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Legends #1
Legends: Stories in Honour of David Gemmell
Legends is an anthology of all original stories written to honour the memory of one of Britain’s greatest fantasy authors. Determined warriors, hideous creatures, wicked sorceries, tricksy villains and cunning lovers abound as fantasy’s finest imaginations do their best and their worst. James Barclay reveals the origins of his elite mercenary band The Raven, Adrian Tchaikovsky unveils new aspects of the realm of the Apt, Tanith Lee, Joe Abercrombie, Storm Constantine, Stan Nicholls, Juliet E. McKenna and more weave their magic as only they can. Produced in cooperation with the David Gemmell Awards, Legends will, in part, act as a fund-raiser for the awards.
Steel yourself, throw caution to the wind, and dare to enter the realm of Legends.
Contents:
Introduction by Stan Nicholls
Or So Legend Has It by James Barclay
A Blade to the Heart by Gaie Sebold
Return to Arden Falls by Ian Whates
The Drake Lords of Kyla by Storm Constantine
A Tower of Arkrondurl by Tanith Lee
Who Walks with Death by Jonathan Green
Skipping Town by Joe Abercrombie
The Land of the Eagle by Juliet E. McKenna
All Hail to the Oak by Anne Nicholls
Swords and Circle by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Fairyland by Jan Siegel
Mountain Tea by Sandra Unerman
The League of Resolve by Stan Nicholls
Steel yourself, throw caution to the wind, and dare to enter the realm of Legends.
Contents:
Introduction by Stan Nicholls
Or So Legend Has It by James Barclay
A Blade to the Heart by Gaie Sebold
Return to Arden Falls by Ian Whates
The Drake Lords of Kyla by Storm Constantine
A Tower of Arkrondurl by Tanith Lee
Who Walks with Death by Jonathan Green
Skipping Town by Joe Abercrombie
The Land of the Eagle by Juliet E. McKenna
All Hail to the Oak by Anne Nicholls
Swords and Circle by Adrian Tchaikovsky
Fairyland by Jan Siegel
Mountain Tea by Sandra Unerman
The League of Resolve by Stan Nicholls
274 pages, Paperback
First published October 31, 2013
40 people are currently reading
426 people want to read
About the author
Ian Whates
122 books81 followersIan Whates lives in a comfortable home down a quiet cul-de-sac in an idyllic Cambridgeshire village, which he shares with his partner Helen and their pets – Honey the golden cocker spaniel, Calvin the tailless black cat and Inky the goldfish (sadly, Binky died a few years ago).
Ian’s earliest memories of science fiction are fragmented. He remembers loving Dr Who from an early age and other TV shows such as Lost in Space and Star Trek, but a defining moment came when he heard a radio adaptation of John Wyndham’s The Chrysalids. From that moment on he was hooked and became a frequent haunter of the local library, voraciously devouring the contents of their SF section.
This early love of science fiction manifested most tellingly during his school days, when he produced an SF murder mystery as homework after being set the essay title “The Language of Shakespeare”, much to the bemusement of his English teacher.
Ian’s first published stories appeared in the late 1980s in small press magazines such as Dream and New Moon Quarterly, after which he took a break from writing in order to research his chosen fields of science fiction and fantasy. In other words, he read copious amounts of both. Clearly the research was extensive, because he published nothing further for some seventeen years. In the early 2000s he made the decision to pursue writing seriously, joining the Northampton SF Writers Group in 2004 after being introduced to its chairman, Ian Watson.
In 2006 he started submitting stories again, and has subsequently been surprised at how many otherwise eminently sensible people have chosen to publish him. A couple have even appeared in the science journal Nature, and one, “The Gift of Joy”, even found its way onto the five-strong shortlist for best short story in the British Science Fiction Association Awards. And it didn’t come last! Ironically, the award was actually won by Ken MacLeod’s “Lighting Out”, a piece Ian had commissioned, edited and published in the NewCon Press anthology disLOCATIONS (2007).
In 2006 Ian launched independent publisher NewCon Press, quite by accident (buy him a pint sometime and he’ll tell you about it). Through NewCon he has been privileged to publish original stories from some of the biggest names in genre fiction, as well as provide debuts to some genuinely talented newcomers. The books, their covers and contents have racked up an impressive array of credits – four BSFA Awards, one BSF Award to date, inclusion in ‘Year’s Best’ anthologies and recommendations and honourable mentions from the likes of Gardner Dozios and Locus magazine.
In addition to his publishing and writing, Ian is currently a director of both the Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA) and the British Science Fiction Association (BSFA), editing Matrix, the online news and media reviews magazine, for the latter.
His first two completed novels are both due to appear in early 2010: City of Dreams and Nightmare via Harper Collins’ imprint Angry Robot, and The Noise Within from Rebellion imprint Solaris, with sequels to follow. When not pinching himself to make sure this is all really happening, Ian is currently beavering away at the sequels… honest!
Ian’s earliest memories of science fiction are fragmented. He remembers loving Dr Who from an early age and other TV shows such as Lost in Space and Star Trek, but a defining moment came when he heard a radio adaptation of John Wyndham’s The Chrysalids. From that moment on he was hooked and became a frequent haunter of the local library, voraciously devouring the contents of their SF section.
This early love of science fiction manifested most tellingly during his school days, when he produced an SF murder mystery as homework after being set the essay title “The Language of Shakespeare”, much to the bemusement of his English teacher.
Ian’s first published stories appeared in the late 1980s in small press magazines such as Dream and New Moon Quarterly, after which he took a break from writing in order to research his chosen fields of science fiction and fantasy. In other words, he read copious amounts of both. Clearly the research was extensive, because he published nothing further for some seventeen years. In the early 2000s he made the decision to pursue writing seriously, joining the Northampton SF Writers Group in 2004 after being introduced to its chairman, Ian Watson.
In 2006 he started submitting stories again, and has subsequently been surprised at how many otherwise eminently sensible people have chosen to publish him. A couple have even appeared in the science journal Nature, and one, “The Gift of Joy”, even found its way onto the five-strong shortlist for best short story in the British Science Fiction Association Awards. And it didn’t come last! Ironically, the award was actually won by Ken MacLeod’s “Lighting Out”, a piece Ian had commissioned, edited and published in the NewCon Press anthology disLOCATIONS (2007).
In 2006 Ian launched independent publisher NewCon Press, quite by accident (buy him a pint sometime and he’ll tell you about it). Through NewCon he has been privileged to publish original stories from some of the biggest names in genre fiction, as well as provide debuts to some genuinely talented newcomers. The books, their covers and contents have racked up an impressive array of credits – four BSFA Awards, one BSF Award to date, inclusion in ‘Year’s Best’ anthologies and recommendations and honourable mentions from the likes of Gardner Dozios and Locus magazine.
In addition to his publishing and writing, Ian is currently a director of both the Science Fiction Writers of America (SFWA) and the British Science Fiction Association (BSFA), editing Matrix, the online news and media reviews magazine, for the latter.
His first two completed novels are both due to appear in early 2010: City of Dreams and Nightmare via Harper Collins’ imprint Angry Robot, and The Noise Within from Rebellion imprint Solaris, with sequels to follow. When not pinching himself to make sure this is all really happening, Ian is currently beavering away at the sequels… honest!
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
May 12, 2022
Status:
The current read of this anthology is just to read the 'Skipping Town' short story by Joe Abercrombie. Shall get to the other short stories later. Started and finished on 12th May 2022.
'Skipping Town' (The Tales of Javre and Shev #2; First Law World #0.5) by Joe Abercrombie.
Shev held her empty palms up. ‘Well, I’ve offered no succour, that I promise you. I like a succouring just as much as the next girl, if not a good deal more, but Javre? No offence to her, I daresay she’ll make several men a wonderful husband some day, but she’s not my type at all.’ Shev raised her brows at Weylen who, it had to be said, was much closer to her type, those eyes of hers really were something. ‘And, you know, not wanting to blow my own horn, but once I offer succour? I generally get all the succouring one woman can—’
‘She means help,’ said Javre.
‘Eh?’
‘Succour. It is not a sexual thing.’
‘Oh.’
Rating: 3.5/5.
Review:
The tricky thing about short stories is that they can be an easy hit or miss. This particular story leans more towards the latter.
Taking place in the same year (but just before) as the events of 'The Blade Itself', this short story recounts the aftermath of a mission that Shev and Javre have recently completed. Although the story is not heavy on plot, there's a great amount of worldbuilding here. It made me curious about the Knights Templar of the Golden Order and its High Priestess. Despite some of my qualms about this short story, it was still a worthwhile read. Seeing Javre and Shev together in another short story was a happy surprise. I hope the series of short stories focusing on these two characters continue further and we get to know more about the Knights Templar of the Golden Order.
The current read of this anthology is just to read the 'Skipping Town' short story by Joe Abercrombie. Shall get to the other short stories later. Started and finished on 12th May 2022.
'Skipping Town' (The Tales of Javre and Shev #2; First Law World #0.5) by Joe Abercrombie.
Shev held her empty palms up. ‘Well, I’ve offered no succour, that I promise you. I like a succouring just as much as the next girl, if not a good deal more, but Javre? No offence to her, I daresay she’ll make several men a wonderful husband some day, but she’s not my type at all.’ Shev raised her brows at Weylen who, it had to be said, was much closer to her type, those eyes of hers really were something. ‘And, you know, not wanting to blow my own horn, but once I offer succour? I generally get all the succouring one woman can—’
‘She means help,’ said Javre.
‘Eh?’
‘Succour. It is not a sexual thing.’
‘Oh.’
Rating: 3.5/5.
Review:
The tricky thing about short stories is that they can be an easy hit or miss. This particular story leans more towards the latter.
Taking place in the same year (but just before) as the events of 'The Blade Itself', this short story recounts the aftermath of a mission that Shev and Javre have recently completed. Although the story is not heavy on plot, there's a great amount of worldbuilding here. It made me curious about the Knights Templar of the Golden Order and its High Priestess. Despite some of my qualms about this short story, it was still a worthwhile read. Seeing Javre and Shev together in another short story was a happy surprise. I hope the series of short stories focusing on these two characters continue further and we get to know more about the Knights Templar of the Golden Order.
April 7, 2021
I want to state upfront that this is a review of my personal experience, and for this kind of anthology everyone will have a different experience, so I encourage folks reading this review (and any anthology review) to factor that in.
One thing I discovered while reading this book was that I don't really enjoy anthologies. They are a great way to experience a sample of a new authors writing style, or to supplement an established series you have already read. However, I went into it also thinking of the stories as introductions to new worlds and series, and that is not really the case. While many of the stories are connected to established series, many more were also one-offs, so if you want to dive in to the world or characters more then you are out of luck. For me, Ian Whates story appealed to me a lot but when I went searching for more of his fantasy writing I could only find vague references to his other short stories, and he doesn't appear to have published full fantasy novels, so I was left a bit disappointed.
While this book was put together to honor the memory of David Gemmell, not all the stories seem to fit with that theme and his style. The stories themselves were of mixed quality and mixed interest for me. Some of them I loved, many were okay, and a couple I didn't care for at all, but your mileage may vary.
In summary, it's not a bad collection of short stories and there are some great gems here, but I wouldn't recommend rushing out to get this unless your "to read" pile is running low.
One thing I discovered while reading this book was that I don't really enjoy anthologies. They are a great way to experience a sample of a new authors writing style, or to supplement an established series you have already read. However, I went into it also thinking of the stories as introductions to new worlds and series, and that is not really the case. While many of the stories are connected to established series, many more were also one-offs, so if you want to dive in to the world or characters more then you are out of luck. For me, Ian Whates story appealed to me a lot but when I went searching for more of his fantasy writing I could only find vague references to his other short stories, and he doesn't appear to have published full fantasy novels, so I was left a bit disappointed.
