor the Cruel in the early days after the Conquest. It was, by virtue of its style, told at a bit of a remove, but was a fascinating bit of history.

tl;dr -- If you're a fan of any of these authors, there's something here you'll like; and if you're not familiar with these authors, chances are there'll be something here you'll like.

[Bogdan · Rating 3 out of 5]

• The Best Man Wins - K.J. Parker: 3*
Mmm, not bad, but the story was predictable, and after a while I was kinda of bored.

• Her Father's Sword - Robin Hobb: 4*
A good story in the Farseer Universe depicting with more care the drama of the peasants when their relatives are taken and forged into trully hateful creatures.

• The Hidden Girl - Ken Liu
I`m not a sucker for the Chinese mythology so I wasn`t very interested in this peculiar story.

• The Sword of Destiny - Matthew Hughes: 5*
Yeah, this definitely was a tribute like story to Jack Vance`s Universe, The Dying World. Nice setting and pacing, very good characters and a well made and intricate, in the end, ideea.

• "I Am a Handsome Man," said Apollo Crow - Kate Elliott: 1*
Meeehhh, Definitely Not for me.

• The Triumph of Virtue - Walter Jon Williams: 2*
I guess that this had some potential, but it was only ok in the end.

• The Mocking Tower - Daniel Abraham: 2*
Hmmm, when there is something made by Abraham, I`m not really a fan, and this story proved me again how true it`s that fact.

• Hrunting - C.J. Cherryh: 1*
Norse Mythology! Brrr! No,no!

• A Long, Cold Trail - Garth Nix: 5*
This is a skillfull tribute to Fritz Lieber and another good story in the universe of Sir Hereward and Mister Fitz. Have to read all their adventures published so far.

• When I Was a Highwayman - Ellen Kushner:1*
Not a fan of the author and the story isn`t something memorable.

• The Smoke of Gold Is Glory - Scott Lynch: 1*
DNF, but I`m not a big fan of Lynch anyway.

• The Colgrid Conundrum - Rich Larson: 3*
Not so bad, in wich two thieves want to open a safe box with a trap on it, and instead they have to kill somebody.

• The King's Evil - Elizabeth Bear:
I`ve tried a little, but no.

• Waterfalling - Lavie Tidhar: 1*.
A tribute to the Gunslinger series by King, but kind of a messed up of story. Also, not a big fan of Tidhar.

• The Sword Tyraste - Cecelia Holland: 4* I like this one. With a Nordic touch to it, but with some Jack Vance influences, this was a pleasant story in wich a young boy wants to revenge the death of his family.

��The Sons of the Dragon - George R.R. Martin: 1*
This is not the kind of story I want from Martin, in wich he tells us about the Westeros history. I want intrigue, deaths, I want duels and traitors…Oho, there is a lot of material at hand, but, I understand, the age and the marketing bussiness it`s trully taking it`s toll.

In a way I understand that some of the authors were here to be present and to mark their contribution in the field, but maybe the stories could have been selected way more carefully. It`s definitely a thing about tastes, but some of the texts have nothing inside to convince you in searching for other works of the writers.

Eh, but really, I was kind of expected to have this impression. The big names in the Anthology field are, usually, making some controversial decisions with their selected stories.

Anyway...

Three stars.

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review
I'm not much of a short story person, but I keep being drawn to picking up these Gardner Dozois anthologies. After having mixed results with some of his others, this one may be my favorite. It's likely due to theme. I love sword stories.

Most of these are fantasy stories, but not all of them. I liked the vast majority of them, and only really disliked one of them. My favorites of the bunch are The Mocking Tower by Daniel Abraham and Hrunting by C.J. Cherryh.

I enjoyed the Scott Lynch story, though not as much as his story in Rogues.

I haven't been a fan of the George R.R. Martin "history" Song of Ice and Fire stories, so I went into this one with low expectations. It was probably the best of three I've read. I didn't find myself bored, but I'd still have preferred a style closer to the novels.

