Mage of Clouds (The Cloudmages #2) [Kindle Edition]

S. L. Farrell (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In Farrell's second richly imagined Cloudmages fantasy (after 2003's Holder of Lightning), the younger generation takes center stage. It's been almost 20 years since the mage-lights returned to the sky and Meriel MacEagan's mam, Jenna, found Lamh Shabhala, the mage-stone that reawakened the other clochs. With it, Jenna has become the Banrion of Inish Thuaidh and has managed to form an uneasy truce with the other Tuathaan. But the old Rí Ard is dying, and his successors - Jenna's half brother Doyle Mac Ard and the Ri Ard's daughter Edana - are more than willing to reopen the war with the Inishlanders. And while Lamh Shabhla and its holder may be too powerful to attack directly, her family is not. The author deftly manages Meriel's journey from the sheltered and innocent Banrion's daughter of the book's opening chapters to the grounded and powerful woman she will become - and from hostage to healer. Intriguing, fully developed characters abound. This entry can only enhance Farrell's reputation as one of the rising stars of Celtic fantasy.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

No longer the young, untried girl who stumbled upon Lamh Shabhala, most powerful of the stones that gather the power of the mage lights, Jenna the First Holder has been Banrion, too, since the last, devastating war among the lords and their holders, but that is about to change. The old Ri Ard is weak, possibly dying, and Doyle, Jenna's half brother, is set on obtaining Lamh Shabhala and will spare nothing --not even the life of his niece Meriel, Jenna's daughter --to get it. So Meriel is sent to the Order at Innishfern to be trained to assume Jenna's first-holder duties. Meriel doesn't want the power or responsibility of Lamh Shabhala, however, for she is at heart a healer. In no time at all, Meriel becomes the pawn in a deadly tug-of-war between her mother and her uncle, and the peace she desperately longs for, for herself and her land, seems to be out of reach. A wonderful continuation of the Cloudmages series, begun in Holder of Lightning [BKL Ja 1 & 15 03]. Paula Luedtke
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Format: Kindle Edition
• File Size: 3070 KB
• Publisher: Daw (January 4, 2005)
• Sold by: Penguin Publishing
• Language: English
• ASIN: B002IPZG5O
• Text-to-Speech: Enabled
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)

More About the Author

I write fantasy as S.L. Farrell and science fiction as Stephen Leigh. I also wrote one science fiction novel as "Matthew Farrell."

If you're really interested in learning a bit about me, then I'd suggest going to my website: http://www.farrellworlds.com -- that's where you'll find more than you ever really wanted to know, including some of my favorite books, my music, and all the rest including my online journal, where I talk about, well, nearly anything...

I'll see you there!

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Got old fast, February 16, 2005

By 

Jessica G. "lilac_jive" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mage of Clouds: The Cloudmages # 2 (Hardcover)

The major problem that I had with this book is that Jenna's daughter Meriel, whose point of view makes up a majority of the book, parallels way too close to her mother. She rejects her future, runs around getting into misadventures, falls in love with a guy she isn't attracted to in the beginning, gets into battle, and then her title gets elevated. Sure, there are enough differences for the author to get away with this I guess, but the predictability just ruined it for me.

On the plus side, the action did keep me reading. Maybe there was a little part of me that thought I wouldn't be able to figure out what happened, but halfway through the book I realized that wasn't going to happen, and at that point I had to finish reading anyway. I got even more frustrated when Farrel turned Jenna into a flat character, putting all his effort into Jenna (which was pointless, considering they're very much alike). I just spent 500 pages in the previous book getting to know Jenna, and now she's just, well, blegh. Very disappointed.

The last few chapters are quick-moving considering the amount of action. However, I wouldn't say they were engrossing; they kept my interest up enough to turn the page. All in all I was pretty disappointed in this second book. Holder of Lightning wasn't superb, but I had wanted to continue reading the series. Unfortunately, it was just way too similar to the previous one for me to give a good rating, and I felt there was a lot of room for improvement.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tremendous fantasy, January 7, 2004

By 

Harriet Klausner - See all my reviews
(#1 Hall OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mage of Clouds: The Cloudmages # 2 (Hardcover)

Jenna's enemies still lurk and are planning the abduction of Jenna's precious daughter Meriel by her Uncle Doyle, whose vow to do no harm to his half-sister ended when their mom died.

Meriel's uncle is obsessed with obtaining the Lamh Shabbala stone that channels all magic. If it means the death of his niece and anyone else so that he gains full power, so be it as he believes he was the one not Jenna who should have been the First Holder. Jenna is stunned as she loves her daughter but fears the price of acceding to the demands of her sibling as there are no guarantees that Meriel will live or that the peace will hold. She also worries about those loyal to her for she remembers what happened to her beloved.

The second book in the "Cloudmages" series, MAGE OF CLOUDS, is a tremendous fantasy due to the dilemma confronting the heroine of the first book. Though the story line focuses much on Meriel's plight, Jenna is the key ingredient as she struggles between the bigger good and her own micro need; either way someone will be hurt by her decision. Meriel is a solid character while her uncle is delightfully villainous. Fans of the first book, the author (in his variety of writing aliases), and fantasy aficionados will greatly value this powerful book that ignores the middle syndrome with a powerful plot and deep cast.

Harriet Klausner

3.0 out of 5 stars A repeat of the first novel, February 19, 2011

By 

Judy A. Williams "mark583" (Maryland Heights, MO United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mage of Clouds: The Cloudmages # 2 (Hardcover)

The first novel wasn't the best I had ever read, but it was interesting, and I enjoyed reading it. However, this one is just the same novel all over again, only inserting Meriel as Jenna. Yes, she isn't quiet as crazy, but it is similar enough to make you scratch your head, especially when the same key elements happen to her as her mother. Seriously, they would name her Ard?? Hard to believe. Also, it seems like everyone in the novel nonstop blames Jenna for the disaster at the end, yet, in reality it was all Doyle's fault. If he hadn't kidnapped Meriel in the first place, and then gone back on his word a second time, and tried to take Jenna's cloch, all of the death and war would have been avoided. Yet, everyone seems to forget that. Also, I don't understand why everyone always has to die. I can understand a few, but just like with Jenna, every single person almost that Meriel gets close with dies...