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Books like The Diamond Throne

The Diamond Throne

1990David Eddings

4.4/5

'You'd better get ready to ride, Sparhawk.'Meet Sparhawk: Pandion Knight and Queen’s Champion. If this were D&D his character class would likely be Paladin; he can cast spells, but mostly prefers to just chop off heads with his considerable broadsword.Sparhawk is a bit of a bad-ass. So is his horse, Faran.'It's the Queen's Champion. Don't ever stand in his way.'I fairly devoured this novel in short order. Sparhawk has a zero tolerance approach to BS which is immensely refreshing and enjoyable. The Diamond Throne is a no-nonsense tale. The writing style on display here is sometimes a bit workmanlike and without literary flourish, but it seems to suit the story (and especially the protagonist) rather well.'It's going to be dangerous.'And thus our hero sets out on a quest to save the kingdom, accompanied by a few companions.Ah, the tried and tested recipe for a fantasy story. Fortunately it’s hardly possible to make a mess of a book when it has such an endearing protagonist. Eddings seems to have struck gold with Sparhawk, because I was willing to forgive all kinds of faults.It’s an old school story that (in my opinion) leans slightly more toward the heroic fantasy of Gemmell than it does the high fantasy of Tolkien, and yet it still sits somewhere in between. I haven’t read The Belgariad yet, so I’m unable to draw any comparison. Eddings, it seems, was somewhat hot property in the 1980s, alongside the likes of Raymond E. Feist. Just don’t expect dragons or elves. 'What are you planning, Sparhawk?''Chastisement.’One of the major selling points of this story is the dialogue. It’s rather good, what. In fact, it’s absolutely delightful more often than not.The bantering between the characters, and especially the knights of the different orders, is deftly dealt with. It’s remarkable that, for all the humour in this novel, it never stoops to being silly or a parody.'It should be almost like a cheese grater when we start to grind them up against your walls.''And I can drop some interesting things on them from my battlements as well. Arrows, large rocks, burning pitch - that sort of thing.''We're going to get on splendidly, my Lord,'The story won me over with its simple charm. It’s not as complicated and reality-ridden as the modern fantasy, but it does have a bit of dirt under its fingernails. There are some religious and philosophical leanings, but for the most part these serve to underscore elements of the story.'Has he ever bitten you?''Once. Then I explained to him that I'd rather he didn't do it any more.''Explained?''I used a stout stick. He got the idea almost immediately.'In short: it’s a fantasy adventure that should appeal to readers that don’t have a very straight literary stick wedged somewhere tight.For literary merit, cleverness and all that jazz: 3.5 starsFor pure unadulterated entertainment value: 4.5 stars
Picture of a book: The Diamond Throne

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