Age of Swords
core novel 2017 Riyria / Legends of the First Empire
Record
| First published | 2017 |
|---|---|
| Original language |  EN |
| Work type | novel |
| Canon status | core |
| Reader rating | 4.28 (27,408 ratings, collected 2026-09-13) |
| Page count | 496 |
| First-edition ISBN | 9781101965382 |
| Internal chronology | 2 |
Synopsis
Age of Swords is the second book of Michael J. Sullivan's Legends of the First Empire series, continuing after the revelation that the Fhrey can die. With the clans of the Rhunes divided and a Fhrey army mustering for retaliation, Persephone, now leading her people, seeks help from the Dherg, a distant and magically accomplished race living underground, hoping their skill might offset the Fhrey's superior magic. Raithe, still carrying his title as the God Killer, and the mystic Suri, who has begun to grasp the scope of her power, travel with her as new alliances form under pressure. Meanwhile, sympathetic Fhrey such as Arion face suspicion for aiding humans, and the ambitious prince Mawyndulë edges closer to influence. As armies gather on both sides, the Rhune clans' fate hinges on alliances never before tested.
Where it sits
- Universe: Riyria / Legends of the First Empire
- Series: Legends of the First Empire core; position 2 of 6 in the series' recorded order
- Author: Michael J. Sullivan
Awards (verified)
- Readers' Choice Awards (Fantasy), 2017: nominated; Reader-nomination round; did not win. Winner: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.
Notes
- From the series record (Legends of the First Empire): 6-novel series (2016-2020) set ~3,000 years before the Riyria universe; per the author's own framing, requires no prior Riyria knowledge. Publication switched mid-series from traditional publishing (Del Rey/Penguin Random House, books 1-3) to self-publishing (Sullivan's own Riyria Enterprises LLC + Grim Oak Press, books 4-6, all Kickstarter-funded); the author has stated this let him release the final three books within a 10-month span rather than Del Rey's annual cadence.
Neighbouring works
Publication order and internal chronology are tracked as two separate orderings and are never conflated: a book's place in one says nothing about its place in the other.
- Publication order, within the series Legends of the First Empire: position 2 of 6: previous Age of Myth (2016) · next Age of War (2018)
- Internal chronology, within Riyria / Legends of the First Empire: position 4 of 20: previous The Rose and the Thorn (2013) · next The Death of Dulgath (2015)
Sources
- Michael J. Sullivan's official site
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_Myth
- https://riyria.blogspot.com/p/books.html
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