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Thirteen-year-old Talia longs for a better life, far away from her repressive stepmothers and the village of Sensholding, where books chronicling the adventures of the Heralds of Valdemar and their Companions offer her only escape. But when her family decide she is to be married, Talia flees, only to be rescued by one of the very Companions of legend, a magical steed with incredible powers. Talia soon discovers she has powers of her own, and, together with her Companion, she arrives at the Collegium to fulfil her dreams and train as a Herald. But as Talia struggles to master her unique abilities, she unearths a deadly plot that could destroy both Queen and kingdom.
I was alerted to this book by a fellow fantasy reader, and it’s something of a surprise that I’d never come across this series before. Then again, there are an awful lot of excellent fantasynovels out there 😊. It was first released in 1987 when I was only just starting primary school (perhaps that’s why I never came across it), and it fits alongside other fantasy fiction of that era. It was a very comfortable read and definitely what I expected.
The series centres on Talia, a young girl from a tough background who is slowly unveiled as a powerful “Herald” (sort of a mage, but not quite). She finds herself at a centre for magical education (the Collegium) and from here her true nature really starts to come to the fore. You know the drill…
The style of writing is definitely of the ‘80s, meaning that there is some wonderfully rich description and a slightly slower pace as a consequence. Much fantasy is written in this style so it definitely fits the bill, but it does contrast quite interestingly against some more recent books I’ve read which are faster paced and less descriptive. The geek in me found this interesting anyway!
The peril in the first book (Arrows of the Queen) centres on her own background, the fact that she is an ‘outsider’ in the Collegium, and a certain amount of political intrigue surrounding her role. This was a solid story with enough to keep the reader entertained, but for me it did lack a little of the page-turning quality. The ending in particular was quite quick in coming and very quickly over and done with.
The second book (Arrow’s Flight) is quite a different beast in my opinion – and all the better for it! After ‘graduating’, Talia goes off on duty for many months – something that all Heralds do. On this journey, which she shares with a fellow Herald, they encounter many perils, not least Talia herself who discovers more about her powers with really rather exciting consequences. The pace of this book feels much faster with a classic story structure, and it is all the better for this. It’s a nice mid-point for the series and leads nicely into book three…
…which is the best of the three for me! Arrow’s Fall sees Talia as a fully fledged Herald and thrust into a challenging situation for both her and the whole of her adopted country of Valdemar. There is more darkness in this book, and great conflict both with enemies of the state and also within the court of the queen. The action piles up gradually and comes to a great conclusion, which is pleasing. This third instalment is a very great book indeed.
Overall I really enjoyed reading this series and would wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone who is a fan of fantasy. It is a classic fantasy series and much of it will be happily familiar, but there is certainly enough to differentiate it. In fact, my final thought on this was a desire to find out more about Valdemar, at which point I realised there are about 40 novels in the wider “series”. Hmm… I probably need to dedicate a little more time to reading if I’m going to get through all them. What a fabulous problem to have!