By Steve Feasey (author) Part of the Whispers of the Gods series
"Swordplay, witchery and warring gods abound in this fantastical adventure, the first swashbuckling book in a new series."
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Whispers of the Gods Book 1
Fast-paced and brimming with earthy atmosphere, this flavorsome feast follows the high-stakes quest of Lann and Astrid in their Viking-esque kingdom. It serves up a satisfying, easy-to-digest banquet that will be devoured by younger teens and reluctant readers who love high fantasy, but struggle with huge casts of characters and excessively complicated worlds.
Lann is a foundling whose father turns on him following the death of his wife: “A curse, left by evil spirits to bring us misery!” he accuses. After encountering a terrifying wolf-man hybrid and losing his sight, Lann is taken-in by Fleya, a powerful witch to whom he has a close connection.
Soon after, Lann takes-up the Dreadblade, one of the kingdom’s Swords of Destiny, which has been “woken from its torpor and desires to go about its work again”. His sight restored by the sword, Lann and the Dreadblade are now bound by fate.
Meanwhile, across the kingdom, Astrid’s father, the king, has been murdered and she must find his killer before her brother is blamed for the crime. When Astrid’s life entwines with Lann’s, it falls to them to save the kingdom from the stirring evil.
Alongside the thrill of monsters, witches and warring gods, the main characters have great appeal. Astrid is a fabulous, fiercely-minded young woman, and the loving, protective relationship between Fleya and Lann is brilliantly evoked.
Lann knows nothing of his mysterious past, but by his fifteenth birthday he will come face to face with destiny. For Lann must wield the Dreadblade, an ancient sword forged to defeat terrible monsters. Across the mountains a King has been murdered.
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His daughter, Astrid, is a warrior with no desire to bear the crown. Only she can uncover her father's killer before her brother is framed for the crime. Evil is stirring.
Lann and Astrid are the kingdom's last defence. Together, they must face the greatest darkness their world has ever known.
This has everything you want from an epic fantasy adventure - devious Gods, hideous monsters, a portal to another dimension and a hero with an enchanted blade. Great stuff - Charlie Higson, author of the Young Bond series
Fans of Rick Riordan and John Flanagan have a whole new world of dark magic, mysterious gods and brave heroes waiting for them - Sebastien de Castell, author of the Spellslinger series
Dark Blade is a razor-sharp, spellbinding read full of intrigue and magic. This tale truly takes the crown as the young heir to the likes of Game of Thrones and Throne of Glass - Chris Bradford, author of the Young Samurai series
A daring and exciting swords-and-sorcery fantasy - traditional in the very best sense of the word. I thoroughly enjoyed this classic tale of monsters, magic and swashbuckling adventure - Kesia Lupo, author of We Are Blood and Thunder
Feasey brings us a fresh new fantasy hero in the form of Lann Fetlanger. The world of Strom is rich with peril, political intrigue, conspiracies and betrayals ... Conflicted heroes, cursed swords, diabolical sorcerers and warrior princesses. Why aren't you reading this already? - Sarwat Chadda, author of The Ash Mistry Chronicles series
An epic dark fantasy set in an arcane world where kings are murdered, monsters roam and ordinary boys are given extraordinary gifts - Mark Walden, author of the H.I.V.E. series
A powerful, compelling story in a world that stays with you - Angie Sage, author of the Septimus Heap series
Steve Feasey was born and brought up in Hertfordshire. The youngest child, and the only boy, of four, he found himself reading books, of which there were always lots to be found around the house. Thanks to his father’s love of reading, Steve grew up on adventure stories by Robert Louis Stevenson, Rudyard Kipling, Edgar Rice Burrows and Jack London. A late-comer to writing, Changeling was Steve’s first novel and, as he says “I consider myself supremely fortunate to have had my first stab at writing published”. Steve describes the experience of writing Changeling and how it came about one evening as he sat watching a BBC documentary on fiction for boys. “I came up with the idea for the two main characters in Changeling , one an ancient vampire, the other a teenage boy who discovers he is a werewolf. "Changeling was an absolute joy to write. As an author that doesn’t plot, it was great fun to go on the Journey with Trey Laporte, and to discover how he was going to come to terms with a world that suddenly becomes full of demons, vampires, djinn and all manner of other nether-creatures.” Steve is passionate about getting children reading – boys especially. Growing up as an avid reader he felt there was a limited choice of books for boys once they entered their teenage years – and then he found a copy of the Stephen King classic Carrie on his sister’s nightstand … Although, Steve is quick to point out that he doesn’t consider the Changeling books to be horror books. “I like to think of them as action-thrillers that just happen to have classical horror creatures as the main characters. I hope my readers will see them in the same way. Elmore Leonard, Ridley Pearson, Stephen King are all authors he especially loves to read, describing them as “out-and-out storymongers.” Steve lives in Hertfordshire with his family.
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This book was an absolute smasher and I will be keeping an eye on this series from now on!
Dark Blade is a stupendous book. It persistently reminded me of some kind of legendary fairy tale and will no doubt achieve a similar status within the writing community. The different elements of this particular majik universe are introduced to you gradually, and it not daunting or forced on you in any way. In some ways, the process of understanding the rules and ways of this new world is much like the character's journey: starting off as an ignorant farm boy with no knowledge of who you are, and finishing as an accomplished adventurer. The dread blade is a supremely cool concept and the action scenes do it justice, in addition to being well paced and easy to follow. The book has hit the delightful spot whence it is not to scary for younger readers but has enough depth for the older ones.... Read Full Review
I loved reading this book it was really good and the idea was fantastic.
Dark Blade is a book about a boy called Lenn and Princess Astrid. Lenn knows nothing of his past but when Astrid’s father is murdered and her brother blamed she and Lenn set off to uncover the truth. I really enjoyed reading this book, I would recommend it to 10+ as it was slightly violent. It has a very sad ending which I really enjoyed reading.... Read Full Review
This book is full of mystery and evil. In a world of darkness Lann and Astrid must journey into the unknown to uncover a sinister plot.
At first I could not understand the plot but as the story progressed the plot became clearer as a darker story was unveiled.
This book is full of mystery and evil. In a world of darkness Lann and Astrid must journey into the unknown to uncover a sinister plot.... Read Full Review
Lann knows nothing of his mysterious past, but by his fifteenth birthday he will come face to face with destiny. For Lann must wield the Dreadblade, an ancient sword forged to defeat terrible monsters.
The LoveReading4Kids Editorial Team have read and reviewed Dark Blade and determined it is suitable for children aged 11-14 years old
Dark Blade features in the following genres: Adventure Stories, Children's and Young Adult Fiction, Children’s, Teenage and Educational, Fantasy / Magical, Featured Books for 11+ readers, Recommendations, Books Reviewed by our Reader Review Panels, Featured Books for 13+ readers
Paperback. Not Available.
Dark Blade was written by Steve Feasey and published by Bloomsbury YA an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Dark Blade has 332 pages
Yes it is part of Whispers of the Gods series
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