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Lost Swords #8
The Last Book of Swords: Shieldbreaker's Story
An unsuspecting fourteen-year-old warrior, Prince Stephen, is forced into manhood, when he uses Sheildbreaker to protect the universe from the greedy hands of Vikata the Dark King
255 pages, Hardcover
First published February 1, 1994
18 people are currently reading
500 people want to read
About the author
Fred Saberhagen
335 books496 followersFred Saberhagen was an American science fiction and fantasy author most famous for his ''Beserker'' and Dracula stories.
Saberhagen also wrote a series of a series of post-apocalyptic mytho-magical novels beginning with his popular ''Empire of the East'' and continuing through a long series of ''Swords'' and ''Lost Swords'' novels. Saberhagen died of cancer, in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Saberhagen was born in and grew up in the area of Chicago, Illinois. Saberhagen served in the [[U.S. Air Force]] during the Korean War while he was in his early twenties. Back in civilian life, Saberhagen worked as an It was while he was working for Motorola (after his military service) that Saberhagen started writing fiction seriously at the age of about 30. "Fortress Ship", his first "Berserker" short shory, was published in 1963. Then, in 1964, Saberhagen saw the publication of his first novel, ''The Golden People''.
From 1967 to 1973, he worked as an editor for the Chemistry articles in the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' as well as writing its article on science fiction. He then quit and took up writing full-time. In 1975, he moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico.
He married fellow writer Joan Spicci in 1968. They had two sons and a daughter.
Saberhagen also wrote a series of a series of post-apocalyptic mytho-magical novels beginning with his popular ''Empire of the East'' and continuing through a long series of ''Swords'' and ''Lost Swords'' novels. Saberhagen died of cancer, in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Saberhagen was born in and grew up in the area of Chicago, Illinois. Saberhagen served in the [[U.S. Air Force]] during the Korean War while he was in his early twenties. Back in civilian life, Saberhagen worked as an It was while he was working for Motorola (after his military service) that Saberhagen started writing fiction seriously at the age of about 30. "Fortress Ship", his first "Berserker" short shory, was published in 1963. Then, in 1964, Saberhagen saw the publication of his first novel, ''The Golden People''.
From 1967 to 1973, he worked as an editor for the Chemistry articles in the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' as well as writing its article on science fiction. He then quit and took up writing full-time. In 1975, he moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico.
He married fellow writer Joan Spicci in 1968. They had two sons and a daughter.
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February 24, 2015I fondly recall reading this series of books in the 1980's &1990's when my young children would be napping or at school. It was an escape into a fantasy land of chivalry, excitement, and danger, far removed from my own (albeit beloved) reality.
December 19, 2021
So here we are at the end of the Swords saga. Many questions here were answered, although not all of them were satisfactory or were left open to interpretation. But first the story...
SPOILERS!!
The story begins with Vilkata, the Dark King, who we last saw whisked away when Mark banished the demon he was riding on at the end of "Mindsword's Story". We finally learn where the demons supposedly go. It looks like they are banished to the Moon. Or at least they were in this case. Vilkata learns he is gone for two years, raising the question: do demons always go to the moon? Some times they are only gone for a couple of days. Do Mark's powers get stronger based on the situation or frequency of use? My working theory here is it had something to do with having a human traveler, that they couldn't move as fast without tearing him to shreds or something. At any rate, Vilkata still has the Mindsword, and prepares to launch a surprise attack on Tasavalta.
Prince Mark's youngest son Stephen is in the palace, working with Dragonslicer, trying to make a piece of armor for Mark for his upcoming 40th birthday. Stephen is fourteen, making him just a bit older than Mark was when the saga began. He is alerted by Shieldbreaker, which makes a pounding sound whenever there are weapons or magic nearby, and barely has time to grab it before Vilkata attacks, unleashing the Mindsword on the residents of the palace. Protected by the Sword of Force, Stephen must somehow get word to his family (Mark and his wife are conveniently out of town). But the armorer he was working with has taken up Dragonslicer, and driven mad by the Mindsword, so Stephen must defend himself with Shieldbreaker, destroying Dragonslicer and accidentally killing the armorer.
A demon also attacks the Prince, and here we learn that Stephen can also banish demons, although the first attempt only lasts under 15 minutes. Here is where the banishing powers are unclear. Is it because Stephen is younger? Because he was scared the first time? He becomes more successful at other times throughout the story, but still the banishment only lasts a couple of hours.
