The Return of the Black Company

The Books of the Glittering Stone #1-2

by Glen Cook

"Let me tell you who I am, on the chance that these scribblings do survive. . .

"I am Murgen, Standardbearer of the Black Company, though I bear the shame of having lost that standard in battle. I am keeping these Annals because Croaker is dead, One-Eye won't, and hardly anyone else can read or write. I will be your guide for however long it takes the Shadowlanders to force our present predicament to its inevitable end. . ."
The Return of the Black Company comprises the novels Bleak Seasons and She is the Darkness—the third omnibus volume of Glen Cook's fantasy epic Chronicles of the Black Company.


At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Dark Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, High Fantasy, Science Fiction Fantasy, Adventure

673 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Glen Cook was born in New York City, lived in southern Indiana as a small child, then grew up in Northern California. After high school he served in the U.S. Navy and attended the University of Missouri. He worked for General Motors for 33 years, retiring some years ago. He started writing short stories in 7th grade, had several published in a high school literary magazine. He began writing with malicious intent to publish in 1968, eventually producing 51 books and a number of short fiction pieces.
He met his wife of 43 years while attending the Clarion Writer's Workshop in 1970. He has three sons (army officer, architect, orchestral musician) and numerous grandchildren, all of whom but one are female. He is best known for his Black Company series, which has appeared in 20+ languages worldwide. His other series include Dread Empire and and the Garrett, P.I. series. His latest work is Working God’s Mischief, fourth in the Instrumentalities of the Night series.
http://us.macmillan.com/author/glencook

Reviews

[S. ≽^•⩊•^≼ I'm not here yet · Rating 5 out of 5]

rtc

1 and 2 the Glittering Stone (Bleak Seasons + She is the Darkness)

[Charles van Buren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unanswered Questions

Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: The Return of the Black Company (Chronicles of the Black Company Series Book 3) (Kindle Edition)

Book 3 of the Black Company omnibus is not a stand alone volume even though it combines two glittering stone novels. It does not reach a conclusion but leaves unanswered questions. Still a good enough story that I will read book 4 to get the answers.

[Milda Page Runner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bleak Seasons 3* review
She is the Darkness 4* review

[Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book started off a bit oddly with Murgen (the Narrator) sliding between locations and times with little or no warning. This was obviously intentional, but was not clearly explained at first that that is what was happening. Once I realized it though it proved an interesting way of revealing back story without using a recap.

There are sections that hint as to what is happening on the Glittering Plain, which while they give hints and are interesting, I found to be generally difficult and never really knew if these were from the narrator, the author, or some other speaker. Having finished the book I have a bit better idea, but still could not say for certain.

Once the time/location slips were understood this volume definitely advanced the storyline, and introduced a number of interesting locations and characters. In specific the addition of the Nyueng Bao and the insight into their culture along with the events of the seige at Dejagore was a welcome addition to the narrative that I had hoped would be explored more when reading the previous volume.

This volume definitely returns to a bit more of the mercenary mindset and nastiness of the Black Company, and while Murgen continues to present the company as full of generally decent guys he also makes it clear that they are not good guys and their motivations and goals are unabashedly selfish. To me this was a welcome return, as it is this outlook that differentiates this series from standard fantasy series, and makes it so notable.

[Derek · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great series became even greater... I love the humor Murgen injects in his writing, even if Croaker thinks that Murgen is too self-interested. There are some fantastic lines, and the by-play between the Old Crew members is wonderful. There were several points where I laughed so hard the bed shook!

I need to go back to the Malazan series, but at this point, 10 or so months after I read them, I have to give the Black Company the edge. Not by much, but I have really loved the last 7 (?) or so books, and only the first one was a struggle for me to get into as I warmed up to his style.

[Markus · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buddy read with Athena & Gavin!

[Kostas · Rating 5 out of 5]

First two books of the final four-part series. New main PoV that puts Croaker and Lady as side characters but very deep, compex and well written. Possibly the best of GC.

[Noah Martel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyed getting back to the black company books. They are a bunch of fun in an easy way. Took a bit to get used to the new narrator in the first book, but then I came to really enjoy them. Overall tons of fun

[Raja · Rating 4 out of 5]

The new Black Company omnibus definitely satisfies, especially in the wake of the cliffhanger ending of Dreams of Steel, which supposedly concluded The Books of the South, but in reality did nothing of the kind.

This omnibus comprises the first two books of the four-book Glittering Stone quartet, and while the end of this volume isn't a cliffhanger in the strictest sense, it's close. At least I have plenty of other books in my queue to read while I anxiously await the conclusion...

[Christine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. I was speechless when I finished it last night and I'm speechless after a good night's sleep. Glenn Cook is a master story-teller. He wove elements in there that I normally would have scoffed at because they were so outlandish, but the build was so slow and so thorough that he was able to suspend my disbelief. It was a slower read this time - though I wonder if that's not the book and just life in general getting in the way - no less enjoyable however.

On to the next if I have the emotional strength to join company in their current situation.

[Jennifer Wheeler · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really didn't like this one as much as the previous omnibus. I'm disappointed in the switch of viewpoint from Croaker & Lady to Murgen. There were a lot of flashbacks to incidences that had already occurred in the previous books, but told from Murgen's view inside Dejagore. So the the reader knows exactly what is going on already and is just waiting for the character to catch up to current events. And then when he does, said events aren't as fast-paced or interesting as the reader has grown accustomed to. So all-in-all this instalment gets a big "meh" from me. I hope the next one is better.

[Joshua Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book covers the first half of the Glittering Stone saga. Murgen takes a stab at being Annalist and does a great job at it. The stakes have risen and the Black Company finds themselves in a perilous position by the end, setting up a million questions in the mind of the reader.

These two books in my opinion are a step up from the Books of the South and set up an amazing conclusion in the next collection "The Many Deaths of the Black Company."

[Alissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Dreams too easily become nightmares."

[Evan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bleak Seasons Review:
5.9/10
I was not really feeling this book and it just didn’t have the lasting impression the other books did on me. I know this is the first book of this new Books of the Glittering Stone arc that will end the series but this just didn’t feel like the rest of the books in my opinion. This book had a new narrator, Murgen, and while I still prefer Croaker to everyone else, I thought it was written well and he brought some humor to the table. My main complaint with this book was the plot. During Dreams of Steel we saw the Siege of Dejagore play out from Lady’s and Croaker’s perspective and this book brought us back to that same siege. This time it is from the viewpoint of the brothers inside of Dejagore which added little bits of interesting information but overall, it seemed too similar to the last book. For about half of the book we are stuck in Dejagore knowing everything that already happened and learning very little new information that was not already explained in Dreams of Steel. On top of what felt like rereading the last half of Dreams of Steel again, the plot had other issues. The plot was purposefully scattered and difficult to follow and while this may have been a positive for some readers, this was very frustrating for me with skipping between multiple different time periods and locations at the drop of a hat. The reason this was done (writing style wise) may come to fruition in the next book but during this book it left a bad taste in my mouth. I felt lost through a good chunk of the book and the ending was not much better with a random abrupt end to things that did not feel deserved at all. This almost feels like it was originally supposed to be one larger book but then got cut into two books after the writing was complete. I just hope that that is the case and She is the Darkness will deal with all of my concerns I had with this book.

She is the Darkness Review:
8.8/10
This second of the Books of the Glittering Stone was where things really started getting going. This completely made up for Bleak Seasons which was my least favorite book of the series. Almost every complaint I had about Bleak Seasons going into this book was resolved or explained and I could not be happier. With Cook’s earlier books in the series, he seemed to follow a loose formula of having a large majority of the book setting up for bigger things to come near the end of the book. Lots of dialog, world building and a slow unravel of the plot would keep you interested enough to get to the last quarter of the book where everything came together into a massive climax. This book was the first real exception that I have seen to this pattern. The vast majority of this book was one drawn out climax. There were very few sections of this story that were not extremely engaging and actively moving the plot forward in some way. Murgen once again was a great narrator and is also turning out to be a very interesting character as well. This book was definitely one of the strongest entries into this series so far and I can’t wait to see what the last two books have in store for me.

The Return of the Black Company Score:
7.4/10

[Jacob Castillo · Rating 3 out of 5]

long long long narrative

Following a new author starts as exciting though this book in the series finally starts to wane. The length of the book means countries are crossed battles fought, and yet the black company marches on. Same villains make the confrontations blend. The ending tho was 👌🏽

[Kossie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing story, had some trouble getting into it but once I did I was once again hooked on the story.
I am so glad that I already have the next book... because of the ending I cannot wait to find out how the story continues.

