Magic's Pawn is a frustrating and extremely dissatisfying book. Our first introduction to the character of Vanyel is a demonstration of the hardship he endures. Vanyel is abused by his father's armsmaster, because he was able to best the man in a bout. Vanyel's intelligence and skill are shown as is the stifling nature of his surroundings. This interesting moment is ruined by the next fifty pages, which show Vanyel as angst ridden and pathetic. In nearly every scene, we are shown Vanyel as a person fearful of human contact, easily depressed at even the smallest setback, extremely needy and obsessed with self-image.

Lackey goes through pains to show us why he acts the way he does. She is successful to some degree, but her inability to present Vanyel as a consistent, realistic individual destroys the unheroic yet ultimately brave character she was going for. Without giving too much away, Vanyel is faced with one of the worst tragedies anyone can imagine. This understandably crushes him. Yet pages before, he showed deep hurt at the knowledge he was disliked by his peers. He showed the same hurt when he found out he could not fulfill his lifelong dream. Again and again Vanyel shows us the smallest slight will send him off balance, so that when real heartache comes to him, it seems very shallow. Vanyel seems so self-obsessed, it was hard to believe he was capable of loving another, let alone the level of love he found. Lackey seems to understand this, and actually tries to explain it away directly in the book by having characters Vanyel is around wonder the same thing. Unfortunately, pointing out your own mistakes as you write is no substitute for creating consistent characterization.

Other than the unlikable main character, the book suffers from many other issues. Magic's Pawn suffers from an unfathomable lack of magic. We really don't see the magic of Lackey's world until we near the end of the book and not coincidentally it is the end that is the most enjoyable to read. This book could work without the magic, and that means the magic was not really necessary. In a world with magic, we have to recognize magic as a real and present force in the lives of the characters. To Lackey, it is background noise.

This is the symptom of a larger problem. Lackey did not spend a great deal of time fleshing out her world, at least at first. This is a world very similar to our own. Again, when we reach the end, we get a glimpse of a part of her world that is truly unique, but by then it is too late. This is a world with priests, Kings, lords and peasants. Haven is their version of heaven. You get the picture. There are mentions of other religions and other lands. Hints at a larger history and cultural diversity that Lackey may explore in other novels. But, if you are looking for quality world building, you won't find it here.

All of this could be overlooked, if the writing was at a decent level. Unfortunately, the plotting seems choppy and lazy at times. This is a series of events, not a fully realized story. The antagonists are barely mentioned and only appear in a handful of scenes. Other than a few lines, we see nothing of their motivation and in the case of the final foe Vanyel faces, nothing at all. Even in books where the antagonists are motivated only by their own inherent evil, we get more development than in this book, where they are only present long enough to do their evil deeds and die quickly. This issue is made all the worse because the magic system is poorly developed and unoriginal.

I'm very sad to say, this just isn't a very good book.

Lackey clearly has skill as a writer. And that's what makes it all the more disappointing. The last few chapters are actually an interesting read, but it is not worth reading the book to get there. I wish it were just a matter of taste. Most books I review negatively I make sure to say were not to my taste, but others may enjoy them. This is not one of those books. I would recommend this book to no one.

(One final note: I think a lot of this book's praise comes from the homosexuality of the main character. Perhaps if I were homosexual, I would be able to appreciate the uniqueness of this book in a genre where there aren't a lot of gay characters, least of all main characters. I give Lackey credit for this. But if I were in their shoes, I would want a quality book that had such characters, and I certainly wouldn't be satisfied with this.) ( )

The story was catching and very interesting, I really liked it in the sense of story, though I must admit I disliked the writing style. Still, it was not the worse I have read, and once I got used to it I could get by it for the sake of the story.I loved every single character in the book... except the main character, Vanyel. It felt way over the top, and that his angst could have well been toned down without making him as annoying and difficult to love as I found him to be. I spent 3/4 of the book wanting to slam his head against a wall and that the book would focus on something else.And that's the reason why I gave it a simple three stars- it was just above "ok" to me, but I hated the one that appeared as main the most, so I could not come to "really" like it.I would, however, like to read most of this and recommend it for a simple time passing read. ( )

Spoiled and petted by his mother and her bevy of ladies, ranted at and beaten by his father and his armsmen, Vanyel is at once terrified and thrilled to be sent to the Herald's collegium to live with his aunt, the Herald Savil. Vanyel's father hopes his sister will make a man of the boy, discouraging him from cowardess and being "fey" - although the later is kept a deep dark secret from Vanyel, who only hopes desperately to become a Bard.

Shattered to be judged Giftless - talented enough to be a minstrel, but as his father's heir, that way is barred to him. Gradually, Vanyel realizes that he's attracted to one of Savil's mage students, and although the two share a lifebond, their love is ill-fated. Vanyel's true path lies somewhere far different.

Not my favorite of Lackey's series, but well-written. Vanyel's just a bit whiny and self-loathing for my taste. Thankfully, he improves in the sequels, but not before I always find myself aching for a two-by-four. ( )

This trilogy wasn't what I expected, but I liked it quite a bit! The books cover the life of Vanyel Ashkevron, a homosexual, emotionally detached, powerful herald-mage destined to defend his homeland of Valdemar. My reaction to the first book wasn't so great. I absolutely hated Vanyel, from the first page to the last. He was pathetic, vain and dramatic. I felt little emotion towards his love for Tylendel, and I didn't feel much sympathy for his losses. I loved, however, that the other characters struggled with Vanyel's immaturity just as much as the reader. It created a balance that worked out nicely, making it easier for me to deal with his obnoxious angsting. The minor characters are what truly makes this story shine. I could picture all the characters so well, and their personalities were very flawed and realistic. I especially loved Vanyel's aunt Savil, and I thought relationship between Vanyel and Yfandes was very touching.

The other two books in the series I loved even more. I mean it - if you didn't like this book, give the others a chance! Vanyel grows up, and although there's a 10 year gap between the first book and the 2nd, it's fun to witness his development throughout the books. The trilogy's ending, despite it's cheesiness, even made me tear up, which is something that rarely happens with me.

The only thing that didn't altogether satisfy me in the trilogy was the romance. It was sweet, but something was lacking. I rather felt as if they hardly knew each other. It got a little better as the story progressed, but for the most part I just couldn't feel it.

Despite it's (many) flaws, this trilogy has a special place in my heart. The writing is far from perfect, and it's definitely a bit too melodramatic at times, but in the end I was able to really understand and bond with the characters. Lackey's writing isn't the greatest, but there's something about it that really draws me in. In other words, it's CHEESY as hell, but the cheesiness is what makes it special. ;) ( )

(Some spoilers in this review.)

You know those books that you're so excited to buy because the description contains just about everything you love in a novel and everyone absolutely ADORES it? And you shove it to the front of your TBR pile because you can't handle NOT reading it right away? And then as soon as you finish you can't remember why you were ever excited about it in the first place? Yeah. For me, this was one of THOSE.

Like I mentioned before, the premise had me hopeful and excited. I bought it not too long after reading Lynn Flewelling's Nightrunner series so it has been absolutely essential to me to have more action-filled gay fantasy while waiting for the release of The White Road.

Unfortunately, Magic's Pawn did not meet my expectations for a few very simple reasons.

The foremost of those reasons being the main character. My God. He had potential at first. Misunderstood, not so sure of himself, angsty. I don't mind angst, just so you know--I loved The Catcher in the Rye if that says anything. But throughout the story I grew to hate Vanyel and his self-pitying, oh-poor-me attitude. It got to the point where I kind of wanted him to just go ahead and kill himself. (Which he actually tried to do at one point in the story, somehow not as awesome as I thought it would be since it only served to add more ANGST.) And with this angsting comes whining. Lots of it. I started to wonder why none of the other characters just didn't brain him with the blunt edge of a sword.

One of the other things that I could not stand about this novel was the relationship between Tylendel and Vanyel. It was cheesier than the cheesiest of cheesy romances. They happen to know each other for a full five minutes and suddenly they are soul mates and they cannot live without each other. Not only did I not believe it, I felt like I was reading an "If you're gay, it's okay!" pamphlet. I'm fine with a with a few agendas being pushed within a novel--if Lackey wanted to create a gay-acceptance storyline, that's fine. WONDERFUL even. But to spell it out over one hundred times in one book is really irritating.

So Tylendel dies and not only does it give Vanyel more opportunity to ANGST, he is chosen by a Companion and he morphs into the biggest Gary-Stu I have ever seen in published fiction. Suddenly, there is nothing he CAN'T do. (Expect stop whining, it seems.)

The final verdict is two stars. Although the message was shoved down our throats, it was a good message all the same, thus saving it from one star status. ( )