Overall I give this anthology a ★★★½☆ (which is simply the average of all my ratings below)

Ratings
The Best Man Wins by K.J. Parker - ★★★★☆
Her Father's Sword by Robin Hobb - ★★★★☆
The Hidden Girl by Ken Liu - ★★★★☆
The Sword of Destiny by Matthew Hughes - ★★★½☆
"I am a Handsome Man," said Apollo Crow by Kate Elliott - ★★★★☆
The Triumph of Virtue by Walter Jon Williams - ★★☆☆☆
The Mocking Tower by Daniel Abraham - ★★★½☆
Hrunting by C.J. Cherryh - ★★★½☆
A Long, Cold Trail by Garth Nix - ★★★★☆
When I Was A Highwayman by Ellen Kushner - ★★★☆☆
The Smoke of Gold is Glory by Scott Lynch - ★★★★☆
The Colgrid Conundrum by Rich Larson - ★★★★☆
The King's Evil by Elizabeth Bear - ★★★½☆
Water falling by Lavie Tidhar - ★★★½☆
The Sword Tyraste by Cecilia Holland - ★★★☆☆
The Sons of the Dragon by George R.R. Martin - ★★★☆☆

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

Man, I had forgotten how much I love to read anthologies. I recently read The Doll Collection, and I loved it! I'm getting back into them and I'll be reading this one now. I'll try to post a short review of each story as I go, because sometimes it's hard to keep track.

- The Best Man Wins by K.J. Parker - This was really, really good. Very well written and with fascinating characters. 4.5 stars.

- Her Father’s Sword by Robin Hobb - Super creepy and the ending was way out there. 3.5 stars.

- The Hidden Girl by Ken Liu - This was amazing. I love stories like these. 5 stars.

- The Sword of Destiny by Matthew Hughes - This was pretty good. Not the best of this anthology, but not bad. 3 stars.

- "I Am a Handsome Man", Said Apollo Crow by Kate Elliott -I loved this story so much. I want more Apollo Crow. Does such a thing exist? If anyone's found it, let me know! 5 stars.

- The Triumph of Virtue by Walter Jon Williams - This was boring. Longwinded. And the ending was awful. 2 stars.

- The Mocking Tower by Daniel Abraham - I liked this one quite a bit. Great characters and loved the ending. 4 stars.

- Hrunting by C.J. Cherryh - Love me some Grendel retellings/alternates. This was very good. 4.5 stars.

- A Long, Cold Trail by Garth Nix - Weird talking puppet strikes again. This one wasn't as good as the one in Rogues, though. 3 stars.

- When I Was a Highwayman by Ellen Kushner - This was interesting and well written, and I liked the characters, but I didn't really understand the ending. 3.5 stars.

- The Smoke of Gold Is Glory by Scott Lynch - I want this turned into a novel post haste. Thieves and dragons and riches, oh my! 5 stars.

- The Colgrid Conundrum by Rich Larson - This is a fascinating world. Surely it's not just for one short story? These characters were well-developed for the format. 4 stars.

- The King’s Evil by Elizabeth Bear - I really liked the worldbuilding on this story. Giant wasps FTW. 4 stars.

- Waterfalling by Lavie Tidhar -This was a little derivative but not boringly so. Epic worldbuilding carries the entire load on this one. 3 stars.

- The Sword Tyraste by Cecelia Holland -Funny how nobility and vengeance are so entertwined in stories like these. Liked it very much. Esp. the dwarves. Gotta love the dwarves. 5 stars.

- The Sons of the Dragon by George R.R. Martin - Once again the biggest let down is the Game of Thrones entry. These Targaryens need to figure out that more heirs aren't always a good thing. 2 stars for repetition and boredom.

I hope this one is as good as the last one I read, Rogues. Lots of good stuff in there, if you haven't read it. Check it out.

[Marquise · Rating 3 out of 5]

Indifference is the best term to describe my reaction to this anthology, specifically to the short story "Sons of the Dragon" by George R. R. Martin that was my motivation to read this.

But why? To put it as succinctly as possible: a. because it's a mediocre story, poorly edited and uninteresting; b. because it's neither new nor surprising, Martin already had read this short story at conventions before and fans who keep an eye on his comings and goings already knew of its contents; c. because it's a show of laziness and lack of care for this anthology and the fans, as the short story is going to be included again in an expanded, corrected, improved and more fleshed out version of the history of House Targaryen to be published next year, entitled Fire & Blood; and d. It doesn't add much that's worthy to the history and lore of Westeros or House Targaryen, nothing that'll keep us busy while we wait for TWOW or the HBO show's next season; there's nothing here that can't be gleaned or learnt from the other history & lore stories we already have in the TWOIAF encyclopaedia, for example.

My advice would be to not waste your time and money on this, go read a summary of the short story at one of the ASOIAF websites instead; you'll learn pretty much the same stuff without missing anything, and probably more coherently as well. If you absolutely must read the plot yourself, then stock up on a bit more patience and wait for Fire and Blood, that's promising to be a much better investment, and properly edited as well. The only reason for you to pick this up is if you're a fan of the other authors or interested in their work (I am not).

[Terry Rudge · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty average
Ken Liu was the stand out

- The Best Man Wins by K.J. Parker – 3 stars
- Her Father’s Sword by Robin Hobb – 3 stars
- The Hidden Girl by Ken Liu – 4.5 stars
- The Sword of Destiny by Matthew Hughes – 2 stars
- "I Am a Handsome Man", Said Apollo Crow by Kate Elliott – 3.5 stars
- The Triumph of Virtue by Walter Jon Williams – 3 stars
- The Mocking Tower by Daniel Abraham – 3.5 stars
- Hrunting by C.J. Cherryh – 1 stars
- A Long, Cold Trail by Garth Nix – 2 stars
- When I Was a Highwayman by Ellen Kushner – 3 stars
- The Smoke of Gold Is Glory by Scott Lynch – 3 stars
- The Colgrid Conundrum by Rich Larson – 4 stars
- The King’s Evil by Elizabeth Bear – 2 stars
- Waterfalling by Lavie Tidhar – 2 stars
- The Sword Tyraste by Cecelia Holland – 3 stars
- The Sons of the Dragon by George R.R. Martin – 3 stars

[Jim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I listened to this & the narrators are all quite good. The stories were far better than I expected after reading several SF anthologies that Dozois edited. He seems to like long SF stories, but I found these of good length. Some were longish, but few bogged down. It started out really well, but then petered out for me.

Table of Contents
Introduction Gardner Dozois tells of how he got interested in reading fantasy. Well done. He also does a thumbnail sketch of each author before each story. They're all good.

The Best Man Wins - K. J. Parker An excellent start! The MC is grumpy & has some great things to say about swords, war, & life in general. The twist wasn't as surprising as it could have been, but well done for all that. 4 stars!

Her Father’s Sword - Robin Hobb possibly the best thing I've read by her. Excellent characterization with a young girl in a tough situation. As horrible as the situation & decision was, I could see it. 4 stars

The Hidden Girl - Ken Liu Interesting & pretty good, but a little too fantastic. 2.5 stars

The Sword of Destiny - Matthew Hughes was fun. Dozois was right in connecting Hughes to Vance & his magicians at the end of time. Very similar in tone, but not a rip-off. 3.5 stars

“I Am a Handsome Man - ” Said Apollo Crow - Kate Elliott Kind of weird, but interesting. Good twist. 3 stars

The Triumph of Virtue - Walter Jon Williams had an excellent point that was well made. 4 stars

The Mocking Tower - Daniel Abraham Very well done & full of mystery that becomes apparent at the end & makes a great point. 4 stars

Hrunting - C. J. Cherryh I've never been much of a fan of hers. I read several of her books back around 1980 when stuck inside due to ash fall from Mount St. Helens & never got into them after that, so I was surprised by how good this story was especially since it was set a generation or so after Beowulf & twists the story. It did it superbly. 4.5 stars

A Long - Cold Trail - Garth Nix I think I read another short story in this world - a magical puppet with a pin & such. It was OK. 2.5 stars

When I Was a Highwayman - Ellen Kushner A story of slow corruption that could have been better. It was just depressing because I never could get behind the main character. If you can, you'll find it better, but there were holes, too. 2 stars

The Smoke of Gold Is Glory - Scott Lynch was a really interesting assault on a dragon's lair. Well done, good point. Solid. 3.5 stars

The Colgrid Conundrum - Rich Larson a good story with excellent characterization that had me until the end. I guess I just don't get the point & that ruined it. 2 stars

The King’s Evil - Elizabeth Bear interesting world, but not enough logic to it nor do I care much for her characters. The point was mundane. 2 stars

Waterfalling - Lavie Tidhar made me want to read more about the world, but again logic was lacking. For instance, the setup is all about how remote & tough a place is to get to, but once there dozens of pathetic people who certainly couldn't have made that journey are found. The entire ending was just too pat & the MC too derivative. 2 stars

The Sword Tyraste - Cecelia Holland was pretty good all the way until the end. Literally, the last word of the sentence lost it for me since I have no idea what it means. 3 stars until then.

