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Diablo Archive, by Richard A. Knaak
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Since the beginning of time, the angelic hosts of the High Heavens and the demonic hordes of the Burning Hells have been locked in a struggle for the fate of all Creation. That war has now come to the mortal realm...and neither Man nor Demon nor Angel will be left unscathed....
LEGACY OF BLOOD: Norrec Vizharan has become a living nightmare. While on a quest for magical treasure, he discovers an artifact beyond his wildest dreams: the ancient armor of Bartuc, the legendary Warrior of Blood. But the mysterious armor is cursed, channeling a malevolent power into Norrec's tortured soul. Pursued by demons who covet the dark armor for their own purposes, Norrec must overcome a bloodlust he can scarcely control and learn the truth about his terrifying curse before he is lost to darkness forever.
THE BLACK ROAD: Darrick Lang is coming home. Years ago he left the town of Bramwell to walk the wide world as a champion of the realm. But Bramwell is not as he left it. Something dark and terrifying has ensnared the townsfolk, something very old and very patient, tangling innocents in a web of malice and profaning the very earth itself. Now that same power calls to Darrick...and his only hope may be to walk the same perilous path of damnation.
THE KINGDOM OF SHADOW: Legend speaks of a long-dead city known as Ureh, thought by many to have been a gateway to the High Heavens. It is said that every two thousand years, Ureh is reborn -- and all its lost riches are revealed to those brave enough to seek them out. Now the Vizjerai sorcerer Quov Tsin has come to witness Ureh's rebirth for himself with Kentril Dumon and his band of mercenaries in tow. But what awaits them is like nothing they imagined.
DEMONSBANE: What was to have been a victorious last stand against a demonic invasion of Blackmarch has instead become a massacre. Only Siggard remains, a warrior unable to remember the final hours of the battle. As he hunts the demon lord who butchered everything dear to him, Siggard pieces together the truth of that terrible battle...and finds that his nightmare is only beginning.
- Sales Rank: #451718 in Books
- Published on: 2008-07-08
- Released on: 2008-07-08
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 9.00" h x 1.80" w x 6.00" l, 1.69 pounds
- Binding: Paperback
- 752 pages
About the Author
Richard A. Knaak is the New York Times bestselling author of some three dozen novels, including the The Sin War trilogy for Diablo and the Legend of Huma for Dragonlance. He has penned the War of the Ancients trilogy, Day of the Dragon and its upcoming followup, Night of the Dragon. His other works include his own Dragonrealm series, the Minotaur Wars for Dragonlance, the Aquilonia trilogy of the Age of Conan, and the Sunwell Trilogy -- the first Warcraft manga. In addition, his novels and short stories have been published worldwide in such diverse places as China, Iceland, the Czech Republic, and Brazil.
Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
One
The skull gave them a lopsided grin, as if cheerfully inviting the trio to join it for all eternity.
"Looks like we're not the first," Sadun Tryst murmured. The scarred, sinewy fighter tapped the skull with one edge of his knife, causing the fleshless watcher to wobble. Behind the macabre sight, they could just make out the spike that had pierced their predecessor's head, leaving him dangling until time had let all but the skull drop to the floor in a confused heap.
"Did you think we would be?" whispered the tall, cowled figure. If Sadun had a lean, almost acrobatic look to his build, Fauztin seemed nearly cadaverous. The Vizjerei sorcerer moved almost like a phantom as he, too, touched the skull, this time with one gloved finger. "No sorcery here, though. Only crude but sufficient mechanics. Nothing to fear."
"Unless it's your head on the next pole."
The Vizjerei tugged at his thin, gray goatee. His slightly slanted eyes closed once as if in acknowledgment to his partner's last statement. Whereas Sadun had a countenance more akin to an untrustworthy weasel -- and sometimes the personality to match -- Fauztin reminded some of a withered cat. His nub of a nose, constantly twitching, and the whiskers hanging underneath that nose only added to the illusion.
Neither had ever had a reputation for purity, but Norrec Vizharan would have trusted either with his life -- and had several times over. As he joined them, the veteran warrior peered ahead, to where a vast darkness hinted of some major chamber. Thus far, they had explored seven different levels in all and found them curiously devoid of all but the most primitive traps.
They had also found them devoid of any treasure whatsoever, a tremendous disappointment to the tiny party.
"Are you sure there's no sorcery about here, Fauztin? None at all?"
The feline features half-hidden by the cowl wrinkled further in mild offense. The wide shoulders of his voluminous cloak gave Fauztin a foreboding, almost supernatural appearance, especially since he towered over the brawnier Norrec, no small man himself. "You have to ask that, my friend?"
"It's just that it makes no sense! Other than a few minor and pretty pathetic traps, we've encountered nothing to prevent us from reaching the main chamber! Why go through all the trouble of digging this out, then leave it so sparsely defended!"
"I don't call a spider as big as my head nothing," Sadun interjected sourly, absently scratching his lengthy but thinning black hair. "Especially as it was on my head at the time..."
