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Dawnthief: Chronicles of the Raven 1 [Paperback]

James Barclay (Author)

3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (75 customer reviews)

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Book Description

Publication Date: 13 Nov 2008 | Series: Chronicles of the Raven

Chronicles of the Raven: One

ELITE, UNSTOPPABLE . . . AND HIRED TO DO THE UNTHINKABLE

The Raven are an elite. Formed of six men and an elf, they're swords for hire in the wars that have torn their land apart. For years their only loyalty has been to themselves, and to their code.

But that time is coming to an end. The Wytch Lords have escaped and The Raven find themselves fighting for the Dark College of magic, on a mission which soon becomes a race for the secret location of Dawnthief. It's a spell - one created to end the world - and there's a danger that someone is going to use it . . .

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Chronicles of the Raven: One

ELITE, UNSTOPPABLE . . . AND HIRED TO DO THE UNTHINKABLE

The Raven are an elite. Formed of six men and an elf, they're swords for hire in the wars that have torn their land apart. For years their only loyalty has been to themselves, and to their code.

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Product details

Paperback: 496 pages
Publisher: Gollancz; Reprint edition (13 Nov 2008)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0575082755
ISBN-13: 978-0575082755
Product Dimensions: 12.9 x 3 x 19.8 cm

Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (75 customer reviews)

Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 23,664 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Product Description

Amazon Review

This energetic first fantasy novel is familiar in outline, but told with unusual intensity. "The Raven" is a group of seven mercenaries, just starting to lose their fighting edge, who reluctantly get hired by a mage from a college of magic with a nasty reputation for blood sacrifice. Their mission: to save the world from major bad guys called the Wytch Lords. These, defeated long ago at great cost, have escaped their sorcerous confinement and will be unstoppable once they've grown new bodies; meanwhile their teeming minions are already going to war. The only hope is Dawnthief, a lost super-spell which, if correctly cast, can zap even Wytch Lords--but make one mistake and the sun will never come up again. A typical fantasy-quest shopping list emerges: you need the dragon-guarded amulet to open the ancient mage's workshop to find the portal leading to the demon watching over the parchment with the spell, which itself requires three "catalyst" talismans hidden in difficult places. What makes Dawnthief a ripping yarn is Barclay's ruthless pace and lack of sentimentality. No character is too nice, innocent or important to die or suffer hideous tortures. The death toll is horrific, as are the many exotic ways of dying in this dangerous world. This is a breathless, action-crammed fantasy thriller. --David Langford --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Book Description

A fantasy epic with the action of David Gemmell and the characterisation of Robin Hobb from a major British talent.

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3.7 out of 5 stars

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Restored my faith in Fantasy 15 Sep 2007

By Heeberon

Format:Paperback

......after many years of reading sci-fi & fantasy, I abruptly tired of the "purple rain falling on the orange grass" or "I can't be the heir to the Sword of Garglebad, I'm just a stable-boy" and stopped looking at these genres for many years (Iain M Banks excepted).

I decided to give escapism another go recently, and after a completely false start with the execrable "Orcs" book (if ever a good idea went to waste...), I, purely by accident (first trip to a library for years), stumbled across these - sad to say, decided by not much more than "interesting cover!?".

I write this review now having read all 6 and although as many reviewers have said, they get better (characterisation, plot, pacing, etc) book by book, the fact of the matter is, I wouldn't have even read book 2 if this was poor.

What I loved about this book (series) :
- you're dropped straight in (figure out man! no screeds of exposition)
- the goodies ain't invincible (does Barclay get kicked out of the club for this - innocents & major characters die!!!)
- ooh-ya, ah-ya battles expertly described, putting you into the maelstrom (think start of saving private ryan, er, with swords)
- excellent humour (reminiscent of IM Banks IMHO)
- the people are real (they wind each other up, get upset, tired, have hopes etc)
- elves are in it, but forget the namby-pamby poetry and chiffon - these guys are psycho ninja killing machines! (later book to be fair)

Really - buy, beg, borrow, steal these - they are rip-roaring reads - but there is an intellectual & emotional maturity that is very satisfying indeed.

.......and no purple rain.

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Not up to scratch 1 Sep 2011

By J. I. Sundquist

Format:Paperback

I picked this up at the library because it had got on my radar somehow, but from the opening passages it was clear this wasn't going to survive comparison to some of the other names writing similar books--Gemmell, Abercrombie, Erikson. There is some interesting stuff here, but too much that is generic, bland or just badly written. To be fair, it might have seemed fresh in 1999, but since then we've seen much better. For a clue to what I mean, just look at the map...

