Customer Reviews

Empire Of The East

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

The Empire of the East is an omnibus edition of a fantasy trilogy that includes The Broken Lands, The Black Mountains, and Ardneh's World (the last story is a revised version of Changling Earth). This series follows the adventures of Rolf, a sixteen year old peasant boy in the lands of the Satrap Ekuman. When his parents are killed and his home destroyed, Rolf goes looking for the killers and his sister Lisa. He meets the peddler Mewick, who helps him bury his parents, and then accompanies the peddler until they are stopped by three soldiers of the Castle. While the soldiers are distracted by the contents of the peddler's pack, Rolf goes beserk and throws a rock at the closest trooper. Although he misses, Mewick doesn't, and they kill all three soldiers. However, their actions are seen and they immediately have to run from other soldiers. Through these deeds, Rolf became a member of the Western resistance.

In The Broken Lands, Rolf and his teammates search for the Elephant, a very powerful thing or creature of the Old World.

In The Black Mountains, Rolf and his teammates follow Lord Chup and a golden charm to the Black Mountains, where they encountered a demi-god.

In Ardneh's World, Rolf dreams of Ardneh and the transformation of the Old World of science into a new world of magic, and follows his dreams to Ardneh itself.

This series is one of the most enthralling tales of magical adventure that I have ever encountered. All of the Swords and the Gods books are based on this series, but, while quite enjoyable in themselves, the sequels have never really achieved the same level of fascination.

Recommended for Saberhagen fans and anyone who enjoys well crafted tales of sword and sorcery.

-Arthur W. Jordin

Anytime I get sick of the over-written, under-edited garbage that many publishing houses pass off as fantasy literature these days, I turn to my 1979 Ace Books edition of Empire of the East.

Saberhagen's sparse, fast-paced style may seem harsh to people who grew up with the 90's and new millennium bloated literary vomit of Robert Jordan and his ilk; however, anyone who is willing to step past the "more words = better writing" mindset will be happily surprised by the energy, characterization, plotting, and true sense of proper conclusion that Empire of the East provides.

Empire of the East is a fine example of late 60's, early 70's fantasy: characters grow in direct correlation to their deeds and not through some unappetizing mechanism of video game-like power levels that has become the norm these days; moral and ethical issues are explored through the stories and not through the preachy 40-page socio-political rants made famous by Terry Goodkind; and, best of all, it's a rousing good tale that you can get through in a few days and walk away from deeply satisfied.

I would recommend Empire of the East to anyone, but would also warn that it is not for everyone. Most people who only know fantasy that reads tolerably well when skipping one page in eight will need to develop a taste for books like Empire of the East. Still, it is well worth doing if you are looking for an exceptional book that can be read and re-read once every five or so years over your entire lifetime.

This is the book which gave rise the the "Swords" series. An wonderful tale of a peasant boy caught up in a world of magic which is not quite what it seems. This is without a doubt the one of the best fantasy books ever written. It is down to earth (no passing through realms the human mind cannot grasp) but written so well and with such real characters that few books ever compare. Characters are not black and white and a "villan" can later become a "hero" as each person must answer to their own code of ethics. Also any dog lover has got to fall in love with Draffut who perfectly captures the unconditional loyalty of mans best friend. If you enjoy fantasy this is a must read.

Fred Saberhagen is best known for his grim depiction of hard science fiction, in his Berserker series. So much so that sometimes you hear of the "Berserker hypothesis", as to why there might not be much sentient life out there. Yet, for decades, he has also written well received fantasy. This book is a recent reissue of what was originally several short stories seemlessly stitched into one organic narrative.

A strange and original blend of fantasy with high technology. True, this is strictly a fantasy. But Saberhagen seemingly places it in the far future after a devastating nuclear war. We see a still functioning tank, nuclear powered, though not as capable as Keith Laumer's Bolos. Plus, throughout the text, there are continual references, and instances of surviving technology.

These are sometimes invoked with deliberate hilarity. As when a magic spell sets fire to a villain's court. He then calmly uses a bright red fire extinguisher to snuff it out. The utter incongruity of this scene would make marvellous filming!

I read this book over 20 years ago and, along with most of Moorcock, is one of my few teenage fantasy faves to hold up to an adult rereading. The characters are three-dimensional and the plot progresses in a logical fashion. I later read the first three Swords Books and found them to be progressively unreadable. In contrast, Empire (to be reprinted in '03) tells a story that is honestly compelling rather than volume after volume of endlessly overwritten product for sale. How many trilogies/series can you say that about?

