Daggerspell

I think it is fair to say the setting is inspired both by Tolkien and the Celtic (e.g. Mary Stewart take) on the King Arthur/Merlin myth.

There are some interesting plot twists that also serve as character development.

As someone who grew up around the time the book was written, I found the "New-agey" take on magic a bit jarring. Reincarnation plays a big role, as do things like "the astral plane" and "auras". It might be just me, but it feels like that terminology ties the book to the 1980s a bit.

Full credit to Kerr for giving her female protagonists agency and complexity in a way that works in a traditionally patriarchal setting.

Kerr is among the best at fantasy storytelling and world-building. This book is the first of her Deverry cycle, in which she follows a group of souls through various incarnations in an early Celtic-type world. The story centers around a group of mercenaries called "silver daggers" for a distinctive weapon each fighter carries, obtainable only after being sworn to the band.

Other characters include a wizard, Nevyn; Jill, the young daughter of one of the silver daggers; and elves, dwarves, and wyrmkind. Adventure, magic, politics, good and evil, war, and love...they're all here in abundance and well-told. Highest recommendation!

Intricate threads of destiny all woven together, tying several people to each other over the course of hundreds of years and multiple reincarnations. There's an aspect of Groundhog Day (you're stuck repeating this until you get it right) that is somehow very satisfying. It's a compelling, easy read, with characters that are three-dimensional and human and believable. The elements of predestination and prophecy add an intriguing layer to the story, keeping you guessing whether and how each person will fulfill their Wyrd. I love how the same souls tend to reveal their essential characters from one lifetime to the next, while still being completely different people.

It took just about one week for me to read this book, which is a short time for a quite long book.

I enjoyed this story. The dating is a little odd to me. 400 years may have passed, but it seemed like all the past lives that were brought up were very early on. I think they either should have been more spread out or more past life stories should have been included. I find it a little sad that because of Nevyn's vow, he will never be romantically involved with the woman he loved and vowed to help her find her Wyrd.

I did find some aspects of this Wyrd stuff confusing: such as while Rhodry has Blaen's Wyrd where the Brangwen/Gerrowen/Blaen issue is concerned, he also seems to have another Wyrd not associated at all with Blaen.

I am moving right along onto the next book, Darkspell.