| $@%&! level: Low “Bedroom” level: None Violence level: Medium Back Cover: “The number of the Deryni was small, very small—for they had been hounded for generations, their very identity kept secret for so long that many who were of Deryni blood did not know it. Those who did, those few who had managed to retain their arcane powers, concealed their background—for bitter persecution once again swept the land of Gwynedd, inspired by a raving fanatic sworn to destroy all Deryni in a final bloodbath.” |
That being said, the adventures are much more intense than the first book, possibly because the narrative time lasts longer than two days. That gives our heroes plenty of time to do a lot more travelling around and getting into various fights. It gives the reader time to get to know the characters a lot better and explore more of this world's magic. And it also lets the antagonists make things so much worse for everyone altogether. But the worst thing to happen actually has nothing to do with the overall plot. It's just one of those things that happens to happen, which will eventually cause a large amount of ruckus later on (but not in this book).
The general plot is that certain members of the Church would very much like to roast Morgan alive (and I mean that literally), and failing that will settle for excommunication. Since Morgan's excommunication or death would send the kingdom into utter chaos (just in time to be attacked by an aggressive neighbor), Morgan and Duncan and King Kelson are trying to figure out just how they can keep it from happening, and they're willing to go pretty far in order to avoid it. So the two sides are drawn up, and while there is plenty of fighting and so forth, the most important moves are more political than anything. And the King's decision at the end is one of the best expressions of faith and friendship ever, even if it is written in language that's a bit archaic. That decision will shape the entire future of the series, and although it still would have been really interesting if he'd gone the other way, it would have been very out of character, so I'm glad he didn't.
Also, I have to say that when I'm reading through the good parts of the Deryni books (which I do occasionally) the part at the Shrine of St. Torin is always high on the list of places to revisit.