Niall, son of Donal and Aislinn is next in line for the Lion throne of Homana. Unfortunately much stands in his way - traps set by Strahan the Ilhini, Alaric of Atvia, cheysuli zealots who wish him replaced and Homanan rebels who support a usurper to his inheritance. And then, of course, there's the fact that he's 18 and lirless. Not a good start for a Cheysuli warrior-wannabe.

This volume spent a lot more time on setting the political landscape than with action. But, oh what a pretty little landscape it is. Niall spends time in Atvia, Erinn, Solinde and Homana... as well as Valguard. Making friends and influencing people, so they say. I liked this one, but not quite as much as the book focused on Donal. And while I think Niall was written to do the best he could, I still wish he had been given leave to more effectively mete out his justice. I'm afraid that he's left too many openly declared enemies out in the world for him to have much of a peaceful reign... ( )

This book is my favourite of the Cheysuli series. We begin to see a different side to the Ihlini, the magical race who have up to now been portrayed as the evil opponents of the Cheysuli. It ends with some interesting and complex developments in the offing.

While Track of the Wolf stands pretty much on it's own I still strongly suggest reading the three previous in the series to get the full flavor. ( )