The Sons of the Dragon - George R. R. Martin is a very dry recitation of historic events early on in the reign of the dragon kings. I would have been more interested if I'd read this during my read of ASOI&F, but Martin hasn't shown any inclination to finish the series after almost 30 years, so I really couldn't care less about the story he screwed up. 2 stars

[Sud666 · Rating 4 out of 5]

"The Book of Swords" was quite good. It is a collection of short stories set in a fantasy setting. Ostensibly. Thus, as with any collection, the strength of the book relies on the stories chosen. For the most part, they are quite good. A broad selection of fairly well-known modern authors provides a good sample of the genre.

The stories that really stood out, for me, and di a great job were:
The Best Man Wins- a great tale about what it really means to be the "best".
Her Father's Sword- a girl desires her father's sword and gets it
The Hidden Girl- assassins battle over a mission
The Hrunting- a post-Beowulf adventure

G.R.R. Martin's "The Sons of the Dragon" would also be on that list, but I read this in the history of the Targaryeans (Fire and Blood).

Among the ones I didn't care for were
"I am a handsome man" said Apollo Crow and "The Mocking Tower" weren't all that great.

Overall, though, a great collection of fantasy stories about swords. Highly recommended for any fantasy fan.

[Hani Fitriani · Rating 4 out of 5]

All I can say is Targaryen is a highly disfunctional family.

[Greg (adds 2 TBR list daily) Hersom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book of Sword is awesome, even more so for Sword & Sorcery or Heroic fantasy fans. In fact are any of the anthology books that Dozois and Martin have done together not awesome? I loved all the stories except one, but don't let that one rotten apple spoil the whole barrel because these apples are fit for the gods. I'm sincerely hard pressed to name a favorite of the bunch. Book of Swords is a shout-out to the masters; Howard, Lieber, and Moorcock and David Gemmell –he needs to be recognized too- whose works are often overshadowed by the big Epics.

Now it's time someone addresses the elephant in the room; George R. R. Martin. Now I am not a GRRM hater. I was an extremely passionate fan of Song of Fire and Ice –the real name of the GoT series- before anyone was even talking about it. But it needs said Sons of the Dragon is not only straight-up BOORRRING, it has no business in this anthology by even a long stretch. It's not a S&S tale. Heck, I'd argue it's not even a complete short-story at all. It's reads like a really long prolog or a high school book history lesson. Regardless of how bad it is, it doesn't follow an adventure of one or two individuals like all the other stories in this book; it details a history of Targaryen rule in Westeros.

All due respect to Mr. Martin, but either no one has cajones to offer him some creative criticism or they just figured anything he does will automatically get praise and sell books.

[Stephen Robert Collins · Rating 5 out of 5]

16 tales of Fantasy 1st Matthew Hughes, 2nd Elizabeth Bear,3rd K.J.Paker.

[Florin Constantinescu · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm probably among the very few people on this planet who did NOT buy this anthology just for the Song of Ice and Fire story. Having no high hopes for any of the authors is always a good way to start off an anthology.
For this year, Gardner Dozois decided to come up a sword and sorcery book made up exclusively of novelettes. The similar length of all stories here is also the reason why this was the first time I read all the stories in the order they are printed. Which was retrospectively a good idea, since the strongest come first.

• The Best Man Wins - K.J. Parker: 5*
Wow, stop it! This story hit me like the first taste of fresh vegetables after a winter of only eating out of cans. Young man approaches blacksmith with desire to forge a sword to off his father's killer. Superbly written, and, in spite of the fact that the plot twist was predictable after 10 pages, given the story's length, it was immensely enjoyable. I went ahead and added a K.J. Parker novel to my 'to read' list.

• Her Father's Sword - Robin Hobb: 5*
This is my first incursion into the Realm of the Elderling (having previously read only one other story by Robin Hobb). Damn good again. The main character in her novels appears in a village to warn its denizens about the return of their kinfolk recently kidnapped by some mysterious enemy. One girl proceeds to heed the warning and battles the returning zombie-like peasants.

• The Hidden Girl - Ken Liu: 5*
What's going on? Three 5* novelettes in a row? I must be dreaming. No I'm not. It's Ken Liu. Look, I'm saying it as if it were Stephen King in his heyday. Seriously, Ken Liu can write. Most appropriately for his origins, this story is Wuxia themed, and features a member of a high caste of assassins who can enter a 4th dimension taking mercy at one of her victims. Great pacing, great characters, super setting.

