Customer Reviews

The Thieves of Blood : Book 1 (The Blade of the Flame)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Thieves of Blood is the first novel in the Blade of the Flame Trilogy set in the world of Eberron by Tim Waggoner. This novel tells the tale of Diran and Ghaji as they wonder Eberron looking to spread the word on the Silver Flame. To truly understand these characters, I think the reader should first read Mr. Waggoner's short story in Tales of the Last War. The short story is titled "The Blade of the Flame" and tells the story of how these two characters came to travel together. I am very thankful I read that before starting this novel.

The plot of this book is rather tight and there are not many sidebar quests/storylines that will draw the reader's interest away from the main story. The main plot is Diran seeking to rescue a former lover of his from Erdas Cal who is a servant of the Blood of Vol. This journey is a little clichéd at times, but mostly Mr. Waggoner does it in such a way that it doesn't seem old and rehashed. While it doesn't seem new and refreshing it is done well enough to not distract the reader. The plot moves along at a decent to fast pace. I didn't have a hard time reading it at all. In fact the way the plot is written and the way Mr. Waggoner writes it lends itself to easy reading and comprehension of the main points. Although, I will say there are some typos throughout the book that should have been caught, but that does not take away from Mr. Waggoner's efforts here. He can't control that. The ending I think was too ambiguous for this type of novel. I would have liked to see more closure. I realize this is a part of a trilogy, but there still needs to be some type of `end' to the story.

The characters in this book are gems. Great characters, well written and each seems like a believable characters. The character of Tresslar is the only character I have a problem with, he is very clichéd and too `neat' to be in this story. It seems like he is only there to solve something later in the book. The rest of the characters are fantastic. Diran - Assassin turned priest is so well written you can feel his inner struggles. Ghaji is a bit of an enigma but I am confident he will be further fleshed out in later books. The villains are almost perfect too. They act just as one would expect but in ways that are new and refreshing. I just can't say enough about the characters, they truly add to the story, they just aren't there to be on the ride.

Overall, I found this to be a very enjoyable book and has given me faith for the world of Eberron. Mr. Waggoner doesn't throw the unique things of Eberron into the face of the reader, see Keith Baker's books. Mr. Waggoner allows the story to tell itself and doesn't force things to happen. I am eagerly looking forward to the next book in this trilogy. A must read for Eberron fans, I also believe most fantasy fans will enjoy this as well.

Four stars only because of the ending and the Tesslar character. I would have given it 4.5 if I could.

Let me start off by saying that I really enjoyed this novel. While the start of a new series it can also be read as a stand-alone. The basic story-line of the novel is fairly straightforward but interesting and well-written. Diran, an ex-assassin who is now a priest of the silver flame, and his companion, the half-orc Ghaji are travelling the land fighting demons and other aberrations as part of Diran's service to the flame. Along the way they encounter Diran's ex-lover, Makala, who is also an ex-assassin. She is then kidnapped by a strange group of raiders (led by a vampire). Diran and Ghaji set off on a quest to rescue Makala and the others.

While the novel started a little slowly in my opinion, it really improved as it went along. In particular, the characters were well-written and had interesting back-stories, which the author did a nice job of laying out using dreams and flashbacks. The issues and emotions faced by the characters felt 'right' in that I could believe they would react in that way. The inner conflicts faced by the characters were another plus.

My only complaint is I would have liked the 'good guys' to be a little less straight-forward and a little more grey (i.e., not always act like the good guys - one is an ex-assassin after all).

In addition to Diran and Ghaji, I thought the villains of the tale were well done. While a little clichéd at times they were still interesting and well-written. At points you really wonder how Diran and co will overcome these foes.

Plus, while the plot is fairly straight-forward, the author executes it very well. He managed to keep me interested and curious about what would happen next. And to me that is what is important. Can the author keep me vested in the characters and their plight? In this case the answer was yes. The book left me wanting to know more about the characters and in particular what happens next.

