I just finished reading this and wow. Wow, wow.
Robin McKinly has a way of jumping back and forth between present and future that keeps you captivated from the first page. The premise of pegasi as an intelligent and plausible race is brilliant. She answers questions while telling you nothing in a way that reminds me of the Riddlemaster. She describes court life and royal families in brilliant detail.
And there had better be a sequel.
This is the most awesome book I have read since The Queen's Thief series by Megan Whale Turner. It's about a princess and a pegasus with an unusual friendship. It also could serve as a textbook to illustrate the difference between magic and cobha. It's a beautiful, beautiful story,and if you can get your hands on it, do so. There is absolutely nothing about this book that I wouldn't recommend. (unlike some of her previous books, which I might advise some caution to some readers.) It's almost like a children's story in that the characters are rather young at the start.
In one word, it was incredible.
