Lady Carliss and the Waters of Moorue, a Book Review

Lady Carliss. A hero, a knight, and a role model with many qualities today’s female book protagonists are sadly lacking. Lady Carliss and the Waters of Moorue is the fourth book in the Knights of Arrethtrae series, but it was the first I read. When I saw it on the library shelf I was immediately taken in by the overall “coolness” of the cover. Lady Carliss, with her sword and bow and arrows, complete with a dark and dangerous-looking background, was enough to make me take the book home. I had always been a fan of knights going on grand adventures. But the story inside was even more captivating. The following review is about my personal opinion of the book, and why everyone, especially girls like me, should read it.

The story begins by picking up from where the previous book, Sir Dalton and the Shadow Heart, left off. Carliss was an important side character in that book, and toward the end Dalton realizes he loves her and rides off to win her heart. In Lady Carliss and the Waters of Moorue, Carliss is swept up in a grand adventure to rescue the family of a fellow knight, and ends up trying to save Dalton’s life as well. Time is running short, and to find the cure she must go to the city of Moorue and face the greatest challenge of her life. Things are made more difficult as she battles her own feelings for Sir Dalton, a handsome young man who is promised to another woman.

The book is full of twists and turns that keep the reader in suspense. Carliss befriends a sweet, mentally challenged man who might be more than he seems. The young knight whose family is in danger, has been acting stranger and stranger as the journey continues, and might pose a threat to the mission. The people of Moorue are held captive by a special water that gives them delightful visions- and entangles them in a web of addiction that Carliss will have to fight herself.

The overall moral of the book is about the pleasures of the world that ensnare unsuspecting people. It’s about loyalty, integrity, and giving up one's own desires to help others. As Carliss makes her own decisions and finds herself deeper in danger than she realized, the readers discover what a wonderful role model she is. In today’s YA fantasy books the female lead is usually “powerful” because of her ravishing beauty, sarcasm and attitude, or the amount of young men who fall for her. The typical heroine is sassy and selfish. She lets others get hurt because of her own infatuation of a handsome young man, and their inevitable romance is almost always full of inappropriate scenes that make the more conscientious readers cringe. Carliss, however, is powerful because of her love for the King and her desire to do what He commands. Her kindness toward Ganoaf and others is more enjoyable than the sarcasm that fills the majority of dialogue in most YA fantasy books today. She’s human, of course, and her mistakes continue to endear her to the readers as she tries to overcome them.

In my opinion, the best thing about her is her selflessness in her attempt to save Sir Dalton. Carliss doesn’t know of his feelings for her. She thinks he’s still in love with Lady Brynn, and thinks he’ll ride home to marry her as soon as he heals. But she doesn’t let herself become bitter. She trusts in the King for His guidance, then does her best to save Dalton’s life. Even though she thinks he’ll never love her, she wants the best for him. She wants him to be happy. And if happiness is with Brynn and not herself, she won’t try to stop it.

There weren’t many things I found disappointing about the book, but one thing I didn’t like was how Carliss was the only girl with a book about her. One of the reasons I loved Carliss’s story was that the main character was a female knight. I loved the other books just as much, but they were all about men. There’s not a problem with there being books about men. I’m not the feminist who finds it misogynistic for there to be stories about brave men doing noble deeds. But I did find it somewhat saddening that Carliss was the only female with a book about her in the entire six-book series. I wish the author, Chuck Black, had written more about the other female knights who occasionally showed up. It’s good for young girls to have plenty of female role models who display examples of Christlike love and dedication. Thankfully, Lady Carliss did just that, and although I’m disappointed there aren’t any other books about female knights in the series, I still highly recommend it.

Overall, Lady Carliss and the Waters of Moorue was engaging, well-written, creative, imaginative, and brimming with adventure and intrigue. If you like knights, swords, fantasy, or fast-paced battles, this book is for you. And even if you don’t like those things, I suggest you give it a try! Who knows… You might just find a new favorite story.

-Serene Stellington