Review of Daughter of Redwinter by Ed McDonald

I am one of many readers with praise for the entertainment qualities of Ed McDonald's Raven's Mark trilogy. While the third volume went to the well one time too many, the series nevertheless pokes its head above the crowded fantasy market for its solid lines and vibrant colors. There is little fantasy can do these days to be original, so McDonald put his effort into the basics of good writing: well-paced plotting, splashes of magic and action, and characters that were rendered with enough dimension for the reader to be interested. What then, could McDonald do for the follow up? Let's see what Daughter of Redwinter (2022) is all about.

Superficially there isn't much which distinguishes either McDonald's Raven's Mark trilogy or this, the opening volume in the Redwinter trilogy. Secondary worlds, wizardly magic, swords and sandals, kings and knights, battles, yadda, yadda, yadda. Daughter tells of a young woman, Raine, discovering magical powers in a Medieval setting. Yeah, you've heard of it before. But again, McDonald breathed a reasonable degree of life into the Raven's Mark to give it something the average series of such caliber does not. I'm less certain how much breath Daughter of Redwinter has.

Daughter of Redwinter does a reasonably good job playing out scenes to dramatic, sometimes surprising effect as Raine comes to terms with her powers as magicians around her fight for her alliance. For readers who enjoy good plotting, the book is solid; the pages in the final quarter of the book turn relatively quickly with anticipation. But where the Raven's Mark gave readers an overarching sense of setting/place, Daughter of Redwinter is less inclined. Drama and action occur at well-paced moments (i.e not every chapter, nor only once in the whole novel), but the sense of location and place which adds to such scenes is not imbued upon the reader to the same degree. Where readers had a clear sense of The Misery and other locations in Raven's Mark, that sense is missing in Daughter. Ostensibly its a Scottish/clannish/highlandish world, but the reader never feels that save occasionally being told it is a Scottish/clannish/highlandish world. Fantasy of this type, for example Brian Ruckley's Godless World trilogy, needs more handholds for imaginative immersion.

One mark to laud McDonald for is not repeating the Raven's Mark. Too often writers who have early success look to repeat what worked, and can even become one note songs (Guy Gavriel Kay, looking at you). While not a juxtaposition to Raven's Mark, the style and mood of Daughter feel different. The brooding resignation to violence and fate is replaced by the open mindedness and stubborn quest for personal identification of Raine. McDonald's style less dynamic and more reserved, it allows Raine's questions and uncertainties a place to float and be considered—by both her and the reader. I respect McDonald for trying something new.

In the end, Daughter of Redwinter feels more vanilla fantasy than Raven's Mark, but at the same time a touch—a touch—more personal; the reader gets closer to Raine than they did with Ryhalt. But it lacks an overall sense of place/setting—something entertainment-focused fantasy of this type needs in order to inform and color plot and character actions/choices. McDonald should be complimented for not trying to repeat himself, but at the same time the world of Redwinter lacks stage presence which might distinguish it from the rest of the market.