Demon’s Law

Michael Scott 1988 Buy from Amazon.com

Demon’s Law is the second book in the Tales of the Bard trilogy, following on from Magician’s Law. There was a great deal to continue with too. We had left The King’s brother Kutor in the wilderness, having been instructed to prepare for war and take the throne, with Owen, Weapon Master, and Tien tZo, his slave/companion, heading to join him.

This book begins with a brief prelude from ‘Life of Paedur, the Bard’. In much the same way that Frank Herbert used quotes from future history books to lend an epic feeling to his Dune series, so does Michael Scott, often citing Tien tZo as the author. When the story actually begins we have another of those tantalising snippets of legend, explaining the history of the Silent Wood, the domain of Mannam, God of the Dead. While many legends include an access point to their Lands of the Dead, this particular one was once a normal part of the world.

Paedur the Bard has lost two companions and goes to seek them in the Silent Wood, Kingdom of Death. There he meets with a strange ally, Katani, last of the Katan warriors, who died some five hundred years earlier.

They journey together to see the God of the Dead, Mannam, and discover that he is being threatened by a plot to overthrow him by the New Religion. The New Religion is aided by Mannam’s once friend Churon, an old enemy of Katani’s and they agree to try and help Mannam against the enemies of Death.

In the World of Men, Kutor is organising an army with the aid of Owen, Weapon Master, and his slave/companion Tien tZo. They intend to overthrow the Emperor Geillard and set Kutor on the throne, reinstating the Old Faith as the official religion and striking a blow against the New Religion.

This novel continues the story of Paedur in the same amazing style as the first in this trilogy and even though it is part of a larger epic, it has its own story arc that is self contained.

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