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rmur's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
kzimm2024's review against another edition
5.0
5 "Master" stars. I was skeptical that this story written in Ista's POV would be as compelling as the first story with Caz. I was wrong and I freely admit it. It's just as good dammit. I am pissed that these books were written in 2009 and here is is, 2022 before I get the pleasure of reading them.
Thank you Lois.
Ista is a character-a woman that has been treated as if she is crazy by her loved ones who don't understand that she is "god-touched". Touched by and left abandoned, she saw with spiritual eyes the ghosts and demons that haunt humanity. She is angry, bitter, disrespectful and could not care less as she deals with the death of a man that she helped murder (with good intentions of course), the death of her husband and the death of her son, the future Roya of the Land due to a curse she married into.
This story starts at the death of her mother. Her mother who was much loved but ruled with an iron fist. Now what? Her life is strangely unencumbered at 40 years of age and the mother of the current Queen. And the adventure begins as she just bolts for freedom:
"She was not, she thought, quite fool enough or mad enough to wish for bandits instead. Maybe that was the trouble; maybe she just wasn’t crazed enough. True derangement stopped at no boundaries."
She decides that bolting without a plan was a foolish thing to do but on her way back to captivity, she runs into a caravan of pilgrims headed out to various holy sites and an idea is sparked. She tells her family that she wants to make a pilgrimage and everyone assumes it is to pray for her daughter to bear a son. She lets them think that. Unexpected support for her journey from Caz speeds her along.
I find I love this Ista- sarcastic, realistic, grounded:
"Her smile grew bitter as desert brine.
“The gods may forgive Ista all day long. But if Ista does not forgive Ista, the gods may go hang themselves.”
She slowly opens up like a flower, trapped in the darkness of her life to embrace walking out into the world. And her encounter with The Bastard:
He merely grinned, maddeningly. “When the man arises who can make you laugh, solemn Ista, angry Ista, iron Ista, then will your heart be healed."
She curses the Bastard frequently, which He deserves :)
But we get to have a slow burn love story wrapped in a bit of Horror with Fantasy.
I dreaded the thought that we were going to have a love triangle- nope! No spoilers here but I was surprised at the twist between these 2 brothers and Ista and Catti.
The sleeping man from her dreams, met in real life:
"He reached out with two fingers and gently turned her chin toward him.
“You made a difference to me,” he said. “Any woman who can wake a man from a sleep of death with a kiss deserves a second glance, I think.”
Ista snorted bitterly.
“I didn’t wake you with a kiss. I only disrupted and redirected the flow of your soul-fire, as I did later with Cattilara. The kiss was just . . . self-indulgence.”
A little smile curved his lips. “I thought you said it was a dream.”
oooh- busted by the quick witted man...
Lots of quotes that I loved as the story/mystery unfolded:
"Ista flushed. “I am afraid I have no talent for”—she swallowed—“dalliance. When I was young I was too stupid. Now I’m old, I am too drab.”
Too stupid then too mad then too drab then too late.
“I’m just not the sort.”
"It was the fault of the hand massage; it lulled her. She said unthinkingly, “What?”
“Fall in love with you. Sweet Ista.”
She jerked back. She had heard that endearment before, but not on those lips.
“Don’t call me that.”
“Bitter Ista?” His brows climbed. “Cranky Ista? Cross, ill-tempered, cantankerous Ista?”
She snorted; he relaxed, and his lips quirked again.
And I loved it when she decided to just take the power, the gift given her, take the authority given her:
"She stared back. The animal suddenly grew very still.
Ista stood on tiptoe, grabbed one ear, and whispered toward it, “Behave for Lord Arhys. Or I will make you wish I’d merely ripped your guts out, strangled you with them, and fed you to the gods.”
“Dogs,” corrected the nervous groom holding the twitch.
“Them, too,” said Ista.
And her wry humor:
“Is Lord Illvin that odd tall fellow who rode in with you?” asked Lady dy Hueltar suspiciously.
“I must say, I did not like the very forward way he kissed your hand.”
“No? Well, he was pressed for time. I shall make him practice, later, until his technique improves.”
And finally- her happiness:
Lord Illvin: “Tch, tch, look at yourself, bittersweet Ista. Saint, sorceress, dowager royina of all Chalion-Ibra, converses with gods, when not cursing them—a man would have to be maniacally intrepid to even think of you in that rude way. . . . This is good. It will cut down on my rivals.”
