Exile's Valor by Mercedes Lackey

Title: Exile's Valor

Author: Mercedes Lackey (American, 1950- )
Originally published: 2003
Page count: 438


Dates read: 4/27/2020-5/10/2020
2020 book goal progress: 13 out of 20
Reading category: TBR Shelf - Valdemar Universe


Read my other Valdemar book reviews.
Read my other book reviews for my 2020 goal HERE.



Description on back of book:
Valdemar had suffered terrible casualties during the Tedrel War. Worst of all, they had lost their king, a tragedy that forced his daughter Selenay, weakened by sorrow and still in mourning, to ascend the throne prematurely. But the Valdemaran Council saw Selanay's ascension as an opportunity to wrest power from the crown by marrying the young queen to a man of their choosing. Herald Alberich, now the Collegium's Weaponmaster, was well aware of the devious plans of the Council, but could he protect the queen from the conspiracies to steal her throne?

First sentence:
"Muted light, richly colored, poured gold and sapphire into the sparsely furnished sitting room in Herald Alberich's private quarters behind the training salle."

CAWPILE Rating: Overall - 7.9 - ⭐⭐⭐⭐
Characters      - 8
Atmosphere   - 7
Writing Style - 8
Plot                - 9
Intrigue          - 8
Logic             - 7
Enjoyment     - 8
What is a CAWPILE Rating?

Review:

This was a pretty good book. I still love the universe she created, but we didn't get to see as much culture in this one as in Exile's Honor - which was disappointing. A lot happens in this story, but some parts seemed a bit slow and drawn out. It's strange reading these books because there are certain things I know happen due to reading the original Arrows Trilogy, which is set after this book takes place. That means I know some of the end results, but I don't know the details of how those end results are achieved. It's just a strange way to read to me since most books I read I don't know much about before I read them and it's pretty much all a surprise - which isn't the case with these books. I look forward to reading the next book!

(There's so much more I want to say, but I don't want to give anything away if some of you decide to read these books for yourselves.)

Now I'm off to read another book... but since a review should be more about the author of the book than about the writer of the blog, I will let Mercedes Lackey  have the last words:

"The only difference between a cliche and a truism was the skill and intricacy with which the latter was presented."