Coming of Wisdom (Book 2 of the Seventh Sword) (Mass Market Paperback)

by Dave Duncan (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
The Goddess had rescued Wallie Smith from certain death, endowed him with a magnificent new body, and gifted him with the legendary Sapphire Sword of Chioxin. She asked only one service in return...

So Wallie became the Goddess' champion -- and promptly found himself on the losing side in a battle against magics far beyond any the priests of the Goddess could hope to summon, After eons of exile, sorcerers walked the World again, claiming lands and souls for their Fire God.

Wallie quickly found that swords were no match for spells -- and how could mere mortals prevail against the powers of magic?

From the Inside Flap
The Goddess had rescued Wallie Smith from certain death, endowed him with a magnificent new body, and gifted him with the legendary Sapphire Sword of Chioxin. She asked only one service in return...

So Wallie became the Goddess' champion -- and promptly found himself on the losing side in a battle against magics far beyond any the priests of the Goddess could hope to summon, After eons of exile, sorcerers walked the World again, claiming lands and souls for their Fire God.

Wallie quickly found that swords were no match for spells -- and how could mere mortals prevail against the powers of magic?

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback
• Publisher: Del Rey (July 12, 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345352920
• ISBN-13: 978-0345352927
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 3.8 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #576,109 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Series, April 6, 2002

By	Digitaldragon (Edmonds, WA United States) - See all my reviews

The Seventh Sword is a great series. I couldn't put the books down. Wally Smith dies on earth and wakes to find himself in the body of a master swordsman, living another man's life in another world. Suffice it to say, his 20th century values don't quite match those of the man's body he is inhabiting, which makes for some interesting turns as he runs into people who recognize him...

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best Trilogy by a Major Talent, August 15, 2000

By	silliman89 "silliman89" (Burke, VA USA) - See all my reviews

"The Reluctant Swordsman" (Seventh Sword, Book 1)introduces the characters and world/universe the author continues with in "The Coming of Wisdom" (Seventh Sword, Book 2)and "The Destiny of the Sword" (Seventh Sword, Book 3). This is a brilliant trilogy which remains at the top of Dave Duncan's impressive body of work.

The characters remind me of Dungeons and Dragons Roll Playing Games (D&D RPG's). The hero is a 7th level swordsman who picks up a 7th level priest as a travelling companion. There is the same satisfaction of watching a companion swordsman advance through the ranks as there is developing your own character's skill levels in an RPG. There are also some other character types familiar to RPG's (archer's are held in contempt). This is not one of those cheap knockoffs on a D&D game though. This is just one element of the world the author has created which is kind of fun.

The author created a universe with a multitude of gods, like the Greek and Roman gods. While this is very common in the sword and sorcery genre, Dave Duncan has made the gods active participants in his story. One god makes repeated appearances, talks with the hero, and performs the occasional miracle. The author is able to keep the gods from completely overshadowing the human characters by stressing how they value "free will" for there own purposes. The author's brilliant use of deity characters (a recurring element throughout his best series) add facets to this story which lift it above a simple Conan type "guy with sword" story.

This trilogy has a detailed, multi-leveled plot which twists enough to keep you in suspense right up until the ending. And the ending reaches the appropriate dramatic climax, then has a satisfying denouement where the characters reap their rewards and the author ties up any loose ends. When this book ended, I was left saying, "Wow, imagine that!"

The only thing I can even think of that I didn't like about this trilogy is that it ended. The author really wrapped things up for the characters. It would be almost impossible to continue the story. I do hope that Dave Duncan comes back to this world with some new characters though. Maybe the old characters can have a cameo in the new story. . .

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A magnificent book that turns the fantasy genre on its head, June 17, 1998

By A Customer

Some people complain that middle books are the worst in fantasy trilogies. But in this series, it only gets better as it goes along. This book starts out slowly, but it gets increasingly broader in scope until the ending, which is among the most shocking and ingenious things I have ever seen in a fantasy. The genre really deserves this book, and, if you're curious what I mean by that, then read it.