I received an advanced copy from DAW in exchange for an honest review.

For Mercedes Lackey fans, this is the story they've been waiting for for years, if not decades. The founding of the country of Valdemar, the setting for so many of her novels, has been referred to, but never written.

We know the basics: Valdemar, escaping a tyrannical emperor, took his people and ran as far away as he could, where he then founded the country of Valdemar, and, when he entered his twilight years, prayed in a sacred grove for help in keeping future monarchs honest and true. What he got was three Companions, white horselike beings with telepathy who bond for life to their chosen person. The rest is history.

This is that story, up close. A duke in the Eastern Empire, Kordas Valdemar is known for being a bit of a backwater duke, content to breed excellent horses and not much else. His secret? He's playing it up to keep out of the Emperor's line of sight, as the Emperor is cruel and loves to play his courtiers against each other. When one of his mages makes a discovery, it sets into motion a plan that Valdemar dukes have been planning for decades: an escape. But instead of dedicating himself to saving his people, Valdemar is summoned to court, where he learns the awful truth of what the Emperor is doing not only to his own people, but to thousands of Elemental spirits. Now, he must try to save himself and his people from an Emperor with no morals and a taste for power.

As a long-time (thanks for that Christmas gift in 1991, Uncle Brad!) fan of this world, I've literally been waiting almost 30 years for this story. And much of it is so, so good, it feels familiar and new all at once. The good people are good, because they care for each other and those they're responsible for, and the bad people are bad because they use up people as cannon fodder and entertainment. There's a lot of horse discussion, wacky mages, and mentions of events and places that made me go "oh, I know this thing!". For old-time Lackey fans, I'd suggest catching up by reading the Gryphon trilogy and the Winds trilogy to brush up on pre-history and the Eastern Empire. I'm not sure that I'd recommend this as an introductory read for someone who hasn't read Lackey before, but for established Lackey fans, this is a fantastic read we've been waiting a long time for. While I received an advance digital copy, I still pre-ordered a hardcover as well.