Screw magic. Give me some political fantasy any day, and I'm a happy reader.I liked Kushiel's Dart. I'm not sure if there's a definite quality improvement or if I'm going too easy on this one, but I loved Kushiel's Chosen.The Kushiel's Legacy series takes place in a sort of Fantasy Counterpart Culture world where it's Europe, only not. From this starting point, Jacqueline Carey creates a world that, while somewhat similar to our own, nevertheless has unique societies and politics. As she crisscrosses Europe—sorry, Europa—in search of the escaped traitor, Melisande Shahirizai, Phèdre tours many of these societies and inevitably gets involved in her politics. The combination of her stunning beauty, sexual promiscuity, and savvy spy skills can be very persuasive.Indeed, it's quite possible to label Phèdre a Mary Sue and call it day. That doesn't do justice to Carey's intricate plotting though. Rather, I love Kushiel's Chosen because it teeters on the brink of being contrived; Phèdre balances just on the precipice of Mary Sue-dom. All these people Phèdre encounter tend to help her, for one or more of the three aforementioned character traits she possesses. To put it in perspective: upon escaping from an inescapable island prison (and nearly drowning), Phèdre soon rebuilds her power base, befriending in the process not one but two other nations, and returns to Venice—sorry, La Serenissima—to stop the assassination of her Queen.What saves the book, and Phèdre, is the difficulty level at which Carey has set her game. Despite her ever-ready allies, despite her shrewdness and knowledge of political intrigue, Phèdre spends most of the book suffering failure after failure. It's like Carey has constructed a giant locked room mystery (where the room is the size of a continent), and Phèdre has interrogated all of the witnesses and suspects, but she still guesses wrongly. Meanwhile, I guessed where Melisande was hiding long before the big reveal (and I never solve those mysteries). But does this make the book bad? On the contrary, it's very smart. By choosing it to do this way, Carey divides the book into two parts that are almost self-contained narratives in themselves, with introduction, rising action, climax, and denouement.In the first half of Kushiel's Chosen, we're re-introduced to Phèdre, Terre d'Ange, and being a Servant of Namaah. The main focus is on discovering how Melisande escaped custody at the end of Kushiel's Dart (and hence, where she has gone to ground). To this end, we're immersed in the court life in the City of Elua, with Phèdre unsure of who is trustworthy, since someone supposedly beyond reproach had to help Melisande escape. After staging a falling out with Queen Ysandre and relocating to La Serenissima, Phèdre soon discovers where Melisande is hiding. But it's too late, and she's imprisoned in an inescapable fortress on an island.The second half features Phèdre's lucky escape, several brushes with death, and the befriending and bedding of a pirate. The mystery is over, and now it's all about rebuilding her power base so Phèdre can return to La Serenissima in time to prevent Ysandre's assassination. It's pretty obvious that Phèdre will succeed at this one task, even if she has failed at everything else, so the source of the drama comes from everyone around Phèdre. Who lives and who dies? What's Melisande's fate? More importantly, how do the machinations of a D'Angeline traitor affect Serenissiman politics? Carey constantly impresses me with her ability to effortless manage so many characters. The universe of Kushiel's Legacy is very heavily populated, but not so much so that it's Name Soup.Kushiel's Chosen is sort of a political/spy thriller set in a fantasy world, albeit only in the sense that slow-moving historical fiction can be a thriller (as the events take place over the course of a year). It's weakest in its characterization, especially with Phèdre and Joscelin's relationship, which is far too prolonged. (Also, of all the exposition that Carey skips in the second book, she doesn't re-explain the nature of the Cassilines, something I had forgotten in the year that managed to elapse between books.)By far, the most intriguing relationship is the one between Phèdre and Melisande. They are each other's nemesis on both an intellectual and visceral level. Phèdre and I both admire Melisande's aptitude at the game of thrones. She is a delightfully crafty enemy and well a match for Phèdre—in more ways than one, as Phèdre considers Melisande delicious as well as delightful. If her existence as the world's only anguissette isn't conflicting enough, her attraction to Melisande is inconvenient and almost deadly. At first, I didn't entirely understand this aspect of their relationship—it's obvious, after all, that Phèdre would never betray Ysandre and join