Rating: 
Summary: Sky of Swords - An exceptional conclusion to the trilogy!
Review: The first two King's Blades tales, "The Gilded Chain" and "Lord of the Fire Lands" were absolutely phenomenal stories and it only stands to reason that this third one, "Sky of Swords" would carry on that literary excellence and indeed it well does. What makes this third novel that much more interesting is that the entire premise is in contradiction to the conclusion of the first novel "The Gilded Chain" because at the end of "Lord of the Fire Lands" King Ambrose IV is killed off some twenty years prior to when he was killed off in "The Gilded Chain." With superb writing skills that include well tuned pacing and characters with extraordinary depth, Dave Duncan weaves the tale of Malinda, King Ambrose IV's daughter.The Premise: This novel is perfect in the sense of overwhelmingly superb political/court intrigue as we follow Princess/Queen Malinda's life from the point of her marriage to Radgar that was briefly described in "The Gilded Chain" and carried out to detail in "Lord of the Fire Lands." Princess Malinda must now find a way to survive as she is in the precarious position of being the heir apparent behind her sickly infant sibling who is king and her [illegitimate]half brother who becomes regent based on King Ambrose IV's will... What follows from there is nothing less than another stunning success in the King's Blades tales as we're treated to more incredible "history" of the King's Blades and a character in Malinda that is full of depth. I highly recommend not only this third and final novel in the King's Blades tales but all three just as the author notes in the beginning of each book that they can all be read independently of each other but that would truly leave one in the loop on the overall story. {ssintrepid}
Rating: 
Summary: Not up to standard
Review: The following are the major problems with this book. Firstly, there is no getting round the fact that it was written and plotted primarily to get round the discrepancies in the previous books. The result of which is that much of the book reads like a primer in Chivian history. You get the feeling that a lot is written because it has to be written, and so much of the story is based on repetition.
Another result of this is that since the two different endings cannot be reconciled rationally, the author relies on a tactic (I don't want to spoil it for the reader) that is unwise in this genre and at odds with the style of these books. He might as well have just written than one these stories was just a dream. Why make this all necessary in the first place? The second major problem is the style of writing. Whereas the previous books definitely appealed to the machismo inside us, with heavy doses of honor, integrity, and duty as the essence of the story. This book rests on more feminine characters and it shows in the telling, although to be fair it is action-based. The sentiment that run throughout is the portrayal of a poor young woman overwhelmed in a world of manipulative overbearing men. Typical of the style of this book is the invitation to get all misty-eyed over Dog's traumatic history. Please, I don't read swashbuckler's for this.
Rating:
Summary: Nice bridge between the first two in the series
Review: The Gilded Chain was a well thought out book and The Lord of the Fire Lands would have been great except for it's different and disappointing ending. Now with the third book in the series the first book looks even better and the second not only makes sense but is also validated by the third. Reading Sky of Swords was a great different approach to the first two as well as a good stand alone read. I can't wait for the next Blade or Dagger book!
Rating: 
Summary: Not very exciting
Review: The third book in the series does not come close to guilded chain but neither did Lord of the Fire lands. One thing that niether book 2 or 3 did was follow the Blades! I dont mind the lack of action in this book but they are all called, "tale of the kings blades." Why? Sky of Swords definetely took my imagination for a ride the way the first two did, but I just wish the last two books would have followed the blades more then just having them be subplot. On to Chronicles!
Rating:
Summary: You just can't put this book down...
Review: There are many reasons to read this Tale of the King's blades, but here a few:
A Sword is named Sword
The Princess is the hero
Wolfbiter is avenged. Now you have to read the book for the rest of it :)
Rating:
Summary: Not very exciting
Review: This book is literary genius. The historically conflicting endings of the first two books are resolved in a clean and brilliant stroke. The main character is likeable, and her perspective sheds an intersting light on the two main characters from the first two novels. About half-way through Sky of Swords, when truly shocking things had been happening that are in total conflict with the first novel, the light suddenly went on in my head as suddenly I *knew* what Duncan was doing. And I was truly impressed. Altho it has been recommeded that they should be read in the cyclical order of Gilded Chain, Sky of Swords, then Lord of the Firelands, despite Firelands having been published before Sky, don't ruin that one moment of realization that is so rare in any work of fiction by doing this. Read them in the order that they were published. Pure literary genius.
Rating:
Summary: Read them in published order
Review: This book is literary genius. The historically conflicting endings of the first two books are resolved in a clean and brilliant stroke. The main character is likeable, and her perspective sheds an intersting light on the two main characters from the first two novels. About half-way through Sky of Swords, when truly shocking things had been happening that are in total conflict with the first novel, the light suddenly went on in my head as suddenly I *knew* what Duncan was doing. And I was truly impressed. Altho it has been recommeded that they should be read in the cyclical order of Gilded Chain, Sky of Swords, then Lord of the Firelands, despite Firelands having been published before Sky, don't ruin that one moment of realization that is so rare in any work of fiction by doing this. Read them in the order that they were published. Pure literary genius.
Rating: 
Summary: Worth Reading
Review: This book is the third book in a trilogy, following The Gilded Chain, and Lord of the Fire Lands. Each was intended to stand alone, but the three combine to tell a slghtly larger story. The Gilded Chain was my favorite Dave Duncan book (and I have read and enjoyed the vast majority of his works - it's a shame that many are currently out of print). I was intrigued to discover the discrepancy between its ending and that of Lord of the Fire Lands, the second book. The first two books do stand alone marvelously. This third book resolves the contradictions between the first two, but is the weakest of the three, and should not be read without first reading the other two books. I did not like the manner in which the contradiction between the first two books was resolved, but despite that, the book tells a good tale, and gives the reader more depth of information about the Blades as an order, and as individuals. One cares about the characters. If you liked the first two, you'll like the third as well.
Rating:
Summary: Wild about Duncan's Blades!
Review: This was the first of Dave Duncan's books I read; it will not be the last. I devoured this book in a night (and that is the staying up all of the night to read the book variety of night)and then hotfooted to the library to get the rest of the series- The Gilded Chain, Paragon Lost, and Lord of the Fire Lands (and the juvie series Sir Stalwart, etc.) At last count, I have now reread the whole series three times- and I've only known about it for a month. This is the only one of the series from a woman's point of view, which makes it interesting- all the other Blade books are man's POV. The plot of the book is recurrent, if you have read any of the others, but the characterizations and the humor make the writing sing! Malinda is a willful, spoiled princess, marriage bait, and is surrounded by the young, handsome, and alarmingly virile King's Blades, ensorcelled bodyguards bound to protect their wards at all costs, even their lives. Malinda's father, King Ambrose, dies, and she is endangered by the Court and the intrigues of those who would use her for power. Wonderful, wonderful books- I haven't been so entranced since I discovered Mercedes Lackey in the 80's.
| 