He eventually runs into Vilkata, who has come to the armory to find the other Swords. Surprising him by attacking while disguised by Sightblinder, he strikes but Vilkata teleports himself away. But Stephen is able to destroy the Mindsword before the Dark King escapes. Vilkata is now under a sort of countdown, needing to maximize having the converts under his power before the Mindsword can wear off, since he will no longer be able to use it to maintain control over them. He also decides to test Shieldbreaker (and prove a point to a doubting demon), by using it to destroy Stonecutter*.
Escaping the palace under the guise of Sightblinder, Stephen's first move is to try and find his grandparents, Jord and Mala, Jord having been the one who forged the Swords. However, the mob of citizens, driven mad by the Mindsword, has burned down their house and killed the couple. I thought this moment was actually kind of wasted. For one, we never saw the grandparents interact with the boy, so we only have a little background narration to build that empathy for him. For two, we never actually get to see Mark's reaction to this news. A demon attacks, and gets ahold of Shieldbreaker, and Stephen accidentally sends the Sword flying away with the demon when he banishes it. While this is clearly meant to serve the plot and tip the scales by giving the Sword of Force to the Dark King, I think it's understandable. Stephen is still only 14, has already been through a lot in a couple of hours, and panicked. He clearly regrets this action throughout the rest of the story.
Meanwhile, Baron Amintor returns, not having been seen since "Sightblinder's Story (book 2 of 8)". He has found Coinspinner, and it has brought him to Tasavalta, where he makes an uneasy alliance with the Dark King. But the alliance is soon tested, as he is dispatched to hunt down Stephen. When he finds the prince, Amintor isn't smart enough to realize that Stephen still has Sightblinder, and he thinks he sees Vilkata instead. Stephen uses this to convince Amintor to hand over Coinspinner and send him out of the city. I'm not sure I buy this turn of events. It also doesn't do a good job of explaining the interplay between the Swords. For example, by holding Shieldbreaker, we learn Vilkata is immune to the misfortune Coinspinner can bestow on someone, but while Coinspinner tries to warn Amintor about Stephen, it doesn't give him enough good luck to keep him from losing the Sword of Chance.
News of the attack eventually reaches Mark, who at first goes along with Ben but then decides to return to stay with Kristin, and Ben heads on, eventually reuniting with Zoltan and Yambu, and meeting up with Stephen. With Sightblinder and Coinspinner, they decide to launch an attack on the palace in an attempt to free the hostages Vilkata has taken as human shields should Mark decide to charge the castle. In the melee, the Dark King attacks Zoltan, who is wielding Sightblinder. The Sword of Stealth is destroyed, and Zoltan is killed**.
Meanwhile, we learn Amintor has also used the luck previously provided by Coinspinner to obtain Farslayer. When he realizes the mistake he made in losing the Sword of Chance to Stephen, he knows that Vilkata will probably kill him, so he recruits his second in command to hurl Farslayer against the Dark King. When Vilkata meets up with Amintor at his camp, the Baron, unarmed, tries to tackle Vilkata and get Shieldbreaker back (since Shieldbreaker will not harm an unarmed foe), but he is betrayed by his second in command, who hurls Farslayer against him instead. RIP Amintor.
Vilkata throws the Sword of Vengeance against Mark, who is saved by having Woundhealer (here the story makes you briefly question the outcome by returning to other characters, a cheap trick which Saberhagen will employ at the end of the story also). Someone throws Farslayer back at Vilkata, but Shieldbreaker destroys it. Then he heads to his spacecraft to return to the Moon. We learn earlier in the book that the Emperor has sealed Soulcutter away on the Moon, and one of the demons, Arridu, tells Vilkata this.
Also headed to the location of the spacecraft are Yambu and Ben. They have both privately asked Coinspinner to take them to their true loves (the Emperor for Yambu, Ariane for Ben), but it fails to keep them safe from Vilkata. We learn here Coinspinner, like Shieldbreaker, can kill a demon, by destroying it's life from a long distance. But Vilkata shatters Coinspinner, and Ben is seriously wounded in the process***.
