I love Lackey's Valdemar novels, and this is set in the same world a thousand years before that country's founding, in the midst of a cataclysmic war referred to more than once in that series.
One of Lackey's strengths is her world-building, and that's certainly on display here, with magical races like the gryphons developed in interesting ways, and I liked the title character, Skandranon. The novel kept my interest, was a fairly enjoyable read, and I did go on to read (and mostly enjoy) the next two books in this trilogy, which is why I felt it was fair to give it 3 stars.
It doesn't get more than that, because unlike other Lackey books in this world, I can't imagine I'd ever reread it; I don't think it's among Lackey's best, and I wouldn't ever choose these books as an introduction to the author. So if you love Lackey and her Valdemar books already, I think you'll like, even if not love this book; but if you're new to the author, try Arrows of the Queen or Magic's Pawn first.
