This week over at the Fantasy Review Barn Nathan is once again taking us Tough Travelling through the tropes of fantasy.  The topic this week is THE ACE

Some people are just ridiculously good at everything.  Be it magic, swordplay, or all of the above.  THE ACE has no equal.

Vaelin al Sorna – Blood Song by Anthony Ryan.  Vaelin is definitely the ace in the hand and no mistake.  Bloodsong was such an excellent read and watching the young Vaelin going through his paces was great.  He pretty much excelled at everything until at the end he is almost like THE ONE!

Tomas – from the Riftwar Saga – oh my lord this is another character that goes above and beyond your expectations eventually becoming part dragon lord.  He’s virtually undefeatable.

Jean Tannen – Scott Lynch’s Gentlemen Bastards – don’t judge me! Jean Tannen is a tough nut – he’s very handy in a scrape and he is skilled with the sisters.  That is all.

Gandalf – Lord of the Rings, JRRTolkien – now, don’t get me wrong, last week I was lamenting over Gandalf’s lack of grand magic – but, I still love this character – he’s pretty handy if you’re suffering a ‘lights out’, and he doesn’t mind going head to head with a Balrog, that earns him major kudos for me.  On top of that he’s pretty damn good with a sword.

Legolas – ditto the above book – Legolas may not be my absolute favourite character (that mantle lands on Aragorn) but, this guy can shoot the fluff of a midge’s didgie at 500 paces – plus, you might not think he has magic but that’s where you’re wrong – he clearly has a self refilling quiver of arrows – which is pretty damned impressive when you’re facing 10,000 orcs.

Hermione – J K Rowlings Harry Potter – she may not wield a sword but she flourishes that wand with barely concealed panache – you could be forgiven for thinking she’s a bit of a smartie pants on occasion but I just like her she’s had to work hard for what she wants!

Apollo from Jo Walton’s Just City – well, he’s a God, but, he’s been reborn as a human for the purposes of this story and he’s still damned impressive!

Westley from A Princess Bride by Williams Goldman – this guy is awesome, not only does he rescue his true love but he bests the finest swordman, the strongest strong man and the smartest Sicilian genius!  Then he goes on to tackle the Fire Swamp and finally come back from death to defeat the evil Humperdinck – are you not intrigued??

‘We are men of action, lies do not become us’

 Tis all for me this week.