The Black Gryphon

· Mage Wars Book 1 · Astra Publishing House
5 reviews
Ebook
464
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About this ebook

Meet the majestic, intelligent, and magical gryphons who bravely face the conflicts dividing Valdemar in this classic fantasy novel by #1 New York Times-bestselling author Mercedes Lackey.

It is an age when Valdemar is yet unfounded, its organization of Heralds yet unformed, and magic is still a wild and uncontrolled force. Skandranon Rashkae is perhaps the finest specimen of his race, with gleaming ebony feathers, majestic wingspan, keen magesight, and sharp intelligence.

Courageous, bold, and crafty, Skan is everything a gryphon should be. He is the fulfillment of everything that the Mage of Silence, the human sorcerer called Urtho, intended to achieve when he created these magical beings to be his champions, the defenders of his realm—a verdant plain long coveted by the evil mage Maar.

Now Maar is once again advancing on Urtho's Keep, this time with a huge force spearheaded by magical constructs of his own—cruel birds of prey ready to perform any evil their creator may demand of them. And when one of Urtho's Seers wakes from a horrifying vision in which she sees a devastating magical weapon being placed in the hands of Maar's common soldiers, Skandrannon is sent to spy across enemy lines, cloaked in the protective of Urtho's powerful Spell of Silence.
Meet the majestic, intelligent, and magical gryphons who bravely face the conflicts dividing Valdemar in this classic fantasy novel by #1 New York Times-bestselling author Mercedes Lackey. It is an age when Valdemar is yet unfounded, its organization of Heralds yet unformed, and magic is still ...

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Ratings and reviews

5 reviews
Michael Johnson
October 7, 2026
Don't buy this e-book. I love this story, but this is a poor e-book version. The illustrations are barely visible and there are OCR errors in the text (single quotes going the wrong direction, italics not correctly switching back to non-italics for emphasis, etc.), all of which I confirmed by comparing to my physical copy of the book. The publisher should be ashamed of taking money for this sloppy excuse of an e-book.
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About the author

Mercedes Lackey is a full-time writer and has published numerous novels and works of short fiction, including the bestselling Heralds of Valdemar series. She is also a professional lyricist and a licensed wild bird rehabilitator.
Mercedes Lackey is a full-time writer and has published numerous novels and works of short fiction, including the bestselling Heralds of Valdemar series. She is also a professional lyricist and a licensed wild bird rehabilitator.

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