Kushiel's Dart

Rating:
Summary: Significantly better than I had expected.
Review: I'm immediately distrustful of erotic fantasies and my suspicious mindset wasn't improved by the cover of the book (a half-naked girl with eyes cast down, standing in front of a group of columns). I made the decision to buy the book in part due to the collection of rave reviews in the front of the book. There were, in short, enough comparisons to Tanith Lee and George R. R. Martin to spark my interest.

While I have to say I don't think that Carey's written a book that can equal one of Lee or Martin's creations, I did find it readable and well-crafted. Moreover, while there are sexual elements, Carey does a marvelous job of keeping a book about a masochistic prostitute from descending into soft-core.

_Kushiel's Dart_ is best compared with _Maia_ by Richard Adams in which a prostitute can have a priveledged role as a witness to power. Through the lens of Phedre no Delaunay we get a rich look at the game of houses played in this fantasy land of Terre d'Ange.

Interesting mythology with enough fantasy elements to make it an alternative world but resists using stock magic elements to carry the plot. The only fault is in the seeming lack of flaws in the main characters-- and I also get tired of races where everyone is unnaturally beautiful, but I guess that goes with the genre.

I suppose it's worth repeating the obvious-- not designed for the younger fantasy reader.

Rating:
Summary: One of the best books I've read in a long time.
Review: I loved this book. I really did. When I was about halfway finished, I ordered the hardcover copy, and the second book in the series -- it was just that good. I finally finished Kushiel's Dart tonight, and felt inclined to write about it.

This is not your typical fantasy. While there definitely are fantastic elements, there is no superhuman sorcery, no elves and goblins. Most of the fantasy in the book is reimagined history -- and that part is superbly done. It takes place in a Europe (Europa) of probably the 1000's, with France (Terre d'Ange) being the most sophisticated country, more Renaissance-like than medieval. Much of the rest of the world, however, is delightfully primitive. Christianity is not dominate -- in fact, only a few Jew-like Christians are around in this world, although it is generally accepted by the French (D'Angelines) that there was a Jesus. England (Alba, which is definitely a well-researched name) is Pictish, and Germany is inhabited by barbarian Norsemen. The names for everything are perfect -- Hellas (Hellenism is the age of Alexander the Great) for Greece, Tiberium for Rome, Aragonia (think Ferdinand of Aragon) for Spain. It feels like she put a lot of thought into designing her world.

The plot, too, is excellent. The main character is not your typical fantasy "chick" -- she doesn't fight, magically or physically, and some things about her are almost repulsive. Pricked by Kushiel's Dart, she feels pain as sexual pleasure -- and, thus, becomes very useful as a bed-partner to those with sadistic tastes. Still, I liked her quite a bit, and found her a very believable heroine. She saves her homeland -- through the use of her sexual skills, her beauty, and her wits.

Plenty of people have criticized this book for being "porn". It really isn't pornographic at all. There are vivid sex scenes, but they aren't disgusting or pornographic. I wouldn't recommend this book to a 12-year-old fantasy fan, but I wouldn't warn anyone away from it due to the explicitness of the sex scenes.

And the writing! The writing was just beautiful. Poetic, surpassing even the beauty of Tolkien. The heroine lives in a land of beauty and elegance, where every D'Angeline is descended from angels, and has their beauty. It follows that the language would be beautiful as well.

An excellent book. Ten stars out of ten. Recommended without reservation.

Rating:
Summary: Absolutely fantastic
Review: I chose this book based on the reviews and several listmania lists that convinced me to at least give it a shot. Not normally the type to pick up a fantasy novel, and especially not one where there's a half naked woman on the cover (I admit, I'm a book snob), I was wary.
And very pleasantly surprised.
Carey puts together a story over the 904 pages that absolutely draws you in. The mystery of who her master really is and what his purpose is draws you in...you hope for Phedre to find happiness somehow, with her master, her friend, her protector, or her housemate, anyone. Even though this world is not ours and definitely a well thought out one, you believe in it.
My only complaint is actually minimal. I didn't like the religon of the book...to me it somehow seemed too corny...a man who walks around singing and says "love as thou wilt" just annoys me. But there are only a few pages directed to him, even though everyone runs around saying "blessed Elua".
I will definitely be buying the sequels, and I've heard even more good things about them.
Great book.

