An Armory of Swords (Mass Market Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Even readers unfamiliar with Saberhagen's Lost Swords series (The Last Book of Swords: Shieldbreaker's Story, etc.) will have no trouble following these stories written by a variety of authors and set in that saga's sword-and-sorcery universe. Saberhagen's "Blind Man's Blade" not only recapitulates the origin of the Swords (each of which is enchanted in its own way) but also sets up the premise for most of the remaining seven tales here. Each of the other writers, veterans (Walter Jon Williams, Michael A. Stackpole, Robert E. Vardemann) and relative newcomers (Pati Nagle, Gene Bostwick, Sage Walker, Thomas Saberhagen) alike, brings an individual perspective?but it's quickly apparent that many of the stories are uncomfortably similar to one another. In Bostwick's "Fealty," Vardemann's "Dragon Debt," Stackpole's "Luck of the Draw" and Thomas Saberhagen's "The Sword of Aren-Nath," for instance, the reader can end up rooting for bullies and braggarts who are at least honest about their intentions rather than for the ostensible heroes. Williams's "Woundhealer," however, deals with the Lost Swords on their own terms without compromising his usual storytelling excellence, while Nagle's "Glad Yule" and Walker's "Stealth and the Lady" would be worthy additions to any anthology. Even with its flaws, this collection is as interesting as most of the shared-world anthologies that seemed to glut the market just a few years ago.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Ranging from Saberhagen's own tale of godly foolishness and mortal ingenuity ("Blind Man's Blade") to Michael Stackpole's swashbuckling adventure of two Swords in conflict ("Luck of the Draw"), this collection of eight original stories set in Saberhagen's "Lost Swords" universe explores these legendary weapons' mysterious pasts. Including stories by both veterans and newcomers to the genre, these tales of Coinspinner, Shieldbreaker, Woundhealer, and their companion blades will appeal to series followers as well as to the general fantasy audience. A good choice for most libraries.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Tor Fantasy (May 15, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0812522834
• ISBN-13: 978-0812522839
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,578,504 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Stick With The Novels, May 18, 2007

By	Dave_42 "Dave_42" (Australia) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

"An Armory of Swords", edited by Fred Saberhagen, is an anthology of novelettes and a novella all based on Saberhagen's Swords series and written by other authors. It was originally published in June of 1995. We learn fairly quickly that it isn't so easy to craft one of these stories, and that Saberhagen's style is an important part of the series. Though not horrible, this anthology of stories doesn't measure up to the rest of the series, and will be of interest mostly for the one story which Saberhagen wrote, and only for those people who love the series.

The first story is "Blind Man's Blade", a novelette which Fred Saberhagen wrote, and which gives the reader an interesting story about the start of the great game of the gods, and the role which mortals would have to play in it. This story is up there in quality with the rest of the series.

The next story is "Woundhealer", a novelette by Walter Jon Williams, and he does a decent job of putting together a story, but it is a bit nondescript. In the story, one of the Great Swords has fallen into the hands of a tyrannical Lord (Lord Landry), who is in the habit of using all those around him, including his family, for his own personal gain.

The next story is "Fealty", a novelette by Gene Bostwick, and this is my favorite non-Saberhagen story in this book. Bostwick creates an interesting story with interesting characters and fits them into Saberhagen's world. In this story, a Templar (Jarmon) has acquired one of the Great Swords, and decides it is much too dangerous in the hands of men. He decides to bury it inside the body of its former owner, but to do so he needs the help of a grave digger (Keaf) who falls prey to his own curiosity.

The next story is "Dragon Debt", a novelette by Robert E. Vardeman. The premise of this story is okay, but as the reader, I never believed that Dragonslayer could be held for such a long time by such a character. In addition, the story didn't really flow very well, but it is not the weakest story in this book. In short, a man (Kennek) claiming to have Dragonslayer, and thus to slay dragons by profession comes to a small town and is going to marry Trav's sister (Juliana). Trav is sure that he is lying, and when luck delivers some dragon eggs to him, he decides to raise some dragons to show everyone that Kennek is a fraud.

The next story is "The Sword of Aren-Nath", a novelette by Thomas Saberhagen, who is Fred's son. As with Williams' effort, the story is somewhat bland, but it is a decent attempt at writing a story for Saberhagen's world. In this story, a boyhood prank by Aron, Klin, and Tall Boy results in Aron's accidentally releasing a horror which seems unstoppable. The Vassal knows what to do though, and is resolved to protect the town from the evil creature.

The next story is "Glad Yule", a novella by Pati Nagle. The story is about three men (Trenton Greyson, Paethor of Mirador, and Echevarian of Verdas) who are sent by King Nigel to acquire Farslayer by using Wayfinder. After some initial trouble with Wayfinder switching directions, a final rewording of what they seek takes them nearly in the opposite direction from where they were going. This brings them into Highmass around the time of Yule. There they meet another traveler, Baron Carcham, who also carries one of the Great Swords. The story is interesting to read, but the ending didn't work for me, and I felt she broke some of the rules of the Swords.

The next story is "Luck of the Draw", a novelette by Michael A. Stackpole. In this story, Count Callisto finds himself in a dire situation, which seems to offer him nothing but death at the hands of the pirate Red Rinaldo. With little to hope for, the sudden appearance of Coinspinner suddenly seems to turn things around. Unfortunately, he still must face Red Rinaldo, and he holds Shieldbreaker. I would consider this to be the weakest story in the book. Stackpole breaks many rules with regards to Coinspinner, so while it is certainly readable, I was frustrated by some parts of the story.

The last story in the book is "Stealth and the Lady", a novelette by Sage Walker. This story was difficult to read for me. I felt she tried to put too much into a novelette length story. There is a lot of background detail about the characters and the political situation, and the story is non-linear, so I found myself flipping back through the story looking for information, which really shouldn't happen for a novelette. The story does finish stronger than it starts, but I can't say that it was worth it. I also felt the story was forced into the Swords' universe, rather than being a part of it.

All and all, this book really is only for Swords series fans, and even then it could easily be skipped. There is nothing here which impacts the rest of the series, other than the very first story, and that only gives the reader more information about the start of the game.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Armed, but not especially dangerous, June 10, 2006

By	Shawn Smith "Zaklog the Critical" (Lake Charles, LA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is a collection of stories about the Twelve Swords of Power by a variety of authors. To those of you who've read Saberhagen's series, this should be familiar ground. The most interesting aspect of this book is seeing other people's takes on the magical Swords. Close after that is seeing stories about Doomgiver and Townsaver, which recieve scant attention in the original series, both being destroyed in the third book.

Of the eight stories in this book, "Woundhealer" is definitely the most interesting. Oddly, the Sword (and magic in general) receive only marginal attention in this story. Mostly it is concerned with the in-fighting and intrigue of the family of the lord of a small mountain holding. "Stealth and the Lady" also shares this oddity. Sightblinder, the ostensible subject, is scarcely mentioned.

The book is a mixed bag. "Woundhealer", "Blind Man's Blade", and "The Luck of the Draw" are engaging and amusing tales. "Dragon Debt" is little more than annoying, especially the contrived choice of the hero at the end.

If you're already a fan of the series, you should definitely pick this one up, as it fleshes out a few details you've probably been curious about. If you've not read them yet, it would be better to start with some of the others and come back to this one. The Empire of the East, though only slightly connected to the later books, is an excellent book, almost epic in scale. That would be an excllent introduction to the rest. Then come back to this one.

2.0 out of 5 stars Mediocre, May 26, 2009

By	bloogid (san francisco) - See all my reviews

This review is from: An Armory of Swords (Hardcover)

A lot of what needs to be said has been said. Saberhagen had a great concept for the Swords, one that he executed adequately if not brilliantly.

His own story opens the book well, and "Woundhealer" is an excellent tale, concentrating on family dynamics and using its Sword in an appropriate way - as a way of developing the characters.

The other stories are of variable to weak interest. Most are fairly poorly written, surprisingly so, for what should be a first-rank anthology. "Luck of the Draw" and the one about the quest for Farslayer are particularly poor - ok concepts but florid overwriting.

"Stealth and the Lady", "Fealty" both have elements of interest.

"Dragon Debt" - is just weird.