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Chronicles of Hawklan #1
The Call of the Sword
Book One of the Chronicles of Hawklan. The castle of Anderras Darion has stood abandoned and majestic for as long as anyone can remember. Then, from out of the mountains, comes the healer, Hawklan - a man with no memory of the past - to take possession of the keep with his sole companion, Gavor. Across the country, the great fortress of Narsindalvak is a constant reminder of the victory won by the hero Ethriss in alliance with the three realms of Orthlund, Riddin and Fyorlund against the Dark Lord, Sumeral, hundreds of years before. But Rgoric, the ailing king of Fyorlund and protector of the peace, has fallen under the malign influence of the Lord Dan-Tor, and from the bleakness of Narsindal come ugly rumours. It is whispered that Mandrocs are abroad again and that the Dark Lord himself is stirring. And in the remote fastness of Anderras Darion, Hawklan feels deep within himself the echoes of an ancient power and the unknown, yet strangely familiar, call to arms...
Paperback
First published January 1, 1988
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291 people want to read
About the author
Roger Taylor
16 books22 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Roger Taylor was born in Heywood, Lancashire, and now lives in the Wirral. He is a chartered civil and structural engineer, a pistol, rifle and shotgun shooter, instructor/student in aikido, and an enthusiastic and loud but bone-jarringly inaccurate piano player.
He wrote four books between 1983 and 1986 and built up a handsome rejection file before the third was accepted by Headline to become the first two books of the Chronicles of Hawklan.
Roger Taylor was born in Heywood, Lancashire, and now lives in the Wirral. He is a chartered civil and structural engineer, a pistol, rifle and shotgun shooter, instructor/student in aikido, and an enthusiastic and loud but bone-jarringly inaccurate piano player.
He wrote four books between 1983 and 1986 and built up a handsome rejection file before the third was accepted by Headline to become the first two books of the Chronicles of Hawklan.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 14, 2015
When I was forced to move out of my loft in late 2010, I stumbled upon my Roger Taylor books as I was packing. I wrote a post about the author back then, asking if anyone knew what he was up to these days. Roger Taylor is a British fantasy author whose novels used to be published by Headline during the late 80s and early 90s. The books sported very nice covers, and I was a big fan of his for many a year.
Oddly enough, I have never read the 4-book sequence that started it all. I discovered Taylor by reading Dream Finder and the author's subsequent novels. All of them are stand-alone sequels featuring certain characters who are wandering in the same universe and following storylines set in motion by the events taking place in the Chronicles of Hawklan. When I realized that all the books I'd been reading were linked to that first series, I managed to get my hands on it. This was the pre-Amazon era, so finding older or out of print titles could involve a lot of legwork back then. And though I ended up reading every other novel but the final installment linking together all the rest, I never did read the original series.
Every time I've talked about Roger Taylor since then, I've been meaning to give these books a shot to see if they have aged well. Written between 1984 and 1990, the Chronicles of Hawklan predates the rise of huge epic fantasy titles that were made popular by such authors as Robert Jordan, Terry Goodkind, and George R. R. Martin. It is more akin to series written by David Eddings, Terry Brooks, Raymond E. Feist, Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, Melanie Rawn, and other fantasy authors who often found themselves on the NYT bestseller list around that period. Feeling a bit nostalgic, I decided that the time had come to finally read The Call of the Sword.
Here's the blurb:
The castle of Anderras Darion has stood abandoned and majestic for as long as anyone can remember. Then, from out of the mountains, comes the healer, Hawklan - a man with no memory of the past - to take possession of the keep with his sole companion, Gavor.
Across the country, the great fortress of Narsindalvak is a constant reminder of the victory won by the hero Ethriss in alliance with the three realms of Orthlund, Riddin and Fyorlund against the Dark Lord, Sumeral, hundreds of years before. But Rgoric, the ailing king of Fyorlund and protector of the peace, has fallen under the malign influence of the Lord Dan-Tor, and from the bleakness of Narsindal come ugly rumours. It is whispered that Mandrocs are abroad again and that the Dark Lord himself is stirring.
And in the remote fastness of Anderras Darion, Hawklan feels deep within himself the echoes of an ancient power and the unknown, yet strangely familiar, call to arms...
