Review: Ciardis, what have you done!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 09 20, 2013
What indeed? The story of a young woman, out of her depth, finding her way despite the odds, and despite the opinion of others.Having received an ARC for this, I decided to readSworn To Raise: Courtlight #1first.And Yes! I was captivated from beginning to end. Edun's writing style does remind me somewhat of Tamora Pierce and Sara J. Maas.Ciardis Vane is the archetypal abandoned/orphaned heroine raised to believe she is a gypsy but is in reality is a Mage, a Weathervane, the last of a line of mages whose major talent is increasing the powers of others. Her gifts come to light when she is taken to be trained as Companion. She goes from drudgery to a position of prestige--albeit dangerous. Of course there are evil mages and careless, selfish mages, friendly trainees and courtly intrigue involved.Now, after the Patron Hunt, having helped save the Prince Sebastian, the heir to the Algardis Empire, Ciardis is Companion trainee to Prince Sebastian, even though the relationship has not been formalized and Sebastian has been avoiding her. 'Transfer' opens with Ciardis on a ship in the middle of an icy storm waiting to meet an ambassador from Sahalia who turns out to be a dragon.Something is attacking the kith (the original, magical inhabitants of the kingdom) in their stronghold, the Ameles Forest. Death and destruction most horrible is being visited. Of course Ciardis joins the group sent to investigate.  It seems a shadow necromancer is at work.As I read, I kept harking back to Sworn to Raise and the crone at the Mordair Maze challenge, stating to Ciardis that she is, 'one who has the potential to shatter the imperial court.'There are times when Ciardis is unsure of whom she can trust. When the battle is engaged she acts as usual, on impulse. My vote though is that rather than impulsive she is young in her powers. What she uses is her magely intuition although it does have an edge of the impulsive. Unfortunately that intuition does have the habit of leaving her in an even bigger hole.An enjoyable read. I am now looking forward to Sworn to Conflict: Courtlight #3A NetGalley ARC