Legacies (Corean Chronicles, Book 1)

I liked this book. The writing of this fantasy is plain and simple, no complicated words or phrases: but the story is told with the skill of a master taleteller and (just as important) with an easy readability. I found myself eager to get back to it whenever I found a spare moment. I found I liked the central figure (Alucius) and his special "talent". Also, there seemed to be just the right balance of magic, suspense, love, friendship and battles to make this work a pleasure to read for any fantasy/adventure fan. Recommended!

Throughout his plethoric catalog (42 going on 44 as of this writing), the majority of Modesitt's work repeatedly returns to the good-old-teenager-coming-of-age novel. Sometimes it works. Several of the Recluce novels, the two Timegod books, the first Parafaith War book, the first book of the Forever Hero are all good novels. Other times they're awful. Unless you are filling out a collection, several of the later Recluce novels, Spellsong III, and a couple of his other stand alones are just not good work. However, in Legacies he comes up with his best fantasy coming of age novel, period.The plot revolves around a simple country boy with the ubiquitous gifts you'd expect in a world-saving hero - in this case, Talent to use nature's magic. Essentially, the plot has him get drafted, get captured, and figure out how to escape. Nothing terribly extraordinary; in fact, Recluce and the world revolving around concepts of order and chaos is probably a more original creation.Where Modesitt gets it right is his exploration of how this character, Alucius, really starts thinking about what makes right and wrong in his world and taking consequences for his actions and leadership. As usual, Modesitt isn't afraid to preach a bit, but unlike say the Ethos Effect it works. Rural versus urban, women versus men, slavery versus freedom all get a fairly balanced treatment. What makes this different is usually Modesitt will touch on one or the other but not to the degree that any real teen in that situation would have to deal with; here, this kid has to confront them all.As usual, unfortunately Modesitt has a few plot and worldbuilding holes. I found the former to be annoying - the motivation of his characters, especially the development of romance, often makes no sense. Unlike other reviewers, I actually found the worldbuilding holes to be intriguing; perhaps it was a book-selling trick (the second book, Darknesses, contains many of the answers) but you really get a sense that while Modesitt may know, Alucius doesn't and shouldn't yet.By now, you either hate Modesitt's style or love it; if you hate it, this won't change things. Still, Modesitt's best fantasy novel in years, and probably his best coming of age story ever. Recommended especially for teens given the topics.

Legacies is the first novel in the Corean Chronicles. "The Duarchy of Corus blessed all the lands with peace and prosperity, for generation upon generation, from the times of the Forerunners onward ... Then came the Cataclysm, and the old ways and webs weakened, and the world changed for all time".Alucius is the scion of a Herder family. He has the Talent and has learned the ways of the Iron Valleys and the Nightsheep. Now he is old enough to be inducted into the Militia as was his forefathers. Since his father did not come back from such service, his mother, Lucenda, is determined not to lose him as well, but his family cannot afford to buy out his enlistment. His grandfather, who had been a Militia Captain, trains him well for the service; he can ride, shoot, swordfight and even fight hand to hand. His mother provides him with Nightsheep underclothes that will turn a sword and may even stop a bullet (although the impact could still kill him). When the time comes, Alucius is better prepared than most Militia inductees, but nothing can prevent random misfortunes.Alucius has a girl who promises to wait for him. Wendra is a friend of the family whom he has known for years. She too comes from a herder family, although her father is a cooper, a maker of barrels.Their immediate enemies are the Reillies and other brigands in the Westerhills. However, there are also the Lord-Protector of Lanachrona in the south as well as the Matrial of Madrien to the southwest beyond the Reillies. Madrien has been attacking the Reillies and many of them have come east to raid the Iron Valleys.While Alucius is serving in the Militia, the Madrien attack the Iron Valleys with a powerful Duarchy device. Alucius is knocked unconscious by a falling building. Upon awakening, he finds a silver torque around his neck that can strangle him, cause intense pain or even kill him at the will of his commanders; also, the torque cancels most of his Talent. He has been captured by the matriarchal Madrien society, where most men wear the torque and even a few unruly or distrusted women. He is determined to escape, but he doesn't yet know enough to avoid recapture even if he can find a way to remove the torque.This novel features a young man of talent serving in the military and greatly resembles the Magi'i of Cyador in those aspects. However, this is a time of war in Corus. Moreover, the young man is not as powerful in his talent as Lorn and is not an officer, but rather a low ranking trooper, although he is learning fast.The world of Corus has an unusual ecology, with many animals and plants that are too poisonous to eat and some with strange powers. Moreover, there a still a few powerful artifacts of the Duarchy in working order, but the Legacies of the Duarchy are commonly considered curses.Madrien is a matriarchy, but is opposed by nations that are rabid patriarchies. The Iron Valleys are a mildly patriarchal society when compared to the others. While the aut

This is a an excellent book in the best Modesitt tradition. I had to force myself to put it down or I would have read it in one sitting.I'd rank it as his best since The Magic of Recluce and The Magic Engineer. He does a great job of creating a character that you can easily empathize with. I haven't been able to do this since his characters in those two books, and that is not just because I'm male. As always his setting is well developed without any internal or external contradictions.The one thing that has annoyed me about several of his books is the constant male bashing. All of his books are very good, but it does get wearisome continually reading about how evil men are and how we can only resort to violence. This seems to be the central theme in several of his Recluce books and the Spellsong Cycle. I've often wondered if Modesitt is a woman writing under a pseudonym.However, putting aside this one fault, anyone can enjoy his works. He is one of the few authors who can effectively go back and forth between fantasy and scifi. Lois McMaster Bujold and David Weber are also in that select few.

A herder needs a certain amount of the 'talent,' the psychic ability that puts him apart from other men. Young herder Alucius has more talent than most--and he fully expects to put it to use on his family's ranch. When war breaks out, he is drafted into the local militia. His talent, together with his grandfather's training, serves him well there, but the Matrites are too numerous and too strong for even his psychic powers. Alucius finds himself enslaved into the very army he had attempted to defeat. Author L. E. Modesitt Jr. creates a compelling future world--devastated by ancient magic battles and still struggling to recover. Each of the nations that are now clawing themselves into existence believe that they have learned the reason for the ancient destruction and that their path is the only way to prevent its recurrence. Unfortunately, each solution stands in opposition to one another. Modesitt delivers a highly sympathetic character in Alucius, but also lets the reader sympathise with other nations' goals and fears. Modesitt delivers plenty of action, with an emphasis on the personal rather than large scale troop movements. Alucius's battles with himself, his personal discoveries and his gradual coming of age, form the basis for this compelling novel. Fans of Modesitt's fine Recluse series will add LEGACIES to their must-read list.