"The Call of the Sword" is Book One of The Chronicles of Hawklan.
You can read an extract from the book here.
Weighing in at only 268 pages, The Call of the Sword likely would not exist in this day and age. Since its only purpose is to act as an introduction meant to establish the protagonists and the storylines, in today's market its plot would probably have been included in the second volume and the series would have been turned into a trilogy. The main problem with fantasy series of that era is that they're often derivative Tolkien clones. But Taylor claimed to have taken some pains to avoid prophesies, curses, magic artefacts, trolls, elves, dragons, wizards, etc. In his opinion Tolkien dealt with these both excellently and definitively and he cast a long shadow over later writers. Hence, even though the blurb can certainly feel derivative, the plot isn't. At least not that of this first installment. The backdrop is the traditional pseudo-European medieval setting. But there are hints of another, more technologically advanced, civilization which disappeared in a distant past. They left behind marvels such as the castle of Anderras Darion. The trope of the forgotten ancient enemy stirring back to life is exploited to the fullest and is one of the underpinnings of the overall story arc. Especially as far as the Great Harmony of Orthlund is concerned. I would have liked to learn more about the secrets of Anderras Darion and the fortress of Narsindalvak, the Dark Lord Sumeral and his downfall, Ethriss and the Guardians, and much, much more. But as The Call of the Sword is only a brief introduction, these questions will have to wait for the sequels before we can get any answers.
Having an amnesic person as the main character makes Hawklan an interesting protagonist. And though there are enough hints to help readers discover his true identity, I'm hoping that Roger Taylor will play with our preconceptions to surprise us when we least expect it. His mysterious raven companion Gavor also seems to be hiding a number of secrets. Often the comic relief, the bird's interaction with Hawklan will make you chuckle time and again. But his referring to Hawklan as "dear boy" all the time gets old real fast. Another plotline involves Rgoric, king of Fyorlund and supposed protector of the peace. More and more unstable, he is reminiscent of GRRM's Mad King Aerys II. Having suspended the ancient ruling council of the Geadrol and formed his own High Guard, the king's decision will prompt fours Lords, Eldric, Arinndier, Darek, and Hreldar, to travel to the royal city of Vakloss and demand answers from their monarch. This was by far the most engaging storyline and it appears to set the stage for the rest of the series. Lord Dan-Tor seems to be the typical evil protagonist, so hopefully Taylor has more in store for him, as well as a few shades of gray to help flesh him out.
Although the pace is not particularly fast-moving, one reaches the end of this slender work quite fast. As an introduction, it does its job remarkably well. It establishes the characters and the plotlines, and it sets the stage for what is to come in the following three volumes. And even though Roger Taylor keeps his cards close to his chest in this first installment, there are numerous hints that imply that there is a lot more depth to this series and its sequels. Whether or not said depth will be unveiled in this series, or if it is a product of the eight sequels, is unclear at the moment. Time will tell. . .
With many a reader fed up with the darker and grittier fantasy novels published these days, and many of them wishing for the more "classical" approach of good-versus-evil, I believe that The Call of the Sword could work for anyone looking for something that recaptures the 80s in terms of style and tone. Though too short for my liking, Taylor's debut was nevertheless compelling enough to make me want to read the rest of the series.
For more reviews, check out www.fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com
Oddly enough, I have never read the 4-book sequence that started it all. I discovered Taylor by reading Dream Finder and the author's subsequent novels. All of them are stand-alone sequels featuring certain characters who are wandering in the same universe and following storylines set in motion by the events taking place in the Chronicles of Hawklan. When I realized that all the books I'd been reading were linked to that first series, I managed to get my hands on it. This was the pre-Amazon era, so finding older or out of print titles could involve a lot of legwork back then. And though I ended up reading every other novel but the final installment linking together all the rest, I never did read the original series.
Every time I've talked about Roger Taylor since then, I've been meaning to give these books a shot to see if they have aged well. Written between 1984 and 1990, the Chronicles of Hawklan predates the rise of huge epic fantasy titles that were made popular by such authors as Robert Jordan, Terry Goodkind, and George R. R. Martin. It is more akin to series written by David Eddings, Terry Brooks, Raymond E. Feist, Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, Melanie Rawn, and other fantasy authors who often found themselves on the NYT bestseller list around that period. Feeling a bit nostalgic, I decided that the time had come to finally read The Call of the Sword.
Here's the blurb:
The castle of Anderras Darion has stood abandoned and majestic for as long as anyone can remember. Then, from out of the mountains, comes the healer, Hawklan - a man with no memory of the past - to take possession of the keep with his sole companion, Gavor.
Across the country, the great fortress of Narsindalvak is a constant reminder of the victory won by the hero Ethriss in alliance with the three realms of Orthlund, Riddin and Fyorlund against the Dark Lord, Sumeral, hundreds of years before. But Rgoric, the ailing king of Fyorlund and protector of the peace, has fallen under the malign influence of the Lord Dan-Tor, and from the bleakness of Narsindal come ugly rumours. It is whispered that Mandrocs are abroad again and that the Dark Lord himself is stirring.
And in the remote fastness of Anderras Darion, Hawklan feels deep within himself the echoes of an ancient power and the unknown, yet strangely familiar, call to arms...
"The Call of the Sword" is Book One of The Chronicles of Hawklan.
You can read an extract from the book here.
Weighing in at only 268 pages, The Call of the Sword likely would not exist in this day and age. Since its only purpose is to act as an introduction meant to establish the protagonists and the storylines, in today's market its plot would probably have been included in the second volume and the series would have been turned into a trilogy. The main problem with fantasy series of that era is that they're often derivative Tolkien clones. But Taylor claimed to have taken some pains to avoid prophesies, curses, magic artefacts, trolls, elves, dragons, wizards, etc. In his opinion Tolkien dealt with these both excellently and definitively and he cast a long shadow over later writers. Hence, even though the blurb can certainly feel derivative, the plot isn't. At least not that of this first installment. The backdrop is the traditional pseudo-European medieval setting. But there are hints of another, more technologically advanced, civilization which disappeared in a distant past. They left behind marvels such as the castle of Anderras Darion. The trope of the forgotten ancient enemy stirring back to life is exploited to the fullest and is one of the underpinnings of the overall story arc. Especially as far as the Great Harmony of Orthlund is concerned. I would have liked to learn more about the secrets of Anderras Darion and the fortress of Narsindalvak, the Dark Lord Sumeral and his downfall, Ethriss and the Guardians, and much, much more. But as The Call of the Sword is only a brief introduction, these questions will have to wait for the sequels before we can get any answers.
Having an amnesic person as the main character makes Hawklan an interesting protagonist. And though there are enough hints to help readers discover his true identity, I'm hoping that Roger Taylor will play with our preconceptions to surprise us when we least expect it. His mysterious raven companion Gavor also seems to be hiding a number of secrets. Often the comic relief, the bird's interaction with Hawklan will make you chuckle time and again. But his referring to Hawklan as "dear boy" all the time gets old real fast. Another plotline involves Rgoric, king of Fyorlund and supposed protector of the peace. More and more unstable, he is reminiscent of GRRM's Mad King Aerys II. Having suspended the ancient ruling council of the Geadrol and formed his own High Guard, the king's decision will prompt fours Lords, Eldric, Arinndier, Darek, and Hreldar, to travel to the royal city of Vakloss and demand answers from their monarch. This was by far the most engaging storyline and it appears to set the stage for the rest of the series. Lord Dan-Tor seems to be the typical evil protagonist, so hopefully Taylor has more in store for him, as well as a few shades of gray to help flesh him out.
Although the pace is not particularly fast-moving, one reaches the end of this slender work quite fast. As an introduction, it does its job remarkably well. It establishes the characters and the plotlines, and it sets the stage for what is to come in the following three volumes. And even though Roger Taylor keeps his cards close to his chest in this first installment, there are numerous hints that imply that there is a lot more depth to this series and its sequels. Whether or not said depth will be unveiled in this series, or if it is a product of the eight sequels, is unclear at the moment. Time will tell. . .
