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Weight of Swords
The Helveti nation has endured a siege of dragons for fifteen bloody years. The ravenous beasts can only be taken down by teams of elite fighters, led by Sword Bearers wielding ancient weapons. Even with all they can do, the cost of human life has driven the Helveti to the brink of annihilation. As the people contemplate the possibility of ultimate defeat, tragedy strikes again.Artair, one of their greatest Sword Bearers, is taken in the night by new and powerful enemies. Carried to a foreign land, his battle for his life and his homeland reaches new levels of ferocity. With his true enemies revealed, he must fight men, dragons, and worse to gain a chance for his people...
...a chance to survive.
...a chance to survive.
348 pages, Hardcover
First published January 4, 2015
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
December 12, 2016
When I opened this book, I really didn't know what to expect. I had a few ideas, but I really don't remember what they were. Once I started reading, I got pulled into the world. I held my breathe at every detailed battle, and wondered how Artair would escape.
I also found the character of Artimus to be quite intriguing. I had him figured out for a while, but I was still curious to see what he would or wouldn't do.
The description was amazing, and I fell in love with the world. It has really been a long time since a book has been able to drag me into its hold, and this one would not let me go until I read the last word.
I also found the character of Artimus to be quite intriguing. I had him figured out for a while, but I was still curious to see what he would or wouldn't do.
The description was amazing, and I fell in love with the world. It has really been a long time since a book has been able to drag me into its hold, and this one would not let me go until I read the last word.
June 25, 2015
I must admit after reading about The Historian I was a little sad to start a book without that character. However, I was not disappointed! Fantastic read! The detail in the battle scenes was so perfect I felt I was watching a movie not reading a book. Such a clever story.
December 28, 2014
Note: This is not a Historian Tales book. This is a sweeping epic with lots of action and heroism. A bit beefier, it's meant for a bit more advanced reader, but still safe for young readers.
January 10, 2019
The books main plot was a group of people on the eastern side of the moutains was being constanlly attacked by these mysterious animals called dragons. Their are certain groups of people that will go hunt and kill these dragons but soon their are to many so all the towns come together and go and try to find where the dragons are coming from. They end up finding a whole city of great size that has been sending the dragons through the cave to come hunt the other group of people. Artair is the main charater and ends up being captured by the city and being put in a Roman colosseum thing and has to fight the king of the cities best dragons. But he learns the key word to make the dragons stop. He then later escapes comes back and kills the king in a war won by his people. I like the book as it has an interseting plot and has cool circumstances wer Artair has to either escape or show off his fighting skills. I would recommened this book to anyone who is a fan of fighting, fanstasy, and excitment.
August 31, 2019
I read The Weight of Swords by Lance Conrad. The book is about The Helveti Nation and its war between them and the dragons. The main character, Artair, is one of the main sword bearers, and he fights and kills dragons. He gets kidnapped by people of another nation and realizes that the dragons aren't the only enemies of his people. Once the people of the Helveti Nation realise that Artair has been taken, they group up and get ready to finally finish the 15 year long war with the dragons once and for all.
I personally really liked this book most of the time, that's why I gave it 4 stars. The reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because at times it moved quite slowly, it took a while for the book to get into any real action, even while there was fight scenes with other people and dragons, they felt a bit over detailed and just seemed to go on for forever. Instead of intense fight scenes it just felt like oh another fight? Oh well. But the story line and everything else was really interesting. I would definitely recommend to a friend, just because I did really like it over all.
I personally really liked this book most of the time, that's why I gave it 4 stars. The reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 because at times it moved quite slowly, it took a while for the book to get into any real action, even while there was fight scenes with other people and dragons, they felt a bit over detailed and just seemed to go on for forever. Instead of intense fight scenes it just felt like oh another fight? Oh well. But the story line and everything else was really interesting. I would definitely recommend to a friend, just because I did really like it over all.
December 13, 2023
The Weight of Swords, by Lance Conrad is a nostalgic book for me. At this point I have probably read it four times. I remember years ago in elementary school, the author, Lance Conrad, visited our class to tell us about writing and introduce his books to us. I remember reading and absolutely loving the Historian Tales books, so I was excited to read this book and reread it again and again. After once more reading this epic tale about dragons and arena fights and legendary weapons in the hands of heroes, I can’t help but see some similarities between The Weight of Swords and the movie, Gladiator, particularly between the main characters. It was fun to find the similarities between the protagonists of their respective stories, Artair and Maximus. However, a very unique character that made this book particularly special to me was Artimus; he constantly had me on the edge of my seat wondering what he would do next. For me, a truly good book can be just as much of a delight to read for the fiftieth time as it was for the first time, and I would definitely say this is one of those books.
November 8, 2017
Terrible use of slang
I gave up. As a reader, I like to immerse myself in the setting and the story. Unfortunately, too much modern slang and or vernacular was used in the conversations, and this would repeatedly toss me out of the story onto my rump. It is very jarring.
I gave up. As a reader, I like to immerse myself in the setting and the story. Unfortunately, too much modern slang and or vernacular was used in the conversations, and this would repeatedly toss me out of the story onto my rump. It is very jarring.
January 2, 2018
I really liked this book because it was like a fantasy war book and i really enjoyed how it talked about dragons and people fighting them.
February 2, 2022
Another great novel by Lance Conrad. These are like the old Arthurian stories of mighty men, each one stronger, faster, and more honorable than the last with plenty of blood and carnage.
February 6, 2024
I liked this book a very intersting book, I love this author aswell. I wish a second book will be made in the near future.
March 17, 2017
Well written
It's very well written and not smutty.
