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Gonji: The Soul Within the Steel: The Deathwind Trilogy, Book Two
Gonji: The Soul Within the Steel: The Deathwind Trilogy, Book Two
Gonji: The Soul Within the Steel: The Deathwind Trilogy, Book Two
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Gonji: The Soul Within the Steel: The Deathwind Trilogy, Book Two

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The legendary warrior Gonji seems cast as Destiny's Scourge... The exiled son of a Samurai warlord and a Viking woman, Gonji pursues the secret of the Deathwind across monstrous 16th-century Europe. The storied city of Vedun has been conquered by the army of King Klann and his dark sorcerer, Mord. Gonji raises a rebellious militia...but the city suffers horrifying outrages, treachery rears its ugly head, and the warrior himself proves his own worst enemy. There's no help either from the enigmatic Simon Sardonis, revealed now as an entity of great power and dread. Foes threaten Vedun from all sides. All that stands between the embattled city and utter destruction is...THE SOUL WITHIN THE STEEL.


Kai Meyer says: ?GONJI is the most important rediscovery of classic fantasy since Conan. Dark, complex, and fantastically well-written.?

LanguageEnglish
Release dateJul 19, 2013
ISBN9781479409570
Gonji: The Soul Within the Steel: The Deathwind Trilogy, Book Two

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  • Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
    5/5
    Gonji: The Soul Within the Steel, Book 2: The Deathwind trilogy was really one book cut into three parts: so the story arc is spread out accordingly. I enjoyed Part-1 (Red Blade From the East) but was left wondering about character motivations; also my mind struggled to contain a geographic scope that seemed to only grow. The second installment pleasantly explored all the characters and mysteries posited in the first; geographically, it focused on one location essentially (Vedun city and the adjacent Castle Lenska). It delivered on every aspect I hoped, and the conflict/story leapt forward every chapter; it unveiled truths behind several key secrets & motivations behind the characters, and ramped up the adventure (which was at a high level anyway). Great adventure fantasy that is more dark & pulpy than it is historical. I like the content in Book-1 more now, and I can’t see how any reader could not stop at the end of Book-2. Take home message: if you decide to follow Gonji, just plan on reading the whole trilogy. I’m on to Book-3 to learn more about the mysterious Deathwind….I copy/paste my review of the first book for completeness below; after I read the third portion, I’ll work to consolidate all into one review. Gonji’s Deathwind (Book 1)– The Godzilla of Sword & Sorcery?Some splendid reviews already exist for Gonji: Red Blade from the East, in particular Fletcher Vredenburgh’s January 21st 2014 Post on Blackgate is extremely thorough. This provides another summary, and some more complementary information.Gongi Is A Unique, Entertaining Mashup: Gongi is a wandering, displaced warrior--a Ronin (master-less samurai) roaming 16th century Europe. This is not historical fiction, however. This is Sword & Sorcery in vein of R.E. Howard’s Conan…but it is a solidly unique take on the genre. Firstly, Gonji is a cross-breed of a Japanese warlord and Viking sword-maiden; rather than the Hyperborean continent of REH, Gonji explores a realistic version of Europe’s geography (Ottoman–Habsburg times). Plenty of creatures and magic infuse compelling fight scenes. I half expected Godzilla to emerge on multiple occasions!Gonji is a mysterious, intelligent character. Stretching plausibility, he knows many languages (Japanese, Spanish, Italian, German, English, more?) sufficiently to converse with everyone. He is a bit moody too, which is ostensibly related to his mixed heritage (disciplined father, wild mother). His allegiances are difficult to predict, sometimes joining mercenary bands, sometimes rescuing weak townspeople. Generally, the blend of cultures and Gonji’s mysterious motivations are engaging. By the end of this first installment, we know only that he is seeking the “Deathwind,” and we know he gets closer to this goal when he reached the city of Vedun, but otherwise the core of his quest is unclear. There is parallel conflict with some apparently evil occupiers of Vedun; but their motives are not clear by the end either, at times brutally dominating folk and at times letting them live in peace. I would have enjoyed a bit more clarification; the demarcation between the first and second book may just be due to the publication history.Series: The initial Zebra books of the 1980’s essential split one long novel into a trilogy (I suspect the split was arbitrary). T.C. Rypel’s 1980 series has been released in a more complete forms (more books, eBooks, audiobooks). The newer releases from Borgo Press seem to have maintained this split. I’ll need to read the second and third books to confirm that, and I plan to do that. Actually, Rypel has a lot more Gonji in mind, and has books 4 and 5 available now. Books 1-3 are the original trilogy:1)Gonji: Red Blade from the East: The Deathwind Trilogy, Book One2)Gonji: The Soul Within the Steel3)Gonji: Deathwind of Vedun: The Deathwind Triology, Book Three4)Gonji: Fortress of Lost Worlds5)Gonji: A Hungering of Wolves Gonji Red Blade from the East The Deathwind Trilogy, Book One by T.C. Rypel Gonji The Soul Within the Steel by T.C. Rypel Gonji Deathwind of Vedun The Deathwind Triology, Book Three by T.C. Rypel Gonji Fortress of Lost Worlds by T.C. Rypel Gonji A Hungering of Wolves by T.C. RypelSocial Media, Cover Art, and Maps: T.C. Rypel is very accessible via Facebook(Gonji Page) and the Goodreads Sword and Sorcery Group. If you check those websites you can (a) communicate with him and (b) just read/learn fascinating tidbits. For instance, from these I learned the artwork of Serbian illustrator Dusan Kostic graces most of the new releases, which seem more appropriate than the 1980’s covers that seem to mirror the James Clavell books (contemporary for 1980’s works, but of different genre). Also, The Kindle editions of the Deathwind Trilogy books do not include artist Joseph Rutt's Maps that appear in the front of the print editions.[image error]Ohio Rocks: Incidentally, T.C. Rypel has Ohio roots, as do many Sword and Sorcery authors; in fact, 20% of the original Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America (SAGA, 1960-80s) came from my home state OH. The unassuming state of OH has ties to many relevant authors including including: David C. Smith, Andre Norton, Stephen Donaldson, John Jakes, Richard Lee Byers, Roger Zelazny, Dennis L. McKiernan, Steve Goble, and more.

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