With many a reader fed up with the darker and grittier fantasy novels published these days, and many of them wishing for the more "classical" approach of good-versus-evil, I believe that The Call of the Sword could work for anyone looking for something that recaptures the 80s in terms of style and tone. Though too short for my liking, Taylor's debut was nevertheless compelling enough to make me want to read the rest of the series.
For more reviews, check out www.fantasyhotlist.blogspot.com
July 5, 2014
I read when it first came out, rereading it now. The charactisation is a little weak, but this series predated the huge glut of fantasy that followed, and I do like the writing in general. Though nostalgia is involved here.
August 15, 2015
Young people today with their short attention spans probably wouldn't like this, but it is written so nicely and builds the characters and story in a slow but lovely fashion. The 80's, when this was published, featured short novels in series, so this is really just the beginning of the story.
June 19, 2021
Interesting
Very interesting magic system and world building. This was recommended by another author and it is a good one I can't wait to read more about Hawklan and Gavor. The King is out of line with traditional and lawful rule arresting the lord's that should be his advisors.
Very interesting magic system and world building. This was recommended by another author and it is a good one I can't wait to read more about Hawklan and Gavor. The King is out of line with traditional and lawful rule arresting the lord's that should be his advisors.
July 25, 2016
This book was Roger Taylor's first book and you can see his inexperience at points throughout the book. This book was first published in 1988 and was a favorited of a friend so I decided it was time to give it a try. The main Character has no memory of his past life and spends his time as a healer now. This book is about his starting to find out truths about his past life and introduces some of the villains he must face in future books. The book does not really have an ending but does see him escape from a crisis with his companion Gavor, a one legged crow.
March 13, 2008
Fairly standard fantasy story which didn't grip me as much as many others do. At the beginning in particular, the author seemed more interested in showing off his use of language than telling a story. As a series it has potential, but it was not the striking beginning one would hope for.
July 5, 2024
(FYI I tend to only review one book per series, unless I want to change my scoring by 0.50 or more of a star. -- I tend not to read reviews until after I read a book, so I go in with an open mind.)
I'm finally going through my physical library owned book list, to add more older basic reviews. If I liked a book enough to keep then they are at the least a 3 star.
I'm only adding one book per author and I'm not going to re-read every book to be more accurate, not when I have 1000s of new to me authors to try (I can't say no to free books....)
First time read the author's work?: Yes
Will you be reading more?: Yes
Would you recommend?: Yes
------------
How I rate Stars: 5* = I loved (must read all I can find by the author)
4* = I really enjoyed (got to read all the series and try other books by the author).
3* = I enjoyed (I will continue to read the series)
or
3* = Good book just not my thing (I realised I don't like the genre or picked up a kids book to review in error.)
All of the above scores means I would recommend them!
-
2* = it was okay (I might give the next book in the series a try, to see if that was better IMHO.)
1* = Disliked
Note: adding these basic 'reviews' after finding out that some people see the stars differently than I do - hoping this clarifies how I feel about the book. :-)
I'm finally going through my physical library owned book list, to add more older basic reviews. If I liked a book enough to keep then they are at the least a 3 star.
I'm only adding one book per author and I'm not going to re-read every book to be more accurate, not when I have 1000s of new to me authors to try (I can't say no to free books....)
First time read the author's work?: Yes
Will you be reading more?: Yes
Would you recommend?: Yes
------------
How I rate Stars: 5* = I loved (must read all I can find by the author)
4* = I really enjoyed (got to read all the series and try other books by the author).
3* = I enjoyed (I will continue to read the series)
or
3* = Good book just not my thing (I realised I don't like the genre or picked up a kids book to review in error.)
All of the above scores means I would recommend them!
-
2* = it was okay (I might give the next book in the series a try, to see if that was better IMHO.)
1* = Disliked
Note: adding these basic 'reviews' after finding out that some people see the stars differently than I do - hoping this clarifies how I feel about the book. :-)
May 18, 2018
Boah, endlich! Selten habe ich für so ein dünnes Büchlein - 280 Seiten, ähem - so elendig lange gebraucht. The Call Of The Sword is' aber auch ein Schnarcher, Hilfe ...
