On This Page
Description
Bahzell of the Hradani is Back!Exciting Fantasy Adventure
by the New York Times
Best-Selling Author of the
Honor Harrington Series.
In The War God's Own, Bahzell had managed to stop a war by convincing Baron Tellian, leader of the Sothoii, to "surrender" to him, the War God's champion. Now, he has journeyed to the Sothoii Wind Plain to oversee the parole he granted to Tellian and his men, to represent the Order of Tomanak, the War God, and to be an ambassador for the hradani. What's more, show more the flying coursers of the Sothoii have accepted Bahzell as a windrider—the first hradani windrider in history. And since the windriders are the elite of the elite among the Sothoii, Bahzell's ascension is as likely to stir resentment as respect. That combination of duties would have been enough to keep anyone busy—even a warrior prince like Bahzell—but additional complications are bubbling under the surface. The goddess Shigu, the Queen of Hell, is sowing dissension among the war maids of the Sothoii. The supporters of the deposed Sothoii noble who started the war are plotting to murder their new leige lord and frame Bahzell for the deed. Of course, those problems are all in a day's work for a champion of the War God. But what is Bahzell going to do about the fact that Baron Tellian's daughter, the heir to the realm, seems to be thinking that he is the only man—or hradani—for her
At the publisher's request, this title is sold without DRM (Digital Rights Management).
. show less
Tags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
I really like the basic premise of this series, making the hero an orc. (yes, Weber calls them hradani. Any fantasy fan will recognize orcs in the hradani stereotypes). That simple twist brings a refreshing and original feel to the classic fantasy world populated with dwarves, elves, halflings, and more meddling gods than you can shake a stick at.
The usual fantasy tropes abound, along with the usual all-white cast and patriarchal society. Though Weber also manages to turn that last around somewhat with the war maid society he introduces.
All in all, an enjoyable read with compelling characters that avoids some of the worst cliches of the genre and has some original twists on an old story.
The usual fantasy tropes abound, along with the usual all-white cast and patriarchal society. Though Weber also manages to turn that last around somewhat with the war maid society he introduces.
All in all, an enjoyable read with compelling characters that avoids some of the worst cliches of the genre and has some original twists on an old story.
Significantly better structured than I remembered, a if somewhat more scattered than the preceding books in some regards. I tend to prefer stories with somewhat fewer lead threads, but this was well done even so.
Huh. I thought I'd read this before - apparently. I only read about two-thirds of it. I slogged through all the politics and careful consideration of next steps - like chess, if I do this he/they will likely do that and then I can do this but if they do the other thing I'll have to... - and never got to the payoff. There is a lot of politics and setup in here, but it lays the necessary foundations for a heck of a lot of action - of many sorts and in many places. It's a much better book than I was remembering it as - I upgraded my rating from 3.5 to 4.5. A good next step in Bahzell's adventures. Though I'm still waiting to see what becomes of Brandark! Oh, and the scene on the cover is the very last one in the book - literally, the last show more page. And Kerry is - not badly drawn, but inconsistently - she looks like she does on the cover of War God's Own, darn it, not like that! (This applies to the cover, not how she's portrayed in the book - there's nothing inconsistent about that.) show less
Wind Rider's Oath actually seems to come together as a novel with a recognizable structure, which is... nice. It also starts to move away from the original main character some, which is good, because he's suffering a bad case of mudflation - his powers keep growing to the point where he's basically Superman and therefore quite difficult to put in any sort of challenging spot.
The characters that start to take over are much more interesting. I find the war maids - female warrior types that basically have to live outside the bounds of their patriarchal society - kind of problematic in a couple of ways, but not enough to not enjoy them. And this is the first point in the series where we really start to see who the enemies are and what their show more motivations might be - previously, they were all just puppy-kicking psychopaths, which isn't all that interesting.
So overall a good entry in the series, although it ends sort of midstream. But I just need to record for posterity the impressive arc of my eyeroll when I realized that Our Hero was, yes, going to telepathically bond to an intelligent horse. Because that's never been done before. show less
The characters that start to take over are much more interesting. I find the war maids - female warrior types that basically have to live outside the bounds of their patriarchal society - kind of problematic in a couple of ways, but not enough to not enjoy them. And this is the first point in the series where we really start to see who the enemies are and what their show more motivations might be - previously, they were all just puppy-kicking psychopaths, which isn't all that interesting.
