Druid's Sword

by Sara Douglass

Book Overview

1940. The skies above London are filled with German planes on nightly raids, a Blitz that brings a barrage of bombs that pound the city into rubble. Each morning Londoners face the night's handiwork and though they are presented with the possibility of sudden death, they are determined to fight the evil that threatens to destroy their nation. They struggle to live normal lives amid the terror and chaos. But is it only Hitler's Luftwaffe and the Blitz...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0765305437
• ISBN13: 9780765305435
• Release Date: May 2006
• Publisher: Tor Books
• Length: 606 Pages
• Weight: 2.01 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.7" x 6.5" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Mystical

I am absolutely hooked on this series of Sara Douglas's books. It has been one of the most exciting, hard to put down books I have read in a very long time.

Great ending to a middle of the road series

In contrast to the other reviews I have read here, I thought that this book had the most satifying ending. For me the characters and story of the first three of this series weren't as interesting as those in her Axis and Wayfarer Redemption trilogies. Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed them, but those earlier Sara Douglass grabbed me a lot more. In contrast to the first three of this series, this book grabbed me from the first page and kept me grabbed right throughout, and unlike other reviewers I enjoyed the additional characters - there was a lot of time that passed while the main characters were not around (ie dead) so it is silly to expect that the "game" would not have involved anyone else during these centuries, plus the characters were all alluded to in prior novels. So, after reading through around 2,100 pages to just get to this novel, I wasn't disappointed at all and in fact proclaimed it worth slogging through the first three just to get to this one. My favourite ending ever, maybe I'm a sentimental fool!

Somewhat disappointing ending to a brilliant series

I rated this as 4 stars, but only barely. The first three novels of the Troy Game series were as good as anything I have ever read. Complex storylines, likeable and hatable characters. Cliffhanger endings that left you stunnned. It was therefore a little disapointing to see the direction that this finale took. Though I thoroughly enjoyed reading it, 'Druid's Sword' is but a pale comparison to its predecessors. All through this novel I couldn't shake the feeling that something was missing. The drama and plot u-turns were there but some of the soul of the series seemed to have gone. Characters that once had been so pivotal now seemed content to be mere window dressing that would re-appear every chapter or so, have nothing substantial to add, then slink away in despair. Perhaps Douglass would have been better off killing of the majority of the cast early in this book and leave a handful of survivors to solve the riddle of the Troy Game? (p.s. that is in no way ruining the ending of the book, don't worry!). The ending was as well-plotted as any of her novels, but felt rushed as though, after 600 pages, she suddenly ran out of things to say. If you are a fan of the series, read it. You'll be slightly disappointed, but it is still far better than the vast majority of the stuff that is out there. Perhaps if Sara Douglass didn't create such high expectations, I wouldn't be left feeling almost cheated...

great historical fantasy

The Troy Game, a work of sorcery that is supposed to protect a city, has taken on a life of its own in the form of a woman known as Catling. She wants to complete the game and now that the creator Major Jack Skelton, who has been reincarnated through several lifetimes, has returned to London that can now happen. Jack, once known as Brutus and who saw Troy fall, knows that if he finishes the game, The Land of Faerie and Great Britain will be under her evil rule. Other people reincarnated in this lifetime (the fall of 1939) that are part of the game include Jack's former wife Norah and his one-time enemy Asterion the Minotaur now known as Weyland Orr. While Jack searches for a weakness in the game he notices a shadow hanging over London's skies that only Norah and Waylin's daughter Grace can also see. Jack finds himself very attracted to Grace in a way he never was with her mother but Catling has puts a hex onGrace causing her great pain at certain intervals to insure they will complete the Game. The shadow represents a new player in the land, one that Grace knows intimately but whose identity will shock her and Jack as neither is sure of its true motives. If they guess wrong, the lands of two realms are doomed. In the conclusion to the Troy Game Saga, Sara Douglass ties up all the loose ends, and gives readers a satisfying conclusion to one of the best historical fantasy sagas to come along in ages. Brutus aka Jack is finally at piece after almost four millennia of turmoil and the audience will like the man he has become. Great characterizations, a sense of continuity from the other three books in this series and a great storyline make DRUID'S SWORD worthy of a place on the best seller list. Harriet Klausner

Loved the series...

*spoilers* This book seemed a bit lacking. The book, for me started out great. But getting towards the end I was upset at how Noah was treated. She had worked so hard to become who she was and received nothing but admonishment of how she wasn't needed, everything she did seemed wrong. She had sacrificed and suffered, all for nothing. It seemed she had reverted to before becoming Noah. I was let down at that. Weylands character was never fully fleshed out in this one. He was like a shadow character.I felt that Noah's and Weylands relationship,at the end of the book, was left in the air. The was no completion with that.All of the characters, except for Jack and Grace, felt not as fleshed out. One thing I loved about Dark Witch Rising is how the story turned around. I was so shocked at the outcome, but it made sense to me. Noah, through all of her lives, grew and became a character I could respect. I just feel this book didn't continue that. I did feel that Brutus- Jack had certainly become the person he was meant to be. I really came to like him in this book, except for the things said to Noah that should have been said in private. I really felt for Grace and what she had gone through. Having to live in the shadow of her mother and suffering all of that pain. Knowing you are the doom of your friends and family. All in all this was a good book. Characters in this book were sacrificed time to make way for the larger picture. I think I need to read this again. Maybe I will have a different view.=)