Norrec ignored him. "Is it what I think? Are we too late? Is this Tristram all over again?"
Once before, between serving causes as mercenaries, they had hunted for treasure in a small, troubled village called Tristram. Legend had had it that, in a lair guarded by fiends, there could be found a treasure so very extraordinary in value, it would make kings of those fortunate enough to live to find it. Norrec and his friends had journeyed there, entering the labyrinth in the dead of night without the knowledge of the local populace...
And after all their efforts, after battling strange beasts and narrowly avoiding deadly traps...they had found that someone else had stripped the underground maze of nearly anything of value. Only upon returning to the village had they learned the sorry truth, that a great champion had descended into the labyrinth but a few weeks before and supposedly slain the terrible demon, Diablo. He had taken no gold or jewels, but other adventurers who had arrived shortly thereafter had made good use of his handiwork, dealing with the lesser dangers and carrying off all they could find. But a few days' difference had left the trio with nothing to show for their efforts...
Norrec himself had also taken no consolation in the words of one villager of dubious sanity who had, as they had prepared to depart, warned that the champion, so-called the Wanderer, had not defeated Diablo but, rather, had accidently freed the foul evil. A questioning glance by Norrec toward Fauztin had been answered at first with an indifferent shrug by the Vizjerei sorcerer.
"There are always stories of escaping demons and terrible curses," Fauztin had added at the time, complete dismissal of the wild warning in his tone. "Diablo is generally in most of the favorites whispered among common folk."
"You don't think there's anything to it?" As a child, Norrec had grown up being scared by his elders with tales of Diablo, Baal, and other monsters of the night, all stories designed to make him be good.
Sadun Tryst had snorted. "You ever seen a demon yourself? Know anyone that had?"
Norrec had not. "Have you, Fauztin? They say Vizjerei can summon demons to do their bidding."
"If I could do that, do you think I would be scrounging in empty labyrinths and tombs?"
And that comment, more than anything else, had convinced Norrec then to chalk the villager's words down as yet another tall tale. In truth, it had not been hard to do. After all, the only thing that had mattered then to the three had been what mattered now -- wealth.
Unfortunately, it seemed more and more likely that once again those riches had eluded them.
As he peered down the passage, Fauztin's other gloved hand tightened around the spell staff he wielded. The jeweled top -- the source of their light -- flared briefly. "I had hoped I was wrong, but now I fear it is so. We are far from the first to delve this deep into this place."
The slightly graying fighter swore under his breath. He had served under many a commander in his life, most of them during the crusades from Westmarch, and from surviving those various campaigns -- often by the skin of his teeth -- he had come to one conclusion. No one could hope to rise in the world without money. He had made it as far as captain, been broken in rank thrice, then finally retired in disgust after the last debacle.
War had been Norrec's life since he had been old enough to raise a sword. Once, he had also had something of a family, but they were now as dead as his ideals. He still considered himself a decent man, but decency did not fill one's stomach. There had to be another way, Norrec had decided...
And so, with his two comrades, he had gone in search of treasure.
Like Sadun, he had his share of scars, but Norrec's visage otherwise resembled more that of a simple farmer. Wide brown eyes, with a broad, open face and a strong jaw, he would have looked at home behind a hoe. Yet, while that vision occasionally appealed to the sturdy veteran, he knew that he needed the gold to pay for that land. This quest should have led them to riches far beyond his needs, far beyond his dreams...
Now, it seemed as if it had all been a waste of time and effort...again.
Beside him, Sadun Tryst tossed his knife into the air, then expertly caught it at the hilt as it fell. He did this twice more, clearly thinking. Norrec could just imagine what he thought about. They had spent months on this particular quest, journeying across the sea to northern Kehjistan, sleeping in the cold and rain, following false trails and empty caves, eating whatever vermin they could find when other hunting proved scarce -- and all because of Norrec, the one who had instigated this entire fiasco.
Worse, this quest had actually come about because of a dream, a dream concerning a wicked mountain peak bearing some crude resemblance to a dragon's head. Had he dreamt of it only once, perhaps twice, Norrec might have forgotten the image, but over the years, it had repeated itself far too many times. Wherever he had fought, Norrec had watched for the peak, but to no avail. Then, a comrade -- later dead -- from these chill northern lands had made mention of such a place in passing. Ghosts were said to haunt it and men who traveled near the mountain often disappeared or were discovered years later, all flesh stripped from the shattered bones...
There and then, Norrec Vizharan had been certain that destiny had tried to call him here.
But if so -- why to a tomb already vandalized?
The entrance had been well hidden in the rock face, but definitely open to the outside. That should have been his first clue to the truth, yet Norrec had refused to even see the discrepancy. All his hopes, all his promises to his companions...
"Damn!" He kicked at the nearest wall, only his sturdy boot saving him from a few broken toes. Norrec threw his sword to the ground, continuing to curse his naïveté.
"There's some new general from Westmarch hiring on mercenaries," Sadun helpfully suggested. "They say he's got big ambitions..."
