Type of bind: Hardcover
Format: Bargain Price
Label: Daw Books
Manufacturer: Daw Books
Quantity: 1
Page Count: 416
Printing Date: May 01, 2000
Publishing house: Daw Books
Sale Popularity Level: 1188941
Studio: Daw Books
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Editor's Notes and Comments:
Brief Book Summary:
Brightly Burning is the most highly anticipated hardcover novel of Mercedes Lackey's amazing career. A glorious return to her bestselling Valdemar series, it tells the tragic tale of one of Valemar's most legendary characters...
His name is Lavan Firestorm, a young man blessed--and cursed--with a special talent for firestarting. Here, at last, is his story.Praise for the Valdemar novels:
'Affecting and compulsive reading.'--Locus
'Lackey's Valdemar series is already a fantasy classic.'--Romantic Times
'Spellbinding...she spins intricate webs of magical adventure.'--Rave Reviews'Strong, suspenseful... will satisfy the most avid fantasy fan.'--VOYA
Amazon.com:
Brightly Burning marks Mercedes Lackey's return to the kingdom of Valdemar, and introduces us to a portion of the otherwise unchronicled reign of King Theran. The book's principle figure is Valdemar's most powerful herald, Laven Firestorm, who comes of age during Valdemar's war with its long-time enemy, the kingdom of Karse.
Sixteen-year-old Laven Chitward's world is turned upside down when his mother is selected as a textile guild representative in the small rural community where he was raised. Moving to the capital city of Haven rips him away from his friends and boyhood pleasures, and nothing in Haven seems to fill that void. Unable to fit into the nouveau riche society, and unwilling to follow his parents into the textile guild, he finds himself adrift and depressed. His father enrolls him in a special school that will allow him to choose a trade that interests him, rather than be apprenticed against his will. There he finds himself terrorized and tortured by the boys in the sixth form until, with an awful roar, the gift of fire awakens deep within him and extracts revenge for his sadistic treatment.
With the help of a unique herald, an empathetic healer and a special companion, Laven soon learns to keep his gift under control and eventually, to direct his awful firestorm as far as he can see. When the kingdom of Karse attacks, Laven is hurried to the border to assist his king and country by repelling the invasion. During the final battle Laven earns the name Firestorm and becomes one of the most famous heralds in the history of Valdemar.
Brightly Burning is a distinct and unforgettable coming-of-age story. With a compelling cast of characters and lively dialog, Mercedes Lackey once again demonstrates her adroit mastery of fantasy fiction. --Robert Gately
User popularity level:
Rated by buyers 
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I did not care very much for this book. I couldn't get into it and I usually enjoy her books very much.
It seemed like she wrote it just because she had this person in her world's history, and it felt like it should have been just a chapter of another book instead of an entire book of it's own.
Rated by buyers -
I suppose that, not having read the other books in the series, maybe I have a greater appreciation for it as a standalone novel. I love Lackey's power of description, and her characters always seem a little more real to me than most fantasy characters do. This book in particular, I really got into. I identified with the main character (and no I'm not a teenaged boy) and could empathize with his conflicts.
The world Lackey has created in this series is a wonderful, if sometimes terrifying, place. I can't wait to read the other books, and I recommend this one to any Misty fan.
Rated by buyers 
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This just seems to be one of those books that people either really hate or really love. I, as you can tell, fall in the latter- this was the very first book of Misty's that I found, and it completely captivated me. I'm in the middle of re-reading it for the 2nd or 3rd time, and it still amazes me. I agree that it probably appeals more to a younger audience- I very first read this when I was 15, and having been bullied and even beaten up twice in my childhood, and being very sensitive, I can really identify with Lan even as an adult (I'm 20 now). And this isn't the whole focus of the book, but if you just don't think a book about a struggling emotional teenager would appeal to you, then you may want to pass this up.
This book truly touched and moved me, however, and I hope it does the same to anyone else who knows what feels like to be an outsider.
Rated by buyers 
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I'm not sure if this was just a bad novel, or if I just didnt enjoy it because I read immediately after blowing through the much more epic Mage Winds and Mage Storms books.
In the end though, there's close to no real character development leaving them all flat and fairly uninteresting. Lavan never once really faces his own problems, everyone from heralds to the king himself fix everything for him. The story drags on until almost the very end, where things rush to a rather cliched end. Lackey did a much better job describing the effects of war in The Black Gryphon. Several plot strings go absolutely nowhere. Finally, the relationship between Lavan and his companion is more then a little weird, even learning the true nature of companions from from the Storms books.
Rated by buyers -
This book is filled with lots of emotion. Enough to get any of us involved and thinking. My emotions went through the whole range, from being angry about his treatment by others, to the joy of his finally finding someone who loves him, and he loves totally, to all the sadness of what happens in the end. This is one of the most touching novels Mercedes Lackey has ever written.
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