The Heir of Night

August 2, 2010
New Zealand poet and novelist Lowe (Thornspell) turns in a mostly standard fantasy tale of awkward adolescents who struggle with their destined roles to save an embattled race from its ancient enemy. Malian is forced to navigate between the stern blood oath of the Derai and the burden of being the prophesied One-to-Come who will unite the separate Houses. Escaping the demonic assassins of the Darkswarm, she travels across the Derai's adopted world of Haarth seeking the lost artifacts of a legendary hero. Joining her are another exile and several Haarth natives with considerable powers. Lowe clearly portrays Malian's difficulties in leaving home and facing up to a vital if unwanted birthright, adding depth with descriptions of the stoic and proud Derai warrior culture. Though marketed to adults, this four-book series will appeal more to older teens.

September 15, 2010

On the world of Haarth, the space-traveling Derai have made their stand, building the Wall of Night to hold back the Darkswarm that has pursued them across worlds. Malian, the youthful heir to the House of Knight, knows her responsibility to hold the defenses of the wall, yet her ability to call forth the long-lost power of the Golden Fire has marked her as a user of magic and therefore unable to bear the position of heir. Together with a banished priest, a friend from her youth, Malian must leave her household and journey beyond her mountain homeland to find the lost artifacts that will help her prevail one day against the Derai's enemies. VERDICT Lowe's first novel, a series opener, calls to mind the inchoate evil of Barbara Hambly's classic "Darwath Trilogy" (The Time of the Dark; The Walls of Air; The Armies of Daylight) and reinvigorates the epic fantasy with appealing characters and a richly detailed world.

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