Review by Booklist Review
The first volume of Crown of Stars, another complex fantasy saga of political and magical intrigue, bodes extremely well. The Kingdom of Wendar is beset by civil war between brother and sister for the throne, by two hostile nonhuman races, by ghosts roaming the streets, and by enough other plots and counterplots to fuel the average Balkan war. Key to successfully resolving the overly fraught situation are Alain, a young prophet who needs to learn his parentage before he can act safely, and Liath, a lifelong fugitive sheltered by her father from worldly knowledge that she must acquire before she can act. The saga's world is exceedingly well built (including a working economy, for instance), its pacing is brisk enough to keep the pages fluttering, and its characters are, at this stage, at least archetypes who may develop into more. This certainly could become one of the best multivolume fantasies--fans, take note! --Roland Green
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Hard on the heels of her intriguing collaboration with Melanie Rawn and Jennifer Roberson, The Golden Key (Forecasts, Aug. 19), comes the first volume of Elliott's new high fantasy trilogyand it proves an entirely captivating affair. Elliott works staple fantasy elements of battle, quest and loss into a resounding narrative revolving around three appealing protagonists. Alain is an adopted youth of unknown parentage, gentle with men and beasts, now intended for the monastery. He experiences a vision from the Lady of Battles, drawing him into the civil war between Wendar's King Henry and the king's sister Sabella, who claims the throne. Meanwhile, Liath is left an orphan incapable of realizing her considerable magical powers when the Aoi, enigmatic beings from a shadowy Otherworld, murder her father. She must escape from her eerily magnetic but sadistic human captor to join King Henry's messenger Eagles, witnessing savage battles against the nonhuman Eika fearfully ravaging Wendar's northern coasts. Dominating the novel, though, is a shining hero to haunt one's dreamsSanglant, captain of the Dragons, Henry's elite heavy cavalry, and Henry's son by an Aoi woman who stole the king's heart when she vanished from human sight. Elliott models her world from a thorough understanding of medieval European history, leavened with imaginative twists of perspective, such as a monolithic church that recognizes a Lady as well as a Lord of Creation and is dominated by a female hierarchy. She skews language, too, just enough to make it both satisfyingly familiar and tangily otheran indispensable technique in conjuring convincing fictional worlds that never were, but that we, whether young or young in heart, wish could be. (Feb.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Kirkus Book Review
From the author of The Golden Key (with Melanie Rawn and Jennifer Roberson, p. 1108), the first entry in a projected fantasy series. In a Europe-flavored fantasy world, King Henry of Wendar is beset by two powerful enemies: the invading nonhuman Eika and their huge, terrible dogs; and by his half-sister Sabella of Varre, who denies Henry's right to name as his heir his bastard son Sanglant. Young, parentless Alain, seemingly destined for the church, is granted a vision of the Lady of Battles and eventually attaches himself to Count Lavastine--who also keeps large, vicious dogs that, other than the Count himself, only Alain can control. At this point, however, Lavastine, a neutral in the struggle for power, is ensorcelled by Sabella's allies and marches to war against Henry. Meanwhile, Liath, having spent most of her young life with her beloved Da fleeing unknown enemies, is enslaved by churchman Hugh when Da is murdered, leaving Liath unable to pay his debuts. Hugh hopes to grab the book of magic that Da left Liath, but just in time she's recruited by Wolfhere of the King's Eagles. Wolfhere knew Da and suspects Liath has magic abilities; both Alain and Liath will play important parts in the showdown between Sabella and Henry. A creditably self-contained and appealing, modestly engrossing opener, though without much originality or bite.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
