Sign in with Facebook
Loading...
44th out of 80 books
—
24 voters
Exile's Valor (Valdemar: Exile #2)
This stand-alone novel in the Valdemar series continues the story of prickly weapons-master Alberich. Once a heroic Captain in the army of Karse, a kingdom at war with Valdemar, Alberich becomes one of Valdemar's Heralds. Despite prejudice against him, he becomes the personal protector of young Queen Selenay. But can he protect her from the dangers of her own heart?
Paperback, 448 pages
Published
October 5th 2004
by DAW
(first published 2003)
Friend Reviews
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
Community Reviews
(showing
1-30
of
3,000)
I do love Lackey's Valdemar and picked up the earlier books eagerly. For me they're the equivalent of bookly comfort food. But I was disappointed in the earlier book centered on Alberich, Exile's Honor, and I'm afraid this sequel to it is no improvement.
It's a common criticism of Lackey that she's very black and white in her worldview and characterizations. That doesn't suit in fleshing out the supposedly intimidating Alberich, who hails from Valdemar's traditional enemy, Karse. It also doesn't...more
It's a common criticism of Lackey that she's very black and white in her worldview and characterizations. That doesn't suit in fleshing out the supposedly intimidating Alberich, who hails from Valdemar's traditional enemy, Karse. It also doesn't...more
Either I've read too many summer reading escapist fantasy novels and my brain is melting, or Lackey's are actually getting better. This one was a very well-written book with a unique plot. Other than the talking horses (which are very well-done so they're not cheesy and are an integral part of the plot) this book read like a historical fiction novel, only based on no actual events. Rather than quests for mystical artifacts, prophecies, or fights against all-powerful, evil magic-wielders with wor...more
A fitting sequel to Exile's Honor, but I didn't find it quite as compelling. I guess I had trouble recognizing a Selenay, very mature for her age up until now, who suddenly acts adolescent and I found it hard to believe that the Prince wouldn't have slipped in his role-playing more often prior to the marriage so that she would have been more cautious. There were plenty of reasons given by Alberich for her behavior, but they weren't convincing. If all this was just to provide Selenay with an heir...more
Selenay is a capable, BAMF of a Valdemarian Queen, but the reader always hears the tale of Elspeth's father who seduced her in an attempt to steal her crown and failed. This is the story of that time, immediately after her father's death and her own assumption of the throne, when a vulnerable young Selenay must face her trial. Fortunately, she has a lot of help from Weaponsmaster Alberich, Chronicler Myste, and Queen's Own Herald Talamir.
A highly enjoyable book from what could have been a morti...more
A highly enjoyable book from what could have been a morti...more
Mercedes Lackey’s Valdemar series provides one of the cornerstones of my reading history. After discovering her when quite young, I still follow new additions to the series - nearly twenty years later! I read and re-read these books over and over again throughout my youth, but I haven't re-read this series in its entirety in a long time - and never as an adult. There are some new books added to the series since the last time I read them, so this re-reading project is pretty exciting for me since...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
I don't think this is quite as strong a book as Exile's Honor, but I like it well enough. The primary plot (Selenay being a featherheaded teenager) is eyeroll-inducing at best, but I do like just about everything from Alberich's perspective, and his romance is charming and realistic, which is a nice change from all of the fated and sort of dire pairings we've seen so far.
Two small rants, though:
- Selenay is the Queen, had been raised from birth to rule, in an environment that has been firmly est...more
Two small rants, though:
- Selenay is the Queen, had been raised from birth to rule, in an environment that has been firmly est...more
I’ve been reading Mercedes Lackey’s Valdemar fantasy series for the last two months—all 24 of them. Some of them I like better than others but all of them are entertaining. (though I’d only give five stars to my favorites: the two books about Weaponsmaster Alberich: Exile’s Honor and Exile’s Valor.) Usually Lackey writes a trilogy following the growth and experiences of a character who doesn’t fit in and is suddenly thrust into an unexpected new life where he or she learns about his own abilitie...more
I liked the Alberich of Exile's Honor, and Exile's Valor gives him another side that I appreciate. But I like Selenay even more, but I do wish she would be more gutsy with those councilors. What's good about this set (Exile's ...) is that there is a lot of description of Valdemar itself -- what the city of Haven is like, who lives there, what folks do every day. Takes you into that world at an every-day level that I appreciate. I should finish this one this weekend, and then on to It Takes a Thi...more
This is really, really good--maybe as good as some of Marion Zimmer Bradley's best--and that's the gold standard for me in heroic fantasy.The tale of Alderich, a captain in the army of a foreign land, who is sentenced to death for witchcraft because he has some sort of telepathic powers. He is saved by people from Valdemar, his land's most bitter enemy, and finds a place their, realizing the people who have been presented to him as demons find are actually honest, good people who have a free, op...more
Would have rated this a five, but there are some discrepancies between this book and another earlier written series (names and events). Makes me feel like the author did not care to go back and double check her work.
Read Exile's Honor fist. This is a sequel. And there's probably a triquel out there... It's clear what happens, as it was in this book if you've read any others, and will be for the triquel too. But fun.
Another foray into the life of the Weaponsmaster. In some respects this one is as good as its predecessor, although in some ways I enjoyed Exile's Honor more. Still, a very good read and lots of hints of intrigues to come.
Lackey's better fantasies, like this one, focus on people who are growing up or facing a crisis. It is the development of the Alberich which drives the novel. This is a good book.
An interesting story that sets the backdrop for others in this book. I felt like the beginning of the book set the stage for the later events in a long, drawn out fashion.
Mercedes has created the fabulous world of Valdemar. It is chock full of Magic,mystery,romance,suspense. One of the best fantasy series I've ever read.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Like the rest of her books it is excellent. I want to read more about his history and story. There needs to be a third.
Jul 05, 2009
Solon
is currently reading it
I don't like they Mercedes put herself in the book. It's a bit distracting. But other than that so far the book is going great.
This book was ok. It wasn't as good as the first book about Alberich. A lot of politics and court intrigue in this book, but not a whole lot of action, that is until the end of the book, which came to a satisfying but predictable ending. The romance was kind of in the back ground but not weak. This book did flow though. Very smoothly written. It left little bait and hooks for other books in the Valdemar universe that made me want to read them. But I didn't feel really connected to any of the cha...more
I absolutely adored it,! you really get to know each and every character!
Jan 03, 2009
SilverPen Pub
added it
Exile's Valor (Valdemar) by Mercedes Lackey (2004)
I definitely liked this volume better than the first one. Lackey is still far too comfortable with her formula and doesn't seem to want to shift from it. But the romance was ridiculously cute and the court intrigue was surprisingly interesting. I still wish there was a bit more...deeper... depth, or darkness or something, but that's not what you read a Mercedes Lackey book for.
Some good stuff floating around in a bit of fluff reading. After the anger I got from the Storm Warning books, reading...more
Some good stuff floating around in a bit of fluff reading. After the anger I got from the Storm Warning books, reading...more
Lackey is one of my favorite authors ever! I started reading her Valdemar series in 8th grade but I will still pull out her books to reread them. I also love her work so much that I never miss the chance to buy her new stuff. This series deals with another consistent Lackey character Alberich. But, unlike the Skif novel, it also has a place in filling a gap in the Valdemar timeline. I also enjoyed it because it showed the Companions as a bit more “human” than some of her past work.
I liked this book better than the other about Alberich. It was very interesting finding out how all the characters in the plot against Selenay fit together. Actually, I thought this book was very well put together - a lot of seemingly random events that ended up important to the ending!
However, I only recommend it to someone if they've read other series of Valdemar. Otherwise, a lot of the cool details that are tied in to the other series wouldn't make as much of an impact.
However, I only recommend it to someone if they've read other series of Valdemar. Otherwise, a lot of the cool details that are tied in to the other series wouldn't make as much of an impact.
love it!
Aug 11, 2011
Lady Lioness
marked it as keepers
Den Cabinets
Romance, danger and intrigue. If you've read the Arrows series, this fills in a great many blanks.
Apr 12, 2010
Denise
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Everyone
Shelves:
my-fav-authors,
fiction
This dragged in the middle. The relationship between Alberich and Myste wasn't fleshed-out enough IMHO. Selenay appears weak and indecisive with her court counselors. She had a strong father so I would have expected her to be of stronger fiber.
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
There are no discussion topics on this book yet.
Be the first to start one »
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
More about Mercedes Lackey...
Share This Book
No trivia or quizzes yet. Add some now »
