Swordspoint

Rating:
Summary: Shallow, Flat characterization, too fast to short to awful..
Review: Entranced with the cover and with the numerous author praises of the book I picked up Kuschners "Swordspoint" with a strong hope of finding myself another author and perhaps book to add to my rather short list of favorites.

What began as story hanging on the thin edge of good and filled potential steadily grew worse for my taste.

We are shown the story from the view point of two characters mostly the supposid "Protagonist" of the story Richard ST. Vier and a noblemen by the name of Lord Michael Godwin, though both men are a flat in all aspects. As we travel throught lives and learn the short history of both men neither one are given the spark of life that throughts them off the page and into my interest or care.

Thrown into the mix a large amount of co-characters the few that do take the spot light with the main charcters are as flat as and shallow and unlikeable as the protagonist. We are raretly given throughout the book very many examples of Richard's talent to really feel that he deserves such a title. Though it is true there are fights once more the flat characterization doesn't give us any hindsight as to why we should feel he deserves this title besides he's fast and talented with a sword.

Another problem with the book is the superficial homosexual realtionships and experiences thrown into the mix to add flavor and a bit of spicy but only leave a bitter taste in my mouth. Where as Anne Rice gave her homosexual men life and personality so that I cared about them and enjoyed their adventures I found Kuschners exploits rather forced and thrown in simply for the need to add a touch of realism to her story.

All together the world is just flat, uninteresting and not even cliche'd just poorly designed along with the characters who even after the end of the novel I found myself still feeling nothing for them.

Rating:
Summary: Not my kind of book I guess
Review: First let me just say this is not a fantasy book. I was given a refund for the book on that principle alone. The book is more like a historical piece set in the mid 1600's. Unless it's an amazing book (as the reviews here would suggest) that's not my kind of book already. The only reason this book would possibly be a fantasy book is that the main characters of the book are all homosexual and that is not only accepted but the normal in this book.Not a real big fan of the Hero of a book getting in graphic sex scenes......over and over.

The action is bland and the whole book takes place in one little area. The political intrigue isn't really intrigue and overall I thought this book was incredibly boring. I think the reviews here are so glowing becuase some people simply love the fact of a homosexual hero and never let that novilty wear off otherwise they would have noticed the book was awful. If this was marketed in the Romance section, I would not be complaining.
So if you like fantasy, go read George R R Martin, Tolkien, Gemmell, Weiss, Feist, Hobb, etc. but steer clear of this. If you like slow action, bizarre love stories, and a bland plot, but this. Just my opinion.

Rating:
Summary: Not a review, but a suggestion...
Review: Having enjoyed "Swordspoint" immensely, I was delighted to find a sequel, of sorts, in the latest "Year's Best Fantasy and Horror" collection. Called "The Death of the Duke," it is a novella-epilogue to the story of Alec and Richard St. Vier, as well-written as its predecessor if tantalizingly brief. For all who read and enjoyed "Swordspoint," I offer a sincere recommendation. (I have not yet read "The Fall of Kings," a novella also set in the world of Riverside and the City. That's next on the list.) A bonus: The author's-note preface to this story mentions that there is a sequel in the works. Bring it on! We've been waiting long enough.

Rating:
Summary: Well written, but not my cup of tea
Review: I first heard about Swordspoint through Amazon.com. I'm quite a regular at Amazon, not just buying things but just looking up stuff and finding more stuff to read. One of my favorite features is My Recommendations, which given how many things I've rated or reviewed, are actually pretty accurate.

So one day when Amazon realized I had a penchant for reading fantasy books with queer characters (gee, how would it guess?!), out popped a message on a page saying "Hey, you might like to read Swordspoint!" (Or something similar, think it was worded differently.) So I checked out the description, read the reviews and thought, "Huh, that does sound interesting!" and you know, ordered it. (Boy, Amazon makes it too easy!)

Swordspoint turned out not to be exactly what I had expected. Having just come off of reading Lynn Flewelling's delightful, outstanding Nightrunner series, I was I guess expecting something a little racier or filled with heart-pounding action or some magic or something really scary. Instead I found the book to be just what it says on the back cover, a "melodrama of manners."

There's a well-drawn relationship between a professional swordsman and a mysterious noble scholar who's abandoned his privilege for a death wish, and that was fun, but then there was another half to the story with nobles plotting and scheming, politics and politenesses and callings cards -- which to me was not so fun. I loved the bits with dashing Richard St Vier and drunken bitter Alec, but every time I'd really start to get into them, the chapter would end and I'd have to slog through a scene of some noblelady or nobleman's blathering or covering up some secret or plotting to knock off a rival. To me, patient and literate as I am, those bits just were boring and dry.

It reminded me of some lost 18th or 19th century novel, only twist being that the two main heroes are gay lovers and everybody's okay with that. It's true that in the Nightrunner series, there's a similar situation (a regular spies, swords and sorcery book, only with gay lovers), but for me Swordspoint didn't have the overall story I enjoy so I wasn't nearly as satisfied. I will say, however, that if you like a book with a lot of intrigue and intricate plot and old-fashioned literary language, Swordspoint is probably a book you'd enjoy.

If there was one thing that made my disappointment a little less with this book, it came at the end, where in the edition I have, Kushner has included three additional stories set in the Swordspoint world. I actually enjoyed these stories more than the actual novel! I think it was the fact that in the stories, all the frilly "melodrama of manners" stuff was cut out and only the good bits were there. The stories also had a higher proportion of sexual spice to them. And in "The Death of the Duke," Kushner creates a magical tale depicting the final weeks of Alec, as an old man returned to the nameless city, setting of Swordspoint, and dying amid his memories of Richard St Vier -- what a wonderful tribute!

Rating:
Summary: Brilliant Regency-style Fantasy With a Perfect Hero
Review: I have just finished reading Kushner's Swordspoint, and I am dazzled, delighted, and amazed. The central character, the swordsman, Richard St. Vier, is simply the quintessential dashing swashbuckler, and, the rest of the characters, particularly St. Vier's mysterious lover Alec, are poignant and meaningful in their own ways. Set in a world much akin to a Regency romance, Swordspoint manages to avoid that genre's downfalls: this story is sensual, but not smutty, and romantic without the swooning; it is a beautiful blend of the cynicism genuinely worldly characters would indeed feel towards romance, and that romance itself. The political intrigue is intriguing, as is it should be. The ending though, is what really made this book wonderful for me; not only does justice triumph with a wicked twist of the aforementioned intrigue, but, love triumphs in a truly sweet way. I wholeheartedly recommend Swordspoint - you will want to read this book.

Rating:
Summary: Delicious, luscious, wonderful!
Review: I read this novel in a day, even carrying it around outside as I watered and reading as I made Hamburger Helper for dinner; all this time later I still think of Richard St. Vier almost daily with a mildly obsessional wistful longing. For me the relationship between him & his lover Alec is the whole book, and is what I utterly loved about it. I'm a straight married mom and I absolutely could not get enough of their physical and emotional passion for each other - I wish Kushner had included MORE sex scenes! Bring it on, baby! Their deliciously desperate dance - with Richard trying to hang onto his wild, flighty, pathetic Alec any way he can - is haunting and intoxicating, as their city of crumbling mansions and their life together among thieves & killers & worse are as well. Kushner's wonderful small details make Riverside and its environs a living, breathing place that I feel like I lived in for a while myself. My only complaint is that I was bored by the wealthy characters and their political intrigues, and though I liked how Kushner tied it all to Alec I had no patience with that part of the novel or interest in any of it. For me the novel would've been perfection with that aspect of it kept to a minimum and the focus instead placed entirely on the lovers. Was any character ever as drool-worthy as Richard St. Vier? Quiet but fire-hearted, hired killer but tender & nurturing & polite..ferociously protective, poetry loving, he will never entirely leave my mind. I would've read twenty books about him; that Kushner killed both men off in a short story only a few years after this book was published is inexplicable, terrible, stupid. I cut that short story out of the new paperback edition that includes it and threw it out, one of the highest honors a writer can receive. I can't recommend this novel highly enough to anyone who has a deeply romantic soul and loves unusual couples, richly drawn fantasy worlds and stories with clever twists that you simply hate to see end. If Kushner ever chooses to revive Richard & Alec I will be first in line at Borders to buy that book.

Laslonnian

Rating:
Summary: A subtle and engrossing tale.
Review: I really enjoyed reading this book. The characters are compelling, the plot complex, and the pace just right. Richard St. Vier is the kind of hero you can fall in love with. The misadventure of Micheal Godwin and the subtle manipulations of Diane Tremontaine (my favorite character) are, in a word, addicting. I wish this book were longer!

