The Second Book of Swords

By: Fred Saberhagen

Narrated by: Derek Perkins

Mark and Ben travel deep into the Blue Temple's hidden horde of treasures in an attempt to recover gold and Swords for Sir Andrew. Gods, demons and human traitors have other plans for the Swords and for the adventurers. When playing the game of the gods no one's survival is secure, even a god's.

©1983 Fred Saberhagen (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

The Great Heist

Another great book about the swords of power. Familiar characters return and continue their development. Looking forward to the next book!

Pass on it

Would you say that listening to this book was time well-spent? Why or why not?

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How would you have changed the story to make it more enjoyable?

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Did Derek Perkins do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

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Could you see The Second Book of Swords being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

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Any additional comments?

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I'm tempted to suggest starting with this book

I initially read this novel (and the rest of Saberhagen's Swords series) as a teenager in the 1990s and could not get enough of it. I was disappointed when I ran out of books to read in this series. Now, a couple decades later, I'm giving them another read, now that I have a bit more to compare the series to in my memory / library.

With very little additional information, this novel could easily have been the first in the series. The series would benefit from more action / adventure / character development in the first novel a reader experiences. There's far too much world-building in the first novel and not enough focus on the main protagonists. The Second Book Of Swords is a far more enjoyable story. The adventure and perils are exciting. The world building is still happening, but it's not the main purpose behind this novel. All in all, I'd rather read this book then go back to the first one for background later.

Derek Perkins is still a fine narrator. His characters are unique and his voice acting conveys the proper emotions.

I'll rate this one, "I loved these as a kid and now that the adventure is in progress, the series is fun."

Great Characters in this Book

Where does The Second Book of Swords rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

For fantasy & adventure, I'd say that this ranks as an easy yet provocative listen. The story is clear and the characters are carved from a who's who in archetypes. Just the type of story that you'd imagine an old storyteller would spin while laying back in front of the fire and just letting your imagination be guided by a purposeful story. No wandering here and clearly everything you'd want from a quest including friendship, betrayal, intrigue, twists, timely visits from the gods that are a far cry from deus ex machina, lost and found, etc. Just short of a real myth!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Mitspieler has got this hands down. This book was populated by a slew of supporting "roles" that gave a lively feel to the main plot, but Mitspieler rocked (no spoiler from me) with a show of prudence and cunning that ultimately became the entire opposite...how even the wisest often make decisions based on their emotions...

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

Narrator took on various roles and voices, but an older or another voice would have helped in scenes where the listener might have to wait a bit to find out who is speaking/has spoken

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

No laughing or crying here. Just a healthy adventure with twists and turns

Any additional comments?

Well worth it for fans of Lord of the Rings and Game of Thrones. In fact, right up in the same league...yet different, as all books should be

unique stories

for me these books are a trip down memory lane I remember some 15 years ago purchasing the hard copies from a bookstore on just a whim because the name sounded cool. I remember being in France in this fantasy story land of magical swords and scheming gods that were playing a very cruel game. if nothing else the song of swords will catch you in a trance and have you humming it or sing it all the time having found these books on audible after so long it was hard not to purchase damn and hear the stories come alive again

Not as good as the first book in the series but...

The Second Book of Swords was not as interesting as the First Book. The book felt rushed for some reason. I will listen to the Third Book to see how Mr. Saberhagen wraps up the trilogy.

Fool and His Gold are Soon Parted

Book 2 expands the Sword series. Saberhagen continues to impress what a great Author he is has the God's and mortal contend for power in the Game of Swords.

Again a very fun world, more scattered

Would you consider the audio edition of The Second Book of Swords to be better than the print version?

I only read as an audio book, Although i think the simple style lends itself well to that format.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The villains were my favorite part of this story.

Which character – as performed by Derek Perkins – was your favorite?

Again all the voice acting was quite well done. Subtle but unique differences between characters.

Any additional comments?

I thought this book much like the first was a great story. Modern fantasy has a tendancy to get very complex with hundreds of strange names and places. I found the story to be more like the myths of Greek mythology. I was a bit disappointed in the ending of this one. It fleshed along this great story for the characters then felt like Saberhagen ran out of room and had to quickly tie everything up in 3 chapters. The ending felt very rushed and left me wanting.

classic d&d dungeon crawl

Fred Saberhagen is one of the top authors of his time. I love all of his books and this one is a classic of its type. The story is well crafted, good characters that you believe in and care about, great world building. Fred Saberhagen is one of my favorite authors.

Excellent

This is an excellent book!! I loved. listening to it and will absolutely listen to it again in the future!