Vanyel's disdain for swordsmanship earns him an unexpected exile--at the High Court of Valdemar under the guardianship of his stern and implacable Aunt Savil, one of the legendary Herald-Mages. A young man's painful discovery of his own immense talents and his true nature form the core of this richly detailed fantasy, the first in a new series set in the same world as "The Heroes of Valdemar." Lackey's talent for characterization lends depth to this coming-of-age adventure that will appeal to most fantasy readers.

This was on my wish list and Xeyra was kind enough to let me borrow it for a while ... Not sure when I can start reading it, but hopefully it will be soon :-)

Vanyel is definitely not your typical hero of the usual fantasy novel. He's a terrible whiner (always pitying himself so much, not that he didn't have the right to do it sometimes but it was a bit too much :P) and at first comes off as a spoiled brat to almost everyone. His relationship to Lendel is touching and sweet, but I'm afraid the plot only started to feel interesting to me when disaster strikes ... thanks for this loan, Xeyra, I'd like to read the next volume someday but I'm not in a hurry just now ;-)

Back with me.

Being mysteriously pulled into the "What the Heck ALS Swap #3" at the relay forums (how could I resist? It's impossible!), I ended up offering the only available book that I had that was stealable. MissyZ was the one who ended up running away with it (must have been the whole Vanyel fangirl convention at the forums that got her interested in it... *innocent whistle*), alonside the other two books in the trilogy. So this book and its companions will be mailed to Missy whenever possible.

Enjoy them as much as I and everyone else who read them did, Z.! And then come join the Vanyel Fangirl Club with us. *winks*

Note: I may be tempted to re-read them quickly before sending... hehe...

Mailed today, February 26. Do let me know what you thought of the trilogy after you're done with it, Missy. I'm really curious about what you'll think about this one, which wasn't my favourite of the trilogy but introduced a character I will love when he's an adult. :)

With everyone harping on about how AMAZING Vanyel is, how could I resist this series in the swap?

I look forward to sharing my opinion when I've finished reading them.

Okay, I admit I fell off the Bookcrossing Bandwagon...
Finally got around to reading these this week and have to agree with the whole Vanyel thing(!).
Thanks again for sending, Xeyra!