BattleAxe (1995)
by Sara Douglass

Sara Douglass' Axis Trilogy: BattleAxe, Enchanter, and Starman
SARA DOUGLASS LINKS Sara Douglass (official web site) Sara Douglass' Description of BattleAxe Prologue and First Chapter of BattleAxe Australia Online Bookshop: Sara Douglass Amazon.com Listings for Sara Douglass Amazon.co.uk Listings for Sara Douglass

Sara Douglass is an Australian author and a good one. The first novel I read of hers was BattleAxe, and it was brilliant.

It's a well written piece with many twists and turns. It centres around one character, Axis, the BattleAxe of the Axe-Wielders, a military force. He is sent by the Brother-Leader Jaime of the Seneschal (religious organization) to the north of Achar, his country, to help stop the evil Skraelings from flooding South.

With him he takes the Axe-Wielders, Brother Gilbert, Lady Merlion and Lady Faraday, whom he is supposed to leave in Arcen, a city in which they pass on their journey. Lady Faraday is betrothed to Borneheld, Axis' hated half-brother. Unfortunately on the journey north, she falls in love with Axis and also takes on the role of Tree Friend, for which she has to prepare to replant the forests of the land.

On the way they must stop at the Silent Woman Woods to meet two ancient Brothers of the Seneschal. The trees are considered evil, and so two Axe-Wielders, Axis and Brother Gilbert go cautiously into the woods. The Brothers Ogden and Veremund then show Axis the Prophecy of the Destroyer written by the "Forbidden."

I don't want to give too much away. But so you understand a bit of it, I'll tell you just a bit more.

Axis is also the bastard son of the dead Princess Rivkah. Her husband, Searlas, went away on a military mission, expecting her to be occupied with their baby, Borneheld. When he returned, she was nearly eight months pregnant to an unknown father. She died giving birth. Thus why Borneheld hates Axis. Axis has no idea who his father is, but he is troubled by dreams. But when he travels to Gorkenfort in the north, he meets his father's people, one of whom is his cousin, FreeFall.

Anyway, he leaves the position of BattleAxe, the Axe-Wielders still truthful to him, to go to Talon Spike, where his father is, to be taught the Songs of the Star Dance. The rest of the Axe-Wielders, who have all heard the Prophecy, and some other men from Gorkenfort, go to a place called Sigholt, where they wait for Axis.

And there BattleAxe ends. The story is continued by Enchanter, where Axis prepares to meet and destroy Gorgrael, the Destroyer, whom happens to be his half-brother too and proclaims Tencendor, which is what Achar was before the Seneschal arrived, and finishes with StarMan, in which Axis battles Gorgrael. The book StarMan won the 1996 Aurealis Award for best Fantasy Novel.

The series, the Axis Trilogy, (BattleAxe, Enchanter, StarMan) is followed then by another series, forty years on. It's called the WayFarer Redemption, (Sinner, Pilgrim, Crusader) in which we follow Drago (or DragonStar) the second of Axis' sons. Drago was condemned to a human life by his mother, and now must save all of Tencendor. Of course, Drago is doubtful, and doesn't want to. We also see reappearance by Faraday Tree Friend.

Of the characters in BattleAxe, my favourite would have to be the two white donkeys which belong to Ogden and Veremund and Urbeth, the great white polar bear who lives on the icepacks to the north in a place called Ravensbund.

I recommend this book for fantasy freaks like myself, as this really is very interesting. The beginning is a bit difficult to understand, but once read, you start to understand it a little better.

It's quite easy to get sucked into the book actually and very hard to put down.