Rating:
Summary: Just Relax...
Review: This book is phenomenally crafted. Once you get over the initial shock of massachism (spelling?), you realize that the story wouldn't be the same without it. The romance of Joscelin is real, and thrilling. Every character is brought out with vibrant beauty, although some may seem one-dimensional. Carey illuminates the complexity of human relationships, especially those involving sexuality. Carey delves into a subject most authors stay safely away from, or dance around with cheesy euphemisms. Sexuality is a powerful force our society likes to deny, and this novel explodes with blatant examination of the touchy subject. I thoroughly enjoyed this novel and its sequel, and am anxiously awaiting the third.

Rating:
Summary: Epic and Exquisite
Review: Jacqueline Carey manages to create a new and refreshing work in the sci-fi/fantasy realm. Taking world history and showing reader's a different path from the point of Christ's crucifixion onward. With that concept, she has created a world that is both familiar and new to us and a culture that is as exotic as it is erotic.

Carey manages to create a heroine that is intelligent and sexy. Her characterization is well developed and her plot line is engaging and draws the reader into the political intrigues. At times, your head swims with the politics and people of the novel, but that's not a criticism. I took this novel to be an interpretation of the Renaissance/Elizabethan era, and the politics for the era are dead on.

The action in this novel, once it starts, is almost non-stop.

One criticism I have against the novel is if this is a society and culture that espouses the concepts of free-love (love as thou wilt), where men and women are not judged for being sexually involved with another person of the same sex, then why are there no same-sex marriages? Why are men still viewed as the dominant sex. Why are Cassilines only men and women are subservient, yet Namaah is held with such reverence and prostitution is seen as holy because of Elua (a child of Mother Earth, Christ and Mary Magdalene) and Namaah (Elua's provider through prostitution). Despite its sexual liberty, this culture is very heterocentric and still focuses on the concepts primogeniture and male dominance, which don't make coincide with the establishment of the culture and history of the novel.

Another small issue is the repetitive voicing of the future. Phedre often remarks about "not knowing then what she knows now" which I found distracting to the current action. Another repetitive description the author uses is the term "beautiful." The characters all seemed to look the same..."beautiful." I wanted more than that. I felt like Carey drew these characters from a magazine, and Carey used the term so much that it became shallow instead of rare and precious or well-founded. What makes a person beautiful? What makes a person ugly? We don't really find out.

Nevertheless, this novel is amazing and excellent in its style. it takes only a few pages to grasp the author's vivid use of language that captivates and entralls the reader. I highly recommend it...it is full of depth and intrigue, and despite a highly sexual theme that is ongoing, this novel is successful in not becoming pornographic, but remains tasteful and important to the story.

Rating:
Summary: Dark fantasy rears it's beautiful head...
Review: This is not your fluff romance twisting a world for it's own games. Here we find a world similar to our own Europe set in a golden age of indulgence, political intrigue, and desire.
I'm going to safely assume that you can read the back of the book and the few look inside pages, so I won't presume to fill you with plot information as already done.
What I will tell you is this is not for the faint of heart - when they discuss the pain & pleasure are felt as one, you will read of acts of pain to incite pleasure. You will read of a brutal murder or two. Don't pick this up if you're squemish.
But, if you enjoy books with as much action as romance, a storyline including a love unable to be shared, ones that twist the world we know to fit their designs, and you want a well wrapped tale, by all means, pick it up.

Rating:
Summary: a wonderful surprise
Review: I must admit, I did not expect much from this book. I only bought it because I saw it at a used bookstore and thought I would give it a try. What really made me skeptical was the blip by Robert Jordan on the front. I can assure you, however, this book is not another Jordan clone.

What made me stop reading Jordan was his boring boyscout heros, weak female characters (who pout and flounce around when their men upset them), and his hidden conservative politics (does anyone else think that the evil Red Aes Sedai are a thinly-veiled sexist, homophobic portrayal of lesbians?) Anyway, enough Jordan-bashing. There are many things to love about Kushiel's Dart, not the least of which is a strong, intellegent, independent female narrator, Phedre. I generally dislike fantasies centered around S&M (Anne Bishop's are atrocious), but Carey has managed to do something that I would have thought impossible -- create a female character who delights in pain but is anything but weak. Even if S&M isn't your "thing," don't shy away from this book. The only aspect of the S&M that annoyed me was the way in which Phedre magically heals after being on the receiving end of a thrashing (or worse). It's stupid and urealistic; she should be covered with scars. But that's a minor detail.

