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Clovel Sword Chronicles #1
Shield of Skool
Alternate Cover Edition for ISBN10: 1482301091 / ISBN13: 9781482301090).
NEWLY Revised Edition of Shield of Skool, Book One of the Clovel Sword Chronicles, which now includes the prologue, Mythos of Kamin.
In this epic dark fantasy, a simple mission from his overlord turns into a perilous trek and personal quest for Urith, known as the Clovel Destroyer. Leading his nephew Oslaf across enemy lands, the warriors find allies in the demigod Mivraa and a beautiful young prophetess named Fedelm. As told by mystic visions, one of the group is destined to discover the first piece of the lost Skool, an ancient weapon of the gods, long thought destroyed.
On their quest to recover this powerful weapon, they must battle mortal enemies, both human and monster, who will stop at nothing to destroy them. The kings of Kamin are against them and chaos creeps into the world of humans and realms of the immortal gods. All sides learn they have much to fear about their future as enemies create shifting alliances and friends become treacherous partners as they seek to find the Shield of Skool.
NEWLY Revised Edition of Shield of Skool, Book One of the Clovel Sword Chronicles, which now includes the prologue, Mythos of Kamin.
In this epic dark fantasy, a simple mission from his overlord turns into a perilous trek and personal quest for Urith, known as the Clovel Destroyer. Leading his nephew Oslaf across enemy lands, the warriors find allies in the demigod Mivraa and a beautiful young prophetess named Fedelm. As told by mystic visions, one of the group is destined to discover the first piece of the lost Skool, an ancient weapon of the gods, long thought destroyed.
On their quest to recover this powerful weapon, they must battle mortal enemies, both human and monster, who will stop at nothing to destroy them. The kings of Kamin are against them and chaos creeps into the world of humans and realms of the immortal gods. All sides learn they have much to fear about their future as enemies create shifting alliances and friends become treacherous partners as they seek to find the Shield of Skool.
- GenresFantasy
346 pages, Paperback
First published April 26, 2013
19 people are currently reading
1217 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 10, 2015
This book begins with a long prologue which sets the scene for the adventure fantasy quest to begin.
Two Esterblud warriors initially sent by their Overlord as emissaries of peace to a neighbouring land, are shipwrecked. Here, their quest for the Shield of Skool begins. The warriors, Urith, and his nephew Oslaf, are beset by all manner of beasts and netherworld creatures on their journey to find out what they should be searching for.
If you like Conan The Barbarian, then you will love this mix of romance, clash of sword and shield, and the schemes and plots of the Gods from up above and down below.
Shield of Skool is not Sword and Sorcery, it is Sword and Gods.
Two Esterblud warriors initially sent by their Overlord as emissaries of peace to a neighbouring land, are shipwrecked. Here, their quest for the Shield of Skool begins. The warriors, Urith, and his nephew Oslaf, are beset by all manner of beasts and netherworld creatures on their journey to find out what they should be searching for.
If you like Conan The Barbarian, then you will love this mix of romance, clash of sword and shield, and the schemes and plots of the Gods from up above and down below.
Shield of Skool is not Sword and Sorcery, it is Sword and Gods.
August 9, 2016
When a volunteer organization colleague hands you a copy of his first novel, you read it. Our normal genre of mystery/thrillers seems awfully mundane (not to mention far removed) compared to this fantasy, absolutely foreign territory for us, about medieval warriors; numerous realms and kingdoms populated by both humans and all manner of gods and demigods; potions, visions, and other mystical capabilities; and magical weapons (in the sword, spear, and shield family).
The plot mostly traces two Esterblud warriors, Urith (the elder) with mentee (and nephew) Oslaf, on a mission ostensibly to facilitate some sort of peace conference. As they traverse distant lands, they run into numerous battles and other difficulties, but get some help from two women, one a goddess of some sort, who reveals that their mission needs to be altered to instead find a magical shield that might lead to serious control over persons and lands.
We have a number of reactions to the novel. First, the author can clearly write well, as his descriptive work helped us picture well what was going on, while his plotting skills sustained a decent level of suspense throughout. The very strange names for people, animals, and all the towns and lands made for rough sledding; we found it especially difficult to keep straight the minor characters over the pages. This self-published effort has an excellent look and feel, with a physical quality easily comparable to a professional trade paperback. Some editing mishaps, mostly missing or extraneous words here or there, somewhat marred our edition, but no doubt they will be discovered and corrected as future copies are produced.
Lastly, the book ends somewhat abruptly. While it is clearly billed as a multi-book epic, of which this is Book 1, we might have preferred a bit more of a standalone finish, so that one would not merely be teased into continuing with the other books, but take a little more satisfaction in a story concluded more smoothly for this part of the saga. But hey, for an author’s first outing, not bad at all !
The plot mostly traces two Esterblud warriors, Urith (the elder) with mentee (and nephew) Oslaf, on a mission ostensibly to facilitate some sort of peace conference. As they traverse distant lands, they run into numerous battles and other difficulties, but get some help from two women, one a goddess of some sort, who reveals that their mission needs to be altered to instead find a magical shield that might lead to serious control over persons and lands.
We have a number of reactions to the novel. First, the author can clearly write well, as his descriptive work helped us picture well what was going on, while his plotting skills sustained a decent level of suspense throughout. The very strange names for people, animals, and all the towns and lands made for rough sledding; we found it especially difficult to keep straight the minor characters over the pages. This self-published effort has an excellent look and feel, with a physical quality easily comparable to a professional trade paperback. Some editing mishaps, mostly missing or extraneous words here or there, somewhat marred our edition, but no doubt they will be discovered and corrected as future copies are produced.
Lastly, the book ends somewhat abruptly. While it is clearly billed as a multi-book epic, of which this is Book 1, we might have preferred a bit more of a standalone finish, so that one would not merely be teased into continuing with the other books, but take a little more satisfaction in a story concluded more smoothly for this part of the saga. But hey, for an author’s first outing, not bad at all !
September 20, 2016
Epic fantasy is one of my favorite genres, and I saw the Shield of Skool by Gordon Brewer and liked the way it sounded. Read on for my review!
Synopsis (from the author): In this epic fantasy, a modest mission from his overlord turns into a perilous trek and personal quest for Urith, known as the Clovel Destroyer. Leading his nephew Oslaf across enemy lands, the warriors find allies in the demigod Mivraa and a beautiful young prophetess named Fedelm. As told by mystic visions, one of the group is destined to discover the first piece of the lost Skool, an ancient weapon of the gods, long thought destroyed.
On their quest to recover this powerful weapon, they must battle mortal enemies, both human, and monster, who will stop at nothing to terminate them. The overlords who rule the lands of Kamin are against them, and chaos begins to creep into the mortal world. The realms of the gods start to become a battleground for control of the terrifying weapon. All sides learn they have much to fear about their future when enemies create shifting alliances. The powerful and the weak become treacherous partners in the race to find the Shield of Skool.
What I liked: The Shield of Skool is my kind of epic fantasy I like to read. Full of battles, an honor code among warriors, gods interfering with humans, intrigue, and a cool world, the Shield of Skool has it all. I enjoyed Urith as a character, and Oslaf is a good sidekick to the more experienced warrior. The budding attraction between Oslaf and Fedelm (and between Mivraa and Urith) add an interesting flavor to the story. All told a nice start to the Clovel Sword series!
What I didn’t like: As much as I enjoyed the story, the book needed another review by an editor. I found many errors that detracted from the tale.
Overall impression: The Shield of Skool was an enjoyable read. With a review by an editor, and some corrections, this would be an excellent start to an epic fantasy series!
My rating: 3.5 Stars (rounded to 4)
Synopsis (from the author): In this epic fantasy, a modest mission from his overlord turns into a perilous trek and personal quest for Urith, known as the Clovel Destroyer. Leading his nephew Oslaf across enemy lands, the warriors find allies in the demigod Mivraa and a beautiful young prophetess named Fedelm. As told by mystic visions, one of the group is destined to discover the first piece of the lost Skool, an ancient weapon of the gods, long thought destroyed.
On their quest to recover this powerful weapon, they must battle mortal enemies, both human, and monster, who will stop at nothing to terminate them. The overlords who rule the lands of Kamin are against them, and chaos begins to creep into the mortal world. The realms of the gods start to become a battleground for control of the terrifying weapon. All sides learn they have much to fear about their future when enemies create shifting alliances. The powerful and the weak become treacherous partners in the race to find the Shield of Skool.
What I liked: The Shield of Skool is my kind of epic fantasy I like to read. Full of battles, an honor code among warriors, gods interfering with humans, intrigue, and a cool world, the Shield of Skool has it all. I enjoyed Urith as a character, and Oslaf is a good sidekick to the more experienced warrior. The budding attraction between Oslaf and Fedelm (and between Mivraa and Urith) add an interesting flavor to the story. All told a nice start to the Clovel Sword series!
What I didn’t like: As much as I enjoyed the story, the book needed another review by an editor. I found many errors that detracted from the tale.
Overall impression: The Shield of Skool was an enjoyable read. With a review by an editor, and some corrections, this would be an excellent start to an epic fantasy series!
My rating: 3.5 Stars (rounded to 4)
January 23, 2019
What a good discovery (I was browsing the kindle store). This is a very, very good book. Few books have made me travel in my mind into another world like this one as. The atmosphere and the setting are top notch, the world created is a perfect mix of classic fantasy and otherworldly. I am always looking for new action packed sword and sorcery stories and Shield of Skool fits the bill perfectly. The writing style is simple, easy to read and well paced. A classic but interesting story of a simple quest that goes wrong on a backdrop of mysticism, religion, war, gods and demigods. This author need to be discover by every fantasy readers.
September 25, 2013
I won this on good reads.
The epic adventure of Urith, a great warrior, caught in a power struggle between gods, demi-gods, and overlords. Well formed characters and society creation. Slow to start, but interesting twists and turns.
The epic adventure of Urith, a great warrior, caught in a power struggle between gods, demi-gods, and overlords. Well formed characters and society creation. Slow to start, but interesting twists and turns.
May 29, 2013
Just finished this one and found it to be a blast with lots of action. A hero called Urith, scarred inside and out, lands on a beach and must fight enemy warriors almost immediately. Soon he and his nephew save a woman they cannot trust on their journey through the back-country which includes an ambush by assassins and meeting a demigoddess who eventually joins them. And that's just the first half of the book. I won't spoil the rest of the book for others but it hooked me right from the start.
A good start to the opening of the series. The only down side to the book was getting used to the new names used by the author for animals, plants, and other items of everyday life.
A good start to the opening of the series. The only down side to the book was getting used to the new names used by the author for animals, plants, and other items of everyday life.
April 29, 2013
Pretty good book. Not strictly fantasy genre as it has a flavor of adventure/swashbuckling overlaying it. The adventure unfolds as the main character and those traveling with him make their way through the challenges laid before them.
April 30, 2013
A truly epic story (or start to the series) similar to the old Conan or John Carter stories with a new world of lands and characters. I like that the women were strong, devious, and loyal as the males. Wish it was longer so have to wait for new book.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews