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World of the Five Gods (Publication) #2
Paladin of Souls
In a land threatened by treacherous war and beset by demons, royal dowager Ista, released from the curse of madness and manipulated by an untrustworthy god, is plunged into a desperate struggle to preserve the endangered souls of a realm.
470 pages, Paperback
First published September 23, 2003
About the author
Lois McMaster Bujold
202 books38.5k followersLois McMaster Bujold was born in 1949, the daughter of an engineering professor at Ohio State University, from whom she picked up her early interest in science fiction. She now lives in Minneapolis, and has two grown children.
Her fantasy from HarperCollins includes the award-winning Chalion series and the Sharing Knife tetralogy; her science fiction from Baen Books features the perennially bestselling Vorkosigan Saga. Her work has been translated into over twenty languages.
Questions regarding foreign rights, film/tv subrights, and other business matters should be directed to Spectrum Literary Agency, spectrumliteraryagency.com
A listing of her awards and nominations may be seen here:
http://www.sfadb.com/Lois_McMaster_Bu...
A listing of her interviews is here:
http://vorkosigan.wikia.com/wiki/Auth...
An older fan-run site devoted to her work, The Bujold Nexus, is here:
http://www.dendarii.com/
Her fantasy from HarperCollins includes the award-winning Chalion series and the Sharing Knife tetralogy; her science fiction from Baen Books features the perennially bestselling Vorkosigan Saga. Her work has been translated into over twenty languages.
Questions regarding foreign rights, film/tv subrights, and other business matters should be directed to Spectrum Literary Agency, spectrumliteraryagency.com
A listing of her awards and nominations may be seen here:
http://www.sfadb.com/Lois_McMaster_Bu...
A listing of her interviews is here:
http://vorkosigan.wikia.com/wiki/Auth...
An older fan-run site devoted to her work, The Bujold Nexus, is here:
http://www.dendarii.com/
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 1,625 reviews
January 31, 2012
Unexpectedly captivating.
I'm a longtime fantasy reader, but I've gotten tired of the current crop of twenty year old heroines, the descriptions of their clothes, their vague struggles with boyfriends, and the development of their special powers. Even if coming-into-one's power storylines are set with werewolves and vampires, a certain uniformity starts to develop. Paladin does something I never expected in an epic fantasy; she's written a thoughtful coming-of-age story focused on a forty-year old noblewoman who has been fighting her 'god-touched' connection for years.
Ista is an interesting, complex female lead that is reaching toward change, even if she isn't exactly sure how to get there. She's had emotional scarring in her past, and years of a cursed "madness" coupled with her status as a royal have kept her wrapped in a cocoon. However, she recognizes this and longs for some unspecified alternative. "The dullness of her life, the stalemate of her soul since then was just long habit." She develops a plan to escape her highly protected life under the guise of a pilgrimage visiting various gods' shrines. It's part of the underlying irony that this is Ista's justification for travel when she secretly hates the gods and their interference in her life.
While some events happen to her in the beginning, she begins to take more authority over her choices and decisions little by little, until it is partly her energy and leadership that Her entourage is an interesting group as well. Liss, a courier pressed into service as a lady's maid, made me laugh when they first tried to work out how to manage Ista's hair. "You do your own, presumably. What do you do with it?" "Well, I put it in a braid..." "Do you do the horses?" "Oh yes, my lady. Snail braids, and dressed with ribbons..." It's a charming little snippet of dialogue that shows Ista's willingness to step outside her traditional boundaries.
Bujold has a very unexpected way of dealing with demons, god-possession and life-energy. Part of Ista's struggles are a personal and theological grudge against the deities of her world from events that happened during her early marriage. Even within the framework of the system Bujold has created, she manages to take the spiritual angles of the magic and demon system to unexpected places. A demon-ridden woman, initially set up to be a negative and opposing force, develops into a tragic figure by the end of the story.
Bujold's writing is a perfect mix of description and action. I enjoyed her imagery and use of language. The subtle ways she shows us Ista's confinement at court; the pacing, bouncing her foot furiously beneath a gown, a well-meaning handmaiden taking the outside edge of a steep walkway all go so much farther to convey the feeling than a mere "Ista was frustrated." Ista herself is quite a woman, with intelligence and depths of character; her moments of sly humor streaking through her thoughts bring a smile to Ista and the reader, even as she conceals her thoughts from her surrounding company. "She wondered, a little dryly, if the school also had a particularly fine cook." "She approached the possessed animal, who lowered its head again... in what might be submission, love or dementia."
