Troy: Fall of Kings (Troy (Ballantine Books)) (Paperback)

~ (Author), Stella Gemmell (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this last installment of David Gemmell's Trojan trilogy (following Troy: Shield of Thunder), Helen is a plain, mousy woman whose beauty is entirely of the inner sort, and Hektor is a cuckold left raising another man's son. Agamemnon is depicted as a rapacious predator seeking the riches of Troy to support the armies he needs to hold the territories he has conquered, and Priam a shadow of his former glory, brought low by an Alzheimer's-like disease. Strong characterizations and sturdy plotting evoke the horror of the conflict, and the story's mythic power. David Gemmell left the novel uncompleted upon his untimely death in 2006, but his wife, Stella, who did most of his research, has brought the books to a satisfactory conclusion.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

" This is how the oldest tales should be read and known. Gemmell is a master of plot, but his triumph is creating men and women so real that their trials are agony and their triumph is glorious."
-- Conn Iggulden
" David Gemmell carries us away to a four-cornered, wholly convincing cosmos, so masterfully done that the reader thinks ' Ah, this is what it was really like.' "
-- Stephen Pressfield
" To anyone who enjoys an action-packed historical epic."
-- Joanne Harris
" The loyalties and betrayals, the love and the hate, the endless, everlasting courage of the men -- and the women -- of both sides are brought to life in this vivid, inspirational recreation of the Troy myth."
-- Manda Scott

"From the Paperback edition." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 464 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; Reprint edition (March 24, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345477049
• ISBN-13: 978-0345477040
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (30 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #63,839 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wow..., January 5, 2008

By	Jason Frost "RubiconReader" (California) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Troy: Fall of Kings (Hardcover)

... I could just leave it at that. Wow! If you are a fan of historical-fiction then this "Troy" series is something that you simply must read! I was very saddened when I heard that he died and was wondering how the series would pan out. Then I hear that his wife would take over. Couldn't imagine how hard that must have been for her and she has my DEEPEST and sincerist graditude! Ok... the story...

This book was a glorious finish to one hell of a series. I know some people (morons) will have a cow because David (& Stella) didn't follow history. I say "a pox on history"! Writers have the right to use thier imagination when telling a story and they sure use it here. You'll be suprised to hear about how Troy fell, about Achilles, Hecktor, and a very nice surprise when you find out who Gershom is. That one I NEVER saw coming!!

You will LOVE this story as you will have fallen in love with the characters from the first 2 books. The ending was written so perfect that reading Chapter 36 to the end might take you as long as it did to read the whole book! No joke! Heck, I might go back and read it when I get done writing this review! :-) You can't help but compare the fall of the heroes to the passing of David Gemmell himself. I don't say that to be flippant but those who have read him will know.

This world has too many authors and not enough storytellers, so the passing of a true storyteller will be missed. 5 stars isn't enough to give to this book/series/epic.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Well done Stella, February 13, 2008

By	Patricia Miler (chicago) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Troy: Fall of Kings (Hardcover)

I won't waste a lot of time and words on this. The basic outline of what happens is pretty obvious, just the hows and whys have been changed.

In doing so, this is a much more believable rendition of the story of Troy than what one is accustomed to.

I am somewhat amazed by some of the reviews complaining it didn't follow history. In fact, it is probably much closer to the historical fact than the Iliad is. Also the characterization is excellent. Andromache is hardly a whiner as one person pointed out and the aspect of many people being torn in two directions is not only well portrayed but also very realistic for people in those situations.

I am sure that if David had been able to finish the book, it would probably have been longer and a little more complex, but I think Stella did an excellent job working just from chapter outlines.

And a special thank you to Stella for her special tribute to her husband at the end of the book (one page from the end).

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fitting, November 10, 2008

By	Ron (Jersey) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This review is from: Troy: Fall of Kings (Hardcover)

This is an excellent send off for the late great David Gemmell. His historical fiction about Troy tops his previous efforts about Sparta and Alexander the Great. Though you know the end of the story is going to be Troy falling, David brings you to it with so many twists and turns. Then when you think the end is near, there are twists beyond even that. Some might object to the altering of events from Homer, it is fiction and not a historic reproduction of events. I'm not sure how little Stella had to finish, but whatever part she had her hand in was unnoticeable from David's work. I noticed James Barclay's name in the acknowledgments, so perhaps he had a guiding hand in finishing David's last work. My only regret is that I have read all of David Gemmell's novels and will never get the thrill of spotting his newest book. Still, I have saved them all and will surely reread them many times over.