Have you ever taken time to look at your bookshelf and go back to books you have already read? As I have now completed my degree and am now at liberty to choose my reading material, based on only my personal preferences, rather than curricular necessity; I decided to browse through Amazon for some new books.
Three hours later….
My basket was full with £££’s worth of reading material, eagerly anticipating a cherished place somewhere on my many bookshelves. Alas, my purse could not and would not support such a purchase. The funds were, quite simply, lacking, even if my enthusiasm wasn’t.
Back to the basket and one hour later…
Having managed to narrow my choices, I found myself in book limbo. I was still over budget and the selection had to be condensed again. Sequels were discarded unless a series could be bought outright; hardbacks were sent to the wish list, awaiting their transformation into softer, more travel friendly (and wallet friendly) proportions. Finally, I clicked the ‘Basket’ button. The total was still rather higher than I expected.
So, I sat there.
Then, I got up, made a coffee and returned to the desk, trying to reduce the collection further. I genuinely tried to be selective, but only succeeded in staring into a literary void for a good twenty minutes, while my Colombian coffee blend cooled beyond drink-ability. Finally, I zoned back in, focused and saw a gold-lettered, book spine I hadn’t noticed for a while…it read Legend.
Curious, I picked it up and read the back (I unfortunately do judge books by their covers; their back covers at least). My memories of the David Gemmell’s Drenai tales were sketchy at best, so I read the first chapter, proceeded onto the second, got up and made another coffee while I read the third. Within a few hours, I was entirely absorbed with Druss the Legend, the Earl of Bronze and Ulrich the Nadir conqueror.
My Amazon order was forgotten. The promise of fresh, uncreased pages faded from mind, as I began to read a book my father had first given to me when I was 14 years old.
Three days later…
Legend was finished and back on the shelf; edges slightly more dog-eared from my bag. I had already started the next book in the Drenai Saga.
Three days later…
The King Beyond the Gate was finished and back on the shelf; edges slightly more dog-eared from my bag. I had already started the third book in the Drenai Saga.
Four days later (I left it home one day)…
I am halfway through Waylander, and I have no intention of discontinuing this series just yet.
Although, these books are not new to me, my recollection of plots and characters are muddled, so it’s a pleasant surprise to revisit and rediscover Gemmell’s world of heroic fantasy all over again.
Unfortunately for Amazon, they didn’t get any of my money (not yet anyway). But luckily for me, I have books to read for, at least the next month! 🙂
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