Owlsight; Owlflight
Mercedes Lackey &
Larry Dixon

This is not really a new book, but the last time I read it was when I was in 9th grade. My general impression of it hasn’t changed, however — I still have no patience for the way the characters stand around gabbing endlessly to themselves, mental soliloquies like woah. At one point Darian says to Tyrsell, a dyheli who can actually hear this mental roundabout, "I’ll stop woolgathering." It’s about a book and a half and a hundred thousand words too late. If it was an infodump, that would be one thing, because at least it would be new information, but it’s more like rehashing Bogus Alternatives.

The beautiful landscapes are wonderful, but the characters really need to shut up and start doing something about it.

Oh, and on the heels of my rant about victimhood in The Cracked Throne, I have to mention that the same thing is going on with Darian in Owlsight. Same fits of tears, bratty behavior, and adults who excuse all of it because the kid is obviously a victim. I find it easier to swallow here because it’s focused on one character, and there are certainly individuals who are victims (i.e., not fighting, see below). Doesn’t make Darian a very likeable character, though.