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For the talisman with the same name, see: Silver spike

The Silver Spike by Glen Cook is a standalone novel of the Black Company series. Often unofficially referred to by fans as "book 3.5", this is one of only two works in the series (the other being the short story "Chasing Midnight" published decades later) that do not directly involve the Black Company itself. Instead, The Silver Spike wraps up the stories of those characters who remained in the north after the Battle of the Barrowland at the end of The White Rose, namely, those who did not journey toward Khatovar with Croaker. These include Case (the narrator); Raven; Darling; Bomanz; Silent; the Limper; and four newcomers called the spike thieves.

The Silver Spike takes place within the same world and timeline as all other Black Company novels. However, it is not numbered as a "chronicle of the Black Company" since its narrator, Case, is a private diarist and not an official Annalist of the Company.

Many events of The Silver Spike take place concurrently with Shadow Games. At least two events transpire specifically in both novels, albeit from different perspectives. These are: the departure of The Dark Wings from Opal; and, the flight of the fire-eater over the Temple of Travellers' Repose.

Chronology and reading order[]

The White Rose ends with the surviving characters splitting into two groups at a crossroads. Since The Silver Spike closes out the narrative of the characters who remained in the north, it is typically recommended that it be read immediately after The White Rose. It is then followed by Shadow Games (the "Fourth Chronicle") and the rest of the novels in their numbered order.

This recommended reading order wraps up the plot in the north without interrupting the distinct cliffhanger between Shadow Games and Dreams of Steel. For this reason this has become the most popular cited reading order among fans, stretching back to early fan websites and forums from the 1990s and 2000s in which The Silver Spike began to be referred to as "book 3.5".

Despite this recommended reading order, The Silver Spike was actually published in September 1989, chronologically between the two Books of the South: Shadow Games (Jun. 1989) and Dreams of Steel (Apr. 1990). While not being a "Book of the South" itself, in later omnibuses this novel is grouped among them for convenience. Later publications and translations even list The Silver Spike after Dreams of Steel. Prominent among these is the Tor Books English omnibus, and, the French translations published by L'Atalante and J'ai Lu. To view the covers of the French titles, see the cover artist pages: Didier Graffet, Johan Camou, and Slava Gerj.

From the back cover[]

...embedded in the trunk of the scion of the godtree, it contains the essence of the maddest of the Ten Who Were Taken...The Dominator. Defeated by the Lady and cast from this world, all that was left of him was a foul trace of lingering evil. But the graveyard that was once the Barrowland contains more secrets than dead. All who would possess the power of the Dominator are drawn to the spike. A foolhardy band of thieves is the first to reach it, and a rapacious and malign spirit is unleashed on an unwary world. The forces gather, sides are drawn, and mortal men can only die as the Dark Lords battle for domination.

Summary[]

Global publication and translation history[]

In addition to the editions listed in the infobox at the top of this article, The Silver Spike also appeared in the following formats and translations.

Gallery of omnibuses[]

All of the omnibuses in which The Silver Spike is known to have appeared are shown in this gallery. See Books of the South for more details.

Single volumes and novel pairs[]

The Silver Spike was also published in the following single-volume editions, novel pairs, translations, and formats. They are listed in order of publication, earliest first; some reappearances of the same translation may be grouped together.

Polish[]

Polish The Silver Spike front
  • Title: Srebrny grot
  • Page shown: Front cover
  • Author: Glen Cook
  • Language: Polish
  • Translator: Grażyna Sudoł
  • Publisher: Rebis
  • Pub date: 1996; republished 1998
  • Cover art by: Oliviero Berni
  • ISBN: 9788371203565 / 837120356X (1996 paperback); 9788371206757 / 8371206755 (1998 paperback)


Russian (1997 AST Dragon Age Chronicles)[]

This edition was part of the publisher's Dragon Age Chronicles (Век Дракона Хроники / Vek Drakona Khroniki) series.

Russian series Век Дракона The Silver Spike 1997 front
  • Title: Серебряный Клин
  • Page shown: Front cover
  • Author: Глен Кук (Glen Cook)
  • Language: Russian
  • Translator: М. Петрунькина (M. Petrunkin)
  • Publisher: АСТ (AST) and Terra Fantastica
  • Pub date: 1997
  • Cover art by: Luis Royo
  • ISBN: Hardcovers: 5-7841-0727-5 (ACT); 5-7921-0144-2 (TF)


Russian novel pair (2000 AST Golden Fantasy)[]

This single hardcover containing both The Silver Spike and Dreams of Steel was part of the publisher's Golden Fantasy series (Золотая серия фэнтези / Zolotaya seriya fentezi).

Russian series Zolotaya fentezi DS TSS pair 2000 front
  • Title: Стальные сны. Серебряный Клин (Dreams of Steel & The Silver Spike)
  • Page shown: Front cover
  • Author: Глен Кук (Glen Cook)
  • Language: Russian
  • Translator: М. Петрунькина (M. Petrunkin) The Silver Spike only
  • Publisher: АСТ (AST) and Terra Fantastica
  • Pub date: 2000
  • Cover art by: Gary Ruddell (upper); Luis Royo (lower); unknown (left)
  • ISBN: Hardcovers: 9785170003952 [5-17-000395-1] (ACT); 9785792103139 [5-7921-0313-5] (TF)


French (2002 L'Atalante)[]

The Silver Spike (L'Atalante 2002) Cover

See also the back cover art

  • Title: La pointe d'argent
  • Page shown: Front & back covers
  • Author: Glen Cook
  • Language: French
  • Translator: Alain Robert
  • Publisher: L'Atalante
  • Pub date: 25 February 2002
  • Cover art by: Didier Graffet
  • ISBN: 9782841721986 (paperback [broché])


Lithuanian[]

Lithuanian The Silver Spike front
  • Title: Sidabrinis smaigas
  • Page shown: Front cover
  • Author: Glen Cook
  • Language: Lithuanian
  • Translator: Anita Kapočiūtė
  • Publisher: Eridanas
  • Pub date: 2003
  • Cover art by: Rowena Morrill
  • ISBN: 9789986970781 (paperback)


Spanish[]

The novel was translated into Spanish by the famous Domingo Santos. The cover features artwork that was originally made for a science fiction novel, containing space-themed elements wholly unrelated to the Black Company series.

Spanish The Silver Spike (La Factoria) front
  • Title: El Clavo De Plata. La Compañía Negra - Libro IV
  • Page shown: Front cover
  • Author: Glen Cook
  • Language: Spanish
  • Translator: Domingo Santos
  • Publisher: La Factoría de Ideas
  • Pub date: 2003
  • Cover art by: Jim Burns
  • ISBN: 9788484218395 (paperback)


Bulgarian[]

Bulgarian 5 The Silver Spike front
  • Title: Сребърният клин (Хрониките на Черния отряд V)
  • Page shown: Front cover
  • Author: Глен Кук (Glen Cook)
  • Language: Bulgarian
  • Translator: Светлана Комогорова (Svetlana Komogorova)
  • Publisher: Лира Принт (Lira Print)
  • Pub date: 2005
  • Cover art by: Keith Berdak
  • ISBN: 9789548610827 (paperback)


French (2007 J'ai lu)[]

The same French translation previously published by L'Atalante (seen above) was republished by J'ai lu in smaller paperback format [poche]. The first reprints featured cover art by Johan Camou (left), which was replaced years later by the more abstract art of Slava Gerj (right) when the publisher did a cover refresh.
The Silver Spike (J'ai lu 2007) Cover Slava Gerj Jai lu The Silver Spike front

  • Title: Les Annales de la Compagnie Noire 6: La pointe d'argent
  • Page shown: Front covers
  • Author: Glen Cook
  • Language: French
  • Translator: Alain Robert
  • Publisher: J'ai lu
  • Pub date: 26 April 2007
  • Cover art by: Johan Camou (left); Slava Gerj (right)
  • ISBN: 9782290356890 (small paperback [poche])


Russian novel pair (2008 AST Dragon Age 2)[]

This single hardcover containing 2 novels was part of the publisher's Dragon Age 2 series (Век дракона 2 / Vek Drakona 2).

Russian series Vek drakona 2 DS TSS pair 2008 front
  • Title: Стальные сны. Серебряный Клин (Dreams of Steel & The Silver Spike)
  • Page shown: Front cover
  • Author: Глен Кук (Glen Cook)
  • Language: Russian
  • Translator: М. Петрунькина (M. Petrunkin) The Silver Spike only
  • Publisher: АСТ (AST); АСТ Москва (AST Moscow); Харвест (Harvest)
  • Pub date: 2008
  • Cover art by: Luis Royo
  • ISBN: Hardcovers: 978-5-17-049548-1 (ACT); 978-5-9713-7664-4 (АСТ Москва); 978-985-16-5171-5 (Harvest)


Persian[]

Persian The Silver Spike cover
  • Title: گروهان سياه (کتاب جهارم بخش اول) سرنيزه نقره اي
  • Page shown: Front cover
  • Author: Glen Cook
  • Language: Persian
  • Translator: آيدا کشوري (Aida Keshvari)
  • Publisher: کتابسرای تندیس، (Tandis Publishing)
  • Pub date: 2016
  • Cover art by: Raymond Swanland
  • ISBN: 9786001821967 (paperback)


Hungarian[]

Hungarian Tuan The Silver Spike
  • Title: Ezüstszegek
  • Page shown: Front cover
  • Author: Glen Cook
  • Language: Hungarian
  • Translator: (info forthcoming)
  • Publisher: Tuan
  • Pub date: 28 February 2024
  • Cover art by: (info forthcoming)
  • ISBN: 9789635890972 (paperback)



Audiobooks[]

English audiobook[]

Audible The Silver Spike
  • Title: The Silver Spike
  • Author: Glen Cook
  • Language: English
  • Narrated by: Jonathan Davis
  • Length: 11 hours
  • Format: Audible digital audiobook
  • Publisher: Audible Studios
  • Pub date: 31 August 2010
  • Cover art by: Keith Berdak
  • ISBN: (ASIN: B0041JM4YG)


Russian audiobook[]

Russian audio Soyuz The Silver Spike
  • Title: Серебряный клин
  • Author: Glen Cook
  • Language: Russian
  • Narrated by: Всеволод Кузнецов (Vsevolod Kuznetsov)
  • Length: 8 hours 49 minutes
  • Format: MP3 download
  • Publisher: СОЮЗ, Покидышевъ и сыновья (Soyuz, Pokidyshev and Sons)
  • Pub date: May 2022
  • Cover art by: (unknown)
  • ISBN: 4066338912183
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