The Jaguar Knights

I own every book by Dave Duncan and can honestly state that Jaguar Knights is in keeping with his tradition. The story is gripping from the very beginning and the twist at the end is just as unpredictable as ever I am sad to see the ending to the Kings Blades, but just like our dear Pug of times past and Shonsu, his first true swordsman, this is probably just leading into more new and intriguing worlds.

While I have thoroughly enjoyed this whole series, The Jaguar Knights is Duncan's best book yet. In other tomes we have developed a thorough understanding of the Blades and White Sisters. Now the Dark Chamber is highlighted. While Blades are taught to work together and help each other, the Inquisitors are brought up in a competitive environment where outdoing each other leads to advancement. Medieval spookery and one-upmanship abounds. And it's really cool! Our hero Sir Wolf, his brother Lynx, and the Inquisitor Hogwood set off on a perilous quest to determine what has happened to the king's former mistress Celeste who has been carried off by mysterious warriors who somehow overrun an impenetrable castle then magically vanish. Duncan's fabulous characters, intricate plot, and fabulous storytelling continue to bring Chivial to life. I really enjoyed the way he examines how divided loyalties and strong emotions conflict with the Blade's magical bindings. What happens to Sir Lynx when his ward is ward is kidnapped is very interesting. I'd say more but it might ruin things for you. Be prepared for a wild ride... I was torn between wanting to finish it immediately and savoring the reading experience. Had a very hard time putting this one down even when I should have been doing more important things. Great book!

I love Dave Duncan's writing, and I love his Kings' Blade series. If this really is the last one I'll be very, very sad. If Dave feels he needs to move on from this world then so be it, but I'll be very, very sad. The reason I like Duncan's work is because not only does he come up with great plots, great ideas, he gives us truly memorable characters and his writing style sings. Aspiring fantasy writers should read him and notice how he combines action and tension and pace with lyricism, with poetic narrative. It means you really get huge bang for your bucks. Duncan is one of the very best writers working in fantasy today. If you haven't read him, shame! Start with The Gilded Chain.

"The Jaguar Knights" is the sixth book in Dave Duncan's "King's Blades" series (it can also be said it is the third book of the second King's Blades trilogy). "The Jaguar Knights" is set in the land of Chivial. A "Blade" is a master swordsman who is magically "bonded" to the King, and this forces unwavering loyalty to the wishes of the King. One of King Athelgar's Blades is a man named Wolf. Wolf is one of the best of the Blades, but is in the bad graces of the King. They share a mutual dislike and disgust of each other. When the King learns of a massacre at a fortress that was supposedly impregnable, he sends Wolf to investigate. This is no simple massacre, however (if a massacre can ever be simple). The invaders slew several Blades, which is exceedingly difficult for anyone who is not another Blade. The invaders also captured the wife of the man in charge of the fortress, but to complicate matters this woman was the former mistress of the King and also has a past with Wolf. Wolf's main motivation, other than doing his job, is that his brother Lynx, also a Blade, was wounded at the massacre. With Wolf comes an Inquisitor of the Dark Chamber who is pursuing her own investigation. Blades and Inquisitors seldom see eye to eye and had a mutual distrust of each other. When they arrive at Quondom castle, they learn something disturbing: the invaders may not have been completely human. The invaders appear to be part human, part beast, and it is these "monsters" which have taken the King's former Mistress. Further investigation points across the ocean, and Wolf and The Inquisitor are still on the trail. Not being familiar at all with the other works of Dave Duncan and the King's Blades, I was unsure how much I would be missing by reading this sixth volume first. While I can't be positive about this, not having read the other volumes, but "The Jaguar Knights" stands on its own and can be easily read without knowing anything else about the series or Chivial. I believe there are little bits about different characters and events that will enrich the experience for the informed reader, but my enjoyment was not lessened by trying to figure out who everyone was and how this all fit together. The beginning to "The Jaguar Knights" was a little slow and I spent time trying to figure out who Wolf is and what exactly a Blade is, and what "bonding" is, but as the novel continued, everything was explained in enough detail to understand the story, the background (to an extent) and get the story moving. At the point that Wolf and the Inquisitor are paired up is when Dave Duncan hooked me on his story. It also helps that Dave Duncan did an excellent job writing this novel and took it in a direction that surprised me at several turns. My high praise is that after reading this book I want to go back and read the rest of the King's Blades series. Duncan is unsparing in what he puts his characters through, and that is something I appreciate. -J

He is the King's Blade, bound to the monarch in a binding magical spell that forces him to protect his liege lord even though Sir Wolf despises the sneaky and untrustworthy royal. King Athelgar sends Sir Wolf and the Inquisitor Delores (a magic practitioner) to the Fortress of Quondom where raiders made off with the regal cast-off mistress Celeste. When the duo arrives they find magic was used to cause genocide and strange ornaments and curios unknown in Chivrial were left behind by the invaders who managed to escape. Even more perplexing is finding a human arm with the claw of a jaguar on it. Delores does not recognize the magic used here, but they learn that the warriors come from the island of El Dorado in the little known lands across the sea. The pair travels there hoping to uncover the secrets of the strange magic and why the assault happened. This quest is not easy because El Dorado is an island at war with Distlain; the islanders have plans to stop them at all costs. THE JAGUAR KNIGHTS is a fascinating sword and sorcery fantasy that takes place for the most part far away from Chivrial. There is plenty of action and romance as the Blade and the Inquisitor go on their grand adventure together. Dave Duncan's Blade series is an Indiana Jones-Lara Croft action thriller with magic a part of the storyline to add an extra spell on readers. Mr. Duncan continues to raise the S & S bar of excellence that few can achieve. Harriet Klausner