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I kinda feel obligated to write a review for this considering the amount of time it took me to finish it.
I went into this book without knowing anything about it since I received the e-book for free, and a good thing, since it isn't very likely I would read it otherwise.
Kushiel's Dart is Fantasy of Manners set in a world that follows history of our world up to around the crucifixion of Jesus Christ (so somewhere around 30 CE). The mythology of the world is pretty interesting, it starts with the birth of Elua who is born from the blood of Jesus and Earth. Elua has only one commandment Love as thou wilt. Rest of pantheon is composed from the angels that defected from Gods side and helped Elua out on his journey. And this mythos actually plays a big part in how the society of Terre D'Ange (the country where story takes place, France basically) is structured.
Next, our protagonist Phedre. Phedres story starts when she is sold into indebted servitude as a child. This means that she will be tutored on how to be a prostitute when she becomes of age. Now this is integral part of Terre D'Anges society, their version of prostitutes are doing their job in the name of Naamah, who is one of the angels that followed Elua. Now, I don't really want to recap whole lore but just trust me on this, in this world prostitutes are more respected, especially good ones, and reasons for that are laid out in the book. Their servitude ends when they are able to complete their marque (a back tattoo), for which they pay with gifts that are given to them by their patrons.
Phedres story is also story of the chosen one but this trope is very subverted and honestly it amazed me how much sense it made by the end of the book. Phedre has a red mote in her left eye which is mark that she is chosen by Kushiel, one of their gods. So what makes her special? Well, she is the perfect masochist. Yes, I know, it sounds stupid as fuck, but think about it, Phedre is a prostitute, and one with very special talents since no one like her has been born in three generations, and this gives her access to upper echelons of society while giving her somewhat of a special status, in the context of this being a fantasy of manners book this is basically a "superpower".
A bit about the general writing before I give my final thoughts on the book. Kushiel's Dart is written as a period piece, meaning it has plenty of archaisms which considerably slowed down my reading (well, that is my fault for having limited vocabulary). Overall prose is good, dialog as well.
Finally, what do I think about the book?
Biggest problem this book has by far, is the slow first half. This isn't short book, my version had 800 pages so going through 300 pages and not getting anything out of it is really tedious. After initial lore dump, introduction of our heroin and supporting cast we don't get much until shit really hits the fan. Since we follow Phedres point of view, and she obviously can't know all the intrigue going on in the empire, we are left in the dark about all mayor events until they happen, and when they do we can't really know the full extent of consequences that they will have. This is also reason for big lack of suspense and tension in the book. Author tries to ramp it up a bit by dropping lines like "Oh, if only I knew what terrible things will happen" which could work if used maybe once to highlight to readers to pay attention to something, and if there was payoff coming soon. Unfortunately, this is used too often, and the payoff I mentioned doesn't happen for way too long. It just feels that mayor part of the first half didn't serve any purpose and I wish it was shortened a bit.
The sex part of this book probably needs commenting also, considering who our protagonist is and the society she lives in. There are plenty of sexual encounters but they aren't written in erotic way, if that makes sense? They also often fit into the story, to develop relationship or to find out new information and things like that.
Overall, I was torn on how many start to give, since that fucking first half is so fucking boring and takes way too long, on the other hand the second half has really compelling story, characterization is great, plenty of intrigue, rebellions, politics and war. In the end, taking into consideration all that and facts that the setting, mythos, chosen one trope are all really really interesting I decided on 4 stars with the final grade being 3.5/5.
I went into this book without knowing anything about it since I received the e-book for free, and a good thing, since it isn't very likely I would read it otherwise.
Kushiel's Dart is Fantasy of Manners set in a world that follows history of our world up to around the crucifixion of Jesus Christ (so somewhere around 30 CE). The mythology of the world is pretty interesting, it starts with the birth of Elua who is born from the blood of Jesus and Earth. Elua has only one commandment Love as thou wilt. Rest of pantheon is composed from the angels that defected from Gods side and helped Elua out on his journey. And this mythos actually plays a big part in how the society of Terre D'Ange (the country where story takes place, France basically) is structured.
