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Rating: 
Summary: Another Solid effort by Mr. Fred Saberhagen
Review: As an avid reader of the genre fantasy, i have come upon the books of Fred Saberhagen. I have read some other books by him like the "Lost Swords" books and "Merlin's Bones". Having read books 1 and 2 of "The book of the Goods" Book three is another interesting and exciting episode in this solid series by Saberhagen.
Rating:
Summary: Another Solid effort by Mr. Fred Saberhagen
Review: As an avid reader of the genre fantasy, i have come upon the books of Fred Saberhagen. I have read some other books by him like the "Lost Swords" books and "Merlin's Bones". Having read books 1 and 2 of "The book of the Goods" Book three is another interesting and exciting episode in this solid series by Saberhagen.
Rating:
Summary: Another Solid effort by Mr. Fred Saberhagen
Review: As an avid reader of the genre fantasy, i have come upon the books of Fred Saberhagen. I have read some other books by him like the "Lost Swords" books and "Merlin's Bones". Having read books 1 and 2 of "The book of the Goods" Book three is another interesting and exciting episode in this solid series by Saberhagen.
Rating: 
Summary: a delightful journey
Review: I've enjoyed reading Fred Saberhagen's novels for almost twenty years now. He is very talented, having the ability to breathe life into the worlds which he creates, worlds which become, for all intents and purposes, real, and which many of us would love to live in, no matter the dangers to be found there. Fred's stories always have so much depth to them that they are a delight to read - they are so vivid that they allow you to feel as if you are right there watching the events unfold before your eyes. His new series, Book of the Gods, is highly imaginative and thought-provoking.
The Arms of Hercules is the third novel in this Book of the Gods series, and it differs slightly from the previous two, in that it is more of a first person narrative. Much to the amusement of my editor and friends, I have had a little difficulty with this review. As I read the book, it seemed that the voice which was relating the tales of this incredibly strong son of Zeus was actually that of Kevin Sorbo. Okay, maybe I do watch too much television, or perhaps it is just that there was so much hype surrounding Hercules and Xena. Either way, this is the voice which told the tale.
Fred's Hercules is very different from the character Kevin Sorbo portrayed. This Hercules is younger, and of a much more average build. He is nothing more than a teen when he is sent with his cousin to herd sheep, and his adventures begin. Being the son of an almost completely omnipotent father and a human mother has got to play havoc with one's body and mind, but Hercules seems to deal with it better than most human boys would. He is logical and tries to reason out his emotions where his lineage is concerned, and does quite well.
As is to be expected when there is any tale concerning the legendary Hercules, there are a number of monsters and giants, and other sundry opponents which he must face. Killing is not something which Hercules really enjoys, though, and he would also prefer to remain cloaked in anonymity while his cousin basks in the glory.
This is a subject which has, in my mind, been done to death. However, Fred manages to breathe just enough new life into it that I wasn't bored. I knew what was to come to a certain extent, but there were a few changes of drastic import which added to the adventure. And of course the "god faces," translucent half-masks which imbue the human avatar with that particular god's attributes, are very prominent.
Hercules is mortal, and has no need of one of the "god faces;" however, there is now talk between Daedalus and Haphaestus of attempting to make one. During the course of this story Hercules is brought together with his father, Zeus, and the rest of the immortals as they battle for their very existence against an ancient foe. Not exactly the reason for father-son time that Hercules had desired, but he will still take what time he can get.
I recommend reading this novel, as well as the previous two, The Face of Apollo and Ariadne's Web. It is a delightful journey through classic literature made even more interesting by Fred's prodigious imagination and writing skills.
Review Originally Posted at LinearReflections.com
Rating: 
Summary: Ho hum, another sequel
Review: Saberhagen can be terrific or he can be annoying. The man write a good book - the first Sword Book and the Mask of Apollo in this series - and then he drives the idea past any point of entertainment in a sometimes unending series of sequels. How many Swords books are there now?This time the author takes on Hercules, who narrates the story in the first person. Hercules wanders through 9 or 10 of the labors, disavows the others as myth and gets involved in an apocalyptic war between the gods and the giants. Saberhagen uses this war to explain away a lot of inconsistencies in Mask of Apollo and Ariadne's Web, the two earlier books. Zeus, for example, is revealed to be missing because he is afraid of a weapon of the giants. Any doubts Hercules will survive are eliminated early, when he reveals he is telling the story from a later time. If we can't worry about Hercules, it just gets that much harder to get involved in his story. It's no longer a question of whether he will survive; rather, it's how he will muscle his way out of the next problem. Hercules' annoying shifts from clear thinker to muscle-headed moron distract as well. Frankly, aside from the idea of faces, the gods of the early Swords books were a lot more interesting. And the gods of the much earlier Empire of the East more compelling still. A lot of fantasy/science fiction writers have trolled mythology for ideas. And a lot of their stories are more interesting. Saberhagen's face idea is new; most of the rest is like reading Bullfinch. I keep hoping Saberhagen will write a novel linking together the plainly related worlds of Empire of the East, Swords and this new Faces of the Gods series. That might be more interesting...
Rating:
Summary: Entertain, but not his best work.
Review: The Arms of Hercules is a fun, but light read. Saberhagen, returns to the world that he created in Mask of Apollo, with some of the same characters making appearances in this book, plus new ones. Like other series of Saberhagen's, notably the Lost Swords, the first book of the series is the best and the next few sort of ramble along. Don't get me wrong, Arms of Hercules is worth reading, but it does not have quite the freshness and excitement of the first book in the series. I am interested in seeing where he goes with this series and will continue to buy them as they come out. Would recommend reading the series, as it is entertaining, but don't expect to be entralled.
Rating:
Summary: Entertain, but not his best work.
Review: The Arms of Hercules is a fun, but light read. Saberhagen, returns to the world that he created in Mask of Apollo, with some of the same characters making appearances in this book, plus new ones. Like other series of Saberhagen's, notably the Lost Swords, the first book of the series is the best and the next few sort of ramble along. Don't get me wrong, Arms of Hercules is worth reading, but it does not have quite the freshness and excitement of the first book in the series. I am interested in seeing where he goes with this series and will continue to buy them as they come out. Would recommend reading the series, as it is entertaining, but don't expect to be entralled.
Rating: 
Summary: I love it
Review: This bookwas mazing not only did it show great signs of adventures, love, and imagination. it explained the courage of hercules and reading this bok has given me a great new respectfor the hero in fact!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: Not bad
Review: This was actually alot better than the previous one. I read it clear through. Its a good read. And educational too..
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