Miniseries author[]
Stories[]
- "A Storytelling of Crows" in Changing the World, Valdemar Anthology, volume 5
- "A Charm of Finches" in Finding the Way and Other Tales of Valdemar, Valdemar Anthology, volume 6
- "A Leash of Greyhounds" in Under the Vale and Other Tales of Valdemar, Valdemar Anthology, volume 7
- "A Wake of Vultures" in No True Way, Valdemar Anthology, volume 8
- "A Bellowing of Bullfinches" in Crucible, Valdemar Anthology, volume 9
- "A Trip of Goats" in Tempest, Valdemar Anthology, volume 10
- "An Ostentation of Peacocks" in Pathways, Valdemar Anthology, volume 11
- "A Siege of Cranes" in Choices, Valdemar Anthology, volume 12
- "An Omniscience of Godwits" in Seasons, Valdemar Anthology, volume 13
- "A Nursery of Raccoons" in Passages, Valdemar Anthology, volume 14
- "A Clutter of Cats" in Boundaries, Valdemar Anthology, volume 15
- "A Cry of Hounds" in Shenanigans, Valdemar Anthology, volume 16
- "An Enchantment of Nightingales" in Anything with Nothing, Valdemar Anthology, volume 17
Miniseries overview[]
These stories center around characters with the rare gift of Animal Mindspeech, the ability to communicate with any animal, rather than just Companions.
The series begins with Maia, whose closest companions are crows. She encounters an injured herald, Samira.
Major characters[]
- Maia - an animal mindspeaker from a remote forest village
- Herald Samira - a herald that is brought to Maia when she is injured; later she helps these animal mindspeakers with legal situations
- Lena - a noble child in Haven who has multiple bird pets
- Prior - the devoted clergyman who runs the central Temple of Thenoth in Haven
- Sven-August - a noble preteen with a love for animals
- Arvid - a noble teenager who is embarrassing his parents by blurting out parts of his mental conversations with animals
- Herald Robin - born into an acting troupe, he helps Samira and the Animal Mindspeakers, first as a trainee and then as an intern
Story introductions[]
- "A Storytelling of Crows" (2009) - Clyton, a companion, brings his injured herald Samira to Maia in the Forest of Sorrows.
- "A Charm of Finches" (2010) - Young Lena and her brother Markus, who is also her guardian, bring her finch to the Temple of Thenoth with a dagger stuck in its' wing.
- "A Leash of Greyhounds" (2011) - Lena, now 14 years old, is visiting one of her dead mother's friends, Shantell. Her husband, Lord Kristion, dies in a hunting accident; shot accidentally by his friend, Lord Teren.
- "A Wake of Vultures" (2014) - Traveling with heralds Samira and Robin, 15-year-old Lena is on her way to visit a friend of her dead father, Lord Tobias. They encounter a group of vultures guarding a dead human body and a dead vulture.
- "A Bellowing of Bullfinches" (2015) - Upon Lena's return to Haven, a woman asks the Temple for her help, accompanied by a very large donation. It becomes apparent that the Mistress Efanya wants to instigate a marriage to her son, Sven-August, who is two years younger than Lena.
- "A Trip of Goats" (2016) - Lena, now 16, and Sven-August are wrangling their "trip" of goats, which are eating midwinter festival greens at a guildmaster's house. They return to the Temple looking the worse for wear, making a poor impression on a snobbish couple in the courtyard.
- "An Ostentation of Peacocks" (2017) - Lena, almost 17, volunteers to get back the King's peacocks, which were stolen mere days after they were received as a gift.
- "A Siege of Cranes" (2018) - Lena obliges the King of Valdemar by participating at Court. When she flees a frightening suitor, she finds an unexpected savior.
- "An Omniscience of Godwits" (2019) - At one of Lena's estates, some birds have gone missing.
- "A Nursery of Raccoons" (2020) - Novices from Haven move into the new Temple of Thenoth Lena has built at her estate.
- "A Clutter of Cats (2021)
- "A Cry of Hounds (2022)
- "An Enchantment of Nightingales" (2023)
Chronology (spoilers)[]
A King is on the throne; a Queen is not mentioned until later.[1] No magic, so it's between 812 AF and 1406 AF. These stories are not technically canon, but it's interesting to see what the author did. See the Chronology section on the page for "A Wake of Vultures," a story that involves magic. What they know and discuss suggests that the story happens before the spirit of Vanyel imposed the "forget about magic" belief on Valdemar (at the request of Stefen's spirit), estimated around 868 AF. The Kings in that interval include Treven, Chalinel and Kiril.