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briebee33's review against another edition
3.0
Went into this knowing nothing about it other than that the leads were a buddy-mercenary pair. I got the sense that there was another book or series about these characters before this one, and if there is, I haven't read it.
This book was somewhat awkwardly episodic which made it drag a bit (I saw afterwards that it might be several short stories combined into a novel, which would make sense). The dynamics between the lead characters were what got me through to the end; I always like seeing female friendships in fantasy. A fair bit of the themes and attitudes of the characters don't feel like they've held up since the '80s.
This book was somewhat awkwardly episodic which made it drag a bit (I saw afterwards that it might be several short stories combined into a novel, which would make sense). The dynamics between the lead characters were what got me through to the end; I always like seeing female friendships in fantasy. A fair bit of the themes and attitudes of the characters don't feel like they've held up since the '80s.
ragonmoss's review against another edition
3.0
I've read this book before, and like many of Lackey's earlier Valdemar novels, it's a little less hit you on the head obvious although she still falls victim of "telling" about a character's personality through their (incredibly un-subtle thoughts) rather than actual "showing" through actions and character development. Particularly in the second act of the book when apparently a plot point is that Tarma is coddling Kethry with ZERO actual actions showing this and despite the constant emphasis that Tarma treats Kethry like an "absolute equal." She could have left that out as some sort of underlying character arc and just told the story with the demon. Still, I like the Tarma and Kethry adventures overall.
suzanne2025's review against another edition
1.0
Wow, this aged poorly. After a string of internet browsing lead me to re-read By The Sword, one of my favorite of the Valedemar books (which has held up really well!), I wanted more Tarma and Kethry so I re-read this. It's awful. Tarma and Kethry remain fantastic characters, but, the book, it's awful. So much rape. Gruesome horror. So much weird exoticism of the Shin'a'in (this improves somewhat in her later books). Also just really choppy. Now I remember why I only read this one once or twice in the 90s. For the time (1988), these books were pretty groundbreaking and feminist, but 1988 was a really long time ago and it shows. I still love sword and sorceress fantasy just like I did in 1990 but I'm so glad the genre has progressed so much.
Some childhood books shouldn't be re-read. This is one of them.
Some childhood books shouldn't be re-read. This is one of them.
pan_tomime's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
sunstreamer's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 ☆
incredibly gay for a story about two straight women.
- fast-paced and reads a bit like a serial collection.
- discusses and handles the topic of SA with varying degrees of care. didn't bother me necessarily but TW.
- heavy second-wave feminism influence, very buffy/girlboss/defending women
incredibly gay for a story about two straight women.
- fast-paced and reads a bit like a serial collection.
- discusses and handles the topic of SA with varying degrees of care. didn't bother me necessarily but TW.
- heavy second-wave feminism influence, very buffy/girlboss/defending women
dandonovan's review against another edition
4.0
lackey in her element
Decent story, vintage Lackey. Series of tales woven into a story, satisfying amounts of thought and action. Enjoyable if you like Mercedes Lackey books.
Decent story, vintage Lackey. Series of tales woven into a story, satisfying amounts of thought and action. Enjoyable if you like Mercedes Lackey books.
xenarat's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
exquisite_ashes's review against another edition
Although formative for me in my childhood, I could not in good conscience recommend it - check your trigger warnings, kiddies
ebbiebooks's review against another edition
dark
2.5
I'm trying to read all Valdemar universe books in publication-order-ish. And this one was a strange switch from the Heralds of Valdemar series, both in form and the overall darkness of the story.
Valdemar is usually YA, at least from what I gathered, and this one is weird in that context. There SO MUCH r*pe. At some point it kinda felt lazy tbh. It was a choice to say the least, and even if some would sorta make sense with the story, there were a bunch that could have been easily deleted. Didn't like that.
I started by reading that one short story where both MC meet for the first time, then started this book right after. At the end of chapter 3 or so, I was curious as to how to story would pivot since it felt like I was close to the end, and there were still more than half the book to go through. The thing is, this novel really feels more like a collection of short stories. The first few chapters are knitted a little more tight, but the rest is more loose. And I'm not a big fan of that from the get go, so I think that's partially why it took me a longer time to finish it.
I'll try the second book, but I'm not forcing myself to finish it if I'm not feeling it, even more so considering the 3rd one IS a collection of short stories. Here is hoping for less SA as I go further down the list of books in this universe.
Valdemar is usually YA, at least from what I gathered, and this one is weird in that context. There SO MUCH r*pe. At some point it kinda felt lazy tbh. It was a choice to say the least, and even if some would sorta make sense with the story, there were a bunch that could have been easily deleted. Didn't like that.
I started by reading that one short story where both MC meet for the first time, then started this book right after. At the end of chapter 3 or so, I was curious as to how to story would pivot since it felt like I was close to the end, and there were still more than half the book to go through. The thing is, this novel really feels more like a collection of short stories. The first few chapters are knitted a little more tight, but the rest is more loose. And I'm not a big fan of that from the get go, so I think that's partially why it took me a longer time to finish it.
I'll try the second book, but I'm not forcing myself to finish it if I'm not feeling it, even more so considering the 3rd one IS a collection of short stories. Here is hoping for less SA as I go further down the list of books in this universe.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Rape