Draffut comes and takes Yambu and Ben to the Moon, although to a different location then where Vilkata is headed. Vilkata finds Soulcutter, but then...goes mad? It isn't very well explained what happens to the Dark King. He is betrayed, somehow, by the demon Arridu, and puts himself on a torture rack and tears himself apart. It is not at all clear how this happened, how Shieldbreaker didn't protect him from this, etc. Nonetheless, Arridu now has Soulcutter and Shieldbreaker and goes off to fight Mark in the final battle.
Before that, we switch back to the Moon. There is another Lake of Life on the Moon, as well as another Ardneh (Ardneh-2, oddly referred to as "Ardneh-tu" by Ben, who doesn't understand numbers? Shrug). This backup Ardneh is what keeps magic going on Earth. The second Lake of Life has restored Draffut to his original form. A weird relationship between Ardneh and the Emperor is poorly explained. Ben is reunited with his long long Ariane, at last, and decides to say screw his marriage, this person he spent a couple days with over twenty years ago is more important. We also never find out if his wife Barbara and daughter Beth survived the Emperor's attack (parts of Ben's house are knocked down, but the fate of the residents is never revealed).
We learn the Emperor is....God, maybe? He calls himself the Sabbath, the Truth, and other nonsense names. I like to think it's an irreverent joke by Saberhagen, playing on the God making the virgin Mary pregnant mixed with god's like Zeus being promiscuous fatherers. So Yambu and Ben decide to stay on the Moon forever apparently.
Back to the duel. Mark is protected from Soulcutter by impaling himself with Woundhealer. This is still considered "unarmed" by Shieldbreaker's definition, since Woundhealer cannot cause harm. Knowing this, Arridu throws down Shieldbreaker, but did not anticpate being stricken immediately by Soulcutter. He drops the other Sword, Mark grabs it and destroys Soulcutter, then tosses down Shieldbreaker again. Arridu tries to strike Mark with the Sword of Force, but we learn that it cannot stand up to Woundhealer. Shieldbreaker is shattered, Arridu is slain in the explosion, and only Woundhealer remains of all the Swords (here it returns to the Moon, to Ben and Yambu's story, to briefly make us doubt Mark's survival for the second time. Cheap trick). Everyone lives happily ever after I guess.
NOTES
* I think that Saberhagen might feel he painted himself into some corners with some of this decisions. One of which being having twelve Swords. It's almost a running joke in the latter half of the books how useless Dragonslicer and Stonecutter are because of their specificity. So he quickly made sure they were both gotten rid of early in the story.
** I have mixed feelings about the death of Zoltan. He showed promise as a character, but after his mermaid quest was resolved, he really didn't have much of a plot. His death, like those of Jord and Mala, seemed to hardly be mourned. Particularly by Yambu, who had been like a second mother to him. (Also, where was Mark's sister (Zoltan's mother) anyway? We never learned what happened to her.) I will note that throughout the series, Mark and company hardly suffered any kind of losses, so it does seem appropriate they did at the end. I also think Adrian was another character that Saberhagen thought was a good idea but ultimately didn't know what to do with. Same with Karel, who we never really got to see in battle.
*** One interpretation that could be made is that Ben and Yambu were actually killed when Vilkata shattered Coinspinner. No one ever survives a Sword being destroyed (although if anyone could it would be Ben). So the Moon is sort of like Heaven, where Ben is reunited with an actually dead Ariane, and is the only way Yambu could truly be with the Emperor (God).
SPOILERS!!
The story begins with Vilkata, the Dark King, who we last saw whisked away when Mark banished the demon he was riding on at the end of "Mindsword's Story". We finally learn where the demons supposedly go. It looks like they are banished to the Moon. Or at least they were in this case. Vilkata learns he is gone for two years, raising the question: do demons always go to the moon? Some times they are only gone for a couple of days. Do Mark's powers get stronger based on the situation or frequency of use? My working theory here is it had something to do with having a human traveler, that they couldn't move as fast without tearing him to shreds or something. At any rate, Vilkata still has the Mindsword, and prepares to launch a surprise attack on Tasavalta.
Prince Mark's youngest son Stephen is in the palace, working with Dragonslicer, trying to make a piece of armor for Mark for his upcoming 40th birthday. Stephen is fourteen, making him just a bit older than Mark was when the saga began. He is alerted by Shieldbreaker, which makes a pounding sound whenever there are weapons or magic nearby, and barely has time to grab it before Vilkata attacks, unleashing the Mindsword on the residents of the palace. Protected by the Sword of Force, Stephen must somehow get word to his family (Mark and his wife are conveniently out of town). But the armorer he was working with has taken up Dragonslicer, and driven mad by the Mindsword, so Stephen must defend himself with Shieldbreaker, destroying Dragonslicer and accidentally killing the armorer.
