Fantasy

Age of Swords

Age of Swords

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  • Create Date：2021-05-06 11:55:03
  • Update Date：2025-09-06
  • Status：finish
  • Author：Michael J. Sullivan
  • ISBN：110196538X
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Summary

The gods have been proven mortal and new heroes will arise as the battle continues in the sequel to Age of Myth--from the author of the Riyria Revelations and Riyria Chronicles series。

In Age of Myth， fantasy master Michael J。 Sullivan launched readers on an epic journey of magic and adventure， heroism and betrayal， love and loss。 Now the thrilling saga continues as the human uprising is threatened by powerful enemies from without--and bitter rivalries from within。

Raithe， the God Killer， may have started the rebellion by killing a Fhrey， but long-standing enmities dividing the Rhunes make it all but impossible to unite against the common foe。 And even if the clans can join forces， how will they defeat an enemy whose magical prowess renders them indistinguishable from gods？

The answer lies across the sea in a faraway land populated by a reclusive and dour race who feel nothing but disdain for both Fhrey and mankind。 With time running out， Persephone leads the gifted young seer Suri， the Fhrey sorceress Arion， and a small band of misfits in a desperate search for aid--a quest that will take them into the darkest depths of Elan。 There， an ancient adversary waits， as fearsome as it is deadly。

Don't miss any of Michael J。 Sullivan's Legends of the First Empire novels:
AGE OF MYTH - AGE OF SWORDS （Coming soon！）

Praise for Michael J。 Sullivan

"If you enjoy epic fantasy， and are perhaps hungering for something with timeless appeal， then I highly recommend picking up Age of Myth。"--The BiblioSanctum， on Age of Myth

"Hair-raising escapes， flashy sword fights， and faithful friendship complete the formula for good old-fashioned escapist fun。" --Publishers Weekly ， on Theft of Swords

"Filled with adventure and clever dialog and featuring a pair of not-quite-heroes whose loyalties to each other provide them with their greatest strength， this epic fantasy showcases the arrival of a master storyteller。" --Library Journal ， on Theft of Swords

"With less gore and a smaller cast of characters than George R。 R。 Martin's Song of Ice and Fire but equally satisfying， Sullivan's epic fantasy will be gaining fans at exponential rates。" --Library Journal ， on The Rose and the Thorn

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Reviews

Pedro Faray ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Fantastic。 Heart breaking。 Full of action。 This book got everything from the first and made it better， the character grow was amazing， and the History super fluid。 I just can’t believe that Minna is dead， she was one of my favorites。

Tobin ，

- Classic fantasy story arc， although it's hard not to think about the similarities （*cough* copy/paste *cough*） with LotR- Fun to see them discover new technology and inventions throughout their journey: wheels， carts， bows and arrows， writing， forging， ink， etc。- Love that a group of badass women + a wise wolf go solve all the problems while the men squabble and beat their chests， and that the men realize this at the end- Fast paced， gripping action， attachment to the characters - great combo - Classic fantasy story arc， although it's hard not to think about the similarities （*cough* copy/paste *cough*） with LotR- Fun to see them discover new technology and inventions throughout their journey: wheels， carts， bows and arrows， writing， forging， ink， etc。- Love that a group of badass women + a wise wolf go solve all the problems while the men squabble and beat their chests， and that the men realize this at the end- Fast paced， gripping action， attachment to the characters - great combo 。。。more

Tuesdayschild ，

The story was starting to get bogged down in ‘inventions’ and was heading towards a 2 star rating。。。。。 Fortunately， for me， the author decided to Persephone and her band of ‘all females’ - wolf included - off-island to bring back weapons。 The story became more interesting after that。Wondering why the author is portraying all the men as emotionally defunct - he portrays them as stroppy and immature - there’s only one decent one amongst them， and， poor guy， he’s been abused and ridiculed all his l The story was starting to get bogged down in ‘inventions’ and was heading towards a 2 star rating。。。。。 Fortunately， for me， the author decided to Persephone and her band of ‘all females’ - wolf included - off-island to bring back weapons。 The story became more interesting after that。Wondering why the author is portraying all the men as emotionally defunct - he portrays them as stroppy and immature - there’s only one decent one amongst them， and， poor guy， he’s been abused and ridiculed all his life due to physical disabilities; here’s hoping he gets the break the author is hinting at。Extra: a beloved pet dies （the owner has to kill it）， a teen ‘elf’ has a lust session over a young woman’s legs。 。。。more

Garrett Graham ，

Very entertaining I enjoyed it quite a lot。

Sarah Patrick ，

I'm a big fan of Michael Sullivan's writing and this is just another great book of his。 I'm a big fan of Michael Sullivan's writing and this is just another great book of his。 。。。more

Razzizzle ，

All-Around Awesomeness: 5/5Worldbuilding: 5/5Characters: 5/5Plot: 5/5Continuity: 5/5Writing Quality: 5/5Recommend: Yes！This is a new favorite！ So so so good！ Because I loved this book so much， I bought the whole series。 It's fantastic！ All-Around Awesomeness: 5/5Worldbuilding: 5/5Characters: 5/5Plot: 5/5Continuity: 5/5Writing Quality: 5/5Recommend: Yes！This is a new favorite！ So so so good！ Because I loved this book so much， I bought the whole series。 It's fantastic！ 。。。more

Darian E ，

I think these books would make wonderful classroom material。 Fun and filled with so much wisdom and heart。

Mark ，

Age of Swords is a good follow-up to the Age of Myth。 Michael J。 Sullivan is able to advance his characters while also introducing new characters and new points of view。 Similar to the previous book， I found Age of Swords to be like the equivalent of eating comfort food。 However， this is probably because I grew up with western-style fantasy。 Like a good bowl of your favourite comfort food， it's fairly predictable and doesn't do anything new。 However， the characters and how they develop continue Age of Swords is a good follow-up to the Age of Myth。 Michael J。 Sullivan is able to advance his characters while also introducing new characters and new points of view。 Similar to the previous book， I found Age of Swords to be like the equivalent of eating comfort food。 However， this is probably because I grew up with western-style fantasy。 Like a good bowl of your favourite comfort food， it's fairly predictable and doesn't do anything new。 However， the characters and how they develop continue to be the high point of this series。 In Age of Swords， you're introduced to new points of view。 These points of view are quite different from the others and succeed in giving the reader a deeper understanding of the characters。 Character dialog and interactions are great。 They feel natural and Michael J。 Sullivan makes it feel like the characters who have known each other for years actually know each other。 One of the book's other strengths is how human each character is。 There are no perfect characters in this novel。 Each character is flawed and even the characters you might hate have times where you can emphasise with them or see the goodness in them。 As mentioned， there isn't anything unique plot-wise that's going to grab your attention。 I was also quite disappointed by the slow start。 While slow starts in book 1 of a series are typical， I wasn't expecting a slow start in this book。 It didn't pick up until the 25% mark， which surprised me。 Once it did pick up， it didn't slow back down and pacing was kept at a good level。 If you enjoyed the first book， you'll definitely like this one。 。。。more

Faith Williams ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Solid installment to move the series along。 I was getting some heavy LOTR vibes during the trek into Moria。。。wait， no， Neith。 And the Balrog guarding the ruins preventing the dwarves return for 1000s of years。。。wait， no， Balgargarath。 And the dark dwelling slimy talking creature Gollum。。。 wait， no， that is a raow。 It was pretty derivative， but as I usually say in my reviews of high fantasy， "Who cares？" This is fun and it's good and it has it's elements of individuality that set it apart。 Some p Solid installment to move the series along。 I was getting some heavy LOTR vibes during the trek into Moria。。。wait， no， Neith。 And the Balrog guarding the ruins preventing the dwarves return for 1000s of years。。。wait， no， Balgargarath。 And the dark dwelling slimy talking creature Gollum。。。 wait， no， that is a raow。 It was pretty derivative， but as I usually say in my reviews of high fantasy， "Who cares？" This is fun and it's good and it has it's elements of individuality that set it apart。 Some personal highlights:I enjoy how primitive the humans are in this and how the author wove in the （human） discovery of written language， the wheel， the bow， and iron swords。 A lot of fantasy is more like late Iron Age technology， and this is Copper to Bronze Age level， which fits in with the "legends of the first empire" theme。Also: STRONG FEMALE CHARACTERS！！！ The character development is natural and slow-paced。 People grow and change， but organically。 Each character is special， and I care about them。I enjoy getting to see a side of elves that isn't quite so noble。 In so many high fantasy series elves are nigh untouchable paragons of virtue。 But here the Fhrey are presented as just as culpable of moral failings like pride， xenophobia， hate， infighting， and supremacist thinking。 。。。more

Fredrik ，

This book is like a 3，4 or some such。 Not 3，5， because then it would have been a 4 star rating。 You know， that is how rounding numbers work。Age of Swords continues after Age of Myth and here the female leads have to kill a demon！The book is interesting and shows how a lot of thought has been put into it。 The characters are mostly interesting， but Raithe especially is annoyingly negative。 Hey， I love the negative guys。 They are my tribe， have my kind of wibe， but Raithe is just boring with it。 Th This book is like a 3，4 or some such。 Not 3，5， because then it would have been a 4 star rating。 You know， that is how rounding numbers work。Age of Swords continues after Age of Myth and here the female leads have to kill a demon！The book is interesting and shows how a lot of thought has been put into it。 The characters are mostly interesting， but Raithe especially is annoyingly negative。 Hey， I love the negative guys。 They are my tribe， have my kind of wibe， but Raithe is just boring with it。 The book goes almost exactly where you think it will go。 There aren't really any twists or secrets you can't predict very easily。 I don't need that in a book， but it would have been a more solid 4 if it actually delivered something unexpected at least once。 A revolt？ Who would have thought？ Manipulation？ Oh no， we could never have seen that coming。 My biggest hurdle with the book thought， is how they discover and perfect huge， major breakthroughs in everything in a couple hours， days or weeks。 We invented the wheel， then the cart， writing， how to forge iron， the bow and more。 Writing is learned in no time at all。 Even thought they invented writing yesterday， they can read writing in a whole different language and decipher it in hours。 The bow is created on monday， perfected by wednesday。 There hardly are errors in what they do and they hardly have any prototypes or anything of the kind。 So over to what this book does well: Social interaction。 The dialog is generally good， the people react and act in ways one can understand。 There are a couple of people alive， just because future plot probably demands it， but mostly actions appear to have consequences。So this book does nothing new， but it does it okay。 And that is okay。 The speed of discoveries really throw me off， as well as the speed of mastery。 The book doesn't really try to explain how there are 2 da Vincies and Einstein mixed together into super beings at the same time， or why they didn't start inventing things before。 And since the book mostly does well known things and tropes good， it lacks everything to make it exceptional。 It never rises to where it should be。 So a 3 star rating。 。。。more

K。R ，

Took me a minute to get a written review in （though， I'm quite behind on this series） but here we go。 Compared to the first book of this series？ Much better。 Finally， it feels like the plot is fully developing and we can see what's on the horizon， and based on what twists and turns I've seen though Age of Swords， I honestly don't know what I'm looking at。I still can't figure out who my favorite character is， but what I can say is that I never dreaded reading from another POV。 There's just so muc Took me a minute to get a written review in （though， I'm quite behind on this series） but here we go。 Compared to the first book of this series？ Much better。 Finally， it feels like the plot is fully developing and we can see what's on the horizon， and based on what twists and turns I've seen though Age of Swords， I honestly don't know what I'm looking at。I still can't figure out who my favorite character is， but what I can say is that I never dreaded reading from another POV。 There's just so much happening， in such a unique way， that we care about it all。 Character are written much stronger， they're more frustrating， and they seem to finally be falling into their rolls。My favorite part of this book was the fantasy element to it， as well as the development of "modern" technology。 Instead of mostly everything revolving around one area， we finally explore new lands， see new monsters， witness new magic， and discover new secrets as old as time。 So why not five stars？ Well， it's my fault， really。 I had a lot going on at the time， and I found myself reading only a couple chapters in one sitting at a given time。 I'm not sure if I felt the beginning dragged a bit （after the giants）， or if I just didn't find myself invested yet， but it took me a while to finish Age of Swords。 However， I can say， if you're reading this before your start， let me just say: If the beginning drags， it's well worth the wait。 With how things are going， I can only expect the finale in this series is going to absolutely blow my mind and remind me of why I fell in love with Michael J。 Sullivan in the first place。 。。。more