the dark side.But it's more than just mere attraction. Phèdre is a lonely heroine, and has been from the start of the series. After the deaths of Alcuin and Anafiel and the loss of Hyacinthe in Kushiel's Dart, Phèdre is more alone than ever. This situation only escalates throughout Kushiel's Chosen as Phèdre alienates Joscelin and loses some of her companions. Moreover, wherever she goes and whatever she accomplishes, she is always still "the anguissette," identified sometimes more by myth than her own personality. (The fact that she saves the kingdom and is commended by Ysandre for this at the end of the book doesn't exactly help.)As her nemesis, Melisande is a part of Phèdre's identity. She beat Phèdre in the first halves of both books. Although Phèdre was ultimately victorious (twice), Melisande promises that it's not game over. Similarly, Melisande is the only patron of Phèdre's who ever extracted the safe word—sorry, signale—during a sexual exploit. I would go so far as to say that Melisande is the single person who best understands Phèdre, both as an anguissette and as spy—she certainly understands Phèdre better than Phèdre's love, Joscelin. At the best of times he's clueless about the complications of Phèdre's commitments to Namaah's service; at the worst of times he's openly disdainful.And so, Kushiel's Chosen takes the best aspects of Kushiel's Dart and amplifies them, grafting on a better plot with more sinister intrigue and a stellar cast of supporting characters. More than just court drama (although Phèdre never hesitates to give us a play-by-play of what she's wearing), Kushiel's Chosen is the intimate dance between two like minds conducted with an entire continent as their battlefield. Phèdre and Melisande face off in a conflict that is both deeply political and deeply personal. In so doing, Carey captures the breadth of human expression writ large and writ small.Returning to Terre D'Ange and Phèdre's Europe—sorry, Europa—was truly a pleasure. I recommended Kushiel's Dart to fans of epic fantasy; now I'll go one step further and say that even straight up historical fiction fans can find enjoyment here. Carey's skill as a writer is something that transcends genre, and while Kushiel's Chosen is fantasy in name, it is fantastic by nature.My Reviews of Kushiel's Legacy:← Kushiel's Dart | Kushiel's Avatar →
I always knew that reading this trilogy would be an amazing experience. It just took me years to take a dive and commit to the page count. And I'm so glad now I'm doing it. It's so much more than I ever thought it could be. Phèdre nó Delaunay is one of the most complex and riveting characters I have ever read. Add to that the fact that Ms. Carey's writing is superb and the epic story that unfolds in these pages is bound to stay with anyone who reads it forever.KUSHIEL'S CHOSEN brings more love and a lot more loss to Phèdre's life. At times I wonder how can she bear it, and at others I wonder how can I? But in between the hardships there is always a sliver of hope. That small glimpse that keeps us all going. Hoping for better days ahead. While she does what must be done to follow the right path. While battling sometimes her own desires.A lot more intrigue and political turmoil plague the story in KUSHIEL'S CHOSEN. To protect her Queen, she may just have to give up everything she's ever held dear. It is that strength of character that keeps me coming back to Phèdre. As does almost everyone in her homeland. With every situation she faces, she grows. She grows in understanding herself. She grows in understanding those around her.One thing is for certain, this book is never boring and never dull. For such a long story (coming in at 678 pages) there is not one wasted word or added fluff. The lyrical way in which Ms. Carey writes kept me on the edge of my seat. Simple yet so deep, so intense. I can't say this book was simply read, it was experienced. It was a tumultuous journey, action packed until the end. Not knowing which way it woudl go was the best part! Not knowing if there was a happy resolution to each event. Some yes, some no. But I loved every second of it.I really love the combination of politics, religion and love as well as the lyrical prose of this series! And I think I'm ready for the darkness I feel coming ahead in the final installment.Favorite Quotes:“Well, I was living it, but a shared dream half-lived is a hollow thing.”"There is a madness in love.""There is such a thing as a grief too immense for tears; this was almost one such.""In the end, I was what I was, Kushiel's Chosen. Strength was not my weapon; only surrender.""...his love the dagger by which I fixed the compass of my heart."Reviewed by Francesca❤ ♡ Don't want to miss any of our posts? Subscribe to our blog by email! ♡ ❤
What do You think about Kushiel's Chosen (2003)?
So I spent the first half or so of the book railing against Phedre for not seeing where Melisande was so OBVIOUSLY hiding, but once that was over with, the book definitely picked up speed. I spent the last 200-odd pages genuinely worried for Phedre and Ysandre: Jacqueline Carey set up an exquisite narrative tension that was well rewarded on all fronts by the end. And despite -- or perhaps because of -- my irritation with Phedre trying to take responsibility for everyone's deaths, I did enjoy the bits where Ms Carey poked gentle fun at her, particularly when she's foiling Melisande's escape from the site of the assassination attempt. Excellent successor to the first book, and I'm looking forward to picking up the next in the series, so long as work doesn't get in the way.
—Doreen
With the expectations Kushiel's Dart gave me, I might have been worried that Kushiel's Chosen wouldn't match up. I wasn't, but I wouldn't have needed to be anyway. I loved this book just as much as the first one. Everything I've said about how it's not for everyone still stands (see my first review), although there was less sex, I think, and perhaps more of the politics. Somehow, this book didn't feel as dense as that one, but there's still a lot of content considering it's the second book of a trilogy, and not a trilogy in itself. I think the feeling of less going on is mostly because there are fewer dramatic changes -- in the first book, there were a lot of milestones, and in this one, maybe not as much. It's still an incredible ride.The stage is set, in this book, so there isn't such a flurry of characters being thrown at you. The new ones, such as Nicola L'Envers y Aragon and Sevario Stregazza, are quite interesting (not least because of the sex scenes, I have to admit). It's lovely to see how Jacqueline Carey weaves the characters so neatly into the plot -- there are no useless characters. I was sorry not to see anything of Hyacinthe in this book, and I was glad that he wasn't ignored. Ysandre was one of my favourite characters in the latter part of this book: she's written as such a strong, strong character.The relationship between Joscelin and Phèdre was more painful than ever in this book, so I was very, very glad of the end. I'm not sure it could have continued as it was without getting needlessly painful and boring. While the new development makes me happy now, I have no doubts that Joscelin and Phèdre will find new ways to hurt my heart -- and that's good. The relationship between Melisande and Phèdre is still wonderfully handled. The thin line between love and hate that lies between them is perfectly walked. The scene where Phèdre smashes her head back against something to distract herself from Melisande's kiss is amazing.Plotwise, it was so good. It seriously surprised me in various places, leaving me to flail and keyboard bash and fangirl at anyone willing to listen. The twists and turns are surprising, and yet brilliantly set up: once it's happened you think, "Oh. Yes. Of course."There's a lovely conclusion, ending the book with some closure and yet also with threads still waiting to be tied up in the final book of the trilogy. I can't wait. I'm tempted to buy the Imriel books already, but I think I'll wait until they're all out in paperback -- painful as that will be.I seriously recommend this trilogy, if you don't mind a bit of BDSM sex woven into the plot (you can skip it, after all).
—Nikki
3.5 stars. This is almost as good as the first book, with the same lovely overwrought prose that I am finding quite absorbing.Unsatisfied with her triumph of the previous novel, our heroine travels to a foreign land seeking a traitor who escaped justice. It’s interesting to have a strong female character who isn’t a warrior, although making her a sexually submissive masochist is going rather far in the other direction.I’m not quite convinced by Melisande’s supernatural power over Phèdre, and there’s perhaps a little repetition in the cycle of Phèdre being betrayed, captured and rescued, but I liked the story.
—Jamie
