Originally reviewed at Bookwraiths ReviewsThe Gilded Chain begins the six book series The King’s Blades by Dave Duncan. (If one includes the companion young adult trilogy The King’s Daggers, then there are nine novels in this fantasy world.) The unique thing about The King’s Blades series is that every book is a stand alone tale set in the same world but with brand new characters and different adventures; something that all readers weary of long multi-volume, interconnected fantasy works should appreciate. For whatever reason though, this is a swashbuckling story that has largely went under the radar of most fantasy aficionados, but shouldn’t for reasons I’ll try to point out.This opening installment of the series focuses in on a young, unwanted youth who finds himself dumped at the school for the King’s Blades by his uncaring benefactors. While he does go through a recruitment process (or interview if you will), Mr. Duncan keeps it very short, laying out just enough facts to get a reader acclimated to the type of school this is before jumping ahead many years.Now, our young waif is proudly called Durendal; a special name he took for himself in emulation of the legendary Durendal, who is considered the greatest King’s Blade to ever grace the kingdom. And while it is a lofty bar to set for himself, the youth has lived up to it so far, and is eagerly awaiting the call of the King when he will be bound to his sovereign or to another whom the King has chosen for him.This binding is what makes the Blades the most feared swordsman in the realms. For this ceremony of allegiance is a sorcerous affair whereby their old self is killed and a new one arises that is soul sworn to obey and protect the life of their liege lord above their own in every way. This results in Blades not requiring sleep, despising the taste of alcohol or any substance that would dull their senses, remaining on constant alert for any threat to their lord, refusing to be bought or bribed, and always fighting to the death without any qualm. It is a difficult life to be among the King’s Blade, but one of the highest honor for every member of the school.Since Durendal is a special student, primed for great things, it would seem inevitable that he would immediately be thrust into grand affairs. Mr. Duncan doesn’t follow that normal route however, choosing to put our youth through the wringer for a bit before he eventually finds his bearings upon a grand quest to another part of the world. Durendal’s task to uncover the fate of a missing Blade who was on a secret mission for the King himself; his orders to return the Blade or dispose of him and finish the mission if he can.The unique thing about The Gilded Chain is the way Mr. Duncan designs the narrative. It is a flip-flop affair where we flash back and forth from the old Durendal and the young. Somewhat confusing political intrigue that is taking place in the present ultimately are explained by these visits to our hero’s pasts. Clues and answer to the present mystery are mined directly from that same story of Durendal’s life. And while it causes the narrative to read slowly at first, it eventually becomes a very compelling piece of writing that livens up the story considerably.For world-building fans out there, I should warn you that there isn’t anything inherently unique or new in this setting. Chivail (Durendal’s home kingdom) is very reminiscent of sixteenth century England with King Ambrose IV strikingly similar to Henry VIII, and the society, technology, and warfare are comparable to that same time period in history. The only difference between Tudor England and Chivail being the integration of magic into this renaissance society.As he always does, Mr. Duncan has established a creative – albeit simplistic – magic system to set this world apart from other fantasy faire. Here magic is based upon spirits of the eight elements of this world’s cosmology. Invocations abound: both benevolent and sinister, and no one really goes around shooting fire from their eyes or destroying whole armies by waving their hands in the air. So while magic is definitely prevalent in every day life (especially around the King who has magical protectors who “sniff” out magic users), it doesn’t overpower the classic setting.Overall, The Gilded Chain is a solid, entertaining novel, written in a flowing, easy to read style, steadily paced, and littered with interesting characters, intriguing plots, swashbuckling adventure, and a nice dose of mystery. It even has a nice, twisted ending.Could this novel be labeled (Because everyone loves labels, right?) a classic fantasy?Absolutely, Mr. Duncan leans this one toward old school fantasy. Even with that being said however, he writes this story with grittiness and violence (though it isn’t any gorier than necessary); sexual liaisons and situations do occur (but are tastefully mentioned yet never focused excessively on); bad language does get spoken (but the expletives are those of Chivail, which doesn’t exactly match our own real world curse words); and the good guys tend to be imperfect but noble people while the bad guys are imperfect evil people (though a morality play this is not).So if you are looking for a fun read with some swashbuckling action, a dash of mystery, and a classic fantasy flavor, pick up The Gilded Chain. Don’t let the old school fantasy scare you off.
The novel "The Gilded Chain" is a high fantasy novel by Dave Duncan. I recommend it! It is by no means perfect. However, it's a page-turner and a good read. It is the first installment of the "King's Blades" series. The PlotThe setting for this novel is a fantasy world separate from but much like our own Europe during the middle ages. There exists a knightly order called "The Blades" which recruits youngsters and then, through a mixture of magic and training, forges them into the finest warriors in the land. These men are then "bound" to a person they are to protect. This person is referred to as a blade's "ward". The blade is connected to their ward psychically, having a sort of sixth sense when it comes to their ward. Another side effect of this binding is that a blade no longer needs to sleep. A blade MUST remain loyal to their ward, protecting their ward's life to the exclusion of everything else, including their own lives and families. It is possible to be relieved of this bond if their ward so decrees.Usually, a blade is bound to the king or the crown prince. However, the king can decide to give the gift of a blade to a favored subject.The book follows the life and times of one particular blade, named Durendal. The novel begins with his indoctrination as a youth into the blades and the plot develops from there. The GoodThe Characters in this book are very well done. Whenever a character's name was mentioned, I never once asked, "who is this guy?". That is usually a sign that you're reading a well-characterized novel. The characters change for the better (and for the worse) during the course of the novel. This also impressed me.The main characters in this book were all compelling. The main protagonist, Durendal, is the obvious "good guy" in the novel. I can't really point to one bad character of the "Snidely Whiplash" type, which is a bonus. The "bad" characters are all motivated logically by realistic, even selfless, goals. I really liked the plot of this novel also. It was pretty straightforward, but the tone seemed to very subtly change from a swashbuckling adventure to a more horrific, scary story and then back again. It was not a jarring or heavy-handed switch, so it didn't detract from the overall flow of the book.The fact that this novel is part of a greater whole may or may not cause it to rise further in quality when reading the subsequent novels in this series. I hope it does. The Not-So-GoodOne complaint I have is that I wanted the characters to be a little more complex than they were. I know I said I liked the characters, and I did. However, more complexity in the characterizations and plot would have been better, in my opinion. Duncan, in an attempt to keep the plot moving, glosses over lots of plot details which would have been perhaps compelling and interesting if done well. There's some wasted potential here.Another complaint would be about the setting of this novel. It was not a poorly done setting, but it wasn't very detailed, either. Tokien's middle earth or the late Robert Jordan's settings for their books were deep, fleshed out settings; culturally, politically, geographically, even religiously and mythologically compelling. Duncan's was not quite so well done. It's like a majestic lake that, after one dives into it, is discovered to be only 6 inches deep throughout.If the world setting was a little more compelling, I would have given it the full 5 stars. ConclusionIt's a good read. The characters and plot are great. With some more effort in fleshing out the setting and more plot detail and more complex characters, this would have been a classic. As it is, you should only read it if you're a fan of the fantasy genre.
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I really liked this book with 1 MAJOR DISGUSTING part that nearly ruined the whole rest of the book for me.I loved the story of the Blades, and how they are bound to their wards for their lives. I loved how this story follows Durendal from the beginning of his life to the end. I love the back and forth of the story too. It's as if you're sitting at the feet of a nostalgic old man telling his life story to you. It's captivating. I was right there! Durendal is a great man, great leader and I loved
—Ane
Az aranyszín láncban sir Durendal hosszú életét és legendáját követhetjük nyomon – pár (hét) rövidebb novella-szerű részletben. Hogyan lesz egy vakarcsból minden idők legjobb Pengéje, legnemesebb, leghűségesebb kardforgatója, Chivial hőse, később mégis ura és jótevője – a mindenki által igen tisztelt és hőn szeretett (vagy félt), ravasz és bátor Ambrose király – végzete.A könyv nagy erénye, hogy az intrikus részek egyenértékű minőséget képviselnek az akciókban, világi kalandokban gazdagabb részekkel. A mű egyes részei kifejezetten felkavaróak, akár az Örökkétig-ről szóló részre gondolok (az színtiszta horror!), akár csak arra, hogy a szerző milyen bőkezűen osztja hősei számára a halált. Ez egy ilyen életút regénynél mindenképpen üdvözlésre méltó, hiszen ettől – hogy egyaránt látjuk a legnagyobb hősök és a szürke kisemberek halálát is – válik hihetővé, életszerűvé, de egyúttal komorrá és lehangolóvá egyaránt (tehát stílusossá, nem pedig giccsparádévá) a mű és a benne szereplő karakterek egyaránt. Nekem a jellemfejlődéseken túl egyébként az alaptörténet is roppantul tetszett, ahogy az egyedi – elementáris – mágiarendszer, sőt a szerző karcos humora szintén.Roppant hangulatos, minőségi, hősies „középkori” fantasy – egy majdhogynem realisztikus világban –, ami egyetlen rajongó polcáról sem hiányozhat. Robin Hobb, George R. R. Martin, Glen Cook, David Eddings – valamint Henry Rider Haggard és Alexandre Dumas – rajongóknak egyenesen kötelező darab. Melegen ajánlom! A sorozat második része, A Tűzföldek Ura – ami egyébként nem klasszikus folytatás (mint ahogy a sorozat többi rész sem), hanem ugyanebben az időben játszódik, csak egy másik szereplő szemén keresztül vizsgálhatjuk az eseményeket – remélhetően még az idén megjelenik. Nálam mindenesetre keményen várólistás lett, sőt felkeltette a kíváncsiságomat a szerző más könyvei iránt is. Abszolút kedvenc – még sok ilyet kérünk!Bővebben a blogon:http://profunduslibrum.blogspot.hu/20...
—Profundus Librum
When my wife gave me this book for Christmas, back in the 90s (I've got so many unread books piled in stacks that they tend to sit around a long time, alas!), my initial guess, having no prior experience at all with Duncan's work, was that the King's Blades series would be fantasy based on the Three Musketeers tradition in pop culture. That's not the case. The setting is a pre-technological world with affinities to our early modern one, and the King's Blades are an elite royal bodyguard; but that's really the only similarity. Chivial is actually more like 16th-century England than 17th-century France (and Ambrose IV has more than a passing resemblance to Henry VIII). There are nine books in the series, but this one, while it has an epilogue that opens the door for other stories, is a tale nicely complete in itself; it can stand alone very well. (Although I really liked this one, I don't expect at this point to continue the series.)Duncan has created a fairly original magic system, based on conjurations of "spirits" associated with the eight elements that are recognized in his world's cosmology. (So this is a system of strictly invocational magic --the more sinister kind, compared to relatively innocuous incantational magic-- and it's not conceived in religious terms; the author's world-building makes no reference to religion, a decision which, as in Anne McCaffrey's work, probably reflects an antipathy to the latter.) Individual Blades are magically bound to the King (usually) or to another person designated by him, and until released from their binding have a conjured compulsion to defend their "ward" at all costs. The plot here spans much of one Blade's lifetime, but it doesn't unfold in strictly linear fashion; especially in the early chapters, Duncan jumps back and forth in time in a way that actually seems intended to confuse and misdirect the reader; but the basic shape of things is made clear after that. Taken as a whole, the structure actually works well; and some parts of the book are less episodic than they appear to be.This is a page-turner; the pace is steady, and Duncan's story-telling is top-notch. The plot is ultimately well-crafted; the author's characterizations are life-like and rounded. He writes with wit, and an ear for the telling detail and phrase; there's a certain grittiness to the work, but the presentation is tasteful. Violence isn't any more gory in its depiction than it needs to be. While sexual attitudes in Duncan's fantasy world tend towards the earthiness that characterized pre-Victorian Europe, there's no explicit sex, and not a lot of reference to sexual activity. (To his credit, when our hero finds the lady he wants to marry, he's completely faithful to her from then on, despite circumstances in which many less honorable males might not be.) Bad language isn't a significant issue here (most of the expletives in the character's world might be vulgarisms there, but they aren't in our culture). And we do ultimately have a moral vision to the tale, a conflict between altruistic good and self-serving evil that requires moral choice, and that promotes virtue by example.I'd probably rate this novel at four and 1/2 stars if I could. For me, the only real negative, besides the unrealistic indifference to the religious nature of human consciousness, is the "insta-love" connection between Durendal and his love interest. Yes, I do believe that two people can experience very strong attraction when they first meet. But I recognize that it still has to have some getting to know each other to nurture and develop. There essentially isn't any of that here; things accelerate from a first meeting (even if the young lady had her eye on him some time before) to a lifelong commitment with, IMO, very improbable speed. (And while I'll admit that the strategy she used to pursue the relationship demonstrated guts and decisiveness --albeit not the best moral judgement-- I definitely don't think it would work the same way with most males.) But that didn't keep me from appreciating the book overall! My wife also liked it (we read it together as a "car book"), so it can appeal to readers of both genders.
—Werner
