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The Oathbound (Vows and Honor Book 01) by Mercedes Lackey

Description: Bound by oath to each other and to the Goddess, the swordswoman Tarma and the wizard Kethry begin a joint career as mercenaries in the constant struggle for justice in a land where demons come in human and not-so-human forms. The author of the “Heroes of Valdemar” trilogy begins a new series involving a pair of likeable, savvy heroines. Sword and sorcery with warmth and humor make this a story that will appeal to most fantasy fans. Buy From:

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The Oathbound is the first book in the Vows and Honor Quadrilogy that tells us how Tarma and Kethry (Swordsworn and Mage) met and how they built up a reputation as reliable mercenaries over a period of time.

The book is a decent read but while the stories are fun some parts of the book appear disjointed, meaning some parts read like they were originally separate stories that were stitched together to make a book. For example in one of chapters Kethry and Tarma explain again how they defeated a particular enemy even though that was just covered in the previous chapter. There are many small instances like this one that break the flow of the book.

This is not that surprising though ’cause if I remember correctly most of the stories in this book were earlier published as short stories in one of the sword and sorcery magazines.

The book is one of Lackey’s earlier work and it is quite easy to see how her writing has evolved from this book to her latest works. Not that this book is bad, just that her later works are more polished.

Final Recommendation: Good read. Gives you the back story of some of the secondary characters in the main stream Valdemar books.

The Desert Spear (Demon Series Book 02) by Peter V. Brett

Description: The sun is setting on humanity. The night now belongs to voracious demons that arise as the sun sets, preying upon a dwindling population forced to cower behind ancient and half-forgotten symbols of power. These wards alone can keep the demons at bay, but legends tell of a Deliverer: a general – some would say prophet – who once bound all mankind into a single force that defeated the demons. Those times, if they ever existed, are long past. The demons are back, and the return of the Deliverer is just another myth . . . or is it? Out of the desert rides Ahmann Jardir, who has forged the warlike desert tribes of Krasia into a demon-killing army. He has proclaimed himself Shar’Dama Ka, the Deliverer, and he carries ancient weapons – a spear and a crown – that give credence to his claim. Sworn to follow the path of the first Deliverer, he has come north to bring the scattered city-states of the green lands together in a war against demonkind – whether they like it or not. But the northerners claim their own Deliverer. His name was Arlen, but all know him now as the Warded Man: a dark, forbidding figure whose skin is tattooed with wards so powerful they make him a match for any demon. The Warded Man denies that he is the Deliverer, but his actions speak louder than words, for he teaches men and women to face their fears and stand fast against the creatures that have tormented them for centuries. Once the Shar’Dama Ka and the Warded Man were friends, brothers in arms. Now they are fierce adversaries. Caught between them are Renna, a young woman pushed to the edge of human endurance; Leesha, a proud and beautiful healer whose skill in warding surpasses that of the Warded Man himself; and Rojer, a traveling fiddler whose uncanny music can soothe the demons – or stir them into such frenzy that they attack one another. Yet as old allegiances are tested and fresh alliances forged, all are blissfully unaware of the appearance of a new breed of demon, more intelligent – and deadly – than any that have come before. Buy From:

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The Desert Spear is the second book in the Demon Trilogy. The book is a good read with pretty intricate plotlines and story. It is a rare author that can manage so many view points in the same book without loosing the reader but Brett manages it quite well.. Infact I only realized that he was juggling 8 different view points when I read the Acknowledgment section of the book where he mentioned it.

One point that did annoy me a bit was his tendency to switch the name used for a character from his last name to his first name all of a sudden and back for no particular reason. I had to go back to a previous chapter to figure out who Ahmann was and how come everyone was deferring to him all of a sudden instead of Jardir (They were the same person)

Other thank that the storyline was good and the characters well written.

Final recommendation: A must read. You should read the 1st book before you read this one but that’s not required however you will gain a greater grasp of the story if you do.

The River Kings’ Road by Liane Merciel

Description: A fragile period of peace between the eternally warring kingdoms of Oakharn and Langmyr is shattered when a surprise massacre fueled by bloodmagic ravages the Langmyrne border village of Willowfield, killing its inhabitants – including a visiting Oakharne lord and his family – and leaving behind a scene so grisly that even the carrion eaters avoid its desecrated earth. But the dead lord’s infant heir has survived the carnage – a discovery that entwines the destinies of Brys Tarnell, a mercenary who rescues the helpless and ailing babe, and who enlists a Langmyr peasant, a young mother herself, to nourish and nurture the child of her enemies as they travel a dark, perilous road . . . Odosse, the peasant woman whose only weapons are wit, courage, and her fierce maternal love – and who risks everything she holds dear to protect her new charge . . . Sir Kelland, a divinely blessed Knight of the Sun, called upon to unmask the architects behind the slaughter and avert war between ancestral enemies . . . Bitharn, Kelland’s companion on his journey, who conceals her lifelong love for the Knight behind her flawless archery skills – and whose feelings may ultimately be Kelland’s undoing . . . and Leferic, an Oakharne Lord’s bitter youngest son, whose dark ambitions fuel the most horrific acts of violence. As one infant’s life hangs in the balance, so too does the fate of thousands, while deep in the forest, a Maimed Witch practices an evil bloodmagic that could doom them all. . . . Buy From:

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The River Kings’ road is the first novel by Liane Merciel and it shows that she is an author to watch out for in the future. The book tells us the story of a mercenary knight who wants to save his Lord’s son but not for love but for reward and self interest, it tells us the story of a peasant girl hired to serve as a wet nurse for the child and finally it tells us of a blessed one who wants to find the truth about what happened in order to forestall a war. The three stories go on in parallel at first and then after a while start interacting with each other. Since the book is the first in the series a lot of framework is built where future stories can be written but thankfully this is not at the expense of the story in the current book. At the end of the book there are some questions left unanswered and that lets me to believe that more books in the series will be forthcoming soon. While the characters in the book were mostly well written some of them could have benefited from a bit more depth. Over all a great effort for a new author. Final recommendation: A great book for fans of Fantasy

Joust (Jouster Book 01) by Mercedes Lackey

Description: This is the first book in the Jouster series which follows the life of Vetch (known as Kiron later in the book) where he goes from a seriously ill-treated serf to a dragon boy for an honorable jouster (Ari). I liked the book a lot and it didn’t try to make all ills right. i.e. Vetch still hated the Tians for killing his father and that rage didn’t disappear in a day when he was made into a dragon-boy and treated well for the first time in his life. It took time and effort on Air’s part to make him see Ari as an honorable person and not as a hated Tian. Lackey’s experience with falcons and other birds of prey shows in the way she describes the training for the dragons and how they behaved in the book. Obviously some parts are based on the author’s imagination but they have a base in reality which makes the actions in the book very convincing. I have read this book multiple times before and will probably re-read it again after a few months. Actually I think that’s true for most of the books written by her. Final recommendation: A must read book even if you don’t like fantasy. Buy From:

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This is the first book in the Jouster series which follows the life of Vetch (known as Kiron later in the book) where he goes from a seriously ill-treated serf to a dragon boy for an honorable jouster (Ari). I liked the book a lot and it didn’t try to make all ills right. i.e. Vetch still hated the Tians for killing his father and that rage didn’t disappear in a day when he was made into a dragon-boy and treated well for the first time in his life. It took time and effort on Air’s part to make him see Ari as an honorable person and not as a hated Tian. Lackey’s experience with falcons and other birds of prey shows in the way she describes the training for the dragons and how they behaved in the book. Obviously some parts are based on the author’s imagination but they have a base in reality which makes the actions in the book very convincing. I have read this book multiple times before and will probably re-read it again after a few months. Actually I think that’s true for most of the books written by her. Final recommendation: A must read book even if you don’t like fantasy.

Reserved for the Cat (Elemental Masters Book 06) by Mercedes Lackey

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… Buy From:

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This is the 6th book in the Elemental Masters series by Mercedes Lackey and this was the second time I reread the book. Lackey is one of my favorite authors and I really like this series. It takes the world of early 1900’s and injects a bit of fantasy into it so that magic is real in that world. This book follows the life of Ninette Dupond who is a young dancer without any prospects and is in danger of starving to death when she is rescued by a talking cat who was charged by her father, an elemental mage to protect her.

The cat (Thomas) brings her over to England and helps her get in touch with a group of Elemental mages who have a Music house they are trying to revive with a new sort of performance. The storyline is quite simple and Lackey shows her skill in bringing the world of music dancers and ballet to life. One part I didn’t like was that the book seems to break continuity from the other books in the series. For example, in one of the scenes Jonathon fumes about how there is no way to communicate with other masters where there is an emergency and how it was impossible to get masters to work together on any issue that didn’t have global implications. Which is something that is already established in the other books. It could be possible that this book is set in an earlier time period but the reference to the ‘Old Lion’ puts in the same time frame as the other books. Other than these small issues the book was a fun read and I can’t wait for the next book in the series to be released. Final recommendation: A must read book, not as good as the other books in the series but still fun.

The Tree Shepherd’s Daughter (Faire Folk Trilogy Book 01) by Gillian Summers

Description: When her mother dies, fifteen-year-old Keelie Heartwood is forced to leave her beloved California to live with her nomadic father at a renaissance festival in Colorado. After arriving, Keelie finds men in tights and women in trailer trash-tight bodices roaming half-drunk, calling each other lady and lord even after closing time! Play-acting the Dark Ages is an L.A. girl’s worst nightmare. Keelie has a plan to ditch this medieval geekland ASAP, but while she plots, strange things start happening-eerie, yet familiar. When Keelie starts seeing fairies and communicating with trees, she uncovers a secret that links her to a community of elves. As Keelie tries to come to grips with her elfin roots, disaster strikes, and Keelie’s identity isn’t the only thing that’s threatened. One part human determination and one part elfin magic, Keelie Heartwood is a witty new heroine in a world where fantasy and reality mix with extraordinary results. Buy From:

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The first book in the Faire Folk trilogy is a light hearted book to read. Aimed at the young adult it was fun reading a book that wasn’t all gloom and despair. The characters in the book were mostly well written though some of the supporting cast could have been expanded a bit more. A lot of books have been written about elves and some of them even show the elves as a part of the Renaissance fair but still the book managed to stand out on its own and didn’t sound like a copy of other works. I liked the way the lead character takes time to work through her fears and finally accepts that she has the ability to magic after a lot of thought. In too many books it seems like the hero/heroine is told that they are magical and they accept it immediately which is quite unrealistic.

Final recommendation: A must read. Going to see if I can find the other books in the series, hopefully they will be as good as this one.

Silver Borne (Mercy Thompson Book 05) by Patricia Briggs

Description: Being a mechanic is hard work. Mercy Thompson, for instance, just spent the last couple of months trying to evade the murderous queen of the local vampire seethe, and now the leader of the werewolf pack – who’s maybe-more-than-just-a-friend – has asked for her help. A book of fae secrets has come to light and they’re all about to find out how implacable – and dangerous – the fae can be. OK, so maybe her troubles have nothing to do with the job. But she sure could use a holiday … Buy From:

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This is the latest book in the Mercy series that follows the exploits of Mercy Thompson, a shape-shifter mechanic who lives in a world where Vampires, Werewolves and Fae exist among other things. The book is a light read without a lot of complicated plots to follow which makes it a perfect book to read after a long day at work. You don’t have to worry about remembering complicated relationships or anything so you are free to enjoy the book instead of wishing that you had a notebook where you could write down who was doing what to whom. Mercy is a character who doesn’t take crap from anyone and is what I would call sassy. She is quite independent and not without flaws. If written differently the character would have probably become very obnoxious and painful but the way Briggs has written it, the character is quite likable. Even her flaws have been dealt with in a way that doesn’t seem unreasonable. In a lot of the fantasy books magic is used as a cure-all for all ills but not in this series.

She was raped and Briggs shows the reader that it effected Mercy a lot. The amount of emotional scarring left behind by the attack was dealt in a matter of fact way and not made into a woe is me cry fest that certain other authors like a lot. Final recommendation: Read the book. You don’t need to have read the previous books in the series to understand and like the book but it would make it more enjoyable.