Loved the series. This is the first of three and a wonderful book.
Karse and Valdemar have long been enemy kingdomes - their peoples filled with mutual prejudice and mistrust. Only the vile deeds perpetrated on both kingdoms by Ancar of Hardorn, and the subsequent emergence of the armies of the Eastern Empire in the wake of his defeat, have forced these two so-different lands into an uneasy alliance.
For the Eastern Empire, which has long been isolated and shrouded in mystery, is ruled by a monarch whose magical tactics may be beyond any sorcery known to the Western kingdoms.
Forced to combat this dire foe, not only must traditional enemies unite, but the Companions may, at last, have to reveal secrets which they have kept hidden for centuries... even from their beloved Heralds.

Dede S. (
Ballyhoo) wrote on 12/24/2005...
Book #1 of the Mage Storm Series by Mercedes Lackey
Two cultures which have long been at war have to figure out how to work together in order to forestall the impending second Cataclysm.