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Average customer rating:

THIS BOOK IS BLESSED BY ELUA
Good adventure fantasy
A wonderful sequel!
Good though not as good as the first
Love as thou wilt ...

Kushiel's Chosen (Kushiel's Legacy)
Jacqueline Carey
Manufacturer: Tor Fantasy
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback

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ASIN: 0765345048

Amazon.com

In this engrossing adult fantasy tale, the fascinating Phèdre nó Delaunay fights to save her queen and country in a battle whose greatest weapon proves to be Phèdre herself. This sequel to Carey's accomplished debut novel, Kushiel's Dart, finds Phèdre, now Comtesse de Montrève, once again plying her skills as an anguissette--a courtesan for whom pain becomes pleasure--and her talents as a spy. She uncovers a conspiracy of treason and murder and begins an adventure that takes her once more to distant lands in the company of an intriguing cast of characters--and a new confrontation with her old enemy, Melisande Shahrizai.

There's some evidence of haste in this novel: the writing is not always as tight and controlled as it was in Kushiel's Dart. Nevertheless, Carey's fans will certainly enjoy this return to Terre d'Ange, and those new to her work will find a satisfying combination of fantasy, sex, and adventure, as well as a smart and engaging heroine. --Roz Genessee

Book Description

Mighty Kushiel, of rod and wealLate of the brazen portalsWith blood-tipp'd dart a wound unhealedPricks the eyen of chosen mortalsThe land of Terre d'Ange is a place of unsurpassed beauty and grace. The inhabiting race rose from the seed of angels and men, and they live by one simple rule: Love as thou wilt.Phegrave;dre noacute; Delaunay was sold into indentured servitude as a child. Her bond was purchased by a nobleman, the first to recognize that she is one pricked by Kushiel's Dart, chosen to forever experience pain and pleasure as one. He trained Phegrave;dre in the courtly arts and the talents of the bedchamber--and, above all, the ability to observe, remember, and analyze. When she stumbled upon a plot that threatened the very foundations of her homeland, she gave up almost everything she held dear to save it. She survived, and lived to have others tell her story, and if they embellished the tale with fabric of mythical splendor, they weren't far off the mark.The hands of the gods weigh heavily upon Phegrave;dre's brow, and they are not finished with her. While the young queen who sits upon the throne is well loved by the people, there are those who believe another should wear the crown.... and those who escaped the wrath of the mighty are not yet done with their schemes for power and revenge.

Customer Reviews:

THIS BOOK IS BLESSED BY ELUA.......2006-12-30

LOL.... I LOVE THE IMAGINATION AND THE FACT IT IS WRITTEN SO... FOR ME TO SEE THROUGH A WOMENS EYES IS VERY INTERESTING... I LOVE HER FIRST BOOK AND I HAVE FRIENDS WANTING TO BORROW THIS BOOK, "I TOLD THEM TO GET THEIR OWN!"

Good adventure fantasy.......2006-10-11

"Chosen" continues the adventures and political intrigues of one of the most unusual characters I've seen as star in a fantasy story.

The story itself is good, workmanlike, and sustained (i.e. long) adventure. Phedre, the heroine, knows of a plot against the queen, and gives up her life of relative ease and comfort to hunt the traitor down. She succeeds, and that's where the adventure really begins: to an island prison where people are sent to be forgotten, into a stormy sea, off with the pirates, into the cave of sacred torment and wisdom, and more. It's right down to the wire, but Phedre succeeds in the end. She's no fighter herself, but is always surrounded by soldiers or armed adventurers, and usually in charge of the band.

Phedre herself is a striking character. Some god-given quirk of genes has given her a magical ability to heal from wounds, and an equally magical short-circuit between her senses of pain and pleasure - leaving her with urges that give plenty to heal from. Maybe they're god-given talents, but it wasn't a very nice god. Also, Phedre is a priestess in a cult that holds the body to be a temple, and it's the priestess's holy duty to encourage active kinds of worship at that temple. For all its steamy potential, the author describes only one passage of Phedre's carnal devotions. Given that pain thing, one is all I wanted.

If you have a long trip coming up, this book's 600+ pages of thud factor will keep you amused for at least a few hundred miles. I've read better, but this one was good enough to keep me interested in Phedre and her adventures

//wiredweird

A wonderful sequel!.......2006-10-03

Once again, Carey delights with this new addition to her Kushiel series.

Phedre is once again discovers a web of trechery that could lead to the fall of her country, and her Queen. Pitted against old foes, aided by her ever constant Joscelin, a man who broke all his vows to aid her, Phedre once again saves all she holds dear.

A brilliant continuation of this gripping saga.

Good though not as good as the first.......2006-09-18

The first book was brilliant one of my favourite ever and most likely if it never existed this book would be a 4. Its still a good book but when its the continuation of the story of phedre and josceline it becomes a must read.

Plot - Phedre finds out melisande is in la sessimistra and starts playing her game again to find her. Lots of travelling happens josceline and her fight alot much the same as the first book.

I find where this book lacks is in the 2nd half where it just seems there is a lot of filler, you can see the ending coming half way through the book and then suddenly it detours and phedre just seems to be filling in time far from the action till the exciting stuff begins again. In contrast kushiels dart was a constant roller coaster till the very end.

I havent mentioned much of the positives here but hopefully you have read kushiels dart and that should tell you what to expect here, rest assured 'chosen' is very well written and enjoyable to read just not the perfect book the first one was.

In the end i give it 4 and a half stars, a well made continuation but no classic like the first. Reading the third soon, ive heard i wont be dissapointed.

Love as thou wilt ... .......2006-07-30

Phedre no'Delaunay is back, imbedding herself into another masterful intrigue of the courts of Terre d'Ange, a beautiful land populated by beautiful people. Though 'Kushiel's Chosen' uses many flashback moments (too many), I strongly recommend that your read the first installment in the series first, 'Kushiel's Dart'.

Phedre helped to save Terre d'Ange and ensure that queen Ysandre de la Courcel secured her throne. Through all she endured, her nemesis Melisande Shahrizai escaped. Phedre is uneasy, knowing that Melisande is loose. With her reluctant Cassiline, Joscelin Verreuil and her chevaliers known as 'Phedre's Boys', Phedre sets off to the land of La Serenissima to track Melisande's flight. What she finds is a big shock, and another deadly plot against queen Ysandre.

Like the first book, this second adventure of Phedre no'Delaunay is an intricate twist of dangerous intrigue and startling adventures. Unlike the first book, 'Kushiel's Chosen' takes its languid pace into tedium. Too many times, our heroine languishes in reminisces that can cause yawning, especially if you have already read about her previous exploits in the first book. You will also find heavier religious references and closer ties to real-life Europe.

'Chosen' also seems to draw a firmer line between the sensuality of the story and the adventures, with the fist part of the book dedicated to Phedre's return to Naamah's Service. She re-enters the Terre d'Ange courts and conducts a series of liaisons, using her talents as an 'anguissette', one who experiences pain as pleasure. This makes her a valuable courtesan indeed. In the second half of the book, the sensuality is cast aside for some high-tension conflicts and narrow escapes.

Jacqueline Carey's 'Kushiel Legacy' books are far too rich and intricate to describe them in detail, but rest assured they are well written in a beautiful, flowing prose and offer up much more than your average romantic fantasy. Phedre is smart and well trained, caring and beautiful, interesting and sometimes funny, a unique heroine that you cannot help but like.

'Kushiel's Chosen' maintains a slower pace than 'Kushiel's Dart', but in the end does not disappoint, in spite of the too frequent episodes of digging up past thoughts and deeds. There is also a nice surprise waiting in this installment, so don't miss it. I'm already well into the third installment, 'Kushiel's Avatar'. Enjoy!

Average customer rating:

Good first half of a story. What next?
A tragedy

The Sundering (SFBC Omnibus)
Jacqueline Carey
Manufacturer: Science Fiction Book Club
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Magic & Wizards | Fantasy | Science Fiction & Fantasy | Subjects | Books

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Similar Items:

Kushiel's Scion
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Kushiel's Chosen (Kushiel's Legacy)
Kushiel's Avatar (Kushiel's Legacy)
Sebastian (Ephemera)

ASIN: 0739456903

Product Description

This is a two-in-one volume with both of Jacqueline Carey's top sellers Banewreaker and Godslayer. (Inside jacket: with her successful Kushiel series, Jacqueline Carey proved herself a force to be reckoned with in the fantasy field. Now she returns with another extraordinary epic, a shattering tale of gods at ware and the mortals they use in their deadly game.) Once the Seven Shapers dwelled in accord. First-born among them was Haomane, Lord-of-Thought, and with his six sibling gods, they Shaped the world and its children to their will. But Haomane was displeased with Satoris' Shaping, for he thought his younger brother too generous in his gifts to Men, who made war upon Hoamane's Children, the Ellylon. Though the First-Born asked his brother to withdraw his Gift, Satoris refused. So began the Shapers' War, which sundered the world and cast Satoris and his kindred to opposite ends of a vast ocean.

