Poised halfway between the light and the dark, Varian
balances on a high wire somewhere between heaven and hell.
Son of Camelot's fallen knight, Lancelot, and Morgen's top
henchwoman, Narishka, Varian often finds himself at odds
with the "good guys" he chooses to serve. An outcast in
both Avalon and Camelot, Varian has few friends.
Unknown to anyone except Merlin, Varian is a Grail Knight.
One of the few entrusted with a clue to the Grail's hiding
place. Secreted away centuries before, the Grail's exact
location is known only to Merlin; even the Grail Knights
themselves have been kept in the dark. In their pursuit of
the Grail, Morgen and Narishka decide it's past time that
Varian plays for their team. Convincing Varian of this is
another thing entirely.
Held prisoner in Camelot and tortured, Varian holds true to
his oath to Merlin and the long-dead Arthur. It's then that
his mother tries a new tact. While Varian is at his
weakest, Narishka uses her innocent human servant Merewyn
as bait. The girl is lovely and sweet and Varian is drawn
to her even though he is fully aware of his mother's ploy.
Desperate to escape Narishka herself, Merewyn manages to
free Varian. The two of them, accompanied by the mandrake
Blaise, make their way to The Valley of No Return in an
attempt to elude Morgen and the forces of Camelot.
The fugitives race through the valley in a desperate bid to
reach the safety of Avalon with Morgen and her unholy army
in pursuit. But even in the midst of their journey, there's
still enough time for a little lust and maybe even time to
fall in love. It looks to be a doomed relationship for the
star-crossed lovers, the Valley of No Return is named that
with good reason, and their arrival in Avalon is far from
certain.
Even though I've enjoyed Kenyon's books in the past, this
one was a bit of a misfire for me. Everything about it
seemed rushed. There's no strong storyline. Most of the
action is the flight across the Valley. And...The Valley of
No Return? It sounds funny even in French. The inhabitants
of the Valley are more annoying than anything else. Alice
was in more danger in Wonderland. Unfortunately, they're
also not amusing, which they're meant to be. I know the
characters time-travel, but the modern slang and character
dialog seems out of place (we got our asses kicked).
Blaise, the mandrake from the first book, is the only
character I was interested in. The little rock gargoyle was
funny, but the leads both fell flat for me. All in all, I
was disappointed. Does it mean I won't read the next one?
Of course not -- Kenyon is a strong author. I've read
better
books by her in the past and I expect to do so in the
future.
The story of Varian, one of the most hated of the Lords of
Avalon. Since his father was the traitor Lancelot and his
mother is the right hand of Morgen Le Fey, everyone’s a
bit suspicious of him. Unrepentant and irreverent, he
prefers solitude and has a frightening understanding of
magic. And his reputation isn’t helped by the fact that
he’s basically Merlin’s hitman.
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