Into the West

Founding of Valdemar Series, Book 2

By: Mercedes Lackey

Narrated by: Paul Woodson

The long-awaited founding of Valdemar comes to life in this second book in the new series from a New York Times bestselling author and beloved fantasist.

Baron Valdemar and his people have found a temporary haven, but it cannot hold all of them, or for long. Trouble could follow on their heels at any moment, and there are too many people for Crescent Lake to support. Those who are willing to make a further trek by barge on into the West will follow him into a wilderness depopulated by war and scarred by the terrible magics of a thousand years ago and the Mage Wars. But the wilderness is not as "empty" as it seems. There are potential friends and rapacious foes . . .

. . . and someone is watching them.

©2022 Mercedes Lackey (P)2022 Tantor

Overall I loved it!

**CONTAINS SPOILERS**

What I liked:
I loved the adventure and journey of the characters. I really got into the book and I was not disappointed by this.
The book had cursing, which was a surprise, I don’t recall Lackey ever really using foul language in her books, but I didn’t mind it, her books can get too PG sometimes. And it was funny for the most part. Also, that cat cracks me up, I wish he had a slightly bigger part.

As for the narration, this narrator was amazing as usual, his work is always spot on!

What I didn’t like:
• It seemed that the main caravan was encountering more things than the advance scouting party was. Shouldn’t it have been the other way around? It felt a little off to me.

• Delia - While yes she was fleshed out a bit more but was overall really frustrating for me. I understand she's a young girl with limited social interactions, and her intense crush on Kordas was cute in the first book. However, it quickly became irritating and cringe-worthy in this one. I'm not a fan of adulterous plotlines, so I'm relieved the story also strengthened Isla and Kordas's relationship and left Delia’s one-sided.

• The nauseatingly perfect Taleydras coming to the rescue…in yet another book… Also, they already reminded me of Blood Elves from World of Warcraft, but she named the one in this book Silvermoon…

So despite the shortcomings, which were really just personal pet peeves, this book is a definite read!

So glad Valdemar is back!

Mercedes Lackey is so skilled in creating sympathetic characters that you just wish you could meet them in person!

As always, a fab read!

I love Mercedes’ new books! It feels like coming home every time. I started reading this series 30 yrs ago. I’m waiting, a little impatiently, for the next book and learning the mystery of where companions came from.

Awesome edition to the Valdemar timeline!!

Awesome, really enjoyed this one. Definitely a great book, and adding quality content. The characters are very memorable, as well as hilarious at the best times.

I really love this series!

The founding of Valdemar is so great. I can't wait to hear about how the companions came about. I have a long drive and I listen to Audible on the way home. This book was very enjoyable.