Changes (Valdemar: Collegium Chronicles, #3)

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Changes (Valdemar: Collegium Chronicles #3)

3.82 of 5 stars 3.82 · rating details · 2,018 ratings · 210 reviews

Enter the thrilling third volume in the epic Collegium Chronicles.

In Mercedes Lackey's classic coming-of-age story, the orphan Magpie pursues his quest for his parent's identity with burning urgency-while also discovering another hidden talent and being trained by the King's Own Herald as an undercover agent for Valdemar. Shy Bardic Trainee Lena has to face her famous but...more

Hardcover, 326 pages

Published October 4th 2011 by DAW Hardcover (first published April 28th 2010)

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Oct 05, 2011 Lisa (Harmonybites) rated it 2 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Hardcore Valdemar Addicts Only

Shelves: fantasy, fiction, novels, young-adult

I wondered at times reading this if Mercedes Lackey has gotten so much worse, or it's just my tastes have changed this much since she thrilled me in my early twenties with her tales of Valdemar, with its sentient "companions"--horse-shaped magical beings who partner "heralds" who help police, defend and act as judges for the kingdom. But no, it wasn't that long ago I did a reread of Valdemar, and the earlier ones, especially the books with Vanyel and Talia, were still great comfort reads for me...more I wondered at times reading this if Mercedes Lackey has gotten so much worse, or it's just my tastes have changed this much since she thrilled me in my early twenties with her tales of Valdemar, with its sentient "companions"--horse-shaped magical beings who partner "heralds" who help police, defend and act as judges for the kingdom. But no, it wasn't that long ago I did a reread of Valdemar, and the earlier ones, especially the books with Vanyel and Talia, were still great comfort reads for me I loved immersing myself in, and not just for nostalgic reasons. I felt Lackey jumped the shark over a decade ago (with Exile's Honor) and phones these in now, yet I did like the first two volumes of the Collegium Chronicles series, Foundation and Intrigues, quite a bit more than this one.

It didn't begin well. An entire first chapter of a game of Kirball, and let me tell you, it ain't Qudditch. Of course, I'm not one to tolerate even ordinary spectator sports, but really. No. Just no. Much too much Kirball in this book. But that wasn't the worst. I was tempted to rate this even lower than I have, and the reason really is Mags. Mags is the protagonist and main point of view character of this series. He's very close in character to Skif of the first Valdemar books. He's an orphan who was saved from crushing poverty when he was "chosen" to be a herald by his companion Dallen, and he's helping the kingdom even as a trainee by using the seamier side of his background undercover. However, Skif at least wasn't made to think and speak this way: "Tis like mebbe when 'e was s'posed t'be hangin' 'bout th' others, but whatever made th' furst mad sent 'im mad too." This style of writing with its elisions, apostrophes, deliberate misspellings and tortured grammar nearly drove me mad, and I found myself skipping and skimming over any passages where Mags would speak or think in this style--which was very, very frequently.

Are there some good things about this novel that I suffered to the end? Sure. I do like how through Mag's friends Bear the Healer-trainee, Lena the Bard-trainee and Amily--love interest and daughter of the "King's Own"--Lackey gives us a wider look at the collegium than just through the eyes of the Heralds. The friendship between them was a particular highlight of the last book. But I'm scratching my head in vain trying to think of a way this novel distinguishes itself from other books set in Valdemar other than Mags incredibly annoying patois. And given the book ends with several unanswered questions, I don't think Lackey is done with Mags, though I suspect I may be done with him after this one.(less)

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Dec 04, 2011 Cole rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, favorites, humor, political, romance, mystery

Book 3 of the Collegium Chronicles was just like the others. Well written, fast paced; I liked it very much. However, it seems that I am forever to wonder about my previous concerns; mostly not knowing Dallen. The world is expanding a bit, but still not enough for me. The stakes are getting higher and Mags is maturing. But I still know little about his ancestry, which I was hoping to be reveiled now. Alas, the author is instead making sure that I read the next one to find out. But you know what...more

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Dec 02, 2011 Joy rated it 4 of 5 stars

Another winner from the pen of Mercedes Lackey in the Valdemar series. Changes takes up with Mags and his friends at a big Kirball game, but simmers the developments of the spies for the first third of the book. Mags discovers the heartstone in the palance but does not know what it is. And the pace quickly picks up as Mags, Bear, Lena start dealing with issues with their families, and threats to the kingdom.

Each of the 4 teens deal with problems of determining who they are, whether or not paren...more

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Oct 09, 2011 Elizabeth S rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: scifi-fantasy, z-my2011challenge

Well, this better not be just a trilogy! Because there are a lot of questions left unanswered at the end of this book 3. The good plot and interesting characters that make up this series continue in this book. I like that the characters have to think and work hard. I also really like how usually "the plan" isn't any one person's idea--one person starts it and others add and modify until it is really a good plan.

A small downside for the book is that the foreshadowing was a little obvious--I knew...more

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Christine Okay, so I had to stop and think about this! There are actually about a dozen that I'm tracking right now... year-to-year...

I would say the ones that...more
Oct 20, 2011 07:28pm

Elizabeth S Okay, I'm in trouble now. We only overlap on 2 series, and that means I need to look into the others, and by-golly I already have a "notoutyet" list t...more
Oct 21, 2011 05:07am

May 11, 2013 yongxiang rated it 3 of 5 stars

Book three of the collegium chronicles gives us a greater insight about Mag's role as the protege of the King's Own Herald, Nikolas. The book also includes more about Kirkball and little more action.

I have no doubt that Mercedes Lackey is a good author. The pace of the book is reasonable, I really do enjoying reading about all the mundane adventure that Mag and his friends have, like in the first two books. I enjoy reading is struggle as a student, his straining relationship with his friends and...more Book three of the collegium chronicles gives us a greater insight about Mag's role as the protege of the King's Own Herald, Nikolas. The book also includes more about Kirkball and little more action.

I have no doubt that Mercedes Lackey is a good author. The pace of the book is reasonable, I really do enjoying reading about all the mundane adventure that Mag and his friends have, like in the first two books. I enjoy reading is struggle as a student, his straining relationship with his friends and his interaction with Dallen. Mag is also more active in his role as Nikolas's protege as seen by his involvement in Weasel in Haven. I really like the budding relationship between Bear/Lena and Mags/Amily.

However, there are a few flaws to the book that is makes me feel very uncomfortable.

First of all, I really, really find it almost impossible to comprehend what Mags is saying. I often find myself re-reading what he says, trying my best to understand and guess the content of his speech. Despite re-reading his speech a few times, I am only able to understand up to 70% of what he says. Sometimes, I have to resort to guessing the content of his speech via the reply of the person he is speaking to.

Next, Lackey introduced too many characters in this book without developing them fully. Take for instance, Master Soren and his niece Lydia. They were introduced to us in Book 2 as influential members of the king's court. Not a whiff of them in the book until , GUESS WHAT?, a new character, Sedric, appears and tells us that he being engaged to Lydia. That is certainly unexpected. But you certainly expect Mags to recognise the king's son by name, if not by sight( He certainly did not recognise the king by sight the first time he met him. )

Personally, I think that Gennie could have gotten more development. She's a staunch supporter of Mags and such a great friend to him. I mean she did stick up for him when he was being ostractise by his peers, she did captain the kirkball team to victory more than once and she did anchor the link between Mags and the stone. By giving her more depth and portraying her as more than someone who comes when she is summoned/needed, she can become one of Mag's strongest ally. Given the fact that her mindspeech is strong, though not as strong as Mag's and that she is also a herald.

Finally, the ending was way too rushed and a little awkward, like a scene change without any transition, though the general pace of the book is rather okay. Mags, Lydia, Bear and Amily, when suddenly Mags find himself being his irritated by them. He suddenly has headache. He goes to bed and talks to a magical stone that no one noticed. He is woken up by the dean and informed him that everyone is angry and arguing with each other. Bear suddenly musters enough courage to rage at his father's spy and Lena suddenly decides she doesn't care about her dad and rattles on him. Mags and Amily then get invited to a private gathering,suddenly a storms comes and everyone's temper improves and WHAM! Amily is kidnapped. An episode with the stone that has an attitude and he magically locates the enemies that the everyone was trying so hard to locate. They finally managed to catch the enemies but they die due to unnatural forces. This happens way too quickly in a few chapters and shows us how little the people of Valdemar know about their Karsite neighbors. May I ask what are the foreign spies doing, and I am pretty sure this isn't the first time their neighbors try to infiltrate Valdemar should the Heralds and the colleium have more knowledge?

Despite some flaws present in the book, I must agree that I am in love with the world of Companions and the collegium. I like the idea of a school where trainees of three disciplines are brought together to study. I like Mags enough to overlook the fact that Mags is mostly perfect when he is so young and one dimensional. I look forward for the next few installments of the series and really hope that Lackey can give more meat to the plot and explain herself more clearly.(less)

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Apr 04, 2013 Lynn rated it 4 of 5 stars

Mags is still at the Collegium training to be a Herald with his friends Healer Trainee Bear and Bardic Trainee Lena. This book reveals a great deal more stress in family relationships.

Healer Collegium has to move heaven and earth to convince Bear's family that it is more important for Bear to be at the Collegium because of his gifts and talents as opposed to going home to be part of an arranged marriage hoping to procreate children with the Healing Gift.

Bardic Trainee Lena needs to confront her...more

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Mar 10, 2013 Scott rated it 2 of 5 stars

I'm of two minds about this book. On the one hand, I'm into the plot enough that I'd like to see how it all turns out. On the other, this volume felt really slapped together. Writers should at least know how to write and editors ought to be able to spot typos. Neither happened all that well in this book. I separate quality of writing into three categories while I read. There's the Patrick Rothfuss type "Wow" where I go back and glory over a particularly delicious turn of phrase. There's the "get...more

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Oct 27, 2012 Srfletcher rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

So, my basic summation of this is pretty simple: Reading about Valdemar is FUN.

Because there tends to be a big time gap (in the real world between publications AND in the world of Valdemar, in the sense that new series in the mega series can be anywhere on a rather long timeline) I always forget quite a lot- who is active in the world at this time, who are Valemar's enemies, what do and don't they know about their kingdom- in the span of hundreds and hundreds of years, a lot of amazing things a...more So, my basic summation of this is pretty simple: Reading about Valdemar is FUN.

Because there tends to be a big time gap (in the real world between publications AND in the world of Valdemar, in the sense that new series in the mega series can be anywhere on a rather long timeline) I always forget quite a lot- who is active in the world at this time, who are Valemar's enemies, what do and don't they know about their kingdom- in the span of hundreds and hundreds of years, a lot of amazing things about the kingdom get forgotten or rediscovered. Enemies change, alliances change, and interesting characters pop up in multiple series and sometimes it's hard to remember if/where you've seen someone before.

For a series with such convolution, I think its admirable that I enjoy every single darned book in the series so much.

The world Lackey has going on here is incredible in it's detail, intricacy, and consistency. You can be thrown in at any point and recognize it, but every adventure feels fresh. Plus, theres the added bonus of the fangirl thrill when a favourite character from a different point in the series is mentioned or idolized elsewhere (not super common, but not uncommon). I love the growth of this world and it's one of my favourite fantasy places.

In the case of this particular piece of the 5 part series, The Collegium Chronicles, does feel like a middle book. It relies on your knowledge of previous events and advances both the plot and the relationships, but only in a relatively small step. It's an important piece of the puzzle and probably could stand alone if you're new to the series, but I wouldn't recommend that. Still, I thoroughly enjoyed it- I held of reading it for a few days and have just finished it at 4 pm after starting it at 7 this morning- and I can't wait to get my hands on the next one. I am both frustrated and delighted that there's 5 parts to the series when I only expected 3.

The things I especially like about these Chronicles is the exploration of the spy aspect, something we haven't really seen in a Herald before,and the politics of re inventing the system for training Heralds, Bards and Healers. The Collegium is a standard in the later novels and it's exciting to glimpse its birth.

Im enjoying the addition of Kirball as well, although it is a bit of a flaw in the cohesion of the total series, since it doesn't feature in any of the 'later' (but published earlier) novels.

In any case, as always for me, Lackey has a solid and enjoyable read here. I'm a very entrenched Valedemar fan and I don't see that changing. Good stuff!(less)

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May 23, 2012 Emma rated it 3 of 5 stars

Generally a good read, although the ending was a bit abrupt. There's obviously some kind of link between Mags (I.e. his ancestry/origins) and the baddies who keep trying to do their thing - they're strangely focused on him and seem to "recognise" him. The tease of this is getting a bit much though. If there is going to be only one further book in the Collegium series, the connection could have been revealed at the end, with the next book dealing with the ramifications.

Also, I think the copy edit...more

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May 21, 2012 Christine rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

I’m just going to cut to the chase here and confess my extreme disappointment in this book, and indeed, in the progression of this “trilogy.” If my review of Intrigues, I said:

"The story was slow, tedious, and it involved long descriptions of a made-up sporting event that reminded me of Quiddich (at least in terms of how little I wanted to read long passages about it)."

I’m afraid this sums up my impression of Changes as well, especially because the “trilogy” is not yet over. That’s right — there...more I’m just going to cut to the chase here and confess my extreme disappointment in this book, and indeed, in the progression of this “trilogy.” If my review of Intrigues, I said:

"The story was slow, tedious, and it involved long descriptions of a made-up sporting event that reminded me of Quiddich (at least in terms of how little I wanted to read long passages about it)."

I’m afraid this sums up my impression of Changes as well, especially because the “trilogy” is not yet over. That’s right — there will be a fourth book in this series. A fifth? A sixth? I can’t say, but definitely a fourth.

This series may have lost me. I have been a fan of Mercedes Lackey in the past, but there’s something missing from these books — and I don’t just mean a conclusion. She does tend to spend a lot of time dealing with society, politics, and relationships, and it has never bothered me before. In fact, those are usually some of my favorite parts, but in this series I am not feeling a particular connection to the characters, not even Mags. I did in the first book, when he was rescued from slavery in a mine, but since then he has become someone different, and many of his changes are kind of brushed away by the idea that his companion shielded his mind early on. To me, this feels like it goes beyond the role of the companion (as established in her other books), and it actually makes heralds less interesting. Makes them seem more like a tool of the companions, and less their own people.

The romance in this series is just plain awful. This is yet another thing I normally enjoy in Lackey’s books (except for the fact that she has a horrible tendency to skip important moments in a relationship), but I have no idea why Mags is with Amaline (sp? audio version) nor why Bear is interested in Leena (sp? audio version). All I know is the book tells me it’s so — I don’t feel it in the least.

But despite all that, I might have given this series an overall 3-star “eh, read it if you like Lackey” rating if it had just done one thing for me: ENDED! The end of this book reminds me so forcibly of the end of book 2 that I might as well not have read this at all. The people are still having the same problems, and spinning the same wheels. They learned nothing new about their enemy. At the end of book 2, they capture an agent and he dies before saying a word. At the end of book 3, they capture 2 agents and they die before saying a word. Come to think of it, at the end of book 1 they capture an agent, and he dies without saying a word.

Anyone annoyed yet? I am. I can’t honestly recommend this series any longer, not even to Lackey fans, and I’m not at all sure I will finish. I might *IF* book 4 is really the last book and if I have nothing better to read.

www.christineamsden.com (less)

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May 20, 2012 Rosemarie Herbert rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been crossposted from my blog Review from Rose's Book Reviews Please head there for more in-depth reviews by me.

Mags is moving up in the world. He is apprenticed to the King's Own, and seems to be getting somewhere with catching up on his studies. Of course, that all comes crashing down as the Colligium heats up for the summer. I found it to be disappointing, but feel free to come to your own opinions.

This novel initially focuses on Kirball, which is something I actually enjoy....more This review has been crossposted from my blog Review from Rose's Book Reviews Please head there for more in-depth reviews by me.

Mags is moving up in the world. He is apprenticed to the King's Own, and seems to be getting somewhere with catching up on his studies. Of course, that all comes crashing down as the Colligium heats up for the summer. I found it to be disappointing, but feel free to come to your own opinions.

This novel initially focuses on Kirball, which is something I actually enjoy. It's good to see the Greys doing something other than book work! It wraps up nicely after the previous book, where Dallen has been injured and is unable to play. The novel quickly progresses to using Mags' talents at analyzing 'sparklies'. The novel's progression again reminds me of 'Take a Thief', but it's still nice to get some insight into the beginnings of the Collegium.

What was disappointing was that I knew how to pairings would work Bear and Lena, Mags and Amily. It was just a little too clear cut and obvious. I always thought I knew that Amily would end up being the Herald Chronicler - how could she not? The Dean of Heralds is going on about how his office is full of books, and the archives are poor, so there is a place for her, crippled as she is. I'm somewhat disappointed that the novel isn't conclusive like I had hoped - it's not a trilogy at all! It lied to me!

The novel doesn't seem to have any relation to 'Changes' that I can see. I'm feeling very disillusioned abotu it at the moment, it's just not as good as other Valdemar novels I have read by her. I was looking forward to reading it, and reaching a conclusion. Oh Lackey, why did you have to trade from your trilogies? I feel like the action in the second book could have been condensed more, and I could have had more meat in the second!

Another problem I have is that there are multiple typos in it. It feels rushed. Maybe Lackey or her editor didn't reread her work? There's one spot where it reads 'Hera;ds'. It's such an easy mistake to fix!

If you're a hard-core Lackey fan, it's worth reading. If you're looking for something to introduce you into her finest work, this isn't it. Please, if you read this set of books, and find you hate them, please don't give up on Lackey. I promise there are other books by her out there that are so much better. It was ok to read, it did grab me, but it just wasn't satisfying. Lackey, I'm disappointed.(less)

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May 14, 2012 Annette rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

I've always had Lackey mentally categorized as "candy:" imaginative world, interesting magical characters, and fairly shameless pathos of the "and then it turned out the wretched little orphan was a princess after all" sort, but no more substantial than a packet of Skittles. "Changes" was no exception, except maybe more so. Little action, minimal plot advancement (it is book three in an "N" book series - clearly not the last), out-of-the-blue revelations of critical but here-to-for unmentioned m...more

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Apr 14, 2012 Jana rated it 1 of 5 stars

I have been a Mercedes Lackey fan for years. I own almost everything she has published and absolutely everything from her Valdemar series, many of which I've reread numerous times. Unfortunately, I have noticed a downward slide in her writing and the latest installment of The Collegium Chronicles, Changes (which everyone assumed to be the third in her typical trilogy) was more of the same.

While there is some character development and anticipated romances blossom, the characterization was uninsp...more I have been a Mercedes Lackey fan for years. I own almost everything she has published and absolutely everything from her Valdemar series, many of which I've reread numerous times. Unfortunately, I have noticed a downward slide in her writing and the latest installment of The Collegium Chronicles, Changes (which everyone assumed to be the third in her typical trilogy) was more of the same.

While there is some character development and anticipated romances blossom, the characterization was uninspired. Mags is still the same scared little boy who seems to whine regularly about any and everything, which I found rather frustrating. Also, his dialect has not improved, which is curious. He has been at the Collegium for nine or so months, but the way he speaks is unchanged. I would have thought that by book three his speech would have improved to readability with a few choice words keeping the rough dialect, even slipping back into it when angry like anyone who grew up with a pronounced accent does, but nothing has changed. Not only does it point to more questions on the development of this character, it makes for a trying and unenjoyable read.

He also seems surrounded by characters just as whiney and just as underdeveloped. They spend half of the novel arguing with each other and the other half throwing tantrums. While their families are interesting antagonists and they seem to have intriguing obstacles to overcome, the actual characters don't live up to it. It seemed like middle school all over again, not in a good 'live and grow' way, but in an 'I don't know if I can keep reading this' way. I found myself skimming over most of these chapters and missing little.

Kirball is another point in the series that needs addressing. I was intrigued in book two by the idea of war games, which are discussed in other Valdemar novels, but, when I learned more about the game, I quickly lost interest. Kirball is the Quidditch of Valdemar and, because it ties so closely to what another author has done, I expected it to be more. It's not however, and the numerous chapters devoted to it were tedious.

Another worrisome aspect of the novel is the numerous questions that are, as of yet, unanswered. In fact, more questions have been posed in a way that seems as if Lackey is trying to stretch this series farther than it should have ever attempted to stretch. As if, by posing more questions and leaving others still unanswered, the cliffhangers will be enough to keep people reading.

Overall this was a very disappointing book from one who has shown herself to be a great writer. The last few Valdemar novels have had trite storylines with predictable and underdeveloped characters and Changes did not deviate from this. If you're a die-hard Lackey fan, like me, then read it because you can't not read something she writes, but borrow it from someone and prepare to be disappointed.
(less)

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Mar 30, 2012 Miriam rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I'll start by saying that I generally love the Valdemar books. I don't care that Lackey uses the same general plot over and over and over again. It's a plot I like. I didn't read any reviews before starting this third one in what I thought was a trilogy. (I had read the other two.) And even though it's been out for awhile, I'd just been too busy to read it, even though I'd been looking forward to it.

This is okay. It isn't great. It isn't awful. It's just okay. I have major issues with the editor...more I'll start by saying that I generally love the Valdemar books. I don't care that Lackey uses the same general plot over and over and over again. It's a plot I like. I didn't read any reviews before starting this third one in what I thought was a trilogy. (I had read the other two.) And even though it's been out for awhile, I'd just been too busy to read it, even though I'd been looking forward to it.

This is okay. It isn't great. It isn't awful. It's just okay. I have major issues with the editor of all of Lackey's work. While I read this one on an ereader, so I'm bound to have more typos/errors than in a hard edition, I've found similar errors in her hard editions of other books, too. Things like, "One the one hand" and "Hera;ds" and "here" instead of "hear". My personal favorite is when a character's name was misspelled. I expect that sort of thing out of self-published and free ebooks, not something I pay $13 for.

Then there's Mags. Mags as a character has so much potential. I really liked him in the last two books. But his dialogue is tedious to read. There are passages where I had to go through it three or four times before I could get what he was saying. He should be getting easier to understand, not harder. Shouldn't the Collegium be training him in basic diction? Shouldn't Dallen be trying to tell him that as a Herald he at least needs to show that he can speak well when he needs to? Okay, for one paragraph he did, but in order to blend, he needs to be able to blend with everyone, not just the underbelly of society.

I don't like sports in this world. Kirball in this series, Quidditch in Harry Potter, Ja'La in the Sword of Truth series. When you spend half a book describing a ball game, I will tune out and scan through it and hope that I don't miss a plot point. i think I got all of them. Sports games in fantasy books are not exciting, they're tiring. If I want to watch a ball game, I'll turn on ESPN. Really. I don't care if you say it's really to train people for war. That's why there's a weapons master and a weapons training class. Ooops, Mags is too busy with all of his other things like playing this STUPID game to train properly. Last book had it in proper proportion to the rest of the book. Mags is getting out of his little triad. Meeting people, etc. This one, it's half the book. Yes, it's important, I get it. But we could have had more character development instead of game development.

Speaking of character development. I'm guessing this isn't the end of Mags' story. Because if it is, I'm going to be more disappointed than the three stars. (less)

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Dec 27, 2011 Laura rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, science-fiction, young-adult, beach-read

I was in Barnes and Noble, looking for a Christmas gift. I'd found the gift when I found this: a new Collegium book. Sure, it was hardcover but I was in a Christmas-spending kind of mood.

I like the stories about the founding of the Collegium but I was strangely unsatisfied by this particular book. Maybe it was the ending. Maybe that there are simply too many unanswered questions: Where is Mag's family from? Did the Karsites have anything to do with the strange weather? Where are all these strang...more

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Dec 04, 2011 kvon rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: librarybook

I remember getting introduced to the works of Lackey...in college, a friend with a larger shelf of sff than I had suggested I might like her series, Arrows of the Queen. And I did. And then the Diana Tregarde series and the Herald Vanyel series were great. But then came the Bardic Voices series, and I started noticing the weakness of her writing (bringing in a second POV character in the last fourth of a book? really?) and she's been sliding down since then. I stopped buying the Valdemar books w...more

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Dec 03, 2011 Mikaela rated it 2 of 5 stars

I intended to buy this, but when I discovered that the library had it, I decided to borrow it instead. I am glad I did. This book… it wasn’t good, but it wasn’t bad either. One reason could be that I thought it was the final book in the triology, which meant that I expected more action. Judging from the loose plot threads at the end, I suspect that there is at least one more book in the series. A lot of things happens, both to Mags, Amity, Lena and Bear. It was interesting to follow Mags gradual...more

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Nov 26, 2011 Jennifer rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

As another reviewer of a different Mercedes Lackey book wrote, "Mercedes Lackey is the comfort food of fantasy." I agree with this. My problem is, that even with that designation, this most recent trilogy, The Collegium Chronicles, was extremely disappointing.

The plot was slow; there were typos in all the volumes; and all the characters spent too much time whining. The amount of plot that was covered in three volumes should have been covered in one, and the main character wasn't likeable becaus...more

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Oct 31, 2011 Joy rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is the most recent Valdemar novel, following along as the third in the series telling about the founding of the Herald's Collegium and its early years. I love the world of Valdemar and will always enjoy stories set there, as they are consistently entertaining and wholesome while managing not to be treacly or too predictable. This novel did not disappoint, and there were some great parts that referenced other parts of the Valdemar history (especially the orb) along with continued development...more

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Oct 26, 2011 Kathy Davie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: children, fantasy, homey, young-adult

Third in the Valdemar: Collegium Chronicles which provides us with background on how the current three colleges—Bardic, Herald, and Healer—came to exist using the mystery that surrounds Bardic Trainee Mags.

The Story
Having uncovered the group of assassins seeking to destablize Valdemar, Nikolas, the King's Own Herald, is still suspicious. He believes that the original group never left Haven and he is determined to find and eliminate them using an undercover role he created years ago. In this, he...more

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Oct 22, 2011 Kathy Martin rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This was a good addition to the Collegium Chronicles. It was good to see Bear, Lena and Mags developing into their adult roles. Both Bear and Lena have parent problems and seem to get a handle on them in this volume. Bear's healer family can't understand how he can be a healer without the healing gift even though he has proved his abilities to those in Collegium. Lena has to deal with a father who is so self-centered that his only goal in life is to do what is necessary for himself to remain cen...more

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Apr 16, 2012 Sara rated it 3 of 5 stars

Meh. By the end of this trilogy, it was definitely feeling a little stale to me. A little too formulaic, and some parts of it read almost like Valdemar fan-fiction, with little allusions all over the place to other Valdemar novels. The plot itself felt a little thin here, and the character relationships a little overly dramatic.

Also, I know it's part of Lackey's style to leave with a cliffhanger ending, but kind of annoyed me this time around.

Sadly, I think sometimes more prolific authors get a...more

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Oct 23, 2011 Shiloh (SnarkyWriter) rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. CHANGES is the third book in the Collegium Chronicles, which covers the time between Vanyel/Lavan Firestorm and Alberich. Purportedly, the series is supposed to describe how the Heraldic Collegium was developed out of the mentor-style learning Vanyel had, but only a very small part of the trilogy is given over to that theme.

In CHANGES, Mags works to finally solve the mystery of what the assassins who have been skulking about Haven (and going insane) really want, where they came from, and why. Wi...more CHANGES is the third book in the Collegium Chronicles, which covers the time between Vanyel/Lavan Firestorm and Alberich. Purportedly, the series is supposed to describe how the Heraldic Collegium was developed out of the mentor-style learning Vanyel had, but only a very small part of the trilogy is given over to that theme.

In CHANGES, Mags works to finally solve the mystery of what the assassins who have been skulking about Haven (and going insane) really want, where they came from, and why. With the help of the King's Own and his friends, Mags goes into training to become the kingdom's newest intelligence agent and save his love interest, Amily, from the newest set of assassins.

This book was more satisfying than the first two in the series. While the weaknesses that plagued the first couple of books in the series--more on those in a moment--were still rampant here, there were at least explanations for them, as well as some kind of closure (though not as complete a closure as I would have liked). Many of the characters finally (FINALLY) deal with their parental issues, though we never do find out who Mags' parents are and why the assassins want him so badly.

Kirball is still an enormous distraction and annoyance, though at least it serves a purpose in this book; Mags' training allows him to survive some pretty tough spots. However, it takes up the first 20+ pages of the book and was just as annoying as it was in the last book, not least because until the last Alberich book, it doesn't show up again. At least in EXILE'S VALOR, Lackey explains why the game disappeared.

Mags' accent also becomes unbearable in this novel. Lackey's insistence on spelling out everything he says practically phonetically--with lots of apostrophes for missing letters--made easy comprehension impossible. Mags demonstrates at one point that he can speak in a perfectly comprehendable manner, but he chooses not to because it adds to his "dumb boy" image that keeps people from thinking he's anything more than a regular Heraldic trainee.

I love Lackey's other work, and I desperately miss the camaraderie, respect, and understanding among the Heralds that we've seen in other works. While the constant strife is explained in this book, I miss having a concrete reason why people aren't getting along. It's almost as if Orthallen was the best villain Lackey ever wrote, and without him the machinations are petty and two-dimensional.(less)

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Oct 13, 2011 Jen A. rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011

Changes, another Collegium novel featuring the orphan Mags, was about as pleasurable to read as the previous two (Foundation and Intrigues).

I LOVED the many trilogies that Mercedes Lackey has written, all taking place in Valdemar. But this particular series seems like it was intended for a young adult audience. Much is spelled out by way of Mags thinking to himself, or talking to his friends or Dallen (his Companion). [Don't get me wrong; I love books where the characters have to actually THINK...more

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Oct 20, 2011 Branwen rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy-science-fiction

*sighs blissfully* Ah, Valdemar...that wonderous and fantastic land that has brought me so much happiness over the years. As soon as I bought this book and ran my hands over the cover I felt tears welling up because there are just so mnay beautiful memories associated with Valdemar and Heralds, and Companians. This is the third book in Lackey's Collegium series, and it is much like the last two. There is a lot of Kirball, lots of actions scenes, lots of mystery and political intrigue, budding ro...more

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Oct 02, 2012 Cheryl rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

This is the first of Mercedes Lackey's books that I've had an opportunity to listen to rather than read myself. With Changes, it was fantastic. The first book I've listened to that should be an audiobook rather than a paperbook.

Mags' accent was part of the reason that I despised book two of this series. It was painful to read and decipher and made the story seem so much worse having to endure page after page of the grating accent that wasn't even English. With someone else reading it, putting i...more This is the first of Mercedes Lackey's books that I've had an opportunity to listen to rather than read myself. With Changes, it was fantastic. The first book I've listened to that should be an audiobook rather than a paperbook.

Mags' accent was part of the reason that I despised book two of this series. It was painful to read and decipher and made the story seem so much worse having to endure page after page of the grating accent that wasn't even English. With someone else reading it, putting in proper inflections, not only was it tolerable, but enjoyable. I seriously hope that the library gets book 4 in audiobook, and I wish they'd obtained the first two. I'd go back and listen to them again.

Despite the accent thing being resolved by it being an audiobook, there were still parts that dragged. Too much exposition, too much redundancy. I wanted to strangle Mags a few times and say, "Okay! I get it. Everyone is grumpy." Also, the angst over parents from Lena and Bear went on too long.

Amily (I'm not sure I'm spelling her name right) was pretty inconsistent. I vaguely remembered from book 2 that Mags was romantically attached to her, but there was so little between the two of them, that I sort of shrugged the whole thing off. I didn't have that much angst for their relationship when everyone was doing the anger thing, or even when Amily and Nicolas were having issues. I didn't like her very much at that point and didn't care if she and Mags never got together.

I couldn't remember Cedric having been mentioned, nor Lydia. Maybe some of the random people would have been easier to remember if it wasn't an audiobook.

If you haven't read anything by Mercedes Lackey, start with her older Valdemar books. The earliest are definitely worth a read. The first book in this series made me want to reread the Arrows trilogy (which I did), the second made me want to gouge out my eyes, but this was was passable, and I'll look forward to the next installment. Surely, she can't leave this at 3... the end was so... abrupt.(less)

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Jun 22, 2012 Michele rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

While I enjoyed the 2 books prior to this last, I was hoping this third one would reach a satisfactory conclusion. Apparently there's to be another. Our main character in this book, Mags, is interesting, if a bit improbable. While certainly intelligent even with the boost of an older Companion, I am still finding it hard to imagine such a young Herald Trainee doing on that he does. He'd have to be a super genius. This doesn't detract too much from Ms. Lackey's wonderful storytelling just makes u...more

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Nov 22, 2011 Anne Toronto1 rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

"Changes" (Collegium 3) by Mercedes Lackey. Mags' retained rube accent, his Mind-speak to better-than-horse, interfering reminiscences, and nasty fathers of healer Bear and Bard Lena, are less annoying than before, especially when a more pro batch of assassins are back after him and his crush, crippled Amily. Sample p51 "Be careful what ye ast fer, yer like t'get it, an' in the wust possible way."
Classic morals sneak in, to appreciate your lot, "even he, miserable creature that he had been, was...more

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Nov 20, 2011 Jeffrey rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: lackey fan's who have read other books in this series

Shelves: fantasy, read-in-2011

A continuation of Lackey's Valdemer series. This latest book is the third book in her series about three trainees in the Collegium, Mags, who is clearly being trained to become a spy or the King's Own, Bear, a gifted non magical healer, who has to fight bigotry on the part of his family -- who think healing is for only the magically gifted, and Lena, a shy bardic trainee, who has to suffer at the hands of her obnoxious bullying self indulgent father.

Really however, it feels to me that the Bear s...more

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Jan 05, 2013 Kelly rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2013, fantasy, audiobook

Changes picks up the pace from the second book, thank goodness. The biggest disappointment for me - and maybe this is just me asking too much of YA - is that it flirts with some dark questions without really confronting them. Mags starts to consider how dark the life a spy might be - always snooping and snitching and not being yourself - then drops the question. He (view spoiler)...more

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About Mercedes Lackey

Mercedes entered this world on June 24, 1950, in Chicago, had a normal childhood and graduated from Purdue University in 1972. During the late 70's she worked as an artist's model and then went into the computer programming field, ending up with American Airlines in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In addition to her fantasy writing, she has written lyrics for and recorded nearly fifty songs for Firebird Arts &...more Mercedes entered this world on June 24, 1950, in Chicago, had a normal childhood and graduated from Purdue University in 1972. During the late 70's she worked as an artist's model and then went into the computer programming field, ending up with American Airlines in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In addition to her fantasy writing, she has written lyrics for and recorded nearly fifty songs for Firebird Arts & Music, a small recording company specializing in science fiction folk music.

"I'm a storyteller; that's what I see as `my job.' My stories come out of my characters; how those characters would react to the given situation. Maybe that's why I get letters from readers as young as thirteen and as old as sixty-odd. One of the reasons I write song lyrics is because I see songs as a kind of `story pill' -- they reduce a story to the barest essentials or encapsulate a particular crucial moment in time. I frequently will write a lyric when I am attempting to get to the heart of a crucial scene; I find that when I have done so, the scene has become absolutely clear in my mind, and I can write exactly what I wanted to say. Another reason is because of the kind of novels I am writing: that is, fantasy, set in an other-world semi-medieval atmosphere. Music is very important to medieval peoples; bards are the chief newsbringers. When I write the `folk music' of these peoples, I am enriching my whole world, whether I actually use the song in the text or not.

"I began writing out of boredom; I continue out of addiction. I can't `not' write, and as a result I have no social life! I began writing fantasy because I love it, but I try to construct my fantasy worlds with all the care of a `high-tech' science fiction writer. I apply the principle of TANSTAAFL [`There ain't no such thing as free lunch', credited to Robert Heinlein) to magic, for instance; in my worlds, magic is paid for, and the cost to the magician is frequently a high one. I try to keep my world as solid and real as possible; people deal with stubborn pumps, bugs in the porridge, and love-lives that refuse to become untangled, right along with invading armies and evil magicians. And I try to make all of my characters, even the `evil magicians,' something more than flat stereotypes. Even evil magicians get up in the night and look for cookies, sometimes.

"I suppose that in everything I write I try to expound the creed I gave my character Diana Tregarde in Burning Water:

"There's no such thing as `one, true way'; the only answers worth having are the ones you find for yourself; leave the world better than you found it. Love, freedom, and the chance to do some good -- they're the things worth living and dying for, and if you aren't willing to die for the things worth living for, you might as well turn in your membership in the human race."

Also known as Misty Lackey.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/merced...(less)

More about Mercedes Lackey...

Books by Mercedes Lackey

Arrows of the Queen (Heralds of Valdemar, #1)

Magic's Pawn (Valdemar: Last Herald-Mage, #1)

Magic's Price (Valdemar: Last Herald-Mage, #3)

Magic's Promise (Valdemar: Last Herald-Mage, #2)

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Quotes from Changes

“Fanatics can justify practically any atrocity to themselves. The more untenable their position becomes, the harder they hold to it, and the worse the things they are willing to do to support it.” — 14 people liked it

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Changes (Valdemar: Collegium Chronicles #3)

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