Product Description
As unwanted and rebellious boys, they find refuge in Ironhall….Years later they emerge as the finest swordsmen in the realm — A magical ritual of a sword through the heart binds each to his ward–if not the king himself, then to whomever else the monarch designates — with absolute loyalty.And the greatest Blade of them all was — and is — Sir Durendal.
But a lifelong dream of protecting his beloved liege from enemies, traitors, and monsters is dashed to bits when Durendal is bonded till death to an effete noble fop at his king’s orders. Yet Destiny has many strange and inscrutable plans for the young knight — for a mission, a contest, and, perhaps, a treasure await him in a faraway land. But he soon finds himself enmeshed in treason and foul intrigues, compelled to betray the king he had hoped to serve. The Blades have ways to protect their own, but death and madness haunt the path to salvation — and few ever return unscathed. As unwanted and rebellious boys, they find refuge in Ironhall….Years later they emerge as the finest swordsmen in the realm– A magical ritual of a sword through the heart binds each to his ward–if not the king himself, then to whomever else the monarch designates–with absolute loyalty. And the greatest Blade of them all was–and is–Sir Durendal.
But a lifelong dream of protcting his beloved liege from enemies, traitors, and monsters is dashed to bits when Durendal is bonded till death to an effete noble fop at his king’s orders. Yet Destiny has many strange and inscrutable plans for the young knight–for a mission, a contest, and, perhaps, a treasure await him in a faraway land. But he soon finds himself enmeshed in treasonand foul intrigues, compelled to betray the king he had hoped to serve. The Blades have ways to protect their own, but death and madness haunt the path to salvation–and few ever return unscathed.
Amazon.com Review
Swords-and-sorcery fans aren’t always proud. At times, they’re left feeling a little embarrassed when they get a fix for their “pulp” addiction, maybe even sheepishly admitting that the genre isn’t always that… sophisticated. Well, with Dave Duncan’s The Gilded Chain, no apologies are necessary.
The author presents traditional high fantasy, with knights and magic (and even a few monsters) in a Tudoresque setting. The Gilded Chain satisfies all the usual cravings, while still managing to be both original and thought-provoking. Subtitled A Tale of the King’s Blades (an indication that more excellent stand-alones should follow), Gilded Chain follows the career of Durendal, one of the King’s magical and deadly swordsmen, who’s compelled to serve his ward until death with single-minded purpose. Bound to a conniving, sniveling courtier and apparently doomed to a boring–or worse, compromising–existence, Durendal must find a way to fulfill both his potential and his duty. Events quickly hurl him halfway across the world to investigate the grisly secret behind a brotherhood of immortal swordmasters. This quest fuels the plot for the remainder of the book, which is nearly impossible to put down after the halfway point (just about the time a side story involving a Lord Roland cleverly dovetails with the main narrative). An inventive, intelligent exploration of duty and honor, and just a corking good adventure besides, The Gilded Chain is swords-and-sorcery at its best. –Paul Hughes
Anonymous @ 5:40 pm
Keep in mind that this book is the first part of a series. One of the most intriquingly crafted series I’ve ever heard of. Each individual book (the Tales of the King’s Blades series) tell of the lives of the certain characters, and tells of certain common events from those particular character’s points of view. Each book tells the story of a different character (Gilded Chain – Durendal; Lord of the Fire Lands – Radgar Aelayding; Sky of Swords – Princess Malinda), and each book can be read and understood individually. But in order to truly appreciate the thought put into these novels, and the masterful authoring involved, it is very important to read the entire series.
This book is a good place to start. Duncan is one of those rarest of authors who forces you to read not only the words he has put on the page, but the words he hasn’t. As most of his books, this is a superb example of how to write high fantasy. Duncan creates a world that COULD have been 12th century England, the mysticism and spirituality are well thought out and logical, the action is harsh and intense, and the plotlines and stories are believable. He holds no punches, and his realism and honesty are oftentimes brutal. Read this book. But don’t wait too long to read the next.
Anonymous @ 6:45 pm
Duncan’s style of writing is something that’s new to me. His characters have style, expression, and seem to come alive in a different way than the characters in the book I have read before. The descriptive swordsplay is breathtaking, and the action is enough to keep the reader on their edges of their seats.
The Gilded Chain is more of an action packed biography rather than just a novel, which is probably what makes it different from other novels. The storyline follows the main character very closely, from the time when he was a boy to old age. Duncan’s style of “accelerated” writing, where the space between paragraphs can be anything from three minutes to two years means that he is always searching for something new to keep the audience interested, a mean feat which is fulfilled quite fully by perhaps a broad imagination which he possesses.
Unlike some of the other authors I have read, Duncan perhaps shares some similarities to Melanie Rawn, in that the most precious characters in the story, ones that the reader thinks will develop, usually meet a tragic end. In this way, the story is more life-like in that tragic circumstances like this will happen in real life.
The work of a truly great author, I look forward to reading sky of Swords and other books by Duncan.
Kalika @ 9:15 pm
This book is certainly one of the most amazing that I have ever read. Don’t be fooled by the “blurb” on the back, this is not a fluffy cheap romance, though it somewhat looks like one, I’ll admit. Durrendal has got to be one of the greatest swordsmen ever written into a book, (Sorry Inigo Montoya) and this book deals with the era in which he was in his prime. There are three books in this series by Dave Duncan, and many have called it a trilogy (and indeed, it is.) BUT. There is no specific order in which you must read them. Each is a stand alone novel. Take the advice of someone who’s read them over and over read them in this order:
1) The Gilded Chain
2) Lord of the Firelands
3) Sky of Swords.
The Gilded Chain and Lord of the Firelands have two VERY different endings, both dealing with the death of a character (in two different ways) There are many discrepancies between the two. However, all of this confusion is resolved in Sky of Swords. This is a wonderful book that you’ll want to come back to again and again. Try it out. You won’t be dissapointed.
Jason S Robinson @ 9:55 pm
This was the first book I have read from Duncan and I thought it was a great tale. This story and the stories following are involve a group of swordsman called Blades as they are the Blades of the King. There is magic in this land in the form of conjurations and these swordsman are boned to either their King or someone he decrees by this form of sorcery. It ensures undying loyalty to their bonded. The main Hero of the Blades and the man this story is centered around is a man named Durendal and his adventures.
I found this approach to sword and sorcery very refreshing. It didn’t seem as though he was rehashing your typical fantasy themes in different words. Instead this book feels very original and the writing doesn’t wander aimlessly. This book is aptly called “A Tale” because thats what it is, a tale, a story; not a long, drawn out, piece of fluff but an action filled tale of loyalty, courage, honor, and friendship and I enjoyed it very much.
Also, there are three more books in this series so far (I am about to start the second) but this book has a beginning and an end. It doesn’t have a cliffhanger like some other series, so you can be comfortable just buying the first book and if you agree with me and like it, you can get the others at your liesure.
Other authors you might like in this same genre; Paul Kearney, George R. R. Martin, Deborah Chester, David Gemmell, J.V. Jones, and Matthew Stover.
myrddin215 @ 10:20 pm
Rather than a story of one event, The Gilded Chain follows Sir Durendal’s life through many adventures in the service of his king, right up to the point where his loyalty is put to the test. Although I was somewhat mislead by the description on the back of the book, I wasn’t disappointed. Although I read and enjoy many books, this was one of the first times I actually couldn’t put the book down. I know that’s a cliche, but this time it was true. I read it in no time flat, and loved it. My only complaint is that the secondary characters were killed off too quickly. All in all, a great addition to the fantasy world.