Knights of Dark Renown

by David Gemmell

Paperback, 1993

Status

Available

Call number

813

Publication

Del Rey (1993), 320 pages

Description

The Knights of the Gabala, legendary protectors of the Nine Duchies, have disappeared through a demon-haunted gateway between worlds. Only one held back - Manannan, whose every instinct told him to stay. Now he is the Coward Knight, and in torment. Murder and black magic beset the Duchies. As the storm clouds of war gather, Manannan rides to the Forest of the Ocean and prepares to face his darkest fears. For he must ride through the same gate and seek out his vanished companions. And the secret he will learn there will tear his soul apart ...

User reviews

LibraryThing member ragwaine
Cool characters, simple plot, a lot of build up and a simple wrap up.
LibraryThing member MagicSN
I disagree with the user that this is not one of Gemmell's greatest book. While is not my favourite book of him, it is probably my second-favourite of this author. This story has incredible power and is one of the greatest books I ever read (even if I still like "Echoes of the Great Song" by the
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same author even better). The epilogue actually is a part of the "magic" which lets the story feel "more real". I don't care that he reused mythology character names. Not the only time he did something like that (see Troy Trilogy, which also is one of his greatest books). Anywaysm what I think makes this story really powerful is that it has believable, "human"-showed heroes, with all their weaknesses and strengths. The personalities of these heroes feel real. It is not the typical "standard fantasy heroes".
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LibraryThing member Bridgey
Knights of Dark Renown - David Gemmell ****

This is one of those books that has Gemmell doing what he does best, a fantasy novel set in a different yet similar world to our own, one we can can recognise from history but with enough magic and mayhem to transport us into a whole new experience. Much
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of the plot is mingled with our own Arthurian legends and myths, but Knights of Dark Renown is as much a coming of age novel as heroic fantasy. We follow a young boy named Lug who possesses a number of strong powers, but he does not yet know how to control them or even their extent. One night he witnesses the Knights of the Gabala passing through a magic portal in order to protect the kingdom. The Knights never returned from this fateful mission, but one remained behind. Now branded a coward he travels the lands looking for redemption. Couple these two pathways with that of the wizard Maerlyn, who is able to breath life into his almost robotic creations, and you have an action packed 400 pages.

A new evil appears, with mass genocide of all citizens of nomadic descent taking place. Can the King be defeated and what part will Lug play? What happened to the missing Knights and how will their destiny play a part? We meet numerous colourful characters from wizards to warriors, and something I love about Gemmell is that we never really know who is next to get bumped off. He certainly doesn't get attached to his creations.

A really brilliant stand alone book from Gemmell, and one that I can easily recommend. I was tempted to award 5 stars, and although it came close I just thought there was something a little missing.
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LibraryThing member Karlstar
This is Gemmell's first novel, but contrary to the series information, this is not a Drenai book. It is set in a different world, with different nations and nationalities. It has nothing in common with Legend, Waylander or the other Drenai books. As Gemmell's first novel, you can see where he is
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trying to develop his own style and world. There's a lot of borrowing from our world and our mythology here - a city called Furbolg, characters named Mannanan and Morrigan, etc. This is fairly standard Gemmell formula - there are noble heroes, peasant heroes, warrior women and a similar complement of evildoers. Nothing fancy, but still good fantasy reading.
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Language

Original language

English

Original publication date

1989

Physical description

320 p.; 4.1 inches

ISBN

034537908X / 9780345379085
Page: 0.5485 seconds