As the fifth book in the Symphony of Ages series, ELEGY FOR A LOST STAR falls short.
There are three basic plot lines and all of which are creative and I think have lots of potential: Rhapsody and her soul mate Ashe are Lord and Lady Cymrian and expecting their first child, only since Ashe is part dragon, Rhapsody and the baby could be in danger. Danger is also rising in Sorbold, where we find that the new emperor is not only the one responsible for the deaths of the former empress and her son, but he has also used a few strange ancient artifacts in order to secure his position on the throne. He is planning to attacks the kingdom's of his friends and enemies and proposes a huge threat to Rhapsody and friends. And of course, the big plot centers around the awakening of Anywyn who is out for revenge on Rhapsody who ruined her life.
The problem with plot 1 is that we don't see enough of Rhapsody and Ashe, and when we do see them, the emotion seems to fall short. Plot 2 is done when, and the new emperor of Sorbold is definitely as evil and heartless as to be expected from a former slave trader, but there is no conclusion to the plot, so I assume there is another book coming. Plot 3 suffers because Anywyn is suffering from some sort of amnesia throughout the entire book until near the end. The chapters that were describing her were simply so boring, I wanted to skip them. All she can remember is anger and then anger at Rhapsody and wanting to kill her and then she doesn't know why.
Unlike the first three books of the series (RHAPSODY, PROPHECY, and DESTINY), the characters along with the plot action seem very strained. In this book, Haydon spends so much time reminding readers of what happened in the previous books that the characters, their conversations, their emotions, and their actions are limited. The four main characters (Rhapsody, Ashe, Grunthor, and Achmed) are not nearly in enough of the action. What saved the book for me was the further development of the two minor characters (Gwydion of Navarne and Anborn).
As far as fantasy novels go, it is still a decent read, better than some. However, if you are expecting a book worthy of the previous Symphony of Ages books, you are bound to be disappointed.