Creiton's Sword (Writer's Showcase*, 464 pages, ISBN 0-595-13309-6, $21.95)

A Review by David Blalock

Bryant joined the guard of Bren seeking a refuge from an abusive father and his own guilt about his brother's death. He wanted only to lose himself among the rough and experienced soldiers who upheld the law, and for a time he found a home there. But when the church bells rang out the news of war, Bryant found himself crossing the plains to meet an enemy he did not know.

His first taste of battle took his only friend; his second taste took him far from home. For when you save the life of a great lord, you can't help but catch his eye. And when Bryant found himself taken in by Duke Creiton's legendary bodyguards, he knew he would never return to Bren as quite the same person. Cretion's Swords were very selective of whom they allowed to guard their lord's life, and they saw far more in Bryant than he saw within himself.

But all of that was irrelevant unless he could survive the summer...

That's the way Creiton's Sword, Steven Glen Baird's first novel, is being pitched at iUniverse and Barnes and Noble's website. And that is exactly what you get in this book.

Baird has something few new writers have any more: talent. His ability to grab the reader with his storyline and take you along for the ride is phenomenal. The imagery is vivid, the characters believable. Baird makes you want Bryant to succeed while never letting you assume he will. There are very few writers today who have that kind of ability.

First novels are too often clumsy and even painful to read. Baird has shown that he is the exception to this rule. The narrative flows smoothly and shows confidence in the presentation. The reader is left with the entertainment of the story, not the mechanics. This is a book to sit with in a quiet spot, a cup of coffee, and relax.

Baird was born in Memphis in the spring of 1970. He attended Southaven High School and received a B.A. in English from the University of Mississippi in 1993. He presently teaches English in Olive Branch, Mississippi. Science fiction, fantasy, and history have always been his favorite genres. While in college he studied various martial arts (including kendo, fencing, and aikido) and fell in with the medieval reenactment group called the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA). He constructs medieval armor in his spare time and has a fledgling collection of medieval weapons from various periods. It was inevitable that his first published work, Creiton's Sword, would have as much of a historical feel in detail as possible.

Baird is presently putting the finishing touches on his second novel, When Dragons Sleep, and is well into a third book that continues the adventures of Bryant of Bren that began in Creiton's Sword. He currently lives in Atoka, Tennessee with his wife, son, and various pets of questionable lineage.

Creiton's Sword is available from iUniverse.com and Barnes&Noble.com. Delivery is currently between two to four weeks.

iUniverse website: http://www.iuniverse.com/marketplace/bookstore/book_detail.asp?isbn=0-595-13309-6
Barnes&Noble site: http://shop.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?isbn=0595133096

*Writer's Showcase is a presentation of Writer's Digest, an imprint of iUniverse.com

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