The Hawk Eternal (The Hawk Queen)

Gemmell introduces some more of that travel through time thing, as the Hawk Queen goes to aid an alternate version's people in trouble who desperately need a hero. The man she meets and influence she has will be reflected in her own time in a younger life, if you can work that one out. Still, Gemmell's Highland times are pretty good.

Caswallon is a highlands warrior from the Farlain tribe. Skilled with bow and short sword, he's a stealthy hunter and a merciless killer when enemies such as the fearsome aenir threaten the land of his fathers. The aenir enter a new land through a magic portal Which power has faltered over the aeons and no more gate keeper to re-seal it.. A race bent for bloodshed and ruin, they subdue all cities of the newfound realm. As soon as it's done, they turn eyes towards the highlands.. Characters good and bad, in the typical gemmel style, get a thorough description of their personalities you end up Awed by them all (and ultimately, by their creator). Much research has been done about living in the forest and the book is peppered with details on tracking, making fires Or makeshift weapons. This lends a strong and much appreciated touch of realism to all of Gemmell's stories. Despite the realism of the story's framework, it remains heavily fantastic and supernatural, creating an intensely prosaic chiaroscuro. The sorcery and magic are entrancing, the evil extraordinarily vivid and graphic in its ruthlessness. It is opposed to a counterbalancing force that must at all times prove of a mighty resourcefulness.. the world of Gemmell is of parallel worlds that can interfere with each other through the magic gateways. Time is of no importance in each individual world. What gives it importance is what decisions people make in the worlds they cross. These same people exist in a different parallel world but are making different decisions, leading different lives.. and facing different futures and fates. We're constantly reminded that time is a blind beast we are trying to harness. It takes us wherever we're strong enough to steer it (at least while we're still alive). You'll also discover that gemmell has a knack for anagrams; Morgase, the aenir queen, can be spelled "orgasme" in French (: , giving you some help to imagine what this woman must look like, her slim white skinned body sheathed in black satin and lace... fancy a cold shower?... this is a metaphorical work: the Aenir are us, the human race. we exploit our earth's resources mercilessly and punish the nature which gave us life. whenever a land is depleted of its resources, we move along toward a new land, a typically parasitic behavior.nature (and all creatures/beings who are still connected to Her) will retaliate ruthlessly at her desecrators. I don't know if david gemmell had a wife or children at the time of his -untimely-passing But he sure left orphans behind: his heroes and his readers. British fantasy and fantasy literature worldwide, has lost one of its main pillars somewhere in july 2006. he may not be among us anymore, but heroes don't die. Hail! p.s. i just took a look at the poor ratings this book received... leaves me wondering about the attention span of the reviewers or whether they truly read this book...

This is a companion review to Ironhand's Daughter. Again, I will try to write the review without any spoilers. The Hawk Eternal is the sequel to the excellent Ironhand's Daughter. Being a sequel, one would expect that the book would again focus on the larger-than-life character of the warrior-Queeen Sigarni. However, this is not the case. Sigarni herself, does not apear until much later in the book, and is really a secondary character. There are two main characters in this novel and both are richly described. One of Gemmell's main strengths is his ability to always make his readers emotionally invested into the fates of his main characters. A clever way he does this is by making his characters flawed and usually seeking some form of spiritual redemption in their opposition to insurmountable and evil odds. We think that we could be these people, or we "wish" we could be one of these people. The characters of Caswallon and Gaelen are no exception. Both have inner demons to battle. Caswallon has a shameful and selfish past, Gaelen has an abused and unloved childhood. Yet, the destiny of the highland clans is in their hands. In this book, the evil forces are the Aenir who are clearly "Earth-similar" to the Norse/Goth tribes. The Aenir are a despicable race who live for suffering and war. The Celt-like highlanders are the last free people to stand in their way to total conquest. The Aenir are battle hardened and vastly outnumber the free highlanders. But the highlanders will not go down without a fight... Like "Ironhand's Daughter", the HawK Eternal features a lot of battles and action scenes, strong characterisation, and the odd bit of interdimensional time-travel thrown in to boot. A worthy sequel (it can actually safely be read as a stand alone novel) that will not disappoint any Gemmell fan, particularly those who liked the Rigante series.