David Gemmell Rigante Series

[Waldo040]

Just wondering if anyone can help me i just finished reading my first David Gemmell book (Sword in the Storm), i enjoyed it so much i read the whole thing in a night. I have just brought the 2nd book (Midnight Falcon) at least i think this is the 2nd book, i started reading and i notice that 18 years had elapsed, i was just wondering if anyone can tell me if this is actually the right book, because i would have thought that the fight with the Stone Army would have been in a book and also Conns rise to high king, Maybe i have just made a mistake and started reading the wrong book.

[nj1]

Hey Waldo, glad to hear you enjoyed Sword in the Storm so much. As to you're question, Yes you have the correct book and there's two more to come in the Rigante series, all great books IMO.
Look here for more of Gemmells work
Bibliographie - David Gemmell

Or if you go to the top of the page and click on this
Science Fiction Fantasy Chronicles: forums - Powered by vBulletin and scroll down to authors, look for David Gemmell and you'll find a load of threads on his work.

Enjoy!

[dreamhunter]

Originally Posted by Waldo040

Maybe i have just made a mistake and started reading the wrong book.

Not to worry. For all DG's books are great.

If you've read no. 3 or 4 first, then you can buy and read no. 2 later. No harm done.

I read the last of his Troy trilogy (which I highly recommend to you, for later, perhaps) - Fall of Kings - first. Then I read no. 1 (Lord of the Siver Bow), then no. 2 (Shield of Thunder).

I also bought Sword in the Storm, before I joined this SFF Chronicles Forum. I misplaced it somewhere between my home and my office, before I finished reading it, and I can't find it now.

After joining Chrons, then only I knew that DG had an entire legion of devoted fans. Maybe I'll buy another copy of SITS some time.

[biodroid]

You are on the right path, sometimes DG's sequels take place hundreds of years after (I stand to be corrected) like White Wolf and the Swords of Night and Day which is like 1000 years.

[Waldo040]

Damn would have been nice to read about the destruction of the Stone Army and Conns rise to High King. Ive never come across another writer whos sequels are largely spaced apart time frame wise, guess ill just have to read them all and make my mind up about them

[biodroid]

Waldo, they are all good and most of the people here like Gemmells works, ok he has written 1 or 2 (literally) below average novels, but Gemmell writing bad is like some other authors really writing well. Normally his first book is an intro the world and then the history is sometimes explained rather than explored in the sequels. Try reading the Troy series, it's complete after he died at least it was finished off by his wife who apparently helped him a lot with his other books. Keep in mind DG is not scared to kill off his heroes (which happens a lot) so don't get miffed if he does, he only does it because it works in the story and couldn't have happened any other way. His Drenai saga is probably the most well known especially Druss the Legend...

[Conor]

Waldo,
Yes you are are on the right track. Just wait until book three. There is about 800 years between Midnight Falcon and Ravenheart.
About a year ago I finished the series for a second time, although reading them a few years earlier, I read all four books right in a row!
Many feel those are his best. I will definately re-read them again ventually.
I am on my second go round with the Waylander trio.

[Simple Simon]

And it gets even better in the Drenai Saga where not only is there large time gaps but these gaps don't necessarily go forward in time

[Caladaster]

Waldo - I started reading Gemmell novels over 10 years ago. It doesn't matter which one you read; they are all amazing for their own reasons, but mostly because of the Master's ability to manipulate the words and grammar he used for description, as well as character development. Even if he only skims over a character for a few chapters, you are left with the sense of actually "knowing" who that person was, and feeling glad for it somehow.

But out of his 30 or so novels, the Rigante series is my favorite - I started reading Midnight Falcon at the age of 15 without even knowing what it was, and became hooked. I have read the entire 4 book series again and again more than a dozen times each, and I can tell you, I would gladly read them all over again until I die.

[Bugg]

I just read Sword in the Storm for the first time. I thought it was bloody marvellous, probably my favourite of DG's books that I've read so far. Wonderful characters, great action - the epilogue made me want to jump straight into the next book, it's so ominous and full of foreboding, but I've restrained myself

[Conor]

I think the Rigante series is his best. The momentum keeps building until the last pages of Stormrider. Bloody brilliant!!

[THECLANSMAN]

Most series can be read in almost any order. The only one I'd recommend reading chronologically are the jerusalem man books, and preferably reas these after the arthurian duo (ghost king/last sword of power) Tese books centre around sipstrassi stones, which also appear in many other books so make good backgrounf reading. Anyhow, his character and plot development are so good, ithat no matter which novel you read you want to know what happens next, AND what happened before.