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15 of 19 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Lovably unpretentious 28 Feb 2005

By "happy_bivouac"

Format:Paperback

I like to read books that I think will change my life. At the end of the day, they're just books, so I generally return to normal quite quickly, except maybe with an increased desire to use 'whom' in the right context and semi-colons in the right place. But in that fashion I churn through Murakami and Orwell and Mervyn Peake, and hey, I love them- pretentious as my motives may be- and it's led me to all sorts of books that I wouldn't have picked up had I not been so, and I in turn loved them too- Ian M Banks, Raymond Carver, Bill Waterson. I think of myself as reasonably widely read. What leaves me at a loose end is fantasy. I mean, out-and-out pure fantasy- there's loads of it, but what's the point? Fantasy never overtly tries for relevancy (except with the obvious satires of Pratchett) settling instead for reccounting historic fables of a past we never had in some parralell universe, or whatever. I guess I was embarassed to approach a genre so determined to have no impact on the world, and more importantly, on me. I didn't feel like the effort was there. Fantasy is so formulaic- Demon Lord/ Dragon/two Demon Lords threaten humanity or some self-conciously multi-cultural society ('you can't have humans to captain ships, you must have a completely separate race of boat people!' Good one. [Disclaimer- this may never have happened in a fantasy novel, but it seems like it would]) and a group of people, possibly with some sort of Messiah-type killjoy in tow being all confused about his 'calling', have to save everything by doing stuff.... And so I avoid the fantasy sections, save for a couple of sagas I've been lent by friends (and, true, enjoyed quite a bit, like the first few Wheel of Time books and Lord Of The Rings (LOTR, for the record: quite poo (WOT: sprawlingly arrogant, but quite cool in Shadar Logoth and stuff (brackets all the time: fantastic, and a sure sign of an intelligent reviewer, 'specially as he knows its called 'ellipses')))), but another potential pit-fall of the genre is that authors seem to want to justify the fact that they've spent a year coughing up hackneyed sword play by being *detailed* about it. And so we have economies and made up languages and local bi-elections. Y'know, I was really quite disparaged.
Anyways, to the point: another weakness of mine, aside from translated Japanese novels that want to change my entire outlook on the world are books with cool two-tone colours, i.e., black and something primary. Possibly with an author sharing my own forname. That's where the Chronicles of the Raven come in. They're formulaic, yeah, I'm not even going to try to deny that, but in the same way that Columbo is formulaic, no, bad example... in the same way that The Hives are formulaic, these books are also fantastically cool. Ignore the fact that they insist on using spells called 'FlameOrb' and 'IceWind,' this is rock'n'roll fantasy. So we get kick-ass mercenaries (with a leader called 'The Unknown Warrior,' which threw me a little at the start, but it becomes less and less of a problem) that are each genuinely different characters with quirks and mannerisms that are interesting to see develop. They have fall-outs and moments of camaraderie and everything within their group is so small scale and human that it's almost by accident that along the way they fill the role of 'saviour'-that Rand or Frodo ham up in those other books- without any of the mopeyness but instead sarcastic quips and one liners. I don't know what point I'm trying to make here. I should hate the Raven books (they're hard core fantasy, oi), but when the next fantasy main-stay lurches along I'm eager instead for the really cool way that James Barclay is going to kill it (tapping entire oceans onto the heads of the approaching enemy, anyone? Armies of dead-pan soldiers operating by remote control from where their souls are kept in stasis by little blue buggers, anyone?). Sorry. I think that's fantastic. . I'm not saying these are brainless, the studies of character within are flawless, and there's no flabby excess, just the satisfying feeling that you're reading something that fulfills exactly what the author set out to do, and I think anyone can enjoy that. These books radiate Barclay's love of spinning a yarn- not to the point of the forty novel sequences that R. Jordan likes to weave, or spew- but for the sake of diverting you, the reader, into a world free of consequence, but none the worse for that, just a bit more funAm I 'getting' fantasy? Maybe. The Raven books are desperate not to change my life. Instead, they're a snappily written companion for a little bit of the way. I'm disarmed by their easy-going manner and they've snuck under the radar. I've rambled for a while, and dammit, looking back, I'm an opinionated oik but to clarify: books that change your life= good. Books that seek not to, but are damn well written, well characterised and tightly plotted= also good. I can't exactly justify reading them in the face of the fact that there's more literature in the world than anyone could read in thirty life times, but I still think I'll read them again one day. The Raven books are an excellent author enjoying himself. And it rubs off. I'm converted. And the coloured spines looks so pretty on my book shelf. Read more ›

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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Action, Friendship, Wonder. 3 Dec 2000

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

Being in the workforce now, I am extremely picky about what I want to read and it was after much consideration that I thought to give "Dawnthief", written by a new author, a go.

Being a don't beat around the bush kind of person, this book is a stunning read.