Yet while Ista develops and pushes herself in new directions, Bujold wisely keeps transformations believable. . All in all, a well-balanced and nicely developed book that deserves its many awards.
I'm a longtime fantasy reader, but I've gotten tired of the current crop of twenty year old heroines, the descriptions of their clothes, their vague struggles with boyfriends, and the development of their special powers. Even if coming-into-one's power storylines are set with werewolves and vampires, a certain uniformity starts to develop. Paladin does something I never expected in an epic fantasy; she's written a thoughtful coming-of-age story focused on a forty-year old noblewoman who has been fighting her 'god-touched' connection for years.
Ista is an interesting, complex female lead that is reaching toward change, even if she isn't exactly sure how to get there. She's had emotional scarring in her past, and years of a cursed "madness" coupled with her status as a royal have kept her wrapped in a cocoon. However, she recognizes this and longs for some unspecified alternative. "The dullness of her life, the stalemate of her soul since then was just long habit." She develops a plan to escape her highly protected life under the guise of a pilgrimage visiting various gods' shrines. It's part of the underlying irony that this is Ista's justification for travel when she secretly hates the gods and their interference in her life.
While some events happen to her in the beginning, she begins to take more authority over her choices and decisions little by little, until it is partly her energy and leadership that Her entourage is an interesting group as well. Liss, a courier pressed into service as a lady's maid, made me laugh when they first tried to work out how to manage Ista's hair. "You do your own, presumably. What do you do with it?" "Well, I put it in a braid..." "Do you do the horses?" "Oh yes, my lady. Snail braids, and dressed with ribbons..." It's a charming little snippet of dialogue that shows Ista's willingness to step outside her traditional boundaries.
Bujold has a very unexpected way of dealing with demons, god-possession and life-energy. Part of Ista's struggles are a personal and theological grudge against the deities of her world from events that happened during her early marriage. Even within the framework of the system Bujold has created, she manages to take the spiritual angles of the magic and demon system to unexpected places. A demon-ridden woman, initially set up to be a negative and opposing force, develops into a tragic figure by the end of the story.
Bujold's writing is a perfect mix of description and action. I enjoyed her imagery and use of language. The subtle ways she shows us Ista's confinement at court; the pacing, bouncing her foot furiously beneath a gown, a well-meaning handmaiden taking the outside edge of a steep walkway all go so much farther to convey the feeling than a mere "Ista was frustrated." Ista herself is quite a woman, with intelligence and depths of character; her moments of sly humor streaking through her thoughts bring a smile to Ista and the reader, even as she conceals her thoughts from her surrounding company. "She wondered, a little dryly, if the school also had a particularly fine cook." "She approached the possessed animal, who lowered its head again... in what might be submission, love or dementia."
Yet while Ista develops and pushes herself in new directions, Bujold wisely keeps transformations believable. . All in all, a well-balanced and nicely developed book that deserves its many awards.
October 16, 2018
"I do not speak to you as your royina. I do not even speak as one god-touched. I speak as a woman, who has walked to the end of that road and returns to report the hazards."
Middle-aged woman, a widowed mother of two, believed to be deranged (well, at least not entirely right in her head) is certainly not your typical fantasy heroine. But just like it was in the first instalment in the World of the Five Gods series, Ms Bujold proves to be very adept at creating the most unusual protagonists. As Zaara said “Bujold is the sabre-tooth tigress mama with all those Hugos and Nebulas tucked away in her den.” The prizes (and the praise) are not without merit.
First things first. While for me The World of the Five Gods is a superb fantasy, I believe this series is for a mature and well-versed reader. If all you know is contemporary YA fantasy and/or hack-and-slash adventuring novels, I’d advise you to go and read elsewhere for a decade or two and then come back if you want to fully appreciate this book and avoid the frustration of failed expectations.
There are three main pillars upon which this great story is built: incredible world-building, wonderful character development and a wholesome story; neither an adventure nor a romance or a philosophical treaty and at the same time all little bit of all.
"Who am I, when I am not surrounded by the walls of my life? When they have all fallen into dust and rubble?"
