Customer Reviews

The First Swords: The Book of Swords Volumes 1, 2, & 3

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I am surprised at the some of the comments in the reviews below, because contrary to what they said, I found this series NOT to be standard fantasy fare. First of all, these books are linked to his earlier works such as Empire of the East, which are more Sci-Fi in nature. These books take place many millenia after the events of Empire of the East, many of the big main characters in that book have now become worshipped as gods. The series starts out with a bunch of new gods who have decided to play a game with men as chesspieces. To facilitate this game they have the god Vulcan forge 12 Swords of varying powers and then scatter them around the earth. They then sit back and watch how events unfold, presumably betting on various outcomes. But the real drama in the books is played out on earth, as various Swords come into possession of different people and are used for greatly varying purposes. I found the powers of the Swords themselves to be well-thought out and in many cases unprecedented in fantasy literature. One Sword makes it possessor appear as a loved/feared one, one gives the possessor invulnerability in battle against spells or weapons, one cuts through stone as easily as butter, one heals any wound, one controls minds, etc etc etc. The characters are less well-thought out than the Swords, but the tightly written plots are enough to keep the Reader interested. In the background of all this lurks one of the most interesting characters, the Emperor, who is some kind of magician of unsurpassed skill, but who rarely involves himself in human events. But this is no gray-bearded oldster in a conical hat, the Emporer wanders around the world, showing up briefly in the oddest places, hanging out mostly with the common people. Thus he has become something like a folk hero, who many believe does not exist. Who is he, exactly? And what kind of power does he really have? Where did he come from? And what does he want? For those answers you have to read all the books, not only the original trilogy, but the 8 books that follow. I highly suggest you do so.

I first heard of these books by chance from an old friend, when I began reading the series I had just recently finished "The Sword of Truth" series(Terry Goodkind) and "The Wheel of Time" series(Robert Jordan) although Saberhagen's conversational aspects were a little under par compared with the rest, his sheer creativity and plot concept took a gigantic leap ahead of any other series I have read thus far. Definetely a pillar a fun in the great halls of Fantasy. A must read, indeed.

I just got finished reading this book. To tell the truth some of the reading was slow, however there were times when I couldnt put the book down. The characters are likeable and the story line is good. It kind of depends on your reading preference. If you like good vs evil in a fantasy surounding you should love this book!

I remember picking up these books as a kid, reading the first 30 pages and then let it sit on my shelf for 2-3 years. When I finally got around to reading them, however, I found myself itching for the next book and quickly caught up to the publishing schedule. After that it was like withdrawls - waiting and waiting for the next Sword book was torturous and then i would gobble it down in a weekend when it finally arrived.
My only negative critiques are these:
1. The first book of the series is very slow (and by book I mean the introduction of the story and the storyline of the first sword). It will take some constitution to get through it. After that it is gets better and better.
2. There are a lot of books. Be prepared to enjoy yourself so much that you end up buying them all.
3. Dispite how good these books were, they never matched the quality of Empire of the East (a five star if I ever read one). My recommendation would be to read the first three books, then go back and read Empire of the East. That's the order I read them in and I am glad I did.

I have recently re-read this series and really enjoyed it. Although this series ties in with the Empire of the East you need not read it to enjoy the Swords books.
This series is primarily good fantasy fun with a lot of action and some original ideas that kept me interested throughout the three books. Dont expect a lot of character development or full resolution of all the plot lines. What you can expect is a lot of fun and a few suprises as well as some very imaginative story devices.
I view this series as a bit more novelized than the Conan series or Fafrd and the Grey Mouser books. Im somewhat reminded of the Elric saga but with more action and fun and less of the gloom and despair. Fans of Brust's Taltos series might like the Swords series also although the Swords series is more genre derived and defined.
I gave the Swords trilogy four stars instead of five simply because I do not believe the series will have the staying power like that of Tolkien, Donaldson, Brooks etc....

Saberhagen writes at his best with this fun tale of 12 magical swords forged by the gods for mankind. Though there's not much originality with the idea of swords with special powers, that is an unimportant fact, as the events keep the pages turning. The storytelling is so graceful that the historical saga of the gods interweaves well with the plot. Bottom line: You get 3 books in 1 that you'll enjoy.

This book will never be mistaken as great literature, but it sure was a fun read. Lots of nice plot devices, and a unique story idea!

After only reading the first book, I plan to purchase the entire series. Perhaps I'm a sucker for collectables, but this collection seems too good to pass up. If you like the Sword series, I'd also suggest two other authors.

The first is Roger Zelazny. The Amber series is full of intrigue and action, not to mention it is 10 books long. Good stuff. You can get the 1000+ page complete series in an unabridged "big book".

Second is R.A. Salvatore's Demon series. Demon Awakens, Demon Spirit, and Demon Apostile are 3 of the best literary works I have ever read. Even now, the series continues with a fresh take on the aftermath of the 3 original books. Also a must have.

Hope this helps you make your decision =)

I've generally liked this book and the series as a whole. The concept of a world where the gods create a set of swords so powerful that the swords can affect and destroy their makers was fascinating.

In addition, following Mark, a normal human boy who must cope with the gods, evil wizards and other hazards was also very interesting.

The only problem with the book are the characters. They are not really deep or evolving. They appear just as plot instruments, just devices to pull the plot along and do not really give the impression they are real, live beings with emotions and thoughts.

I have read both the swords trilogies several times over the last 20 years or so and was pleased to see they still have legs (even as I find mine don't work so well).

Saberhagen creates a unique fantasy world with a cautionary back story (essentially man, at a technological peak, nocked himself back to the stone age as Einstein predicted). In this world technology has been supplanted by magic, though some remaining artifacts hint at that tech peak, and human society has evolved from that apocalypse into a kind of feudalism.

The Gods, bored with the human experience, devise a game to play amongst the humans. They task Vulcan with forging 12 magical swords to be dispersed amongst various individuals. It turns out Vulcan made them a bit too well.......

Saberhagen creates compelling characters and set pieces that move this story of war, greed, friendship, and love to a satisfying conclusion.

It's not perfect however. Characters would have benefited from a bit more depth, it was never really clear how the game the gods were playing worked exactly either.