So overall a good entry in the series, although it ends sort of midstream. But I just need to record for posterity the impressive arc of my eyeroll when I realized that Our Hero was, yes, going to telepathically bond to an intelligent horse. Because that's never been done before. show less
No one ever claimed the War God's sense of humor was a gentle one... Bahzell's new mission appears to be tracking down and squelching the latest demon up-rising. Which just happens to be smack in the middle of the Wind Plain, home to the Hradnai's bitter traditional enemies, the Wind Riders and their majestic (and deadly) coursers.
The third installment of Bahzell's adventures - a slightly more intricate plot, but still an excellent adventure.
The third installment of Bahzell's adventures - a slightly more intricate plot, but still an excellent adventure.
I’m almost half way through this book and I have to say, it’s nothing like the earlier two books. They’re so much better, with so much more action. This book is longer than either of the previous two, yet it seems to have less content. There is so much dialog and so little going-on that it’s driving me nuts and I can’t wait to finish it so I can read something else.
Having finished this book (finally), I can now say it went from a 3 to a 6 (on a scale of 10), with maybe a 5 overall. The writing was definitely too long-winded to start, and no action really started up until half of the book was behind you. The end somewhat made up for that, but I think it could have been a better book had it been shorter. The ending was exciting, show more and after about page 250 or so it got easier to stick with the story and keep reading. After page 300 I stopped wanting to put it down and start reading something else (again). show less
Having finished this book (finally), I can now say it went from a 3 to a 6 (on a scale of 10), with maybe a 5 overall. The writing was definitely too long-winded to start, and no action really started up until half of the book was behind you. The end somewhat made up for that, but I think it could have been a better book had it been shorter. The ending was exciting, show more and after about page 250 or so it got easier to stick with the story and keep reading. After page 300 I stopped wanting to put it down and start reading something else (again). show less
I love Bahzell, he is so the champion of wrong place wrong time right individual.As the third in this series it was a delight to get back to it.
Members
- Recently Added By
Author Information
David Weber was born in Cleveland, Ohio on October 24, 1952. He received an undergraduate degree from Warren Wilson College and attended graduate school at Appalachian State University. He ran Weber Associates, a small advertising and public relations agency, for several years. He currently writes science fiction and fantasy full-time. His first show more novel, Insurrection, in collaboration with Steve White, was published in 1990. He has authored or co-authored over 40 books including The Honor of the Queen, In Enemy Hands, The Service of the Sword, Storm from the Shadows, the Honor Harrington series, the Safehold series, and the Star Kingdom series. Weber's first book in the Manticore Ascendant Series, co-authored with Timothy Zahn, made the New York Times bestseller list in October 2014. At the Sign of Triumph, book 9 in the Safehold series, made the New York Times bestseller list in 2016. Book 10, Through Fiery Trials, was published in January 2019. (Bowker Author Biography) show less
Some Editions
Series
Work Relationships
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Wind Rider's Oath
- Original title
- Wind rider's oath
- Alternate titles*
- Wind Rider's Oath Part 1
- Original publication date
- 2004
- People/Characters
- Bahzell Bahnakson; Brandark Brandarkson; Kaeritha Seldansdaughter; Tomanāk Orfro; Tellian Bowmaster; Leeana Bowmaster (show all 14); Hurthang; Gharnal Uthmâgson; Walsharno; Yalith Tamalthfressa; Varnaythus; Trisu Pickaxe; Trianal Bowmaster; Yarran Battlecrow
- Dedication
- For Megan, Morgan, and Michael, who hold my heart in their hands. And always and especially for Sharon, the center of us all, for making miracles possible.
- First words
- Thunder rumbled overhead like a distant battering ram, pounding at the hasp of heaven. The harsh grumble was muted in the stone-walled room, but the waterfall sound of the pounding rain came through the single open widow on... (show all) the windy breath of the chilly spring night.
- Last words
- (Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)He took to his heels instantly, and despite the carnage all about them, Baron Tellian, the other wind riders, and every member of the Order of Tomanāk burst into laughter as Kaeritha paused beside a planter only long enough to snatch out a handful of ornamental river stones suitable for throwing at him before she went speeding off in pursuit.
- Original language
- English
*Some information comes from Common Knowledge in other languages. Click "Edit" for more information.
Classifications
Statistics
- Members
- 729
- Popularity
- 38,559
- Reviews
- 9
- Rating
- (3.81)
- Languages
- English, French, German, Polish
- Media
- Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 5
- ASINs
- 6
