TSR Code:

'After a fight, some warriors seek to return home. Others seek revenge.
The battle of Akhlaur's Swamp is over, and its heroes part ways. One becomes a wizard's apprentice and tries to unravel her mysterious lineage. Another hero returns to his queen, only to find that all is not as it was.
Hidden from them both, the Magehound broods. She cannot forgive those who drove her from power, and she will stop at nothing to be avenged. Her bitterness ensures that Akhlaur's Swamp was only the beginning for them all'

Other titles in the Counselors and Kings series:

• Book 1 - The Magehound
• Book 3 - The Wizardwar

Well, Cunningham's done it again. The floodgate follows up her amazing novel, The Magehound. Cunningham returns with vivid, beautiful description and engaging charachters. The Unseelie are the coolest things since the drow, and the plot moves quickly. This book holds your attention every entrancing second.

However, there are a few complaints that I have to make about this book, as well as with all of Cunninghams novels. I absolutely love Elaine Cunningham, but there is a problem, with this, and many of her other books. The plot. She has an excellent plot line...but. Maybe it is best described in this. Most authors form a wonderful and intricate web of charachters and plot developement. Well, other authors use silk to construct their web, Cunningham uses silver, but hers is tangled. The plot is so intricate and confusing that it sometimes loses the reader. Who, what, when, where, you find yourself asking. Also, some elements of the plot are a bit sketchy, even for fantasy. For example, in one part Matteo tells the wizard to fly his ship up into a cloud so he can throw out sand and make it rain. Now, I know the Jordain know a lot, but thats a bit much. Also, people meeting up in places is just a bit too much of a stretch. Too much is assumed, and people find things with little reason and not enough explanation. For example, Matteo finds the floodgate by jumping out of the ship and saying, hmm, I think it's probably over there. Also, Halruaa for some reason doesn't seem as new and miystifying as it did in The Magehound. Now, it seems more like just a bunch of wizards, not unlike the north. Please don't get me wrong, this is a wonderful book, I gave it a five. If you read The Magehound, and were mildly interested, please read this book.