I like the books Mercedes Lackey writes, she is good at creating a believable world and people to populate it. While her writing is not the strongest I do find it engaging ang and enjoyable. I like a series I can live inside of and her books are ones that have characters I feel invested in and a world I believe could exist. ( )

A couple of interesting stories. A couple which are only slightly related to Valdemar. An interesting history of magery leading up to the catastrophe and the technology of vales. ( )

A mixed bag of short works set in Valdemar; most I liked as much as I like any shortstory (a few were just okay and could have really been set in other worlds but for some place and character/specie names). Particularly interesting the pseudo-science of magecraft and the cataclysms article at end by Larry Dixon. Not really a story but an interesting read for us Valdemar fans. ( )

The latest in the long-running Valdemar anthology series. All of the usual suspects are up to their usual antics, and it's a solid collection. The title piece is actually not a story but a technical essay about magic and the creation of the Tayledras Vales. A bit dry, perhaps, but exactly the sort of thing that I find fascinating from a writing and worldbuilding perspective. ( )

Simple Gifts - annoying protagonist, annoying form (first person), but overall not bad - clever ending. Catch Fire, Draw Flame - hmm. Interesting group, odd circumstances, way too easy a turnaround. In an Instant - oh, I like that. Selenay and Daren right after they met. A Healer's Work - hmm again. I like the situation, but the setup is awkward and the writing could have used a bit more editing. A Leash of Greyhounds - cute, minor, do I know Lena? I can't quite place her. Warp and Weft - hmmph. Three-quarters of a story. Ok setup, but stops before the climax. Discordance - interesting, minor, what is that statue? Magic? Rather pointless. Slow and Steady - Shay is mildly interesting, but I think the point of the story is seeing Dionne & Rhiannon again, and I don't remember them well. Sight and Sound - again, the point is the relationships and I don't remember them. Why is she so thin, anyway? Bride's Task - cute. Was there a previous story with Keth, or does it start in the middle? Excellent ideas, awkward writing, especially dialog. Fog of War - um, yuck. Well-written, detailed piece about a very nasty scrap of the Tedrel Wars. Heart's Peril - niceish. Jem and Ree, mostly Ree - good story with only a little of the obsession with "being human". Heart's Place - another Jem and Ree, with some major changes for the family and the valley. Family Matters - huh. I'd read that before - no idea where, as I haven't read any of the others. Not much to it, but good (well, it is Tanya Huff, so expectable). Watchman's Ball - I like that one. Hektor Dann and his family, and more not said than said. Judgement Day - hmm. Interesting characters, and nice to see more of Karse, but the actual story is petty and rather ugly. Under the Vale - interesting essay. Some of the stuff about what the Tayledras were actually doing, I had some idea about; the parts about the building of the Vale I had no idea. And why was that first Vale abandoned, and why was it so close to Evendim...a whole new set of questions triggered by this 'background' information. ( )