Cheng Cheng ，

4。25

Sean Kucharski ，

3。5 Stars

Brent Davies ，

Even better than the first book in the series。 Sullivan pulls it off again。 Masterful writing style， great characters and fascinating plot。

Chris ，

I notice im often critical of books when I first start reading them。 I judge the authors use of words and how they paint their characters。 I think about their plots and whether I would have changed something about them。Despite this judgemental habit of mine， I often find myself pleased and impressed with the imagination of others。 Michael Sullivan is no different。 Even after enjoying book 1 I was even more critical of book two as I started to see the trends he was trying to set up， however， what I notice im often critical of books when I first start reading them。 I judge the authors use of words and how they paint their characters。 I think about their plots and whether I would have changed something about them。Despite this judgemental habit of mine， I often find myself pleased and impressed with the imagination of others。 Michael Sullivan is no different。 Even after enjoying book 1 I was even more critical of book two as I started to see the trends he was trying to set up， however， what he did with his story was well worth all the praise his series have received。 I still have 4 books left in his series， but im already confident in his ability as a story teller。 。。。more

Tommy ，

I love these characters， and I love all the strong， valiant women in positions of power。 Sometimes the humor is a little questionably anachronistic， but I know that's an intentional choice， and I'm going to let it slide because of how much I like the characters。 I will also let slide the nearly unpronounceable fantasy names that would make non-fantasy readers roll their eyes and groan。 I'm still cheering for these characters to persevere and prevail。 I love these characters， and I love all the strong， valiant women in positions of power。 Sometimes the humor is a little questionably anachronistic， but I know that's an intentional choice， and I'm going to let it slide because of how much I like the characters。 I will also let slide the nearly unpronounceable fantasy names that would make non-fantasy readers roll their eyes and groan。 I'm still cheering for these characters to persevere and prevail。 。。。more

Nicole ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 2。5 stars Did not like this one。 This series isn’t as enjoyable as Royce and Hadrian， but there are a few characters and relationships that keep me reading。 I did not care for the ending of this book， as one of those relationships is now gone。 Almost stopped reading！

Donald ，

I read this book in the better part of a day， not because it was an “easy” read so to speak but i just couldn’t put it down。 It did make me cry towards the end though。

Sarah Ramsay ，

Very easy read

Jason ，

The pacing was a bit slow for this book but it picks up the last 150 pages。 It was harder to get through and didn't leave me moving to the next book in a hurry The pacing was a bit slow for this book but it picks up the last 150 pages。 It was harder to get through and didn't leave me moving to the next book in a hurry 。。。more

Megan Middlebrooks ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 i enjoyed this book probably the same as the first one。 We got alot more of the side characters this book and very little Raithe （which is fine bc he was acting childish）。 I loved all the women on their adventure and how each is unique。 I also really enjoyed watching the progression of society/science （though it did feel too easy sometimes）。 Mawyndule is as always， annoying， but in a way that makes sense。 Im just not reallly understanding the point of his character other than to show us whats ha i enjoyed this book probably the same as the first one。 We got alot more of the side characters this book and very little Raithe （which is fine bc he was acting childish）。 I loved all the women on their adventure and how each is unique。 I also really enjoyed watching the progression of society/science （though it did feel too easy sometimes）。 Mawyndule is as always， annoying， but in a way that makes sense。 Im just not reallly understanding the point of his character other than to show us whats happening with the Fhrey。 The additional worldbuilding was great though the story still felt small。 I love Roan and Gifford and I just want them to be happy。 Also， poor Minna！！！ how dare he kill her off！ that was legit so sad， especially bc i love Suri。 Overall， solid book！ 。。。more

Gina ，

Wow。 What a great read。 Stressful， sad， thrilling， beautiful， satisfying。 Really， truly satisfying。 Looking forward to the next book。

Jared Besse ，

3 starsThis book divided me a bit。 While it continues some fantastic character work and development， （MJS writes females so well） it also has too many moments that took me out of the narrative。 First， the praise。 Every single person in this series feels and acts believably in dynamic new ways。 My personal favorites are the former slave Roan and her fraught relationship to cripple， Gifford。 While the main players from book one take a bit of a back seat this time due to the expanding cast， they al 3 starsThis book divided me a bit。 While it continues some fantastic character work and development， （MJS writes females so well） it also has too many moments that took me out of the narrative。 First， the praise。 Every single person in this series feels and acts believably in dynamic new ways。 My personal favorites are the former slave Roan and her fraught relationship to cripple， Gifford。 While the main players from book one take a bit of a back seat this time due to the expanding cast， they all still had some great moments。 The action continued to be good， and the magic made for some cool moments。 While the world building is standard stock fantasy， there aren’t many series that take place this early in world development so it makes for some interesting moments。 Plus， the creation of some of the myths from the Ryria Revelations are fun。 Unfortunately， due to the early world development means that MJS basically has to have his main characters event every item necessary for a fantasy story。 And it happens over and over and over。 I’m supposed to believe these nomadic humans have lived without arrows and a saw for centuries？？ Maybe， but other parts of their civilization is much more developed。 This also led to several moments that were supposed to be big reveals （minor spoiler to follow） like the invention of writing， but made me instead go， ‘wait， they haven’t been writing？’ I hadn’t even noticed because of the intro sections from the ‘Book of Brin’。 It just took me out of the story a bit too much。 Also the use of the word ‘awesome’ came across very clunky。I may be a bit harsh on this book because of those reasons， but I really did enjoy it because of the characters。 I plan on continuing the series， but I may take longer breaks between the books than I had planned to。 。。。more

Јордан Коцевски ，

It was such a swift ride I didn't even noticed it was ending。There is more adventure to this second book。 It starts fast and strong to push our heroes from their home。New races， new powers， formidable foes and a well deserved ending。Can't wait to start the next book。 It was such a swift ride I didn't even noticed it was ending。There is more adventure to this second book。 It starts fast and strong to push our heroes from their home。New races， new powers， formidable foes and a well deserved ending。Can't wait to start the next book。 。。。more

Pawel Olas ，

I always dread the sequels。 They are rarely as good as the primary works and this one is no exception。 Sullivan claims that he writes the entire saga before releasing the first book but it doesn't feel like the case。 This is a completely different book to the "Age of Myth"。 He also said that this one is his favourite in the series which makes it even more disappointing。Everything in the "Age of Swords" is contrived。 The character motivations make no sense and are no longer believable。 They inven I always dread the sequels。 They are rarely as good as the primary works and this one is no exception。 Sullivan claims that he writes the entire saga before releasing the first book but it doesn't feel like the case。 This is a completely different book to the "Age of Myth"。 He also said that this one is his favourite in the series which makes it even more disappointing。Everything in the "Age of Swords" is contrived。 The character motivations make no sense and are no longer believable。 They invented the wheel and （spoiler-free） made many more breakthroughs in the span of a few pages。 Honestly， one great invention would be enough。。。The book reads like a naive YA。 Maybe I was under a wrong impression that it was targeted at adults， or my expectations were too high after a pretty decent first book。 。。。more

Nick ，

Good continuation of the story， the plot is starting to kick in a bit more and its interesting with some of the references how the history was perceived in the Riyria times compared to what actually happened。