You would think that there is no need for worldbuilding since The Paladin of Souls is the second instalment in the series and a very detailed account of the settings has already been provided by Cazaril in the previous book. You couldn’t be more wrong. Ms Bujold is a great architect and while she has built a great palace, she had taken the reader to tour only the ground floor in the Curse of Chalion. Presently, she shows us the basements, and the gardens and even some rooms that have up to date been locked. The basic layout remains the same, but there are new details that on the one hand fit with the already familiar background, and on the other bring new spark and shine. Another striking thing is the ability to paint the things and people we thought we knew (from the previous book) in an entirely different light. Like it wasn't the world and people we knew. Like it was some strange landscape, entirely different and because of that, even more interesting.
I admire Bujold's writing; her unique style is informative without being info-dumpy, lyrical but avoiding pompousness, reflexive but not turning into a self-help textbook and showing, showing the most important things through gestures and words unsaid. You should see my copy of the book with tons of notes and highlights. I know that such super reflexive and intimate writing is not for everyone, but for me, it works. I ponder with the main heroine, I feel Ista, and even though I liked her previously already, I bond with her the more easily.
"It's only a habit, you know. I'm not mad anymore, really."
Ista was one of my favourites in The Curse of Chalion and I was very excited that she has been given the centre of the stage this time. And she grows, my how she grows, from the mad and forlorn woman trapped into her life of function and position into an independent and conscious mistress of her own ways and choices.
The plot is simple; three years have passed since the divine curse has been broken by Lord dy Cazaril. Ista escapes the confines of her late mother’s castle under the pretext of a pious amble around the countryside travelling incognito. The whole scheme is a sham as Ista is not on the speaking terms with the gods and her scarred soul still bleeds in the darkness. But because the gods are strangely attracted to her especially that apparently a demonic infestation is underway, the initial travelogue quickly changes into a tale of, not redemption, but one of rediscovery and also forgiveness.
”A disaster out of season, I surely am.”
In addition to the theological turbulences, Ista meets a scion of dy Lutez family and his wife in what is one of the most refreshing love triangles I had the pleasure to read, so unlike the mundane love triangles that kill the YA genre . There is also a shared mortal wound that will make you wonder in how many different ways might three people kill two of each other with one knife and a singularly unusual siege.
In addition to those already mentioned, there is also a pleiad of other characters, some that we have been already acquainted with, and some new ones, including Liss, courier turned lady-in-waiting, brothers Foix and Ferde dy Gura, learned Chivan dy Cabon, a priest of the Bastard with the Lord Bastard himself making an appearance. They all, the divine and the mundane, revolve around Ista, solemn Ista, angry Ista, iron Ista but also hilarious Ista. She does have a stinging wit. I chuckled at her retorts or mental responses more than once.
”Lord Bastard, you bastard.”
Damn, but Bujold can write divinities. I nearly laughed out loud at Ista’s first encounter with the god. And her daunt, defiant attitude is just great. Usually, in fantasy we are served with a figure of a faithful versus the divine, not somebody who hates the gods and curses them vehemently instead of praying graces. But most importantly, it all makes sense. There are no holes in the story, no stray ends, and no conveniences. All is sound and deep.
I think I liked the Paladin of Souls at least as much as I did the predecessor if not more. It is not only a pleasant and captivating read but also a valuable one – a thing that becomes a rarity in contemporary fantasy.
--
Also in the series:
1. The Curse of Chalion ★★★★★
3. The Hallowed Hunt ★★★☆☆
Middle-aged woman, a widowed mother of two, believed to be deranged (well, at least not entirely right in her head) is certainly not your typical fantasy heroine. But just like it was in the first instalment in the World of the Five Gods series, Ms Bujold proves to be very adept at creating the most unusual protagonists. As Zaara said “Bujold is the sabre-tooth tigress mama with all those Hugos and Nebulas tucked away in her den.” The prizes (and the praise) are not without merit.
First things first. While for me The World of the Five Gods is a superb fantasy, I believe this series is for a mature and well-versed reader. If all you know is contemporary YA fantasy and/or hack-and-slash adventuring novels, I’d advise you to go and read elsewhere for a decade or two and then come back if you want to fully appreciate this book and avoid the frustration of failed expectations.
There are three main pillars upon which this great story is built: incredible world-building, wonderful character development and a wholesome story; neither an adventure nor a romance or a philosophical treaty and at the same time all little bit of all.