A demon also attacks the Prince, and here we learn that Stephen can also banish demons, although the first attempt only lasts under 15 minutes. Here is where the banishing powers are unclear. Is it because Stephen is younger? Because he was scared the first time? He becomes more successful at other times throughout the story, but still the banishment only lasts a couple of hours.
He eventually runs into Vilkata, who has come to the armory to find the other Swords. Surprising him by attacking while disguised by Sightblinder, he strikes but Vilkata teleports himself away. But Stephen is able to destroy the Mindsword before the Dark King escapes. Vilkata is now under a sort of countdown, needing to maximize having the converts under his power before the Mindsword can wear off, since he will no longer be able to use it to maintain control over them. He also decides to test Shieldbreaker (and prove a point to a doubting demon), by using it to destroy Stonecutter*.
Escaping the palace under the guise of Sightblinder, Stephen's first move is to try and find his grandparents, Jord and Mala, Jord having been the one who forged the Swords. However, the mob of citizens, driven mad by the Mindsword, has burned down their house and killed the couple. I thought this moment was actually kind of wasted. For one, we never saw the grandparents interact with the boy, so we only have a little background narration to build that empathy for him. For two, we never actually get to see Mark's reaction to this news. A demon attacks, and gets ahold of Shieldbreaker, and Stephen accidentally sends the Sword flying away with the demon when he banishes it. While this is clearly meant to serve the plot and tip the scales by giving the Sword of Force to the Dark King, I think it's understandable. Stephen is still only 14, has already been through a lot in a couple of hours, and panicked. He clearly regrets this action throughout the rest of the story.
Meanwhile, Baron Amintor returns, not having been seen since "Sightblinder's Story (book 2 of 8)". He has found Coinspinner, and it has brought him to Tasavalta, where he makes an uneasy alliance with the Dark King. But the alliance is soon tested, as he is dispatched to hunt down Stephen. When he finds the prince, Amintor isn't smart enough to realize that Stephen still has Sightblinder, and he thinks he sees Vilkata instead. Stephen uses this to convince Amintor to hand over Coinspinner and send him out of the city. I'm not sure I buy this turn of events. It also doesn't do a good job of explaining the interplay between the Swords. For example, by holding Shieldbreaker, we learn Vilkata is immune to the misfortune Coinspinner can bestow on someone, but while Coinspinner tries to warn Amintor about Stephen, it doesn't give him enough good luck to keep him from losing the Sword of Chance.
News of the attack eventually reaches Mark, who at first goes along with Ben but then decides to return to stay with Kristin, and Ben heads on, eventually reuniting with Zoltan and Yambu, and meeting up with Stephen. With Sightblinder and Coinspinner, they decide to launch an attack on the palace in an attempt to free the hostages Vilkata has taken as human shields should Mark decide to charge the castle. In the melee, the Dark King attacks Zoltan, who is wielding Sightblinder. The Sword of Stealth is destroyed, and Zoltan is killed**.
Meanwhile, we learn Amintor has also used the luck previously provided by Coinspinner to obtain Farslayer. When he realizes the mistake he made in losing the Sword of Chance to Stephen, he knows that Vilkata will probably kill him, so he recruits his second in command to hurl Farslayer against the Dark King. When Vilkata meets up with Amintor at his camp, the Baron, unarmed, tries to tackle Vilkata and get Shieldbreaker back (since Shieldbreaker will not harm an unarmed foe), but he is betrayed by his second in command, who hurls Farslayer against him instead. RIP Amintor.
Vilkata throws the Sword of Vengeance against Mark, who is saved by having Woundhealer (here the story makes you briefly question the outcome by returning to other characters, a cheap trick which Saberhagen will employ at the end of the story also). Someone throws Farslayer back at Vilkata, but Shieldbreaker destroys it. Then he heads to his spacecraft to return to the Moon. We learn earlier in the book that the Emperor has sealed Soulcutter away on the Moon, and one of the demons, Arridu, tells Vilkata this.
