A Betrayal in Winter (The Long Price Quartet)
by Daniel Abraham
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Book Summary Information
Author: Daniel AbrahamEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2007-08-21
ISBN: 0765313413
Number of pages: 320
Publisher: Tor Books
Book Reviews of A Betrayal in Winter (The Long Price Quartet)
Book Review: Very well written, a real page-turner, better than the first book!
Summary: 5 Stars
_A Betrayal in Winter_ by Daniel Abraham is a simply excellent fantasy novel, book two in his Long Price Quartet series. I almost didn't continue with the series after reading the first volume, _A Shadow In Summer_. I loved the setting, found it quite exotic and original, and the chief fantasy concept of the series, namely the idea of the andat, was extremely interesting, and I liked his vivid descriptions of the city, but I found some of the intrigue a bit hard to follow, confused some of the unfamiliar but roughly similar Asian-sounding names, and like some other reviewers of his first book, was bothered by that novel's plot hole (namely the book centered in large part around the intrigue in trying to discredit or destroy the city of Saraykeht's andat, Seedless, when it became apparent at the end all one had to do was to murder the poet who controlled the spirit creature).
Well I am glad I continued with the series. This novel was very tightly written, had an excellent, breathless pace to it, had some extremely engaging intrigue, cool political plans and counter-plans, neat plans within plans as it were, and some very well developed characters, particularly the two main characters from the first novel.( as well as some romance too). It helped a lot to me in appreciating the scope and wonder of this setting by seeing another city of the Khaiem, seeing another poet, seeing another andat, and generally reading about other places in the setting. It added a lot of depth for me and it was very interesting to see not all poets, cities, and andats were alike and indeed they could be quite different.
Instead of Saraykeht, the southern city of the first novel, the vast majority of the novel takes place in one of the northern cities of the Khaiem, one of the winter cities, the city of Machi. Very early on in the book we learn that the Khai of Machi is dying and it will soon be time for the regrettable tradition of his sons vying - to the death - for his throne. The last man standing as it were gets the crown. Indeed, before the ruling Khai dies, one of the three brothers resident in the city is murdered, but not as it turns out by one of the two brothers resident there. Who did this deed?
The murder of this brother, Biitrah Machi and the intrigue surrounding who will next rule Machi is at the heart of this book, all plot threads ultimately revolving around these events. The Dai-Kvo, head of the poets who control the andats in the lands of the Khaiem, sends Maati Vaupathai (one of the two main characters from the first book) to investigate the murder of Biitrah. It is widely suspected by the Dai-Kvo and those in Machi that it is Otah (the other main character from the first novel), one of the sons of the Khai Machi, is responsible. As Maati was Otah's pupil at the poet school and later his friend in Saraykeht, he is thought the perfect choice to track down Otah and discover who was responsible for the murder. Even though 14 years have passed since the events in the first book, Maati is confident he can find Otah.
Meanwhile, Otah is indeed on his way to Machi, though only after the murder of Biitrah. Going under the name Itani Noyga, Otah is a courier working for House Siyanti. Ostensibly to deliver letters but really hoping to somehow become involved to the house's advantage in the succession crisis, House Siyanti sends Otah to Machi. Otah is torn about going; he would love to revisit his homeland, but it is dangerous to do so, as he could legitimately be killed by either of his two brothers as part of the fight for the throne, particularly since they both (along with everyone else it seems) believe that Otah killed Biitrah.
New characters introduced in this novel are major players as well. We learn early on that the daughter of the Khai Machi, Idaan Machi, is plotting with her fianc? Adrah Vaunyogi, son of an ambitious house in Machi, to bring down the Khai, his sons, and with Galt help (the Galts being the villains behind the intrigue in the first book) rule Machi for themselves. Also getting involved in the intrigue are the poet of Machi, Cehmai Tyan, his andat Stone-Made-Soft, and his friend the librarian Baarath.
The intrigue, maneuverings, scheming, and investigations were engaging and interesting and seeing how the andat and poet of Machi operated was fascinating as it really pressed to me the reader how different the andat are, how dangerous it is to control one, and how truly powerful they are. Indeed I think that latter aspect, the terrible power of the andat, was one of the major themes of the book, for the poet to control one and the Khai to order the poet to do things are terrible and weighty burdens. Stone-Made-Soft for instance, at the order of the poet Cehmai, can turn solid stone or rock into any consistency desired, whether it is making the rock in a mine somewhat easier to mind without collapsing the entire substructure of the mountain to constructing immense stone towers to overawe the neighbors of Machi to making entire mountain ranges flow like water.
Another theme, a somewhat tragic one, is the role of women in the setting. Idaan is ambitious, almost ruthless, highly intelligent politician with a keen eye for making alliances, exploiting weaknesses, taking quick action and getting the job done, but time and again she is constrained by the fact that she is a woman, not allowed to speak in most settings, unable to ever take the throne of Khai for herself, not able to chose her own lover, always in the shadows, despite being more ambitious and capable than her husband-to-be.
A fantastic novel!
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