Hero in the Shadows: A Waylander the Slayer Novel

In Hero in the Shadows, Waylander, the assassin hero of some of Gemmell's earlier books, is now a middle-aged man looking for peace in a world that will, for the most part, leave him alone. The crimes of his past come back to haunt him, as he finds himself responsible for a young prince whose grandfather he murdered. Then as creatures of a doomed legend come back to rule the world with blood and horror. An aging paladin, a loud-mouthed braggart whom a magic sword has chosen, and a kitchen girl who is very extraordinary must??? How does Gemmell do it ? I highly recommend this book. Two thumbs way up over here. This book was a true epic fantasy book.

This book has a bizarre mix of extremely interesting characters with funky quirks and very unique problems of their own. For instance, Matze Chai, a rich merchant, finds emotions to be foolish, and uncivilized, and following a horrific magical torture session suffering from intense boils on his skins meets up with rescuers and complains that his tea has not been served, as if nothing happened. Another character, a trained swordsman is an ascetic and hardly speaks. Thrown him in with another character that is something of a clown and then good ol' Waylander and you get one hell of a strange, but hair-adventure.

I was excited to find another Waylander novel, and Gemmell does not disappoint. Hero is a well-written, fast-paced yarn that brings back one of Gemmell's best characters. This book is a story of redemption for a man haunted by his past. Moral conflicts abound and are handled well. As usual his heroic characters have significant character flaws which them that much more realistic. I really can't think of much to complain about. Hero is simply a very enjoyable read. His first book, "Legend", was quite good, but I think he's an even better writer today.Sidenote: the mention of the death of 3 kings required to open the portals indicates at least a loose tie in with the novel "Winter Warriors". I think some of these characters may return in a forthcoming book.

David Gemmell is a genius. This book was absolutely brilliant. The words and emotions flowed from word to word, page to page, chapter to chapter. I could not put it down until it was finished. I don't know what gift this man has, but it's a rare gift to capture a reader's attention and don't lose it even after the last word has been read over 2 hours later. Hero in the Shadow was one of the best fantasy i've read in quite a while. Yes, it was about good vs. evil but it was more than that. It was about the struggle of man versus evil within and without himself. Waylander, "The Gray Man", is not your typical hero and because of that fact, that is what makes him the best of all heroes. From beginning to end this book was fantastic. I've never once read David Gemmell so i had to buy "Waylander" and "In the Realm of the Wolf" to learn more about this character. Boy, am i glad that i did. After reading those 2 books, i was more determined than ever to get my hands on Hero in the Shadows. I truly can't tell you how fantastic the book was. You just have to buy it and read it yourself to experience it for yourself. I wholeheartedly recommend reading any and all books by David Gemmell. I don't want to give anything away, but to me the book was more on the principles of a man who thought that he was if not evil then not worthy of the world. And yet for that very reason, Waylander is the greatest of all heroes. He's a man who knows who he is, has accepted all his faults and yet in spite of all this, he has compassion that will astound you. He's a loner,a man used to his solitude and has the tendency to be extremely nasty and yet it is these qualities within that makes him the one man to turn to in one's time of need. Way to go Waylander!

While not as good as some of his previous work, Gemmell still manages to deliver a riveting novel. This story is set in a small nation far from the lands of Drenai and contains much more in the way of magic then the other books in the series. Personally I liked the realism of his earlier works like Legend and the supernatural in this can be strange at times. The history aspects also get a little wacky at times and seems more like they belong in a Feist novel. Now that I have made my gripes let me say all in all I loved this book. Gemmell is an absolute master of fantasy, and he stirs your emotions throughout his works. I recommend any of Gemmell's work, including this. If you haven't read Gemmell before I would say look into getting Legend and the first Waylander novels first however.