An unusual and intelligent fantasy novel.: This is a good book in a good series, with an intricate plot and unusual characters. It isn't light reading - you have to pay attention in order to get the whole picture because the author doesn't spell it out in short sentences of small words. Don't you get tired of reading books with short sentences of small words? The previous review didn't do it justice at all. Buy it. Rather, if you haven't bought it then you probably haven't read the earlier novels in this series. Buy either one of them.

Second half of the prequel to A Well-Favored Man begun in A Sorcerer and a Gentleman (split into two volumes by the publisher). Story does explain a few things from Man (I always got creepy incestuous vibes from Freia and Dewar's relationship, for example), but basically just trails off without resolving major plot points. ( )