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Dragonlance: Kingpriest #2
Divine Hammer
A Threat to the Glory of Istar.
Twenty years have passed since Beldinas the Kingpriest assumed the throne. His is a realm of unsurpassed grandeur and wealth, a testament to the mightiest age of the empire of Istar.
But evil exists in this great realm, threatening the peace and sanctity of the province. Beldinas must turn to his most loyal lieutenant, Cathan, for help. Following Cathan's lead, the Knights of the Divine Hammer strive to extinguish a foul sorcery that will stop at nothing to serve its own dark ends.
Twenty years have passed since Beldinas the Kingpriest assumed the throne. His is a realm of unsurpassed grandeur and wealth, a testament to the mightiest age of the empire of Istar.
But evil exists in this great realm, threatening the peace and sanctity of the province. Beldinas must turn to his most loyal lieutenant, Cathan, for help. Following Cathan's lead, the Knights of the Divine Hammer strive to extinguish a foul sorcery that will stop at nothing to serve its own dark ends.
320 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published October 1, 2002
9 people are currently reading
608 people want to read
About the author
Chris Pierson
39 books23 followersAuthor of GREENSWORD, a dark comedy about global warming. Author of Forced Conversion, a military science fiction novel set in the near future. Also author of a variety of short fiction in the fantasy, science fiction, horror, and comedy genres, and gaming material, including stories in the Dragonlance and Transformers universes and in a variety of DAW themed anthologies. World's top-ranked player of RPGA Classic roleplaying game tournaments from 1985-2000. See more at www.donaldjbingle.com."
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
April 7, 2024
That's a great book. Pierson weaves a great story here. Even though we all know how things turned out in the end, we still don't know how exactly it all happened. Pierson's take here is very convincing.
4.5/5
4.5/5
August 30, 2020
3.5*
The second installment in the Kingpriest Trilogy is yet another solid addition to the Dragonlance canon, and yet it doesn't quite live up to the first.
Andras lacked any real depth of character, and instead just seemed like nothing more than a kind of weak plot device.
The relationship between Beldinas and Cathan, which was the best part of Chosen of the Gods was lacking entirely in this chapter of their story .
Despite its flaws though, The Divine Hammer is a solid novel. Leciane was a great character , though I will say that the misuse of "Milady" throughout the novel was mildly obnoxious. Cathan had a solid arc, and I love seeing how he's progressed as a character as the series progresses. I'm not quite sure what Quarath's endgame is, and while I don't love his character, I am interested to see if there will be any weight behind any of his actions or if he'll just continue to be more or less inconsequential. The ConLang issue seems to have been resolved; the church language still appears occasionally, but only when necessary and not to such an extent that it's distracting throughout the novel.
The second installment in the Kingpriest Trilogy is yet another solid addition to the Dragonlance canon, and yet it doesn't quite live up to the first.
Andras lacked any real depth of character, and instead just seemed like nothing more than a kind of weak plot device.
The relationship between Beldinas and Cathan, which was the best part of Chosen of the Gods was lacking entirely in this chapter of their story .
Despite its flaws though, The Divine Hammer is a solid novel. Leciane was a great character , though I will say that the misuse of "Milady" throughout the novel was mildly obnoxious. Cathan had a solid arc, and I love seeing how he's progressed as a character as the series progresses. I'm not quite sure what Quarath's endgame is, and while I don't love his character, I am interested to see if there will be any weight behind any of his actions or if he'll just continue to be more or less inconsequential. The ConLang issue seems to have been resolved; the church language still appears occasionally, but only when necessary and not to such an extent that it's distracting throughout the novel.
May 18, 2023
I enjoyed the first book in the trilogy but I LOVED this one!
Where book 1 focused on the rise of the newest Kingpriest, book 2 goes over how the Wizards of High Sorcery became targets of his holy crusade and their subsequent terrible decision to destroy two of their towers to ensure the knowledge within them doesn’t fall into the wrong hands. It also lays the beginnings of how Fistandantilus came to be in the Kingpriest’s court as seen in the Legends Trilogy.
I love everything that has to do with magic in this setting, so finally getting those pieces of history resulted in a great read for me!
Where book 1 focused on the rise of the newest Kingpriest, book 2 goes over how the Wizards of High Sorcery became targets of his holy crusade and their subsequent terrible decision to destroy two of their towers to ensure the knowledge within them doesn’t fall into the wrong hands. It also lays the beginnings of how Fistandantilus came to be in the Kingpriest’s court as seen in the Legends Trilogy.
I love everything that has to do with magic in this setting, so finally getting those pieces of history resulted in a great read for me!
September 5, 2024
Really good
The intricate politics and warring factions is entertaining in this book. I really enjoyed it and it is a strong second entry to the trilogy. I’m excited to see where it will end (even if it’s pretty well known if you know Dragonlance but even a little). Really great fantasy!
The intricate politics and warring factions is entertaining in this book. I really enjoyed it and it is a strong second entry to the trilogy. I’m excited to see where it will end (even if it’s pretty well known if you know Dragonlance but even a little). Really great fantasy!
December 8, 2018
A slightly weaker story than the first book, but still a fantastic story that, in typical Chris Pierson style, is truly epic and has fewer inaccuracies/discrepancies than any other Dragonlance author.
March 8, 2022
Istar Kingpriest
I read dragonlance books many years ago. I was always curious about the story of istar and the kingpriest. I found the kingpriest trilogy by accident at a used bookstore. I have enjoyed reading about istar and the kingpriest and what happened.
I read dragonlance books many years ago. I was always curious about the story of istar and the kingpriest. I found the kingpriest trilogy by accident at a used bookstore. I have enjoyed reading about istar and the kingpriest and what happened.
September 27, 2024
Hot damn, what a massive improvement over the previous book. The pretentious "church talk" is still there, but it's a helluva lot less intense and man, does the story have an impact on the lore; it's actually quite the gamechanger
December 14, 2019
Better than book one by far.
August 12, 2024
I’d probably give this 4.5 stars if I had the option. It had some slow moments but was exciting to see some events that were hinted at in Chronicles and Legends play out in detail. It is well written and quite enjoyable. I’m looking forward to seeing how the trilogy ends!
March 23, 2019
The Divine Hammer takes place about 20 years after the events of Chosen of the Gods, and the book is every bit as good as its predecessor, if not better. It focuses on the conflict between the Kingpriest (and the Knights of the Divine Hammer) and the wizards, as the Kingpriest escalates his noble plan to drive all evil (i.e. sorcery) from the world. Despite a couple of minor nitpicks I have with the story, it is told very well, illustrating some events that are referenced in other Dragonlance books in grand fashion. It is no doubt that most readers will already have an idea of how the final books of this trilogy will conclude, but Pierson so far has weaved a gripping story as to how we will get there.
June 8, 2013
Prachtig geschreven, alsook dat je je kunt inleven in de personages, je je bepaalde gebeurtenissen goed kunt voorstellen. Van deze serie kan zeker een film gemaakt worden. Geen twijfel mogelijk.
Istar komt, voor zover ik mij herinner, ook voor in 'Chronicles' (met Tas en Flint?), en dan is de streek al verwoest. En in Kingpriest Trilogy krijg je meer info daaromtrent (Cataclysm? ).
Wel jammer dat lady Ilista al in het eerste boek uit het verhaal 'verdwijnt' (lees: gedood wordt). Ik dacht echt dat ze nog een belangrijke rol ging spelen in het verdere verloop. Maar ze (haar geest) komt even kort terug in Sacred Fire.
Wat ik niet snap, is waarom Cathan niet geloofde dat hij de 'Chosen Of The Gods' was, toen hij de miceram vond en daar ook de geest van een ex- of wannabe kingpriest ontmoette. Maar doorheen het verhaal heb ik wel altijd aangenomen dat Cathan de rechtmatige 'ruler' was.
Toen Beldyn/Beldinas wat te fanatiek bezig was met het uitroeien van evil, was ik wel wat bezorgd. Veel wizards verdienden het ook niet, daar heb ik mij toch even kwaad gemaakt op Beldinas. Fistandantilus bezorgde mij meestal koude rillingen, hoewel ik in Sacred Fire enige sympathie voor hem voelde, ook omdat hij Cathan hielp te ontsnappen.
Ik had nooit gedacht dat Cathan daadwerkelijk die bloodblossom olie in Beldinas zou 'spuiten', gezien ze toch een goeie vriendschap hadden. Nuja, op het laatst toen Bron bijna vermoord werd door lokale inwoners, toen hij even tot Paladine bad, had ik zo'n gevoel van "tiens, toch wel een redelijk grote gelijkenis met de huidige wereld"
The Kingpriest Trilogy is niet zomaar een derderangsserietje, maar belangrijk om bepaalde dingen/gebeurtenissen te kennen als de streek ter sprake komt in latere boeken (Legends, Tales, ...).
Istar komt, voor zover ik mij herinner, ook voor in 'Chronicles' (met Tas en Flint?), en dan is de streek al verwoest. En in Kingpriest Trilogy krijg je meer info daaromtrent (Cataclysm? ).
Wel jammer dat lady Ilista al in het eerste boek uit het verhaal 'verdwijnt' (lees: gedood wordt). Ik dacht echt dat ze nog een belangrijke rol ging spelen in het verdere verloop. Maar ze (haar geest) komt even kort terug in Sacred Fire.
Wat ik niet snap, is waarom Cathan niet geloofde dat hij de 'Chosen Of The Gods' was, toen hij de miceram vond en daar ook de geest van een ex- of wannabe kingpriest ontmoette. Maar doorheen het verhaal heb ik wel altijd aangenomen dat Cathan de rechtmatige 'ruler' was.
Toen Beldyn/Beldinas wat te fanatiek bezig was met het uitroeien van evil, was ik wel wat bezorgd. Veel wizards verdienden het ook niet, daar heb ik mij toch even kwaad gemaakt op Beldinas. Fistandantilus bezorgde mij meestal koude rillingen, hoewel ik in Sacred Fire enige sympathie voor hem voelde, ook omdat hij Cathan hielp te ontsnappen.
Ik had nooit gedacht dat Cathan daadwerkelijk die bloodblossom olie in Beldinas zou 'spuiten', gezien ze toch een goeie vriendschap hadden. Nuja, op het laatst toen Bron bijna vermoord werd door lokale inwoners, toen hij even tot Paladine bad, had ik zo'n gevoel van "tiens, toch wel een redelijk grote gelijkenis met de huidige wereld"
The Kingpriest Trilogy is niet zomaar een derderangsserietje, maar belangrijk om bepaalde dingen/gebeurtenissen te kennen als de streek ter sprake komt in latere boeken (Legends, Tales, ...).
November 18, 2012
The second book of the Kingpriest trilogy set in the Dragonlance world. This book takes place 20 years after the first book and the Kingpriest is in power and this describes his quest to eradicate evil. It also deals with Cathan and his service to the Kingpriest. Also, the evil machinations of Fistandantilus are present. The author does a fantastic job weaving all plot lines and even though we the reader knows the cataclysm will happen, you cannot stop reading to find out how the events leading up to it led to it. If you a fan of Dragonlance this trilogy is a must read. I would recommend this trilogy for anyone interested in this genre. Definitely read the first book first though.
January 18, 2015
Actually a really well written story, tense and enjoyable in equal measure. Like much good fantasy it isn't primarily about wizards, dragons or magic but about people and their interactions. It's depictions of a blind faith prepared to do anything "for the greater good" and because "god wills it" is painfully similar to what happens in the world today.
December 28, 2013
it was good, it did take a little to get into, but still overall good.
February 9, 2016
Great book overall with the love that is between Cathan and Witha. Also the other story lines with the black red and white mages after what the light Bringer has done to them.
October 22, 2021
Love this one! Pierson really dug into blind faith and accidental corruption. Much better than it had any right to be. Can’t wait to read the next book.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews