Hale continues her saga of Bayern in this third installment. Razo, Isi and Enna’s prankster friend from the earlier books, finally gets his own story! After the events of Enna Burning, Bayern and Tira are trying to coexist in an uneasy peace. To further diplomatic relations between the two countries, Isi and Genric decide to send an ambassador, along with a small contingent of the Bayern army, to Tira. When Razo is selected as one of the soldiers, he can’t believe it –he’s short, scrawny, and useless with a sword, so why would anyone choose him? He’s determined not to let anybody down, but he worries that he’ll just be a handicap to the rest of the soldiers. Once in Tira, though, Razo quickly realizes that somebody wants to thwart the peace effort: charred bodies start turning up near the Bayern camp in an effort to frame the soldiers. With the help of the beautiful Lady Dasha, as well as his old friends Enna and Finn, Razo will finally have the chance to prove himself – if he doesn’t die first.

This is another lovely addition to the Bayern series. Razo is an endearing character, and I really enjoyed reading about the events from his point of view. He’s so charmingly awkward! I thought Hale did a good job of revealing Razo’s insecurities, too – he feels useless because he’s not strong and he doesn’t have magical powers, not even realizing that he’s also an ace marksman with his sling and an unusually observant spy. The love story was sweet and tied in nicely with the main plot. I’m so glad Hale decided to continue with the series, and I’m eagerly awaiting Forest Born!

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The war between Bayern and Tira is over, but it is not the end of the story by any means. Finn, Enna and Razo are sent on a mission of peace to Tira to try and smooth things over. Along the way Razo finds a series of bodies that seem to have been burnt to death. He worries that Enna is back burning people and losing control of her gifts, or that she is doing it without her knowledge which is possibly more worrying. He tries to keep an eye on her with Finn's help to find out the truth.

Complications also arise as there are a force of people in Tira still campaigning to re-start the war. They are making assination attempts on the diplomat from Bayern. Rzo meets Dasha, a flame haired girl from Tira, who he develops strong feelings for. There is suspicision that she is responsible for the burnings which makes Razo very conflicted.

I loved that Razo was the main character of this installment, although it was also lovely to have all the other main characters there supporting him. He is very observant, but also very stupid when it comes to feelings! I love that Shannon Hale really changes the tone of her novels with the different main characters leading the tales. I can't wait for the fourth book in the series to come out. Maybe Finn will be centre stage next? ( )

I really love the Bayern series! In this the third book Razo finally gets his own story. I can still hear his impish voice in my head from the Goose Girl audio (from full cast audio, my favorite way to listen to books!). Isi and Enna are still here, too. ( )

I asked a friend (who is obsessed with reading) to loan me a book that would be an easy read, non-stressful, and be the perfect accessory for a quiet, relaxing moment. And this is what she handed over. She had loaned me the previous books in the series at other times and she was right. I enjoyed the book and it's embracing of the fairy tale-like elements of character, setting and basic nature of the world. I wish I had a natural power like the characters in the book. It would be the best distraction. ( )