Blind Prophecy

I’d like to write a review of The Phoenix Endangered by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory.

I’d like to, but I really don’t know what to tell you.

The book is the middle installment in The Enduring Flame Trilogy (begun with The Phoenix Unchained, which I reviewed in 2007), which is itself a continuation of the universe Lackey and Mallory created for The Obsidian Trilogy.

At the end of book 1, the story’s heroes, Tiercel and Harrier, seemed to be gathering magical beings and powers like berries, setting up for a deus ex machina conclusion to a war that had not even begun. In The Phoenix Endangered, Lackey and Mallory shift away from expectations and show the heroes to be reluctant to engage these allies and powers.

Well-crafted characters, especially the desert tribe’s Shaiara who manages to have a genuinely unique voice, and a refreshingly believable character arc for a fantasy tale of dragons and elves and magic make this a great piece of entertainment reading. While the details of the story are a bit inventive, for long-time fans of Mercedes Lackey, there’s nothing especially original in either the plot or the moralizing of the story, but I rarely turn to Lackey for daring experimentation anyway.

(Frankly, I’m getting a little bored with Lackey’s desert-people stories. We get it, nomads who live in deserts are tough and resourceful.)

In short, it’s a “middle book” – meaning there’s a lot of journey, there’s a lot of worry and self-reflection, there’s a lot of setting things in motion, and despite having a battle and story, not much is resolved. Things look bleak for the heroes (and the world), of course. In fact, the book ends on the expected minor cliffhanger as the lead characters prepare themselves for the final stage of their fight (which they are sure will lead to their deaths).

Like the last book, my recommendation is to wait for the paperback (unless you have a gift card burning a hole in your pocket like I did) and possibly even wait for the final book in the trilogy before you get wrapped up in this story. Aside from that, do read it if you enjoy fantasy.

Filed under: books by Jere Keys