Customer Reviews:

Good first half of a story. What next?.......2007-04-15

I love Jacqueline Carey's series about Phedre, beginning with Kushiel's Dart. It is one of my favorite stories. I also enjoyed The Sundering, though not as much.

The Sundering is a takeoff on Lord of the Rings, upside down. Sauron is the good guy here, and Gandalf is the bad guy. Frodo is a bit of a dupe, sent to destroy Sauron's power, even though Sauron was much kinder to him than the good guys ever were.

In this story, Gandalf's name is Malthus. "Mal" means something bad, as in malady. Frodo's name is Dani. He is accompanied by his uncle Bilbo, whose name here is Fat Uncle Thulu.

The dwarves are intact, but the elves are here called Ellylon, and are not as short as the elves of LOTR. Instead, they are the size of the elves in the LOTR movie, man-size.

Aragorn is in this story as well. His name is Aracus Altorus rather than Aragorn son of Arathorn. Same guy. Leader of the Borderguard, and the hereditary king. And as in LOTR he is scheduled to marry an elf, the Ellylon beauty Cerelinde.

Sauron, here called Satoris, isn't half bad. He inspires love and loyalty. It is his big brother Haomane who is the real pain in the butt. All of Satoris's brothers and sisters have ditched our world, gone across the sea, I suppose across the Atlantic Ocean to settle in America while the action of the story is in Europe, more or less, though Haomane's home is described as an island, not a continent.

Haomane wages unjust war against Satoris. On Satoris's side are Jackie's version of orcs or trolls, which she calls fjeltrol. They are big and strong and ugly. They are bigger than humans. But they have hearts of gold and are the good guys. The beautiful Ellylon are a bit of a load, conceited as all hell. So while Tolkein made it obvious who to root for because his good guys were cute and his bad guys were ugly, Carey turns that upside down for us. Ugly good guys, cute bad guys.

I was confused with some of her terminology. Souma. Soumanie. Marasoumie. Rhios. Half the time I barely knew what she was talking about when she mentioned these things. Apparently there is a lot of magic in her world, and the souma is a great source of magic.

Her characters are so interesting that I always wish the books were illustrated.

The main additions she has to LOTR are some new characters. Satoris (Sauron) has his three main helpers. I suppose they could be compared to the ring wraiths, and once in a while one of them is a Black Rider, but these three really aren't ring wraiths, and have interesting characters of their own. One of them, Tanaros, is the star of the book.

I enjoyed this book but it cries out for a sequel. Everything about the ending screams out SEQUEL.

A tragedy.......2006-05-27

This is an interesting book. The world is believable. the different races recognizable. It is told from the perspective of Satoris, the third born shaper of the world. He is supposed to be the bad guy that caused the world to be sundered.

And war is coming. It is led by the children of the first born shaper, Satoris' brother Haomane. They are allegedly the good guys. So now we have a classic battle between good and evil, only good isn't that good, and evil might actually be innocent of the charges against him.

I found myself cheering for Satoris as everything about him fell apart. I really didn't like Haomane at all. There are magical weapons, prophecies, but no one becomes all powerful that none can stand before him.

This is a story filled with rich characters, and they experience the spectrum of love, betrayal, honor and pride. This is good story and fine fantasy.

Recommended.

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Kushiel's Chosen
Jacqueline Carrey
Manufacturer: Tom Doherty Associates, LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000HKLNDQ

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Jacqueline Carey - Kushiel's Chosen, Kushiel's Avatar, Kushiel's Dart (Kushiel's Legacy)
Jacqueline Carey
Manufacturer: TOR
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
ASIN: B000PRWQC8

Product Description

Hardcover editions

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Kushiel's Chosen (PB)
Jacqueline Carey
Manufacturer: Tor
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OUR0EA

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Kushiel's Chosen (Kushiel's Legacy)
Jacqueline Carey
Manufacturer: Tor Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OTQAMO

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