Description:

The Climax of The Spellsong Cycle

Secca, foster daughter of the Soprano Sorceress, and now her successor as Sorceress Protector of Defalk, must deal carefully with her willful master and wield her power to save his kingdom from the armies, fleets and master sorcerers of the Maitre of Sturinn. Faced with seemingly insurmountable odds, she is forced to test her own powers over and over again, while teaching her new husband and her inexperienced apprentice the skills they will need to aid her in creating spells powerful enough to shake the foundations of the world.

From Publishers Weekly

In this fifth and final novel in the author's popular Spellsong Cycle, an immediate sequel to The Shadow Sorceress (2001), Modesitt has penned a competent but pedestrian political-military fantasy thriller. There are few surprises in a world with wonders and limitations so well defined in previous volumes, but new readers may become confused unless they pay careful attention. Occasional hints suggest that the magic inherent in such artifacts as the scrying glass may have a basis in ancient technology, though it's doubtful that after the collapse of a technological civilization people would forget so basic an invention as the stirrup. Newlywed Secca and her sorcerer husband, Alcaren, in an attempt to end the military threat to DeFalk of the Sturinnese, carry war to their opponents' own island turf. As much as anything the book describes a war of the sexes, with the female spellsongs vs. the male sorcerers' magical drumming. Secca seemingly learns the true extent of her powers when she manages to vanquish the Sturinnese. Doubts about her stamina and abilities continue to plague her, however, when she next finds herself pitted against the world's most powerful wizard, who commands both conventional and magical armies. Secca faces her greatest challenge yet in a hard-hitting climax sure to delight established fans of the series. (Feb. 28)Ghost of the White Nights (Forecasts, Sept. 17).

Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Newly married to Alcaren, a political ally and fellow sorcerer, Secca, Sorceress Protector of the East, faces her greatest challenge as she attempts to thwart the invasion of the Sturrinese fleet under the command of the Sea Priests. The fifth and final novel in Modesitt's popular "Spellsong Cycle" features a resilient and courageous heroine whose songs contain powerful magic and whose heart refuses to flinch from difficult decisions. The author once again demonstrates a unique ability to blend large-scale storytelling with the intimate minutiae of everyday life. Recommended, along with other series titles, for most fantasy collections.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.