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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
This was a truly well-crafted tale of court-intrigue, saints, sacrifices, and, in a strange way, hope.
Lois McMaster Bujold knows what she is doing, both in building this world and in creating her characters and revealing their stories. I felt with Cazaril and the other characters, I laughed with them, and more then once this book had goosebumps run down my spine.
A few of the developments were maybe a little predictable, but not in a way that detracted too much of my enjoyment. Rather, it was fun to see some of the things play out as I thought they would and it made some of the surprises even more surprising. The only thing that I could have done without and that didn't quite ring true to me until the end is
All in all, a solid 4 (maybe even 4,5) star read that has left me looking forward to the next book in the series.
(In a completely other vein, this book has also made me wonder why there seem to be so many high fantasy novels that take the Reconquista as inspiration - though I'm not sure if this impression is just due to what I have read recently and thus based on a very skewed sample.)
Lois McMaster Bujold knows what she is doing, both in building this world and in creating her characters and revealing their stories. I felt with Cazaril and the other characters, I laughed with them, and more then once this book had goosebumps run down my spine.
A few of the developments were maybe a little predictable, but not in a way that detracted too much of my enjoyment. Rather, it was fun to see some of the things play out as I thought they would and it made some of the surprises even more surprising. The only thing that I could have done without and that didn't quite ring true to me until the end is
Spoiler
the relationship between Cazaril and Lady Betriz. I can understand where his infatuation with her comes from (even though I was a little put off by the fact that he keeps hankering after not only a younger woman (which in and of itself I wouldn't really have minded, I think), but a younger woman over whom he has some authority as her teacher....), but I'm not sure I found it quite believable that she was also head over heels in love with him. I don't think the story would have lost anything if that bit had been excluded and they had just become good friends bent on helping Iselle.All in all, a solid 4 (maybe even 4,5) star read that has left me looking forward to the next book in the series.
(In a completely other vein, this book has also made me wonder why there seem to be so many high fantasy novels that take the Reconquista as inspiration - though I'm not sure if this impression is just due to what I have read recently and thus based on a very skewed sample.)
I find it very interesting that I lowered my review to 4 stars because the ending is so "and then they lived happily ever after." I'm not sure this is totally fair. since it fits with the theology underpinning the story.
Very elegant and gentle writing. However, she knows how to pluck those heartstrings somewhat fierce ;-)
One thing I didn't like, and that was because it was repetative from the Vorkosigan saga:
The book was a delight to read. The take on religion as a kind of magic well worked out.
One thing I didn't like, and that was because it was repetative from the Vorkosigan saga:
Spoiler
The stomach/belly problems for the main character. Miles had something like that as well. It is sloppy writing to reuse that idea.The book was a delight to read. The take on religion as a kind of magic well worked out.
Having run out of Vorkosigans to read, I have ventured into Bujold's two fantasy series, despite not being a big fan of the genre. This is a world built on a recognizable version of Reconquista Spain, with religious conflict over whether there are four gods or five, and with death magic and curses available to spice the political plotting. As always, Bujold writes compelling relationships and intricate schemes the heroes must foil at great cost. I certainly enjoyed it, but this was diminished somewhat by the deliberately "fantasy" names and made up words (nuncheon, anyone?)
Sword and sorcery re-read. Very well done. The basic story is straightforward, but it's told very well. Cazaril is a man with a painful past who just wants to find a safe haven. Of course, that means he gets pulled into court intrigue and has to help his charges learn and survive. Also, there's only a tiny bit of sorcery, but it's replaced by five active gods in the world.
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
slow-paced
First, I should say that if you enjoy a fantasy story full of action, then, this may not be the story for you. There's more talk of battle and war than actual battle. This book relies more on political intrigue, dark family histories, and betrayals. And these are things I enjoyed about the story, especially toward the end of this book.
Something spoilerish this way comes.
I think I appreciated the characters before I really started getting into the story itself. I didn't think story was bad, but it seemed to move along slowly at first. I blame those feelings on my recent GRRM bender where there is something always happening page after page. You can’t start his books without someone dying or someone planning to kill someone. However, I really loved the characters Bujold gave us in this story. Many of them captured my attention the moment they were introduced.
From the beginning, Cazaril proved his strength was in his wits, even before he became somewhat physically frail (in some ways) due to his time in captivity. He has many physical ailments from his abuse, such as his crooked hands, but his true strength had sharpened to be a fine edged sword. Even though we do get to see Caz fight a few times, he’d rather mince words, and he’s very good at it. He doesn’t see any cowardice in using words to start and end a battle. He can formulate plans on the spot and passes on valuable advice to others, often questioning their thought process so they could back up the claims they made.
Iselle and Beatriz, I loved those two separately, together, and as a cunning trio with Caz. Iselle is young, but shrewd. Same goes for her friend and lady, Beatriz. Though, Betriz is a little bit older than Iselle. Both flourish under Caz’s tutelage who manages to help them temper their rashness and learn to observe a situation, to see the small nuances that hide under “courtly behavior, ” and to use these things to their advantage. There was a bit of romance in the story, but it wasn’t a big theme of the story. It was simple, understated, and very sweet in my opinion. I was glad that Iselle wasn’t the object of Caz’s quiet affection, but Beatriz--an affection that she obviously was returning, but he was oblivious, thinking himself too old, too poor, too broken, for someone like her. I thought the simplicity in that was very well done.
I cared about some of the characters who weren't main characters, but provide something to the story that makes it rich. Ista (Iselle and Teidez's mother) is the first one. We're given a brief history of her and of things that happened in her life before the story. Caz remembers her from a time when he served as a page for her father and mother and recalls her being beautiful and taken with the romanticisms of the court. So, he's a bit surprised to see what she's become. Crazy is what they call her, and Caz is willing to believe that until he talks to her and realizes that she is very, very sane. And then her story at the end... I already wanted to know more about her and what happened. I think one of these books is about her, if I’m not mistaken, and I’m dying to know more about her.
Royesse (or am I supposed to call her Royina) Sara was another that piqued my interest. You know something is wrong there with her, and she seems frail, disconnected, broken. She doesn't show much interest in anything, but does betray some fondness for music and is said to employ the best musicians. After Dondo's death when Iselle confides in Caz that Dondo mentioned that he and his brother did horrible things with the royina with Orico's permission (telling her this in an attempt to scare Iselle into not protesting their impending marriage), Sara dresses dazzlingly in quiet defiance of mourning the man she hated with the rest of the kingdom. And she even finds her courage to tell Iselle of the family curse, which Caz had been avoiding.
Umegat was another. I don’t know think he’s as secondary as Sara or Ista since he plays a much bigger part in the story, but I liked that he was from a land that often warred with the people of Chalion, a land who worshipped the gods “strangely.” For some reason, his people made me think of the dothraki because they were described as fierce warriors. Caz had been enslaved by Umegat’s people, and while he has a healthy level of distrust for them, Umegat became one of Caz’s trusted confidants and sounding board. And Umegat was a victim of how fickle the gods could be, or was he? I felt what happened to him a bit unfair when he’d been nothing but faithful. However, maybe I’ll see him again in later books and the opinion will change if there's some lesson to be taken from this.
I thought the dy Jironal brothers were fitting antagonists, but I felt the pretense of how they betrayed Cazaril prior to the events in this book a little shallow. I appreciate and understand that even the slightest thing would set off an ambitious person like Dondo, but it never really scratched below the surface for me. I didn't encounter Dondo enough to truly loathe him as I should. Most of his misdeeds with the exception of his failed attempt at bribing Cazaril and his thwarted rape attempt (of Betriz) and public shaming stemming from that incident were all secondhand or hinted at through murderous stares. I thought Dondo was a disgusting man, but Dondo more than his brother felt like plot fodder just to keep the story going. There was no real depth of character there for me other than the fact they were not good people and someone had to take the villain’s fall.
The story started getting really interested to me once Caz left Valenda for Chalion. Outside the safety of Valenda, that’s where the real intrigue began. Bujold crafted a very engaging tale that wasn’t heavy handed on the fantasy, which is something I prefer in fantasy books I read. I really love how she explored “sainthood” in this story, making it both an honor and a curse, which is often what it seemed like for people who claimed to hear the gods/God in history. The saints truly are the vessels of the gods, and while their strength of character certainly make them good candidates, it's their willingness to submit in total supplication to the gods' wills, even at the risk of their own livelihood, that cause them to be god-touched. They will allow the gods to work through them in whatever ways the gods deemed worthy. It was like a little exploration of what a life like that might be like.
Also, I did feel that parts of the story, important parts of the story in my opinion, were glossed over or important events were tied up too neatly and without much fuss or consequence. I have nothing against Danni, the young boy that Cazaril helped during his captivity, being the Ibran heir that Iselle so desperately needs to help her thwart dy Jironal’s plans for her, but it was just so obviously convenient rather than subtly convenient. Even if Iselle hadn't hit it off with the royse, how likely was it that the boy who Caz had helped in captivity, a boy he protected from being raped, a boy who (he later found out) he died for and was granted mercy by the goddess who restored his life for that act, would deny Caz? Even if he hadn't accepted the marriage, he would've pledged his support since it would've been to his advantage.
And there were many instances like that in the story. But at the same time, it did cause me to ask myself how much of this course was laid out for Cazaril and the Chalion family by the gods and how much was happenstance. That was actually a question that asked in the story as well since free will is supposed to play a large part in things. Umegat made the best case for that when he surmised that maybe many men are set loosely on the same path, but their choices and circumstances ultimately led them away from their destination, that maybe Caz (and himself) were the only ones who made the right set of choices to fulfill the god's will for their particular goals. Umegat seemed to believe that if they failed at the tasks the gods gave them, there would be others the gods would employ to see it through.
Despite the little things, I enjoyed this story more I thought I would when I first started reading it. I was so happy to see a male protagonist who wasn't brandishing his sword everywhere and bedding all the women. I'd definitely recommend this for people who want more intrigue than outright violence in their fantasy story.
Something spoilerish this way comes.
I think I appreciated the characters before I really started getting into the story itself. I didn't think story was bad, but it seemed to move along slowly at first. I blame those feelings on my recent GRRM bender where there is something always happening page after page. You can’t start his books without someone dying or someone planning to kill someone. However, I really loved the characters Bujold gave us in this story. Many of them captured my attention the moment they were introduced.
From the beginning, Cazaril proved his strength was in his wits, even before he became somewhat physically frail (in some ways) due to his time in captivity. He has many physical ailments from his abuse, such as his crooked hands, but his true strength had sharpened to be a fine edged sword. Even though we do get to see Caz fight a few times, he’d rather mince words, and he’s very good at it. He doesn’t see any cowardice in using words to start and end a battle. He can formulate plans on the spot and passes on valuable advice to others, often questioning their thought process so they could back up the claims they made.
Iselle and Beatriz, I loved those two separately, together, and as a cunning trio with Caz. Iselle is young, but shrewd. Same goes for her friend and lady, Beatriz. Though, Betriz is a little bit older than Iselle. Both flourish under Caz’s tutelage who manages to help them temper their rashness and learn to observe a situation, to see the small nuances that hide under “courtly behavior, ” and to use these things to their advantage. There was a bit of romance in the story, but it wasn’t a big theme of the story. It was simple, understated, and very sweet in my opinion. I was glad that Iselle wasn’t the object of Caz’s quiet affection, but Beatriz--an affection that she obviously was returning, but he was oblivious, thinking himself too old, too poor, too broken, for someone like her. I thought the simplicity in that was very well done.
