The Lion of Macedon

[derae]

hi guys, im new here and i realy liked the discussions u have posted

anyways ive read most DV books but what realy got to me was lion of macedon and its sequel dark prince......anyone here read 'em? i especialy like the endings.
come to think about it ALL david gemmell's endings are unique

[Winters_Sorrow]

I enjoyed this series too. I liked how he took existing characters & events and tried to tell a story about motivations and sprinkle a bit of fantasy in there too.

I particularly liked it when Parmenion faced the Spartan army at Thebes

[I, Brian]

Hi derae and welcome to the chronicles network.

[cicbeast]

I've read Lion of Macedon and Dark prince. I think that they were as close to perfection as a fantasy author could get. They appealed to me in every dramatic sense, and the endings were very pleasant surprises. Welcome to the Network. :-D

[Tsujigiri]

Hi derae

I've enjoyed all of Gemmells work to date without exception. I'd have to cite Winter Warriors as my favourite at the moment though.

[kaneda]

Originally Posted by cicbeast

I've read Lion of Macedon and Dark prince. I think that they were as close to perfection as a fantasy author could get.

hmmmm not sure i'd agree with that in regards to dark prince.

But lion of Macedon is superb. absolutly love that book. but then greek myths and legend freak hehe.

[GOLLUM]

Hi derae and Welcome!!

HMM. I've not read anything by Gemmel yet but his name keeps on popping up. Can anyone tell me where I should start with this author?, the better books etc..???

Also who does this author compare to??

I await your learned responses with interest...

[Sytkan]

well imo gemmel's best book is white wolf, but all of them are amazing. he doesnt really compare to anyone, as david imo is uniquely good ( very consistant) although he doesnt hold a candle to tolkein (that goes without saying really)

[derae]

if you like myths and stories based on real characters start with lion of macedon. other than than david gemmell practicly created worlds with such deapth and detail that they're almost real. the two major sequels of this kind are the drenai series (start with waylander) and the rigante series (start with sword in the storm), you should find these in most bookstors (if you're in england) if like me you're not just order them from amazon!

[waltonsmiff]

In the lion of Macedon i like the story of Parmenion's childhood in sparta.

I also like the Aristotle, different dimensions-same person story in dark prince.

[izzy667]

I really liked the idea of multiple/paralel universes. So close, yet so different. And ofcourse Parmenion, a small figure in the real life of Alexander, but the main player according to Gemmell. I like the way Gemmell puts to life his ideas of history. Briliant

[Psyloke]

Historical fantasy is a great idea and Gemmel does it well in those books. He takes a LOT of liberties historically (aside from the fantasy element i mean) but it all goes towards making the story better. I thought out of all of his books the ending to this series was very satisfying.

[Sieben]

Hi all,

The author closest in style to Gemmell is Robert Howard of Conan fame.

If you are coming afresh to Gemmell you should start with Legend.

David Gemmells love affair with Ancient Greece is now continued in his series about Troy - Lord of the Silver Bow.

As some of you commented it is interesting the different slant that Gemmell places on characters from history that we are familiar with - in the Lord of the Silver Bow the princes of Troy are the heroes.

Gemmell tells intimate storeies on epic landscapes, his characterization is excellent and his prose and story development so lean that it gives all his books a sense of pace that is so lacking in some of the sprawling epics that are out there presently i.e. Robert Jordan and George Martin.

The best quality in gemmels stories is the way he blurs the lines between good and evil - many of his characters have an ambiguous nature that can let them do good or evil.

Gemmell is never quite given the credit for the subtelty of his writing, his charcters grow and learn but we are never hit over the head with this. Again as some of you previously said it was very clever to tell the Alexander story through the eyes of Parmenion. The casual reader does not realise the depth of knowledge displayed by Gemmell in weaving his fictional story into actual historical facts.

I'm starting to ramble a bit now but let me just close by saying that if you enjoyed lion of Macedon and Dark Prince you really should read Steven Pressfields Gates of Fire, it is magnificent.

Sieben

[jenna]

i loved these two books, but that's no real shock. i love all Gemmell's work.

[Parmenion]

Im a huge gemmell fan and was lucky enought to know him (via email) we had quite a few chats, he was a really great genuine bloke, alot like some of men in his books, flawed but genuine.

As you might have noticed one of my fav books is LOM its where i have got my forum name and also my book shop name.

Althought i have to say the sipstrassi stones eventually began to annoy me, they became too much of a plot line cop out.

I do think his latest troy series of which book 2 is due soon, and book 3 may or may not be completed by a ghost writer. is his best writing.