The Crimson Sword (Legend of Asahiel, Book 1) (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "Midnight shadows filled the forest, spectral images born of moonlight filtering through a thicket of gnarled oak and shagbark hickory, of pine and spruce, of..." (more)
Key Phrases: Crimson Sword, Demon Queen, Sword of Asahiel (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Marred by wooden prose and lethargic pacing, Thompson's earnest fantasy debut, the first of a trilogy, tries hard to follow in Tolkien's and Terry Brooks's footsteps (Brooks provides a blurb), but only half succeeds. The story opens with a promising air of mystery with the murder of King Sorl, the despotic ruler of Alson, one of the several kingdoms of Petania. The assassin, known only as the Shadow, was hired by Soric, Sorl's disinherited older son, now an evil wizard intent on claiming his birthright. The widowed Queen Ellebe seeks out her younger son, Torin, who's been living for 19 years as Jarom, a mere mushroom farmer's son, unaware of his royal heritage. Once he recovers from the shock of learning he's really a prince, Jarom/Torin resolves to overthrow Soric, an effort that will involve him in a quest for a legendary sword. This kindhearted book employs all the familiar fantasy tropes—elven folk, dragons, demons, a fair lady—but unfortunately Prince Torin's vanilla personality is about as exciting as a hobbit without a ring. The more interesting Shadow vanishes too quickly and appears later only rarely. Hopefully, the next installment will have more bite.
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Review

"A fantastic adventure with fun characters and events that really aren’t what they seem." -- Robert Newcomb, author of The Scrolls of the Ancients

"A fast-paced tale from a talented new author whose characters propel you through a terrific adventure. I loved it!" -- John Saul

"A richly detailed world of shadow assassins, demon queens, and magical swords. Jarom is a sympathetic and engaging hero." -- Library Journal

"Eldon Thompson wields more than just a little magic in his debut novel." -- Terry Brooks

"This captivating tale will have you turning the pages late into the night." -- Terry Brooks

In the tradition of high fantasy, this book belongs in most fantasy collections. -- Library Journal, May 2005

Jarom is a sympathetic and engaging hero who fights for his principles and for his duty. -- Library Journal, May 2005

Thompson's first novel creates a richly detailed world of shadow assassins, demon queens, and magical swords. -- Library Journal, May 2005

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 544 pages
• Publisher: Eos; Stated First Edition edition (May 3, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060741503
• ISBN-13: 978-0060741501
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.3 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,067,946 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Compelling Action Adventure, May 10, 2005

By	Ron Simmons (USA) - See all my reviews

It's not often I feel the need to defend a book from another's review, but after reading this novel, I have to laugh at some of the editorial comments made by Publisher's Weekly. While I don't disagree completely with some of their views, I think they might be cheating a lot of readers out there with their dismissive tone.

First off, they seem to spend a lot of time saying that this is the same old fantasy quest adventure, and in truth, it does seem that way in the beginning. As it goes along, however, the author employs some very specific twists that make it anything but. Easy to miss, I suppose, when your job is to read and review 500 pages a day.

The other gripe seems to be with the hero, Jarom. Clearly, he is not the most exciting character in the book. But neither was Frodo in LOTR. Nor Luke Skywalker in Star Wars, nor Gulliver in Gulliver's Travels. This story, like those ones, depends greatly on its ensemble cast. And the overall cast is terrific. Several characters might seem cliched at first, but over the course of the novel, most of them develop quite nicely -- Jarom included.

All in all, this is a capable, mostly stand-alone novel that sets up what I hope will be an intriguing adventure to come. The quest portion of the novel does tend to drag at times, but the incredible amount of action throughout the rest of the book more than makes up for it. And even when the writing does slow down, it never does so as much as Tolkien's. "Wooden prose" and "lethargic pacing"? Consider Tolkien the master! It makes me wonder, when was the last time anyone at PW actually read Tolkien?

Speaking of which, why is it that every new fantasy writer who comes along gets trashed for not being J.R.R.? Is it just a fantasy reviewer's shortcut, or what? I mean, the Model T was a legendary vehicle, yes. But I for one am sure grateful that automakers didn't stop there!

Bottom line, in this reader's opinion, is that if you enjoy fantasy adventure and would be interested in a fresh take on the epic quest, then The Crimson Sword won't disappoint. If, on the other hand, you believe that fantasy began -- and should have ended -- with The Lord of the Rings, then by all means, dust off those tomes and give them another read instead.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Predictable copy of copy, November 30, 2005

By	Stefan Ekman (Göteborg, Sweden) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Maybe I expected too much, but this must be the disappointment of the year. Thompson's novel offers an extremely predictable story, copied from a number of writers who in turn have copied Tolkien. The characters are one-dimensional, the portrayal of women is abominable and the only slight surprise came in chapter one.

The story can be found in any number of derivative fantasy novels: young man finds himself to be prince, finds ancient artefact and saves the world from (also ancient) evil.

I wish I had something good to say about this book apart from the fact that the language is reasonable correct, but unfortunately it is based on the most common stereotypes in the genre and the tale has been told hundreds of times since *The Lord of the Ring*, mostly better. I was constantly hoping that the writer would get a new idea (there are possibilities) but in vain. If you are desperate to find something of interest, it is possible to read the three women (yes, only three! Less than in LotR; not bad) as representing the trinity of the Godess (mother, maiden, crone): a queen who makes a half-hearted bid at power but is killed long before she can do anything interesting; a girl in love with the hero but prefers to stay at home and heal sick and wounded when he gallivants off to save the world; and a sexy, scantily dressed, evil demon queen.

If this is your first fantasy novel, it might not seem so bad, but if you are reasonably well-read in the genre, the chances are that you see it for the imitation it is. It is dedicated to Terry Brooks "for showing me how it's done even if I haven't learned a thing". Brooks might not be the best of models (opinions differ) but I cannot but agree: Eldon Thompson really hasn't learnt a thing.

11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not the fantasy you'd expect, August 23, 2005

By	Gayle Surrette "omnivorous reader" (Brandywine, Maryland) - See all my reviews

The Crimson Sword is book one of the Legend of Asahiel trilogy. Krynwall falls to an unknown wizard and his dark forces. Queen Ellebe escapes to seek help. And we begin reading thinking this is the usual quest story - find the sword, kill the wizard, and all will be right with the world again. But is anything ever that simple?

Jarom has grown up in the simple forest village of Diln. He's the village Fason or peacekeeper and the only son of the head of the village Elders. But after Jarom and his best friend, Allion, save Queen Ellebe from her pursuers, they are locked out of the Elder's deliberations. When Jarom is finally allowed into the chamber it is to have his world torn apart and turned upside down. He learns that he is Torin, son of Ellebe and King Sorl and he is expected to go to a neighboring kingdom and raise an army to save the kingdom before the wizard can consolidate his power.

Jarom feels he has no choice but to agree to this scheme and he and Allion set off. But there is more to being a king than being birthed by the Queen. While Jarom has been trained all his life to be a leader and to settle disputes, he feels adrift as the underpinnings of his world are shifted and his place in it changed. He refuses his new name and reluctantly realizes that he must do what he can for the people. But without his identity as Jarom, he struggles to gain solid footing in this new reality he finds himself in.

While the quest is outwardly a search for the Crimson Sword of Asahiel, the true quest is Jarom's search to find himself and his place in the world. Can he be a leader of men? Can he become a King? Does he want to be King?

Along the journey, Jarom meets with others who help, hinder, confuse, advise, challenge, love, and skew his worldview. There's a lot going on in this book: high adventure, love, friendship, meddling wise men, and monstrous demons. There's something for everyone as Jarom strives to save his village, the kingdom, and discover himself. The big surprise for me is that while this is book one of a trilogy, it can and does stand-alone.

What's even more surprising is that this is a first novel. Eldon Thompson has written a different quest story that has enough twists and turns to entertain even the most jaded fantasy reader. There are some rough spots as Jarom whines about his fate and acts as if the world owes him something for being different than what he believed it to be. Seeing the control this author has over the material indicates that as his skills grow with the next book, the story should gain even more depth and twistedness.