Naiké ，

"Magic is merely another word for 'I don't know how you did that。'"Great sequel to the first book， it gave me very similar feelings and enjoyment。The characters in this series are great， especially the female characters I love all of them。 "Although men were strong like rocks， any stone could crack。 Women were more like water。 They nurtured life and could shape the hardest granite through unrelenting determination。"The world also really expanded in this one， which I very much enjoyed。 We "Magic is merely another word for 'I don't know how you did that。'"Great sequel to the first book， it gave me very similar feelings and enjoyment。The characters in this series are great， especially the female characters I love all of them。 "Although men were strong like rocks， any stone could crack。 Women were more like water。 They nurtured life and could shape the hardest granite through unrelenting determination。"The world also really expanded in this one， which I very much enjoyed。 We got to see different parts of the world and we got to meet new peoples。I also liked Mawyndulë's chapters way more in this one， he's still a brat， but his chapters were entertaining。Really curious to see where the next books take us！ "Hope without cause is insanity。" 。。。more

Ilene Walfield ，

Girl powerI was almost persuaded not to read this story due to the negative reviews left。 I am glad I decided to read this for myself and come to the conclusion that not only is this a great story， it is one in which the strongest characters are women。 It is refreshing to see women highlighted in a time when men dominated the genre leaving the girl roles to supporting inferior beings。 If strong female leadership and ingenuity intimidates you then move on and go read an antiquated caveman concept Girl powerI was almost persuaded not to read this story due to the negative reviews left。 I am glad I decided to read this for myself and come to the conclusion that not only is this a great story， it is one in which the strongest characters are women。 It is refreshing to see women highlighted in a time when men dominated the genre leaving the girl roles to supporting inferior beings。 If strong female leadership and ingenuity intimidates you then move on and go read an antiquated caveman conceptualized saga。 If you are mature enough to appreciate when stereotypes are broken and the often overlooked and supposedly weak characters are shown to be heroic， strong， independent and intellectually advanced then look no further。 This is an amazing adventure involving the bravest， and ingenious characters that come together to face challenging situations。 Very well written and looking forward to the next book。 。。。more

Louise Bray ，

I LOVE this series， I think is easily my favourite fantasy series I've read so far。 The pacing is spot on， and again what made this book so special are the female characters， in particular the fact that all the main characters are women and they're all so complex。 This book is entirely centred around preparing for war （something which I usually find mind-numbingly boring）， yet the characters made it a phenomenal read。 The horrors of war are not glorified in the slightest， in fact I think the hor I LOVE this series， I think is easily my favourite fantasy series I've read so far。 The pacing is spot on， and again what made this book so special are the female characters， in particular the fact that all the main characters are women and they're all so complex。 This book is entirely centred around preparing for war （something which I usually find mind-numbingly boring）， yet the characters made it a phenomenal read。 The horrors of war are not glorified in the slightest， in fact I think the horrors and the sacrifices and the grief that comes with war is what's really highlighted at every stage of the story， which I appreciate。Plus， the female characters are strong and powerful because of their FEMININE characteristics。 So often we see "strong female leads" in books about war because the women are basically just as good as the men at everything the men do and don't have typical feminine traits。 Whereas in Age of Swords， the women act like women， they all have strengths and weaknesses， most of them don't claim to be warriors and yet they add SO much value to the story and the tribes because of their own unique strengths。And even the bad characters like Mawyndule， who constantly shows himself to be a spoiled， arrogant brat， even manage to show another side of themselves and make you feel some sort of empathy for them？It's just so good， I loved it and I am very excited to continue the series。 。。。more

Pumpkinandegg ，

Fantastic book！Raithe and Malcolm remain with Pesephone and try to return some kind of order to the small village of Dahl Rhen。 However， other forces are determined to make this a difficult task sending giants and storms to destroy a home of centuries。 As their first female Cheiftan， Persephone knows that something needs to be done to protect herself and her people。 But the question is what will they do and who will lead them？ And will they be lead into what looks to be an inevitable war。

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Age of Swords

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Age of Swords&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,Age of Swords&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0