De Eed van de Zwaardvechter

The Tales of Einarinn #2

by Juliet E. McKenna, Richard Heufkens (Translator)

Swordmaster. . .

Ryshad was a warrior, a sworn man pledged to defend the Empire and his lord with his sword and his life. Livak was a thief, a woman as dangerous and cunning as she was beautiful. Brought together by fate--and the wily wizard Shiv--these unlikely allies once traveled to the frozen lands of the North to find answers to an ancient mystery. Instead, though, they discovered death and worse at the hands of the Elietimm, a band of evil sorcerers who nearly destroyed them.

Or Slave?

Now, the Elietimm have infiltrated the Empire using their strange and deadly power. It is up to a reunited Ryshad and Livak, joined by Shiv, to discover the secret knowledge that can save the Empire--a mission that will lead them far from the lands they know. It is Ryshad, though, who will journey farthest, to a distant country where nothing is what it seems, not even the magical sword that has long protected him. And if that sword should turn against him now...

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, High Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Adventure, Science Fiction Fantasy, Ebooks

512 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Juliet E McKenna is a British fantasy author living in the Cotswolds, UK. Loving history, myth and other worlds since she first learned to read, she has written fifteen epic fantasy novels so far. Her debut, The Thief’s Gamble, began The Tales of Einarinn in 1999, followed by The Aldabreshin Compass sequence, The Chronicles of the Lescari Revolution, and The Hadrumal Crisis trilogy. The Green Man’s Heir was her first modern fantasy inspired by British folklore in 2018. The Green Man’s Quarry in 2023 was the sixth title in this ongoing series and won the BSFA Award for Best Novel. The seventh book, in 2024, is The Green Man’s War.

Her 2023 novel The Cleaving is a female-centred retelling of the story of King Arthur, while her shorter fiction includes forays into dark fantasy, steampunk and science fiction. She promotes SF&Fantasy by reviewing, by blogging on book trade issues, attending conventions and teaching creative writing. She has served as a judge for the James White Award, the Aeon Award, the Arthur C Clarke Award and the World Fantasy Awards. In 2015 she received the British Fantasy Society’s Karl Edward Wagner Award. As J M Alvey, she has written historical murder mysteries set in ancient Greece.

Who’s to say what will come next?

Learn more about all of this at julietemckenna.com and on Twitter @JulietEMcKenna

Reviews

[Belinda Vlasbaard · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,5 stars - English Ebook

As a Tormalin sworn man, Ryshad is honour-bound to obey his prince's orders. Now he is sent to help two wizards searching for lost knowledge to use against the mysterious, murderous Elietimm. Conveniently, Ryshad can do his duty and seek personal revenge for a friend dead at the Ice Islanders' hands. Better yet, the wizard Shiv still has business with Livak; gambler, thief and, briefly, Ryshad's lover.

However, Ryshad soon learns just how perilous involvement with elemental or aetheric magic can be. Enchantments he cannot counter leave him far from home, and from any hope of allies, powerless amid the lethal hazards of the Aldabreshin Archipelago. Only strength of character and the fighting skills forged in his master's service can save him from sorcery and treachery.

An unforeseen bond with another young man ensnared in unsuspected enchantments leads towards the answers the Archmage so urgently needs. As the Elietimm threat grows, neither Tormalin swordsman will escape unscathed. Some dangers defy even the finest master-crafted blade.

As I say fantasy is my thing. After the first book I wanted to know what happened to the characters. This second book in the series was hard to put down. It kept moving in unexpected ways, which I won't spoil here, and the action at the end was excellent.

Maybe I'm not qualified to do reviews on books in this genre, but I think it deserves five stars. If I don't even particularly like fantasy but I want to keep reading, then there has to be something to it. And if you like fantasy as well.

I'm going on to the next in the series to read more about Ryshad's beloved, Livak.

[Connie53 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Het was al even geleden dat ik deel 1 had gelezen, dus ik moest even in dit deel komen, maar toen had het me ook helemaal te pakken. Natuurlijk speelt Livak ook een rol, maar de hoofdrol is weggelegd voor Ryshad. Hij is een zwaardvechter voor een van de Huizen van Einarinn en krijgt de opdracht om de magiër Shivvalan bij te staan bij een niet nader toegelichte opdracht. Dus gaat Ryshad op weg en komt daarbij een een vreemd avontuur terecht. Meer vertel ik niet want dat geeft te veel weg over het verhaal en dat is niet de bedoeling. maar het verhaal is we speciaal en er worden veel van de raadsels uit deel 1 uitgelegd. Stroef begin maar een spannend einde.

[Mieneke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Having read and loved McKenna's first book, The Thief's Gambit , last November, I really wanted to get back to the Tales of Einarinn and to find out what happens next. So during my Christmas book spree I made sure to get my hands on The Swordsman’s Oath. I loved returning to the world of Einarinn and Livak, Ryshad, Shiv and the rest.

McKenna makes an interesting switch in the active character viewpoints. Where Livak was the main active viewpoint in the first book, in this book we switch to Ryshad. His is the first person viewpoint, with the added third person viewpoints of Temar and Planir. Temar's story was and the way it ties into the plot was very interesting and illuminated a lot about Tormalin history. However, is did take me a bit to realise they were set in the past, which caused a bit of confusion in the beginning, but once I realised the time line shift, I kept looking forward to returning to this part of the narrative. Getting used to being inside Ryshad's head instead of Livak was remarkably easy and probably facilitated by the fact that Ryshad is a very likeable character, with a good sense of humour. I liked that we got to see the emotional consequences of events in the first book, as Ryshad deals with his grief. There was a good mix of the return of familiar characters, such as Shiv and some of the other wizards and additions of new ones, such as Halice, Temar, Laio and the old wizard Viltred. At the same time, as we've already seen in The Thief's Gambit, McKenna isn't afraid to lose characters, some in rather permanent ways, ensuring that the reader has to keep on her toes and can never be sure about a character's continued survival.

As with The Thief's Gambit, we get world building not just through the narrative but by letters, reports and similar pieces of texts interspersed throughout the book. These give us a historical perspective on what's going on in the 'contemporary' story. I love this way of adding depth to a world and a society and I really enjoyed them. It also makes me wonder about the background information McKenna must have written out before starting her story and how this changed or evolved as she expanded the series with new sequences—she's currently up to fifteen books spread over four sequences. The part of the book where Ryshad visits the Aldabreshin isles was my favourite part. I loved the society McKenna created for the Aldabreshin and the complete alienation Ryshad feels living there. It's made me look forward to the second trilogy set in the world of Einarinn, The Aldabreshi Compass, where we'll find out far more about this island culture. In addition to the Aldabreshi isles, we also get to (re)discover an entire new continent with our protagonist, the one where centuries before Temar and his companions founded the Kel Ar'Ayen settlement. The parts set in the colony were adventurous and action-filled and I really liked both the scenes set in the past and in the now.

One aspect of this book needs to be mentioned specifically: McKenna's female characters. With a lot of attention and debate on the lack of strong female characters and the treatment of female characters in current genre fiction going on, McKenna's females shine forth as beacons of independence and strength. Even in the Aldabreshi isles, where Warlords have several wives, these wives wield power of their own and have goals and ideals independent of their husband. And they're not 'modern' examples, The Thief's Gambit and The Swordsman’s Oath are over a decade old. So that leaves the question, did female characters degrade in the past decade or are there more examples that are simply overlooked?

The Swordsman's Oath was a great sequel, no middle book syndrome here, and is a good tale on its own. I really enjoyed it and I'm so glad I discovered Juliet E. McKenna's books. I can't wait to get my hands on the next part of these Tales, as I want to find out how the recolonization will go and how Temar will deal with his new situation. And of course what choices Ryshad will make once he reaches Zyoutessela and how the struggle against the Elietimm will pan out. Ms McKenna's latest, The Darkening Skies, book two in The Hadrumal Crisis is out next week from Solaris, and I have a lot of catching up to do before I can start that. My next McKenna read will be The Gambler's Fortune, just as soon as I can get my hands on the book!

[Mike (the Paladin) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Okay, this one started out well. But (and I liked the first novel The Thief's gamble) I think the author got too many threads going at once. We start traveling...the main character relating "his" adventures in first person. But due to a certain artifact he's sharing his "mind" with another person from 24 generations ago. This person is apparently not dead but is a magical sleep..his story is told in third person. Oh and we're also following some correspondence. We get to read letters between other chapters. There are two journeys going on, one now and one in the past etc. You get the idea.

It wasn't really confusing, just too much. I have to admit that by the end I was just in a hurry to tie it up. Too bad as the first volume of the set was so good. I hope the next will be better.

