Kay could have easily found other, much better and less offensive ways to explore the psychological effects of conquest. In the Afterward, he says he wanted to explore “the relationship between conquered peoples and an unstable sexuality: what called ‘the insurrections of the night.’” Who says there is such a relationship? The most disgusting and gratuitous of the scenes concludes with a brief conversation that attempts to explain this theme, but just because the characters state that their perversion is what happens when “they are no longer free” because of the “laws of the day that bind us and cannot be broken now” does not suffice to excuse it or make any truly logical case in its favor. It is all the more regrettable, because Kay does use all but two (in my opinion) of those scenes to advance the plot in important ways, and thus they are difficult to avoid. They will be hard to get out of your head. They come across as quite vulgar, and sometimes almost ridiculous, compared to the elegance of the rest of the book. All are fairly graphic and abnormal in some way, and they are clearly about sex itself, not love. However, it has about four or five sex scenes that are, shall we say, very R-rated. The book is one of the best I have read, of fantasy or any other genre, really. Recommendation: Here’s where I am conflicted. His style carefully balances beauty and clarity, and it’s kind of amazing how he manages to keep the many subplots, histories, and character motivations straight enough for the reader to understand. But see “Recommendation” for my reservations.Īuthor Re-readability: High.
Story Re-readability: The story is fascinating and exciting even in retrospect, and would surely benefit from a few rereads. Great sorrows are revealed and inflicted, amazing mysteries discovered, surprising friends are found, expectations are dashed and resurrected and twisted around, and everything builds to a conclusion that is really, outstandingly good. Things, however, get much more complicated than anyone could have predicted.
Young Devin, an excellent singer for a famed music troupe, finds himself drawn into an extremely covert conspiracy to overthrow the oppressors and unite the Palm in freedom. Spoiler-free Synopsis: In the Peninsula of the Palm, eight of nine kingdoms have been conquered by two sorcerer-tyrants from across the sea, Emperor Brandin of Ygrath and Alberico, a minor noble of Barbadior trying to make a name for himself, the land split politically between them as they eye each other warily. Reason for Finishing: It’s one of the most engrossing and well-written books I’ve read. Reason for Beginning: Recommended to me by numerous sources as one of the truly great fantasy novels of recent times.
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