The plot feels a little overused. Hero becomes slave, fights in the arena to represent his nation against the evil emperor.
Switch tigers and elephants with dragons and it's almost Sparticus. Well, not quite, but a bit.
The heroes are, for the most part, immortal and highly principled, which I like. I don't like my stories too dark. Reading should be an escape, not a darker drudgery...
It's very well written and not smutty.
The plot feels a little overused. Hero becomes slave, fights in the arena to represent his nation against the evil emperor.
Switch tigers and elephants with dragons and it's almost Sparticus. Well, not quite, but a bit.
The heroes are, for the most part, immortal and highly principled, which I like. I don't like my stories too dark. Reading should be an escape, not a darker drudgery...
December 3, 2024
"The Weight of Swords" by Lance Conrad is an engaging book with an intense storyline told from multiple perspectives. The main protagonist, Artair, is a dragon killer who gets kidnapped by a mysterious group that has unleashed dragons upon their lands. This group has learned to tame the dragons, which they keep as pets. As war breaks out between this group and Artair's people, we also follow Artair's friend, who escapes but is mortally wounded and hunted by a dragon. The narrative includes viewpoints from the leader of the Swordbearers and other minor characters, such as the kidnappers. I appreciated the book's complexity and the unexpected twists at the climax. The detailed fight scenes and vivid descriptions made me feel truly immersed in the story.
August 23, 2016
Admittedly this is not exactly the genre that I generally choose to read, that being said, I thoroughly enjoyed it!
If this book were made in to a movie, it would definitely be considered a 'guy movie' as there is blood on nearly every page. Not to say that women wouldn't enjoy it, it's just definitely a battle centric story. However, I really think that the author did a really great job at creating an interesting world and very exciting scenes from the beginning to the end.
I found myself really rooting for all the main characters, even the ones that were often at odds with each other, and when it was over, I soon felt disappointed that I had finished the story, because I found myself wanting to read a little more. I consider this a mark of a good book. I am one of those people who will finish a book even if I'm not enjoying it, I will see it through to the end, so I have finished many a book that I was happy to say goodbye to. This book definitely left me wanting more. I'm excited to see what the author creates next for this series.
I have read the first three of the Historian Tales and quite enjoyed those as well. This one is heavier reading than those stories, as there is a lot more violence; it may be more suited to an adult audience. However, I can imagine it will be quite exciting to anyone who loves epic battles, dragons and general fantasy. It has the overall classic feel of a typical dragon slayer story, yet it's own unique flavor that brings it well beyond anything cliche.
If this book were made in to a movie, it would definitely be considered a 'guy movie' as there is blood on nearly every page. Not to say that women wouldn't enjoy it, it's just definitely a battle centric story. However, I really think that the author did a really great job at creating an interesting world and very exciting scenes from the beginning to the end.
I found myself really rooting for all the main characters, even the ones that were often at odds with each other, and when it was over, I soon felt disappointed that I had finished the story, because I found myself wanting to read a little more. I consider this a mark of a good book. I am one of those people who will finish a book even if I'm not enjoying it, I will see it through to the end, so I have finished many a book that I was happy to say goodbye to. This book definitely left me wanting more. I'm excited to see what the author creates next for this series.
I have read the first three of the Historian Tales and quite enjoyed those as well. This one is heavier reading than those stories, as there is a lot more violence; it may be more suited to an adult audience. However, I can imagine it will be quite exciting to anyone who loves epic battles, dragons and general fantasy. It has the overall classic feel of a typical dragon slayer story, yet it's own unique flavor that brings it well beyond anything cliche.
June 4, 2014
It's hard for me to write a review on this book. I just finished a few minutes ago and my head is still swirling from the pure awesomeness of everything that just happened. Artair and Artimus have incredible and unpredictable chemistry and were so well developed.
To sum it up: I lost sleep, missed work, neglected my family (bad idea), tried to shower and read (didn't work), read while washing dishes, had dreams of being a great author, and was flat out entertained for four days.
I place Lance Conrad in a category of authors like Brandon Sanderson and Will Wight who provide extremely high entertainment value and find no reason to compromise the quality of their book by including questionable/sexual content.
Thank you for the great read!
To sum it up: I lost sleep, missed work, neglected my family (bad idea), tried to shower and read (didn't work), read while washing dishes, had dreams of being a great author, and was flat out entertained for four days.
I place Lance Conrad in a category of authors like Brandon Sanderson and Will Wight who provide extremely high entertainment value and find no reason to compromise the quality of their book by including questionable/sexual content.
Thank you for the great read!
October 3, 2015
Having never written a review on a book before, I must confess this book was really good. Unable to set it down last night until I passed out. I spent today reading between the day's errands. I have not felt compelled to finish a story since the Wheel of Time finale. The writing style and flow reminds me of David Eddings or Raymond Fiest. Appreciate the good read, it was also a pleasure meeting the author at SLC ComicCon. I had no intention of buying another set of books that day, but 4 hours after talking with him and reading a few pages, I found myself back at his booth. Having purchased all 4 of his books for my 6th Grade child, I find myself really enjoying them.
June 25, 2015
Lance, I have to say this is great. I was definitely enthralled and look for more of your books to come in the future. Once I had the chance to read it, I was unable to put it down. Finished it in two days.
April 4, 2015
4.5: The only reason this didn't get a 5 from me is that the beginning was a little slow for me but other than that is was great!!
December 28, 2015
3.5 stars. It was good, but didn't really catch me enough to say it was great.
August 4, 2012
Great characters, excellent plot, a great ride of a book!
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews