- Title:
- Queen of Stars (The Starfolk, #2)
- By:
- Dave Duncan
- Pages:
- 324
- Rating:
- 5
While discovering the truth behind his half-human, half-elven parentage, master swordsman Rigel not only defeated the horrific monsters of the Starlands, but also thwarted Prince Vildiar’s dark designs to conquer the elven realms.
Now, despite his fate to die an early, violent death if he remains in the Starlands, Rigel refuses to return to Earth, consumed as he is by love for the newly crowned Queen Talitha. But this passion is perilous: Vildiar has hatched multiple conspiracies to usurp the throne, and a vision has revealed that if Rigel and Talitha ever consummate their love, it will only hasten Rigel’s inevitable demise.
Even under a pall of doom, Rigel never hesitates to defend the land and people he has taken on as his own. As traitors plot Talitha’s downfall, Rigel rescues one of Vildiar’s own half-breed offspring from Earth and offers her a new life in the Starlands. But will she embrace this gift without guile…or is she preparing to plunge a dagger into Rigel’s back?
Well, now! This was Duncan on form and no mistake. I can’t say that I was surprised at the marvelously twisted ending, in fact it’s one of his strong points to dazzle us with a huge buildup to something nasty only to twitch the rug out from under your feet. It’s more often done at the climax of a series, of course, and with only 2 books in you sort of come away disappointed, but then again the writing is as wonderful as ever and the politics and internal consistencies so cleverly set up and adhered to that it’s a pleasure to read.
The whole Avior line felt a little underexplored, but then who am I to judge the worthwhileness of those bits there were? I just enjoyed the whole thing from start to finish, and that’s grand enough for me.