Book Review: Arrows of the Queen
Arrows of the Queen by Mercedes Lackey
4.5 stars, and such a fun read! Definitely going to grab the sequel ASAP!
Why I Read This Book: I happened upon several Youtube videos of Mercedes Lackey songs on Youtube, and after a bit of Googling, figured out that these amazing songs I’d found were based on this book series.
Playlist of Mercedes Lackey songs on Youtube (beware that some songs cover events during/after the Heralds of Valdemar so here is your mandatory spoiler alert)
When Talia “found” one of the legendary Companions, she took the first step along the magical pathway to her destiny…
Types of representation presented in this book: LGBTQ+, gynecological issues such as periods and birth control
As always, I’ll talk about three good things and three not-so-good things so you can make your own judgement about whether or not to give this a try (though I do highly recommend you give this a try! xD)
Not-so-good
Though the first few chapters dive right into the action, with Talia setting off on an adventure, once she arrives at the Collegium, the various aspects of this world–the difference between Herald-Mages and regular Mages, why Rolan has only ever spoken to Talia once, why the Mages need to exist, what are the duties of the Queen’s Own Mage, etc. are just kind of infodumped on the reader via Talia not knowing any of this information and then the other students teaching it to her. Nowadays that sort of literary device is a bit overused, but back in the 80’s when this book was first published it was a perfectly acceptable way to tell a story. I personally didn’t mind because I wanted to know all this information and was starved for it by the time Lackey gave us this explanation, but I know that other readers aren’t as forgiving as me, so I thought it was worth mentioning here. Though it is very interesting history and a very interesting Herald-Companion relationship that makes it fun to read.
Amazing
Though I have seen other reviewers who claim that Talia is just another orphaned Chosen One a la Harry Potter, but A) this book was published WAY before Harry Potter, and B) SO WHAT SHE’S REALLY SYMPATHETIC AS A MAIN CHARACTER.
We first meet her at her home village, where she’s washing laundry and taking solace in the stories she loves to read about Vanyel, the legendary Herald-Mage. Her foster mother, who isn’t exactly the best mother, then calls her over and announces that since Talia is now thirteen, she will be married off, as is the tradition for their people. Talia objects, and runs away from home out of frustration that none of the adults will listen. Just when she’s considering returning and accepting the consequences of her actions, she meets a Companion, a horse-like creature with human intelligence, and he manages to impress on her his name, Rolan, and that he wants her to ride him. He then carries her across the kingdom to the castle, where she finds out that she’s been Chosen to be a Herald in service of the Queen, a dream she thought would never come true. And then we see her develop her craftiness as she navigates the complex politics of being the Queen’s Own in direct succession to the previous Queen’s Own who was most likely poisoned. I really liked Talia and became quickly invested in her situation.
Not-so-good
Once Talia arrives at the Collegium to become a Mage, she meets a plethora of other students, and frankly, few of them actually stuck in my mind. For example, one of the first places she visits is the library, where she runs into a trainee named Kris, who is rather friendly to her, then is never mentioned again for 200 pages. Because of his friendly attitude and overall interest in Talia’s background, I’d thought that he was going to be a love interest, or at least a good friend, only for Talia to get another love interest, Skif, fifty or so pages later. I could never write a story this complex and awesome (at least not at this time), but I would have written it as Skif/Kris being one person–that way, during the climax when Kris is struggling to lend his assistance to Queen Selenay, we have the added tension of his and Talia’s relationship and Talia not wanting him to put himself at risk. Talia also was mentored by Sherrill, who we saw once giving Talia a tour of the facilities and then not again until the end when Sherrill graduates and shows off her new Whites to Talia. There were just a lot of characters who didn’t seem to have much purpose in the story.
Good
THE HUMOR AND SELF-DEPRECATING SNARK IN THIS STORY WAS AMAZING! Lackey knew what she was doing when she wrote scenes that just made me stop and need to finish laughing first! Like this scene on page 51. (For context, the dialogue is being spoken by an innkeeper who is helping Talia along her journey, in reference to a man in the village where Talia just came from):
“Just like a man! Never once thinks that you might be more frightened by this than excited, never once thinks you might not know the rules. Totally forgets that you might be Chosen but you’re still just a child. And you’re no better, Rolan!” she added over her shoulder, “Men!”
Or this scene on page 114, when Talia’s instructor is introducing her to a set of twins in the class:
He [the teacher] winked at them, and the twin boys grinned back, obviously at ease with them. “Maybe I should ask Alberich to give one of you a black eye–then at least I’d know which of you was which until it faded.”
In short, the humor in this book is amazing and if you like to laugh while still enjoying a story that takes itself seriously, this is the book for you.
Not-so-good
The last sixty pages of this book feel really rushed. In Chapter Ten, we see the death of a major character who we actually have gotten to know very well and who is very close to Talia. This was such a big, emotional moment that it felt like the climax of the book in and of itself. So then in the following sixty pages, when we have a tense, but rushed attempted rescue of one of the Heralds who is in danger, it felt like mood whiplash and as such, I didn’t remember it as well as the earlier parts of the book. After reading to the final, final page and seeing where the book actually ended, I agree that the death of the forementioned character was not the proper place to end the book and the book needed to continue until the true ending, when Talia finally admitted to herself that the Collegium was her home, but I kind of wish we’d had a moment between the death and Chapter Eleven, when we get a three-year time jump to Talia as a sixteen-year-old and having to suddenly help Queen Selenay rescue aforementioned senior Herald.
Good
The magic system (well, what we see of it–there used to be powerful Herald-Mages a long time ago, but nowadays the only magic is the Gift a Herald can use, which is usually limited to one ability or power and very physically straining to use) and the worldbuilding is so interesting! It’s not just your typical “medieval Europe-ish” setting (well, it kind of is) but it’s got so many legends and characters to explore, and the best part of it is the Companions themselves. It’s such an intriguing concept in terms of the existence of Heralds and Companions and them being essentially bonded with one another is so cool! We see this firsthand with Talia and Rolan, and Talia’s insecurity about being bonded to Rolan, when he’s already had one or more Heralds and she feels like she can’t live up to his previous partners, and it’s just my new favorite friendship ever and I will never stop shouting about this series!
In conclusion: Though the ending chapters are a bit rushed and the large cast leaves something to be desired, this is a fun high fantasy world about an orphan who finds somewhere she can belong and finds a way to serve her Queen while making her dreams come true. In addition, we have several LGBTQ+ characters (right from the first chapter, when Talia is reading about Herald Vanyel, he is mentioned to have a “lifemate,” called Bard Stephen. Then, when Talia goes to the Collegium, multiple of her instructors and fellow students are gay and lesbian, and Talia reveals to the reader that many of the women in her society were also lesbian/bisexual), along with a frank discussion of periods and sexuality and usage of birth control by the female Heralds. If you are looking for a fantasy book with a strong friendship at its core, extensive worldbuilding that would make even Tolkien jealous, and some court intrigue just for fun, pick up this series and give it a read!
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If you enjoyed this post, you might also like these other posts from me:
Books I’ve Fallen In Love With During Quarantine
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See you guys next time! Happy reading!
Corinne 乙女
