The Sword Defiant

By: Gareth Hanrahan

Narrated by: George Weightman

Set in a world of dark myth and dangerous prophecy, this thrilling fantasy launches an epic tale of daring warriors, living weapons, and bloodthirsty vengeance.​

Many years ago, Sir Aelfric and his nine companions saved the world, seizing the Dark Lord's cursed weapons, along with his dread city of Necrad. That was the easy part.

Now, when Aelfric—keeper of the cursed sword Spellbreaker—learns of a new and terrifying threat, he seeks the nine heroes once again. But they are wandering adventurers no longer. Yesterday's eager heroes are today's weary leaders—and some have turned to the darkness, becoming monsters themselves.

If there's one thing Aelfric knows, it's slaying monsters. Even if they used to be his friends.

"I will buy any novel that Gareth Hanrahan ever writes." - The Fantasy Inn

"Hanrahan has an astonishing imagination." - Peter McLean, author of Priest of Bones

©2023 Gareth Hanrahan (P)2023 Orbit

Below average

If your like me and have read and listened through the vast majority of classic and modern “well done” dark fantasy and are scraping the bottom of the barrel for something new then maybe this book is worth it. It’s hard to image the same author who wrote “gutter prayer” wrote this book. There are 2 POV characters 1 is the MC who embodies all the most annoying traits of the “past his prime hero” and none of the charm. The second is we’ll probably the most empty,pointless character I’ve ever read in all of fiction. Go read something else unless you’ve already read everything else worth reading

gripping with pacing slips

the pacing is a bit wonky but the worldbuilding and characters make up for it in my opinion

Another first time author

This was a first time author for me and while it said that this was the first book in the series, it felt like there was so much that the reader had missed. Events from the past that were constantly being mentioned, the war that The Nine helped win, the relationships that developed between The Nine. It kind of felt like you were starting this story in the middle and that was a bit disconcerting.

So, this story introduces us to Aelfric. Aelfric has this sword that he is in charge of. It is a sentient sword, and apparently a VERY powerful sword. Part of the reason that he is left with the sword was because he was deemed the most trustworthy of The Nine, after the war had ended. Someone had to keep the sword in check and it was determined that he was the best one to do it.

When the story begins, many years have gone by since this war ended and The Nine has basically fallen apart. They are all HEROES and many tales have been told about their antics. Everyone went their own separate ways and Aelfric is one of the only ones who feels like they still have a job to do protecting their city. As usually happens, there is an evil contingent determined to overtake the city and this faction has been working undercover, kind of "in darkness" to make their play.

Because this is the first book, there is the requisite world building that has to take place. We are given information on the city they saved and then given pieces of information on the magic system in place. Things are parsed out slowly. Also, one of the things I found odd was the way in which we are introduced to the characters. Remember I mentioned that it felt like we started in the middle of the story? Well, because the war with The Nine happens in the past, the actual characters of The Nine are told to us in a way that makes us feel like we should already know them. I really felt lost in the beginning. There are LOTS of characters in this story and it took me a while to figure out who was who and who belonged with whom.

Obviously, the story centers around Aelfric. We are immediately drawn into a storyline involving his sister and her son. The son leaves home to find his famous uncle and is kidnapped - basically, everything is a set up, we just don't know exactly who or why it is occuring.

That is the catalyst that sets everything else off and it becomes apparent that things are NOT okay. The Nine now have to figure out who is still - well, first of all alive - then which side of this fight are they on?

Once I got deeper into the story and got a handle on the characters, I did find myself immersed in the story. I listened to this mostly on audio and enjoyed the narration. In a way, this book felt like it spent most of its time with Alf running around trying to find his old teammates. It felt like trying to wrangle cats. The Nine were definitely not the same people that they were when they saved the city and it became really confusing trying to figure out exactly what was going on.

A lot happens in the end. Honestly, it felt like there was so much build up and then BAM, you got a WHOLE lot of information at the end. Will I continue onward with this series? Yes, I think I will.

Life after a fantasy apocalypse

Beginning a couple of decades after the world has been saved by the protagonist and his companions, this book examines with some very interesting details the aftermath of that sort of apocalyptic event.