Also headed to the location of the spacecraft are Yambu and Ben. They have both privately asked Coinspinner to take them to their true loves (the Emperor for Yambu, Ariane for Ben), but it fails to keep them safe from Vilkata. We learn here Coinspinner, like Shieldbreaker, can kill a demon, by destroying it's life from a long distance. But Vilkata shatters Coinspinner, and Ben is seriously wounded in the process***.
Draffut comes and takes Yambu and Ben to the Moon, although to a different location then where Vilkata is headed. Vilkata finds Soulcutter, but then...goes mad? It isn't very well explained what happens to the Dark King. He is betrayed, somehow, by the demon Arridu, and puts himself on a torture rack and tears himself apart. It is not at all clear how this happened, how Shieldbreaker didn't protect him from this, etc. Nonetheless, Arridu now has Soulcutter and Shieldbreaker and goes off to fight Mark in the final battle.
Before that, we switch back to the Moon. There is another Lake of Life on the Moon, as well as another Ardneh (Ardneh-2, oddly referred to as "Ardneh-tu" by Ben, who doesn't understand numbers? Shrug). This backup Ardneh is what keeps magic going on Earth. The second Lake of Life has restored Draffut to his original form. A weird relationship between Ardneh and the Emperor is poorly explained. Ben is reunited with his long long Ariane, at last, and decides to say screw his marriage, this person he spent a couple days with over twenty years ago is more important. We also never find out if his wife Barbara and daughter Beth survived the Emperor's attack (parts of Ben's house are knocked down, but the fate of the residents is never revealed).
We learn the Emperor is....God, maybe? He calls himself the Sabbath, the Truth, and other nonsense names. I like to think it's an irreverent joke by Saberhagen, playing on the God making the virgin Mary pregnant mixed with god's like Zeus being promiscuous fatherers. So Yambu and Ben decide to stay on the Moon forever apparently.
Back to the duel. Mark is protected from Soulcutter by impaling himself with Woundhealer. This is still considered "unarmed" by Shieldbreaker's definition, since Woundhealer cannot cause harm. Knowing this, Arridu throws down Shieldbreaker, but did not anticpate being stricken immediately by Soulcutter. He drops the other Sword, Mark grabs it and destroys Soulcutter, then tosses down Shieldbreaker again. Arridu tries to strike Mark with the Sword of Force, but we learn that it cannot stand up to Woundhealer. Shieldbreaker is shattered, Arridu is slain in the explosion, and only Woundhealer remains of all the Swords (here it returns to the Moon, to Ben and Yambu's story, to briefly make us doubt Mark's survival for the second time. Cheap trick). Everyone lives happily ever after I guess.
NOTES
* I think that Saberhagen might feel he painted himself into some corners with some of this decisions. One of which being having twelve Swords. It's almost a running joke in the latter half of the books how useless Dragonslicer and Stonecutter are because of their specificity. So he quickly made sure they were both gotten rid of early in the story.
** I have mixed feelings about the death of Zoltan. He showed promise as a character, but after his mermaid quest was resolved, he really didn't have much of a plot. His death, like those of Jord and Mala, seemed to hardly be mourned. Particularly by Yambu, who had been like a second mother to him. (Also, where was Mark's sister (Zoltan's mother) anyway? We never learned what happened to her.) I will note that throughout the series, Mark and company hardly suffered any kind of losses, so it does seem appropriate they did at the end. I also think Adrian was another character that Saberhagen thought was a good idea but ultimately didn't know what to do with. Same with Karel, who we never really got to see in battle.
*** One interpretation that could be made is that Ben and Yambu were actually killed when Vilkata shattered Coinspinner. No one ever survives a Sword being destroyed (although if anyone could it would be Ben). So the Moon is sort of like Heaven, where Ben is reunited with an actually dead Ariane, and is the only way Yambu could truly be with the Emperor (God).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 10, 2018
Metric system - Those are my personal opinions, you may discord, my final rating of the book is not necessarily linked to this system and may diverge from it.
End of the serie
- Best book in the serie: The Black Mountains
- Best book in subseries: The Last Book of Swords: Shieldbreaker's Story
- Best character in the serie: The Emperor
- Best moment in the serie:
- Best moment in the subserie:
- What went great: The Empire of the East part was amazing, the idea for the swords was very good too, the swords rules was set and generally followed with very little rulebreaking
- Worst book in the serie: The Sixth Book of Lost Swords: Mindsword's Story
- Worst character in the serie: Crown Prince Murat
- Worst moment in the serie:
- What went wrong: Very bad characterization with disinterested and often ambiguity and uncertainty of details and dialogs, greatly accentuated during The Second Book of Lost Swords: Sightblinder's Story and subsequently books. Giving even an impression that the reader is reading a script of a book and not a finished work.