Furthermore, pain comingled with pleasure is not the only kind of sexuality represented. There's tender sex scenes as well -- but nothing cheap, smutty, or over-the-top. What I particularly appreciated was the uninhibited bisexuality of the characters. In their culture, there is no bias against sleeping with a member of the same sex (Carey does not say this explicitly -- she shows rather than tells). While Phedre's main "love interest" is male, her relationship with the villainess of the book is often more interesting.

From what I've written so far, I've made it sound like this is a book all about sex -- far from it. What's even more compelling are the cultures, religions, and politics Carey creates. Her world is a strange echo of our own; Phedres's country, Terre d'Ange, is France-like, and a significant part of the book involves a Germanic culture and a Celtic culture. The religion of Terre d'Ange is fascinating and too complex to describe. I'll leave the pleasure of learning about it up to you.

The only reason this book received four stars instead of five is because it lost steam in the second half. I was utterly rivited to the pages during the first half, but once Phedre moved on to visit the Germanic and Celtic cultures, it became less interesting, probably because the author had spent more time and energy developing the complexities of Terre d'Ange. Still, it is a great escapist read and a welcome addition to the fantasy genre. I look forward to reading the sequels.

Rating:
Summary: Don't miss this Adventure
Review: OH my I LOVE this charecter and this book. I actually bought Kushiel's Chosen the second of the trilogy first, by accident. Due to my obsession with reading things from series or trilogy in proper order I sought out Kushiel's Dart to read first. And I am now on 3 waiting lists for Kushiel's Avatar the final book. I have never been able to get into fantasy and sci-fi reading being an Old English Literature lover, and student.It always seemed to out there and random. Though catagorized as Fantasy i prefer romantic history, yet this series is so many different genre's all rolled into one, fantasy, history, literture, poetry romance, adventure and a heroine the likes of which I have no comparison. This will appeal to Darklings, Lit buffs, Romance lovers anyone who likes to read will find something to love in this book. If you like the concepts of Old english lit or history you have touches of the Romans, the Picts, ancient Spanish and Germanic tribes and small religous touchs easily parraleled into many of our modern cultures.
The ideal of the heroines lifestyle is appealing to many, she is known as an anguisette AKA masochist of sort but it is done so beautifully and sensual it is not in the least bit off turning or crude. The ideas of her culture are to "Love as thou Wilt" and love is, as always the bottom line of any beautiful story. This one is no different. I hope to read more of Carey's works and hope that they all remain as well done and beautiful as this triology has turned to be.

Rating:
Summary: Essential Fantasy Novel
Review: I was skeptical at first, thinking this was purely a smut novel like so many fantasy authors have begun to write (ahem, LKH); however, I was amazed to find myself engrossed in the world Carey created. A true epic, the novel extends over a period of time that allows us to watch Phedre grow from a confused child into a skilled and intelligent adult. Carey created a world similiar enough to reality that the reader doesn't get completely lost when the characters travel from one land to the next, but the cultures of each place visited are very new, rich, and well thought-out. The book portrays characters with real depth, including a villian that is the definition of Machiavellian. This is the first fantasy novel I've read that completely turned me on to alternate worlds and histories. I highly recommend it for anyone looking to escape reality for a few days.

Rating:
Summary: Very good. Nice plot twists.
Review: I loved this book. My friend recommended it to me, and I was a little hesitant. However, once I actaully started to read it, I really liked got drawn into it. I like how the politics were used in the story, because, truely, it is the main plot. It is all about politics. My one complaint was that there were so many important and semi-important people in the book. And normally I don't have a problem with this, but some of their names are very similar, and I kept getting confused. Also, minor charactures, suddenly become important several hundred pages later. And unlike some author's, Carey doesn't keep re-stating the same information about the same person over and over. Which I must say is a fresh breath of air. I also like have the people actaully develope through out the story, and aren't just the same through the whole book.