[Ker_Thwap · Rating 2 out of 5]

Read the first book, generally liked it. I found myself falling asleep during this book and chose not to continue the series. The book is told from the POV of Ryshad, but he's not a particularly compelling character, about all we learn about him is that he's a sworn man, and very little of what makes him tick. The plot moved along fairly slowly, and I was really tempted to just skip to the end of the book to see how it all turned out. Seemed like too much of the plot was just standard overused stuff. Oh no, we were almost to our goal, when we were captured!

[Myridian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ryshad is the main focus of this novel rather than Livak. Like the first story, the footing was uneven at first but improved when Ryshad is sold into slavery and the plot around the lost colony artifacts begins to be revealed more fully. It felt good to be back with these characters but a lot of the camaraderie of the first book felt lost as the focus was on the introspection of Ryshad. The introduction of Viltred proved interesting as his character was more developed later in the story. Somehow though the threat of the Elietimm seemed less dire Which decreased the tension. I almost wish the full book had been set in the Aldabreshin Archipelago where Ryshad is a slave. The characters and culture there seemed more interesting and vital than any if the myriad places the party travels and as it was too much movement and too little description sometimes felt packed into the book. That said, I very much enjoyed the developments in the plot and will look for the third installment.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the first book in the series, and especially Livaks viewpoint, a lot. The second book is fine, but not great. Perhaps it is that because the female author is not as good as describing the story from a male point of view? In any way, the character is rather bland and so is the story. Livak had much more colour and depth in her thoughts and actions.

Only when the protagonist is taken to an archipelago with an Arab-style culture (including slaves, wives and lots scheming) does the story take off. At least in part this is because Ryshad is mainly a spectator in this part; the actual spotlights are on the family to which he is a slave.

But do not despair: I'm currently reading the third book in the series, which is much more enjoyable than the second.

[Cori Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is in Rashad's pov as well as a few others (not as many as the first). There are questions from the first book that are answered in this one. We even get to see more of the cultures of this world too.

[E · Rating 4 out of 5]

Big sweeping fantasy done well, but as with the first book its plot arc still serves to set up the overarching metaplot of the series, so things feel a little unresolved. Likeable, well-drawn characters, & bonus points again for nice depiction of Shiv & Pered's relationship.

[Dion Cassidy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This time we are seeing the world from Ryshad's point of view.

We finally learn why some of the items seems to be triggering dreams and it was a twist I was not expecting.

I am curious to see what happens next.

[Solim · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5 for this one. So far McKenna has a tendency to do two stories at once and juggle them chapter by chapter but the side story and character are always uninteresting and these characters dont re-appear in the next book. It feels like filler even when at times it contributes to the main story.

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story telling, again

Great story, great plot, great characters - some horrendous typos in the Kindle version though, need to have a word with the proof-reader!

[Emma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed the expansion of the lore and world building in the second of this series. It was interesting seeing the world from Ryshads perspective but I did miss Livak.

[Alayne · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fairly heavy-going story and switching back and forwards in time, but intriguing and very involving. I thoroughly enjoyed it and look forward to book 3!

[kit · Rating 5 out of 5]

i was nervous about the protag shift here, but the writer pulled it off very well. excellent second installment.

[Kay · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Truls Ljungström · Rating 1 out of 5]

Det är märkligt vilken skillnad en huvudperson gör. De breda dragen i världen är de samma, men den förra kändes rimlig, medan denna kändes dålig rollspelskampanj.

[Charles McGonigal · Rating 5 out of 5]

As with the first, nice easy epic fantasy read, although with a little more structural twisting. Should be interesting to see how it unfolds over the series.

[Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing

Incredibly well thought out and developed follow up of the 1st book in the series. Thoroughly enjoyed and looking forward to the next.

[Nathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fantasy Review Barn

Not long ago I reviewed Juliet McKenna’s debut novel, ‘The Thief’s Gamble,’ a good fourteen years after its publication. An enjoyable book with a strong lead in Livak, I caused a bit of a discussion about tropes when I suggested that the book hit quite a few of the genre’s big ones. The author herself pointed out that what was once fresh may now be seen as a trope. Perhaps lost in the discussion was the fact that I really raced through ‘The Thief’s Gamble,” enjoying the book throughout. As would be expected, I eagerly dove into the second book of the series.

