Rating: 
Summary: Better than past efforts
Review: Much better than other books in this series, but still somewhat unbelievable (Ok, besides the facts that the whole premise of elves, Bards, etc. is unbelievable). How many parents have one 18-year-old who runs away, and then turn around and have another kid who knows nothing about his much older brother? I happen to have a sister who is 19 years older than I am, but believe me, I know all about her from my family. I don't think the fact that Magnus knew nothing about Eric is plausible. Otherwise, this book gets high marks, and the next one should be equally as good. I get the idea that Mercedes Lackey and Rosemary Edghill put some time into this one -- rather than just cranking them out like some of the others in the series seem to have been.
Rating:
Summary: Exciting adventure--but with a few holes
Review: The children tell a story about Bloody Mary--seeing her means death. And homeless children in post-9/11 New York have been seeing a lot of death lately. Some of that death has magic at its core. Bard Eric Banyon is shocked to find that he has a brother--one raised in the same horrible environment that he barely escaped from, but that the brother has run away and is living homeless in New York. With the brother, an elf child--that rarest of treasures, and a talented girl struggle to survive--or to die. Eric knows helping his brother will be complicated, but he doesn't know that he'll have to face the frightful magic of Bloody Mary, a top-secret government organization dedicated to exterminating the magical among us, and a power-hungry maniac who thinks he can murder his way into the guardians. Authors Mercedes Lackey and Rosemary Edghill offer an exciting urban fantasy adventure story. Targeted at young adults, MAD MAUDLIN reminds us that there can be things worse than homelessness. All three of the homeless children would rather die than return to their parents--and make frequent poor decisions as a result. Fortunately, Eric has powerful friends of his own--both among the elves and among humans. The guardians--magic-wielding humans exist to help those who need help, and Eric needs help a lot. Lackey and Edghill rely on the fairly standard magic of urban fantasy--seelie and unseelie courts (seleighe and unseleighe in their book), super-beautiful elves, and generally evil adult humans. MAD MAUDLIN left some loose ends--possibly to be resolved in the sequel. But I do wonder that none of our heroic party ever asked who sent the hell-hounds after the three children. Surely that is a question that needed to be answered. Also, I would have liked to have more evidence of Eric's parents' evil behavior. For the young-adult audience, this may not be an issue--parents are generally assumed to be self-absorbed and useless. For parents, pushing children to get out of bed and do something may be seen as less evil. Fans of Mercedes Lackey come in all ages and I can't imagine I was the only one disturbed by the lack of evidence for Eric's parents' perfidy. Quibbles aside, MAD MAUDLIN is an exciting and well written story.
Rating: 
Summary: WHERE IS THE CONCLUSION
Review: This had better be a continuing story. The author trys to weave too many story lines into one narrative and leaves them all hanging. The story itself is enjoyable but not up to previous efforts. In the end the various stories never did come togeather into a cohesive package. I hope the next book Music to my Sorrow brings it all togeather. However, not to be too negative it was an good read and kept my interest. So read and enjoy and wait for the next book.
Rating:
Summary: :::sigh:::
Review: This is one of those books that let you know you have a good friend in the author. I had this book preordered when it came out, and tore through it the night and early morning I got it. Lackey and Edgehill get better and better each time they work together. Eric has left behind him occasionally obnoxious whining and self pity, His brother has managed to figure out his parents are scum, with out going over the edge into all people are scum. The other characters are rich, and full, even the elves seem more real in this book. I can't wait for the next one.
Rating: 
Summary: Elves in New York? Again!!
Review: This is the third collaboration in this series between Mercedes Lackey, well known for the Valdemar books, and Rosemary Edghill, an eclectic writer of everything from historicals to romance to New Age mysteries (the Bast stories). In many ways, this is the best of the three collaborations. The saga of Eric Banyon, former drunk, druggie and musical prodigy continues in post-9/11 New York. The characters seem to grow and be more fully realized with each new book, and I am glad to report that there will be _at least_ one more! This is a terrific read, and one of those rare books that will support a back-to-back re-read. Hot book! Buy it! Read it! Enjoy it! Walt Boyes
(the Bananaslug. at Baen's Bar)
Rating:
Summary: Loved It.
Review: This was a great book, I couldn't put it down. Lackey is one of my favorite authors, and I have been looking forward to this book for a long time; it didn't disappoint.
Rating:
Summary: Loved It.
Review: This was a great book, I couldn't put it down. Lackey is one of my favorite authors, and I have been looking forward to this book for a long time; it didn't disappoint.
Rating: 
Summary: Not Misty's Best.
Review: While opening and proceeding smoothly, this book doesn't so much end as thud to a halt, with an epilogue that ties things up about as well as trying to contain twelve kittens with a strand of fettucine. Some of the recurring characters have lost any of the heart that made them interesting, while others have glaring errors on their past histories, and the character of Beth Kentraine has become so unspeakably annoying that one wishes she had quietly vanished Underhill, never to be heard from again. One of the problems I find with this series is that I strongly suspect Edghill is doing the bulk of the writing; I've read her work, and disliked it, and I find this series to be really lacking in the little stylistic touches that make Lackey's style stand out. Also, the themes of the stories are faintly unpleasant; sort of akin to the SERRAted Edge books, which explored child abuse. These are not books that a reader is likely to return to, unlike the Valdemar and Elemental Mage series. Still, not a bad work- just not one of Misty and her collaborators' best.
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