Aewyn is King Cefwyn's legitimate son and heir, while Elfwyn is the King's illegitimate son. The two are best friends and brothers. Aewyn is raised by King Cefwyn and Queen Ninevrise in the rich luxury of the Guelemara palace. Elfwyn, whose mother is the imprisoned sorceress Lady Tarien Aswydd, is raised by Gran the hedge-witch somewhere in the countryside of Amefel. Nice as he is, Aewyn lacks the spirit, intelligence, courage and wizardry that are increasingly evident in his brother.

At 16 years old, Elfwyn finally is allowed to live with Aewyn in the palace, but the extremely religious Quinalt sect doesn't think it's safe for the son of a sorceress who has been brought up by a witch to live in the palace. The Quinalt fear the ancient sorcery that once existed throughout the land.

Everything hits crisis point when Elfwyn attends religious services with Aewyn. Suddenly Elfywn is on the run, with ultra-religious fanatics pursuing him and young chambermaids shrieking that he's an evil wizard. He starts seeing the shadows and lines between worlds, and he has visions of Gran's burning and death. He ends up seeking advice from Lord Tristen Sihhe, also a wizard and friend to the King, who will help him learn to use his powers.

Tristen Sihhe tells Elfwyn to trust the king and all of his house, and basically to fight his dark sorceress mother, who wants to kill the king. Elfwyn receives a magic ring from Lord Crissand, who guards his mother and warns him to be very careful around her. The basic questions of this novel are whether Elfwyn will help his father or mother, whether Elfwyn and Aewyn will remain friends and confidantes and whether Elfwyn will succeed in helping the king and Aewyn rule while avoiding persecution and possible death by the Quinalt.

Richly drawn fantasy characters

Readers of Fortress of Ice will find the characters anything but frigid and coldly drawn. The main attraction of this novel is the depth of the characterization, to the point where the reader believes that characters such as the budding wizard Elfwyn could exist—in a world that has wizards, of course.

The relationships among the many characters are also carefully drawn by Cherryh, who clearly has great talent as well as long experience in shaping and developing fantasy sagas. The book's structure is flawless and clean, the prose flowing from one scene to the next with a natural cadence. Points of view are maintained, and even the backfill from the last four novels filters into this fifth novel without intruding on the reader's enjoyment of the story.

A bit more time with Lady Tarien Aswydd would help round the novel into more of a whole. She remains offstage, yet plays a key role in Elfwyn's worries about Gran and the king, and in his overall moral dilemmas. It's hard to resist wanting to see an evil sorceress in action, particularly when she's up against her own son. Hopefully she'll be onstage if there is a sixth book in the saga.

Although the book's plot is thin, the richness of the characters keeps the reader turning pages. The deep background of political intrigue and plot provided by the previous four novels enables the reader to sit back and enjoy Fortress of Ice.

Much is left entangled at the end of the book. The reader wonders what will happen to Elfwyn, his parents and his friends. How will he use his powers, and what will happen to the kingdom? These questions leave the reader thirsting for another Fortress of Ice novel.