I cared about some of the characters who weren't main characters, but provide something to the story that makes it rich. Ista (Iselle and Teidez's mother) is the first one. We're given a brief history of her and of things that happened in her life before the story. Caz remembers her from a time when he served as a page for her father and mother and recalls her being beautiful and taken with the romanticisms of the court. So, he's a bit surprised to see what she's become. Crazy is what they call her, and Caz is willing to believe that until he talks to her and realizes that she is very, very sane. And then her story at the end... I already wanted to know more about her and what happened. I think one of these books is about her, if I’m not mistaken, and I’m dying to know more about her.
Royesse (or am I supposed to call her Royina) Sara was another that piqued my interest. You know something is wrong there with her, and she seems frail, disconnected, broken. She doesn't show much interest in anything, but does betray some fondness for music and is said to employ the best musicians. After Dondo's death when Iselle confides in Caz that Dondo mentioned that he and his brother did horrible things with the royina with Orico's permission (telling her this in an attempt to scare Iselle into not protesting their impending marriage), Sara dresses dazzlingly in quiet defiance of mourning the man she hated with the rest of the kingdom. And she even finds her courage to tell Iselle of the family curse, which Caz had been avoiding.
Umegat was another. I don’t know think he’s as secondary as Sara or Ista since he plays a much bigger part in the story, but I liked that he was from a land that often warred with the people of Chalion, a land who worshipped the gods “strangely.” For some reason, his people made me think of the dothraki because they were described as fierce warriors. Caz had been enslaved by Umegat’s people, and while he has a healthy level of distrust for them, Umegat became one of Caz’s trusted confidants and sounding board. And Umegat was a victim of how fickle the gods could be, or was he? I felt what happened to him a bit unfair when he’d been nothing but faithful. However, maybe I’ll see him again in later books and the opinion will change if there's some lesson to be taken from this.
I thought the dy Jironal brothers were fitting antagonists, but I felt the pretense of how they betrayed Cazaril prior to the events in this book a little shallow. I appreciate and understand that even the slightest thing would set off an ambitious person like Dondo, but it never really scratched below the surface for me. I didn't encounter Dondo enough to truly loathe him as I should. Most of his misdeeds with the exception of his failed attempt at bribing Cazaril and his thwarted rape attempt (of Betriz) and public shaming stemming from that incident were all secondhand or hinted at through murderous stares. I thought Dondo was a disgusting man, but Dondo more than his brother felt like plot fodder just to keep the story going. There was no real depth of character there for me other than the fact they were not good people and someone had to take the villain’s fall.
The story started getting really interested to me once Caz left Valenda for Chalion. Outside the safety of Valenda, that’s where the real intrigue began. Bujold crafted a very engaging tale that wasn’t heavy handed on the fantasy, which is something I prefer in fantasy books I read. I really love how she explored “sainthood” in this story, making it both an honor and a curse, which is often what it seemed like for people who claimed to hear the gods/God in history. The saints truly are the vessels of the gods, and while their strength of character certainly make them good candidates, it's their willingness to submit in total supplication to the gods' wills, even at the risk of their own livelihood, that cause them to be god-touched. They will allow the gods to work through them in whatever ways the gods deemed worthy. It was like a little exploration of what a life like that might be like.
Also, I did feel that parts of the story, important parts of the story in my opinion, were glossed over or important events were tied up too neatly and without much fuss or consequence. I have nothing against Danni, the young boy that Cazaril helped during his captivity, being the Ibran heir that Iselle so desperately needs to help her thwart dy Jironal’s plans for her, but it was just so obviously convenient rather than subtly convenient. Even if Iselle hadn't hit it off with the royse, how likely was it that the boy who Caz had helped in captivity, a boy he protected from being raped, a boy who (he later found out) he died for and was granted mercy by the goddess who restored his life for that act, would deny Caz? Even if he hadn't accepted the marriage, he would've pledged his support since it would've been to his advantage.
And there were many instances like that in the story. But at the same time, it did cause me to ask myself how much of this course was laid out for Cazaril and the Chalion family by the gods and how much was happenstance. That was actually a question that asked in the story as well since free will is supposed to play a large part in things. Umegat made the best case for that when he surmised that maybe many men are set loosely on the same path, but their choices and circumstances ultimately led them away from their destination, that maybe Caz (and himself) were the only ones who made the right set of choices to fulfill the god's will for their particular goals. Umegat seemed to believe that if they failed at the tasks the gods gave them, there would be others the gods would employ to see it through.
Despite the little things, I enjoyed this story more I thought I would when I first started reading it. I was so happy to see a male protagonist who wasn't brandishing his sword everywhere and bedding all the women. I'd definitely recommend this for people who want more intrigue than outright violence in their fantasy story.
3.5
This year I’m attempting to actually write reviews of read, and this is the first book in that endeavor, so time to learn up the old critique muscles. To start things off, I listened to this in audio book form, and the audio book being from 2004 is probably not quite up to modern standards in some regards, notably a few choices in accent for some of the characters, one a side character with a notable classic yikes Chinese accent, and another with an attempt at Native American I believe
As for the book itself though. I will admit, this book would be higher of this was my type of story. As it stands it is very good at what it is doing and succeeds in almost all of its endeavors. Curse of Chalion is first and foremost a book about court politics, and court life in general for that matter. The first half with a little tweaking could easily be made to be a European historical fiction, and even when the fantasy elements do start to show their faces more and more, it still sits in that familiar territory. This is no epic fantasy. There aren’t grand battles and grander displays of magic, it’s more down to earth, more personal. That’s all good, I just don’t really like everyday court life for the most part, but for those who do, big recommend.
The characters are what do the heavy lifting of the story, and forgive my misspellings as I’ve only heard the names, not read them. Cazaril is a strong protagonist, being a beaten down man from the war just trying to do his best to advise caution in the face of ever more fantastical struggle. His primary ward, the royesse of chalion is also a strong showing, her development from cazaril’s guide me while still holding firm to her beliefs is great. However the third of what I’d call our main trio, Beatriz feels a bit more of an after thought? She kind of just falls in as companion to the royesse and then live interest of Caz, and she’s fine but at times it very much felt like she was just added since Caz couldn’t become the love of his other ward. And like, it’s also pretty weird that Caz, her teacher, and 35 years her senior ends up marrying her in the end but you know, not much to be done there.
It’s a good book, probably not one I’ll remember a whole lot of, but for people who like this style I can see why for sure
This year I’m attempting to actually write reviews of read, and this is the first book in that endeavor, so time to learn up the old critique muscles. To start things off, I listened to this in audio book form, and the audio book being from 2004 is probably not quite up to modern standards in some regards, notably a few choices in accent for some of the characters, one a side character with a notable classic yikes Chinese accent, and another with an attempt at Native American I believe
As for the book itself though. I will admit, this book would be higher of this was my type of story. As it stands it is very good at what it is doing and succeeds in almost all of its endeavors. Curse of Chalion is first and foremost a book about court politics, and court life in general for that matter. The first half with a little tweaking could easily be made to be a European historical fiction, and even when the fantasy elements do start to show their faces more and more, it still sits in that familiar territory. This is no epic fantasy. There aren’t grand battles and grander displays of magic, it’s more down to earth, more personal. That’s all good, I just don’t really like everyday court life for the most part, but for those who do, big recommend.
The characters are what do the heavy lifting of the story, and forgive my misspellings as I’ve only heard the names, not read them. Cazaril is a strong protagonist, being a beaten down man from the war just trying to do his best to advise caution in the face of ever more fantastical struggle. His primary ward, the royesse of chalion is also a strong showing, her development from cazaril’s guide me while still holding firm to her beliefs is great. However the third of what I’d call our main trio, Beatriz feels a bit more of an after thought? She kind of just falls in as companion to the royesse and then live interest of Caz, and she’s fine but at times it very much felt like she was just added since Caz couldn’t become the love of his other ward. And like, it’s also pretty weird that Caz, her teacher, and 35 years her senior ends up marrying her in the end but you know, not much to be done there.
It’s a good book, probably not one I’ll remember a whole lot of, but for people who like this style I can see why for sure
adventurous
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
medium-paced