Dagger's Edge

I was pretty young when I first read this book, 13 or 14, and it forever set my view of how a fantasy novel should be. Some eight or nine years later, I still love this book, although fantasy novels these days tend to be longer and more detailed and epic. However, Anne Logston's forte is characters, and there is not one you won't love (or love to hate) in this book. She's also very good at political plots without ever making them dull and difficult to get through. Quite the opposite, in fact! Jael is a princess of Allanmere plagued by bad luck, starting with how she was unfortunate enough to be born with such oddly exotic looks -- and not stopping with how she seems to have an adverse effect on any magic around her. (If that wasn't enough, she's twenty and pretty much flat-chested!) Allanmere is a mostly human city that has trading ties with the forest inhabited by elves next to which it is built, but racial tensions run strong, especially ever since the resurgence of the plague not long ago. Jael, daughter of the human queen and her elvan husband, often finds herself dealing with this difficult balancing act as well -- yet another "dagger's edge" she must walk. Frustrated with her situation, Jael slips out into the city fairly often, where she can meet up with her human friend Tanis. However, she's not going unnoticed. A handsome ambassador with his eye on Jael and a rising religious cult both are bringing change to Allanmere. But a string of murders is sending the city into turmoil and Jael and Tanis are caught up in it somehow. Jael's going to have to put her bad luck to good use as she navigates a crisis brought on the city, and a few problems she's brought on herself, even as she discovers the truth about her heritage and her magic. All this and I haven't re-read the book in a few years. :) I've lost count of how many times I have read it, though. The characters are endearing, and you'll find most of them appear in a previous series, the Shadow books -- which are just as good, if not better, with the lively and somewhat hedonistic "Aunt" Shadow of Jael's as the main character. I recommend reading this one first, though, otherwise Jael's heritage will be totally spoiled for you! Also, there is a sequel to this novel, Dagger's Point, which is about Jael setting off on a journey to reconcile with her heritage and claim what she's missing. Don't pass up anything Anne Logston if you love a good adventure and characters that you'll never forget.

Jael, a royal elf of Allenmere, is short,with amber hair, slanted eyes, and has a sixth toe on her left foot. Also known as Jael the unlucky or Jael the cursed by her people because bad luck clings to her like an invisible shadow. When she finds out that her father is not the king, but a total stranger, she is lost, confused, and soulsick. During this time she runs across a cult with the ambitons to kill her for a ceramony. Geting away, talking with her aunt Shadow (a thief) and finding out the truth from her mother, Jael finds inner peace with herself. When all ends to all, she finds a true friend. This is a great book to read when you feel like escaping.

Daggers Edge