The Mage Storms Trilogy by Mercedes Lackey

Part of being a community of mutual interest is continuous discussion. What's good, what's not, what's acceptable, what's not, and so on. One of the conversations that most interests me is "which authors of the past should be promoted to the next generation?"

There's multiple facets to that. Are we looking for historic value - do we still urge Urban Fantasy fans to check out Emma Bull's War for the Oaks as that's one of the starting places? Are we looking to promote gems underappreciated in their time - I don't think Peter Morwood's The Horse Lord was ever big, but I enjoyed it and don't mind taking the occasional moment to nudge awareness of it. Or is it just about books that age very well or were even ahead of their time?

In any case, Mercedes Lackey is one of those authors who seems to be fading gently from the fantasy mainstream (very gently) and into history. I'm not writing this review specifically to urge for or against that (and even if I was I'd struggle to know which side I'm on) but that thought is on my mind as I write.

One specific instance where this comes up is Lackey's general subject matter and aesthetic. The Mage Storms is centered about Karal, a young priest and secretary who is sent as part of a two man embassy from the historically puritanical and xenophobic nation of Karse to Valdemar, their hereditary enemies but generally objectively good eggs thanks to divine magic. Much of the first book, Storm Warning, is taken up with Karal being forced to confront certain prejudices and fears from his own mind and other people's. A strong subplot throughout is his friendship with An'desha, a mage who survived prolonged possession by an insanely evil mage and is trying to find his own identity and purpose, which doesn't always coincide with his boyfriend Firesong's view of their future. The real meat of the plot though are the eponymous Mage Storms, a natural disaster that threatens to devastate everyone's countries. 

Is that a story I'd promote to the next generation of fantasy readers? Yes. Given the number of fans who want to see stories in which war and death aren't the centre of things, who want to see societies that hold world views closer to their own on issues such as sexual diversity, and a general desire for a bit more optimism, The Mage Storms has an audience and maybe even a bigger one than when it came out in the mid-90s. That audience will not love every detail Lackey has to offer here (and it certainly doesn't replace the desire to see a future for the genre that contains more stories with similar principles), but I think many of them will like enough of it to like the story.

But what of the story itself? If Lackey was possibly ahead of her time in what she wanted to write about, she was firmly of her time in how she did so. The Mage Storms is notable for its long expository inner monologues and just generally 90s-drenched optimism. It actually cleaves quite well to more modern fiction with its love of close third and lack of omniscient and head-hopping, but there's still a dated feel to the prose. I never loved Lackey's prose - found it easy to read, yes, but it's functional at best - but re-reads don't help it. What re-reads really don't help though is the feeling of a slow, meandering story. Those expositions I mentioned feel even less needful on the Xth go around and in terms of the raw events, The Mage Storms is rather sparse. It's like getting a drink with gigantic amounts of froth; I may enjoy what drink is there, but I would ask the bartender to top it off. Would I promote that to the next generation of fantasy readers, having seen the generally high octane drift of the genre? Not if I wanted to make them happy. Hell, I'm not sure I'd promote it to most readers of my own generation and taste.

So what matters more? The vibe or the construction?

That's a person by person, mood by mood thing. For me, there are times when I'm definitely on Team Vibe here and as such, really enjoy this trilogy. I can't imagine these being the books I read every time but they've got their place and are as good as I know at what they do. They're hardly thrilling, but they're enjoyable and full of characters its fun to read about. I've got a particular soft spot for Karal as a bookish, empathic, kind man who neverthless gets exasperated when others can't see past their irrational fears. Several characters have a fine line in peevish snark - Firesong first and foremost - and the foolish and selfish are made to look bad.

That's how I'd recommend the book. Do you want to just enjoy spending some time with some mostly kind people being mostly kind, in the style of The Goblin Emperor or Of Dragons, Feasts and Murders? Not so bothered about thrills and secrets but just want something emotionally satisfying? Then The Mage Storms is worth a shot.

And while I uncertain about whether Lackey should live on from generation, her presence in this relatively unexplored (at least in my circles) part of the genre will give her a chance.