The Finest Challenge

商家名称	信用等级	购买信息	订购本书
		The Finest Challenge
		The Finest Challenge

基本信息·出版社：Tor Books
·页码：320 页
·出版日期：2006年09月
·ISBN：0765308223
·International Standard Book Number：0765308223
·条形码：9780765308221
·EAN：9780765308221
·版本：1st
·装帧：精装
·正文语种：英语
·丛书名：Finest Trilogy

内容简介 They were the Finest Creations--mystically forged creatures of perfection sent by the creators to aid the Fallen (mankind) during their mortal existence. Though they resemble ordinary horses they are highly intelligent, capable of communicating telepathically, and completely moral. They are assigned to bond with individuals of great potential and to protect them from harm while guiding them along a path of virtue.

THE FINEST CHALLENGE

Kalantha has successfully rescued her brother from the shadow of the evil bishop's bellicose influence, but now finds herself cut off from both him and her Finest protector, Gallant Stallion. All three must race against the clock to curtail the unnecessary war that the Bishop’s minions have engineered. And, still lurking in the shadows and prowling the night skies is the avian menace whose dreams of a carrion-strewn countryside can still come through if their equine nemesis is neutralized.

The Finest series combines elements of Mercedes Lackey’s Valdemar series with C.S. Lewis’s Narnia to tell an inspiring tale of moral and mystical intrigue.


作者简介 A former journalist and news bureau chief, Jean Rabe has written seventeen fantasy novels and more than three dozen fantasy, science-fiction, mystery,
and military short stories. Among her works are the Finest trilogy from Tor and numerous Dragonlance and Forgotten Realms books for TSR/WotC. She has edited several anthologies and has collaborated with Andre Norton on Return to Quag Keep and A Taste of Magic. She lives in Kenosha, Wisconsin, with her husband, two dogs, and a miniature macaw.


媒体推荐 On The Finest Creation

“Rabe's fun, galloping romp of a story launches a new fantasy series….Rabe (Redemption and other titles in the Dragonlance series) deftly puts some beguiling twists on the guardian-angel theme. The rearing steed on the jacket will signal young horse lovers that this is a book for them.”—Publishers Weekly

“The author of several novels set in Wizards of the Coast's "Forgotten Realms" setting has created her own world and populated it with vibrant characters both human and animal.”—Library Journal

"Jean Rabe has not only garnered many awards in the field of imaginative games, but she has also some dozen role-playing novels to her credit, plus numerous short stories and articles. Her store of knowledge concerning war (in all periods), strange civilizations, and magic--white and black--is indeed prodigious."--Andre Norton



专业书评 From Publishers Weekly

In fantasy stories, young protagonists are often wiser than their years and savvy in the ways of politics. In Rabe's third book about magical horses from the Finest Court (after The Finest Choice), 14-year-old Kalantha and her older brother, Meven are, regrettably, rather clueless to just about everything. Meven, who has become king, has inadvertently started a bloody war under the influence of the diabolical Bishop DeNogaret. After Kalantha persuades her brother that the war is evil, Meven decides the best way to end it is to traipse over to the opposing side with open arms. While it's a noble idea, it's also a recipe for disaster. Meanwhile, Kalantha, who's under attack at the palace, flees without the aid of her horse, Rue. What follows is a muddled game of catch-up among the main characters as they try to end the war. Rabe started the series with a bang, but this volume shows signs of fatigue.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Rabe resumes the series that began with The Finest Creation (2004) where The Finest Choice (2005) left off, with evil Bishop DeNogaret laid up by injuries suffered when Gallant-Stallion prevented him from killing Kalantha. Meven, out of the bishop's sway, comes to his senses and realizes in horror how much suffering and death he has caused by warring with Nasim-Guri. Although Meven's forces are close to winning, he determines to go to Nasim-Guri and make amends to King Silverwood. DeNogaret is just as determined to prevent the war's ending, as is the malevolent falcon that leads the vicious assassin birds. The result is the expected attacks and counterattacks leading up to a violent climactic battle in King Silverwood's courtyard. Slightly weaker structurally than its predecessors, this is still a book that fans will want to read. And the epilogue hints at one more. Sally Estes
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
文摘 ~Chapter One 
War Torn
 
A proper king’s feet should be deeply rooted in his country. His heart should beat with concern for his people. His head should be filled with plans for a better future. And his eyes should always observe the rest of the world.
 
~~Sorrel Wintermane, shepherd to Bernd Sameter, first king of Nasim-Guri
 
The large tent had been intended for summer festivals, when long tables spread with desserts and fruits would be arrayed inside for the dining pleasure of noble guests. But the dirt and bloodstains marked the tent’s new and grim purpose this early spring.
 
A guard bowed and held the flap open. “Sire.”
 
“Are you sure you want to see this, Kal?” Meven squared his shoulders and looked down into his sister’s wide green eyes. “It’s cold out here. It smells pretty awful in there and . . .”
 
“You know I’ve seen wounded men before, Meven.” A pause: “And plenty of dead ones.” She pulled her cloak tight around her. “Besides, I’d rather be with you than in that old palace of yours. I don’t like the looks some of your servants give me. Your palace is . . .”
 
“Our palace.”
 
“Is too big. I could get lost in it.” She brushed past him, then threw her hand over her mouth and gagged. Kalantha instantly felt weak.
 
The cloying odor of diseased and rotting flesh was the strongest, and under that the coppery scent of blood. Cots stretched end to end in rows from the front to the back of the tent, and not a single one sat empty. The most grievously injured rested the farthest away, which was where Kalantha headed. The people tending the wounded huddled back there, clustered near a single cot and talking so their words sounded like the buzz of an insect swarm.
 
She passed men with
……

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