The Fifth Ring [Mass Market Paperback]

Mitchell Graham (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 28, 2003

Intricately plotted, with compelling characters, The Fifth Ring by Mitchell Graham is the first volume in an epic fantasy trilogy that tells of a young man's survival against insurmountable odds.

Despite a massive defeat decades ago, Karas Duren, Lord of Alor Sator, is again attempting to conquer the neighbouring kingdoms and bring them under one rule – his own. Now the evil ruler holds a weapon of mass destruction: a single ring left over from the Ancients that will allow him to control people and destroy everything and anyone who chooses to oppose him – including his own brother.

In a small village, a young boy wins a ring in a fencing tournament. Born and raised on a small farm, Mathew has little contact with the outside world, until the day his father is murdered in front of his eyes. Mat kills the murderer in revenge and must run for his life. Joining him is a mysterious priest, a few friends, and his love, Lara. During his flight Mathew discovers unusual powers in the ring, powers that make him one of the most potent men on the planet – and bring him to Duren's attention...A story of courage, love, and valour, this is epic fantasy at its best.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Through sparing prose and spirited dialogue, first-time author Graham spins a brisk adventure packed with plenty of action but very few fully developed characters. In an excavation beneath his palace, the power-mad King Duren finds the remnants of an ancient warrior race and the tools he believes will help him unite the world under one banner (naturally, his). These tools come in the form of five magical rings that supposedly control enormous crystals containing vast arcane power. But when the fifth ring goes missing and ends up in the hands of a young farm boy named Mathew, who happens to be a skilled swordsman, a series of tragic turns leads this unwitting protagonist into a lengthy battle against Duren's forces. Like all stories involving magical rings, this one will endure countless comparisons to Tolkien's Middle Earth epics, but those comparisons aren't particularly apt. With its lack of descriptive detail, this is merely an action tale that happens to be set in a fantasy locale. Smaller in scale than Robert Jordan's enormous volumes and less scholarly than Tolkien, this is still an enjoyable diversion for fantasy fans.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Mitchell Graham was born in New York City and is an attorney in the State of Florida. A former member of the U.S. National Fencing Squad, he represented the U.S. in a number of competitions around the world and won more than thirty-five individual titles in the sport, placing in the top five more than one hundred times over the course of his career. In addition, he holds a doctorate in neuropsychology from the University of Miami. Mr. Graham lives in Miami with his fiancée and is currently at work on his second fantasy novel.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 528 pages
• Publisher: Harper Voyager (January 28, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060506512
• ISBN-13: 978-0060506513
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (73 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #821,719 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars entertaining but compromised, May 6, 2003

By 

"exeuntsl" (Honolulu, HI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Fifth Ring (Mass Market Paperback)

The Fifth Ring is a fun read. Its pacing is fast and the sparse dialogue and storytelling aids the flow.

Perhaps most intriguing is the book's premise: a boy finds a magical ring that gives him powers -- but instead of being truly magical -- and thus not needing explanation -- the ring is actually a remnant of high technology from a civilization lost eons ago in an apocalyptic war. Furthering this premise is Graham's admirable attempt to make the ring scientifically limited. The wielder of a ring can only manipulate energy, and is limited by his knowledge of the physical world. There are many examples provided in the book, but the incident where King Karas's sister kills a man by stopping his heart illustrates the concept well: not only did the sister have to know what a heart looked like, she also had to understand how it functioned. She stops the man's heart by imagining the heart and then constricting its major valves. Unfortunately, this great concept was carried only halfheartedly and Graham dropped science for plot device.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pretty Good Start to a Series, May 15, 2003

By 

Nancy C. Beck (Northwestern New Jersey) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Fifth Ring (Mass Market Paperback)

I put off buying this for quite awhile because I couldn't "look through" the book on Amazon.com, nor could I find it at the local bookstore. I decided to jump in and am glad I did.

To paraphrase an earlier poster, don't expect this to be a Pulitzer Prize winning novel. It's not. But it still makes for a good read, with interesting characters and well-written battle and sword fight scenes. There's also a dash of sci fi sprinkled throughout, as when certain characters refer back to The Ancients, who built different types of machines which were destroyed in some cataclysmic war that killed off most of The Ancients.

IMHO, the most interesting character is Father Thomas. Yes, he's a priest, but he's no ordinary priest...and part of his past life, which hints that it was anything but dull, emerges in this book. Quite a character, and I'm sure we'll get to know more about him as the series continues.

BTW, I agree with the poster who took umbrage with the poster who questioned the "sexual advances" made by Lara toward Mat (Mat is the chap on the cover). I really don't know where this came from; there's some flirting between the two, and Mat starts to notice and feel certain things about Lara, but isn't that normal for a guy in his late teens?

One more thing: There is a slight twist near the end of the book which took me by surprise, happening when it did. I'm sure this is the strand which the author will use to help flesh out the next book in the series.

In short, if you're looking for War and Peace, this ain't it. But if you're looking for a decently-written fantasy that will keep you turning the pages, this should fill the bill.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As Good as Potter, March 7, 2003

A Kid's Review

This review is from: The Fifth Ring (Mass Market Paperback)

My dad got me this book for my birthday and I really loved it. I love science fiction and fantasy and this was one of the best ones I have ever read. The Harry Potter books are my currently favorite, but this is a close second. I actually think that it's just as good in about every way.

The bad guy in this story is named Karas Duren and he'll give you the creeps. He is a mass murderer, who doesn't like the sight of blood.

I thought all of the main characters were excellent too and I loved the battles.