Book Description
In 1910, in an alternate London, a penniless young dancer is visited by a cat who communicates with her mind to mind. Though she is certain she must be going mad, she is desperate enough to follow the cat's advice and impersonates a famous Russian ballerina. The cat, it turns out, is actually an Elemental Earth Spirit, and leads her to minor stardom.

Meanwhile, the real Russian ballerina has fallen victim to an evil troll who takes over her body and kills her patrons, drinking their life essences in order to strengthen his powers. And soon, the troll focuses his dark attentions on the young dancer... ... Read more

Customer Reviews (15)

Lackey's Losing Her Touch
This book reads like a rough draft, complete with several glaring typos, plotholes, and inconsistent character description. It is sloppy, and feels woefully under-edited. While the book is full of interesting ideas and images, it feels underdeveloped. Lackey ignores and alters the rules of magic as described in her previous books, and makes reference to the White Lodge, then bemoans the lack of any organization in London's magical community. She describes one character as an Earth Master, and later refers to Earth as the same character's opposing element.
Lackey's villainess is all too familiar, and is essentially identical in voice and action to the stepmother in "Phoenix and Ashes", the wicked Aunt in Seprent's Shadow, and the witch in "Gates of Sleep." I think its high time that Lackey found a new villain stereotype to flog.

Reserved for Mediocrity
I've been a fan of the Elemental Masters series since The Serpent's Shadow. I've always thought Ms. Lackey does a good job of blending the fairy tale elements cleverly with her own world-building. Unfortunately, she seems to be slipping of late. Her villains are invariably older women, cruel and cold, and the troll in this book is no different. In fact, if you were to transplant any one of the villains from the other books into this one you would probably not even notice. The stories which started off so fresh and clever are starting to feel redundant and stilted.

The backstage bits in this one are the best part, and there are too few of them. Ninette's ballet performance is enjoyable but is over far too quickly, and the reader does not get anymore. Jonathon's magic show is likewise a tantalizing tease and a clever idea(a real master making his living as a stage illusionist!) that never comes to fruition or takes center stage. This story feels underdevelopped and poorly executed.

There were also numerous typos and plot holes throughout the work that left me wondering if Mercedes Lackey is too famous now to even have a copy-editor make sure she hasn't missed some typos. The consistency of her elemental masters world is also compromised, systems, modes and laws that have been established in previous books seem to have magically changed between the other books and this one.

The romance in the book is such a non-event it barely needs a mention, and several plot threads that she takes pages and pages to set-up never go any further, leaving the reader wondering: why is this part in the book at all?

A moment of startling repuganance to me comes at the end where Ninette, after rescuing herself, pretends to be a weak and defenseless female so she can eventually "get the guy". Are we back in the 1950s now? I had much rather a heroine be her own courageous and clever self and have the guy love and respect her for who she is- rather than have her pretend to be something else so he won't feel threatened. Are men such frail creatures as all that they can't take a strong woman? I think not. Not the ones worth having anyway.

The book is a light read, by turns enjoyable and irritating. If you haven't read any of the other Elemental Masters series don't start with this one! Try Serpent's Shadow as it is a far superior book and a better read.

Off to Seek Her Fortune
Reserved For the Cat (2007) is the fifth fantasy novel in The Elemental Masters series, following The Wizard of London.In this novel, Ninette Dupond is a sujet -- a soloist -- in the ballet company of the Paris Opera.Just before one matinee performance of La Sylphide, the etoile -- La Augustine -- tripped on a curb and the understudies were not available, so Ninette danced the part of the Sylphide.In the reviews the next morning, La Figaro praised her performance.

Unfortunately, La Augustine was furious at Ninette, especially since her patron was considering Ninette as his new paramour.Naturally, Ninette was promptly fired from the ballet.After all, sujets are commonplace, but premier danseurs draw the crowds.

Although Ninette tries to find a position with another company, such openings are not presently available.As she runs out of rent money, Ninette begins to consider other possibilities.But then the cat suggests an alternative.

Ninette is bemused when Thomas the cat appears to talk to her.At first she believes herself to have gone mad, but her down-to-earth practically soon rejects that possibility.So she follows the cat's instructions, waiting to see what results.

The cat provides her with tickets and money.Soon she takes the Metro to the train station and then catches the boat-train to Calais.There she takes the ferry to Dover and an English train to Blackpool.Still following the cat's instructions, she walks to a boarding house run by a French woman from Lyon and pays for room and board.

In this story, the cat helps Ninette adjust to the strange town and country, even slipping English lessons into her dreams.He also gives her snippets of Russian.Then he stages a shipwreck scene that attracts the attention of two English mages and an African Grey Parrot who claims to be the reincarnation of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

Nigel Barrett is an Air Elemental Master as well as the owner of the Imperial Music Hall.Arthur Gilbert is an Air Elemental Magician and the conductor of the Imperial Music Hall orchestra.Wolfgang the parrot is the composer of all new music for this orchestra.

Nigel has been thinking of a new approach to music halls.Currently, the various acts are engaged for a short time -- usually six weeks -- and then move on to other venues.Nigel is thinking of producing grand shows that will engage the same company to extended periods, much like the opera houses operate.

When found on the beach, Ninette claims to be Nina Tchereslavsky -- a fairly wellknown Russian dancer -- as instructed by the cat. Soon Nigel starts considering Ninette as the principal dancer in his new show. Then he sees her dance and her role becomes a prominent part of his planning.

This story is going swimmingly until the real Nina Tchereslavsky learns of the imposture.Unfortunately, the real Nina is only one persona of an ill-natured Elemental.The Troll sets out to investigate this blatant impostor.

Thomas the cat is the mastermind of this imposture, but is not doing it out of evil intentions.To the contrary, the cat is trying to provide the best it can for Ninette.Sometimes things just go wrong.

This novel is based on the Puss in the Boots fairytale.Obviously, the details have been greatly modified, but the plot is very similar, at least up to a point.Enjoy!

Highly recommended for Lackey fans and for anyone else who enjoys tales of wise animals, willing youths and magical circumstances.

-Arthur W. Jordin

reserved for the cat
Bought as a gift for my wife.Delivered in a timely fashion.She is delighted with the book.

mercedes lackey rules again
Again Mercedes Lackey gives us a book about life and working together with everyone and forgiveness of others.Her characters are real and even her "magic" charcters a very human like.Also the lesson about making friends and perserving thru all is a great one.Read it you will enjoy it form beginning to end. ... Read more

Amazon.com
Mercedes Lackey never puts a foot wrong in this confident, funny fairy-tale adaptation. Tsar Ivan has eight sons; all are brutes like himself except for happy-go-lucky, least-favored Ilya. Cast out through the machinations of his jealous, competitive brothers, Ilya stumbles onto an enchanted castle, distressed damsels, a garden of questing princes turned to stone, and the secret of the shapeshifting woman called the Firebird. In love with a captive princess, Ilya enlists the Firebird and a charming, crafty vixen to help him battle the sorcerer. But is settling down with a princess what "happily ever after" really means?Book Description
Ilya, son of a Russian prince, is largely ignored by his father and tormented by his larger, older brothers.His only friends are three old people: a priest, a magician, and a woman who toils in the palace dairy.From them Ilya learns faith, a smattering of magic, and the power of love--all of which he will need desperately, for his life is about to be turned upside-down.The prince's magnificent cherry orchard is visited at midnight by the legendary Firebird, whose wings are made of flame.Ilya's brothers' attempts capture the magical creature fail.When Ilya tries to catch the Firebird, he sees her as a beautiful woman and earns a magical gift:the speech of animals. Banished, the young man journeys through a fantastical Russia full of magical mazes, enchanted creatures, and untold dangers.As happens in the best fairy tales, Ilya falls in love with an enchanted princess, but to win her freedom will be no easy task. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (42)

A Wonderful Story
This was the first of Lackey's books that I read, and to this day it remains my favorite.The story is fairly simple, and the motivated reader can probably get through it in one or two sittings.While in most books this probably wouldn't add to the story, it works for Firebird, because from the first couple pages, Lackey draws the reader into a unique world, with an ambience all its own.

