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A review by duffypratt
Hero in the Shadows by David Gemmell
adventurous
dark
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
An entirely fitting end to the saga of Waylander, who is probably my favorite Drenai character. Yes, even better than Druss. To a certain extent, these Drenai books tend to run together. They involve similar heroic characters, similar types of villains/antagonists, and they all seem to deeply involve similar themes: heroism, love, loyalty, duty, futility and death. But the similarities don't bother me while reading them; rather, they just make it a bit more difficult to separate out one from the other afterwards.
But that's OK. Gemmell's writing is graceful and usually economical. His storytelling is good, and seems to get better with each book. And the books are a very good time, with just enough depth to the characters and situations to keep me from getting bored. They are never pure action, but the are also never what I would call character studies or philosophical. Just good, well written, if not particularly original stories that end up being quite satisfying.
But that's OK. Gemmell's writing is graceful and usually economical. His storytelling is good, and seems to get better with each book. And the books are a very good time, with just enough depth to the characters and situations to keep me from getting bored. They are never pure action, but the are also never what I would call character studies or philosophical. Just good, well written, if not particularly original stories that end up being quite satisfying.