I can remember when this book was as anxiously anticipated as the next Martin or Jordan novel, before those series started. At the time I was greatly looking forward to a continuation of the Lost Swords series. Unfortunately, these novels aren't as well connected as the previous, though they do advance the story quite a bit. They also introduce a lot of new characters and places, and scatter the story all over. They are still good, especially as they delve more into the strengths and weaknesses of the swords, and their wielders. Excellent fantasy. ( )

The best way to sum this book up is that it is decent fantasy, not great, but far from poor. I'm glad I finally got around to reading them after twenty years of lugging the books around through various moves over the years. Stonecutter's Story is by far the best of the seven short books in the omnibus editions, in my opinion. Going in, I was the most curious as to what this story would be like, as the Sword's power is rather mundane compared to the rest. It cuts stone like a hot knife through butter. That's it. No berzerk fury like Townsaver or Shieldbreaker, no mind controlling powers like Mindsword or Soulcutter, no mystical advice or luck like Wayfinder or Coinspinner. There is even a healing Sword, obviously called Woundhealer.
To me, it seemed like an emulation of a Hercule Poirot mystery mixed with a bit of Holmes. Maybe Holmes mixed with Poirot, or a Holmes like character that came across to me as Poirot because he was an eccentric and hairdressery foreigner. He and a medic named Watson, oops I mean Kasimir, followed up clues and investigated several possibilities to the location of Stonecutter throughout the large city of Eylau, logically deducing who a thief would sell such a blade to, or use it for. It's quite a clever little mystery, set in an arabic styled medieval fantasy city. I read it in one sitting, and this story alone made reading this collection of 11 small novels worth it. I'm hoping that the series of books is greater than the sum of its parts, which is a distinct possibility. ( )