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A review by asparagusfern
Kushiel's Dart by Jacqueline Carey
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
5.0
It’s not every day that a story of a masochistic courtesan caught up in a dense political web is one of the greatest adventure fantasies ever written, but here we are, with the unique unicorn that is Kushiel’s Legacy (and the uniquer unicorn that is Phedre herself).
The worldbuilding is strange and fantastic. Instead of setting her books in an alternate universe they are set in medieval Europe if the dominant religion was an offshoot of Christianity following a group of angles. “Love as Thou Wilt” is the guiding mantra of the kingdom of Elua, whose inhabitants are beautiful, vain and relatively egalitarian, although they’re not perfect - Phedre begins her life as an indentured servant groomed into prostitution from childhood as a religious calling.
Phedre is a unique an compelling protagonist. She’s clever and strong but her skillset is traditionally feminine, using seduction and submission to gather information and outsmart her enemies. “That which yields is not always weak.” She takes her profession as a courtesan spy very seriously and has a somewhat magical proclivity towards enjoying pain, which puts her in very confusing scenarios with her often abusive clients.
This book is refreshingly sex positive, with bisexuality, polyamory, BDSM and sex work being treated with nuance and complexity. There are conversations about consent and safe words and complicated discussions about compatibility.
Despite the sometimes graphic sex, this is not a romance novel. The narrative is dense and complicated and sometimes dark and the sex is often brutal, written more to advance the story than to entice the readership.
The beginning of the novel describes Phedre’s long training, but the second part is where it really soars, taking Phedre and her friends to multiple lands and through multiple hardships, before eventually descending into war.
The characters are diverse and lovable, and even the villain is compelling and complex.
I don’t think it’s for everyone, but I loved this book dearly.
The worldbuilding is strange and fantastic. Instead of setting her books in an alternate universe they are set in medieval Europe if the dominant religion was an offshoot of Christianity following a group of angles. “Love as Thou Wilt” is the guiding mantra of the kingdom of Elua, whose inhabitants are beautiful, vain and relatively egalitarian, although they’re not perfect - Phedre begins her life as an indentured servant groomed into prostitution from childhood as a religious calling.
Phedre is a unique an compelling protagonist. She’s clever and strong but her skillset is traditionally feminine, using seduction and submission to gather information and outsmart her enemies. “That which yields is not always weak.” She takes her profession as a courtesan spy very seriously and has a somewhat magical proclivity towards enjoying pain, which puts her in very confusing scenarios with her often abusive clients.
This book is refreshingly sex positive, with bisexuality, polyamory, BDSM and sex work being treated with nuance and complexity. There are conversations about consent and safe words and complicated discussions about compatibility.
Despite the sometimes graphic sex, this is not a romance novel. The narrative is dense and complicated and sometimes dark and the sex is often brutal, written more to advance the story than to entice the readership.
The beginning of the novel describes Phedre’s long training, but the second part is where it really soars, taking Phedre and her friends to multiple lands and through multiple hardships, before eventually descending into war.
The characters are diverse and lovable, and even the villain is compelling and complex.
I don’t think it’s for everyone, but I loved this book dearly.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Death, Violence, Trafficking, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, War
The MC is a masochistic courtesan who is groomed from childhood as an indentured servant and sex worker in training. There is a lot of BDSM as well as sexual slavery and sexual assault, along with the regular fantasy stuff such as war and violence.