5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A dark elf fantasy that glows with blackened pleasure! Not just for Warhammer gamers., July 29, 2006
This review is from: Darkblade: The Daemon's Curse (Warhammer Novels) (Mass Market Paperback)
I don't play Warhammer and never will, but 'The Daemon's Curse' is a phenomenal tale of dark elves that should not be ignored by readers of dark fantasy because of its ties to a video game. This is an outstanding tale of maliciousness and treachery, as rich as Salvatore's 'War Of The Spider Queen' series.
Malus Darkblade is the last, and illegitimate son of the Vaulkhar in the city of Hag Graef. Lurhan's (the Vaulkhar) legitimate children are Bruglir the Reaver, Isilvar, Yasmir the beautiful, Nagaira, and Urial the Forsaken, a priest in the Temple of Khaine. The dark elves, called druchii, have no regard for familial love. Indeed, their siblings are their worst enemies, and each one seeks to destroy the others in order to gain favor with Lurhan and become his heir.
'The Daemon's Curse' is the tale of Malus. Just as Malus sails into port from a victorious and bloody raid, he is betrayed and his prize taken away. Returning to Hag Graef with nothing but debt, Malus strikes up a bargain with his sister Nagaira, raiding a skull relic from Urial's temple and fleeing the city in search of a mystical fortune to be had in Kul Hadar, amidst the Chaos Wastes. But Malus will find deceit, though he expected nothing less of his sister, and it will almost be the ruin of him.
The Malus Darkblade books, of which 'The Daemon's Curse' is the first installment, are not for the light-hearted reader. Malus is the perfect dark elf antihero, vicious, cunning, merciless, and always bloodthirsty. Their mounts are dragon-like beasts called 'cold ones', or Nauglir. I tip my hat to artist Clint Langley who did the amazing cover art depicting Malus riding his cold one.
'The Daemon's Curse' is a bloody, fast-paced story of deception, torture, mutilations, sword fights, marauding bands of wildmen, revenge, daemons, cold-blooded treachery, evil aspirations, bravery, and best of all, dark elves. If you like your dark fantasy bloody and fast, like a flashing blade to the throat, you will love 'The Daemon's Curse'. Don't forget to grab the next installment, 'Bloodstorm'. Enjoy!
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Warhammer Novel had potential, May 29, 2006
This review is from: Darkblade: The Daemon's Curse (Warhammer Novels) (Mass Market Paperback)
This fantasy novel held great potential, but unfortunately runs kinda out of steam about halfway thru. With beautiful art cover work, this novel held fantastical delights that rivaled those of R. A. Salvatore's hugely successful dark elf series.
I loved the imagery of the dark elves and their T-Rex-like war steeds, and those action sequences were done quite well, but with the main character being so bad, with no redeeming qualities, the reader is left not caring much for him. After about the halfway point in the novel, I found myself not caring much for him.
But the novel was pretty fast-paced, laced with enough action to keep it from being too bogged down. There are better fantasy novels out there with the full range of everything one needs to read to fulfill all areas of storytelling. But for a light adventure read, this one should do.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The Daemon's Curse: A tale of Malus Darkblade, November 7, 2006
This review is from: Darkblade: The Daemon's Curse (Warhammer Novels) (Mass Market Paperback)
Malus Darkblade has no redeemable virtues, so why do I care what happens to Him? It is a testament to authors, Dan Abnett and Mike Lee that I do. They have created one of the most interesting protagonists in my recent memory. Malus Darkblade is the bastard son of one of the most prominent dark elves in Hag Graef. In his quest to prove he is worthy to be called his son he manages to out evil every other dark elf I have had the pleasure of sinking my literary teeth in to. The Darkblade books (4 so far) are a raucous rollercoaster ride of violence and double-dealing. the Warhammer universe is rich in history and beautifully realized in these books. Pick them up, settle back and let the bloody ride begin!
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