One Good Knight (Five Hundred Kingdoms Series #2)

Lively Andromeda Tale

One Good Knight / 978-1-426-86198-7 I rather enjoy the Five Hundred Kingdoms books - starting with "The Fairy Godmother" and continuing to the recent fifth book "The Sleeping Beauty". The tales are something of a mixed-up fairy tale due to the unique backstory: a powerful and impersonal force called The Tradition constantly tries to impose "fairy tale" logic on people whose lives loosely fit the structure of commonly told fairy tales, and Godmothers and Champions devote their lives trying to facilitate the happy endings and thwart the bad ones that The Tradition tries to impose. This is the second book in the loosely connected series, and I have to admit that I enjoyed it a bit more than its predecessor, "The Fairy Godmother" - probably for the same reasons that others *didn't*. The major differences here is that "One Good Knight" is slightly shorter (an approximate 400 pages to TFG's 500), and their is significantly less emphasis on romance and much more emphasis on the given fractured fairy tale (a mash-up of the Greek Andromeda myth and the English 'George and the Dragon' tale). Judge your own tastes accordingly - if what you most enjoyed about TFG was the romance and world-building, you may want to give this a pass; if you prefer the fractured fairy tale concept, then I can almost guarantee you will enjoy this novel. Like all the Lackey novels I've read so far, the plot is quite gripping, the characterizations are superb, and the dialogue has a tendency to make me laugh out loud regularly. Lackey specializes in well-rounded and strong female characters, and "One Good Knight" does not disappoint - it's nice to have a "plain" and bookish princess for once (even if the cover artist didn't get the memo, an ongoing gripe I have with this series, see also "The Sleeping Beauty"). If I had one criticism about this book, it would be that some of the ending feels a little rushed and confusing; the pacing at the middle should have been tightened, I think, to allow the ending to flow more naturally. I'm not usually a fan of end-game exposition dumps, but I think a tiny one could have been employed here. I enjoyed this novel immensely, though, and definitely recommend it for fans of the series. ~ Ana Mardoll

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Just Not As Good

I am a huge fan of Mercedes Lackey and I loved everything I have read by her, until I read One Good Knight. I liked the begining, but the middle and end felt rather forced. I have read Fairy Godmother at least half a dozen times, but One Good Knight is not a book I will be picking up again.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

exciting fantasy

Queen Cassiopeia and her councilor magician Solan rule the kingdom of Acadia ignoring Princess Andromeda who unlike her beautiful and power happy mother is shy and innocent. She hopes for maternal approval when she proves the research she does in the library can help rule the country. Acadia¿s revenues come from taxes, trading and the income from shipwrecks. Andromeda shows there are more shipwrecks than ever before due to bad weather. --- She reports her findings to her mom and Solan but they have a major crisis on their hands. A dragon has entered the kingdom doing much damage only a female virgin can temporarily appease it. Andromeda is the next virgin to be sacrificed. A champion who gets past the magical guards placed around the country frees her the princess forces George to take her with him as he hunts the dragon. When they meet with the dragon and his brother, they learn that the dragon is under a spell to act like a monster in Acadia. They plan, along with the princess, and her champion to go back to Acadia and root out the evil that is running the country. --- Mercedes Lackey has written another exciting fantasy filled with action, humor, and intrigue with a protagonist who knows her mother dislikes her but refuses to let the lack of love turn her bitter. She is a strong woman who will put her country before herself even if it means that she is placing herself and her allies in danger. The two dragons are just two of the stars of the novel with their distinctive personalities and the way they get the princess and the champion to fall in love with them without even trying. This is a magical treat. --- Harriet Klausner

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

More romance than Fairy Godmother

Slow, but with a happy ending ... completely different pacing than the last book

I really love this series

I read this one first and have been reading this series ever since. I really love these books.

Lackey is always a good read, and One Good Knight will not disappoint

What a fun break from her Valdemar series. Actually, in general, this series is much more mature. More plot, more character development, and an interesting idea. If you are a fan of mythology its fun to recognize the different myths and elements in Lackey's stories. It is the perfect book to read on a rainy day, in bed. I look forward to more books in this series.

Below is my order of favorites in this series, NOT in the order they are written
1. The Fairy God Mother
2. The Snow Queen
3. One Good Knight
4. Fortune's Fool

Amazing Read

A very good spin on the Traditional story! I haven't read all of Mercedes Lackey's books (I'm working on it though!), but this is by far one of my favorites. Fantastically witty, and beautifully written, I reccomend it to everyone.

Better Than The First

I feel that 'One Good Knight' is better than :The Fairy Godmother'. I like villans who are evil rather than merely nasty. Yes, the happy ending is somewhat of a fairy-godmother-ex-machina, but I feel we were given fair warning. There is a loose end in one of the problems facing The Fairy Godmother that I hope to see resolved. There is a secondary charecter who is great fun.

Wonderful

I loved all of her books, and this one is no exception. If you like romantic fantasy you will love this book. -AP

Awsome!, but not quite there

I love Mercedes Lackey, she is one of my favorite authors. I loved the first book in this series, Fairy Godmother. This one just isn't quite as good. I think mostly it has to do with the way it ended. The ending just seemed some what rushed. Also, I don't enough attention was paid to individual characters. It seemed hard to connect with some of the characters. Still, this was an awsome book and I defeniatly would recommend it!

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