The First Book of Lost Swords

Amiable follow-up to Saberhagen's paperback Swords yarns. The 12 magical Swords, forged by the gods (who subsequently perished in various wars), each have singular but sharply limited powers. Prince Mark of Tasavalta possesses the sword Shield-breaker, but what he really needs is the sword Woundhealer to treat the stubborn, incapacitating ailments of his son Adrian. Woundhealer is reportedly kept at the White Temple of Sibi; thither hies Mark, with Adrian - but old enemy Baron Amintor gets there first and takes the sword. The Baron has allied himself with the wizard Burslem (he, in turn, has made a compact with a superlatively dangerous Ancient One) in order to seize the kingship. Poor Mark follows the Baron and offers to trade Shieldbreaker for the Baron's Woundhealer; the Baron agrees, but Woundhealer fails to cure Adrian's mysterious illness. Various subplots unfold before Mark finally outwits the Baron, who uses his other sword Farslayer to kill the faithless Burslem. And Adrian, far from being sickly, is revealed as a mage of astonishing self-taught powers (various odd goings-on are shown to have been his doing), who all this while has merely been in a trance, learning how to cope. The Swords notion is an arresting, supple, and durable one, with plenty of mileage left in the various permutations. Alas, then, that the treatment and narrative here are no better than mediocre. (Kirkus Reviews)