Next, our protagonist Phedre. Phedres story starts when she is sold into indebted servitude as a child. This means that she will be tutored on how to be a prostitute when she becomes of age. Now this is integral part of Terre D'Anges society, their version of prostitutes are doing their job in the name of Naamah, who is one of the angels that followed Elua. Now, I don't really want to recap whole lore but just trust me on this, in this world prostitutes are more respected, especially good ones, and reasons for that are laid out in the book. Their servitude ends when they are able to complete their marque (a back tattoo), for which they pay with gifts that are given to them by their patrons.
Phedres story is also story of the chosen one but this trope is very subverted and honestly it amazed me how much sense it made by the end of the book. Phedre has a red mote in her left eye which is mark that she is chosen by Kushiel, one of their gods. So what makes her special? Well, she is the perfect masochist. Yes, I know, it sounds stupid as fuck, but think about it, Phedre is a prostitute, and one with very special talents since no one like her has been born in three generations, and this gives her access to upper echelons of society while giving her somewhat of a special status, in the context of this being a fantasy of manners book this is basically a "superpower".
A bit about the general writing before I give my final thoughts on the book. Kushiel's Dart is written as a period piece, meaning it has plenty of archaisms which considerably slowed down my reading (well, that is my fault for having limited vocabulary). Overall prose is good, dialog as well.
Finally, what do I think about the book?
Biggest problem this book has by far, is the slow first half. This isn't short book, my version had 800 pages so going through 300 pages and not getting anything out of it is really tedious. After initial lore dump, introduction of our heroin and supporting cast we don't get much until shit really hits the fan. Since we follow Phedres point of view, and she obviously can't know all the intrigue going on in the empire, we are left in the dark about all mayor events until they happen, and when they do we can't really know the full extent of consequences that they will have. This is also reason for big lack of suspense and tension in the book. Author tries to ramp it up a bit by dropping lines like "Oh, if only I knew what terrible things will happen" which could work if used maybe once to highlight to readers to pay attention to something, and if there was payoff coming soon. Unfortunately, this is used too often, and the payoff I mentioned doesn't happen for way too long. It just feels that mayor part of the first half didn't serve any purpose and I wish it was shortened a bit.
The sex part of this book probably needs commenting also, considering who our protagonist is and the society she lives in. There are plenty of sexual encounters but they aren't written in erotic way, if that makes sense? They also often fit into the story, to develop relationship or to find out new information and things like that.
Overall, I was torn on how many start to give, since that fucking first half is so fucking boring and takes way too long, on the other hand the second half has really compelling story, characterization is great, plenty of intrigue, rebellions, politics and war. In the end, taking into consideration all that and facts that the setting, mythos, chosen one trope are all really really interesting I decided on 4 stars with the final grade being 3.5/5.
Exceedingly long and sometimes boring, Kushiel's Dart wasn't always the easiest book to get through, but in the end, I enjoyed it.
First off, this book has hardcore sex scenes. Like, really hardcore. There's a lot of detailed S&M in the first half, but after those start to die down, the plot takes over and such scenes are relegated to "...but that night will stay between the two of us" land. Phedre's role as a servant of Naamah and an anguisette - someone who literally experiences physical pain as pleasure - is a major part of the plot, and it is what enables her to collect the information that she does, so I didn't find the scenes to be particularly over-the-top or unnecessary.
Apart from that, the plot and world are interesting. Phedre's training in the Night Court and then its continuation (and spy-ish nature) at the hands of Delaunay were fascinating, though I'll admit that the abundance of house names sometimes made it really difficult to keep track of the politics being thrown around. Things take a darker turn towards the beginning of the latter half, and though the plot technically delves into new territory, I found it really slow. By the time the major conflict was coming to an end, I was skimming every page because I just wanted to be done.
I think the world and Phedre's role in it have piqued my interest enough for me to pick up another book in the series, but I don't recommend Kushiel's Dart to the faint of heart or the impatient.
First off, this book has hardcore sex scenes. Like, really hardcore. There's a lot of detailed S&M in the first half, but after those start to die down, the plot takes over and such scenes are relegated to "...but that night will stay between the two of us" land. Phedre's role as a servant of Naamah and an anguisette - someone who literally experiences physical pain as pleasure - is a major part of the plot, and it is what enables her to collect the information that she does, so I didn't find the scenes to be particularly over-the-top or unnecessary.
Apart from that, the plot and world are interesting. Phedre's training in the Night Court and then its continuation (and spy-ish nature) at the hands of Delaunay were fascinating, though I'll admit that the abundance of house names sometimes made it really difficult to keep track of the politics being thrown around. Things take a darker turn towards the beginning of the latter half, and though the plot technically delves into new territory, I found it really slow. By the time the major conflict was coming to an end, I was skimming every page because I just wanted to be done.
I think the world and Phedre's role in it have piqued my interest enough for me to pick up another book in the series, but I don't recommend Kushiel's Dart to the faint of heart or the impatient.
For the second book in a row, I went in hesitant. This one even more so because masochism isn't my thing.
The story centers around Phedre and her god-given (literally) masochism. If the story made more of that, I wouldn't have finished. It's just not for me.
The religious-driven world was interesting, especially since it dovetails with Christ. The land and the people have obvious influences of ancient Europe but she doesn't claim otherwise; the map at the beginning is a map of Europe with the countries redone.
Unfortunately, this epic never fully connected with me. It's well written, wonderfully so at times. The characters are well done as well. I really can't explain why, but it left me feeling unsatisfied. Though, to Ms. Carey's credit, it was good enough that I finished all 900 and some-odd pages. I'm still undecided as to whether or not I'll go onto book two. Perhaps...
The story centers around Phedre and her god-given (literally) masochism. If the story made more of that, I wouldn't have finished. It's just not for me.
The religious-driven world was interesting, especially since it dovetails with Christ. The land and the people have obvious influences of ancient Europe but she doesn't claim otherwise; the map at the beginning is a map of Europe with the countries redone.
Unfortunately, this epic never fully connected with me. It's well written, wonderfully so at times. The characters are well done as well. I really can't explain why, but it left me feeling unsatisfied. Though, to Ms. Carey's credit, it was good enough that I finished all 900 and some-odd pages. I'm still undecided as to whether or not I'll go onto book two. Perhaps...
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Had Some difficulties getting into the story, as it takes quite some time to get acquainted with all the characters. Picks up tempo after 300 pages. Then it’s quite a ride!
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I quite liked it... in part the premise that all knowledge is worth having. Truly living that out becomes rather problematic, so it was interesting to watch that play out through this series.
4.5/5. I never thought I’d use/write the sentence ‘if Tolkien wrote WAP but make it BDSM and vaguely based on European history,’ but here we are.
None of that is a detriment btw, I already picked up the sequel.
None of that is a detriment btw, I already picked up the sequel.
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Beautifully written. Although I fully enjoyed this book I have to say that it is not for everyone (read the trigger warnings before starting).
I love the characters and their relationships and how they evolved, however the first half of the book is very slow. For the second half, you forget how slow the first part was a lot of it start to make sense so it makes it worth it.
I love the characters and their relationships and how they evolved, however the first half of the book is very slow. For the second half, you forget how slow the first part was a lot of it start to make sense so it makes it worth it.
This book has some flaws—most glaringly, the pacing—but once the plot picked up, I was hooked. Phèdre is a fascinating heroine with complex, unique relationships and motivations. I devoured the world, the characters, and the narrative. Excited to see where the rest of the series goes.
Lost a star due to tedious battle scenes. Curses on LOTR for making that standard