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Lost Swords #6
Mindsword's Story
When the long-lost Mindsword--which gives mindless devotion to the one who wields it--falls into the hands of Prince Murat, Kristen, the beautiful wife of Prince Mark, falls under its spell, and it is up to Mark and his companions to save his wife and his kingdom
250 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published December 1, 1990
7 people are currently reading
468 people want to read
About the author
Fred Saberhagen
335 books495 followersFred Saberhagen was an American science fiction and fantasy author most famous for his ''Beserker'' and Dracula stories.
Saberhagen also wrote a series of a series of post-apocalyptic mytho-magical novels beginning with his popular ''Empire of the East'' and continuing through a long series of ''Swords'' and ''Lost Swords'' novels. Saberhagen died of cancer, in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Saberhagen was born in and grew up in the area of Chicago, Illinois. Saberhagen served in the [[U.S. Air Force]] during the Korean War while he was in his early twenties. Back in civilian life, Saberhagen worked as an It was while he was working for Motorola (after his military service) that Saberhagen started writing fiction seriously at the age of about 30. "Fortress Ship", his first "Berserker" short shory, was published in 1963. Then, in 1964, Saberhagen saw the publication of his first novel, ''The Golden People''.
From 1967 to 1973, he worked as an editor for the Chemistry articles in the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' as well as writing its article on science fiction. He then quit and took up writing full-time. In 1975, he moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico.
He married fellow writer Joan Spicci in 1968. They had two sons and a daughter.
Saberhagen also wrote a series of a series of post-apocalyptic mytho-magical novels beginning with his popular ''Empire of the East'' and continuing through a long series of ''Swords'' and ''Lost Swords'' novels. Saberhagen died of cancer, in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Saberhagen was born in and grew up in the area of Chicago, Illinois. Saberhagen served in the [[U.S. Air Force]] during the Korean War while he was in his early twenties. Back in civilian life, Saberhagen worked as an It was while he was working for Motorola (after his military service) that Saberhagen started writing fiction seriously at the age of about 30. "Fortress Ship", his first "Berserker" short shory, was published in 1963. Then, in 1964, Saberhagen saw the publication of his first novel, ''The Golden People''.
From 1967 to 1973, he worked as an editor for the Chemistry articles in the ''Encyclopædia Britannica'' as well as writing its article on science fiction. He then quit and took up writing full-time. In 1975, he moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico.
He married fellow writer Joan Spicci in 1968. They had two sons and a daughter.
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
November 23, 2023
A nice little bite-sized broadside of fantasy.
January 1, 2020
Actually the best in the series maybe. Interesting things happen, the sexism is hardly evident, and the antagonist is actually the most interesting character in the book.
January 14, 2023
The first 75% of the book was so good that it was about to go to my "epics" list of books. But the author was so "corrupted" with the 80's point of view about heros that the last quarter of the book was a total turn off.
The pros: I love the relation between Princess Kristin and Murat. It was supposed to be a villanous one, but it worked wonders and made me want for more of it.
The cons: What a ridiculous would-hero the Prince Mark and his @ss kissers gang(Ben and Karel) make. I know it was a standart model of "good guys" there were in the past, but it just made root more for Murat all the way.
And what end was that... Serious, the author was in a hurry to end the book. That is the only explanation for that.
The pros: I love the relation between Princess Kristin and Murat. It was supposed to be a villanous one, but it worked wonders and made me want for more of it.
The cons: What a ridiculous would-hero the Prince Mark and his @ss kissers gang(Ben and Karel) make. I know it was a standart model of "good guys" there were in the past, but it just made root more for Murat all the way.
And what end was that... Serious, the author was in a hurry to end the book. That is the only explanation for that.
October 25, 2018
I liked this story until the end. It got a little confusing or maybe it's just me for putting it down for awhile but I had to reread some parts to jog the memory.
All in all, it was a nice read not really a page turner but if you want to read for an hour here or there this is the book to do it.
All in all, it was a nice read not really a page turner but if you want to read for an hour here or there this is the book to do it.
November 27, 2025
We continue the incredible trend of every book ending being weak in comparison. Normally, it's been an okay story that nosedives into something actually kind of bad; this time, though, we got the rare misfortune of a really good story with a stupid ending. I love the inversion on an Arthurian quest regardless, and hopefully the rest of them will also continue to be better
August 25, 2019
The saga continues
Another chapter in the swords...Fun read. Old characters return in search of power and love...need to read these books in order
Another chapter in the swords...Fun read. Old characters return in search of power and love...need to read these books in order
May 3, 2020
Ho-hum. Another book to give to the Lionesses.
March 8, 2018
Saberhagen's style of narrative feels a little indiferente of his own characters, like he himself don't care a lot about then, probably because of this style, despite his great ideas and solid worldbuilding and well defined ruleset, the Lost Swords books are currently a little low rated in Goodreads.
I'm hoping there will be some consequences of this book in the rest of the story, and also hoping for a grand finale like the one in the Ardneh Arc
I'm hoping there will be some consequences of this book in the rest of the story, and also hoping for a grand finale like the one in the Ardneh Arc
December 26, 2012
The Sixth Book of Lost Swords: Mindsword's Story is an excellent story of tragedy and corruption of the soul.
Prince Murrat, smitten by Princess Kristin during his last visit to Tasavalta when he stole Woundhealer with the aid of Coinspinner, is determined to make it up to the lonely princess and hopes to win her away from ever-absent Prince Mark. What better way to do so than to present her with the Mindsword, a god forged sword with the power to convert all within it's radius into devoted followers.
Starting off his journey with good intentions and vowing never to use the Sword for himself, Prince Murrat soon finds that he cannot keep that promise when his and his son's fates are threatened on the road to Tasavalta. Even as he reluctantly accepts the conversion of the bandits who threatened him, the Prince vows never to do so again, holding to his goal of presenting the Mindsword to his adored Princess Kristin.
Meanwhile, Vilkata, the Dark King and once owner of the dreadful Mindsword, senses that the sword has been found and teams up with a demon, Akbar, to steal the sword away from its new owner. Posing as a blind old man who once knew Kristin, he convinces Prince Murrat to bring him along on his quest to gain the Princess' favor.
Events continue to escalate out of control and Prince Murrat falls further and further under the influence of the Mindsword's heady power.
I couldn't put this book down.
Prince Murrat, smitten by Princess Kristin during his last visit to Tasavalta when he stole Woundhealer with the aid of Coinspinner, is determined to make it up to the lonely princess and hopes to win her away from ever-absent Prince Mark. What better way to do so than to present her with the Mindsword, a god forged sword with the power to convert all within it's radius into devoted followers.
Starting off his journey with good intentions and vowing never to use the Sword for himself, Prince Murrat soon finds that he cannot keep that promise when his and his son's fates are threatened on the road to Tasavalta. Even as he reluctantly accepts the conversion of the bandits who threatened him, the Prince vows never to do so again, holding to his goal of presenting the Mindsword to his adored Princess Kristin.
Meanwhile, Vilkata, the Dark King and once owner of the dreadful Mindsword, senses that the sword has been found and teams up with a demon, Akbar, to steal the sword away from its new owner. Posing as a blind old man who once knew Kristin, he convinces Prince Murrat to bring him along on his quest to gain the Princess' favor.
Events continue to escalate out of control and Prince Murrat falls further and further under the influence of the Mindsword's heady power.
I couldn't put this book down.
February 1, 2016
I read the Sword books in high school. I remember liking them and enjoying having the magic revolve around the weapon rather than a person. In this series I remember liking some books more than others so some of them should probably be rated 4 stars but I don't remember which were the better ones, it has been too many years. This will be the same review for all of the books in the series except for the last two which were published after I left high school and so were not read at the same time.
January 26, 2022
This is the worst of all the Book Of Swords series. If I were to recommend one to skip, this one is a tease until the end, which is unsatisfying. Almost nothing consequential happens in the last half of the book except descriptions of characters being jealous of sword ownership and paranoid of swords sneaking up. Not worth it. The other books are ok, just not this one.
December 1, 2010
see first book of swords for my review of the series. Its been a while so I may blunder but I seem to recall there weren't any exceptions to the awesomeness outside of the fact that the first three were a little slower than the rest.
June 18, 2014
This is a rather odd fantasy setting, but I really enjoy these books.
January 15, 2012
All people within a hundred yards worship the person who holds this sword. The person can no longer put the sword down and b7egins to suffers delusions of grandeur.
August 13, 2016
Totally enjoyed the entire series. Classic Fantasy!
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews