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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A good read for the open minded, March 18, 1999
By A Customer
As with the previous Starshield book (Sentinels), Nightsword offers a unique blend of the fantasy and science fiction genres. Understandably, any combination of these two different genres may result in story line elements that some readers find difficult to accept. I felt that Weis and Hickman's attempt at streamlining the two genres had some interesting results. However, I did find it a little difficult to believe in space faring vessels that had closer resemblance's to sea going ships. Nonetheless, their method of introducing dragons, elves and minitors as alien species was engaging. I did feel that Nightsword had a weaker plot than its predecessor. There did not seem to be as much action and the ending was anticlimatic. Though it did promise the involvement of planet Earth in the third volume of the Starshield saga. The characters in Nightsword are typical of Weis and Hickman. They have close resemblance to character types in some of their other works. Griffiths does have a likable character. he is portrayed as gullible, naive and sometimes funny. He is not the typical action adventure type you would expect to find as the main character of a fantasy/SF story line. However, his link to the mantle does place him in a unique position. A role that he obviously would rather do without. While Nightsword lacked some of the power of its predecessor and to other works by Weis and Hickman, it was still an enjoyable read. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys fantasy and science fiction and has an open mind. I am looking forward to the next volume in the saga.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A unique gem of unknown number of facets, December 30, 2002
This review is from: Nightsword: A Starshield Novel (Mass Market Paperback)
The first Starshield novel introduced us to a galaxy that was beyond our wildest imaginations, literally. Fantasy stories that have come close to integrating technology into the story line is such stories as the Darkover novels. But, even Darkover used psionics and crystal lattice technology. This new "Starshield" universe is one that starts out with a bang that is followed by the sonic boom in its wake. It integrates the principles of "mysticism" and "technology" to create a universe that is at once both magical and technological. In this world, you can have the technologically savy spy and also have the great sorcerer in the same person. Combining the aspects of fantasy adventure with the grand space fleets of space opera. This is a collaborative book and somehow I think that the authors used everything they learned from their previous 9 book series, "The Death Gate Cycle", to improve upon their new series. Explaining how such a "universe" composed of both magic and technology is difficult, but not impossible. This book certainly requires a new level of belief, that the fantasy or sci-fi genre has already created. The second book of the Starshield series starts off with a prologue of events 53 years before the end of the first book. Then it continues immediately after the first book in the Chapters of Alpha. The Mantle of Kendis-dai is real and therefore logically the Nightsword and the Starshield are real also. This is a story of the mad and somewhat enigmatic quest of 6 factions striving to retrieve the Nightsword in its last resting place. Along the journey, the book recounts various tales and legends which fill in the gaps left out in the history of the first book. Various questions about the "quantum wave fronts" are answered like how exactly does one travel from one quantum wave to another with several types of engines? The story is along the same lines as a treasure hunt, with secret maps with the X that marks the spot, to various betrayals for the treasure. Except this is a treasure that everyone wants, the power to shape reality itself. This book also explains why Griffiths, one of the protagonists of the story, has met only humans among the stars so far. The hands of various contributors are seen in this story, in addition to the authors. The people at the Starshield website has helped add their own views to the story, thereby enriching it. Many subtle mysteries are in this story, which replaces the gap caused by the rather lack luster plot line as compared to the first book. A fine sequel to "The Mantle of Kendis-dai".
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Can't wait for more!, July 28, 2000
This second installment of the Starshield series is a stunning achievement. Now that the reader is familiar with the nature of the Starshield universe one can fully appreciate the story. While not as well known as Weis and Hickman's Dragonlance saga, this series has all the promise of being as epic on a stellar level. The secrets revealed in the final pages of this book are such that I cannot wait to read the third installment. Unfortunately, I have heard no news of the next book being written. It would be a shame to kill the series on such a power and gripping novel. I highly recommend this book.
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