I also fell in love with the characters.Ilya is likeable, but he's also a typical boy of that age: generally good-hearted, but also honest in his desires.The people around him are unique and have quirks all their own, and they come to life on the page.

I must have read Firebird seven or eight times by now, and I'm still not tired of it.I fell in love with it back before I became jaded by what the technical details of a fantasy novel should be, and whenever I read it, it reminds me why I love reading in the first place: I love hearing a good story.It will always remain one of my favorite books, and I'm enthusiastically giving it five stars.

The only reason it was not a five. . .
was the rather rushed ending.I think that Misty was setting up for a sequel which hasn't yet gotten itself written.

Loved it!
This is the second Lackey Book I read- THe first being the Black Sawn. I think that this one is definitley better. I loved Ilya as a character- he's an outcast who gets beat up all the time and only has a few friends. He gets cursed by the firebird and that leads him to his journey. He goes to face the villian in his fortress for (of course) the princess. I liked how the princess wasn't "perfect" in the end.

The story kept me reading and I thought that Ilya was an interesting character and so were his animal friends. It'sa great story and I'd recomend it to anyone who likesa good story.

Decent Effort, But Lackey Can Do Better
The Firebird is a book based on the classic Russian fairy tale of the same name.Ivan is a self-styled tsar who has many strong, trained, warrior sons, but none of them are very bright.Except for Ilya, the middle son.He is much smarter than his brothers so they naturally assume that he is a sorcerer and use every opportunity provided to beat him to a pulp and just generally make his life miserable.When someone steals Ivan's prize cherries, he sends his sons one by one into the orchard to discover who the thief is.Ilya knows who the thief is because he spied on the orchard and saw her.It was the Firebird.As a reward for not telling Ivan who was stealing his cherries, she gives him the gift of speaking to animals.As his older brothers fail to discover the thief, they become convinced that Ilya is the thief and give him the worst beating of his life.Ilya now fears for his life and can think of no other plan to save himself than to pretend that the beating addled his wits and turned him into a fool.However, not even his pretense protects him as his brothers continue to play cruel jokes - such as tying him to his horse and setting the dogs on him during a hunt.Using his newly acquired skill to communicate with his horse and the dogs chasing him, he is able to get away.However, when his horse is killed, he is lost out in the forest in the middle of winter with no supplies.A kindly ex-employee of his grandfather takes him in for a time and then Ilya becomes restless and follows the feeling of magic back into the woods.There he comes upon a giant maze which leads to an evil sorcerer's castle.After catching one glimpse of the 12 beautiful maidens that the sorcerer keeps captive, he falls in love with the lovely Tatiana.He decides to do whatever it takes to free her and to kill the evil sorcerer.But, with evil demons, a dragon, and other impossible tasks, can Ilya accomplish what so many other heroes could not?

I gave this book 3 stars because there was such slow story development that I almost set it aside.I usually finish books in a day or 2 and this one took me a week and a half to plow through.The characters were likeable enough and the story was fine, but Mercedes Lackey spent well over half of the book just setting up the story.The first part of the book just dragged by as the author described Ilyas terrible life and the horrible things that his family did to him.She weakly explained that Ilya didn't dare leave because he couldn't survive out in the forest alone long enough to get anywhere else where he could survive.But, if Ilya's home life was actually as bad as it was potrayed, Ilya definitely had enough backbone to leave - long before the whole cherry tree incident.By the time Ilya actually does leave his father's land, there isn't a whole lot of time left for the real action in the book.The reader is going along at a nice slow pace and then suddenly is raced through to the ending where everything changes and nothing ends quite the way it was set up to.The ending was quite abrupt and left the reader hanging, too.If this book was a duology or a trilogy, then it would be understandable that Lackey spent so long setting up the story line and left the reader hanging at the end, but, as far as I am aware, it is a standalone novel.Perhaps Mercedes Lackey was planning on writing another novel to follow this one and it never happened?

Mercedes Lackey spews out yet another excellent novel...
Being the ballet fanatic that I am, I expected the story of the Firebird to be similar to that of the ballet, and recieved a pleasant surprise when I found that there were several very interesting deviations.For example, they made it much more difficult from Ilya to get to the magician's soul (in this case his heart) which definitely made it more interesting.The beginning dragged a little, but as Ilya left his home and went out on his own, the story took on a completely new atmosphere, and it picked up from there.I definitely would recommened this to anyone looking for a good fantasy book to drown themselves in. ... Read more

Book Description
In the fourth and final novel of Mercedes Lackey's Dragon Jousters series, Kiron, the man who had once been a dragon-boy called Vetch, has united the dragon riders and managed to rid their world of both war and magical domination. But are the evil Magi really gone for good? As Kiron tries to build a new civilization at the site of an abandoned cliff dweller's city, called Aerie, conflicts arise, and he soon realizes there is a vast conspiracy at work, which includes individuals who have infiltrated every walk of life-even his own family. Once the heads of the Magi, these conspirators are determined to regain their sinister control. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (18)

A satisfying entry in the series
I really enjoyed this book, since it not only continued the story of people I like, but it also provided information I'd been curious about, i.e., the fate of Kiron's mother and more information about the people who had enslaved Tia in the past. The types of magic used were interesting, as was the information about the gods. I've been pleased each time Lackey has written another in this series, as I'd thought the series was complete as it was. I wish she'd write another now, this time with continuations in the lives of the other dragon jousters, as well as the central characters.

Aerie The Dragon Jousters
Great book, tons of grammatical errors and mispellings though. You need to read it so you can finish up the plot of the series, but it is a mess. There are unfinished sentences everywhere. It is about half as long as the rest of the series. It reads like a rough draft. The plot carries well though, I liked it a lot. Good idea to read this one if you have read the rest of the series.

Dreadful
I absolutely adored the first two books in this series.The characters were awesome; believable, funny and easy to relate to.The third book was pretty good, but begged for a proper ending.Sadly it never got one.The characters I loved in the first three books apparently got personality transplants.The couple that had been soooooo incredibly in love with each other inexplicably started hating each other (ok, not actual hate, but close enough).The only character in this book I found believable at all was "the other woman", in fact most of the book I was rooting for her to get the guy.But alas, I was disappointed even at that.

By itself not a bad book.As an ending to this brilliant series, and by this wonderful author (whose other books I have enjoyed a great deal) it was positively dreadful.

Really good book
This book is funny and exciting and interesting. You don't really have to read the first three books to understand it, but it's better if you do. It's about someone who was a serf and became a dragon-rider who Jousted, and then saved a country from magicians. Then they found a new place to live, where they help protect the desert from evil people.

This is a good book. I really liked the dragons.

The New Dragon Riders
Aerie (2006) is the fourth Fantasy novel in the Dragon Jousters series, following Sanctuary.In the previous volume, Kiron rescued Aket-ten from the Magi and inadvertently initiated feedback within the Eye, which then ran wild.Deadly heat beams and the resulting earthshakes destroyed the central island of Alta and the damage spread outward.As the Tian army was invading across the Great Causeway, the final earthshake totally demolished the bridge.Amidst all the destruction, the Great Kings of both Alta and Tia were killed and so were most of the Magi.

In this novel, Great King Ari and Great Queen Nofret rule the united Kingdoms of Alta and Tia from Mefis.Sanctuary is mostly occupied by priests.Aerie, however, has been claimed by many tradesmen and the dragon riders.

Carved into the stone walls of desert canyons, Aerie seems to be made for dragon riders.The bottom floor of each dwelling is a tall room without windows and partially underground;filled with sand, it makes a perfect dragon wallow.The second and, in some cases, third floors have thick walls and small windows to protect against the sun and sand storms.

The dragon riders need the extra room, for dragon taming has become a highly prized vocation.Kiron is now the Lord of Jousters, with eight wings under his command;some riders are former Tian jousters, but many have come from the common classes.Aket-ten has even organized a Queen's Wing with eight other females.Although the rank and admiration are welcome, the dragon riders do need to find a new use for their skills.

The military in both Alta and Tia has been greatly disrupted by the machinations of the Magi and the subsequent destruction of the higher ranks.The caravan routes are no longer being patrolled by the armies and some soldiers have even become bandits.Obviously the dragon riders have a role to play in suppressing these thieves and murderers.

Kiron starts having the dragons and riders train in patrolling and anti-ambush tactics.Even before they have completed the first day of training, the dragon riders have a live fire exercise against a group of bandits.He even finds a way to dispose of the captives.The caravan masters are very pleased with the new protection and make known their approval at court.

Aket-ten finds her plans for the Queen's Wing to have Nofret's permission and approval, but the women are not volunteering for the positions.Her first recruit, Peri-en-westet, was eager to accept the job, but others are reluctant to undertake a vocation so associated with males and violence.Finally, Aket-ten draws on her on experiences and recruits seven other females from among the minor priestesses.

Peri meets Kiron at dinner in the Jousters Court of Sanctuary.She is struck by the similarities between him and the stories told to her by Letis, her old mistress.As Peri learns more, she becomes convinced that Kiron is Letis's long lost son.

In this story, Kiron finds the body of a lone border guard in the desert.After the body is taken to Sanctuary, the priests discover his duty station, but cannot find anything significant about his death and nothing at all unusual about the border fortress or town.Kiron has to go out with other dragon riders and a priest to take a closer look.

A new menace seems to be developing in the East.Far in the past, the Nameless Ones had come out of the East and are still feared both by the ignorant and the informed.What could be coming toward them?

Highly recommended for Lackey fans and for anyone who enjoys tales of tame dragons, aerial tactics, political intrigues and a touch of romance.

-Arthur W. Jordin ... Read more

Book Description
New York Times and USA Today bestselling authors Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory first teamed up to write The Obsidian Trilogy, set in a wondrous world filled with magical beings, competing magic systems, and a titanic struggle between good and evil. That world proved so popular with the creators and readers alike that Lackey and Mallory have returned to it with The Phoenix Unchained, Book One of The Enduring Flame, the opening volume of a new epic fantasy trilogy.After a thousand years of peace, much Magick has faded from the world. The Elves live far from humankind. There are no High Mages, and Wild Mages are seen only rarely. Bisochim, a powerful Wild Mage, is determined to reintroduce Darkness to the world, believing that it is out of Balance. Tiercel, a young Armethalian nobleman, is convinced that High Magic is not just philosophy. He attempts a spell-and draws the unwelcome attention of Bisochim. Tiercel survives Bisochim's attack and begins trying to turn himself into a High Mage. Next in line to be Harbormaster of Armethalieh, Harrier instead finds himself regularly saving Tyr's life and meeting magickal people and creatures. To Harrier's dismay, it seems that he must become a hero. In The Phoenix Unchained, Harrier and Tiercel begin a marvelous journey to uncover their destinies. Along the way, they meet a charming female centaur, several snooty Elves, and the most powerful dragon their world has ever known. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (10)

Great
Great book, can't wait for the next book in the series to come out.It really leaves you hanging. Follows the original series, but can be read standing alone.

Took awhile...
To preface this: you CAN read this book without having read its predecessors in "The Obsidian Trilogy" but trust me: you won't get nearly as many laughs out of this book (Blessed Saint Idalia? Kellen the Poor Ophan Boy? even Ancaladar got some laughs after hearing those ridiculous names). Vaguely predictable, but it was an interesting (VERY interesting) twist to the world that we all knew and recognized in the Obsidian series.

But I enjoyed this immensely because I am very excited to go back to the world of Wild Magic, Armethalieh, and Elves and Dragons. This takes on a surprising twist and I was quickly immersed in this "new world." Granted, some of the time, the tale did genuinely drag.. especially the bickering between the two main characters and their very stereotypical and very predictable behavior (naive bumbling friend who finds trouble and tough rough-and-tumble practical boy to get him out of it).. but got very enjoyable and I was quivering with happiness when Tyr and Harrier met Ancaladar... well, I'll stop there because of spoilers. Honestly though, this tale is less serious than the Obsidian Trilogy so far without the immense intensity that "Obsidian" started off with. This tale seems to be more lighthearted (it feels that Lackey had a heavier hand here than Mallory did, to be honest) and hasn't revealed any depth so far except for a few superficial revelations and some minor annoyances that I would have liked explained (but in typical Elvish fashion, of course nothing will be explained)... I am looking forward to the rest of this series (mostly because this book was the world's most obvious cliffhanger). If you know the Obsidian Trilogy, "Phoenix Unchained" actually gets a trifle predictable as it progresses but I don't really mind predictability especially when it's in a setting such as this one that I am very unaccustomed to.

Recommended! And apologies for the incoherent review.

disappointed
I read the previous trilogy and enjoyed.When I started THE PHOENIX UNCHAINED, I found that it didn't hold my attention the way the previous trilogy did.This one seems to lack direction, and wanders badly at times.I forced myself through half the book, but by that point I was so bored with it that I just couldn't continue.I have too little time to read fiction as it is, and I won't spend it trying to finish a novel in hopes that it will get better as I go along.

Great Coming of age story
If you are tired of all the gritty realism or the attempts to challenge the fantasy tropes that seem to be popular in fantasy fiction these days, then turn to my old friends, Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory. Lackey is best known for her Valdemar series, and the two authors together have written the New York Times best-selling fantasy series The Obsidian Trilogy. Writing straight up epic fantasy that uses all the favorite elements of fantasy readers everywhere, Mallory and Lackey give us a wonderful break from the "fantasy as literature" crowd and returns us to the "fantasy as great escapism" clique.

In a not much heralded release in October, the two authors returned to the setting of The Obsidian Trilogy to begin a new saga, The Enduring Flame. The first novel in the series, The Phoenix Unchained, tells the story of two friends, one the Harbormaster's son, the other the son of a minor noble, whose friendship is put through some grueling tests.

[...]

Enjoyable fantasy with a Young Adult flair
Their fates seem clear. Tiercel (Tyr) Rolfort will become a clerk and noble for the city of Armethalia. Harrier Gillain, Tyr's best friend will become harbor-master for the city. Oddly, neither particularly desires those ordained futures. Still, when Tyr experiments with long-forgotten High-Mage magic--and it works--they aren't especially happy that they don't get to pursue their set future. Because High-Magic, Warrior-Magic means that the Dark, long believed eliminated forever, is back. And if Tyr doesn't find training in High-Magic quickly, he'll die.

A thousand years before, the Dark had been defeated and the endarkened eradicated. But now a Wild Mage senses a problem in the balance--a problem that can only be rectified by bringing back darkness. That dark is never satisfied with balance doesn't seem to bother him--and his dragon gives him the power to do what no one had thought possible.

Tyr and Harrier set out from Armethalia in search of a wild mage who can help Tyr learn what has happened to him and begin his training. As they travel, they learn that all is not well in the world. Bandits are willing to attack closer to the city than they have in generations. Dark creatures, long thought exterminated, are spreading, attacking small towns and individual travelers. Wolves are attacking armed men. Tyr is also attacked by magic--and manages to set an inn on fire avoiding the attack. What they don't find is an easy answer. Nobody, not Tyr's parents, not the priests of the Light, not the Wild Mages, not even the Elves can tell Tyr how to solve his problems. He's got to learn himself. Except, learning isn't easy when a small mistake could set a city on fire.

Authors Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory move forward a thousand years from the story they told in The Obsidian Trilogy novels. But the key elements remain--the sense of magic, that prices must be paid, that balance is essential, and that even the young and inexperienced may become important.

THE PHOENIX UNCHAINED is the opening book in a series and leaves the characters at the beginning of the real conflict. I'm intrigued enough to be looking forward to the next volume. I didn't have the problem I had with the books in The Obsidian Trilogy (the genocidal attacks on the shadowed elves), although I thought that the resolution to Harrier's personal issues might have been set up a bit more. THE PHOENIX UNCHAINED may not change the world, but it's enjoyable fantasy. Good stuff.
... Read more

Book Description
From the bestselling author of the Heralds of Valdemar series comes an enchanting novel.

In the land of the Five Hundred Kingdoms, if you can't carry out your legendary role, life is no fairy tale. . .

Elena Klovis was supposedto be her kingdom's Cinderella--until fate left her with a completely inappropriate prince! So she set out to make a new life for herself. But breaking with "The Tradition" was no easy matter--until she got a little help from her own fairy godmother. Who promptly offered Elena a most unexpected job. . .

Now, instead of sleeping in the chimney. She has to deal witharrogant, stuffed-shirt princes who keep trying to rise above their place in the tale. And there's one in particular who needs to be dealt with. . .

Sometimes a fairy godmother's work is never done. . . . ... Read more

Customer Reviews (78)

Do you want to root for a hero who mugs and tortures innocent people?
A king is faced with a bad situation.A nearby kind is auctioning off his daughter to whoever can pass a quest (the auctioning king is the good guy).Now the terms of the auction are that the winner be good to the daughter and her kindgom.The neighbors don't matter.Go raid them.

So the king faced with this situation asks his three adult sons to take on the quest.If the oldest wins, then the kingdoms can be joined and be at peace.If the second wins, then the kingdoms can ally, and be at peace.If the youngest wins, well he's not so bright, but he's kind and seek guidance from his brothers.This is the evil king.As punishment for this evil, he is led to believe his sons are dead for a month.Picture being a parent and being told all of your children were slaughtered.

The oldest son heads out first.As best as I can determine from the text he was eager to face the dangers first, to protect his brothers.An old lady asks him for alms and he ignores her.Clue:The answer to any request can be "no".Clearly, he's in a hurry to protect his siblings and obey his father.For this, he is forced to wander starving in the forest for a month.This after wandering for days in the forest, with thinning supplies, for sake of the convenience of the good character.

The second son spots her for the obvious trap that she is and tries to escape her.For that, she turns him into a donkey, starves him, hits him, forces him to do hard labor, forces him to stand in his own urine, and effectively tortures him for weeks.This is the male romantic lead!

I have never met so evil a character as Elana, and I don't care how many times the characters tell us she's good (because her actions don't shore that up).

Book two in this series is brilliant.Book one deserves to be burned.I'd give it -200 stars if I could.Thank heavens it was a library book.

another splendid retelling, but...
Mercedes Lackey is one of my favorite authors and does a magnificently creative job of reinventing traditional (no pun intended) fairy tales and legends.This book, like her Elemental Masters series, is no exception. The Cinderella story gets an engaging twist when Elena becomes the new Fairy Godmother.My only complaint is that Ms. Lackey seems to be following the recent trend of throwing (in my opinion) gratuitous sex into a story.Did the dream sequences with Elena and Alexander, not to mention the actual face-to-face love scene, HAVE to give us a play-by-play of eroticism?She has written satisfying love/sex scenes before (for example, in the Heralds series) without going into minute detail about who was doing what and how.If it were not for these passages in this book, I would give this one the full five stars and recommend it to several young teenage girls I know.Unfortunately, the sex makes it inappropriate for the early-teen group, when otherwise it would be a delightful story for them to read.

fairy tales with a twist
This one got such rave reviews I just had to see what all the hipe was about.Sorry but I was not as entralled as most of the reviewers.I know this was suppose to be the first parnormal romance from LUNA, but the romance didn't happened until the last 100 pages.Most of this book was the daily life of how to become a fairy godmother and what The Tradition was all about.This was great information for futher reading in this series, but I just don't feel like it was necessary.I know Lackey was trying to be witty, and some pieces were, but not enough to hold my attention in the beginning.The end, was great.The by play between the prince and the brownies and Elena was funny and made the book.

Outstanding, again!
Mercedes Lackey has done it again. She has created a viable world with beautifully realistic characters. Give us more.

Engaging read
If you like old fairy tales with a new more grown-up twist, this book & series is a good choice. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (21)

Winds binging storms
After reading this ant the preceeding two books of the Winds triligy, I am looking foward to the coninuation of the story of Valdemar and the impending threat form the East.All of Lackey's books have the fight between good and evil as their focus but it is her development of the environment that makes the whole thing great reading.

Mercedes Lackey Does It Again.
This book drew me in from the beginning and held me in thrall to the end. Ms. Lackey is superior in fantasy novels. I completely enjoyed this trilogy.

pretty good
In my opinion, Winds of Fury was the best in the trilogy.This is a well written fantasy novel, rated high in the books that i have read, although not the best.Mercedes Lackey did well in her development of the characters and plot.I particularly liked the development of An'desha.With the long overdue end of Falconsbane she skillfully brought in a new character who easily wins the heart of readers.Her use of figurative language in metaphors and similes works well to describe places and events, and her work contains proverbs that tell truths.Although I liked the book and found it believable and well developed, some of the dialogue she uses is a bit awkward.It does not happen often but enough to be noticable.Overall, her message of good triumphing over evil once again works well in her plot, along with the light romantic interludes that give the novel a sentimental quality.

It was worth reading the first two books for this.
The first two books were OK at best but this one certainly caught my interest. Instead of being so very ickily sex oriented romance, this one focused on tenderness and you actually liking the couples.

Not to mention - VANYEL!!!

romantic and suspenseful
This was clearly the best of the three in this triology.

It had lovely, leisurely romantic interludes plus fast paced action.I was absolutely glued to it.

This trilogy is quite liberal socially.The women are effective warriors and often the leaders while the men typically follow.Gay relationships are accepted as equal with straight ones.One of the lead good guys is gay.

It's really neat how Elspeth and Darkwind work together as a team romantically, magically, and militarily.Sigh.I wish I had a relationship like that.Of course, it's probably just as unrealistic as the magic.Probably the ending is unrealistically happy as well, but then you sort of expect that in this type of book.At least it's not depressing.

I still think there are entirely too many super-powerful mages and adepts running around in the world of these books.You sort of get to the point where you think adepts (the most powerful of the magical people) are normal and everyone else is stunted.

I liked all the beautiful, powerful animals and animal-like sentient characters.They are very rich and diverse. ... Read more

Book Description
In the Five Hundred Kingdoms, never believe what your eyes tell you…

The seventh daughter of the Sea King, Ekaterina is more than a pampered princess—she's also the family spy. Which makes her the perfect emissary to check out interesting happenings in the neighboring kingdom…and nothing interests her more than Sasha, the seventh son of the king of Belrus. Ekaterina suspects he's far from the fool people think him. But before she can find out what lies beneath his facade, she is kidnapped!

Trapped in a castle at the mercy of a possessive Jinn, Ekaterina knows her chances of being found are slim. Now fortune, a fool and a paper bird are the only things she can count on—along with her own clever mind and intrepid heart.…

... Read more

Customer Reviews (25)

Unfortunately dull
Using folk tales spanning no fewer than four cultures (Chinese, Japanese, Arabian Nights, Russian, and quite probably others that I am less familiar with), it seems improbable that a book should be uninteresting and dragging. But, oh, this one is. Paired with the disappointing end to the Obsidian Trilogy, I find myself wondering what has happened to one of my favorite fantasy authors!

The characters are uninteresting, the villain lackluster... and those are almost the good points. The story suffers from a mishmash of fairy tale elements from too many cultures, godmothers as an afterthought, and a barely-explored underwater world of mermaids... who just happen to have legs and speak all sorts of human languages.

Anyone else miss Elena?

A Tale of the Five Hundred Kingdoms
I really liked this one.my friend complains that as soon as the girl finds herself a man she lives happily ever after...but she says that about all Mercedes Lackey books.I think that this whole Five hundred kingdom series is fantastic, but then i am a sucker for fairytale stuff...and this has a lot of it...seventh son of a seventh son and all that.

Hurtling into the abyss.
I'm a long time reader of Mercedes Lackey, and as such, I've seen watched her stories go hurtling farther and farther into the abyss. The 500 Kingdoms stories have a great premise and world, but the characters, writing and plot continue to deteriorate into an unbearable mess. Though Lackey tries to make her fairy tales "postmodern" and break from "Tradition", the stories fail to break course from typical plot conventions. Fortune's Fool is the most predictable and uninteresting of the three so far released. I hardly had the heart to finish the story because I knew exactly where the story was going and how it was going to end, a fourth of the way through the book. The characters have little original depth, mostly because while attempting to be their own person, they're still relying on "Traditional" conventions; Katya is the same "can take care of herself" heroine in many fantasy books, while Sasha is the typical "means well, but isn't quite necessary" male role. Overall, the story was predictable, the characters uninteresting, and the writing simple and lackluster. It's really too bad because this concept, in the hands of someone more capable, may have been really something.

Not her best
After reading and absolutely loving Fairy Godmother, the first installment in M. Lackey's Five Hundred Kingdoms series, I've waited for sequels with bated breath. One Good Knight was good, though not quite as much fun as its predecessor. Fortune's Fool was... uninspired. I feel like the wonderful Ms. Lackey wrote this book with her mind elsewhere. It lacks the fun of earlier installments and the tight plotting and characterization of her other series. Most of the charm of the Five Hundred Kingdoms is the tension of the Tradition acting on people's lives with them all unawares or with only a few characters (such as Elena, our Fairy Godmother protagonist of the first book) able to see the effects of its force in order to counteract them. In Fortune's Fool, most of our characters are well aware of the Tradition they live with and already know how to combat it... it's like she wrote this book as quickly as possible and with half an effort. I still love her and I'll probably still buy the next one on its release date at full price, but in the hopes that it will far outshine this book rather than emulate it.

cute
I enjoyed it. Sasha, the hero, was sweet and endearing. His character was beyond good. He even had female unicorns swooning over him, and if you have read the two previous novels, you would know what THAT means. Katya was tough, she had to be to be the seventh daughter and spy for the Sea King. There was definately some funny moments in the story.I gave it four stars instead of five because the story did lag behind a bit and then sped up at the very end to solve the problem.I just didn't feel like the plot reached a natural climax in-between and it left me a little off. ... Read more

Download Description
With Elspeth, the heir to the throne of Valdemar, come of marriageable age, Talia, the Queen's Own Herald returns to court to find Queen and heir beset by diplomatic intrigue as various forces vie for control of Elspeth's future.But just as Talia is about to uncover the traitor behind all these intrigues, she is sent on a mission to the neighboring kingdom, chosen by the Queen to investigate the worth of a marriage proposal from Prince Ancar. And to her horror, Talia soon discovers there is far more going on at Prince Ancar's court than just preparation for a hoped-for royal wedding. For a different magic than that of the Heralds is loose in Ancar's realm-an evil and ancient sorcery that may destroy all of Valdemar unless Talia can send warning to her Queen in time! ... Read more

Customer Reviews (61)

A big let down
I first started on Mercedes Lackey with The Obsidian Trilogy and was astounded with the quality of the writing, more specifically, the amazing pacing and how story-line could be so tightly woven without seeming convenient. These elements are completely missing from this whole series! The stories drag, the plot-line seems to be a compilation of incessant problems with oh-so-convenient solutions, and even the truly climactic points are ruined by the terrible pacing. Almost the entire story is narrative-style (This happened, then this, then this... ya da ya da ya.), so the reader never quite feels "in the action." Rarely was I engaged in the story. And the ending... the ending was terrible! It left the true climax of the story out to hang without conclusion and sidelined over into her "lifebond" with Dirk (Don't even get me started on how lousy the handling of this was throughout the story.). So a queen is really going to pack up in the middle of a war she's running to go to a WEDDING? Are you kidding me?

The Best Was Saved For Last
This was by far my favorite because it was so much more realistic.Lackey does not shy away from what happens to women who are held captive by those bent on harm. The 'far fetching' was exactly that, a little too good to be true, but who wouldn't like to have an ability like that and horses like those Companions?

The first trilogy holds its own
The original Valdemar trilogy holds a special place in my heart.While it is true that she didn't have many books under her belt at the time of the writing, the characterization and plot development are well-handled.Some of her later books suffer from overly condensed or elaborated plot points - an element that she maintained masterful control over in the earlier books.
The characters face challenges that thrum with urgency and have a realism to them all too lacking in much fantasy.She made some effort to make this a real world with a complex political situation, and it shows.And at the same time we never stop caring for Talia or lose sight of her plight in the midst of political machinations.
The relationship between Talia and Dirk rings most true when they are struggling toward each other; the final union is sweet but could have used more development.

Happy conclusion
In this third volume of the series, Mercedes Lackey switches direction. Unlike the first two volumes, the focus moves away from the growth of Talia as a person and as a Herald and shifts to a more action oriented story of intrigue, betrayal, and good winning over evil.

In this volume, Talia has just concluded her training as a Herald and comes back to the capital to assume her full role as a member of the governing council of Valdemar. She now must deal with court intrigues including finding ways to deal with her nemesis - who happens to be the most senior councillor AND the uncle of her good friend Kris. While in the capital she must also deal with her budding romance with Dirk.

The switch in direction becomes apparent almost immediately as the author starts telling the story from three different directions. We get a few paragraphs told from Talia's point of view, a few from Kris's, and a few from Dirk's. I did not like this. I find this mechanism to be very artifically done and not to have aided the story much.

The bigger storyline is that a marriage proposal has arrived in Valdemar proposing to hook up Elspeth with the son of one of Valdemar's few friendly neighbors. Talia and Kris are dispatched to check this out in advance of the Queen's arrival at the other land. One thing leads to another and many dark secrets and evil magic are encountered along the way as this task is not as simple as it looks. However, the end of the book resolves the main points of the crisis, brings out the best in many of our heroes, and brings the young lovers (Dirk and Talia) to their senses and has them married off!

In addition, the story line evolves to allow for many future directions. Dirk has been adopted by Kris's family and Talia may be introduced to them; The revelation of new uses for the old and terrible magics leads to many possible future volumes; the companions find new ways to be helpful; etc.

I downgraded this book because the ending was too pat and the storyline was way too predictable. It was too easy to see who were the real evildoers in this book. Also, too many fortuitous connections to previous volumes in the series were being made. As an example: just when Talia is at the end of her rope (apparently), she comes across an individual whose life she saved in a previous volume in a totally different land. And, it turns out that not only can he help her immediately, but he is almost immune to the bad forces, AND he is the head of a clan. I mean, come on!!!

So, while there were many intriguing moments and emotionally gut wrenching moments in the book, there were also too many problems for me to rank it higher than just average. Sorry.

Talia grows up
Although these first books in the Valdemar series lack a certain maturity (especially when compared to the Vanyel series or "Storm Warning" and "Storm Rising") they're still a must-read to truly appreciate the series.

Herald Talia has grown up, earned her whites, and faces triumph and tragedy (with much stronger violent content) that may shock younger readers who began with the milder "Arrow's Fall" so be warned. ... Read more

Book Description
Isabelle Benson has learned that an Elemental Master is behind the attempts on her students' lives-and the would-be murderer is someone very close to her former flame, "The Wizard of London." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (39)

Aw, now I want a raven.
I think I'm the one person on the planet who hasn't read a lot of Mercedes Lackey books.I've only read "Children of the Night" which is a VERY different book than this one.

I really liked how the book so thoroughly immerses you into the time frame, the social dynamics and the etiquette of the era.Ms. Lackey nicely weaves the fantasy elements into the historical realities of the period.I also appreciated how she discussed true evil as a lack of emotion, rather than rage and fire.

The book did leave me wondering how truly nasty the very nasty villain would have been if she had been born a man.

I think I'll take a trip to the Tower of London and think very hard at the ravens now.

Children with paranormal talents
The novel deals with school environment of talented children and thuss is of special interest. It's fantasy of an ideal school and good teachers,and it gives good mind and feelings to the reader, who can correlate it to her's ovn reality of the past. A nice story, with good characters, activities and environments. I recomend it to all ages, young and elder people

Magic
Most books written by Mercedes Lackey will be viewed as magic to any person that enjoys fantasy. The Wizard of London is no where short of her best. She knows how to twist old story board schemes and give us a wonder.

One of my favorites
The reviewers who nit-pick about the Elemental Masters books are probably the people who need to absorb the humanity of those books.

Fascinating Book
I was attracted to this book because of the title. London is my favourite city and anything thathas a reference to it, has an irresistable pull for me. So even if I chose the book for the wrong reasons, it still turned out to be good. Having only read 'Rediscovery' in the darkover series which Lackey co-authored, it was definitely new for me. And it was definitely a riveting and fascinating read because of the aura it surrounds you with. There is humour, subtle and sharp - and there is detail with crispness and clearness like a cold winter morning. You never feel the absence of a master plot, but the lack of it makes you take notice of the details of each situation that rises to meet you. Definitely a must read for all the people who love Darkover books ... Read more

Book Description
A great working of Wild Magic and High Magic strikes at the heart of the Demon Queen's plots, but the human city, the Golden City of the Bells, falls farther under her sway with each day that passes.And without the City's High Magicians, the Wild Magicians, the Elven Army, and all their allies will surely fall before the onslaught of the Demon Queen's malignant warriors.But all hope is not lost.The Light's young mages, tempered by war, grow ever more powerful.High Mage Cilarnen learns an ancient secret that can make him, for a brief, white-hot time, the greatest mage in the world-unless it kills him.Jermayan, the first Elf-Mage in centuries, has linked with the dragon Ancaladar and rediscovered the swift-as-thought powers of Elven magic, which can reshape mountains and summon lightning from clear skies.Knight-Mage Kellen has molded his troops and the Unicorn Knights into a deadly fighting force.Soon the Elven King and his Commanders put Kellen's magical gifts to their greatest test, in the final battle between the Elves, the humans, and the Demons. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (35)

When Darkness Falls
Great final book to the trilogy. Keeps you entertained and guessing to the final end.

The difficulty of ending a trilogy well
The third part of the Obsidian Trilogy contains much of what I expect of Lackeys writing: well fleshed out characters, good varieties in motivation of such, interesting plot ideas, solid action. Where it falls short is that the story in itself could have been told on half of the pages. Somewhere in the middle I started to scan the neverending battle scenes that do nothing to either advance the plot or the characters. In other words, they are boring (although believebaly written)and lead to predictable action. The characters would have deserved better with more twists and turns or exciting new developments. Fewer clashing swords and more character driven action would have kept my attention.
For the bordedom factor and predictability - two stars only.

When Darkness Falls The obsidian Trilogy Book three 3
The best fantasy book ever! Mercedes Lackey is my favorite author, and this trilogy was my first of her books. I adore this one! It is my favorite ever. The whole trilogy together is excellent. Its also suitable for all ages, which is hard to find. For dragon and elf and fantasy lovers alike this is a must read!

Mercedes Lackey
I have come to expect excellent reading from anything with the name Mercedes Lackey attached.I was not disappointed.Each book in the Obsidian Trilogy moved smoothly, with a really nice balance of action and character development. The characters are interesting and the drama builds nicely; the reader will not find herself scanning pages quickly, saying"yeah, yeah, I get it already, where is the story".This is what epic fantasy should be.

I am looking forward to checking out her partner James Mallory.

Deadly dull
I enjoyed the first two books and have been a Lackey fan for quite some time, having read a number of her books ranging from the Bard books to Valdemar to Elemental Masters to Diana Tregarde to stand-alone novels. This novel and the latest of the fairy godmother books (Fortune's Fool) are among the weakest and most boring stories she's written. I was terribly disappointed in this one and could not even bring myself to finish more than half of it! ... Read more

Book Description
Isabelle Benson has learned that an Elemental Master is behind the attempts on her students' lives-and the would-be murderer is someone very close to her former flame, "The Wizard of London." ... Read more

Customer Reviews (39)

Aw, now I want a raven.
I think I'm the one person on the planet who hasn't read a lot of Mercedes Lackey books.I've only read "Children of the Night" which is a VERY different book than this one.

I really liked how the book so thoroughly immerses you into the time frame, the social dynamics and the etiquette of the era.Ms. Lackey nicely weaves the fantasy elements into the historical realities of the period.I also appreciated how she discussed true evil as a lack of emotion, rather than rage and fire.

The book did leave me wondering how truly nasty the very nasty villain would have been if she had been born a man.

I think I'll take a trip to the Tower of London and think very hard at the ravens now.

Children with paranormal talents
The novel deals with school environment of talented children and thuss is of special interest. It's fantasy of an ideal school and good teachers,and it gives good mind and feelings to the reader, who can correlate it to her's ovn reality of the past. A nice story, with good characters, activities and environments. I recomend it to all ages, young and elder people

Magic
Most books written by Mercedes Lackey will be viewed as magic to any person that enjoys fantasy. The Wizard of London is no where short of her best. She knows how to twist old story board schemes and give us a wonder.

One of my favorites
The reviewers who nit-pick about the Elemental Masters books are probably the people who need to absorb the humanity of those books.

Fascinating Book
I was attracted to this book because of the title. London is my favourite city and anything thathas a reference to it, has an irresistable pull for me. So even if I chose the book for the wrong reasons, it still turned out to be good. Having only read 'Rediscovery' in the darkover series which Lackey co-authored, it was definitely new for me. And it was definitely a riveting and fascinating read because of the aura it surrounds you with. There is humour, subtle and sharp - and there is detail with crispness and clearness like a cold winter morning. You never feel the absence of a master plot, but the lack of it makes you take notice of the details of each situation that rises to meet you. Definitely a must read for all the people who love Darkover books ... Read more

Book Description
When a dragon storms the castle, what should a (virgin) princess do?

Why, turn to her studies, of course! But nothing practical-minded Princess Andromeda of Acadia finds gives a definitive solution. The only Traditional answer, though, is soothing the marauding dragon by a virgin sacrifice. Things are going fairly smoothly with the lottery -- except for the women chosen, of course -- until Princess Andromeda herself is picked!

But facing down the dragon doesn't go quite as planned, and now, with the help of her Champion, Sir George, Andromeda searches for the dragon's lair. But even -- especially -- in the Five Hundred Kingdoms, bucking Tradition isn't easy. It takes the strongest of wills, knowledge, quick wits and a refusal to give up, no matter what happens along the way . . .Download Description

Another story sparkling with wit and humor from New York Times bestselling author Mercedes Lackey.

Traditionally, marauding dragons are soothed only by a virgin sacrifice. And so the frightened people of Acadia devise a lottery system to choose the victims. Things are going fairly smoothly -except for the women chosen, of course-until practical-minded Princess Andromeda is picked. She accepts her duty, though she would prefer to defend herself. And so Andromeda faces the dragon alone.

Until a Champion arrives to save her -sort of. Sir George doesn't quite defeat the dragon, but as Andromeda finishes rescuing herself she discovers that beneath the Good Knight's well-meaning though inexperienced heroics lies a further tale.…

Still, Andromeda can't leave her seacoast country in further jeopardy from the dragon's return, and so she and…er… George join to search for the dragon's lair. But in the Five Hundred Kingdoms, bucking Tradition isn't easy. It takes the strongest of wills, knowledge, quick wits and a refusal to give up, no matter what happens along the way.

Somehow, though, none of this was taught in princess school.…

Customer Reviews (42)

Light hearted fantasy
Mercedes Lackey is best known for her Heralds of Valdemar series, which are very much of t ehfantasy genre.Her novels are generally complicated and written in 3-4 parts, so you are committing to a series.

What I liked about this book was that it was so quick and light hearted -- a departure from her usual style.The characters were clever and some of the "reveals" left me very surprised.I found this book in the fantasy section, but it reads like a very light romance.Certainly no hints of sex, etc.I would feel comfortable handing this to a teenager to read.

Very enjoyable characters.

Lackey is Lacking
I have been fairly impressed with the novels I've read thus far by Lackey, but found myself disappointed in this particular book. Written as the second installment in the Tale of the Five Hundred Kingdoms trilogy, it lacks the same magic as "The Fairy Godmother" and has a few inconsistencies.

In "The Fairy Godmother," characters are not aware of something called "The Tradition"--a magical element which controls the directions their lives take. Godmothers work their magic under guises and do not inform the ignorant of the role "The Tradition" is playing in their lives. In "One Good Knight", however, the princess Andromeda (Andie) is fully aware of "The Tradition" and its role in shaping the world. In my opinion, Lackey should have stayed true to how she first presented "The Tradition."

Whereas "The Fairy Godmother" focused on romance, there is hardly any in "One Good Knight." Romance subtly develops between the characters, but does not play a major role until the last chapter of the novel. As another reader stated, this is a bit odd considering Luna is a division of Harlequin. One would expect more romance.

Lastly, I was quite surprised that Lackey chose to base this story on a Greek myth. I do not think of Greek myths in the same realm of fairy tales, and felt it a bit out of place in the world of Five Hundred Kingdoms. The book is a decent and quick read, but I did not read it as quickly as I read "The Fairy Godmother." Though Elena and Alexander have cameos in this second installment, "The Fairy Godmother" can stand all on its own, and would have been better off without this follow up.

readable on a rainy afternoon
The three stars are mainly because this author is capable of writing much better books and has, such as the Valdemar and "Arrows" series. If it had been an author I was unfamiliar with, I probably would have bumped up the rating to four stars. Make of that what you will.

Plot: Princess Adromeda "Andie" is a plain but highly intelligent princess who longs to do more for her kingdom than simply exist as a lady of leisure. Her mother and chief advisor, Solon, out of less than admirable motives decide to let her take on some serious duties. Eventually, however, she is considered too much of a risk to their underhanded schemes, putting in motion the plan to send a dragon to the kingdom, which can only be appeased by regular offerings of virgins. When Andie sets off on a quest of her own, she discovers that things are not what they seem - and with an unlikely cast of characters, becomes determined to take over the throne for herself.

I enjoyed the book, but felt that more attention could have been given to the several main characters besides Andie. The ending was abrupt, with only a few pages devoted to the actual conquest of the kingdom. As for the cover, I can only guess that the artist read the description of another female character (who is a redhead) and took that for her model.

And If I Was Stabbed In The Eye With A Needle For Every Time This Happened...
I am new to Mercedes Lackey's style of writing. I am also new to the reviewing world [HI!] so this may be extremely pointless in short, there being a ridiculous amount of reviews for this book and all...But I figured I would put my two cents in.

For one? I should've figured a book titled 'One Good Knight' would be disappointing. That and I didn't pay much attention to this being a sequel to the series [sequels tend to have a bad reputation even when the characters are not related to the first one].

In this world, we get it all. Heroes, romance [subtle amount and its more focused around an actual :gasp: plotline!], dragons [Rawr...], and other magical nonsense. What I loved the most was definitely The Tradition which is [as said] based around the tradition of fairytales and is the force of it happening. An annoyance when it is mentioned too much, but then again...it is the center of the story.

Don't count on getting off during this reading session, barely enough romance to keep me hoping for my knight in shining- ...well...not exactly KNIGHT in shining armor but when you read this you will understand IF you want to waste your time.

The book is actually very well written and great up until the ending. It was missing something, it seemed hurried, and the lovey dovey crap thrown in makes me REALLY want to laugh hysterically and then hold my hand out for the real copy. Something a true good book should always have? A good ending, otherwise it makes the reader [yeah hi me] feel like they just wasted their time.

This is the summer so I am not too upset over my time gone but I definitely do not recommend this to someone who is hoping for a romantic tale, or much satisfaction when all is said and done.


-SJR

Better than some folks are saying IMHO
I've beeen a LOONG time Lackey reader started in 1980's with her very first Valdemar series Arrows. Misty is to me a interesting writer, her books are more basic on some levels than many of her counterparts and yet I find I enjoy rereading many of her books far more than some of the more complex writers.(Robert Jordan comes to mind here!)
I tend to prefer the Valdemar series, although not ALL of them mind you, and have not really enjoyed most of her tandem books with other writers.
I picked up Fairy Godmother, the first in this series, because I like writers who play with fairy tales and I enjoyed Lackey's Firebird and Black Swan also because I had heard good things about FG. I enjoyed it emensely and was happy to see there were more 500 Kingdom books.

Unlike several of the folks who complain about the lack of strong romance like in the first book I found this book a delightful read. Lackey has always had some form of romance in most of her book and where folks got the idea the the first book was full of romance I'm not sure as that romance didn't start until more than half way through it.

I like Andie, and I liked all the other characters, Misty is a bit of a sterotype writer, not in a bad way but it can make her books predictable. I did figure several things out fairly soon but it didn't remove any of the enjoyment I had in this book and I look forward to reading the third. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (24)

Mercedes Lackey Does It Again.
This book drew me in from the beginning and held me in thrall to the end. Ms. Lackey is superior in fantasy novels. I completely enjoyed this trilogy.

Okay, nothing special
Winds of Change is the second book in the Mage Winds trilogy and reads like a sequel. In this story Nyra (the catgirl) is prominently featured and the Elspeth/Darkwind romance is developed.

I found myself moderately interested in Darkwind/Elspeth's romance, mostly because I found myself annoyed by Darkwind's attitude. He objects to Elspeth acting like a princess when :gasp: that's what she is. Although I felt Elspeth explained herself pretty well, Darkwind's insistance that she change to be more 'likeable' irked this reader. His insistance on also dressing her seemed a little weird. Like he didn't love her the way she was... Only if she changed for him.

The whole Tayledras subplot I loved as a teen but found myself a bit impatient with as I get older. They seem to be Hollywood Indians with no apparent flaws. Long silvery hair, blue eyes and bohemian attitude. I was grateful for the introduction of Firesong. Before the character introduction I was beginning to think this was a race of Mary-Sues.

I also found the mindtalk between the various animals a bit tiresome. It was fun with the companions, but now there are also bondbirds, a talking sword and griffins who talk... The chatter was a little too much.

Overall, an average book but nothing that really made me want to read the third book, but since I own it, I probably will.

Not as action-packed as other Lackey books
Winds of Change is a necessary read for the fan of the "Winds" series or the Valdemar world in general.I enjoyed seeing Elspeth mature and develop as a character, and some of the developments were pleasantly unexpected.But as far as the action and story-flow of this book went, I often found myself impatient, and even tempted to skip a few pages here and there (gasp!).In this book, Lackey mostly advances the story by having characters TALK about what's happening, instead of SHOWING us what's happening.Characters discuss with one another the plans they are making, then discuss the plans with other characters, and then reveal the plans to even more characters.I've never seen so many Council meetings and planning meetings in one book!And I was frustrated by how much unneeded exposition was woven into the dialogue - characters explaining things to each other that we either already knew or would find out anyway.I found the climax at the end to be predictable and actually quite ANTI-climactic.Don't get me wrong, I'm a Lackey fan, and let's face it, the only people who are going to read this book are people who are following the series anyway... I'm NOT suggesting you should skip it.But this certainly could have been better, in my opinion.

It's better on the 2nd read
I needed to read this a 2nd time, after finishing all the other Valdemar books.It's even better.

Meh
OK, so it was better than the first book, which is not saying much. About a fifth of the book was worth reading, and that good stuff left me completely oblivious to the 'real world' as my parents call it. But, as with all of Mercedes Lackey's 'climaxes', her ending was horrible, except more so. This was the one and only time that I actually skipped to the ending, and the only reason I bothered was because, stupid me, I bought the third book.
All in all it was a mediocre book that seriously did damage to my regards of Mercedes Lackey. ... Read more

Book Description
England in the sixteenth century: a nation at a fatal fork in time, leading to two possible futures forseen by the Sidhe of Elfhame Avalon. Either an evil queen will join forces with the Inquisition and rule with a blood-spattered iron hand, threatening humans and elves alike-or a benevolent, red-haired queen named Elizabeth will rule wisely and well. But the evil Unseleighe Sidhe, who feed on human suffering and dark emotions, are determined that the little girl Elizabeth shall never grow up to take the throne. Opposing them are the good Sidhe of elfland, who have so far managed to protect the young girl. Denoriel had foiled one attempt to kidnap both Elizabeth and her half-brother and replace them with changelings, almost at the cost of his own life. But a few years have passed, and Denoriel has healed and returned to guard the young princess, now all of eight years old, secure in the knowledge that his enemy Vidal, leader of the evil Unseleighe, is dead, killed with an iron bolt fired from a primitive gun. Unfortunately, he is wrong: Vidal's armor was far stronger than any of the good elves realized. Though the wound was deep and Vidal was forced to bide his time in his own slow healing, his recovery is complete, his determination to hurl England into a new dark age is as strong as ever, and he has set in motion a plan to achieve this end of which Denoriel and his comrades are dangerously unaware. . . .

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