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A review by constant2m
Flight of Sorcery and Shadow by Meg Cowley
5.0
I thought the Chronicles of Pelenor were perfection, but Meg has outdone herself with her latest book. Set 25 years after the war, Aedon is now - still - a captive of Queen Solanaceae in Tir-na-Alathea. He has lost the will to live, has been stripped of his magic, and is stuck in solitary confinement where the only person who even talks to him isn't even a person but a door. At least they have finally let him have some books to read. But something evil has come to the world and Aedon is accidentally released. And due to his "noble disposition," as he puts it, he is compelled to stay and try to help the enemy, rather than escape. He quickly meets up with Lief, a sassy wood elf, and while they mostly feel stuck with each other, they gradually develop a grudging friendship.
Back in Pelenor, two siblings also fight against family shortcomings to make a life for themselves, one joining the legendary Winged Kingsguard, the other training to become a librarian. The Winged Kingsguard has recently lost one of the patrols and must see if the Order of Valxiron is back and be behind the missing dragons and riders. The library isn't your typical book storage facility, and part of the librarian's job is to work with the grimoires, many of which are dangerous. Flight of Sorcery and Shadow moves between all three storylines, never bringing any of them together, yet telling stories of high stakes in all three contexts.
Meg is a fantastic storyteller. She finds ways to leave us at cliffhangers throughout the book while returning to someone else's story. She also has loads of new characters, but their stories were so different, it was easy to follow the changes in stories. And we know that the stories will eventually converge, although I have no idea how she's going to do it. I also love that after the Pelenor chronicles alluded to and then pushed aside Aedon's personal struggles, hiding them behind his charm and humor, his journey with Lief in Flight of Sorcery and Shadow has forced him to begin to deal with them. I have high hopes for him in this new saga. As far as the siblings' stories, their family history is not their fault, nor is it their parents' fault, and that's something I don't often see addressed in fantasy. For them to carry burdens not of their own making and choose to not succumb to the darkness that promises an easy out, well, I'm rooting for them all the way. Also, one of the grimoires reminds me of Garth Nix's Mogget. Maybe it's just me, but he (it? - does a grimoire have gender?) makes me so happy!
Why do I have to wait for the next book?
I received an ARC from the author and have reviewed it because it's amazing, and everyone should read it, and all the libraries should get it, and did I mention that it's really, really good?
Back in Pelenor, two siblings also fight against family shortcomings to make a life for themselves, one joining the legendary Winged Kingsguard, the other training to become a librarian. The Winged Kingsguard has recently lost one of the patrols and must see if the Order of Valxiron is back and be behind the missing dragons and riders. The library isn't your typical book storage facility, and part of the librarian's job is to work with the grimoires, many of which are dangerous. Flight of Sorcery and Shadow moves between all three storylines, never bringing any of them together, yet telling stories of high stakes in all three contexts.
Meg is a fantastic storyteller. She finds ways to leave us at cliffhangers throughout the book while returning to someone else's story. She also has loads of new characters, but their stories were so different, it was easy to follow the changes in stories. And we know that the stories will eventually converge, although I have no idea how she's going to do it. I also love that after the Pelenor chronicles alluded to and then pushed aside Aedon's personal struggles, hiding them behind his charm and humor, his journey with Lief in Flight of Sorcery and Shadow has forced him to begin to deal with them. I have high hopes for him in this new saga. As far as the siblings' stories, their family history is not their fault, nor is it their parents' fault, and that's something I don't often see addressed in fantasy. For them to carry burdens not of their own making and choose to not succumb to the darkness that promises an easy out, well, I'm rooting for them all the way. Also, one of the grimoires reminds me of Garth Nix's Mogget. Maybe it's just me, but he (it? - does a grimoire have gender?) makes me so happy!
Why do I have to wait for the next book?
I received an ARC from the author and have reviewed it because it's amazing, and everyone should read it, and all the libraries should get it, and did I mention that it's really, really good?