However, though I have a lot of praise for this book, and I gave it my highest score, that doesn't mean it's absolutely perfect. Kushner has a tendancy to get swept away in the whole "melodrama of manners" bit. In place of the kind of action sequences you'd find in most other fantasy books you will find a roomful of nobles tossing subtle insults and innuendoes at each other. The fighting comes not in combat, but in verbal jousts and double entendres, many of which flew straight over my head. There is the odd swordfight, however, to spice things up.

My biggest complaint is that the books ends too soon. There are a lot of loose ends that never get tied up. Does Alec ever reconcile his past? What becomes of Ferris? What about Micheal Godwin? He was in a pretty sketchy situation last time we saw him. For that matter, what becomes of Diane Tremontaine? Do her manipulations go on forever, or does someone finally put a stop to her? What about the proposal Diane made to a certain other character, which concerned both their futures in the city? How does that develop? And what about Richard and Katherine's shared past?

A couple hundred more pages would tie everything up, or make a good attempt to. The threads left hanging makes this story ripe for a sequel, but it appears that a direct sequel may never come. At least Riverside lovers have Fall of the Kings, even if it does take place twenty years after the events of Swordspoint.

Overall, I love this story because it takes risks. In a genre innundated with magic and elves and dragons and wars, Kushner took a risk in writing something more witty, more subtle, and more elegant. There is no magic here; no elves either. A dragon does get slain in this book, but not in the manner you're probably thinking.

I recommend this to readers who want something different, and don't mind a lack of elves or rings of power in their fantasy.

Rating:
Summary: Can't recommend this enough...
Review: I sincerely couldn't recommend this book enough times, if only just for the sheer pleasure of the language that Kushner uses. Having read Lynn Flewelling's Seregil books (Luck in the Shadows, etc) just before, I was doubly impressed by the huge difference in the level of the prose. (This is not saying I don't like Lynn Flewelling's books-- I loved them.) I'm a glutton for gorgeously composed text and this book had such a fantastic texture to it, like an elaborate embroidery or an intricate filigreed jewelery piece.

Not to mention the characters! I adored Alec and Richard... especially Richard... *sighs*... there's not enough words for how many parts of this book I loved. I'd originally read a friend's borrowed copy and was so reluctant to give it back, and am now searching for a copy of my own. I wish the book wasn't out of print, but if you can find it at your local library, it's definitely worth more than a look!

Rating:
Summary: Fabulous characters, fabulous writing, fabulous book
Review: I truly love this book. The moment I picked it up I couldn'tstop reading it. I've read it so many times I can't even objectively say what I like about Swordspoint so much any more. The tangled, violent affair between acidic, morbidly humorous Alec and pragmatic, lethal Richard St. Vier is kinetic and addicting, perfectly written. I absolutely love these two characters together. The supporting cast is colorful and enjoyable. Ellen Kushner chose to write this story with subtlety, and never does she explain anything outright. I wish she'd fleshed it out into a longer, more thorough read, so I could enjoy even more of it, but what she wrote was more than good enough for me. Getting to the last page was heartbreaking; I didn't want these characters and this story to end. I haven't had a moment's peace since the day I heard there was a sequel in the works; I'm so anxious for it to come out I could explode. The day I read more about silver-tongued Alec and sure-footed Richard, I'll be a very, very happy girl(and while short stories to tease me further are fun, I want another novel!!!).

Rating:
Summary: dangerous liaisons + oscar wilde + sheer elegance
Review: I would die to be able to construct a plot and use language the way Ellen Kushner does in _Swordspoint_. The fact that this book is out of print is a crime, because it's the type of book that fantasy/sci-fi literature needs to produce more of if it wants to avoid turning the entire genre into soap-opera pablum.

_Swordspoint_ tells the story of a young duellist who becomes embroiled in a complex, witty, and fascinating tale of political intrigue and romantic intensity. The "City" which Richard (the swordsman) and Alec (his intellectual lover) share with street beggars, aristocrats, and everyone in between, is a melange of early-modern London, swashbuckling Paris, and pure dreamscape.

Kushner writes in a lush, dark, gleefully malevolent style that contrasts somewhat with the warm, nurturing persona she exudes on her NPR program "Sound and Spirit." I (and, I know, many other readers) would love to see more stories set in the City, featuring Richard, Alec, and the rest of the rogues' gallery. Please, Ms. Kushner, indulge us soon!