Rating: 
Summary: Slightly flawed
Review: Generally a good effort, though lacking the excitment and suspense of the first in the series. Rawn's wanton killing of characters for no good reason continues, leaving the reader devastated, depressed and disgusted by the end of the novel. This seems to be the ways she writes - build up a character over a a book or series, then kill them off as soon as possible with very little in the way of advancing the plot.
The key word in this second installment of the Exiles series is "traitor" and to a greater extent "intrigue" or "mystery". If you loved the first one, don't miss this volume.
Rating: 
Summary: The Mageborn Traitor - doesn't live up to Exiles Vol. 1
Review: I have been an enormous fan of Melanie Rawn ever since Dragon Prince was published. I absolutely loved the political intrigue of Exiles: The Ruins of Ambrai, and waited eagerly for the second book of the trilogy. I have to say, however, that the book was a disappointment. The first half of the book jumped abruptly from one time period to another, leaving the reader disoriented and reeling from the sudden shifts in time and place. The early parts of the novel had little substance, and instead served only to introduce the situations and characters of the end. I didn't care about the characters as I had in the first book, and wasn't emotionally affected by the book's situations until favorite characters were suddenly and pointlessly killed. The deaths didn't serve to advance the story, but seemed to be added only for the shock value (with one exception, which was seemingly added to fully develop Sarra in the next book). In summary, the new characters weren't fully developed, the book was lacking in suspense and went nowhere for several hundred pages, and Rawn's consummate attention to detail was curiously missing. I'll buy Exiles, Vol. 3 to complete the set, but I'm certainly not dying to read it. When my favorite major character died, the series lost much of its attraction.
Rating: 
Summary: Sphere Fantasy Review -- http://www.fantasylink.com
Review: The plot of the series is obviously very interesting. Sadly, however, the plot is the only mildly interesting part of this particular book in the series. To be completely honest, the plot of the book isn't very interesting and intriguing at all. In fact, the back cover description was more exiting and thrilling to read than the actual book itself. More to the point, there doesn't seem to be a concise plot whatsoever in this book It is almost as if Melanie Rawn needed a book to put between the first and last books in the series, to describe the occurrences that happens between the real stories. Most of the book deals with the trivial things that the sisters experience in their lives, that don't have a significant impact on the plot of the series itself. Also, she tried to use this time to add to our knowledge social structure of the book through the casual conversations and events of the main characters. To her credit, she has created a complex and interesting society and culture where women dominate men politically and sexually. She also raises some very important questions in the book that deal with our current society, from children's rights to spousal abuse. Yet, in the context of this novel, and in the flippant way it is treated in the novel, one can not take her attempt at social awareness seriously. After the book is over, you can only help feeling annoyed by her attempts.
Often, when a book of this nature exists, a reader can find some satisfaction in the characters themselves. It does make sense that if this book serves as a buffer between the two important books of the series, in order that we might learn more about the characters as they grown older and develop, that we should have some insight into their lives. In this book we do have considerable insight into fairly deeply developed characters. It is too bad, however, that all of the characters of the book seem suspiciously deeply developed in the same way. Almost every single character in the book is amazingly good looking and extremely sharp and witty beyond measure. It seems that half of dialogue is the humorous comments between the characters as they try to convince each other how much smarter and witty they are than the rest of the characters. If we deleted the names of the characters, I am sure that one couldn't even tell who was talking most of the time.
Only towards the end of the book does some plot does develop that could be of interest, and an occasional reader might actually find themselves interested in the particular details. This would only be possible if you liked a plot that was some type of insane mix between a Danielle Steel Novel and a John Grisham novel. It seems that Melanie Rawn, while writing this novel, realized that she didn't say much in the first 475 pages, so she tried to shove all the suspense, intrigue and romance into the remaining 125 pages - through a court room drama/love affair that appears almost out of nowhere. This novel was definitely not worth reading, let a lone buying. In my reviews, I never try to make general judgments on novels, especially those from writers who have a serious, loyal following of readers who cling to their every words. However, considering that this novel is so far from the standard that Melanie Rawn usually puts out, I will make an exception. Don't waste you money on it. If you wish to know what happens, ask a friend who read it, or e-mail me. In fact, knowing what happens in this book won't affect the rest of the series. In all probability (unless the third novel is similarly structured) you can just read the first and third novel and not be lost at all. There is only one word I can think of that best describes this book: FLUFF. It looks like a lot, but there isn't much to it except air.
Rating: 
Summary: Fantasy beyond the normal genre
Review: Having always enjoyed Melanie Rawn's works I was
surprised at this book setting a new standard for her works. The Mageborn Traitor not only includes
traditional good versus evil, but also uses excellent politcal intrigue. The inclusion of a matriarchal society was refreshing and at times humorous . As a male, I found myself thinking that Ms.
Rawn has a rare talent when my pleasure reading causes introspection. Being a second volume, The Mageborn
Traitor has all of the characters we got to know in the first
book but also expands the cast with the maturing of the
Sara and Collan's twins and Glenins son. If what you love
in a book is an other world, rich charaters and meaning beyond the page, this is a must read.
Rating: 
Summary: Not up to Rawn's usual standards
Review: Having acquired The Mageborn Traitor, Volume II of Melanie Rawn's new series, Exiles, through Amazon's web page, I am reluctant to admit that I am disappointed with Ms. Rawn's new book. Not usually a fan of Fantasy, I own 8 books by Ms. Rawn - the Dragon Prince and Dragon Star trilogies and now the first two books in the Exiles series. I looked forward (eagerly) to obtaining The Mageborn Traitor. Unfortunately, this book, to Rawn fans, may be eerily familiar; it invokes many of the plot devices and mechanisms of the first two trilogies, even to the point of killing similar, well-liked characters off unexpectedly; magical fights between siblings; the ever-present twin children, etc. Moreover, I found it very difficult to "engage" with the new characters introduced in "Traitor." I am simply unable to care about the fate of Sarra and Collan's children; their characters are either inadequately developed by the author, or are created in such a fashion as to fail to invoke sympathy or liking. I believe that Ms. Rawn, as she did in Dragon Star, expects the reader to transfer his/her "affections" to the children of her main characters as they would their own children, (in other words, simply because they are born), and this is not the case. Lastly, I am becoming increasingly intolerant of Ms. Rawn's (and other authors') quite deliberate device of leaving the reader hanging at the end of each book to ensure the sales of the next. This is egregious behavior. Each book in a series should stand on its own; the reader should not be left to wait four years - as is the case with the time span between "Ruins" and "Traitor" to achieve a sense of satisfaction with the plot line. In any event, this series is, again, very, very similar to her first two (especially Dragon Star); in the first book, the "good" side or sibling wins; in the second, they are bested or besieged by the "bad" side or sibling; much-loved characters are quite suddenly killed off; the children of the "good" side "might" be possessed of evil, and almost none of the questions raised in the first book are answered in the second, thereby ensuring the sales of the third. Again, I'm sorry to say it was a disappointment to me; I do not think I will err again in purchasing her next book in hardcover, which I've done with the last few
Rating:
Summary: good cheese, but it's no brie...
Review: i have a tendancy to rate books and movies in terms of cheese (depending on their quality or "cheesiness"). bad cheese is like limburger (smelly and unappetizing), while good cheese is like velveeta (smooth), and the best is brie (high quality stuff).the ruins of ambrai was the first rawn book i read. my friend lent it to me one day, and for the rest of the day, i couldn't put it down. a week later, (it would have been sooner, but i had schoolwork)i returned the ruins of ambrai to my friend in exchange for the mageborn traitor. i think it was only my concern for her great characters and my intense need to find out what happens next that kept me going through the book. it had a fairly good plot, but it was extremely slow reading. in the ruins of ambrai, everything happened non-stop. it was truly action-packed. but the mageborn traitor was filled with....waiting. it got rather boring at times. i still recommend it, and am eagerly awaiting the third book, but if the captal's tower is anything like the mageborn traitor, i will be rather disappointed.
Rating:
Summary: The best sequel ever...
Review: After the amazing Ruins of Ambrai, I was expecting the usual disappointing sequel. But when I read The Mageborn Traitor I couldn't help being thrilled because it was still the same amazing writing and excitement as the last book. My only complaint is that I have been waiting forever for the Captal's Tower and you can only keep reading the same books (even these) over and over so many times.
Rating:
Summary: Today's problems in a different light
Review: One of the greates reads I've ever come accross. It is definitely up to speed with the rest of MR's works and once again flaunts her abilities to create a whole new and entirely different world, way of life, and view on very real and pending topics in today's society. From homosexuality to mixing political and religious affairs, the whole spectrum is covered with a style of writing that can be called nothing less than a graceful masterpeice.
Rating:
Summary: Worthwhile
Review: To start I want to say that I loved the Ruins of Ambrai, it is a bit confusing, and the first time through I had a hard time following everything. However, I find that all these so called "extra characters" that Melanie throws in through the book become important later on, and several of the backburner characters become front runners in Mageborn Traitor. I enjoyed this book so much that I've read it 6 or 7 times, and I'm on my way through it again. There are so many twists and turns that the plot will keep you guessing. It is almost impossible to fathom what she might have planned for the third book in the series (which hopefully will be out soon) but I know it will be a treat. I highly reccomend this book to anyone who enjoys the fantasy genre.
Rating:
Summary: The best sequel ever...
Review: After the amazing Ruins of Ambrai, I was expecting the usual disappointing sequel. But when I read The Mageborn Traitor I couldn't help being thrilled because it was still the same amazing writing and excitement as the last book. My only complaint is that I have been waiting forever for the Captal's Tower and you can only keep reading the same books (even these) over and over so many times.
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