[Jackson Sardello · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bleak Seasons on its own is probably in between a 3 and a 4. But She is Darkness is between a 4 and a 5. Probably closer to a 4. But it also has one of the best lines I ever read in a fantasy book on page 511. I actually started crying I laughed so hard. What a cliffhanger!

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

These two slap. Don't want to spoil a thing.

[F.T. · Rating 5 out of 5]

These next two books in this series are a wild ride full of drops, twists and turns. I initially balked at having a new narrator, but that didn’t last long. I liked Murgen and he continued to grow on me as I went. He’s a great character, a farmer who ended up with the Black Company as Annalist and Standardbearer. He’s resourceful, sarcastic, sensitive and a little messed up.

This story threw me in the beginning. Murgen has this mysterious ability to leave his body and jump around in time-space, and this was used to convey history and events in other places, including the whereabouts of Croaker’s and the Lady’s child, who was snatched away two books ago. It was confusing because there was no warning when Murgen would drop out and it wasn’t always clear when and where things were happening, let alone why. His own personal traumas were mixed up in it, too. In retrospect, this was well done because I had this constant, shadowy feeling that I wasn’t where I thought I was, and that’s how Murgen felt. On top of this, things were stalking him in the ghost world. Eventually this phenomenon was explained—and then he found other ways to “ghostwalk” as he called it, which helped bring the story to ground a bit. When he gained the ability to control it, and to do it on his own, things got really interesting.

The usual host of colorful, wicked characters abound, including Soulcatcher, Longshadow, Howler and Kina, who continues to be an unnerving force operating in the shadows with a particularly nasty agenda. Croaker’s and the Lady’s child becomes one of the creepiest characters of all—not the closure I was thinking might happen on that, but it sure kept things going. There was also a raft of intriguing questions pulling the story along, things that seemed small but weren’t; and other things that downright made no sense until it came together at the end in an epic crash that left me wanting more. As usual.

[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

At first this was a WHAT THE HELL? ending. As in, wow, that's seriously the end?

And then I talked myself into thinking "Wow, that's actually a brilliant ending for this series. Leaving them trapped forever under the earth, Murgen's ghost forever doomed to walk through time? Nice. Very fitting ending for the Black Company."

And then I bothered to look online and found out there's a second omnibus with the rest of the story.

Hmmmph.

I think I almost would prefer the tragic end. Because you don't get those very often.

[James Tallett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like all of the books of the Black Company series, I find the dialogue and the writing excellent. The one point I will knock the series for is that the whole collection (with the exception of the Silver Spike) is one book. It means that this story doesn't end, here, but instead ends in Soldiers Live, two books further on.

And of course, I have now started Water Sleeps. Soldiers Live, I'll see you shortly.

[Derek · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed Murgen as the new annalist for the Black Company. Story moved well, and his perspective (though a bit confusing at first with the jumps back in time) was quite refreshing.

I'm really looking forward to the 4th Omnibus in this series so that I can find out what happens (this book really leaves you hanging).

[Troy G · Rating 5 out of 5]

A compilation of 2 of the best books I've ever read. You should get this or the books individually and read them. For more details see my reviews of the the individual books.

Note: This is my suggested point to start the Black Company series. You can go back and pick up the previous books if you want to later.

[Sebastian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the series. POV changes, but that did not trouble me, I actually recognise that potential all along. Chronicles, right?
Well, what I like about the Black Company is that it illustrates more or less everyday guys in war in a truthful way. The protagonist are neither heroes nor saints, their first priority is survival. The no nonsense writing form Cook is refreshing.

[Evgeni Kirilov · Rating 5 out of 5]

There isn't much I can say that will surprise Glen Cook's readers. If you are this far into the series, you should know that this omnibus follows the same style as the previous ones. The only notable difference is that we get to see Murgen as the main viewpoint character, and Cook does some interesting things with that.

[Colin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This series started well and stays strong. It has a very classic swords & sorcery feel, like a latter-day "Appendix N" series. Very nice. The only problem is that as soon as I finish one I want to read the next one!

[Angela]

23 November 2015: $5.99 on Kindle

[Ignacio · Rating 4 out of 5]

Al fin terminé She Is the Darkness. Es muy lento, y yo que venía con todo el vuelo de los tres anteriores. Creo que me tomaré una pausita antes de releer el último ómnibus.

