Casca #05: Barbarian

Another excelent book by Barry Sadler. I love the Characters. Lots of great action. Casca finds true love.This one was a fun book to read.

This is Barry at his finest. The story is richly detailed, and the pain that Casca must endure is laid for all to see. A fine story.

Of all the 26 novels in the series to date, this must rank right at the top alongside Number 1. Its typical Sadler; punchy, to the point without being over descriptive yet it flows along beautifully so that the reader goes with the flow and doesn't want to put the book down. Although classed as number 5 in the series its actually the second book sequentially and I believe in fact it was written shortly after Eternal Mercenary but wasn't published for some reason until much later. It's set in the 'Barbarian' lands of Germania and Scandia during the time of the Roman Empire and concentrates on one particular place, the fictitious Helsfjord. Casca quits the civilised lands of the Empire, tired of the fighting, and meets with the tough German warrior Glam. The books tells of their developing friendship and such is the way Sadler wrote this character that he is often fondly recalled by many Casca readers even to this day. But what really sets this apart from the other Casca novels Sadler wrote is that the middle part is dedicated mainly to the blossoming love between Casca and the daughter of the lord of Helsfjord, Lida. Lida is blinded by her father and Casca thrown into prison as a result but Casca turns the tables later and kills the old man and takes Lida as his own and becomes the new lord. The second half of the book deals with life in Helsfjord, and the reader can feel the happiness of the protagonist as he finally finds a place he can call home and a woman who can love him, for she is blind and cannot see he does not age. But you just know the end will come as eventually Lida falls ill and dies in the depths of winter, a sad end to a love affair. The book ends there and Casca 2: God of Death picks up from this point. This book, Barbarian, is one of the best written of the series and balanced nicely between action, adventure and character development, something some of the series sadly neglected.

This early novel in the awesome Casca series by Barry Sadler marked one of his all-time great classics. In this story, Casca finally finds solace in Hellsfjord, and in the arms of a loving wife. But doomed to outlive everyone around him, Casca soon finds himself in dire straits. Lots of high adventure in the grand tradition, Casca the Barbarian will surely entertain you on several levels.

I think the best of the whole series. The characters are believable, the love angle some what unique to Sadler's novels, the battles the usual Sadler gore-and-guts, so you have something for both the guys and gals. I just love Glam's character, and its very true as I know one or two like him! Definitely a hit.