Into the West

October 31, 2022
Bestseller Lackey’s gripping second Founding of Valdemar fantasy (after Beyond) finds Kordas, the former Duke of Valdemar, and his roughly 15,000 constituents having escaped the clutches of an evil empire and set up camp along a seemingly unoccupied lakeshore. But their sense of success is short-lived as they discover that the land they’re on is already claimed. Kordas has no desire to wage war against the land’s rightful inhabitants, leaving him with no choice but to lead his people onward once more. Using magical gates, the expedition tow their barges across uncharted waters and forests, passing through the site of the Mage Wars that wreaked havoc some 500 years ago. There, gruesome creatures lurk among the ruins, and Kordas’s convoy must find a way around them to survive. The high stakes and the dangerous journey keep the story moving at a brisk pace. Lackey’s characters, meanwhile, are admirable as ever as they learn to work together. Series fans will not be disappointed. Agent: Russell Galen, Scovil Galen Ghosh Literary.

November 1, 2022

Beyond, the first book of Lackey's "Founding of Valdemar" series, took readers back to before Valdemar even existed. Where that was a political story of machinations, shenanigans, and corruption and especially escape from all of the above, this newest is the story of what happens next. The people of Valdemar are on the run from the Empire, and it's up to the Baron to lead them to a place they can call home. As the exiles face magical and mundane threats on every side, the biggest risk is that they'll fall prey to the temptation to slip back into the bad old ways of the corrupt empire they are fleeing. It falls to the Baron to not just lead them to freedom, but to figure out what kind of people they'll be when they get there. VERDICT Lackey combines an epic journey with political adventures, deadly misadventures, encounters with old friends and new enemies, along with a touch of a coming-of-age story in this marvelous read that will please long-time Valdemar fans with its tale of the creation of this beloved place and its world.--Marlene Harris

Copyright 2022 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.