Krondor's Sons

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Krondor's Sons are two novels by Raymond E. Feist set in Midkemia, a fictional world.

The two novels are set between riftwars and explores Midkemia beyond the borders of the Kingdom of the Isles. The main characters are the sons of Arutha conDoin, Prince of Krondor

Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.

[edit] Prince of the Blood

Cover of Prince of the Blood
Cover of Prince of the Blood

This novel is about Borric and Erland conDoin's journey to the Empire of Great Kesh and their personal growth.

Twin sons to Arutha, the Princes Borric and Erland have lived a life of relative luxury. Though well educated and talented swordsmen, they spend their time brawling, gambling, and disrupting their father's court. After the twins show no sign of maturity after a year with the Border Lords, because Borric was Heir Presumptive to the throne in Rillanon after the drowning of King Lyam's only son, Arutha decided that his two sons could not afford the luxury of youth anymore. He sent them as ambassadors to the Empire of Kesh for the Empress' Golden Jubilee. Baron James (Jimmy the Hand) and Baron Locklear accompany the twins.

On the way to Kesh, the embassy stops at Stardock. There James meets Gamina, Pug's adopted daughter and they fall in love at first sight and marry. Gamina then joins the group as they continue their journey south.

Upon entering Kesh, Borric is kidnapped by slavers. His companions believe that he has been killed and sorrowfully continue onward to the capital.

At the capital, the embassy is introduced to imperial customs and meet the various people who form the Empire. Erland enjoys an affair with the Empress' grand-daughter, Princess Sharana, while Locklear also pursues a relationship with the Empress' daughter, Princess Sojiana. Later, after expressing unease about some of the things he had learned, Locklear disappears and is accused of the murder of Sojiana.

Meanwhile, Borric uncovers a plot against the Empress and escapes from his captors. He travels from Durbin to the capital city of Kesh, accumulating companions along the way including a beggar boy, a mercenary named Ghuda Bule, and a trickster named Nakor. Ghuda and Nakor feature prominently in following novels.

Once in the capital, Borric, with the help of Nakor and Ghuda, reveals the traitor within the Empire and solves the mystery of Sojiana's murder. Tragically, however, Locklear is found dead.

[edit] The King's Buccaneer

Cover of The King's Buccaneer
Cover of The King's Buccaneer

The King's Buccaneer features Nicholas conDoin, third son of Prince Arutha.

Nicholas, as third son, was third in the line of succession. However, due to his gentle nature and his deformity, an underdeveloped left foot, his father, Prince Arutha, decided that Nicholas would benefit from a rougher lifestyle than he was used to in Krondor. Arutha sent Nicholas to stay with Martin, Duke of Crydee, Warden of the West, and brother to Arutha and King Lyam. Nicholas is to learn what it means to not be the son of the Prince of Krondor, and Arutha deems that Crydee, though twice the size of when he was a prince in the keep there, is rough enough living to make Nicholas learn to think for himself.

Nicholas is accompanied by his faithful squire Harry on the Royal Eagle, captained by Admiral Amos Trask to the small town of Crydee. However, about a month, the towns of Crydee, Carse, and Tulan are attacked by pirates, Tsuranni mercenaries, and Durbin slavers. All three towns are destroyed. After the attack and kidnapping of Margaret, daughter of Martin, Abigail, daughter of the Baron of Carse, and many others, Nicholas, Trask, and Harry are accompanied by Marcus, the son of Martin, Calis, son of Tomas and elf queen Aglaranna, the magicians Nakor and Anthony, and Ghuda the mercenary to the island city of Freeport, where Nicholas kills his first man, a pirate named Render. Through the death of Render, and with the help of a girl thief named Brisa, they learn that the captives were taken on a giant ship to the southwest.

The crew of the Royal Eagle, now named the Raptor, follows the captives across the Endless Sea with the help of Anthony, who can sense the whereabouts of Margaret. After about two months at sea, they spot the slave ship, and through magic, are first becalmed, and then sunk. The survivors wash up on the shore of the continent of Novindus.

The crew first must find a way up the cliffs that surround the northeastern edge of Novindus. After a few days, Calis, Marcus, and Nicholas are able to climb the cliffs. At the top is an oasis, and the last water to be seen for miles. After some deliberation, Nicholas decides to head southeast.

After crossing the Hotlands, Nicholas and company stumble upon a plot that appears to attempt to overthrow the Overlord of the City of the Serpent River. However, it turns out that the Overlord is a pawn of the wizard Dahakon and the Lady Clovis, who in turn take their orders from the Pantathian Serpent Priests. After some time, Nicholas makes contact with the clans of the City, Calis learns of the whereabouts of the prisoners, and Nakor discovers the truth of the Overlord, Dahakon, and Lady Clovis.

Anthony makes a discovery in the compound where the prisoners were held: the Pantathians had devised a magic plague that would kill over half of the people in the Kingdom in an effort to reach the Lifestone below Sethanon. The plague would be spread by copies of the prisoners taken from the Far Coast. The prisoners were freed, an exact copy of the Raptor was captured, and the journey home began.

In the Bitter Sea, the sister ship to the Royal Eagle, the Royal Gull, was overtaken and sunk. The Gull had copies of prisoners still aboard. After the sinking of the Gull, a bireme driven by the wizard Dahakon appeared, and Anthony summoned the magician Pug and the dragon Rianna to deal with the evil necromancer.