Bloodstone
Trickster's Game Book II

by Barbara Campbell

Following on from the events in Heartwood, Darak and Griane (the Memory-Keeper and Healer of their tribe respectively) now have three children. The eldest, Keirith, is apprenticed to the Tree-Father, but unfortunately he has been doing the unthinkable and joining his spirit with eagles, enjoying their power of flight. This is against all the rules and he is dismissed. Horrified at letting down his parents, and at a showdown between his father and his master Keirith runs away but straight into more trouble – he is captured by a band of slavers. These raiders whisk him away to their capital city in the south, where Kerith is going to have many more adventures.

If you enjoyed Heartwood (you will need to read this book first) then you ought to like this one too. There is nothing remarkable in here, but with fantasy, even more than some other story types, it is how the tale is told that matters, more than the tale itself. Mortals interact with deities, a too-rigid law is broken and Keirith has a rite of passage to undergo before he can return home. There are some good descriptive passages in here, and the tale rolls along happily enough without being particularly memorable.