"No more war," muttered Norrec, trying not to show the pain coursing through his foot. "No more trying to die for other people's glory."
"I just thought -- "
The lanky sorcerer tapped the ground once with his staff, seeking the attention of both his earthier partners. "At this point, it would be foolish not to go on to the central chamber. Perhaps those who were here before us left a few baubles or coins. We did find a few gold coins in Tristram. Certainly it would not hurt to search a little longer, would it, Norrec?"
He knew that the Vizjerei only sought to assuage his friend's bitter emotions, but still the idea managed to take root in the veteran's mind. All he needed were a few gold coins! He was still young enough to take a bride, begin a new life, maybe even raise a family...
Norrec picked up his sword, hefting the weapon that had served him so well over the years. He had kept it cleaned and honed, taking pride in one of the few items truly his own. A look of determination spread across his visage. "Let's go."
"You've a way with words for one using so few," Sadun jested to the sorcerer as they started off.
"And you use so many words for one with so few things worth saying."
The friendly argument between his companions helped settle Norrec's troubled mind. It reminded him of other times, when, between the three of them, they had persevered through worse difficulties.
Yet, the talk died as they approached what surely had to be the last and most significant chamber. Fauztin...
Most helpful customer reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful.
Back to the roots
By Sean M.
This is a great book to really bring Diablo fans back to the roots of the Diablo world. There is enough reference to the game to help the gamer tie the story into what they know, but enough difference to make it believeable that the story could have happened outside the boundaries of the game. One of the best collection of fantasy books I've read in a long time. Casual reference to the Sin Wars help the reader tie in later books and really round out the story for the reader. Definitely written for avid fans only, but worth the time and money if you qualify as an avid fan.
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful.
Excellent Book
By R. F. De Souz
Very nice book. Good writing.
As a blizzard fan, i must say i loved it.
10 of 14 people found the following review helpful.
Not bad at all
By KSABER
"Diablo Archive" is a collection of three novels and a short story, set in the world of Blizzard Entertainment's "Diablo" franchise. Although the tales feature some of the locations and characters from "Diablo I" and "Diablo II", they are on the whole unrelated to the source material, and therefore fully understandable to people who have never played the games.
Legacy of Blood - 2.5 Stars - written by Richard Knaak, this novel starts off with an interesting premise, but soon gets buried under a huge number of cardboard characters, idiotic plot developments, and terrible writing. It didn't suck per se (I've read much worse), but one thing's sure; I wouldn't recommend it to anyone.
The Black Road - 5 Stars - written by Mel Odom, this is by far the best novel in this collection. Writing style is just right, the plot is interesting, and the story on the whole is excellent. The characterization in particular is far beyond what we regularly see in fantasy novels. The protagonist is a complicated young man with a troubled past and an uncertain future, whose internal struggle is no less important then his campaign against the forces of evil. Buyard Cholik, a priest who has sold his soul to Hell, suffers from all of the human doubts and uncertainties, and has understandable motives for his actions. Even the demon Kabraxis possesses a genuine personality, with his own unique understanding of humanity, as well as motives that go far beyond the mindless bloodthirstiness that is so often the trademark of fantasy devils. The ending of "The Black Road" is particularly enjoyable, as it pits moral pragmatism against moral absolutism, leaving the reader to decide whether the ending was good or bad. A quality book, indeed.
The Kingdom of Shadow - 4 Stars - this novel proves that even average/bellow-average writers like Knaak can occasionally churn out good fiction. "The Kingdom of Shadow" combines elements of horror, mystery, and adventure to create an entertaining story that goads the reader into a page-turning frenzy. Writing style isn't nearly as bad as in "Legacy of Blood", and while protagonists have no depth whatsoever ("noble mercenary captain", "grumpy old wizard", "cheerful giant", "heroic necromancer", etc. are all exactly what it says on the tin), a lot more thought was invested into villains this time around. The bad guys actually have motives that go beyond what's usual for Knaak (just evil for the sake of being evil, or evil for the sake of taking over the world, or similarly childish stuff), and one of them is even redeemed at the end. "The Kingdom of Shadow" still has plot holes aplenty, but they are nowhere near as glaring as in other Knaak's works. Overall, a fun fantasy novel.
Demonsbane - 3 Stars - written by Robert B. Marks, this short story follows Siggard, a warrior whose only goal is to take his revenge on the archdemon responsible for the death of his family. It's well written, fast-paced, and not long enough to become boring. Characters aren't very convincing, and emotional reactions are almost non-existent despite all the horrible things that are happening. The finale, though predictable and anti-climatic (Siggard strides head-on into the demon base of operations, and murders the archdemon faster then you can read this sentence), is sort of redeemed by the slight twist in the end. "Demonsbane" is an amusing story that works as a fit finisher to the "Diablo Archive".
DISCLAIMER: I've given "Diablo Archive" four stars not because each novel in the collection is a four-stars fantasy novel, but because the collection itself is a four-stars fantasy collection. Its overall quality is above-average for a game-based book series.
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