Lackey is a very popular author, and the Valdemar books are her major body of work. A discussion of By the Sword or the entire series, is likely to draw young adults fascinated by the identity-quest theme and the girl- or boy-meets-horse premise and adult fantasy readers captivated by the adventure or the world-building aspects.

Ideology and thought experiment are not big features of this series. Sessions that stay focused on the stories and the world are more practicable than those of a more literary or philosophic bent.

However, By the Sword's social concerns and warrior heroine might lend themselves to a "women's options" discussion, either based on this book alone or in combination with other feminist science fiction and fantasy.

1. Kerowyn disdains the work of household management. Yet she was good at it, and the chatelaine of a large household had managerial responsibilities at least...