In this second installment of the Family Spies series, set in the bestselling world of Valdemar, the children of Heralds Mags and Amily must follow in their parents' footsteps to protect the realm. Mags, Herald Spy of Valdemar, and his wife, Amily, the King's Own Herald, are happily married with three kids. Their daughter, Abidela, dreams of building upon her parents' legacy by joining the Artificers, hoping to offset her seeming lack of a Gift. But when Abi senses the imminent collapse of a bridge only moments before it happens, she saves countless lives, including that of her best friend, Princess Katiana. The experience, though harrowing, uncovers her unique Gift-an ability to sense the physical strains in objects. Intrigued by the potential of her Gift, the Artificers seek to claim her as their own-but so do the Healers. Through training with both of them, Abi discovers unique facets of her Gift, including a synesthetic connection to objects that allows her to "see" as well as feel the strains. Her Gift may also grant her a distinct advantage as a spy-there won't be a building in the entire kingdom of Valdemar with a secret room that she doesn't know about. With the help of her mentors, she must hone her gift to uncover the hidden secrets in the depths of Valdemar.
I always enjoy Ms. Lackey's work and am a long-time fan of Valdemar. This book did not disappoint, but I must admit that I have come somewhat adrift in the timeline and this installment in the series felt just a little disjointed because I could not track where it fell in the scope of series history I am more familiar with. Granted, this is more to do with me as a reader than the book itself. In either case, this was a rich and original read, dealing with aspects of the universe I had not seen before, or expanding on those that had only been touched on.
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19 January, 2022:
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