Legend: Drenai Series

One of the Best books ever written about a battle that surely was a lost cause. The men and women portrayed show every emotion that the human spirit has always had. From beginning to end it holds your attention. David Gemmell will forever rank with the top authors on war and the will to keep trying, no matter the odds.

Just superb british fantasy.

I have been mulling over whether or not Legend by David Gemmell deserves 4 or 5 stars, and I believe the fact that he has such unusual characters gives him a solid 5 star rating. I look forward to picking up the second installment in David Gemmell's Drenai Tales.Legend is a fantastic tale of an underdog trying to overcome horrible odds (50 to 1). The Drenai are a people long considered superior in their part of the world, but over the years they have grown complacent and lazy. The Nadir, under a strong ruler, have come together after many years of internal toil to challenge the superiority of the Drenai. The only thing standing in the way of the Nadir is a single Drenai fortress, that of Delnoch. Manned with few soldiers and many farmers, Delnoch rests its hope on one man, Druss.Druss is such an improbable character to be a hero. He is old, his knee is killing him and his shoulder is arthritic. But his legendary status pushes him to muster every bit of strength he has left into training the farmers that man Delnoch and defending it against the Nadir. The question is whether or not the courage he instills in the farmers will be enough.Rek, a former soldier, doesn't know what he wants to do with his life. He is uncertain of his fighting skills and afraid of death, but that changes once he rescues a girl from some bandits. With that one decision, he changes his fate, yet is still uncertain and hesitant in many ways.Each Legend character questions himself or herself, which allows the reader to appreciate the characters more so for the tasks that loom before them. Who wouldn't want to root for an old man of 60 with a bad knee and a bad shoulder trying to fight against people half his age? I know I did.Lastly, if not for anything else, read Legend because of the battle sequences. I was completely enveloped by the utter vastness of their scope and range in depicting each aspect of the battle, from the walls of the fortress to the plans for defense. This book is definitely heavy on the sword side, but there are parts of sorcery that make this book even more enjoyable. All in all, Legend by David Gemmell is one that I highly recommend. Everyone enjoy!

Loved it all. The series is very good. I had not read these in orderI recommend this to any fantasy reader.Long live Druss The Legend.

*****SPOILERS *****One reviewer of Gemmell's work described it as a mix of REH and David Eddings. The similarities between Gemmell and Eddings are fairly obvious; Howard, not so much. However, "Legend" is still an entertaining read.The Bad:There's a lack of character consistency that I just couldn't reconcile. For instance, Rek's transition from man full of self-doubt to embodiment of heroism wasn't very smooth (or, if I'm being honest, terribly believable). Druss's fixation (delusion?) with Death is equally distracting, given that one vision with Death involves Druss apparently powerful enough to make a deal, but another vision involves Death monologue-ing about how Druss's legend is finished. Don't get me wrong: Druss and Rek are interesting characters. I just wasn't sold on how specific portions of their character progression/development was handled.Also, major plot points seem randomly inserted as opposed to deliberately, purposefully presented. Seems like what passes for magic in this world are more like psychic powers, with no magical items. Then suddenly, the trappings of the Earl of Bronze come along. And ghosts help hold a tunnel for a while. And the Sathuli show up when the ghosts vanish. These events are interesting, but they seem to come out of nowhere. And not the 'nowhere' that is careful, planned surprise; it's more like the 'nowhere' that stems more from writing oneself into a corner.The Good:Given it's subject matter (war, a siege), "Legend" is light and engrossing. Gemmell routinely makes great observations about human nature, peppers his conversations with good banter, and at times paints some very clear, borderline poetic, action sequences. The Sathuli and Nadir are believable, interesting antagonists. Also, the Thirty are a pretty cool idea.The Takeaway:"Legend" is a good read for genre fans who enjoy their stories focused on the camaraderie, sacrifice and action that inevitably occur during times of war. Also recommended for fans of David Eddings."He is a man steeped in evil.""It's funny, he thought, how different people view the same event. Bregan can't see how they can take Delnoch. I can't see how they can fail.""Ah, but Druss, not all men are you. I will not criticize your principles if you do not try to graft them onto me. I have no time for them. A pretty hypocrite I would be as a robber outlaw with principles.""Life, he knew, broke many men. Some as strong as oak withered as their wives died, or left them, as their children suffered or starved. Other strong men broke if they lost limb or, worse, the use of their legs or eyesight. Each man had a breaking point, no matter how strong his spirit. Somewhere, deep inside him, there was a flaw that only the fickle cruelty of fate could find. A man's strength was ultimately born of his knowledge of his own weakness, Druss knew."

I keep most reviews fairly short. I was looking for some new stuff to read and remembered David Gemmell's name coming up here or there. I had not read anything from him. Now I don't know how it took me so long to get around to anything from him.I'm still working my way through the Drenai Saga. Legend is an amazing start to the series. I really do not need to say anything about this book specifically. Every single book I have read in the series so far has been a masterwork of fantasy. You are drawn to the characters. There is depth to them and you feel what they feel. You're excited at times , absolutely stunned at others and sad at those certain moments. He weaves a tale that spans ages and so many characters but it all comes together so well. In my almost 40 years of reading fantasy The Malazan Book of the Fallen is my favorite fantasy series but this series is so close. It is a definitely number 1A or 2.This author is an absolute Legend just like Druss and I'm so happy I picked up his works at last to read as I have cherished every book thus far on the journey. Do not pass this up.

**lite Spoiler**Ending has a little too much deus ex machina for me, but other than that it was a fantastic book that I will definitely read again. It’s not too heavy handed or too over the top but just a hair too much for my personal preference.

Legend, the Drenai novels, indeed almost everything written by David Gemmell is great. Swords and Sorcery at its very best. Heroic characters to care for and stirring stories… novels to read and re-read time and again…. If you’ve never read David Gemmell… then shame on you but also you’re very lucky as you have a mountain of novels to read and enjoy…

Produit conforme au descriptif, envoi dans les délais et emballage soigné

Es un libro muy entretenido, mucha acción, personajes interesantes, fantasía de la buena, fácil de consumir. De los mejores libros que he leído

A really good read

David Gemmell ebbe la prima idea per questo romanzo mentre aspettava i risultati di un test oncologico: la fortezza di Dros Delnoch era una metafora per il suo corpo, e i Nadir invasori per le cellule cancerogene. A difesa del reame sono schierati pochi valorosi, guidati da un capo inesperto: per infondere coraggio e vigore, viene convocato il più grande guerriero dell'epoca, Druss la Leggenda, che ormai sessantenne accetta l'incarico per trovare una morte onorevole ed evitare la senilità della vecchiaia. Dall'altra parte, il capo barbaro Ulric, guerriero spietato, ma uomo dotato di un altissimo senso dell'onore.Questo è un buon libro fantasy, con una trama classica ma ben svolta, e personaggi credibili. Di questi, Gemmell tratteggia in modo quasi magistrale non tanto gli eroi (il grande campione, i monaci guerrieri, la fanciulla in arme) quanto gli antieroi: come il comandante della fortezza, che si unisce agli allenamenti comuni per imparare a conoscere gli uomini e saperli guidare in battaglia; ma soprattutto il protagonista Rek, che diventa degno di essere il nuovo Conte di Bronzo non perché sia impavido, ma perché, pur essendo pauroso, combatte la propria paura per adempiere ai suoi doveri e difendere coloro che ama.Un'ottima lettura per una breve vacanza.