Posted on  20/08/2024 14:11:06

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

There is more to life than merely waiting for death. For life to have meaning there must be a purpose.

But what is the purpose is to die by merely prolonging the inevitable? What if you know you cannot hold? Will you still fight on?

The Drenai Empire is under threat. The tribal Nadir people have been united for the first time by the great warleader Ulric, who has forged a massive empire in the North. The Drenai leader Abalayn is trying to negotiate new treaties with Ulric, but war is brewing and an over 500,000 strong Nadir army marches on the fortress of Dros Delnoch, gateway to the Drenai heartlands. Dros Delnoch is the greatest fortress in the world, a narrow pass guarded by six high walls and a great keep, but under Abalayn its complement of defenders has been reduced to less than 10,000 men under the leadership of an unfit General.

The fate of the Drenai hinges on the defence of Dros Delnoch. If the fortress can hold the Nadir horde for three months, the Drenai general Magnus Woundweaver might be able to gather and train a Drenai army. However, given the odds, no-one truly believes that Delnoch can be held.

And yet there is a hope. A hope that rests on the skills of one grizzled warrior: a 60 year old man with a swollen knee and arthritic back

Druss the Legend

who marches to the great fortress to defend his people one last time. He is the heart and soul of this story.



Druss is every man who has refused to quit; to surrender when life offered no hope; to stand aside when the alternative was to die. He is a man who has shown other men there is no such thing as guaranteed defeat. He lifts the spirit merely by being Druss, and being seen to be Druss.

And yet he manages to remain just a man. A man who was never mean, petty or needlessly cruel... a man who never gave in, never compromised his ideals, never betrayed a friend, never despoiled a woman and never used his strength against the weak.


Get rid of your doubts. Yesterday is dead. Past mistakes are like smoke in the breeze. What counts is tomorrow and every tomorrow...

Lovely words, and no one can deny their truth, but how many of us actually follow them? How many of us wallow in self pity regretting the past and forgetting how to live?

This little over 400 pages action jam-packed book gives us all a little well meant kick-in-the-butt and makes us think about it. It shows us that we have to value life because:

You may think life is sweet now, but when death is a heartbeat away then life becomes unbearably desirable. And when you survive, everything you do will be enhanced and filled with greater joy; the sunlight, the breeze, a good wine, a woman's lips, a child's laughter.

To all those who'd like a fast gripping read I highly recommend this one.
It's a hell of a story and heroic fantasy at its best!

Check out this book and more of David Gemmell here