Sword-Breaker

by Jennifer Roberson

Tiger and Del (4)

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Accused of murdering a man the Southern tribes believe to be their messiah, but who is actually the slayer of Del's family, Tiger and Del flee across the deadly Punja desert, hunted by religious zealots and sword-dancer assassins. But evading death by assassins' blades is only one of the challenges they face. For Tiger's sword, Samiel, has been possessed by the spirit of the deadly sorcerer, Chosa Dei—a wizard out of legend with the power to unmake the entire world, a master of evil who show more seeks to mold Tiger into his ultimate weapon of destruction. Tiger and Del have only one hope left—to find and gain the help of Chosa Dei's equally powerful counterpart and sworn enemy, Shaka Obre. But Shaka Obre has not bee nseen in the world for hundreds of years, and it may be beyond even the combined magical abilities of Tiger and Del to find this wizard who is their only chance for salvation... show less

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3 reviews
Six word review: Chased by baddies, possessed sword, magic.

Stars: 7 / 10

So this is book four of the series, so don't read the review if you haven't read the first three. Spoilers for this book are hidden, but I can't guarantee spoilers for the other books are.

Tiger and Del, after causing quite the exit at the end of book three, must flee the wrath of, well, pretty much everybody. Del spends most of the book trying to get Tiger to face what he needs to do to/with the sword and worrying that Tiger is the one possessed, not the sword. Tiger is basically pretty beat up, sick, old, and hurting through most of the book, and Del is either annoyed or worried, depending. The sword issue does get resolved, as does his being the messiah or not, as show more does the conflict with the head of the city. The book ends with a cause for them to proceed to the setting for book five.

There was a little bit of character development in Del and Tiger, and in their relationship, but this is not one of my favorites in the series, mainly because Del seems a little more distant through most of the book (for good reason, I admit) and Tiger spends lots and lots of time inside his head worrying instead of doing. It's basically a long chase scene through the desert with a few side trips. However, the resolution to whether Tiger is or isn't the messiah of the desert is excellently accomplished, and in true Tiger fashion, so I must give kudos for that.
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This is the fourth, and in my opinion, the worst of the Sword-Dancer books. But, if you liked the first couple and enjoy the chracters, try to get through it because the fifth book's a charmer.
½

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Author Information

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75+ Works 16,719 Members
Fantasy and historical novelist Jennifer Roberson was raised in Arizona and graduated from Northern Arizona University. She has worked as an investigative reporter and copywriter and currently raises dogs. Her best known books are the eight volumes of The Chronicles of the Cheysulai, but she has written more than twenty novels. Her three show more historical novels about the story of Robin Hood, but told from Maid Marian's point of view, were researched when she spent a semester at the University of London. (Bowker Author Biography) show less

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Wolfe, Corey (Cover artist)

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Common Knowledge

Canonical title
Sword-Breaker
Original publication date
1991
People/Characters
Tiger (aka The Sandtiger); Del (aka Delilah)
Important places
The Punja, The South
First words
There are things in life you just know, without having to think much about them.

Classifications

Genres
Fantasy, Fiction and Literature
DDC/MDS
813.54Literature & rhetoricAmerican literature in EnglishAmerican fiction in English1900-19991945-1999
LCC
PS3568 .O236 .S96Language and LiteratureAmerican literatureAmerican literatureIndividual authors1961-
BISAC

Statistics

Members
825
Popularity
33,364
Reviews
3
Rating
(3.83)
Languages
English, German
Media
Paper, Audiobook, Ebook
ISBNs
5
UPCs
1
ASINs
4