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Summary: AMAZING!!!
Review: Talia is a wonderful charecter. You'll just love her. Its fun to red how her life changes from awful to terrific. Skif, Keren, Ylsa, Jaden, Teren, Kris, and Dirk keep you on your seat. Talia knows just how to make everyone pleased. Its a MUST read! I want to read it again, and normally I ant to read books only once!
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Summary: The Saga Begins
Review: Mercedes Lackey's popular Heralds of Valdemar series starts with this simple story about an oppressed farm girl that runs away and lives her dream.
simple words do not describe Mrs.Lackey's telling of this story, you must experience it for yourself, if you like High fantasy, without the main hero bieng a sterotype, get this book, you will love it.
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Summary: Arrows of the Queen
Review: This is the best book in the world.It is an adventure/fantasy book. For Harry Potter fans out there it's better then #4. For non-Harry Potter fans out there, this is a REALLY good book!
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Summary: To this day a favorite Lackey novel
Review: For a first book, this is a great effort. It was not my introduction to Misty (that would be The Black Gryphon, a must read) but instead a nice addition to Valdemar. And considering that it's the first book in the trilogy that starts the era that the majority of her valdemar novels have taken place in, it's a solid foundation.Criticisms... A somewhat plain girl, abused by a relative, falls in love with an ugly man, is a governess (sort of)...felt very familiar to me. Praise...Misty is a favorite author of mine, and her valdemar series is some of her best work. Arrows is a book where the woman is not the sexual plaything of others (although there is *gasp* sex--non graphic in the book...wow, who in the world has ever done THAT???) is not brainless and is not background which are major criticsms of other fantasy authors. Talia is a girl who comes into her own. I would much rather my sisters and eventually daughters read about girls like her rather model themselves after Britney Spears (who although she may claim to "own" her sexuality, is told how to dress and what to sing by middle aged men...). Talia has a power that is unlike anything seen in Valdemar or in Misty novels before. She is a powerful empath. What I find most interesting is that Misty examines the moral dilemmas inherent in having a very high political position (queens own) and having a power that could allow you to "read" what others are thinking and perhaps even to "nudge" them into your way of thinking. What are the limits? What are the proper uses...theres no guidelines for this. Talia's friendships and her gradual easing of fear towards men is also done very well. An abused girl does not trust men..this is fact. The way Misty handles it is quite well. Her friendships with a lesbian couple is also done quite well. Their sexuality is not dwelt upone, but neither is it hidden. 10% of the real world is gay...deal with it. All in all, a good example of her work.
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Summary: Great Read... so get started!
Review: As a veteran reader of Lackey lore, I highly recommend this book for all new fantasy readers and old soldiers like myself. This book follows the adventures of a young woman, Talia, who is considered an outcast by her conservitive family becasue, get this, she actually has a brain! A lover of books (my kinda girl) and possessing an active imagination, she dreams of becoming a Herald of Valdemar. But when her father and step mothers try to get her to marry instead, her course suddenly becomes meshed with a Herald's Companion. Now further out of favor than she has ever been before, Talia decides to "return" the Companion to its Herald. This decision leads her to the capitol of Valdemar where her adventures truely begin. If you wish to find out exactly what I mean, get the book and start reading. The charming blend of loveable characters and masterful tale weaving will hold you, as many like to say, "way past your bed time".
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Summary: Trix are for Kids! So is this series...
Review: This series, whether intentioned or not, is strictly for young adults. And by 'young adults' I mean the 10-15 age range. I realize that 'Arrow's of the Queen' is Madam Lackey's first attempt at a series, but unless it was specifically written for the aforementioned age group, I find it's simplicity annoying. Talia, our heroine, is a 13-year old Holderkin, a religious order analogous to the polygamous Mormons of old (and still some to this day...), who sees her eventual lot in life and wishes for something more. About to be married off to some old geezer as a 6th wife, she runs away and is found by a magical white horse, or 'Companion', and is whisked off to the Collegium to be trained as a 'Herald.' And that's all. End of plot. Or is it? Here are the main plot devices used in this entire 3 book series: 1. Crying: And lot's of it! Women cry. Men cry. Children cry. I'm surprised that the 'Companions' dont cry. They are the only ones who don't. Sometimes a whole page goes by without someone sobbing. Sometimes. 2. Sex: And lot's of it! It's apparently common knowledge throughout Vandemar that the Heralds are an extremely randy bunch. Sometimes a whole page goes by without someone or something having sex. Sometimes. 3. Exclamation!: And lot's of it! It is quite evident that in Vandemar the custom is to shout! All of the time! Even when crying or having sex!!! Sometimes a whole sentence goes by without rampant misuse of punctuation! Sometimes! 4. Pet Names: Ad nausea. The women, men, and 'Companions' continually spout such sickeningly sweet pet names as 'little bird', 'dearling', 'little centaur', 'cat-ling', 'beast', you get the drift. These little pet names are used so often in conversation that they became a distracting annoyance for me. There is one conversation in one of the books where Kris, a close friend and, of course, lover of Talia uses the pet name 'little bird' 4 times in almost as many continual sentences! Jeez. Sometimes a whole sentence goes by without the use of one of these "endearments." Sometimes. There really is no plot in any of the 3 books in this series. Oh sure Talia has a couple of cardboard cutout enemies to deal with. But these 3rd rate bad guys such as Lord Orthallen, a co-councilor of Talia's, Hulda, the nursemaid of the Queens child, and Ancar, the Prince of a rival country, are given little play or development. As for sword and sorcery... There is none. And I mean in any of the 3 books of the series! There is exactly 1 sword fight in all three books. Magic of any kind, even the 'Gifts' used by the Heralds is given little development. The whole second book of the series, "Arrow's Flight", revolves around Talia's 'Gift'. At it's conclusion the reader stills knows next to nothing of the origins, use, or purpose of these gifts. I am completely baffled by this entire series. I questioned my sanity when I completed it. Why had I invested my time? Where was the return? Where was the 'suspension of belief' that even decent fantasy has? A feeling of empty ambivalence was my only answer to these questions. I would have given this book, this entire series, 1 star, but I gave it 2 because I could only suppose that it was written for children. In that light, this sappy pabulum should appeal to girl's of age 10-15 and should be avoided by any age or gender above that mark.
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Summary: Decent Brain Popcorn
Review: Usually it's negative messages that get sledgehammered into people, not positive ones -- never have I been hit over the head so hard with the idea that "It's OK!" *wham* "to be gay!" *wham*. Of course, this is a first novel, and as such, it's actually pretty decent -- it's no "Lord of the Rings" by any stretch of the imagination, and I'll probably never re-read it, but for an afternoon's dalliance it was certainly acceptable. And there's no doubt that it's chock-full of positive role-models (wham!) for young women.
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Summary: My First, but Not Last, Mercedes Lackey Book!!!
Review: Arrows of the Queen was my first Mercedes Lackey book. And I definetly will read more. I am an avid reader of fantasy, and this book was great!!! Lackey does a good job explaining Heralds, Companions, and the job of the Queens own. This book is "mature" but not as bad as some other. Great story for young adults about a girl who finds herself in a strange place and learns to fit in and overcome personal obstacles.
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Summary: Fantasy at its best!
Review: This was the first fantasy novel I ever read and it changed me forever. I became an avid fantasy reader because of Ms. Lackey's wonderful writing. I have read all of Lackey's work to date but feel that this is one of her finest pieces. It is a must read for any fantasy lover. The story is beautiful and creative, the writing superb. I highly recommend it.
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Summary: Arrows of the Queen Review
Review: Well, unlike many other people, this was not the first Mercedes Lackey book that I read. I started with Magic's Pawn, and I believe that it is a much better book. For my tastes, this book was a little to light. It also had a startling resemliance to Anne McCaffery's Dragonriders of Pern. I enjoyed reading this book and I think that it would be great book for those begining to read fanticy. For those already into fanticy, don't be put off by the first book . . . they get progressively better as you go along. I have to say one thing in favor for this book, though. I was compleaty enthrolled when I read it.
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