• The Sword of Destiny - Matthew Hughes: 5*
Four in a row now? Matthew Hughes' continuing homage to Jack Vance. Cool! While this is not exactly set in Vance's Dying World milieu, it uses the same syntactic tropes, and features the adventures of a rogue sent to steal a demon sword. I can't get enough of this kind of stories.

• "I Am a Handsome Man," said Apollo Crow - Kate Elliott: 2*
Some 'respite', although I was ready to go on for some more 5*. This story about a rogue sent to capture a beautiful spy's secret notes in some kind of alternate Roman empire didn't really catch me. The "he's a woman, she's a man" plot twists also didn't sit well with me.

• The Triumph of Virtue - Walter Jon Williams: 3*
Straight honest story about yet another rogue tasked with apprehending a would-be court assassin. Too much court intrigue and not enough world building killed this story's potential.

• The Mocking Tower - Daniel Abraham: 4*
This one started like a 5*: in a kingdom plagued by civil war between princes, the youngest son of the recently-dead king arrives in a mysterious tower to claim a powerful sword. The setting is fabulous, but the story became a little more difficult to read past midpoint when it got a little surreal.

• Hrunting - C.J. Cherryh: 1*
A sequel of sorts to the epic of Beowulf. I have not recently familiarized myself with the epic, and, being suddenly thrown in the middle of one hundred Norse names and places did not help at all (Hrunting, Unferth, Halli, Hrothgar, Ragnbjorg, etc). By midpoint I stopped it, because I had failed to understand a single thing.

• A Long, Cold Trail - Garth Nix: 5*
It's my opinion that with this "Sir Hereward and Mister Fitz" series, Garth Nix is attempting to create something Vance-ian, but with a slightly different tone. I had read another of this adventuring couple's stories elsewhere (can't remember where now), and was positively impressed. This one is even better, and the wandering knight and his magically enhanced paper-and-wood puppet must battle a "soul-eating inimical godlet". Their trek was full of adventures, and the climactic battle full of fun.

• When I Was a Highwayman - Ellen Kushner: 2*
It's time for a little romance now. Pair of con artists plan various romantic heists. There's some dueling, some sex, some "don't you love me any more" shouting... Not enough mystery or world-building. Ugh.

• The Smoke of Gold Is Glory - Scott Lynch: 5*
An almost incompetent thief is tricked into joining a party of adventurers who set out for a mysterious mountain where a dragon has hoarded a fortune. Not the most original of plots, but I really liked the characters' interactions, the setting, the writing style, and the resolution.

• The Colgrid Conundrum - Rich Larson: 2*
Two thieves appear at a locksmith's doorstop with a large safe that needs to be opened, but, as payment, they are requested to murder somebody, at which point the story diverged so much from the original starting point, that it was hard to follow.

• The King's Evil - Elizabeth Bear: 2*
A pair of humans and an... android(?) attempt to raid an undead king's castle on an island guarded by giant wasps. The idea seems cool enough, but the story is plagued by the author's dense descriptions. Each step taken by a character is minutely described. There are more adjectives in this story than in all the others combined. Plus, two of the characters are named "The Gage" and "The Dead Man". Live with that if you can.

• Waterfalling - Lavie Tidhar: 1*
Lavie Tidhar is one of the authors Gardner Dozois has been trying very hard to popularize lately, appearing in almost all of his recent anthologies, be they fantasy, or science-fiction, or whatever. He is also an author I had decided to stay away from, not having liked any of the seven or eight stories I previously read. I thought I'd make an exception this time. Shouldn't have. I tried, but just couldn't understand what I was reading. Gave up halfway through.

• The Sword Tyraste - Cecelia Holland: 2*
Clearly the editor saved all of the good stories for the beginning. Already into bonus/filler/left-over territory. Swordsman joins the ranks of king's bodyguard to have revenge on the king himself for killing his brother. The idea is okay-ish, but the world beyond the castle is completely neglected, and the style felt very rushed to me.

• The Sons of the Dragon - George R.R. Martin: 2*
Just like GRRM's previous novelette installment in a Dozois anthology ('The Rogue Prince' in Rogues), this is another 'narrated history' piece. In places it feels like the Old Testament: Jacob begat Rebeca, A begat B, C begat D, then for variation: E who was also known as the Tall Knight skinned F who was also known as the Brave Mountain, or Ser G the insert trait razed the castle of Ser H the insert trait. In other places it feels like Gabriel Garcia Marquez's 100 Years of Solitude: there must be at least three characters bearing the same name in this story only, let alone the entire saga. The only thing that made it feel like a story is that it was began with the birth of one character and ended with his death.

