Kushiel's Dart (Kushiel's Legacy: Phèdre Trilogy, #1) (Kushiel's Legacy, #1)

by Jacqueline Carey

In a kingdom born of angels, Phedre is an anguisette, cursed or blessed to find pleasure in pain. Sold to the Court of Night Blooming Flowers, her fate as a beautiful but anonymous courtesan was sealed. Her bond was purchased by the nobleman Anafiel Delauney, who recognised the scarlet mote in Phedre's eye as the rare mark of one touched by a powerful deity. Under Delauney's patronage she is trained in history, politics, language, and the use of body and mind as the ultimate weapon of subterfuge in a dangerous game of courtly intrigue.

Guided into the bed chambers of Terre D'Ange's most influential nobles, Phedre uncovers a conspiracy against the throne so vast that even her teacher cannot see the whole of it. As her nation is besieged by invading hordes from the north, the most unthinkable threat to her beloved home comes from traitors within. Betrayed and blindsided by her own longings, only Phedre and her trusted bodyguard Josselin are left to cross borders and warring armies in a race to stop the final blow from falling.

Enter a lush world of pleasure houses, ambitious warlords, scheming courtiers, and the harsh justice of blessed deities through the eyes of a heroine like no other. Sprawling and darkly sensual, Kushiel's Dart is the start of a truly original fantasy series perfect for mature fans of George R. R. Martin, Robin Hobb, and Anne Bishop.

• ISBN13: 9781250759511
• Publish Date: 1 July 2020 (first published 23 June 2001)
• Publish Status: Active
• Out of Print: 5 April 2024
• Publish Country: US
• Imprint: St Martin's Press
• Format: Paperback
• Pages: 928
• Language: English
• URL: http://melia.co.uk/page/detail/?k=9781250759511

Reviews

[nannah]

DNF at like way too little percent to put up here.

Uhh, I wish I'd read the reviews here or looked at the goodreads shelves for this book before I picked this up. I'd remembered that a friend years ago told me to read this trilogy, so I checked it out.

. . . and as a sex-repulsed asexual, I was more than uncomfortable. And even though I rarely leave a book unfinished, I'm going to have to with this one. I googled it a bit more, and after seeing how much sex (incredibly graphic sex) was in it, I decided that leaving it early was a good idea for me.

The writing is lovely, though, and I was very much invested in the characters. It's just definitely not my kind of book.

[ibeforem]

Jacqueline Carey’s Kushiel’s Legacy series is, so far, a trilogy of trilogies, so to speak. A couple of summers ago, I read the first book in the latest trilogy, Naamah’s Kiss, and really enjoyed it. This first book in the entire series showed me that I have a lot to look forward to.

Phèdre nó Delaunay’s world is one that is both familiar and not. Carey has given us a reimagined Earth with elements that are familiar. There is a lot of known religion and mythology in her fictional religion and mythology. The countries are almost recognizable as Scandinavia and the Middle East and parts of Europe. The problem is timeless – who will rule Terre d’Ange?

(As a side note, when I read Naamah’s Kiss, I compared Terre d’Ange to France, but after reading this book, I thought it was more like England. Anyone else have any opinions?)

Phèdre is not your typical fantasy heroine. She is a courtesan, and an unusual one at that – her specialty is pain, and the scarlet mote in her eye makes her unique in her time. The first third or so of the book is really about her and her journey from a young child sold into indentured servitude to a young woman who has earned her freedom. Once her real quest begins (along with her companion, the religious warrior), she finds out just how much she has learned along the way, and that she’ll need every last tool in her arsenal in order to survive.

[mitabird]

3.5 stars