Age of Conan: Songs of Victory: Legends of Kern, Volume IIL

I really enjoyed the entire Kern series. The story is compelling and moves along at a great pace. There are very few slow moments in any of the books. If you have read any previous Conan books this is a little different. It follows the same principals of strength and honor, and combat as a way of live. I enjoyed the internal turmoil of Kern being an outcast in his own tribe. The lead character is not Conan, but Kern. He has the same traits as a young Conan though, and lives while Conan is King. The epic battle sequences are believable and very well described. Some of them very graphically. Good fun read.

Coleman's ending to this trilogy can be rivaled only by Armageddon itself... the series is brought to the climax and no hero leaves unscathed. Ultimately this was an ending of epic proportions. Unfortunately, this book is not as good as the second one, which I feel was the strongest of the series. Regardless, the whole series was a fine read, and highly recommended for fans of fantasy.

Conan, the Cimmerian who became `king of another realm' was a legend in his own time. However, there were other warriors of Cimmeria who were as brave and strong as Conan. They too did their best to keep their land safe from the Vinir and their masters the Ymirish who came from the North to conquer and settle the lands. They are led by the giant Grimnir, the son of the god Ymir who is invulnerable in battle. Only Kern Wolf-Eye, an outcast from the clan, ever hurt him and the giant wants his revenge. While the Vinir and Ymirish are using various techniques to get the clans fighting among themselves, Kern is traveling the breadth and width of Cimmeria hoping to unite the clans against a common enemy. It is when Kern exposes one of the most powerful clan chiefs as a shapeshifting ally of the Ymirish do the clans put aside their differences to fight as one against the enemy. In the end it is Kern who will face off against Grimnir with the winner of their battle deciding the fate of Cimmeria for years to come. The protagonist, who looks like the Ymirish with their soldier eyes and inability to stay warm, doesn't let the fact that he looks like the enemy stop him from going to battle against them even as his own clan fears him and casts him out. There is plenty of action in this swords and sorcery tale but the true magic of this story lies in one man's courage to go against his heritage and fight to keep Cimmeria free even if it means his death. Harriet Klausner