While this book was put together to honor the memory of David Gemmell, not all the stories seem to fit with that theme and his style. The stories themselves were of mixed quality and mixed interest for me. Some of them I loved, many were okay, and a couple I didn't care for at all, but your mileage may vary.
In summary, it's not a bad collection of short stories and there are some great gems here, but I wouldn't recommend rushing out to get this unless your "to read" pile is running low.
Want to read
April 10, 2021Read Skipping town. Someday I will go back and finish the rest of this anthology.
Or So Legend has It – James Barclay - ⭐
A Blade to the Heart – Gaie Sebold - ⭐
Return to Arden Falls – Ian Whates - ⭐
The Drake Lords of Kyla – Storm Constantine - ⭐
A Tower of Arkrondurl – Tanith Lee - ⭐
Who Walks With Death – Jonathan Green - ⭐
Skipping Town [The Near Country, Summer 575] (First Law) - 5⭐
Also in Sharp Ends. The dynamic duo Shev and Javre, have been journeying together, their skills complementing each other, but now Javre wants to skip town, much to Shev's annoyance. This delves into her mysterious background. I love her back story and want to read more about her in other stories / series. She is fascinating. This funny, action packed story would be a wonderful live action short film.
The Land of the Eagle – Juliet E McKenna - ⭐
All Hail to the Oak – Anne Nicholls - ⭐
Swords and Circle – Adrian Tchaikovsky - ⭐
Fairyland – Jan Siegel - ⭐
Mountain Tea – Sandra Unerman - ⭐
The League of Resolve – Stan Nicholls - ⭐
Or So Legend has It – James Barclay - ⭐
A Blade to the Heart – Gaie Sebold - ⭐
Return to Arden Falls – Ian Whates - ⭐
The Drake Lords of Kyla – Storm Constantine - ⭐
A Tower of Arkrondurl – Tanith Lee - ⭐
Who Walks With Death – Jonathan Green - ⭐
Skipping Town [The Near Country, Summer 575] (First Law) - 5⭐
Also in Sharp Ends. The dynamic duo Shev and Javre, have been journeying together, their skills complementing each other, but now Javre wants to skip town, much to Shev's annoyance. This delves into her mysterious background. I love her back story and want to read more about her in other stories / series. She is fascinating. This funny, action packed story would be a wonderful live action short film.
The Land of the Eagle – Juliet E McKenna - ⭐
All Hail to the Oak – Anne Nicholls - ⭐
Swords and Circle – Adrian Tchaikovsky - ⭐
Fairyland – Jan Siegel - ⭐
Mountain Tea – Sandra Unerman - ⭐
The League of Resolve – Stan Nicholls - ⭐
October 29, 2021
I only got this anthology for Gaie Sebold's story, A Blade to the Heart, and that's all this review is about.
So far i've really enjoyed reading Gaie's books but, sadly, i just feel this short fell a little short.
While i do think the redemption thing can be good fodder to build a story around, i just think in this case it's all got a bit too rushed. Probably would have been much better as a novella, at least.
But, ho hum, every favourite writer has to write at least one thing that just doesn't work for the fangirl/fanboy reader: does anyone remember The Girl in Red ?
So far i've really enjoyed reading Gaie's books but, sadly, i just feel this short fell a little short.
While i do think the redemption thing can be good fodder to build a story around, i just think in this case it's all got a bit too rushed. Probably would have been much better as a novella, at least.
But, ho hum, every favourite writer has to write at least one thing that just doesn't work for the fangirl/fanboy reader: does anyone remember The Girl in Red ?
September 15, 2025
Various Authors tend to give rise to different kinds of stories. This was definitely true of this compilation.
I skipped one story, and the rest I mostly enjoyed and a couple I loved. So the rating is closer to 4 than 3.
A few standouts and true to the spirit of the great David Gemmell:
Abercrombie, Tchaikovsky, Barcley, Whates, Nicholls.
I skipped one story, and the rest I mostly enjoyed and a couple I loved. So the rating is closer to 4 than 3.
A few standouts and true to the spirit of the great David Gemmell:
Abercrombie, Tchaikovsky, Barcley, Whates, Nicholls.
November 17, 2025
Collection of short fantasy stories. Some good, some not so good, some excellent. Overall 3 stars for the collection. A perfect book if you have short spurts of reading time. And anything dedicated to the master of heroic fantasy, Mr. David Gemmell, is worth your time!
April 20, 2018
Always like short story books... something different every few pages. Will read the 2nd one soon
September 17, 2018
Very enjoyable – found two new authors and look forward to reading more from them.
February 8, 2019
Good collection
Well selected stories from very good authors, worthy of and in tribute to David Gemmell. Being short stories a very easy read too.
Well selected stories from very good authors, worthy of and in tribute to David Gemmell. Being short stories a very easy read too.
July 22, 2019
First anthology of fantasy shorts I've read and unlikely to be the last. All for a good cause too.
August 10, 2020
A wonderful read
An engaging and interesting read a great selection of varied stories. Definitely going to read the other collections in this series
An engaging and interesting read a great selection of varied stories. Definitely going to read the other collections in this series
February 10, 2024
Some solid short stories. Anne Nicholls and Joe Abercrombie stood out.
August 11, 2023
I went into this not having read ANY David Gemmel. I could still tell it was an homage. Undeniably has a particular flavor. I enjoyed this anthology but I have not run out to read any Gemmell in the years since. First read 2013, another in 2022.
The highlights for me were:
Or So Legend Has It- James Barclay, Not sure exactly what was going on here but have some thoughts.
Return to Arden Falls- Ian Whates, “May I buy you a drink?” There are many questions I might say no to. This isn’t one of them.- As first lines go, not bad. Add in the evocative title and I’m hooked.
A Tower of Arkrondurl-Tanith Lee, “Alas, poor ghost!” ‘He had been dead so long, the Sorcerer, here. Yet the tower, tall and iron-grim, was still deeply feared and scrupulously avoided.beautiful prose that feels like a tribute to the subject but also to Shakespeare. Hard to go wrong.
Skipping Town- Joe Abercrombie, I’m sure this is why I purchased this compilation and even though it is available elsewhere, worth it. Javre and Shev are always worth it.
All Hail to the Oak- Anne Nicholls, So I can’t find much more than nothing about Anne but noticed the last name so am now, low-key dying to find out if they’re linked by blood or marriage. In any case the anchor story League of Resolve by Stan is a good choice to finish off.
Swords and Circle-Adrian Tchaikovsky is in between the two. I really must get around to reading his longer form stuff.
All in all, worth a read. Keeping in mind that some of these might now be available elsewhere, here is the Full list:
1. Introduction – Stan Nicholls
2. Or So Legend has It – James Barclay
3. A Blade to the Heart – Gaie Sebold
4. Return to Arden Falls – Ian Whates
5. The Drake Lords of Kyla – Storm Constantine
6. A Tower of Arkrondurl – Tanith Lee
7. Who Walks With Death – Jonathan Green
8. Skipping Town – Joe Abercrombie
9. The Land of the Eagle – Juliet E. McKenna
10. All Hail to the Oak – Anne Nicholls
11. Swords and Circle – Adrian Tchaikovsky
12. Fairyland – Jan Siegel
13. Mountain Tea – Sandra Unerman
14. The League of Resolve – Stan Nicholls
The highlights for me were:
Or So Legend Has It- James Barclay, Not sure exactly what was going on here but have some thoughts.
Return to Arden Falls- Ian Whates, “May I buy you a drink?” There are many questions I might say no to. This isn’t one of them.- As first lines go, not bad. Add in the evocative title and I’m hooked.
A Tower of Arkrondurl-Tanith Lee, “Alas, poor ghost!” ‘He had been dead so long, the Sorcerer, here. Yet the tower, tall and iron-grim, was still deeply feared and scrupulously avoided.beautiful prose that feels like a tribute to the subject but also to Shakespeare. Hard to go wrong.
Skipping Town- Joe Abercrombie, I’m sure this is why I purchased this compilation and even though it is available elsewhere, worth it. Javre and Shev are always worth it.
All Hail to the Oak- Anne Nicholls, So I can’t find much more than nothing about Anne but noticed the last name so am now, low-key dying to find out if they’re linked by blood or marriage. In any case the anchor story League of Resolve by Stan is a good choice to finish off.
Swords and Circle-Adrian Tchaikovsky is in between the two. I really must get around to reading his longer form stuff.
All in all, worth a read. Keeping in mind that some of these might now be available elsewhere, here is the Full list:
1. Introduction – Stan Nicholls
2. Or So Legend has It – James Barclay
3. A Blade to the Heart – Gaie Sebold
4. Return to Arden Falls – Ian Whates
5. The Drake Lords of Kyla – Storm Constantine
6. A Tower of Arkrondurl – Tanith Lee
7. Who Walks With Death – Jonathan Green
8. Skipping Town – Joe Abercrombie
9. The Land of the Eagle – Juliet E. McKenna
10. All Hail to the Oak – Anne Nicholls
11. Swords and Circle – Adrian Tchaikovsky
12. Fairyland – Jan Siegel
13. Mountain Tea – Sandra Unerman
14. The League of Resolve – Stan Nicholls
January 25, 2015
Talk about phoning it in. This collection of short stories by various fantasy authors was put together to honor David Gemmell and raise operating funds for the David Gemmell Legend awards; yearly awards for fantasy fiction. I purchased it to support those awards and thought, "Hey, bonus, a bunch of good stories."
Bonus denied. It really deserves another half star, not all were bad. I'm not going to list whose I liked and whose I didn't; what works for me may not do it for you and vice versa. A couple were just too darned short and didn't allow for any connection time with the characters, and all felt rushed; either because of limited space, or because some of the authors just "phoned it in".
It's fairly inexpensive for the Kindle version and the proceeds go to the Legend Awards, so it was still worth the "cover" price; but I'm a little disappointed at the quality of most of this content. Not much of an honoring of a fantasy great. I'm sure Gemmell would appreciate the sentiment, but would be shaking his head at some of these.
Bonus denied. It really deserves another half star, not all were bad. I'm not going to list whose I liked and whose I didn't; what works for me may not do it for you and vice versa. A couple were just too darned short and didn't allow for any connection time with the characters, and all felt rushed; either because of limited space, or because some of the authors just "phoned it in".
It's fairly inexpensive for the Kindle version and the proceeds go to the Legend Awards, so it was still worth the "cover" price; but I'm a little disappointed at the quality of most of this content. Not much of an honoring of a fantasy great. I'm sure Gemmell would appreciate the sentiment, but would be shaking his head at some of these.
April 27, 2016
Really enjoyed the contributions from Joe Abercrombie and Sandra Unerman - 5 stars for them. Abercrombie and Unerman were short but so complete. Very satisfying. Of the other authors contributions I liked about half of them, one I couldn't get into at all.
Not really a fan or anthologies - but sometimes buy them to sample works by a couple of authors I'd heard something about. Many short stories seem to leave me hanging - having weak endings and I'm thinking " all that for that?" I did feel that way about a number of the tales in this compilation Based on that, I wanted to give this 3 stars but changed it to 4 considering I liked about half of the stories, which is pretty good for me and an anthology.
But that's the way of collections - you like and dislike and it's personal taste.
Not really a fan or anthologies - but sometimes buy them to sample works by a couple of authors I'd heard something about. Many short stories seem to leave me hanging - having weak endings and I'm thinking " all that for that?" I did feel that way about a number of the tales in this compilation Based on that, I wanted to give this 3 stars but changed it to 4 considering I liked about half of the stories, which is pretty good for me and an anthology.
But that's the way of collections - you like and dislike and it's personal taste.
July 13, 2015
There was the good and the not so good. Some well told tales by Tchaikovsky, Sebold and Barclay, that were entertaining. Of course Abercrombie's contribution was excellent but sadly a tad short for my liking. Anne Nicholls wrote a gripping tale and it was the first I've read of her work and would definitely read more in the future.
The story that took the crown by a mile though was 'Return to Arden Falls' by Ian Whates. It was a great short story and kept you turning the pages. Where some of the others seemed incomplete or more like extracts, this tale was tied up nicely and presented with an intriguing plot together with gripping characters.
I had no qualms in buying this book that was created in honour of the great Gemmell and although I was slightly disappointed with some of the content, there were some great stories that made it worthwhile.
The story that took the crown by a mile though was 'Return to Arden Falls' by Ian Whates. It was a great short story and kept you turning the pages. Where some of the others seemed incomplete or more like extracts, this tale was tied up nicely and presented with an intriguing plot together with gripping characters.
I had no qualms in buying this book that was created in honour of the great Gemmell and although I was slightly disappointed with some of the content, there were some great stories that made it worthwhile.
July 22, 2014
A mixed bag with the usual suspects delivering their usual fare.
Abercrombie's story was a pleasure to read as you would expect.
Not having read Tchaikovsky before I was pleased to find I quite enjoyed his short tale, will give his stuff a go now.
Not sure that many of the stories really brought to life a feeling of Gemmell but who cares as this book raised funds for the awards which I would like to see continue mainly due to the fact it is one of the few awards of this kind that a plebeian reader such as myself (I don't get any ARCs or the like) can have a say on the end winner of the awards.
Abercrombie's story was a pleasure to read as you would expect.
Not having read Tchaikovsky before I was pleased to find I quite enjoyed his short tale, will give his stuff a go now.
Not sure that many of the stories really brought to life a feeling of Gemmell but who cares as this book raised funds for the awards which I would like to see continue mainly due to the fact it is one of the few awards of this kind that a plebeian reader such as myself (I don't get any ARCs or the like) can have a say on the end winner of the awards.
October 2, 2014
Some cracking short stories in here in pretty much any style you can think of. Probably only one that I didn't like; 'All Hail to the Oak' by Anne Nicholls, but only because it felt it was written as a full novel and then hacked to bits by someone to fit into a "short story". Just didn't flow for me.
But a lot on here I'll be looking out for in future. Certainly opened my eyes to some new authors, which is always a plus :)
But a lot on here I'll be looking out for in future. Certainly opened my eyes to some new authors, which is always a plus :)
December 30, 2015
Was a good read
I chose this rating as they were good story's and interesting kept me entertained I've always liked Joe abercrombie and as a tribute to David gemmell he's a good storyteller but he has a style of his own ,when it comes to gemmell no one as yet comes close
I chose this rating as they were good story's and interesting kept me entertained I've always liked Joe abercrombie and as a tribute to David gemmell he's a good storyteller but he has a style of his own ,when it comes to gemmell no one as yet comes close
January 31, 2014
A great collection with some great stories.
May 21, 2014
First time i read a book and liked all the stories!Some more but all of them were very good. Thank you for honouring David Gemmell.
August 31, 2014
An average selection I'm afraid
March 10, 2015
A good list
Always happy to see some of my favorite writers,mixed in with others I don't know.Of course didn't like them all but a good selection.
Always happy to see some of my favorite writers,mixed in with others I don't know.Of course didn't like them all but a good selection.
April 8, 2016
As with most story collections, some good, some eh, but as a whole definitely captures the spirit of Gemmell's heroic fantasy.
September 8, 2016
There were only 3 good novel... And I think in the stories there weren't much from Gemmell... :(
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews