.jpeg){kind=small}
A noticeable step-up from the preceding Deryni Rising, this one continues the Chronicles of the Deryni storyline but with a faster pace. Kurtz develops multiple plot lines, not all of which intersect neatly, and keeps the action moving by switching between them. She does not neatly resolve the book's chief problem herein but leaves it open to the final book of the trilogy. The least satisfying feature is the protagonists' annoying habit of not taking effective action upon learning or guessing the villainous machinations of the antagonists. Such nearly inexplicable indecision or inaction paralyzes Kurtz's characters in other stories as well; she would have been better served by having them choose a countermove that was ineffective or poorly carried out or thwarted, etc., but having them whistle past the graveyard with their hands in their pockets can be frustrating, unsatisfying, and a bit unrealistic. That said, her characters are lively and the various threads of the story move along.
If there's more to this than mere light entertainment, her treatment of racial issues and coexistence remain (perhaps unfortunately) a topic of interest. As her character Duncan McLain declares, "We're fighting the idiotic notion that a man is responsible for the accident of his birth." (p 29) Which is not to say that the entire Deryni series is a deep and thoughtful analysis of race relations good and bad, but there it is, an intrinsic component of the several trilogies nonetheless. If you enjoy Kurtz's other books, this will not disappoint. A reasonably good and fun read.