The Hammer and the Blade (Egil and Nix, #1) in Sword & Sorcery: "An earthier sort of fantasy"

Feb 03, 2014 Robin rated it really liked it

Shelves: fantasy

I've been slightly dissatisfied with many of the books I've read this year, but The Hammer and the Blade turned out to be a welcome end to this unfortunate streak. It's a fun sword & sorcery novel from beginning to end.

The prologue introduces us to hammer-wielding priest Egil and his crafty rogue companion Nix, right in the middle of a raid on a pseudo-Egyptian tomb. The story very quickly establishes that they're in it for thrills, cash, and personal glory, rather than any more elevated goals. ...more

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Jul 23, 2021 Ronald McCutchan rated it really liked it

Shelves: sf-fantasy, swords-sorcery

Enjoyed this as an old school swords & sorcery caper. Though in retrospect, the climax is somewhat contrived, though I didn't exactly see it coming, the set-up was clearly recognizable as such. This didn't spoil the "aha" moment for me, though the moment is, in fact, discomforting as a piece of revenge. Not unwarranted, but very much "eye for an eye." I was reminded of my reaction to Connie Willis's "All My Darling Daughters." The in media res plot reminded me a bit of The Lies of Locke Lamora.. ...more

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Oct 03, 2013 Anoop Menon rated it it was amazing

Its recently that i came across this series, in simple terms "its pure entertaining".. loved the characters... where there is huge depth for a full blown series of their own.. planning to read the sequel as i cant get enough of the duo... ...more

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Aug 18, 2017 Pierre Armel rated it it was amazing

Just finished The Hammer and The Blade. Wow, that's a great book. With Kings of the Wyld a few weeks ago, I have just read two very entertaining sword and sorcery yarns. THaTB works great thanks to his duet of heroes, both familiar for the genre but unique in their own ways, to a story which is classic S&S but with some special twists keeping you on your toes, to the humor, especially in the dialogues between Nix and Egil, and to the writing of Paul Kemp, which is fast paced and clear. I have al ...more

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Feb 03, 2014 Steve Thomas rated it liked it

For the most part, this was a fun, rompy swords & sorcery. Unfortunately, I felt very unsatisfied by the ending. Without going into spoilers, the way Egil & Nix solved the major conflict felt like it undermined the themes and character development that had come before.

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