In Legend Born

What a wonderful surprise. This is one of my favorite books I've read this year. I literally just picked it up at a bookstore because the cover intrigued me.

Miramar, a sorcerer who can control fire and talk to dead people who tell her prophecies (no she's not Haley Joel Osment from The Sixth Sense)

Josarian, an elite elite warrior who is prophesied to be his country's savior

Tansen, also an elite warrior who is best friends with Josarian and will protect him at all costs

Elelar, a calculated prostitute. Only she's not bumping nasties for money, she's doing it for information to help her cause to pull a coup on the tyrannical government.

The cast bands together to send their conquerors back to the homeland but is their losses worth what they're getting or are they trading tyranny for tyranny?

Melanie Rawn's blurb says, “ you can't wait to find out what the next revelation will be... A remarkable tale.”
This is the short and sweet version of exactly how I feel. So many crazy revelations and I can't wait to read the next books.All the characters are fun to read and all the deaths are very dramatic no matter who it is. I urge any 90's fantasy fan to pick this up.

Well-written high fantasy, but honestly, it just went on too long. So far, everybody has lost someone important. Anybody who loves anyone seems to be doomed. Betrayals are everywhere, and that's something I find profoundly disturbing.

The book did end on a note of hope, and I want to know what happens next. I just don't know if I want it enough to slog through (at least) two more volumes.

Overall, I would say that I enjoyed this book. When I try to think about what it is that I liked about it, however, it's in spite of a lot of things that usually irritate me about fantasy novels: It's far too long, there are too many characters that are given plotlines without any reason for us to care about them, and the ending of it was rather unsatisfying.

At the same time, however, the world that Resnick's created is deeply interesting - the book is set in the island nation of Sileria, a poor backwater holding that has traded hands between several different kingdoms over the centuries without ever truly being free. Within this framework, a young rebel named Josarian starts a revolution that sweeps over the island. In addition to that, you have warring groups of wizards, a ronin-style warrior searching for redemption, prophecy, sex, and politics.