A young man is transformed into a barbarian fighter in this adventure from “one of the leading masters of epic fantasy” (Publishers Weekly).
Wallie Smith can feel the pain. He goes to the hospital and remembers the doctors and the commotion, but when he wakes up it all seems like a dream. However, if that was a dream, how do you explain waking up in another body and in another world? Little Wallie finds himself in the physique of a barbarian swordsman, accompanied by both an eccentric priest babbling about the Goddess and a voluptuous slave girl. Is this a rude awakening or a dream come true? What in the world will Wallie do now that he has found himself stranded in a strange realm? Well, it just so happens that the Goddess is in need of a swordsman. It will not be easy, but if he succeeds he will have everything he wants. If he does not, things could get ugly. Wallie is reluctant but sees his chance. If only he had the faintest clue as to the adventure he is about to unleash! If only he could imagine the forces that will be out to vanquish him!
Dave Duncan (1933–2018) was born in Scotland, and received his diploma from Dundee High School and got his college education at the University of Saint Andrews. He moved to Canada in 1955, where he lived with his wife. Duncan spent thirty years as a petroleum geologist. He has had dozens of fantasy and science fiction novels published, among themA Rose-Red City,Magic Casement, andThe Reaver Road, as well as a highly praised historical novel,Daughter of Troy, published, for commercial reasons, under the pseudonym Sarah B. Franklin. He also published the Longdirk series of novels,Demon Sword,Demon Knight, andDemon Rider, under the name Ken Hood.
In the fall of 2007, Duncan’s 2006 novel,Children of Chaos, published by Tor Books, was nominated for both the Prix Aurora AlS!
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