My only complaint with the book is that a few scenes seemed unnecessary and contrived. One scene has the heroes rescuing a sailor (actually a pirate) from "The Mire". The scene just didn't seem to fit with the story, except to add a new character who in my opinion was not really necessary. Also there were a few scenes where the characters actions didn't make much sense to me. Such as the opening scene where Diran attacks a shapeshifter who he seems to think is a powerful demon which he would have no hope of defeating.

But, as I said, this book got better as it went along and I actually think the ending was just right. In fact I thought it really made the book. The last several chapters are fast-paced and exciting. The author does an excellent job of putting the reader into the action and letting us know what the characters are thinking and feeling. I don't want to give the ending away, but I really liked it and thought it provided a great insight into what type of person Diran is and how far he has come.

I am looking forward to book 2 in this series and would recommend "Thieves of Blood" to anyone looking for a fun, exciting fantasy tale with lots of action.

I just finished reading Thieves of Blood. Great ending! Wow, that was very well done. I was quite impressed and it was so nasty. I love the main character, Diran. He's such a great character. I love that he was an assassin and now he's a priest. His backstory is awesome. I love Makala too. Oh, poor Makala and Diran. Wow.

I like how it ended though. There's a part with ghouls under a floor that was just totally horrifying. There were a lot of clever moments in the final battle also. Diran made such a clever use of his holy symbol. Being a priest of the Silver Flame has its definite advantages.

Anyway, it was a very well-written book with exciting scenes and great characters. I look forward to reading the rest of the series. Diran and Ghaji are a good team and I look forward to seeing their further adventures.

The creator of Eberron, Keith Baker would be proud of this one.

Paul Genesse

www.paulgenesse.com
www.paulgenesse.blogspot.com

Author of The Golden Cord
Book One of the Iron Dragon Series
Five Star Books (April 2008)

I must start by saying that anyone wanting to read this book should start with Tim Waggoner's short story from Tales of the Last War anthology. The short story introduces the characters and gives a good starting point for Thieves of Blood. I really enjoyed Waggoner's characters in this book. They are definitely a step above the average, run of the mill, fantasy characters that populate many novels. In fact I think that Diran, the main character, is one of the most interesting characters I've seen in a long time. The main plot is not quite as groundbreaking in that it is mainly a "chase" story. Something gets taken, now we have to go get it back. Not bad, but not new either. Still the characters themselves make it interesting enough. I am looking forward to reading the next book in the series.

Thus far, I've only read the Eberron books by Keith Baker. I was interested in seeing what another author could do with this world . . and I am glad I did.

"Thieves of Blood" is an action-packed, character-driven novel. I was pleasantly surprised at how well written the book is. It is very different from Keith Baker's novels, in that Mr. Waggoner doesn't have the daunting task of creating a whole world. Instead, he expands upon it . . seamlessly, I might add.

The characters are wonderfully written, and are very memorable. The only problem I have with the quasi-once-evil main character, Diran, is that his morals are so high right now, one doesn't believe he was capable of things he might have done in the past.

There is one minor logic problem in the book, but it still bothered me. Early on, Diran and Ghaji are given aliases while talking with the warforged on Nowhere Island. But during this conversation, Diran calls Ghaji by his real name, and no one seems to take notice. This kind of editing in a book always bothers me.

Other than this simple mistake, the book is absolutely a joy. It is a good, quick read . . . but this is no way diminishes the epic feel of the story. I highly recommend this book.

This was the first Eberron book that I read, and is still the best. The book does a great job of introducing you to the world of Eberron, by doing it in a natural way and not just throwing things in your face.
The character really make the story worth reading, they are well defined and make you want to just keep reading till you are done the book. While this book does share some similar details with other books, the character make it shine through the cliche. I found the characters to be on par with R.A. Salvatore's in complexity and believability.
Once you are done this book you will just want to jump into the next one. If you haven't read the story in Tales of the Last War about these characters you should, it gives you a bit better of a starting point for them, but it isn't necessary.

