Rating: 
Summary: The first of many
Review: I first read Waylander when i was 13. I'd never heard of David Gemmell and had no real interest in books either. The only reason i was in the library was to get away from the teasing i received in the schoolyard. Had it not been for those people teasing me i still probably wouldn't have heard of David Gemmell to this day. I don't quite remember what attravted me to Waylander, maybe the nice cover or the blurb, all i know is that every lunch time for the next 2 months i was in that library reading Waylander. Althought there were things that i didn't understand in it i was nonetheless enthralled by the story and i still am today. I've graduated from high school and am now in my second year at university and Waylander is still my favorite book to read. To a 13 year old boy it was an escape from reality to a world of adventure and heros, to the 18 year old who reads it on average 3 times a year it has become a close friend who takes me on a journey down a path that i have often walked but never tired of. Thankyou David Gemmell for introducing me to Waylander and his family. Without them my life would be infinitely different and much less bareable.
Rating:
Summary: one of my most favorite series
Review: i really love the drenai saga, it's not like books that i've read before. It seems so real life at times that i can never put any of the books down. But the one thing that is on my mind is what book starts the series? I've read it beginning with "Legend", "The King Beyond the Gate", "The Quest for Lost Heroes", "Waylander", "In the Realm of the Wolf", "Druss the Legend", and "The Legend of Deathwalker". But it seems that after reading all of these that "Waylander" and "In the Realm of the Wolf" should come before "Legend" and all the others. If anyone could offer any help that'll be greatly appreciated, but other then that, i really have found that these books are just great reads. -Ray
Rating:
Summary: hits the mark
Review: if you have never read a david gemmell book, shame on you! he is one of the few original fanatsy authors along with feist,mieville, and last but definatley not least hobb, have u read about fitchivalry? well it starts as........
anyway, waylander is everything we are, and everything we want to be. villain, average man, and then through gemmells magic..hero.
gemmell has a flavour for middle aged men who have passed it(yeah right), theres no 16 year old heir to an empire here, who changes the world by the time he/she`s 21. instead theres a 35 going on 50 year old, who through all 3 books, deals with the hardest parts of life all of us never wish to contemplate..then he reloads his ventrian double crossbow.
want high fantasy?
read forgotten realms.
want the feel of blood spraying over your face from a quarrell to the neck?
want the journey into the dark side of your soul?
dakeryas is your man. thats waylanders name by the way. he is human after all.
Rating: 
Summary: Very close to 5 stars
Review: If you like the other Drenai books then you will love Waylander! This story is set before "Legend", and can either be read before or after. It is set in an age before the Nadir clans unite, and has some very suttle relovence's to Legend. Waylander is one of the best of Gemmels characters, and I dare say that I prefer him and his tales to that of Druss! Waylander is not the knight in shineing armour, but an assasin with conflicting morels. It is very intresting to read about his development through the story. Best book of the Drenai saga yet.
Rating:
Summary: Very close to 5 stars
Review: If you like the other Drenai books then you will love Waylander! This story is set before "Legend", and can either be read before or after. It is set in an age before the Nadir clans unite, and has some very suttle relovence's to Legend. Waylander is one of the best of Gemmels characters, and I dare say that I prefer him and his tales to that of Druss! Waylander is not the knight in shineing armour, but an assasin with conflicting morels. It is very intresting to read about his development through the story. Best book of the Drenai saga yet.
Rating:
Summary: My best read since Tolien's "Lord of the Rings"!
Review: Long ago, in a time far away, I entered the realms of Tolkien's "LOTR", and Herbert's "Dune". I found worlds with characters so compelling, wars so entralling, that every time I had to put down the book, I ached until I could pick-up with the story again. It had been decades since I found another book so intense and well-written. Finally I found another, this book has been worth a few re-reads, each as enjoyable as the first. The Drenai Saga as a whole has been a great experience, I suggest it strongly!
Rating:
Summary: First Redemption
Review: Note: There are a few spoilers.I once read an interview from Mr. Gemmell stating that this was his first attempt at writing a redemption story. As such, there are some areas that are, well, less than his normal stellar writing. Then again, I consider him leagues ahead of most writers, so he gets 4 stars. The basic plot is that the Drenai are being ethnically cleansed from the face of the earth. Waylander, the protagonist, helped start the war by assassinating the king of the Drenai. As a means of atoning, he is commissioned by the father of the dead king to find the Armor of Bronze, which will rally the Drenai against the invaders, win the war, and save their nation. Along the way, he falls in love, indirectly leads to the creation of the Temple of the Thirty, and helps redeem several other characters who, like him, operated on the edge of society. Sounds trite, no? Well, yes, actually, it does. The key to Mr. Gemmell's writing is that he's very good at characterization. Everything seems natural, nothing is forced. He's always a joy to read. The consequences of his characters' acts sometimes ring down for generations...in one moment, a single act leads directly to the creation of one of the world's greatest forces for good. Likewise, Waylander still faces repercussions from his slaughter of the Drenai king 50 years later, in Hero in the Shadows. Go. Read him.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant
Review: Reading this book is like watching a brilliant movie; you don't have to concentrate at all reading it. The words will just come flowing into your head, giving you a perfect image of what happens. Filled with surprises along the way to a brilliant end, this book is a must for everyone who likes heroic tales and\or fantasy in general.
With the exception of Tolkien, Gemmell proves with this book to be the best fantasy-author. Does not score a 5, however, because of a few clischès.
Rating:
Summary: Riveting and disturbing
Review: The anti-hero is the most dificult of all to write and accept. Donaldson managed it brilliantly in the Thomas Covenant books and Gemmell does it equally brilliantly here. Waylander is flawed, amoral and tortured by his past. That the reader comes to not only empathise but actively support him is a credit to Gemmell. In Waylander he has developed a character of depth and passion. A fine progenitor to the Drenai heroes. Read this book, it's a gem.
Rating:
Summary: Mysterious book
Review: The book, 'Waylander' by David Gemmell is, at least in my opinion, the best of The Drenai series It is great and action packed reading from page one, there is never a boring part, and you find it hard to put your book down.
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