Fantasy Books

 

Title: In the Realm of the Wolf

Author: David Gemmell

Summary: A mighty warrior and a feared assassin among the Drenai, Waylander the Slayer is now a man hunted by his own people--with a fortune in gold offered as grim reward for his murder. But this is only one of many evils closing in on Waylander and his daughter, Miriel, the beautiful and deadly Battle Queen of Kar-Barzac.

For, once separated, father and daughter face certain death as the sorcerers and demons, soldiers and shamans of three empires summon their blackest, most destructive powers in an effort to annihilate these two most gifted Drenai warriors.

Review: Waylander, hoping to find peace and refuge, secluded himself in the woodlands with his daughter Miriel. His wife has passed away many years before, leaving him with a sense of depression, sorrow, and emptiness. Never a day that goes by that he does not feel a sense of guilt lingering in his heart. His only hope and love is his daughter, Miriel. Yet, he constantly revisits his wife's grave, sitting at times talking to her, as if she was alive, for hours on. His memory of his dead wife lingers painfully within his mind always. Isolated in a log cabin in the woods, he trains his daughter the art of fighting to protect herself from those who seeks to do her harm. Their lives were serene until Waylander's past caught up with him. There's a reward for the death of Waylander, the notorious assassin. All over, killers, assassins, and even demons are coming his way. With their home no longer safe, Waylander and his daughter must leave. Through circumstances, he is aided by the most unlikely swordsman and an aged gladiator. Still, Waylander, Miriel, and their comrades are in for a struggle that will affect them all, one by one.

What more can I say? Waylander had me on a great ride, so I had a "hunch" that In the Realm of the Wolf would be the same. I was quite right. David Gemmell has never let down the quality that all his books possessed. His stories are as compelling as his characters. There are a great deal of spontaneously actions that grips the readers along the plot. In the Realm of the Wolf continues where Waylander left off. The story flows quite nicely as the readers get caught in the characteristics of each characters. For myself, I comprehend the consequences of a man's past. A man's past can never be unremembered as long as he lives or dies. For Waylander, his past was his death warrant. But as a talented assassin, death never reaches him with even a glance. As always, David Gemmell creates characters that are very unique with distinguishable personalities. The book has great interesting characters, a flowing plot, and high, intense actions. But one point I would like to make is that all of David Gemmell's books have characters with unbelievably talents. That in itself is quite repetitive. But all in all, his stories are well-written and his characters are well-created.

Rating: 9 out of 10