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A review by flyingleaps
Redoubt by Mercedes Lackey
3.0
This edition of the Collegium Chronicles is the sort of book that only a Lackey fan will have the patience to sit through. The first 200 pages of the 330 page book meander along, complete with long descriptions of nightmares that are given little, if any context. Being a Valdemar fan, I didn't much mind. I like learning more about this world I keep returning to, but for someone only getting acquainted with Valdemar, I can see how it would feel interminable.
The last third is where the book shines. Lackey picked it up from the second and third installments in Mags' story, giving us a novel that feels more like previous Valdemar novels in tone and in style. The action moves, and one critical question we've been waiting for the answer to is finally resolved...kinda.
All told, the strongest book about Mags since the first one. If you can stick it out this long, it's worth getting to.
Critique (and potential spoilers) after the break.
The other major continuity point is one we've struggled with the whole series: Mags' age when his parents were killed and he went to the mine. Here, he is at once too young to crawl (so, less than a year) and 3 years old. In the same book.
C'mon now, Misty.
The basic editorial issues that were so wretched in the last book in particular are much improved, but still present--particularly when a major character's name is misspelled within a line or two of a previous mention. Spellcheck much?
Thus far, in four books (okay, the fifth one came out Tuesday, but I haven't read it yet) we've have the plot equivalent of two decently paced stories. I like detail, but unless it's actively contributing to the movement of the plot, it's only so much dross, scumming up the story. A lot of these things--like the elaborate wedding celebrations here or the Midwinter festivities in the first book--belong as fan extras, short stories, or entries in the Companion book.
We're reaching a point where readers will only have so much patience for this game. Talia was excellent because we had three tightly wound books with beats of levity. Elspeth, Vanyel...hell, she managed Kerowyn in one and Alberich (my personal favorite) in two. Here we have five books with no confirmed end in sight and significantly less action to show for it. Even for a loyal reader, the ice is growing thin.
I will read [b:Bastion|17707672|Bastion (Valdemar Collegium Chronicles, #5)|Mercedes Lackey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1378101270s/17707672.jpg|24757202] and hope that it continues to emulate the earlier Valdemar books. Another [b:Intrigues|7884898|Intrigues (Valdemar Collegium Chronicles, #2)|Mercedes Lackey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388378668s/7884898.jpg|11097541] or [b:Changes|10724628|Changes (Valdemar Collegium Chronicles, #3)|Mercedes Lackey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1362693426s/10724628.jpg|15635353] experience, though, and I'll have to throw in the towel.
The last third is where the book shines. Lackey picked it up from the second and third installments in Mags' story, giving us a novel that feels more like previous Valdemar novels in tone and in style. The action moves, and one critical question we've been waiting for the answer to is finally resolved...kinda.
All told, the strongest book about Mags since the first one. If you can stick it out this long, it's worth getting to.
Critique (and potential spoilers) after the break.
Spoiler
While she listened to the criticism about Mags' highly irritating patois and cut back on it, there we have the first of the many continuity issues that plague this book. The change in Mags' speech is not consistent. He goes from being perfectly understandable with a dropped ending or rusticated pronunciation here and there to having lines littered with apostrophes again and back. It's leaps and bounds ahead of where we've been, but this is something that I hope improves in the next book.The other major continuity point is one we've struggled with the whole series: Mags' age when his parents were killed and he went to the mine. Here, he is at once too young to crawl (so, less than a year) and 3 years old. In the same book.
C'mon now, Misty.
The basic editorial issues that were so wretched in the last book in particular are much improved, but still present--particularly when a major character's name is misspelled within a line or two of a previous mention. Spellcheck much?
Thus far, in four books (okay, the fifth one came out Tuesday, but I haven't read it yet) we've have the plot equivalent of two decently paced stories. I like detail, but unless it's actively contributing to the movement of the plot, it's only so much dross, scumming up the story. A lot of these things--like the elaborate wedding celebrations here or the Midwinter festivities in the first book--belong as fan extras, short stories, or entries in the Companion book.
We're reaching a point where readers will only have so much patience for this game. Talia was excellent because we had three tightly wound books with beats of levity. Elspeth, Vanyel...hell, she managed Kerowyn in one and Alberich (my personal favorite) in two. Here we have five books with no confirmed end in sight and significantly less action to show for it. Even for a loyal reader, the ice is growing thin.
I will read [b:Bastion|17707672|Bastion (Valdemar Collegium Chronicles, #5)|Mercedes Lackey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1378101270s/17707672.jpg|24757202] and hope that it continues to emulate the earlier Valdemar books. Another [b:Intrigues|7884898|Intrigues (Valdemar Collegium Chronicles, #2)|Mercedes Lackey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1388378668s/7884898.jpg|11097541] or [b:Changes|10724628|Changes (Valdemar Collegium Chronicles, #3)|Mercedes Lackey|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1362693426s/10724628.jpg|15635353] experience, though, and I'll have to throw in the towel.