The Blue Sword

The Blue Sword (1982) is a young adult fantasy novel by American author Robin McKinley. Set in the mythical kingdom of Damar, the story follows Angharad “Harry” Crewe, a young orphaned woman from a colonizing nation known as the Homeland. After being sent to live in a remote desert outpost, Harry is unexpectedly kidnapped by Corlath, the king of the native Hillfolk, who senses ancient magic in her. As Harry is drawn deeper into the Hillfolk’s mystical and warrior culture, she discovers a destiny tied to an ancient sword and a prophecy that positions her as a savior in the face of an impending invasion. The novel explores The Importance of Self-Discovery, The Longing for Connection and Belonging, and The Nature of Cultural Tension and Reconciliation. 

The novel was a 1983 Newbery Honor Book, and also received a Horn Book Fanfare award and was named an ALA Notable Children’s Book. Besides The Blue Sword, Robin McKinley is known for her other fantasy novels, which feature strong female protagonists and reimaginings of fairy tales.

This guide uses the 2002 paperback edition published by Firebird, an imprint of Penguin.

Content Warning: The source material and guide feature depictions of racism, gender discrimination, self-harm, animal death, graphic violence, illness, and death.

Plot Summary

After the death of her father, Angharad “Harry” Crewe is summoned by her brother, Richard, and taken to live at the edge of the desert in a remote colonial outpost called Istan. Though her new guardians, Sir Charles and Lady Amelia, are kind, Harry is restless and displaced. Her life lacks meaning, and she feels constrained by the expectations of polite society, despite her efforts to be gracious and well-behaved. The desert landscape, stark and wild, begins to speak to something deeper in her that sets her apart from those around her.

The political tension of the region becomes apparent when Corlath, king of the native Hillfolk of Damar, makes an unexpected visit. He requests help against a rising Northern threat from the warlord Thurra, but the meeting with the colonial leadership is a failure due to mutual distrust. As he leaves, Harry meets his eye, and both are left shaken by the encounter. Corlath begins to be haunted by recurring visions of Harry, which he recognizes as coming from the kelar, his magic. Against his better judgment and guided by magical compulsion, Corlath returns to the outpost and abducts Harry while she sleeps.

He takes her back through the desert to his camp, where he and his people treat her with surprising respect and curiosity. Harry participates in a formal meal with Corlath and his Riders. There, she drinks from the ritual Meeldtar, or Water of Sight. Unlike most, who only see faint images at most, Harry has a vivid prophetic vision of an impending battle and speaks in the ancient Old Tongue.

Harry gradually begins to adjust to life with the Hillfolk. She learns to ride and bonds with a giant hunting cat named Narknon. After Harry sees another vision of the legendary warrior, Lady Aerin, Corlath confirms that she is destined to be involved in their conflict with the Northerners. He gives her a new name, Harimad-sol, gifts her a golden warhorse named Tsornin, and entrusts her to train with Mathin, one of his Riders, for the laprun trials—ceremonial and martial tests of strength and skill.

During her six grueling weeks of training in the Hills with Mathin, Harry hones her swordsmanship and learns Hillfolk lore and survival skills. Eventually, she makes Mathin proud by besting him in a training duel and is deemed ready. When the time comes, she dons the traditional maroon sash and travels to the trials. They begin with group exercises, then individual duels, both of which Harry excels in. Her final duel is against a masked rider in white. Though he outclasses her, she fights with determination. The duel ends with her sash cut and the rider revealed as Corlath himself. While she is technically defeated, her performance cements her as the winner of the trials. Mathin helps her recover, and many Riders, including a young woman named Senay, pay their respects.

Harry travels with Corlath’s company into the City, where the people welcome her. At the castle, she is honored with a banquet where she is formally recognized among the elite Riders. During the ritual of the Water of Seeing, Harry has a powerful and disturbing vision of herself in the midst of the conflict between the Damarian and Northern forces. Later, Corlath presents her with the legendary sword Gonturan, which Aerin previously wielded. With a ritual vow and bloodletting, Harry becomes a Rider in full. During a private meal, Harry asks Corlath about Aerin, but he refuses to tell her more, saying he doesn’t want to interfere with her destiny. However, he promises to tell her everything he knows after the war is over.

When the army leaves the City, heading toward the mountains to face the Northern threat, Harry goes with them. Along the way, they are joined by new allies, including Senay and another Rider Harry befriends named Terim. At camp, Corlath lays out the plan. The group will split: Most will continue, while a smaller group will travel to visit Luthe, an immortal seer, before the battle. Harry realizes a pass, Ritger’s Gap, is being overlooked and could allow the Northerners to flank them. Harry urges Corlath to warn Colonel Jack Dedham, a sympathetic man stationed at Istan, but Corlath refuses. When the party reaches Luthe’s remote hall, Harry has further visions and is encouraged by Luthe to trust herself, her companions, and her visions of Aerin.

As the Riders rejoin the larger army and preparations for the final confrontation begin, Harry again raises her concerns about Ritger’s Gap, and she and Corlath argue. Furious, she secretly slips away at night, determined to warn the Homelanders herself. In the process, she accidentally leaves her sash behind. She soon realizes that Terim and Senay followed her. She tries to convince them to go, but they pledge their support to her. Back at the camp, Corlath realizes she is gone and finds the sash she left behind.

Accompanied by Terim and Senay, Harry rides to the Outlander fort near Istan. Jack Dedham, relieved to see her alive and frustrated with the military’s dismissal of the Hillfolk, agrees to help. He also reveals that Harry’s great-grandmother was a Hillwoman, a fact her brother had kept from her. As they ride out with a small force of Homelanders, Harry and her companions gather support from Senay’s village, then from a woman named Kentarre and her isolated forest-dwelling archers. At Ritger’s Gap, they prepare a defense, and Harry’s kelar confirms that the Northerners will arrive at dawn.

In the battle that follows, Harry wields Gonturan with magical strength but is nearly defeated by Thurra, the Northern commander. Though shaken, Harry makes it back to the others, and the surviving fighters pledge to continue holding the pass. Richard arrives unexpectedly, inspired by Harry to embrace his Hillfolk ancestry. When it becomes clear that another attack is imminent, Harry ascends the mountain alone, calls upon Aerin, and unleashes a flood of magical blue fire with Gonturan, collapsing the mountains and destroying Thurra’s army. Harry’s companions find her unconscious up the mountain. 

When she awakens, she prepares for them to reunite with Corlath’s army. Jack and Richard, both disillusioned with their former lives, vow to follow her into Hill country. When she arrives at Corlath’s camp, rather than being met with his anger at her disobeying his orders, Harry instead finds him wearing her missing sash as a sign of hope for her return. He proposes marriage in front of the gathered people, and she accepts, receiving his sash in return. However, amid the celebration, Harry notices Mathin is missing and finds him gravely wounded. Desperate, she uses her kelar to heal not only Mathin but all the wounded in the healing tent, nearly exhausting herself. Corlath carries her back to rest and assures her that everyone she touched will recover.

In the end, Harry and Corlath return to the City and are married. Over time, Richard marries Kentarre and joins the filanon, Jack becomes a queen’s Rider, and Harry has several children. She reunites with Lady Amelia and Sir Charles at Istan, who help establish diplomatic ties between Damar and the Homeland.