The Sword Defiant by Gareth Hanrahan

I would like to thank Orbit for an advance copy of this novel in exchange for a fair and honest review

Publisher - Orbit

Published - Out Now

Price - £9.99 paperback £5.49 kindle eBook

THE SWORD CARES NOT WHO IT CUTS

Many years ago, Sir Aelfric and his nine companions saved the world, seizing the Dark Lord's cursed weapons, along with his dread city of Necrad. That was the easy part.

Now, when Aelfric - keeper of the cursed sword Spellbreaker - learns of a new and terrifying threat, he seeks the nine heroes once again. But they are wandering adventurers no longer. Yesterday's eager heroes are today's weary leaders - and some have turned to the darkness, becoming monsters themselves.

If there's one thing Aelfric knows, it's slaying monsters. Even if they used to be his friends.

One of the things I’ve loved learning as I read is how books are always in subtle conversation with other books. There can be tribute; criticism and like music variations on other themes. Genre evolve over time as we do and reflect ever changing tastes and perspectives. In Gareth Hanrahan’s very impressive The Sword Defiant we get a poem about Nine heroes defeating a great enemy and it’s written by Sir Rheul. An interesting name that may make fantasy readers prick their ears but this tale is not a dodgy facsimile of fantasy’s classics but both a love letter and evolution of the epic fantasy novel.

Everyone knows the tale of the Nine. Young heroes human and elvish; warrior, thief and magical. Who fought a dark power known as Lord Bone for over a decade. Eventually at the cost of the greatest he was defeated; his fortress city Necrad taken and to save the world from his various magical creations now overrun by the Nine and other powers. A brave warrior of the Nine Aelfric (better known as Alf and dislikes his nick name of The Lammergeier) has after twenty years decided to get out of Necrad and seek something but not sure what. His only companion the dread black magic sword known as Spellbreaker. He is is eventually told a prophecy of a new darkness arising and so back to Necrad to meet the remaining Nine and the new leaders fo the world he goes but danger lurks there and also to his family far away.

Throw in Nine heroes, groups of all sorts of powers and a big black magical sword and seasoned fantasy readers may initially feel we’ve seen this before but hold on a minute you’re in for a surprise. This story does indeed give us as background the kind of stories that made countless trilogies and long running series. But Hanrahan is asking a more interesting question - what happens next. Now recently Grimdark would say it all turns to what gets pumped into rivers but Hanrahan pleasingly takes a more balanced view. Sone things got better but eternal peace and love is rarely going actually be together. Sometimes you have to have to do it all again to keep the peace.

What we have in the core plotline is Alf - the standard farm boy turned warrior turned Hero. But he is now middle aged; skilled, bright but weary, scarred and still carrying pain of that previous battle. He is the reluctant hero who hasn’t time for politics and leadership. He just wants to be back with his band and back to work. But now time is passing. We slowly meet the Nine and time has moved everyone on; they’re have responsibilities - his former wily thief Berys is now a CrimeLord; geeky wizard Blaine now a scholar forever seeking knowledge and his best friend and argumentative dwarf Gundan is perhaps a little too keen to do things the way they did things in the older days rather than make friends and influence people. Heroes are here symbols but not always who they used to be. It’s not simply people being greedy and evil just perhaps no longer the right people at the right time. This creates a lot of conflict for Alf as he tried to persuade and investigate what is the new threat. When we finally find it we find a much more powerful force has been unleashed.

I really enjoyed the world Hanrahan creates. Necrad is Barad-Dir mixed with various infernal inventions; wraiths of dead elves, vat created monsters and the odd vampires elf for good measure. The Nine have tried to save it and keep the dangerous stuff out of the wrong hands but how long can anyone be that lucky. It’s a wonderful dark, messy, dangerous and very eldritch city no one can ever be safe in. Once we get out in the world we see more fractures between communities and everything is on the edge. It just needs the wrong words to push it and chaos returns.

Now Hanrahan is not simply about creating a sequel with all the own cast. The story introduces the kinds of characters the old tales tended to avoid. In particular Alf’s sister Olva; the one he very much left behind and ignored who had her own life and finds her son is in search of his heroic uncle. Easily Olva would have stayed at home but here she goes on a quest too to find her son (not save the world) and gets mixed up with crime gangs and elvish politics and picks up a dwarf woman who wants to be a wizard in the form of Torun. Something the world doesn’t believe possible. It’s great to see a tale where we get twentyfirst capable female characters who have different templates to enjoy. They also in their story expose a lot more of the hidden plots this story wraps around.

Throw in dragons, monsters, possibly evil swords and elves out for revenge then the story is always moving. A slight reservation is there is a lot of positioning in the middle half of the tale (a standard part of any first book in a fantasy series) but I really enjoyed how Hanrahan plays with reader’s expectations. It’s a story not afraid to subvert and the choices made really work.

The Sword Defiant is an epic tale of how no world stands still forever. New battles will be required and the former warriors may no longer be set placed to aid them. That doesn’t mean you stop trying; it doesn’t mean you give in or give up. You persuade, fight and perhaps a new set of friends will come in. The book ends on a fascinating set of new revelations that suggest more upsets are to come. I will be very much there for them. Highly recommended!