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Arrows of the Queen
Mercedes Lackey Book Review

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Plot Summary of Arrows of the Queen
"Talia is one of the Holderkin: people who live a hard life on the border, who marry their women off at 13 and allow them no freedom or education. The problem is Talia loves to read and the Holderkin life simply does not suit her; she is constantly being beaten and reprimanded. But the final blow comes when, on her 13th birthday, her father's wives inform her she is going to be married. Finally Talia can't take it anymore and runs away, and discovers that she is one of the legendary Heralds, the magically gifted protectors of her country who she had only read about in books before--and, more than that, she is the Queen's Own Herald!"
Amanda, Resident Scholar

"a young child from a dominating, strict, patriarchal border society is chosen by a magical creature and taken to the capital of her country. there, she learns about the place in society she will take, determined by her being chosen, and must come to terms with her unique mental powers, and learn to trust people.

"

emily, Resident Scholar

"Talia flees her confining family when a companion, steed of Heralds(what she secretly wishes to be)comes along. when she take him back, she is chosen to be a Herald, not any herald, a special herald. Now while she get's used to the liberal mindedness of her new surrounding, and learns her duites as a herald, she must find out who or what is poisoning the hier to the throne's views towards heralds."
malca watkins, Resident Scholar

"Talia, a 13-year old girl, is part of a strict society that she doesn't feel she belongs in. She wants desperately to be a Herald, one of those people who provides justice and safety to the kingdom, but doesn't really believe that she could ever be one. Just when things are most awful for her, she sees a Companion, one of the horselike beings capable of possessing a magical bond to a Herald. With her Companion, she travels to the capital city and attends the Herald Collegium and becomes involved in increasingly dangerous politics. "
Melissa Cookson, Resident Scholar

"A daydreaming girl escapes a bland and uncaring family when she is Chosen as a Herald, one of the guardians of Valdemar. She struggles to fit in with peers and is harrassed by evil noble children, but once she befriends other Herald and Herald trainees, the evil noble kids are brought to justice. "
, Resident Scholar



Review Analysis of Arrows of the Queen
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book - very upbeat
FANTASY or SCIENCE FICTION? - fantasy world/fantasy past
Coming of age Yes
Youngster becomes - a powerful magician
Inner Struggle Yes
Plotlet: - search for identity/new understanding - coping with mental/magical powers
Is this an adult or child's book? - Adult or Young Adult Book

Main Character
Identity: - Female
Profession/status: - student
Age: - a teen
Has magical/special powers? Yes
Magical/mental powers of main character: - can read emotions
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events? Yes
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Intelligence - Smarter than most other characters
Physique - healthy but a geeky weakling

Main Adversary
Identity: - Female
Has magical powers? Yes
Magical/mental powers of main antagonist: - mind control - can cast all sorts of spells
Eccentric: Yes - obsessed
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - a little/some
How sensitive is this character? - mean, arrogant
Sense of humor - Cynical sense of humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence

Setting
Terrain - Mountains - Forests
A substantial portion of this book takes place on a non-Earth planetary body: - humans in a primitive/fantasy society
Planet outside solar system? Yes

Style
Person? - mostly 3rd - rotating 1st
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
Sex in book? Yes
What kind of sex: - vague references only - descript of kissing
How much dialogue? - significantly more dialog than descript - roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
Most similar books to Arrows of the Queen
Heir of Sea and Fire by Patricia A. McKillip
Illumination by Terry McGarry
Wild Magic - The Immortals 1 by Tamora Pierce
The Sword of Calandra - The Winter King's War 2 by Susan Dexter
Lirael: Daughter of the Clayr by Garth Nix


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Mercedes Lackey Resident Scholar Profiles

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SCHOLARS:
Emily Veinglory  Amanda  Vetnita Anderson  Steven Vanzant  Allison Brown  Quortoth  fran laniado  Kelly Steed  Valerie Frankel  


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