“The Thief’s Gamble” ended with a narrow escape from some yellow haired island baddies by Livak and her band, including the swordsman Ryshad, who takes over the first person point of view in “The Swordsman’s Oath.” Like the first book, there is also third person narrative based around other characters, and various historical letters that help flesh out the world’s history. The story follows Ryshad, working with the wizards of the land, tracking down artifacts that could help explain the Elietimm’s (yellow hair baddies) unknown and devastating magical abilities. Along the way he reunites, and is taken away from, Livak and the complicated relationship they share.

There are several interesting things happening in this story. Flashbacks can be hit or miss but I feel McKenna handled them very well. They were introduced gradually and in the early going I didn’t even realized I was looking into the past. Slowly but surely they were tied into Ryshad’s story until they were so intertwined as to be one story. Another unique story line involved a new culture; polygamist but misunderstood, with the wives’ being responsible for all trade and business. And while Livak is no longer the main point of view, she is still an active character in this book, and is still a joy to read about.

So did this book live up to my expectations? Yes, as much as I enjoyed the first book of the series I feel this one was superior in many ways. I did miss the voice of Livak and found her more compelling of a main character than Ryshad; but when combined with secondary character of Temar (a voice from the past) he gets more interesting. The setting for this one was much more unique and dare I say, less trope filled. The characters have grown past their trope beginnings; making Livak much more than a thief, Shiv shows he is not just a mage, etc. The overall problem the protagonists and his group face is highly entertaining, racing the Elietimm’s to discover a lost society and its secrets, and fighting them for them when needed. Obviously war is coming, and while it doesn’t come to head, the first battles are fought.

While I didn’t enjoy Ryshad as much as Livak as a protagonist, he is still and interesting character. He takes his responsibilities serious, and can’t quite shake that something is influencing his thoughts when he thinks otherwise. McKenna shows strength in real relationships again; while Livak and Ryshad are becoming more typical love interests, Temar and a women named Guinalle have a much more complicated relationship that doesn’t follow the “one true love” plot line.

Once again I felt the author went on a long, semi confusing, tangent. Ryshad is taken as a slave to the polygamist culture, and I still can’t quite figure out why or what it added. Unlike the search for a wizard in the first book I found this diversion interesting; the new culture he had to learn was interesting to be sure, but it didn’t seem to add anything special to Ryshad’s character and the circumstances behind his travels confused a bit.

But outside of that minor complaint, I felt the book was an improvement throughout. The miscellaneous correspondences to start the chapter added so much to the story, the pace was quick, and the characters continued to be a strong point of the series. Still love it, still plan on reading the rest.

4 stars.

[Connie]

Great book

[V · Rating 4 out of 5]

The second installment of “The Tales of Einarinn” series written by British fantasy author Juliet Mckenna continues the (mis)adventures of our band of unlikely (and quite reluctant) heroes. Even though the wickedly attractive thief Livak, the stubborn wizard Shiv and the sturdy swordsman Rishad have been left almost unscathed in their journey towards the land of the murderous Elietimm, more threats await them at home. Forced to work together once more, the characters learn a great deal about themselves, about companionship and betrayal.

In “The Swordsman’s Oath” the author keeps on exploring her dangerous world of epic proportion. Here the reader meets the inhabitants of the Archipelago who loathe and condemn those born with the spark of magic to indescribable tortures. An important aspect of the novel is the change in point of view to Rishad instead of Livak (who is plainly frustrating at times) and thus, Mrs. Mckenna enables us to acquaint ourselves in depth with the misty warrior, who has given an oath not easily broken. His expectations for freedom and good life fall short, however, as he (unwillingly, of course) becomes a slave in the Archipelago, where any mistake equals to death.

This part of “The Tales” marks a steady development in Juliet Mckenna’s prose, as the inescapable violence has been diminished to the adequate minimum and in turn intriguing bits and pieces fill out the setting. Although not always contributing to the storyline, they undoubtedly enliven the world of Einarinn and make it more believable. The characters are convincing and complex; the plot vivid and unforgettable; the style flowing and swift. All in all, “The Swordsman’s Oath” is an immensely pleasurable read, much better than its somewhat flawed predecessor.

[Simon Mcleish · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally published on my blog here in November 2000.

The second of Juliet McKenna's trilogy is rather a repeat of the first, with much the same group of characters making their way across the world she has invented to try to discover more about the attackers who threaten to overwhelm it. The Elietimm, as these attackers are named, use and entirely different and almost unknown form of magic, and that is what makes them formidable enemies, with their single-minded ruthlessness.