Thieves of Blood by Tim Waggoner
Thieves of Blood is the first book in the Blade of the Flame trilogy. The second book is Forge of the Mindslayers and the third book is Sea of Death. The Blade of the Flame trilogy is set in the Eberron setting of Dungeons and Dragons. Tim Waggoner has written one other Eberron novel titled Lady Ruin. He has written a vast amount of other novels. His work includes; a Hyperswarm novel titled Defender, the Godfire series (The Orchard of Dreams and Heart's Wound), the Nekropolis series (Nekropolis, Dead Streets, and Dark War), Last of the Lycans series (Monarch of the Moon), Dying for It, The Harmony of Society, a Dark Ages: Vampire book called Gangrel, Necropolis, an Exalted novel titled A Shadow Over Heaven, Like Death, Darkness Wakes, Pandora Drive, Cross Country, two novels in the Dragonlance: New Adventures series (Temple of the Dragonslayer and Return of the Sorceress), a novel based on Nightmare on Elm Street called Protegé, and a Stargate SG-1 novel titled Valhalla. He has written a vast amount of short stories for various anthologies and magazines, and has two story-collections titled All Too Surreal and Broken Shadows. Thieves of Blood was released in May 2006 and was published by Wizards of the Coast, Inc.

Diran Bastiaan left the life of an assassin behind him and turned to be a priest of the Silver Flame. However, his past catches up to him in the form of his former lover, Makala. After saving Diran and his half-orc companion Ghaji from a changeling, Diran and Makala reflect on old times. However, before they reminiscence for too long, ships appear in the darkening sky line. The Black Fleet has come and they are taking hostages. Unfortunately, Makala is captured. With the help of Ghaji and a friendly elf acrobat named Yvka, Diran goes on a search to find his missing love. What he discovers alarms him. Apparently, the famous adventurer Erdis Cai isn't dead and is leading the Black Fleet. Diran may not be prepared enough for the trials to come.

Criticisms:
1) Ghaji/ Yvka. The characters were really great characters, but the budding romance that is developing between them was a problem. It sprang up from almost no where. There was some significant moments between the two, but they didn't seem get the point across. Also, the sudden interest in one another came off awkwardly. There didn't seem to be any real attraction between the two, which was the problem. If you compare Ghaji and Yvka's relationship to Diran and Makala's, you see a huge difference in the amount of time that was used build it up. While Diran and Makala's relationship is important to the overall plot, it would have been nice to see the same time being taken to develop the budding relationship. Otherwise, this just come off as rushed and awkward as possible.
2) Descriptions. A small issue with Thieves of Blood is with the character descriptions. When we first meet Diran and Ghaji, the descriptions of the characters were cut up. For example, we first meet the duo walking down a street with very basic descriptions. Then right after basic description we get some exposition and establishing shots of the city and area. Then two pages later we get a large section describing Diran in more detail. While normally, this wouldn't have been an issue, here it just comes across as awkward. It seems to happen with every character introduced. There are short bursts of description, followed by a page or so of something else, and back into a more detailed description. It's a little jarring and does take you out of the story.

Praises:
1) Protagonists. The main characters were diverse and interesting. They each added something unique and exciting to the story. Also, there never seemed to be a weak character in the cast, which is surprising. The closest character that could have been considered weak, Yvka, still was very worth while and interesting. The interest with Yvka could be due to her mysterious background, which helped to overpowered her lack of presence. The same could be said about the halfling pirate Hinto, but his condition made up for any set backs. You never knew what Hinto would do in different situations and he really surprised me most of the time. Tresslar, while having the shortest presence in the novel, really seemed like one of the more interesting minor characters. His past really gave the character something special. He came across like you would want to know more about him. The main characters is where this story shines. Diran, Ghaji, and Makala were great characters. Makala was just great. She had some wonderful screens while being held captive that really made you care for her and want things to turn out for the best. Her relationship with Diran never came across as fake or made up, and at times was really touching. With Diran and Ghaji, they worked well together. If they were separated, I don't think either character would have had much of an impact as they did while together. They came across as through they were real friends and really played up the other's strengths. All in all, the protagonists were great.
2) Story. The story was very straightforward, but in a good way. It wasn't bogged down with side quests and stories, which cause it to be a quick and enjoyable read. It kept to the point. This helped out with the feeling of urgency that you should feel with these kinds of stories. It felt like Makala's life, along with the lives of the others who are also captives, were on the line and important. There were some side trips, but they were integral to the plot. Finding out more information about the Black Fleet is a logical step one would take while searching for it. Finding a former member of the crew is yet another logical step. There was one side trip that felt weird, being struck in a mire, but it wasn't dragged out and was resolved rather quickly. When everything is said and done, this is how you want to do a straightforward story.
3) Antagonists. The villains were fantastic. They didn't seem to be cliché while being cliché. A better way to put that is, the villains did have cliché moments, but they were written in a way that they still came across as unique. Onkar, the Black Fleet's first mate, was the more cliché and the weaker of the main villains. He was your usual henchmen type, be evil and do what your told. However, he still was menacing. The main villain, Erdis Cai also was cliché, but still a very good character. He made his clichés work for him, making him all the more memorable and terrifying. Nothing seemed to phase him and he gave off this air of confidence that only villains seem to have. While with most villains it would be kind of silly, Erdis Cai made it terrifying. When he popped up throughout the story, it gave me chills. He took menacing to another level. However, the best villain in Thieves of Blood, and the most frightening, is Jarlain. From her first appearance, she was formidable. You could almost sense that she had hidden power and that you would never have a chance against her. As the story went on, you really start to feel bad about her situation and learn more interesting things about who she is. That's what makes a great villain, and Jarlain pulled it off wonderfully. Overall, the villains were cliché, but they still made a great impact.

Side Notes:
1) Editing. There are some very silly editing mistakes that popped up from time to time while reading. The most memorable mistake is having two misspelled words within a page of each other. It kind of detracted from the story, but not for long.
2) Vampire Pirates. What's not to like about vampire pirates? It's as cool as it sounds.
3) Cover Art. The best way to describe the cover art for Thieves of Blood is epic. It's just epic in every way. It's very action heavy, with Diran seemingly rushing at Erdis Cai to save Makala. The colors do a good job in reflecting the dark mood that's in the novel. There are some awesome poses and it helps in adding to overall feeling of the cover. Also, its notable that something akin to this does happen in the story, which I find very satisfying. All in all, the cover art is just epic.

Overall: 4/5
Final Thoughts:
Thieves of Blood is a good way to start off a trilogy. There wasn't much that really holds it back, aside from a few things that can be ignored. The relationship that suddenly seemed to develop between Ghaji and Yvka came from no where. There wasn't enough time devoted to their budding romance. All we got were some looks here or a word there. It just felt sudden. Also, character descriptions came off as jarring. Having a brief description followed by dialogue or exposition, then a huge paragraph dedicated to detail, did take me out of the story for a brief time. However, everything else seemed to work great. The protagonists and antagonists were just great. They both added something to the story. With the protagonists, there were some great backgrounds that really made me want to read more about them. With the antagonists, they were cliché but they used their clichés to a wonderful effect. Also, the story was wonderful. This is how you should write a straightforward fantasy novel. The straightforward nature gave the plot a feeling of importance and made it feel like something was on the line. Overall, would I recommend Thieves of Blood? Yes, this is a great story with some fantastic characters. Plus it has vampire pirates, what's not to like about that?

I've started reading fantasy again, and was looking for a D&D novel to get back into it. I tried a couple of authors and then on a whim purchased this book. I've been really very pleased at the how good Thieves of Blood is! I look forward to reading more by Tim Waggoner.

THIS MUST BE MY FAVORITE BOOK FROM EBERRON... THE TRILOGY WAS OK... BUT THE FIRST BOOK OF THIS TRILOGY WAS THE BEST I READ... PEOPLE THAT LOVE PIRATES AND VAMPIRES THIS BOOK IS THE ONE...

Thieves of Blood is the continuation of the Blade of Flame short story found in the Anthology book. This book is a great read. There are some parts that will leave you to scratch your head in wonder but over all is good. Quick paced and definitly a character worth bringing back into other books.
Diran has the potential by comparison to be Eberron's version of Drizzt. In my own opinion better because there is no conveluted blood ties and extra character to mess with the tales.