Overall conclusion: The original idea for this book was pretty good. Not that I'm an expert on the fantasy field, but I think a good 'sword & sorcery' anthology was due for a while. And the editor promises a similar "Book of Magic" anthology for next year. Let's see.

[Lashaan Balasingam · Rating 4 out of 5]

You can find my review on my blog by clicking here.

I’ve always thought that short stories were so much more harder for authors to nail. To be able to compress a whole narrative within 30 to 100 pages seemed like a task only a God could manage. Only a few authors are able to find an idea, foreshadow it and deliver a stunning ending that will make you realize just how clever those last couple of pages were. In fact, being able to deliver a clever narrative is what I also look for in all my stories, whether they are long or short. The Book of Swords is my first venture into the world of anthologies and I can tell you all that this was such a splendid experience. I won’t be reviewing each story one by one—which would be a bloody crazy idea with the number of authors featured and the number of things I might or might not be able to say about them—but this compilation of short stories was a fantastic break of the usual long and traditional literature that I’m used to embrace. I’m pretty glad to have read this one as it opened me to the idea of always having an anthology, or even short stories, ready on my bookshelves to pick up whenever I’m looking for something short and sweet to indulge.

One of the biggest reasons why I made this new release my first anthology lies in the featured authors. Over the past years I’ve been adding books to my list left and right with a crazy desire to read them all as soon as possible. A lot of the authors I’d add would have had written at least one major title or series that had gained a huge fan base and a lot of attention by readers. Thanks to Gardner Dozois, I was able to have my first glimpse into the writing style of so many of those authors I’ve always wanted to check out. Without naming them all, authors like Robin Hobb, Garth Nix and even George R.R. Martin were some of the writers that I was simply excited to check out. Yes, as unusual as it may be, George R.R. Martin’s short story The Songs of the Dragon is my first look at what he was all about. But the best part of this anthology isn’t just that it had some amazing writers in it, but because it made me discover some authors that I hadn’t heard of before. Gardner Dozois, the editor behind this anthology, starts every short story off by giving us a short and sweet biography of the authors and their most-known books and this really helped me increase my list of books to read exponentially. Thank you, Gardner Dozois.

The Book of Swords is a return in force of a genre that had died down over the years that used to be called “Sword & Sorcery”. Essentially it refers to a fantasy subgenre that features swords, action and a little bit of magic and romance. In Gardner Dozois introduction he does an interesting overlook of how fantasy evolved ever since he first discovered “Sword & Sorcery” as a kid and reflects on the influence of some of the huge players of the game, notably J.R.R. Tolkien. Throughout these 12 stories, you’ll often run across a sword in some shape or form that’ll play a pretty important role. Each author brings forth an interesting twist to how they convey their story. But as you’d expect from a lot of anthologies, there are fantastic stories and there are dull stories. I’ve come across a couple of them where the characters felt like cardboard character and others that simply had no personality to them. Other stories delivered a richly developed world oozing with details, while others were much character-oriented and focused on their development within the short amount of time. It’s this possibility of exploring so many different styles and ways to tell a story within one book that made this anthology that much fascinating for me.

It’s probably hard to tell anyone if this is worth purchasing or not since my own experience with anthologies resumes to this volume. Nonetheless, I still enjoyed The Book of Swords and would recommend any fantasy lovers to pick it up to explore new authors or to get an extra dose of their favourite authors creativity. Some of these stories are even set in their author’s favourite worlds. While publicity-wise the book relies on the fact that there’s a Game of Thrones story that’s included in it (one that felt more like a filler than a must-read), it ain’t so bad considering that you get to read from authors like Robin Hobb and Scott Lynch (the latter being an author I absolutely love for his Gentleman Bastard’s series). Honestly, this anthology felt like a cheat meal by giving us this hugely assorted meals in a buffet style where you don’t even need to read the stories in a particular order. I guess this anthology simply served as an excellent beginning to my adventures in the world of short stories. Fans of any of these authors who are just twiddling their thumbs until their author’s next big release will find comfort in The Book of Swords. What are you waiting for?

Thank you to Penguin Random House Canada for sending me a copy for review!

Yours truly,

Lashaan | Blogger and Book Reviewer
Official blog: https://bookidote.com/