Aber von Anfang an: Ich hatte mir Roger Taylor's (nein, weder der von Queen, noch jener von Duran Duran) Erstlingsroman eigentlich nur wegen der zweifelsfrei großartigen Coverillustration von Mark Harrison gekauft. Selbige wurde nämlich anno 1995 seitens meiner österreichischen Epic Fantasy Metal-Schatzis von Summoning für ihr genreprägendes Album Minas Morgul verwendet. So zumindest geben es die Metal Archives an. Und was diese Pioniere verwursten, kann ja gar nich' schlecht sein - dachte ich. Bis ich dann über die englische Wiki-Seite besagten Albums erfuhr, dass nicht Taylor's Fantasy-Schlaftablette, sondern das Videospiel Ishar: Legend Of The Fortress Ursprung des Bildes war - imho auch eine wesentlich glaubwürdigere Angabe - empfand ich die Lektüre bereits als ungemein quälend ...
The Call Of The Sword mag dabei gar nicht mal eine schlechte Geschichte sein, immerhin gibt es einige Passagen, die ganz zeitgemäß typische 80er-Fantasy-Kost liefern, die vor allem durch ihre Märchenhaftigkeit reizt. Mal abgesehen jedoch von einem gefiederten Sidekick, bleiben die Charaktere inklusive der Hauptfigur, Hawklan, dermaßen bleich und uninteressant, dass es irgendwann wirklich anstrengend wird. Mit jeder neuen Seite wurde die eine Frage immer größer und präsenter: Wozu lese ich diesen Quatsch überhaupt?
Schade, ich bilde mir ein, hier wurde einiges an Potential verschenkt. Aber selbst vom Plot ist auf Grund der lausig gestalteten Figuren so gut wie nichts hängen geblieben.
Aber von Anfang an: Ich hatte mir Roger Taylor's (nein, weder der von Queen, noch jener von Duran Duran) Erstlingsroman eigentlich nur wegen der zweifelsfrei großartigen Coverillustration von Mark Harrison gekauft. Selbige wurde nämlich anno 1995 seitens meiner österreichischen Epic Fantasy Metal-Schatzis von Summoning für ihr genreprägendes Album Minas Morgul verwendet. So zumindest geben es die Metal Archives an. Und was diese Pioniere verwursten, kann ja gar nich' schlecht sein - dachte ich. Bis ich dann über die englische Wiki-Seite besagten Albums erfuhr, dass nicht Taylor's Fantasy-Schlaftablette, sondern das Videospiel Ishar: Legend Of The Fortress Ursprung des Bildes war - imho auch eine wesentlich glaubwürdigere Angabe - empfand ich die Lektüre bereits als ungemein quälend ...
The Call Of The Sword mag dabei gar nicht mal eine schlechte Geschichte sein, immerhin gibt es einige Passagen, die ganz zeitgemäß typische 80er-Fantasy-Kost liefern, die vor allem durch ihre Märchenhaftigkeit reizt. Mal abgesehen jedoch von einem gefiederten Sidekick, bleiben die Charaktere inklusive der Hauptfigur, Hawklan, dermaßen bleich und uninteressant, dass es irgendwann wirklich anstrengend wird. Mit jeder neuen Seite wurde die eine Frage immer größer und präsenter: Wozu lese ich diesen Quatsch überhaupt?
Schade, ich bilde mir ein, hier wurde einiges an Potential verschenkt. Aber selbst vom Plot ist auf Grund der lausig gestalteten Figuren so gut wie nichts hängen geblieben.
August 17, 2023
I found out about the series through my Grandad, who's dad had known Roger Taylor and helped with proof-reading the pre-published versions. I only just got round to actually reading these and they're great so far! I can see the influences from other book series like J.R Tolkien's works, but at the same time it's unique in it's own way!
I really recommend the series, and hope more people read it!
I really recommend the series, and hope more people read it!
February 11, 2020
A good start, I will read the secon one. It has some trappings of Tolkien-inspired fantasy from the 80s, but in a good way. Anyway, that's what I was looking for in this book. Plot before character, but an interesting backstory
July 29, 2019
Some potential. But feels like the first 5 chapters of some book instead of a novel.
March 30, 2022
Too slow peaced for my taste. Also the world could use more description. But that may be just me
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews