Owlknight (Valdemar: Darian's Tale, Book 3)

Rating:
Summary: An excellent addition to the Valdemar universe!
Review: Darian's third adventure is a pleasure to read. And I disagree strongly with some of the other reviewers below. The three novels in the DARIAN`S TALE sequence are not as tigtly plotted as some of the other books in Misty Lackey's Valdemar universe, but they offer a lot of insights into everyday life in a Valdemaran village, a hawkbrother vale and even a Northern clan village. There's is no big LET`S SAVE THE WORLD YET AGAIN conflict that carries these novels. These three books are carried only by the characters and their slow maturation and growth. If you read all three books in the DARIAN`S TALE sequence in a row, you will realize what I mean. In these books Misty Lackey and Larry Dixon haven chosen to do without royal polticis and court intrigues, and I am really greatful for that. Darian's slow maturation in the course of three novels from an unlikeable and totally irresponsible teenager in OWLFLIGHT to the responsible and caring adult in OWLKNIGHT is a pleasure to read. And Mercedes Lackey announced that a fourth book in this sequence is planned.

Rating:
Summary: a decent read, but one of lackey's weakest books
Review: The Owl series started off strong and remained interesting through Owlsight, but Owlknight is weak. The plot is much thinner, the main characters act/think in ways inconsistent with their earlier development. Lackey often has a bit of a moralistic tone (diversity is good, tolerance is good, etc). Nothing wrong with that, and it usually works well, but here it comes across as preachy.

Until the last 50 pages of the book, everything goes basically without hitch for Darian and friends -- where are the conflicts and intensity of writing of "The Last Herald Mage"??

Don't get me wrong, I'm a major fan of Mercedes Lackey, and have read (and own!) just about every one of her works and collabarations. I strongly recommend Owlflight, and Owlsight is a good follow-on, but get Owlknight in paperback, and only if you've read and enjoyed the first two Owl books.

Rating:
Summary: Great! Almost perfect
Review: Owlknight is the third and last volume in Lackey's Owl Trilogy. In this novel, Darian is honored for his many accomplishments, works on his problems with his girlfriend Keisha, and goes to look for his missing parents. 
 
Typically, I enjoy all  Lackey novels, but OwlKnight's suffered from a rambling plot line, too many over-powered characters, and 'Local 'Boy Makes Good Syndrome.'  (I.E. black sheep of the family returns home, and the rural rubes are awed and amazed at how witty/charming/saintly our hero has become). Please. What is that saying about never being appreciated in your own village? Apparently untrue in Valdemar.
 
Also, there were quite a few plot thread's left hanging that I wish Lackey had addressed. First, Darian's resolve to tell Winterfox about the young barmaid Lilly from the first book... He never does. Then,  Winterfox's resolve to counsel Darian and Keisha about their relationship. Nothing happened there either.  And finally, the sub plot about the Herald's Anda's arrival in the veil. He arrives... And Darian goes off on his adventure... And that's it? There is all this build up and suspense about what Anda will be like... What he will do...And... Nothing. Fizzle.  Further, Snowfire, Darian's adopted brother is almost completely absent in the book after playing such a major role in the first book in the series, he's reduced to a cardboard caricature of himself.
 
Lastly, there is the entire subplot of Keisha and Darian's relationship. (I hesitate to call it a 'romance' because it wasn't). I thought their relationship wasn't a particularly good one. There wasn't really a decent reason for these two characters to care about eachother.  Keisha seems WAY to insecure, and Darian is completely overconfident. (Did anyone else think this relationship was doomed for failure?)  Neither seem particularly happy with eachother... So why the big push to get them together? Is there some unwritten rule that characters at the end of a trilogy must be married?
 
While this book left me with an 'unsatisfied, there must be more feeling' I found Lackey's writing style compelling as usual, even if there wasn't a lot of action. I hope that there will be a sequel so we can learn just what happens to Darian and his friends. There is certainly a lot of room for further development.

Rating:
Summary: Second review, hope this one get's posted.....
Review: First off, if you want to know what i think of this book, read my other review. this one is a message to all who insulted this book. Childish? Failing? Falls short? Ok, you people have problems. I for one thought this book rocked, and that just because it isn't exactly what you would want doesn't make it bad.
Ok, explaining the belt buckles was a little extensive, but other than that it was perfect.

Rating:
Summary: LOVED IT! LOVED IT! LOVED IT!!!!!
Review: REALLY GOOD BOOK!!! the first two were fantastic, but this one was even BETTER!!! really good, you have to read it, buy it, you'll love it for sure!!!

Rating:
Summary: Great! Almost perfect
Review: Owlknight is the third and last volume in Lackey's Owl Trilogy. In this novel, Darian is honored for his many accomplishments, works on his problems with his girlfriend Keisha, and goes to look for his missing parents. 
 
Typically, I enjoy all  Lackey novels, but OwlKnight's suffered from a rambling plot line, too many over-powered characters, and 'Local 'Boy Makes Good Syndrome.'  (I.E. black sheep of the family returns home, and the rural rubes are awed and amazed at how witty/charming/saintly our hero has become). Please. What is that saying about never being appreciated in your own village? Apparently untrue in Valdemar.
 
Also, there were quite a few plot thread's left hanging that I wish Lackey had addressed. First, Darian's resolve to tell Winterfox about the young barmaid Lilly from the first book... He never does. Then,  Winterfox's resolve to counsel Darian and Keisha about their relationship. Nothing happened there either.  And finally, the sub plot about the Herald's Anda's arrival in the veil. He arrives... And Darian goes off on his adventure... And that's it? There is all this build up and suspense about what Anda will be like... What he will do...And... Nothing. Fizzle.  Further, Snowfire, Darian's adopted brother is almost completely absent in the book after playing such a major role in the first book in the series, he's reduced to a cardboard caricature of himself.
 
Lastly, there is the entire subplot of Keisha and Darian's relationship. (I hesitate to call it a 'romance' because it wasn't). I thought their relationship wasn't a particularly good one. There wasn't really a decent reason for these two characters to care about eachother.  Keisha seems WAY to insecure, and Darian is completely overconfident. (Did anyone else think this relationship was doomed for failure?)  Neither seem particularly happy with eachother... So why the big push to get them together? Is there some unwritten rule that characters at the end of a trilogy must be married?
 
While this book left me with an 'unsatisfied, there must be more feeling' I found Lackey's writing style compelling as usual, even if there wasn't a lot of action. I hope that there will be a sequel so we can learn just what happens to Darian and his friends. There is certainly a lot of room for further development.

Rating:
Summary: I enjoyed the Owlknight trilogy
Review: I have enjoyed all of the Mercedes Lackey books I have read. Sometimes I get the hardcover version from the library and buy the paperback later, when it comes out. My adult daughter, Margo, likes them too. While some of the books may not be as good as others, I have enjoyed them all. I have read all of the Lackey books I own at least twice, usually more often.

(...)

Rating:
Summary: I enjoyed the "Owl" triology and other Lackey books
Review: I have enjoyed all of Mercedes Lackey's books that I have read. That includes nearly all of the ones in paperback. Sometimes I get a hardcover version from the library and buy the paperback later, when it comes out. I have read all of the Lackey books I own at least twice. While some may not be as good as others, I consider them all worth reading and buying. My adult daughter, Margo, likes them too.

The reader who decided to boycott future books because he or she didn't like Owlknight, will miss a lot of good reading. It would be better to check them out at the library and buy those you like (for rereading etc).

Rating:
Summary: Mixed feelings
Review: In my opinion, this trilogy peaked with the second book and then slipped back to 'mediocre' with Owlknight, the finale. I continue to like the characters, and I think Mercedes Lackey creates wonderful personalities. However, the action of the book didn't keep me interested, and I continue to be frustrated by some of the poor writing. No matter how much I like the PEOPLE, I get frustrated when I find myself re-reading passages over and over to try to figure out what the authors are trying to say. (In the Epilogue in particular, I believe there's a reference to four people, but only three are mentioned by name. Now, I think I know who the fourth was, but it tripped me up for a moment.)

In response to "a reader," yes, Mercedes Lackey is human and can't be expected to churn out heart-wrenching tale after heart-wrenching tale. However, that doesn't mean we shouldn't give our honest opinion about a book and warn her fans that this book may not live up to their expectations. (Unless, of course, you've read Owlflight or some of the Mage Wars books and have already lowered your expectations ...)

Rating:
Summary: Weakest book of weakest Valdemar series
Review: Publishers' money-making propensity for trilogies serves this series ill. It coulda shoulda been done in two books rather than three. The first two books were decent though attenuated tales, with nothing much new to add to the Valdemar history and much lower key than earlier series. That's okay. Not every fantasy has to be about struggles against master villains or world-altering forces successfully overcome. But in scaling back to more everyday conflicts and concerns, Lackey and Dixon have made Owlknight in particular too everyday. The first half of this book is drawn out painfully with a combination of National Geographic-style anthropology, a romance novelist's obsession with details of dress and food, and a Martha Stewart view of the exterior and interior decor of Hawkbrother architecture. Highly skimmable and not worth the cost of admission, even at paperback prices. Check it out of the library if you have to know what happened. But don't bother to buy this book.