[Adán · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5**** - NO SPOILERS
Both Bleak Seasons and She Is The Darkness both still show a lack of tonal hook to keep the reader focused on the characters themselves. The world around them is ever richer, the events ever more dangerous and thrilling, but the people who endure them rarely show a depth to match that of the scope of their tasks.
And don't get me wrong, I'm liking the books overall. But there's something very, very off about the tone of the narrative. Very few characters seemed to be able to draw upon my mind an image clear enough about their personality. A very good example of those few is One-Eye. Everyone shits about him, but hey, he's one of the few people in the Company who seem to have enough personality to be more than the average, cussing Black Company mercenary. He has more detail than even Lady herself!
And the books had plenty of page space to expand on those details. But once again, we are presented with two rather short books, which could have been merged into just one, 500 pages long book if we left out all the stagnant moments of both, in which the Company just seemed to do nothing more than wait for the planets to align before actually moving one step closer to its destination. Also, the number of chapters is more insane than before. Around 110 chapters for She Is The Darkness means that there's a new chapter every 4-6 pages. The feeling of cohesion that comes with using longer, more typical arcs is just gone, by fragmenting the story after a character cusses 10 times and almost nothing happens in between. The pattern repeats itself until the reader reaches a point of inflexion in which whether somebody makes an actual move or the story takes an actual step forward.
Another thing that kept me from granting the 5 stars is that one particular mechanic that has to do with dreams and ghosts (on which, from certain point on, the plot heavily relies) seemed to come from basically nowhere, and is introduced just because.
Some characters take some very dumb decisions at some points, and show what I now identify as a severe and chronic case of indecision. At few times the Company has the power to decide whether a very stubborn enemy finally dies or not, by having them at their mercy after, usually, a hard fight or campaign. And sure enough, and following the same old "what if" thought pattern that characterizes the Company, they choose the least useful of the options, at which point you can't help but think to yourself: they are going to pay for that later. It is not surprising, then, that they do pay, usually some 200 pages after the decision is made. We know this pattern already, we just hope to see it broken in a good way, sometime.
I'll now depart to end this tale, which is a good one after all. I'm leaving certain details that made me a little happier in the dark, of course, but you'll see for yourselves. The last two books must start on a high note, that's for sure...

[Stefan Popovici · Rating 5 out of 5]

The third Black Company omnibus collecting Bleak Seasons and She is the Darkness

Bleak Seasons

The book is told from Murgen's perspective and recounts the events which occurred inside the city during the Siege of Dejagore but it also acts as a sequel to Dreams of Steel and pushes the narrative of the series forward.

As the title suggests, it's a very bleak book. A siege is never a fun place to find yourself, much less so on the side of the defenders. And Murgen's experiences change him drastically so that even long after he is still haunted by them which is reflected in the writing and tone of the book.

Also worth noting that the narrative shifts between past and present several times, very often without warning or indication which can be very confusing at times. The fact that Murgen recalls both the distant and the recent past alongside present events doesn't help. The narrative is compelling though and these timeline jumps are explained and a key part of the story. And in my honest opinion the confusion is intended considering what Murgen is going through in the book.

I do have one gripe but it is story related and almost impossible to explain without spoilers. In short, this book changes the way the Company operates and personally I never quite fully liked this new direction.
This book marks the start of Smoke's ghost traveling arc which later on morphs into ghost Murgen and finally into Tobo's shadows. It is a big difference to how the Company used to operate, based on intrigue and deception and outsmarting their opponents instead of relying heavily on magic. Personally I never really enjoyed this change but considering how the final books really raise the stakes I guess it kinda evens out.

She is the Darkness

This directly continues the narrative from where Bleak Seasons left it and recounts the Shadowmaster wars to their end. This is a much more typical novel, the story is linearly told (although it does have some hints towards future events) by Murgen as the Company nears its goal of reaching Khatovar.

This is the Black Company at its best, firing quality grimdark fantasy with all cannons. It goes from battle to battle and intrigue to intrigue never ceasing to throw curve balls towards the reader. It also represents the first book which starts to reveal a bit more regarding the origin of the Black Company.



Overall the novels are quite different in terms of tone, structure, pacing and quite simply in the way in which they tell their stories. But they are both excellent reads and worthy additions to the series.