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Loading... Arrow's Flight (1987)by Mercedes Lackey
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. This book was better than the first one and that is always a good sign. ( ) I like the books Mercedes Lackey writes, she is good at creating a believable world and people to populate it. While her writing is not the strongest I do find it engaging ang and enjoyable. I like a series I can live inside of and her books are ones that have characters I feel invested in and a world I believe could exist. Talia has become a full Herald but has one more hurdle to overcome. She needs to spend eighteen months riding circuit in Valdemar to learn more about her role as a Herald. Kris is her mentor and guide and has had his image of her poisoned by his uncle Lord Othallen. Talia has a unique mind Gift; she has a very strong gift for empathy and the ability to manipulate other people's emotions. She is also dealing with falling shields. Her gift came upon her early and was strange. No one was quite sure how to help her get a handle on it. The Heralds passed her on to the Healers who have similar gifts. Unfortunately, each group thought the other had taught Talia the basics of controlling a mind Gift. Now the stress of dealing with Kris's distrust and the rumors that indicate she's misusing her Gift have set her into a downward spiral to depression and maybe even suicide. Besides dealing with a plague and an epic snowstorm, she and Kris have to find a way to build the foundations she never had and help her get control of her Gift. This was an excellent middle book in a trilogy because it focused on Talia's Gift and her gaining control of it and understanding about it. It is a coming of age tale with real growth for Talia during the course of the book. This book continues the story of Talia as she serves her year of apprenticeship with the heralds. It’s nice to see her step away from politics and have to deal with actually being on the road and putting her training into practice. It was also fun to get to know another character who was only briefly mentioned in the first book. I did find this book to be a bit dull, however. A lot of time is spent on how Talia is having trouble with her powers and the endless feedback loop of her being unsure of herself and worrying about what people are thinking about her, and what that might do to the princess. While it provided some great time to develop more characters, I’m not sure this really needed to be a full novel to accomplish what it did. With that said, I’m sure it’s nothing more than the middle book slump that sometimes happens in trilogies, so I’m not put off by the series as a whole. I’m excited to read the third book so the story straightens itself out and contains more substantial conflict. I see why the development was important to the story, I just wish it could have been done with a more exciting plot. Also posted on Purple People Readers. no reviews | add a review
Belongs to SeriesValdemar: Chronological Order (1376 AF) Belongs to Publisher SeriesBastei Lübbe Taschenbuch (20217) DAW Book Collectors (720) Valdemar : Kolejność Chronologiczna (1376 AF) Is contained inHas as a student's study guide
Talia could scarcely believe that she had finally earned the rank of full Herald. Yet though this seemed like the fulfillment of all her dreams, it also meant she would face trials far greater than those she had previously survived. For now Talia must ride forth to patrol the kingdom of Valdemar, dispending Herald's justice throughout the land. But in this realm beset by dangerous unrest, enforcing her rulings would require all the courage and skill Talia could command-for if she misused her own special powers, both she and Valdemar would pay the price. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.54Literature English (North America) American fiction 20th Century 1945-1999LC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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