Rating: 
Summary: Grest Start
Review: This was a great book that stands on it's own and it can also be the frame to build a series on. Cazaril is a hero in the Hornblower mold, not the Vorkosigan mold. Cazaril surmounts his self-doubts and internal demons to win through like Hornblower, as opposed to Miles with the physical limitations but an ego to carry him through anything. Also an interestingly interactive theology as opposed to the hints of belief in the Vorkosigan series. Set in an atmosphere reminiscient of Renaissance Spain and Italy it would be a good read for a range of readers whose cups of tea are romantic fiction, Dumas swashbucklers, fantasy adventurism, Peter Wimsey detection, but not to the single-mindness of a strictly one genre book. If you like fiction, you should enjoy this book. This is also a book that could be read by younger readers, there are no brief or explicit scenes of "adult" interaction that would make it unacceptable for 5th or 6th graders or older kids. I can't wait to see if the next challenges are surmounted single-handedly or as a team.
Rating:
Summary: Page Turner that Befuddles
Review: I like the characters and the plot. The characters are well fleshed out and I have no problems seeing them in my mind's eye. The plot drives along like a fine piano vamp. The religion that has been created for this world is quite fascinating and is straightfowardly discussed so as to allow a level of understanding, at least as a plot device. I would recommend this book to any fan of Bujold and/or speculative SF/Fantasy. My befuddlement occurs when I read the full names of the characters. I must admit that at times the just throw me for a "lupe". They are descriptive but without a pronounciation guide I'm at a loss. Overall good stuff
Rating: 
Summary: Now I feel foolish... it's great!
Review: I had hesitated to pick up _The Curse of Chalion_ because, although I *liked* _The Spirit Ring_, it didn't affect me nearly as strongly as the Vorkosigan books always have. I finally picked up a copy yesterday, and -- silly me! -- I started reading it at work over lunch.It's deeply engaging, from the very beginning -- I'm having trouble putting it down and paying attention to my job! From what I've read here in others' reviews, I expect it's going to be a late night tonight.... If anyone reading this has been hesitating to pick up _The Curse of Chalion_ based on their experience of _The Spirit Ring_ -- you're going to wind up feeling as foolish as I do. Please do pick it up and give it a try -- it's an excellent book.
Rating:
Summary: Not bad, not bad at all
Review: I prefer Miles, but this is good stuff. Her characters think. That is why I like her work. Ther is nothing really inventive about this book, but the skill with which she tells this tale is admirable. Worth the money.
Rating:
Summary: Saves the best for last
Review: I only give this 4 stars because someone compared it to George R. R. Martin-and so I went out and got this book. It didn't live up to Martin's style or caliber-but it's a good read nonetheless. I wouldn't call this "High" or "Epic" fantasy-this book is more about character development undergirded by a strong foundation of plot derived from political machinations. The main character is sympthatic and doesn't stretch credulity. He is an interesting combination of courage and cowardice, honor and letchery. Not quite an anti-hero, he is though quite flawed. The other characters are not quite as fully-fleshed out, and one of the villains comes close to being a caricature, but that's a common fault of most fantasy, and _Chalion_ isn't very bad about it. If the book was 150 pages longer I think she could have explored the supporting characters more thoroughly, because is it as only Carazil comes out as a fully fleshed character. Rather than George R. R. Martin-this book resembles more Robin Hobb's style-a brighter tale in the FarSeer tradition. Unlike Hobb, Bujold doesn't have us tearing our hair out at the end of the book with a rather disturbing ending. The only other criticism I have of this book is that there weren't any maps-and since geography was so important in a fair portion of the plot and backdrop that really distracted me as I kept trying to figure out what was where and the general lay of the land.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best fantasy novels I have ever read!!
Review: Amazing. The only fantasy that I can compare it to is George Martin's "A song of Ice and Fire." It is that good. And what makes it so good? The same thing as Martin's work...superior dialogue. The dialogue in most fantasy novels is boring, boring, boring. The dialogue in Bujold's new novel, as in all her work, is wise, intelligent, interesting and insightful. This novel was a huge pleasure to read. I didn't think she could create a fantasy character as interesting as Miles, but if she has not completely succeeded, she has at least come very close. I hope we will hear more of Caz in the future!!
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful stuff!
Review: Bujold proves to the hilt that she is an amazing author even without Miles Vorkosigan to kick around. Glorious, amazing, character-driven writing with scenes of breathtaking power. Buy this book, and then clear your calendar for the next couple of days.
Rating:
Summary: INSPIRED roman a clef, right out of 1450s Spain
Review: I love historical novels but deplore those with real people as protagonists. However, I love this book. It is not at all historical in the usual sense. I associated Iselle and Betriz with the princess Isabel and doña Beatriz, but I was so caught up in the story that it was page 233 before I realized that this is the story of Isabel and Fernando. I am not sure who the protagonist is based on; he doesn't sound much like the Bishop Carillo - maybe more Cervantes and don Quixote. I love it that his descriptions of his experiences, when he tries to explain his relationship with the higher powers, ring true to the writings of the great mystical saints of the Middle Ages. THE CURSE OF CHALION is not history. History is OUR modern opinion of what WE see as the truth of other times, based on OUR world view. Better than that, Bujold has got inside of what it must have felt like to live in those times, to deal with those problems. I am richer for experiencing this story. It stands alone wonderfully, without necessity of knowing anything about sources of inspiration. Please, I want more.
Rating:
Summary: A McMasterpiece (cue rimshot)
Review: Lois McMaster Bujold is widely known in science fiction circles for her Miles Vorkosigan books - a series of novels in which intrigue and politics are set in a futuristic space empire. OK, I may be glossing over a few details, but Bujold has quite rightly determined that intrigue and politics would work just as well in a fantasy setting, and this, The Curse of Chalion, is her take on the subject. For kicks, she has thrown in a romance angle, and a fairy tale angle too, and wraps it all up in a nice bundle that makes reading it a pleasure. Bujold is one of a very few writers who know how to make sentences invisible: what's on the page seems to flow directly into your imagination without having to go through the messy steps of letter recognition and word interpretation. After reading the long, lumbering tales of Robert Jordan, I found Bujold's prose positively danced. If there's anything negative to say about it, it's that too short: the plot is wrapped up a bit too quickly. What ends up being injected into your imagination is what any good fantasy is going to have: a fully realized feudal system, swordfights and, of course, magic. Bujold's take on how magic and theology work is intriguing and refreshingly new, with a brilliant solution to the problem of free will in a world where gods interact so directly with their worshippers. At its heart, Chalion is an introduction. At least, that's the way it feels. Bujold has set up a bit of back-story, a bit of history, and a group of characters we can't help but care about. Is there any better way of leaving you wanting for more?
Rating:
Summary: And they're off...
Review: Cazaril, Our Hero, is going to ask to be a menial servant, in hopes of finding peace and quiet after a long, hard career as a soldier and now escaped galley slave. No Hero in Bujold's worlds ever manages to quite achieve peace, much less quiet ... Thrust into the role of royal tutor rather than scullery help, he is equally placed in the midst of treachery, plotting, conniving, and byzantine madness. Duty, an omnipresent theme in Bujold's work, is stretched: duty to personal honor, duty to employer, duty to the gods... who gets first dibs? Our Hero continues to swim the blind treacherous seas with almost non-stop action packed adventure. Good versus Evil: who wins, and is winning quite so obvious? Bujold manages to introduce with style, flair and tact what few manage in Fantasy (and most avoid in SF): theology and religion. They are not the forefront of the book, but they are a significant pillar upon which the plot is built. She manages the role of religion in society, and theology in religion without making it a cooky-cutter copy of something already existing or being pedantic. For die-hard Vorkosigan-saga fans, this is written with less evident humor, but equal style and panache.
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