Synopses & Reviews
In the
Lord of the Isles, Drake returns to fantasy with an adventure set in an extraordinary world where the elemental forces that empower magic are rising to a thousand-year peak. Into this world, survivors from the last magical peak intrude: Tenoctris, a quiet and scholarly sorceress swept out of the past at the moment of final catastrophe as her civilization sank beneath the sea; the ghost of the greatest ruler, King Carus of the Isles; and the great magician known only as The Hooded One, who actually caused that ancient catastrophe.
In the days following an unusually severe storm in a tiny seaport town, life is disrupted. First, young Garric rescues the castaway Tenoctris; then, amazingly, a huge galley lands, bearing a court envoy searching for the lost heir to a dukedom - and finding her in Sharina, Garric's sister. Immediately after the galley departs with Sharina to seek out her destiny, another party arrives by coach, led by a merchant sorcerer eager to hire Garric. He sets out with this party, accompanied by Tenoctris and by the shepherd Cashel and his sister, Ilna, both of whom are discovered to have some magical power. Garric and Sharina, Cashel and Ilna, all travel toward romance, danger, and astonishing magic that will transform them and their world.
Review
"Unlike most modern fantasy, David Drake's
Lord of the Isles is an epic with the texture of the legends of yore, with rousing action and characters to cheer for." --Terry Goodkind
"True brilliance is as rare as a perfect diamond or a supernova. Lord of the Isles is truly brilliant. We are in at the birth of a classic....There is a lot of fantasy out there, but there is only one Lord of the Isles." --Morgan Llywelyn
"David Drake's work here is original, engrossing, and instantly credible. After all the hackneyed, repetitive fantasy I've read recently, Lord of the Isles seems quite wonderful." --Stephen R. Donaldson
"One of the finest epic fantasies of the decade." --Piers Anthony on Lord of the Isles
"World building, characterization, and systems of magic . . . are all so well conceived that the saga continues to be Drake's most ambitious work to date." --Booklist on Lord of the Isles
Review
"Unlike most modern fantasy, David Drake's
Lord of the Isles is an epic with the texture of the legends of yore, with rousing action and characters to cheer for." --Terry Goodkind
"True brilliance is as rare as a perfect diamond or a supernova. Lord of the Isles is truly brilliant. We are in at the birth of a classic....There is a lot of fantasy out there, but there is only one Lord of the Isles." --Morgan Llywelyn
"David Drake's work here is original, engrossing, and instantly credible. After all the hackneyed, repetitive fantasy I've read recently, Lord of the Isles seems quite wonderful." --Stephen R. Donaldson
"One of the finest epic fantasies of the decade." --Piers Anthony on Lord of the Isles
"World building, characterization, and systems of magic . . . are all so well conceived that the saga continues to be Drake's most ambitious work to date." --Booklist on Lord of the Isles
Review
"An epic with the texture of the legends of yore, with rousing action and characters to cheer for."
Terry Goodkind
Review
"David Drake's work here is original, engrossing, and instantly credible."
Stephen R. Donaldson
Review
"World building, characterization, and systems of magic . . . the saga continues to be Drake's most ambitious work to date."
Booklist
Synopsis
With
Lord of the Isles, David Drake returns to fantasy with a towering and complex epic of heroic adventure in an extraordinary and colorful world where the elemental forces that empower magic are rising to a thousand-year peak.
In the days following an unusually severe storm, the inhabitants of a tiny seaport town travel toward romance, danger, and astonishing magic that will transform them and their world.
About the Author
David Drake (born 1945) sold his first story (a fantasy) at age 20. His undergraduate majors at the University of Iowa were history (with honors) and Latin (BA, 1967). He uses his training in both subjects extensively in his fiction.
David entered Duke Law School in 1967 and graduated five years later (JD, 1972). The delay was caused by his being drafted into the US Army. He served in 1970 as an enlisted interrogator with the 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment, the Blackhorse, in Viet Nam and Cambodia. He has used his legal and particularly his military experiences extensively in his fiction also.
David practiced law for eight years; drove a city bus for one year; and has been a full-time freelance writer since 1981. He reads and travels extensively.