The main difference in this novel is that we learn a lot more about the events six hundred years in the past which led to the downfall of a huge empire and the general abandonment of etheric magic. Part of the narrative is in fact set in the past, and is the main flaw in an otherwise excellent fantasy novel: it is insufficiently distinguished from the main story, which makes things a little confusing to begin with. (Clearer headings for the sections set in the days of the Empire would be a big help.)

The setting and characterisation remain as strong as in The Thief's Gamble, and I eagerly look forward to the conclusion of the trilogy.

[Steven Poore · Rating 4 out of 5]

In which Juliet McKenna builds on the solid foundations established in The Thief's Gamble - Livak, Ryshad and Shiv all return, as does the looming menace of the Elietimm - but manages to avoid second-book-syndrome by mixing things up in a very satisfying manner. This time we see the story from the viewpoints of Ryshad (first-person, experienced swordsman) and Temar (third-person, firebrand), while Livak retreats to a supporting role. Ryshad has to deal with an increasingly intrusive presence in his head as well as being sold into slavery in the Aladbreshin archipelago, and his tale is interspersed with Temar's ill-fated journey to a new land.
As before, McKenna's world is built like bespoke furniture: every detail is precise and seamless, there for a reason. The details build the characters, and the characters fuel the plot. The Aldabreshin adventures are fresh and unusual enough to distract from what would otherwise be quite a slight rescue plot.
So - straight on to number three in the series: I want to see what Livak does next, as the wizards of Hadrumal attempt to combat the Artifice of the Elietimm...

[Freyavenlyo · Rating 3 out of 5]

A few pages into this part: Okay, the second part starts of better. Mainly because the first thing was a letter from the Archmage Planir, whom I really liked from the first book, even if he wasn't that much in it, and second, this part is from Ryshad's point of view, the swordsman, you met roughly in the middle of The Thief's Gamble.
So, it can only get worse.

sorry, kidding.
well, I hope.

After finishing the book: I think I didn't give the first book enough credit. The story is far more interesting going into the second book, than I thought after reading the first one.
In the last years I had many problems with female protagonists, many of them I thought unappealing and unlikeable. And most of my problem of this series is with Livak. I'm not really warming up to her. So even liking this part better, because of Ryshad's kind of view and not Livaks, I dread the next part where it's her story again.
But I'm not giving up, the story is too good for doing that.

[Kathy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall, a decent read. It had been awhile since I had finished the first one, so it took me a few chapters to remember what had happened in the previous book. The series has 2 main heroes, Livak and Ryshad and each book in the series shifts which point of view we get to follow. The first novel is in Livak's and this one is in Ryshad's. I do like the way events from the first are now filtered from the other hero's perspective. McKenna, does a nice job of giving this installment in the series a satisfying conclusion on it's own, but you can tell that it fits in with a huge over arching plot line for the series as a whole. It will be interesting to see where the next book in the series will take these characters.

[Bev · Rating 3 out of 5]

Second part in a five book series concerning Ryshad the swordsman and various others.

This book is told from Ryshads point of view and covers his capture and slavery plus his time in foreign lands.

Ryshad is a likeable character. The past begins to come to life as the story grows. We learn more about the the times of the chaos and the strange blonde warriors.

I enjoyed this book. It was fairly well written and yet I felt it was more of a filler story leading to somewhere else.

Looking forward to book 3.

[Raven · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as the first book in the series, which was The Theives Gamble. Juliet McKenna had a real feel for Livak (the female lead who is telling most of the story in first person). In this one she switches to the POV of Ryshad, the swordsman and love interest from the first book and she doesn't seem able to climb inside his mind in the same way. Still, it's an entertaining read when I don't want to tax myself too greatly.

[Matthew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Following the events of the first book, it's a good read but, the political aspects leaves this book a bit dry. It's been done before and in better fashion. The best part about this book and series to me is the mages of Hadrumal. They make the book, interesting with their debates and feuds but are ready for action in a moments notice. My favorite character being Shiv.

[Gavin Greig · Rating 5 out of 5]

A worthy sequel to "The Thief's Gamble", though the change of perspective due to a different central character is slightly disconcerting at first.

No matter - this is still an excellent book after one adapts to the change. Unreservedly recommended.