She couldn’t help it; she giggled.
She heard herself, and laughed, in wonder, in joy, in huge surprise.
Thank you Lois.
Ista is a character-a woman that has been treated as if she is crazy by her loved ones who don't understand that she is "god-touched". Touched by and left abandoned, she saw with spiritual eyes the ghosts and demons that haunt humanity. She is angry, bitter, disrespectful and could not care less as she deals with the death of a man that she helped murder (with good intentions of course), the death of her husband and the death of her son, the future Roya of the Land due to a curse she married into.
This story starts at the death of her mother. Her mother who was much loved but ruled with an iron fist. Now what? Her life is strangely unencumbered at 40 years of age and the mother of the current Queen. And the adventure begins as she just bolts for freedom:
"She was not, she thought, quite fool enough or mad enough to wish for bandits instead. Maybe that was the trouble; maybe she just wasn’t crazed enough. True derangement stopped at no boundaries."
She decides that bolting without a plan was a foolish thing to do but on her way back to captivity, she runs into a caravan of pilgrims headed out to various holy sites and an idea is sparked. She tells her family that she wants to make a pilgrimage and everyone assumes it is to pray for her daughter to bear a son. She lets them think that. Unexpected support for her journey from Caz speeds her along.
I find I love this Ista- sarcastic, realistic, grounded:
"Her smile grew bitter as desert brine.
“The gods may forgive Ista all day long. But if Ista does not forgive Ista, the gods may go hang themselves.”
She slowly opens up like a flower, trapped in the darkness of her life to embrace walking out into the world. And her encounter with The Bastard:
He merely grinned, maddeningly. “When the man arises who can make you laugh, solemn Ista, angry Ista, iron Ista, then will your heart be healed."
She curses the Bastard frequently, which He deserves :)
But we get to have a slow burn love story wrapped in a bit of Horror with Fantasy.
I dreaded the thought that we were going to have a love triangle- nope! No spoilers here but I was surprised at the twist between these 2 brothers and Ista and Catti.
The sleeping man from her dreams, met in real life:
"He reached out with two fingers and gently turned her chin toward him.
“You made a difference to me,” he said. “Any woman who can wake a man from a sleep of death with a kiss deserves a second glance, I think.”
Ista snorted bitterly.
“I didn’t wake you with a kiss. I only disrupted and redirected the flow of your soul-fire, as I did later with Cattilara. The kiss was just . . . self-indulgence.”
A little smile curved his lips. “I thought you said it was a dream.”
oooh- busted by the quick witted man...
Lots of quotes that I loved as the story/mystery unfolded:
"Ista flushed. “I am afraid I have no talent for”—she swallowed—“dalliance. When I was young I was too stupid. Now I’m old, I am too drab.”
Too stupid then too mad then too drab then too late.
“I’m just not the sort.”
"It was the fault of the hand massage; it lulled her. She said unthinkingly, “What?”
“Fall in love with you. Sweet Ista.”
She jerked back. She had heard that endearment before, but not on those lips.
“Don’t call me that.”
“Bitter Ista?” His brows climbed. “Cranky Ista? Cross, ill-tempered, cantankerous Ista?”
She snorted; he relaxed, and his lips quirked again.
And I loved it when she decided to just take the power, the gift given her, take the authority given her:
"She stared back. The animal suddenly grew very still.
Ista stood on tiptoe, grabbed one ear, and whispered toward it, “Behave for Lord Arhys. Or I will make you wish I’d merely ripped your guts out, strangled you with them, and fed you to the gods.”
“Dogs,” corrected the nervous groom holding the twitch.
“Them, too,” said Ista.
And her wry humor:
“Is Lord Illvin that odd tall fellow who rode in with you?” asked Lady dy Hueltar suspiciously.
“I must say, I did not like the very forward way he kissed your hand.”
“No? Well, he was pressed for time. I shall make him practice, later, until his technique improves.”
And finally- her happiness:
Lord Illvin: “Tch, tch, look at yourself, bittersweet Ista. Saint, sorceress, dowager royina of all Chalion-Ibra, converses with gods, when not cursing them—a man would have to be maniacally intrepid to even think of you in that rude way. . . . This is good. It will cut down on my rivals.”
She couldn’t help it; she giggled.
She heard herself, and laughed, in wonder, in joy, in huge surprise.
jesseb's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
rockwrengj's review against another edition
5.0
This book was wonderful from start to finish, I didn't want to stop listening to it. Narration was excellent and the story was compelling.
gossy's review against another edition
4.0
I can't really claim that I forget how much I like Bujold's writing, because the Vorkosigan Saga is on par with Discworld as one of my two life-long favorite series. (The two series share some thematic bones. I will happily talk your ear off about this if you give me half a chance.)
But I *can* say that I'm pleased to find that I'm liking her writing even outside of the Vorkosigan setting. The plot in this series is certainly less gripping, but it’s still been nice. :)
Anyway! I was excited to learn who the POV character for this book was; she was a side character in the previous book. This woman has faced a protagonist’s challenges before (long before the events of the first book), and it ended badly. This time around, she isn’t merely a reluctant hero. She is deeply, bitterly *enraged* to have a call to action placed before her a second time. And yet… she rises to the task, all the same.
The dialogue got a *little* too poetic for my tastes at times near the end, but it was only 4 or 5 lines out of the whole book, so hardly worth complaining about.
I could imagine how this book might not be for everyone. A lot of the external plot involves people talking and reasoning through theologic and magical theory. (Plus politics, hah.) But it held my own interest just fine, and I liked the book.
But I *can* say that I'm pleased to find that I'm liking her writing even outside of the Vorkosigan setting. The plot in this series is certainly less gripping, but it’s still been nice. :)
Anyway! I was excited to learn who the POV character for this book was; she was a side character in the previous book. This woman has faced a protagonist’s challenges before (long before the events of the first book), and it ended badly. This time around, she isn’t merely a reluctant hero. She is deeply, bitterly *enraged* to have a call to action placed before her a second time. And yet… she rises to the task, all the same.
The dialogue got a *little* too poetic for my tastes at times near the end, but it was only 4 or 5 lines out of the whole book, so hardly worth complaining about.
I could imagine how this book might not be for everyone. A lot of the external plot involves people talking and reasoning through theologic and magical theory. (Plus politics, hah.) But it held my own interest just fine, and I liked the book.
angel_koyfish's review against another edition
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
That was glorious.
noranne's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed this book. I started it on a very hot, humid, and hilly run in Australia and finished it up running alongside the frozen lake in Chicago. A very able distraction from some of the downsides to those long runs!
One thing I appreciated about this book is the main character, Ista. She is a side character in the previous novel, and it is absolutely lovely to read about a middle-aged mother riding off to find adventure and calling. She is no-nonsense but also eminently fallible, and her character is very compelling.
I did find this one a touch below the first book in the series, I think because the ending was a bit predictable from far off but took a little too long in getting there. I actually enjoyed the very slow pacing of the first part, similar to the first book, because I knew eventually things were going to start happening, and it was great to get to know the characters and see some of the pieces falling into place. LMB is a fantastic author, and I look forward to continuing this series.
Also, a note on the audiobook, I liked this narrator better than the first book's. She does an excellent job distinguishing the voices of the characters with fewer distracting attempts at acting out some of the narration.
One thing I appreciated about this book is the main character, Ista. She is a side character in the previous novel, and it is absolutely lovely to read about a middle-aged mother riding off to find adventure and calling. She is no-nonsense but also eminently fallible, and her character is very compelling.
I did find this one a touch below the first book in the series, I think because the ending was a bit predictable from far off but took a little too long in getting there. I actually enjoyed the very slow pacing of the first part, similar to the first book, because I knew eventually things were going to start happening, and it was great to get to know the characters and see some of the pieces falling into place. LMB is a fantastic author, and I look forward to continuing this series.
Also, a note on the audiobook, I liked this narrator better than the first book's. She does an excellent job distinguishing the voices of the characters with fewer distracting attempts at acting out some of the narration.
shalini_gunnasan's review against another edition
4.0
Captivating! This story is a direct sequel of The Curse of Chalion, and though our lead characters in that book were only heard of in this, we follow the exploits of another very interesting character. Ista was a bit cardboardy at first, but maybe it was because the life she led was also a shallow cutout. The early parts of her daily routine were so suffocating as to be horrifying, and I could see very easily how it could lead to madness. More than that, I can see how such a life of coddling, no matter how luxurious, can easily lead to derangement. We all need a purpose to our lives. It was great how Ista broke free and became a hero. This is a woman's power fantasy, and so satisfying to be the avenging angel, sword ablaze (actually, theologically the reverse, but the analogy serves) to save the day.
ruthorfiction's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
lasikukka's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0