David Farland, The Sum of All Men (Runelords S.)

I will not spend time writing about the plot that can be looked up online. I will say that I was very impressed by this book. I found it very unique with some of its aspects. I felt Farland put a new element in play within fantasy books. Also, the high level of violence and savagery really spoke to me. I, personally, very much enjoy that type of writing. So if you also do I highly recommend picking up a copy!

David Farland, The Sum of All Men (Runelords S.) - David Farland has created an Epic Fantasy in the tradition of a good old fashioned storytelling way.

In Book 1, the story begins with a young Prince Gaborn travelling incognito to a nearby kingdom, to meet with his prospective future arranged marriage partner Iome. Before long, both get bound up in the coming war against a southern invader, Raj Ahten the Wolf Lord of the Southern Lands.

The many levels of the story keep the reader engrossed, even through some of the most bloodthirsty of events. Be prepared for some stomach churning as the detailed descriptions can be unsettling at times.

This is a world where the heroes and villains are all flawed in real ways. What I mean is at times the reader does begin to wonder who are the heroes and villains, as the story progresses.

In this created world, it is custom and practice to enhance one's capabilities by taking endowments of glamour, brawn, speed, metabolism, etc. These enhancements are taken from, in the main, willing volunteers (dedicates) who then are left without those powers.

As to the story itself, this book and the following two volumes, "Brotherhood of the Wolf and "Wizardborn" fall into the category of books that you don't want to put down until you have finished reading them all.

As I said though, the bloodthirstiness of this series may not be to everyone's liking. My partner, brought up on Stephen King novels, had to put the book down after only reading half of the first volume and has not faced them since.

A proof of a good fantasy book or set of books is whether after being read for the first time, one can go back to the shelves a few years later and re-read them with the same amount of enjoyment as on first reading. Truthfully, I have found that to be the case with this series.

It's a pity that the author is not too prolific as there has been some time between the volumes. However, with the amount of detail in each volume I am not too surprised.