None of the characters in the book are saints, and each has taken his or her own path in response to both the psychological effects of surviving an existential threat and the reactions of the world to their heroism.

Then things start to get worse.

This isn't quite the pinnacle of fantasy, but it's quite good.

Recommended if you're not looking for the usual sort of heroic fantasy and don't mind grimdark.

Impressive.

Great start to a series, creative as hell story, Possible to the level of Wheel of time. Will be Interesting to see if the next book can naintain the intrigue........ .

A fantastic first

What happens after the quest is won? This was the first time I have seen an author go down this road, and seeing the great heroes years after their fabled victory was so cool to read. As an aging mortal myself I loved that the story followed an older hero coming to grips with his mortality and age, absolutely felt some sympathy pain in the knees a few times. This is an instant classic for me- absolutely perfect I’m every sense I was so happy reading this. The world building, character development, twists and turns absolutely kept me on the edge of my seat. I can’t wait to read more from this author!

Excellent Narrator!

Decent plot and semi-developed characters, but gratuitous use of the F word!
Why is it that every author seems to think that is the only word that an enraged person can use? I have read every volume in Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series—classic fantasy!— and I don’t remember him ever using that word. (Even when Brian Sanderson finished the series, I don’t think he added the use of that word.)
A truly talented author can manipulate language in such a way that a string of “obscenities” from an irate or evil person can a sound a truly disgustingly vicious, without using any truly obscene language.

Audio book Should be 6 Stars

The Sword Defiant was a really good book. The story and world are well written and the author has you guessing right until the end. I would give the novel a strong 4 stars, but the narrator was absolutely phenomenal. He brought all of the characters to life with his vocal changes, and the voices and accents he chose for each character were spot on. You could easily tell who was speaking when he switched to their various voices. I was seriously impressed by his skill and artistry and would give his narration 6 stars if I could. The combination of good writing and exceptional narration make this a must listen for fantasy fans.

Riveting and unique

Like others have mentioned there’s some pacing issues. But those are more than made up for with the incredible world building and exciting plot.

Here Be Monsters

... and some of them were once considered heroes.
What an amazing, epic adventure. Gareth Hanrahan throws us into the middle of a world that was once saved by The Nine: nine young warriors who opposed an unbeatable force and overcame it. They were elevated to the status of legends, and their exploits were sung about in taverns. But in the twenty years since, The Nine have changed, and in many cases, not for the better.

Aelfric is one of The Nine. But he doesn't feel like a hero. He feels old, separated from the rest of the world, and weighted by the sword he was sworn to protect for life. Protecting a sword may not sound like a weighty concern. But this sword, known as Spellbreaker, belonged to the Dark Lord who was defeated by The Nine. It is a living sword that swears allegiance to its wielder, but in the case of Aelfric, the sword chooses to badger, cajol, and belittle him. When he isn't messing with Aelfric's head and doing its best to cause chaos.

Aelfric's a pretty complex character who wants to be a simple one. He just wants peace, rest, and space. Well, it would also be great if he could be freed from babysitting that blasted sword. As we're thrown into Aelfric's world, we see he's not the only interesting character. Some are noble, loyal, and natural leaders. Some are simple, uneducated, and without guile. Still others are deceptive, ruthless, secretive, and self-indulgent. But not all traits are easily discerned, and all not foes show themselves as such.

This is a magnificent tale and fascinating journey, made all the more so by the fact that this is a story within a story. It would have been natural for an author to begin by writing the tale of The Nine saving the world. But this information is spooled out to the reader in small morsels in between the current happenings of Aelfric's nephew and sister, as well as remnants of The Nine. Even within this massive epic, we are not completely caught up on the full story of the world's salvation, but readers will have most of the key facts by the novel's end.

The narration of the audiobook is sublime. George Weitman delivers a stunning performance, especially with his bone-chilling voicing of Spellbreaker. His performance enhances what is already a truly outstanding book.

For those of us who love a good fantasy with lots of swordplay, magic, royalty, and mayhem, this story is not to be missed. There are threads within this tapestry that beg to be pulled. As profound and richly derived as this story is, there's more that clamors to be told. I'm ready for it.