β Scribed by David Gemmell
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
He is a man of many names. Some call him the Golden One; others, the Lord of the Silver Bow. To the Dardanians, he is Prince Aeneas. But to his friends, he is Helikaon. Strong, fast, quick of mind, he is a bold warrior, hated by his enemies, feared even by his Trojan allies. For there is a darkness at the heart of the Golden One, a savagery that, once awakened, can be appeased only with blood.
Argurios the Mykene is a peerless fighter, a man of unbending principles and unbreakable will. Like all of the Mykene warriors, he lives to conquer and to kill. Dispatched by King Agamemnon to scout the defenses of the golden city of Troy, he is Helikaonβs sworn enemy.
Andromache is a priestess of Thera betrothed against her will to Hektor, prince of Troy. Scornful of tradition, skilled in the arts of war, and passionate in the ways of her order, Andromache vows to love whom she pleases and to live as she desires.
Now fate is about to thrust these three togetherβand, from the sparks of passionate love and hate, ignite a fire that will engulf the world.
Readers who know the works of David Gemmell expect nothing less than excellence from this author, whose taut prose, driving plots, and full-bodied characters have won him legions of fans the world over. Now, with this first masterly volume in an epic reimagining of the Trojan War, Gemmell has written an ageless drama of brave deeds and fierce battles, of honor and treachery, of love won and lost.
From the Hardcover edition.
Starred Review. Bestseller Gemmell (Legend) boldly recasts the Trojan War in this first of a new trilogy, which centers on a warrior variously called Helikaon, Aeneas or the Golden One, who's blessed by luck to have all he turns his hand to prosper. Populated by compelling and finely drawn characters taken from either Greek mythology (Odysseus, Hektor, etc.) or the author's own fertile imagination, the novel lays the groundwork for the war to come. Spurred by prophecy, Agamemnon, King of Mykene, sets his men the task of killing Aeneas. The ensuing conflict threatens to engulf the Mediterranean. While this enchanting tale is more historical fiction than fantasy (the obligatory oracles and Kassandra's prophecies are the only hints of magic), genre fans and more general readers alike will have trouble putting it down.
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This hefty historical fantasy opens a trilogy dealing with the Trojan War but without the usual number of variations on the theme readers have come to expect from prolific and popular fantasist Gemmell. The title character is Aeneas, not outwardly the Trojan hero, however, but a Trojan ally using the name Helikaon. He and the Greek Odysseus are on terms of mutual respect, and he is also in love with Andromache, the betrothed of Hector, Troy's greatest warrior. When relations between Troy and Mycenae start deteriorating dramatically, Helikaon/Aeneas is in several kinds of dilemma. We soon learn that Gemmell's isn't the Homeric scenario of the Iliad, however, because this book's Hector doesn't survive the battles of this preliminary book, and those occur before Agamemnon sets sail for Troy. Gemmell is a master of fast pacing and original, not to say offbeat, takes on legendary and mythical characters. The alternate Iliad he launches here does honor to his reputation and promises to lift it higher while adding notably to readers' pleasure. Roland Green
Copyright Β© American Library Association. All rights reserved
π SIMILAR VOLUMES
Troy: city of gold and heroes, beloved of the gods, where wealth, privilege and rapacious greed walk hand in hand, and where the greatest of tragedies is about to unfold. Helikaon, prince of Dardania, sets sail for Troy. On board his ship, the largest in the Aegean Sea, but regarded by many as dange
Troy: city of gold and heroes, beloved of the gods, where wealth, privilege and rapacious greed walk hand in hand, and where the greatest of tragedies is about to unfold. Helikaon, prince of Dardania, sets sail for Troy. On board his ship, the largest in the Aegean Sea, but regarded by many as dange
SUMMARY: He is a man of many names. Some call him the Golden One; others, the Lord of the Silver Bow. To the Dardanians, he is Prince Aeneas. But to his friends, he is Helikaon. Strong, fast, quick of mind, he is a bold warrior, hated by his enemies, feared even by his Trojan allies. For there is
### From Publishers Weekly Starred Review. Bestseller Gemmell (_Legend_) boldly recasts the Trojan War in this first of a new trilogy, which centers on a warrior variously called Helikaon, Aeneas or the Golden One, who's blessed by luck to have all he turns his hand to prosper. Populated by compell
SUMMARY: He is a man of many names. Some call him the Golden One; others, the Lord of the Silver Bow. To the Dardanians, he is Prince Aeneas. But to his friends, he is Helikaon. Strong, fast, quick of mind, he is a bold warrior, hated by his enemies, feared even by his Trojan allies. For there is
### From Publishers Weekly Starred Review. Bestseller Gemmell (*Legend*) boldly recasts the Trojan War in this first of a new trilogy, which centers on a warrior variously called Helikaon, Aeneas or the Golden One, who's blessed by luck to have all he turns his hand to prosper. Populated by compell