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The Longsword Chronicles #1
King of Ashes
Book One
Gawain, second son of Davyd, King of Raheen, turns 18, and is promptly banished from his homeland for a period of one year and one day. Stunned, he departs the land of his birth, high atop an impregnable plateau, and ventures into the strange world of the lowlands.
During his banishment, a ritual which must be undergone by all royal crowns of Raheen, he travels the lowlands incognito, and soon his martial skills are called upon in defence of himself and others. More, he is staggered to learn that the lowlands are all but paralysed by fear and terror at the hands of Ramoths, a strange and vile cult that seems to afflict the kingdoms with utter impunity.
Gawain meets all the kindred races of man. A chance encounter at the edge of the forest of Elvendere introduces him to Elayeen, a haunting elfin beauty destined to become a vital part of Gawain's future. He meets dwarves too, becoming fast friends with Rak of Tarn, a quiet diplomat from the Black Hills of Threlland. Yet, everywhere he travels, the Ramoth curse has been before him…
At the end of his period of banishment, Gawain rides for home, Raheen, intent upon alerting his father to the danger posed by the Ramoth. But it is too late. When Gawain crests the sole route to the top of the plateau, he finds Raheen gone, blasted to ashes...
In the ruins of Raheen's castle keep, in the great hall, Gawain finds the Sword of Justice, the only object to have survived the terrifying devastation of his land. He draws the ancient blade, and swearing vengeance and justice in the name of Raheen, and hard of heart, returns to the lowlands...
Gawain, second son of Davyd, King of Raheen, turns 18, and is promptly banished from his homeland for a period of one year and one day. Stunned, he departs the land of his birth, high atop an impregnable plateau, and ventures into the strange world of the lowlands.
During his banishment, a ritual which must be undergone by all royal crowns of Raheen, he travels the lowlands incognito, and soon his martial skills are called upon in defence of himself and others. More, he is staggered to learn that the lowlands are all but paralysed by fear and terror at the hands of Ramoths, a strange and vile cult that seems to afflict the kingdoms with utter impunity.
Gawain meets all the kindred races of man. A chance encounter at the edge of the forest of Elvendere introduces him to Elayeen, a haunting elfin beauty destined to become a vital part of Gawain's future. He meets dwarves too, becoming fast friends with Rak of Tarn, a quiet diplomat from the Black Hills of Threlland. Yet, everywhere he travels, the Ramoth curse has been before him…
At the end of his period of banishment, Gawain rides for home, Raheen, intent upon alerting his father to the danger posed by the Ramoth. But it is too late. When Gawain crests the sole route to the top of the plateau, he finds Raheen gone, blasted to ashes...
In the ruins of Raheen's castle keep, in the great hall, Gawain finds the Sword of Justice, the only object to have survived the terrifying devastation of his land. He draws the ancient blade, and swearing vengeance and justice in the name of Raheen, and hard of heart, returns to the lowlands...
409 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 11, 2011
16 people are currently reading
237 people want to read
About the author
G.J. Kelly
49 books32 followersGJ Kelly was born near the white cliffs of Dover, England, in 1960. He spent a significant part of his early life in various parts of the world, including the Far East, Middle East, the South Atlantic, and West Africa. Later life has seen him venture to the USA, New Zealand, Europe, and Ireland. He began writing while still at school, where he was president of the Debating Society and won the Robb Trophy for public speaking. He combined his writing with his technical skills as a professional Technical Author and later as an internal communications specialist. His first novel was "A Country Fly" and he is currently writing a new fantasy title.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
August 22, 2018
I loved this whole series. The action is fantastic and the relationships between friends and enemies is this series true strength. It was easy to identify with the principle characters and the romance portions were in depth and addictive. Highly recommended!
September 3, 2013
Neat! If you like magic and swords and shit.
June 29, 2021
2.5/5 Dnf 7%
The prose is decent albeit with too much word repetition. My main gripe is the plot, everything works out perfectly, out of three confrontations two end peacefully and the third easily. And the premise makes no sense.
The prose is decent albeit with too much word repetition. My main gripe is the plot, everything works out perfectly, out of three confrontations two end peacefully and the third easily. And the premise makes no sense.
June 7, 2017
I could not get behind this book at all the world just felt so small with bad world building and meaningless places.
September 10, 2018
4 stars.
November 10, 2018
A story that starts quickly and keeps the pace through to the end (all 800 pages). Well worth the read. I look forward to #2 in the Longsword Chronicles.
September 18, 2016
Interesting world and history but the characters are not well written, having bursts of emotion that seemingly come from nowhere and motivations that are clearly just to serve the plot rather than being true to the character. The enemy is built up as cunning but through the series just seems ineffectual and silly.
Violence towards friends and allies is treated as almost a noble pursuit.
If you've got nothing else to read, it's worth a go, but if you like consistent characters, it'll grind you down.
Violence towards friends and allies is treated as almost a noble pursuit.
If you've got nothing else to read, it's worth a go, but if you like consistent characters, it'll grind you down.
June 7, 2014
Amazing book...went out and got the rest
August 28, 2014
An enjoyable read. I liked the storyline and especially the characters. For me it did drag in places but all in all I enjoyed it.
January 4, 2015
nice and captivating!!
its just according to my tastes !!
its just according to my tastes !!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews