The Phoenix Endangered: Book Two of the Enduring Flame

Written by Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory

Narrated by William Dufris

In The Phoenix Endangered, the second entry in The Enduring Flame, Tiercel, a budding High Mage, and Harrier, a reluctant Knight-Mage, develop greater power-and learn of the evils of war when they see the devastation caused by the fanatical armies of the Wild Mage Bisochim.

The desert tribespeople led by young Shaiara flee Bisochim's evil, seeking a legendary oasis deep in the desert-a refuge that may hold the key to stopping Bisochim and preserving the Balance between Light and Darkness...or that may be the cause of Light's ultimate downfall.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Tantor Media, Inc
• Release date: Sep 30, 2008
• ISBN: 9781400177868

Mercedes Lackey

Mercedes entered this world on June 24, 1950, in Chicago, had a normal childhood and graduated from Purdue University in 1972. During the late 70's she worked as an artist's model and then went into the computer programming field, ending up with American Airlines in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In addition to her fantasy writing, she has written lyrics for and recorded nearly fifty songs for Firebird Arts & Music, a small recording company specializing in science fiction folk music. Also known as Misty Lackey.

Reviews for The Phoenix Endangered

[sunnysd_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The second installment of Tiercel and Harrier's quest to stop the return of the Dark finds their party enhanced greatly by one very ancient dragon. Unfortunately, the odds against them are still pretty poor - they'll face not only the scorching desert, but hoards of mislead desert tribesman, and that's just the first half of the book.Say what you will, Lackey and Mallory aren't bashful about killing characters off! A bit more action and a faster pace keep this installment from dragging as much as the first book.

[xicanti_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

The second book in THE ENDURING FLAME picks up right where THE PHOENIX UNCHAINED left off. Harrier and Tiercel are off into the wilds, which means travel. Lots and lots of travel.I'm not so down on travel scenes as some other fantasy readers. I sometimes find that they can be quite important. It's true, though, that they have the potential to slow the story right down, and that's just what happens here. The first half of the book isn't bad, but it's not exactly action-packed and that made it tough for me to sink into the story. There are some important things going in - including a big adjustment on Harrier's part - but there just isn't enough character or plot development to justify the amount of time it takes.The second half, however, was very good. There's still some travel, but it takes a backseat to character development. Both Harrier and Tiercel face some pretty tough stuff as they struggle to find their place in the upcoming battle. I thought Lackey and Mallory did a good job of showing how two ordinary guys would really react to the situation they find themselves in.I also appreciated how the authors developed the friendship between the two characters. They bounce off each other very well, and their reactions to one another are exactly what you'd expect from two people who've known each other forever.In the end, the book was pretty good. It definitely wasn't the best thing these two authors have produced, but it was an enjoyable read nonetheless. I'm looking forward to the last one in the trilogy.(A much longer, ramblier version of this review originally appeared on my blog, Stella Matutina).

[gryphor · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I really enjoyed this book and read! It was fun, adventurous, enjoyable. I have the audio book for it so I listened to it while driving to and from work. It was a great way to adventure while in the car. If you enjoy fantasy books this is a must read in my opinion. You need to have this one under your belt.

[gt7m · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

I hate to say it, but I actually forgot that I finished this book - it was a trial to read. I picked it back up, scanned the last chapter and realized that I had finished last week. I was using it as a pass-the-time book; reading 20 minutes here and 30 there. Normally I can't put a book down, relishing every moment, every word. Not this one! The Phoenix Endangered: Depending on the chapter, the book is narrated by three different characters none of which know each other. But this is not the down side of this book. It seems as if Lackey and Mallory were at a loss when trying to write a follow-up to not only the first book in this trilogy, but after writing the Obsidian Trilogy. The story lines in both trilogies are very similar, just a small change here, and a twist there. Plus, the character development in this book is nil, nada, none, void.... Yes, there is magic. Yes, there is good vs. a sort of evil. Yes, there are dragons, and elves, and unicorns - but that is the only thing I can find of Mercedes Lackey in this book. No action. No suspense. No nothing.I'm at a loss - I just can't think of any thing else to write about this book. I just can’t spare the time or energy – just like the authors.

[tiffmeister_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Well, I did like this one in the end. It took awhile to get into it though. The story takes place 1,000 years after the Obsidian Trilogy. Many of the characters of the first book have become legendary. It also brings a bit of a smile to your face when some might pop up later in the novel. Tiercel would have a life as a city magistrate of the great city of Armethalieh. His best friend, Harrier, would be eventually harbor master, or at least apprenticed to learn the ropes. What happens is a huge change of fate, and the book tells of how that happens. It all starts with Tiercel reading a book that Harrier gets for his birthday. As a result, the old ways of High Magic start to be revealed to him. This leads to a grand journey to find answers. It was refreshing to return to the world of the Obsidian Trilogy. I've ordered the next two books of this trilogy through Amazon for my Kindle. Looking forward to reading them.

[broccolima-1 · Rating: 2 out of 5 stars]

This is the first Lackey book to get 2 stars from me. I liked the characters, I liked the world/setting, and I liked the story, even though it's kind of cookie-cutter Lackey. What I didn't like was the writing.

What it is is... padded. This entire trilogy barely scrapes past 1200 pages (this book was around 400 pages). The authors should have cut the excess, boring crap and sold it as one big book. It is full of repetitive, circuitous dialogue (yes, the characters like to bicker and argue a lot. That would be ok. But even the smallest things are often dragged on far too long.)

Physical buildings and objects are described far, far too much. The worst thing is that they are insignificant things. For instance, a building that is in the story for five seconds, and has no importance, is described right down to the how the clay for the tiles was made. This took up a good chunk of the page, about a half.

However, the characters really do shine. They are quite likable and it's sad that this trilogy is their home. Poor Ancaladar must be bored out of his mind.

Longtime Lackey fans and lovers of the Obsidian trilogy could give this story a go. Anyone else, pass. Read the Obsidian trilogy or any of Lackey's other works instead.

[jeremypreacher · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

I got really excited when I read the back of this book,as it appeared to address one of my personal pet peeves - that "restoring the balance of the universe" always seems to mean "good slaughters evil." (Don't get me started about Star Wars.) This is the first book in the trilogy, so I'm not disappointed yet, but I may yet be. Philosophical points aside, this is a solid fantasy in the fairly traditional mages-dragons-elves-oh-my vein.

[nighthawk_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A good read. Not much for action. Look forward to part two.

[karlstar_1 · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This is the 2nd novel in a young adult fantasy trilogy. It picks up immediately where the previous book left off, with two young men travelling far from home attempting to discover what Tiercel's prophetic dreams are all about. They know that evil is attempting to return to the world, and they must discover a way to stop it. Tiercel is a High Mage, the first human high mage in a long time. His friend Harrier is a Knight-Mage, though at this point he has no idea what that means. This is fairly typical young adult fantasy. They spend a lot time travelling, which gives them an opportunity to learn their skills and more about what is going on. Unfortunately, it also features a bonded dragon, which is just too similar to Eragon. It also features the bad guy of the moment, the desert tribesmen. Otherwise, I enjoyed it, the world they've created is interesting.

[kassilem · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

This book fell short of my expectations. I read its prequel trilogy, The Obsidian Trilogy, a few years ago, loved it and bought the books. So I've been meaning to read this squeal trilogy ever since it came out. I'm not sure if my reading expectations have exceeded this writing style now, years after I read the first trilogy, or if this second trilogy just isn't as good. Either way, I had to force myself to finish it and not just set it aside for something else. Luckily, it was easy to read and not very long. Maybe sometime this year I'll go back and reread The Obsidian Trilogy to see if it's me or the writer that changed. The story itself is interesting, but I think if it had been written a bit differently, I would have liked it more. I try not to say things like "I could write that better" because I know I wouldn't want readers to say that about my book, but...alas. I think I could write this book better. Not a total waste of time, but unless you're a big Mercedes Lackey fan I'm not sure I'd recommend it.