Excellent epic by Saberhagan. Long tale of a post-apocalyptic Earth and how magic and magical beings good and evil, have been loosed upon the Earth. Good read.

I read this book as a young teenager and ever since I have used it to judge the entertainment value of all other fantasy-fiction books. By itself it is better than the berserker series. The deep creativity and well thought-out plots make you not only want to suspend your disbelief, but throw it away all together.

I have to review this book mostly because of the large negative review. I read this back when I was in high school which was over 15 years ago. It was probably the most compelling fantasy story I'd ever read at that time.

I do think this was created for young adults but what the negative reviewer failed to notice is that these books were written between 1968 and 1973 which was a good time before I think "anything" became cliched. Fred saberhagen was a fantasy writer in a time when fantasy hadnt even taken root in even the alternative crowd.

For it's time I trully think this book is a masterpiece. I completely recommend it to anyone who loves fantasy along with most of the other books he's written. To this day Fred Saberhagen is the author I remember more then any other. My personal belief is that he's up there with the greats of fantasy writing.

Fred Saberhagen is an icon in the world of fantasy and science fiction writing. Some of the first sci-fi I read was his work. His style has evolved since the fist book in this trilogy, the Broken Lands.
The Broken Lands tells the story of Rolf, a farm boy whose family is murdered by the Eastern Empire army that has conquered his homeland. Rolf, while searching for his missing little sister. In his journey he joins the small resistance and gets swept into the search for the Elephant, a mythical beast prophesied to help free them.
The Elephant is part of the Old World. The story revolves around the fact that the world of technology was destroyed and the world of magic arose. The Elephant is a relic of the old world that still works, a nuclear powered tank that has remained hidden in a secure bunker for thousands of years. Apparently, technology from the Old World is far advanced of what we have today.
Rolf and his allies defeat the local Satrap of the East, but in the process, they lose the Elephant and all it's power. The book ends with the resistance preparing for a larger war against the Empire.
This first book has a fast pace, but leaves a lot of the details unexplained. It is a little unbelievable, but the pacing and characters are good, so it is a pleasant read. Luckily the next two books are much better.
In the Black Mountain, the Eastern Empire's local lord is Som the Dead. He is an undead sorcerer that has been given control over the Western lands. In this book, you see just how evil the East is. It is full of political infighting and deceit.
The story is told from Rolf's point of view as well as Chup, a former Satrap of the East who was captured by the resistance in the last book. Rolf and the resistance go up against Som and his demon minion, Zapranoth. In this book you see more of the technology and get a better idea of the fall of the Old World. The characters are much better defined and written. There is plenty of action, which I like.
This story is also about redemption. Chup turns from the path of evil and defects to the Western armies. To be honest, I like Chup's character the best. Chup has an iron code of honor and a blunt honesty that is admirable. He turns out to be the hero that defeats Zapranoth.
In Ardneh's World, we meet the Emperor of the East, an immortal named John Ominor. He has command of the most powerful wizards and demons on the planet. We also meet Ardneh, the Godlike being indirectly supporting the West. This book is the ultimate confrontation between the two.
The power of the east is anchored in the might of the demon Orcus, the most powerful being in existence. The story tells of the creation of magic and demons by the Old World.
There was a great nuclear war in the past. The scientists of the Old World developed a technology against nuclear war that changed the rules of physics. This change caused advanced technology to stop working and brought into being the powers of magic. Orcus was created by a nuclear explosion that went off at the same time that the rules changed. Any act of violence that happened at that exact moment created a demon. The more violent and powerful the act, the more powerful the demon. But the rules of magic were not fixed, and have slowly been sliding back to where science works again.
Which is where Ardneh comes in. Ardneh is a self aware computer designed to reverse the change and allow science to come back into ascendancy. Ardneh is a benevolent being who stands for all that was good from the Old World. He has set his course against the Empire of the East and all the evil that supports it.
Rolf is recruited by Ardneh to assist in the final battle against Orcus and the Eastern Armies. The story ends with the rules being partially reversed and Orcus is turned back into the nuclear explosion that birthed him. But the rules did not totally reverse. They are now equal. Science and magic powers coexist in the New World.
This story is a prequel to Fred's massively successful fantasy series The Books of Swords. It tells the back story of Ardeh and Draffut that figure so much in that series.

Empire of the East is one of the few books I have read which genuinely leave you wishing for a sequel, not because there is anything missing, but because you are sad to leave this amazing story so soon (The book is also a real page turner). I hugely enjoyed my stay in Saberhagens rich landscape, and envy anyone who is about to enter it for the first time.