- Worth to read: 3.5/5 stars
Book Storyline
- Originality: 2/5 stars (by now the swords are old)
- Development: 3/5 stars
- Enjoyment: 4/5 stars
- Writing stile: 2/5 stars
- Funnyness: 1/5 stars
- Epicness: 2/5 stars
- Scaryness: 1/5 stars
- Smartness: 2/5 stars
- Addictiveness: 1/5 stars
- Plot twists: 4/5 stars
- Pace: 2/5 stars
- Storyline planning: 2/5 stars OR /5 negative stars
- Ending: 3/5 stars OR /5 negative stars
- Holes: 3/5 negative stars
- Impact on series storyline: 5/5 stars
- Self contained (Y/N): Y
- Cliffhanger (Y/N): N
- Adult (Y/N): N
- Violence level: Medium
- Tech level: Medieval world with remains of advanced humanity technology
- Religion level: Low, fictional, with little importance
- Main genre: Fantasy
- Subgenre: Adventure
- Point of view: Third person
- Aftertaste: Phew!
- Quote: Even in the midst of war, the other terrors of life went on.
Series Storyline
- Originality: 5/5 stars
- Development: 3/5 stars
- Enjoyment: 3/5 stars
- Writing stile: 2/5 stars
- Funnyness: 1/5 stars
- Epicness: 2/5 stars
- Scaryness: 1/5 stars
- Smartness: 3/5 stars
- Addictiveness: 2/5 stars
- Plot twists: 2/5 stars
- Pace: 2/5 stars
- Storyline planning: 3/5 stars OR /5 negative stars
- Ending: 4/5 stars OR /5 negative stars
- Holes: 3/5 negative stars
World
- Originality: 5/5 stars
- Variety: 5/5 stars
- Consistency: 5/5 stars
- Impact on the story: 5/5 stars
- Maps: -/5 stars
- Real world (Y/N): N
- Fantasy based on real world (Y/N): N
- Journey (Y/N): N
- Main scenario: Capital of Prince Mark's Kingdom
Characters Quantity
- Total amount: around a dozen
- Points of view: around a dozen
- Main characters: None
- Secondary amount: around a dozen
- Ordinary amount: uh?
- Overall: 2/5 stars
- Main: 1/5 stars
- Secondary: 3/5 stars
- Consistency: 5/5 stars
- Connection: 1/5 stars
- Underworld Crew (Y/N): N
- Training (Y/N): N
- Notable best characters: The Emperor
- Notable worse characters: Vilkata the Dark Lame King
Rules
- Devised system: 5/5 stars
- System complexity: 3/5 stars
- System explanation: 1/5 stars
- Impact on storyline: 5/5 stars
- Rulebreaker (Y/N): Some, Coinspinner being used as a substitute for Wayfinder
- Type of Rule: Swords, Moonbase cheater
▶◀
A good book with a good wrap up and finish down the long saga of Fred Saberhagen' Ardneh.
Not nearly the best, but also not bad. Could have happened some 7 books ago, which would leave a great serie with some taste for more, but as it is I'm somewhat relieved it's finished. Like many others, it extended a little too much.
Anyway, this last book is one of the best in the series, with almost all the swords making their way into it, some secrets of the Emperor and the return of some characters.
It was a interesting journey.
▶◀
End of the serie
- Best book in the serie: The Black Mountains
- Best book in subseries: The Last Book of Swords: Shieldbreaker's Story
- Best character in the serie: The Emperor
- Best moment in the serie:
- Best moment in the subserie:
- What went great: The Empire of the East part was amazing, the idea for the swords was very good too, the swords rules was set and generally followed with very little rulebreaking
- Worst book in the serie: The Sixth Book of Lost Swords: Mindsword's Story
- Worst character in the serie: Crown Prince Murat
- Worst moment in the serie:
- What went wrong: Very bad characterization with disinterested and often ambiguity and uncertainty of details and dialogs, greatly accentuated during The Second Book of Lost Swords: Sightblinder's Story and subsequently books. Giving even an impression that the reader is reading a script of a book and not a finished work.
- Worth to read: 3.5/5 stars
Book Storyline
- Originality: 2/5 stars (by now the swords are old)
- Development: 3/5 stars
- Enjoyment: 4/5 stars
- Writing stile: 2/5 stars
- Funnyness: 1/5 stars
- Epicness: 2/5 stars
- Scaryness: 1/5 stars
- Smartness: 2/5 stars
- Addictiveness: 1/5 stars
- Plot twists: 4/5 stars
- Pace: 2/5 stars
- Storyline planning: 2/5 stars OR /5 negative stars
- Ending: 3/5 stars OR /5 negative stars
- Holes: 3/5 negative stars
- Impact on series storyline: 5/5 stars
- Self contained (Y/N): Y
- Cliffhanger (Y/N): N
- Adult (Y/N): N
- Violence level: Medium
- Tech level: Medieval world with remains of advanced humanity technology
- Religion level: Low, fictional, with little importance
- Main genre: Fantasy
- Subgenre: Adventure
- Point of view: Third person
- Aftertaste: Phew!
- Quote: Even in the midst of war, the other terrors of life went on.
Series Storyline
- Originality: 5/5 stars
- Development: 3/5 stars
- Enjoyment: 3/5 stars
- Writing stile: 2/5 stars
- Funnyness: 1/5 stars
- Epicness: 2/5 stars
- Scaryness: 1/5 stars
- Smartness: 3/5 stars
- Addictiveness: 2/5 stars
- Plot twists: 2/5 stars
- Pace: 2/5 stars
- Storyline planning: 3/5 stars OR /5 negative stars
- Ending: 4/5 stars OR /5 negative stars
- Holes: 3/5 negative stars
World
- Originality: 5/5 stars
- Variety: 5/5 stars
- Consistency: 5/5 stars
- Impact on the story: 5/5 stars
- Maps: -/5 stars
- Real world (Y/N): N
- Fantasy based on real world (Y/N): N
- Journey (Y/N): N
- Main scenario: Capital of Prince Mark's Kingdom
Characters Quantity
- Total amount: around a dozen
- Points of view: around a dozen
- Main characters: None
- Secondary amount: around a dozen
- Ordinary amount: uh?
- Overall: 2/5 stars
- Main: 1/5 stars
- Secondary: 3/5 stars
- Consistency: 5/5 stars
- Connection: 1/5 stars
- Underworld Crew (Y/N): N
- Training (Y/N): N
- Notable best characters: The Emperor
- Notable worse characters: Vilkata the Dark Lame King
Rules
- Devised system: 5/5 stars
- System complexity: 3/5 stars
- System explanation: 1/5 stars
- Impact on storyline: 5/5 stars
- Rulebreaker (Y/N): Some, Coinspinner being used as a substitute for Wayfinder
- Type of Rule: Swords, Moonbase cheater
▶◀
A good book with a good wrap up and finish down the long saga of Fred Saberhagen' Ardneh.
Not nearly the best, but also not bad. Could have happened some 7 books ago, which would leave a great serie with some taste for more, but as it is I'm somewhat relieved it's finished. Like many others, it extended a little too much.
Anyway, this last book is one of the best in the series, with almost all the swords making their way into it, some secrets of the Emperor and the return of some characters.
It was a interesting journey.
▶◀
January 27, 2016
This last book started out great, it had the edge of your seat action the last few had been missing. However it quickly turned into a "let's wrap up all the plot lines as quickly as possible" kind of thing which I didn't enjoy and felt forced. I'm glad I reread the series, I was a child the last time I did, I won't read them a third time though.
September 3, 2019
End of a series...
Or is it? There is Sword of Arneth, but not sure how it is related, but somehow is...long series, kind of a quick ending for all that, but still good.
Or is it? There is Sword of Arneth, but not sure how it is related, but somehow is...long series, kind of a quick ending for all that, but still good.
November 3, 2021
Disliked the ending. I read all these books for it to end like that!? Ugh.
January 6, 2013
Well, this one was surprising.
As the last installment of the Book of Swords series, The Last Book of Swords: Sheildbreaker's Story definitely wraps up most, if not all, of the series' questions. Some of the questions include: Who is the Emperor? Who (or what) is Ardneh? What happened to Vilkata? Does Yambu find peace? These and many more.
The story follows Vilkata who was banished along with his demonic cohorts in The Sixth Book of Lost Swords: Mindsword's Story in his quest to seek revenge on the royal family of Tasavalta. Still in possession of the Mindsword, he returns to the palace upon confirming that Mark and Kristin are absent and converts most of the populace into worshipful followers. But, Stephen, the royal couple's youngest son narrowly escapes that fate with the help of Sheildbreaker (which nullifies the effects of the other swords) and Sightblinder (which helps him take advantage of the mindless followers or escape their notice).
Meanwhile, Baron Amintor, a long time foe of Prince Mark and his family, arrives in Sarykam following the direction of Coinspinner, the Sword of Luck, for his own reasons. Prince Mark and Kristin, in a nearby village, hold Woundhealer, and one of the Baron's allies holds Farslayer. The occupied armory holds Stonecutter and Townsaver, and even Soulcutter, the Mindsword's opposite, is located and nearly put into play. With so many swords concentrated in one place, chaos is the only possible result.
Quite a fantastic wrap to a an epic story spanning generations. Wonderful!
As the last installment of the Book of Swords series, The Last Book of Swords: Sheildbreaker's Story definitely wraps up most, if not all, of the series' questions. Some of the questions include: Who is the Emperor? Who (or what) is Ardneh? What happened to Vilkata? Does Yambu find peace? These and many more.
The story follows Vilkata who was banished along with his demonic cohorts in The Sixth Book of Lost Swords: Mindsword's Story in his quest to seek revenge on the royal family of Tasavalta. Still in possession of the Mindsword, he returns to the palace upon confirming that Mark and Kristin are absent and converts most of the populace into worshipful followers. But, Stephen, the royal couple's youngest son narrowly escapes that fate with the help of Sheildbreaker (which nullifies the effects of the other swords) and Sightblinder (which helps him take advantage of the mindless followers or escape their notice).
Meanwhile, Baron Amintor, a long time foe of Prince Mark and his family, arrives in Sarykam following the direction of Coinspinner, the Sword of Luck, for his own reasons. Prince Mark and Kristin, in a nearby village, hold Woundhealer, and one of the Baron's allies holds Farslayer. The occupied armory holds Stonecutter and Townsaver, and even Soulcutter, the Mindsword's opposite, is located and nearly put into play. With so many swords concentrated in one place, chaos is the only possible result.
Quite a fantastic wrap to a an epic story spanning generations. Wonderful!
January 11, 2020
I didn't necessarily plan on re-reading every single one of these Swords books but by the time I got to 4 or 5 I had too much momentum to stop.
I'll be honest: Most of these books are pretty much trash. I quite enjoyed this one, though. Finally there was plot and action and all the swords were there. There was payoff (admittedly pretty unsatisfactory) about major issues such as the identity of the Emperor. I just wish poor Zoltan had gotten a better fate.
I'll be honest: Most of these books are pretty much trash. I quite enjoyed this one, though. Finally there was plot and action and all the swords were there. There was payoff (admittedly pretty unsatisfactory) about major issues such as the identity of the Emperor. I just wish poor Zoltan had gotten a better fate.
August 29, 2016
Finishing the Saberhagen nostalgia reading. Books 7&8 were more highly rated on Amazon so I finished with those. Book 8 was a nice coda to the series. Sure things make little sense but it is fantasy. Though much is simplistic, I like that not everything is explained. Many things are left mysterious so I am left wanting more.
December 1, 2010
see first book of swords for my review of the series. Its been a while so I may blunder but I seem to recall there weren't any exceptions to the awesomeness outside of the fact that the first three were a little slower than the rest.
January 14, 2012
A disappointing end to what was a great series. It almost feels like he rushed the ending to be done with the series. It was interesting how he tied it back to his Empire of the East series but it felt somewhat contrived.
A disappointing end to a great series of books.
A disappointing end to a great series of books.
March 8, 2016
I actually was a little disappointed in this book. I almost gave it 2 stars because the beginning was very slow. I also didn't particularly care for his lack of explanation of the God Ardneh. It did, however, do a good job of bringing an 11 novel series together to a conclusion.
September 22, 2014
This is a rather odd fantasy setting, but I really enjoy these books.
February 17, 2012
I enjoyed this series. Some books were better than others.
September 10, 2016
Totally enjoyed the entire series. I consider this Classic Fantasy!
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