Kushiel's Dart (Kushiel's Legacy) by Jacqueline Carey Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Kushiel's Dart (Kushiel's Legacy)
Book Review: Engrossing adventures and political intrigue in a superb mix
Summary: 5 Stars
I just finished reading "Kushiel's Dart" by Jacqueline Carey and I have to recommend it.Set in a Europe which is recognisably that of the middle ages but which is based on divergent history, religion and politics, the book mixes history and fantasy. It follows the intrigue and adventures surrounding Phedre, a girl "born" courtesan who becomes a pawn in a game of high stakes political intrigue.
Give the nature of the hero, there are quite explicit sexual encounters in the book. But they are not gratuitous or vulgar. They serve the plot. Phedre is not just a pretty face either. She could put many master spies to shame.
If I had to mention any bad things about the book, it is that the first 100 of about 1000 pages are a bit slow going. Also, you might feel you're getting confused by all the characters and places involved in the plot(s). But do not worry too much about that. By the end of the book, you will effortlessly know who is who and I believe you will have enjoyed the journey to get there.
Phedre truly is quite a memorable character. I usually enjoy books about political intrigue. So this was a great book for me.
I then discovered that 2 more books have been written about Phedre. But even though reports say that the other 2 are very good, the first book is a fully self contained story. No Otherland syndrom here. So you can read it and ejoy it thoroughly without having to worry about having to read the 2 sequels: Kushiel's Avatar and Kushiel's Chosen .
I know I'm off to order them though. :)
Book Review: love as thou wilt
Summary: 5 Stars
A beautifully crafted piece of writing, containing some very clever ideas. The story is set in an alternate middle ages with a completely new religious mythology. Although it's tempting to gloss over the religion at first, (especially if you're a speed reader as I am)do try not to, as the religion is the basis of the story, the belief system motivating both main characters. This is a tale of treachery, love and betrayal, but most particularly love in all it's forms. There's the love for one's friends and fellow man, love for one's country, love for one's Gods (even when they drive you hard)and erotic love. There is a lovely erotic undercurrent throughout the book as our heroine comes to terms with the fact that she feels pain as pleasure and what this means for her when she is enslaved.There's plenty of political shenanigans, spying and battles. I couldn't resist looking at the maps every now and again and trying to work out where the characters were in modern terms.
And how many of us could resist the Cassiline? What a knight in shining armour! I love the way he starts out a pompous idiot and his character develops through adversity. The Perfect Companion indeed.
Not so much magical as mystical, I highly recommend Kushiel's Dart and the following two novels in the trilogy.
Book Review: A complex, glittering fantasy novel
Summary: 5 Stars
_Kushiel's Dart_ is a truly striking work of fantasy - and not just for its notorious central conceit, although in many ways that alone would have been enough. Carey's heroine, Phedre no Delauney, is a courtesan whose god-touched destiny it is to derive her greatest pleasure from the sharpest pain. Her story plays out in a skewed, brilliantly-conceived version of Europe, where Germanic and Celtic peoples still organised as tribal societies border a sparkling post-Renaissance France-by-another-name. It is at the heart of the latter that Phedre lives, a star ascendant in a society where prostitution is a sacred act, and where politics always lurk beneath the surface. Entering the service of nobleman Delauney, she soon becomes entangled in conspiracies galore.
The world is one of the richest and most detailed fantasy creations I've encountered in some time, beautifully-drawn with an eye for sensual detail and believeably varied mindsets. The touchstones which make it different from our own - such as the god who emerged from Christ's blood and the Magdalene's tears - are elegantly drawn out as both theme and background. The story emerges naturally from the political and social dynamics of the world, and occasionally from its more overtly fantastical elements. While the politicking is occasionally a little unsophisticated, the story is sufficiently twisty to satisfy most.
Phedre herself is a stunning creation, a very human figure for all her extraordinary qualities. She makes an engaging and memorable point-of-view for the reader, and Carey makes a brave choice in presenting such a resourceful and intelligent heroine who constantly carries within her the seeds of her greatest weakness: the fact that she gets such gratification from being out of control. The powerful attraction/repulsion that Phedre feels for her nemesis is all the more compelling for this, even if the latter's character is at times sketchy.
This, indeed, is the drawback of the whole novel - Phedre is *such* a striking personality that she often overshadows the people and events around her. At times, _Kushiel's Dart, reads more like a character study than a novel, for all its action and scope. Nevertheless, it is a highly-recommended debut, and I can't wait to read the next!
Book Review: Storytelling at its most gripping
Summary: 5 Stars
I ordered this book as an "I need a new author to read" impulse, and am I glad I did! From the first page I was riveted, and it stayed that way to the end - a book to get the teeth into, in which total immersion is not just possible but guaranteed! I found the writing gripping, the storyline very well developed, with excellent characters, political history, etc. A real gem! Go on to read the next two - I did!
Book Review: Love as thou wilt
Summary: 5 Stars
After reading the summary at the back cover, I decided to buy it. From the first page I was hooked. Not a boring moment despite the political intrigues and the building up of the alternate world, Terre D'Ange (situated about France nowadays). The culture society is described well, given little by little along the way, not in a full history lesson, except for explaining the religion foundation of The Blessed Elua and His Companions. The story about who was Elua itself is a new thing for me and close related with crucifixion tale.Against the strong religion and political background, Phaedré, a whore's unwanted get, adopted by Anafiel Delaunay and raised as the rarest scion of Kushiel, in other word, an anguisette, the right hand of the Punisher Angel and also as a spy. In the end of her lessons, she found herself in the mist of political turmoil, with the Princes of Blood trying to take the throne from a very old King and his young granddaughter by way of marriage or force.
Who was Anafiel? Why was he so interested in political game and using Phaedre and Alcuin, his other student, both as pawn and spy? Befriended from childhood by Hyacinthe, a Tsingano boy who could see the future, Phaedre tried to find out the truth which only made her rue the day she found it out.
Spiced with 'chaste' romantic relationship between Phaedre and a Cassiline brother (though I'm sure will develop in the next book), this dark romance novel is a hard-put to be put down. A sensually engrossing story.