We're returning to Valdemar with Magic’s Promise, by Mercedes Lackey! In his second book, Vanyel is 12 years older but perhaps not wiser as he struggles to move past his lover Tylendel’s tragic death. While attempting to find some rest at his family’s home (and mostly just finding homophobia), Vanyel and his companion Yfandes are pulled into a mysterious royal murder in a neighboring kingdom. He is tasked with uncovering the truth from the terrified Tashir, one of the only survivors and the suspected (but unlikely) culprit. Vanyel mopes, gets very tired and hungry, and ultimately grows - and we cheer him on every step of the way.

EPISODE MEDIA

Cover artist Jody Lee - After a more thorough look at her body of work, I have realized that she in fact created THE MANY WATERS COVER we’ve been obsessed with since childhood as well as so many other absolute bangers. “This artist changed my life” - Madeleine Harnois

The Oathbreakers album - here’s a taste with Shadow Stalker. There’s also a separate musical interpretation of her work by Paul Espinoza, which I mention in the ep - and probably even more out there! Send us your bardic interpretations!!

MUSIC - Pippin the Hunchback and Thatched Villagers by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) - Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/