- Gritty action where you fear for the characters. They DO die without mercy. - The spirit of The Raven shines and sheds new light on the term "Team". - No pages upon pages of description and emotional angst which you have to slog through. This is a "strictly essence only" story which don't waste your time. - Brings back the fantasy feel which has been quite jaded and lost (in innovation) in recent times and trend.

I, for one, am looking forward to see what would happen next.

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6 of 8 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Surprised.... 14 Oct 2005

By Simon J. Whight

Format:Paperback

Well I have to admit, shallow as I am, I was suckered into this by the ever so pretty purple and black cover. Of course never judging a book purely by a cover, the glowing recommendations from Eddings and Furey gave me the urge to splash out on this. A novel with the promise of pace and action, a much needed antidote to the ever increasing sensation of wading through treacle that I'd experienced further down the line with the Wheel Of Time series.

So lo! I'd bought a nice new shiny book, what better to do than to sift through Amazon and check out the other opinions of fellow reviewers. To my dismay, I was shocked to find two parallels of opinion, either extatic 5 star praise of pace and excitement, or the lowly 1 star flaming of cliche and shallowness. I feared that I may have gone from rock to hard place as far as reading material was concerned.

Monday morning commute commenced and I took the big plunge. Yes, the novel doesn't pull any punches, there is no gentle introduction. Its WHAM, straight in there with the Raven dividing people horizontally with vicious sword action and HardShields all over the shop. After the D&D comparisons read here, I was concerned, half expecting members of the Raven to pause between hits while waiting for an Active Time Battle bar to recharge before attempting a Limit Break! But wait, after the initial confusion and a rather surprising downsizing of the initial Raven outfit, things do settle down somewhat. Surprises ARE sprung, a more weighty plot kicks in and you find yourself becoming part of the new band of Raven. As promised, plenty of energy and excitement yet not overtly cliched and it hardly maintains the sense of being a D&D book for 14 year old metal heads....

I've found myself caught up in the plight of the Raven, the despair as the close knit band is slowly picked apart, but joy as the need to save the world leads to the forming of a new Raven. Everything just slots into place just nicely, written with precision and purpose. The finding of the three catalysts could have easily been spread over three novels, but the decision to go with action pays off. The pages keep on turning and the chapters tumbling by.

This isn't the deepest of fantasy that you will ever read. Certainly the history of the Wytch Lords, land itself and the politics of the various ruling bodies & factions is very lightly delved into and only when the plot deems it necessary. Also it is exactly what it says on the tin, very gritty and down to earth, not quite conjouring the whimsical otherworldly fantasy of Tolkien (but then again, what fantasy has managed this since?). However, I have found this the ideal antidote to a case of the Jordan's, and my commuter packed train journeys have been made better for it. I can easily see myself picking up the next in the series. Read more ›

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant series

I read these some years ago and had lost my copy of dawnthief so I finally got round to replacing the matching one!

I really do recommend this series. Read more

Published 1 month ago by Stargirlphotography

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book

Published 5 months ago by S. Rogers

5.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable Fantasy

The first James Barclay book I have read and I wasn't disappointed although I found it a bit tough going in the first couple of chapters - but I am glad I persevered. Read more

Published 6 months ago by Karen a Kindle Fan

5.0 out of 5 stars Extraordinary

In a genre so encumbered with half arsed and derivative writing, when you find an author that stands out it's a special joy. James Barclay is one such joy. Read more

Published 9 months ago by Jolyon M. Bain

1.0 out of 5 stars I've seen deeper and more entertaining puddles.

I must say I've never come across a fantasy book so far that read so much like a 'choose your own adventure'. Read more

Published 18 months ago by beccajwp

4.0 out of 5 stars book review

Seems like a decent book,unusual in books of this type though,a hell of lot of main characters die.Well worth a read.

Published 19 months ago by jim

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointment

I was quite disappointed about this title.

I saw a review in a literary magazine and then I read the ones online, all praises for it. Read more

Published on 29 April 2010 by P. Celli

1.0 out of 5 stars review

well i bought this book for the good reviews it had and so i was really surprised when i read it and found of really quite low quality
the history is not bad and the... Read more

Published on 30 Mar 2010 by Luca Bazzea

5.0 out of 5 stars Great as an introduction to Fantasy Fiction

Just to begin with, I am not a seasoned expert of Fantasy Fiction, quite the opposite in fact. With exception to the Lord of the Rings and a few Terry Pratchett's, I am a relative... Read more

Published on 16 Nov 2009 by Mr. D. D. Mayers

5.0 out of 5 stars perfect

i have only just come across james barcley i read ravensoual first and loved it but am a bit gutted i know how it all ends the book dwantheif is the perfect series of books that i... Read more

Published on 6 Nov 2009 by tom

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