Rifkind's Challenge

We've known and heard of fantasy author Lynn Abbey for quite some time, but had never read any of her books for some reason. And even though Rifkind's Challenge seems like a continuation, it is still a stand alone novel unto itself. Not only did the beautiful cover design and cover art by one of the best fantasy artists working today, Julie Bell, captured our eye, but the back cover story sounded intriguing, too. And what we found was a worthy, well-rounded, strong character driven fantasy novel full of magic, adventure, action, and interesting and believable characters that had us turning pages until the wee hours of the morning. Rifkind is a challenging figure of a woman, a healer with magical powers, but also a deadly swordswoman when needs arise. And they arise aplenty! The huge rift between Rifkind and her estranged son, Cho, is written beautifully, creating a dynamic in which the reader is driven to turn the next page, wondering if and when or how these two will ever see eye-to-eye on anything, and if they will ever become mother and son again. And mixed in with the drama is world-building writing at it's finest, chock full of nomads and and raiders, dangerous magical creatures and beings that will surely keep fantasy enthusiasts at the edge of their seat. Lynn Abbey proves here that she is comfortable in her fantasy realm, creating memorable characters and not one-dimensional hero's that are easily forgotten. There is no challenge in reading this one. Just a challenge to see whether you can put it down or not.