"Who am I, when I am not surrounded by the walls of my life? When they have all fallen into dust and rubble?"
You would think that there is no need for worldbuilding since The Paladin of Souls is the second instalment in the series and a very detailed account of the settings has already been provided by Cazaril in the previous book. You couldn’t be more wrong. Ms Bujold is a great architect and while she has built a great palace, she had taken the reader to tour only the ground floor in the Curse of Chalion. Presently, she shows us the basements, and the gardens and even some rooms that have up to date been locked. The basic layout remains the same, but there are new details that on the one hand fit with the already familiar background, and on the other bring new spark and shine. Another striking thing is the ability to paint the things and people we thought we knew (from the previous book) in an entirely different light. Like it wasn't the world and people we knew. Like it was some strange landscape, entirely different and because of that, even more interesting.
I admire Bujold's writing; her unique style is informative without being info-dumpy, lyrical but avoiding pompousness, reflexive but not turning into a self-help textbook and showing, showing the most important things through gestures and words unsaid. You should see my copy of the book with tons of notes and highlights. I know that such super reflexive and intimate writing is not for everyone, but for me, it works. I ponder with the main heroine, I feel Ista, and even though I liked her previously already, I bond with her the more easily.
"It's only a habit, you know. I'm not mad anymore, really."
Ista was one of my favourites in The Curse of Chalion and I was very excited that she has been given the centre of the stage this time. And she grows, my how she grows, from the mad and forlorn woman trapped into her life of function and position into an independent and conscious mistress of her own ways and choices.
The plot is simple; three years have passed since the divine curse has been broken by Lord dy Cazaril. Ista escapes the confines of her late mother’s castle under the pretext of a pious amble around the countryside travelling incognito. The whole scheme is a sham as Ista is not on the speaking terms with the gods and her scarred soul still bleeds in the darkness. But because the gods are strangely attracted to her especially that apparently a demonic infestation is underway, the initial travelogue quickly changes into a tale of, not redemption, but one of rediscovery and also forgiveness.
”A disaster out of season, I surely am.”
In addition to the theological turbulences, Ista meets a scion of dy Lutez family and his wife in what is one of the most refreshing love triangles I had the pleasure to read, so unlike the mundane love triangles that kill the YA genre . There is also a shared mortal wound that will make you wonder in how many different ways might three people kill two of each other with one knife and a singularly unusual siege.
In addition to those already mentioned, there is also a pleiad of other characters, some that we have been already acquainted with, and some new ones, including Liss, courier turned lady-in-waiting, brothers Foix and Ferde dy Gura, learned Chivan dy Cabon, a priest of the Bastard with the Lord Bastard himself making an appearance. They all, the divine and the mundane, revolve around Ista, solemn Ista, angry Ista, iron Ista but also hilarious Ista. She does have a stinging wit. I chuckled at her retorts or mental responses more than once.
”Lord Bastard, you bastard.”
Damn, but Bujold can write divinities. I nearly laughed out loud at Ista’s first encounter with the god. And her daunt, defiant attitude is just great. Usually, in fantasy we are served with a figure of a faithful versus the divine, not somebody who hates the gods and curses them vehemently instead of praying graces. But most importantly, it all makes sense. There are no holes in the story, no stray ends, and no conveniences. All is sound and deep.
I think I liked the Paladin of Souls at least as much as I did the predecessor if not more. It is not only a pleasant and captivating read but also a valuable one – a thing that becomes a rarity in contemporary fantasy.
--
Also in the series:
1. The Curse of Chalion ★★★★★
3. The Hallowed Hunt ★★★☆☆
February 9, 2017
Even though this one is set in the same universe and there are crossover references and characters, this novel is quite different from The Curse of Chalion, in both situation, location, and MC's. Don't let that dissuade you, because this book kicks some serious butt. Literally, for there's even a WAR!
Enter Ista, the dowager mother, considered mad but really just god-ridden, bored and desiring a bit of action on the side. (Get your mind out of the gutter. Yes, she does have some romantic feels, on the side, but it's more the case of a woman on a mission of self-discovery, travel, and understanding.) And just because she becomes the Paladin of a God and becomes one of my most favorite female protagonists in fantasy literature, full of rounded personality, wry humor, natural desires and surprising reactions to what ought to be some horrific reveals, should never downplay the fact that when push comes to shove, she really knows how to kick ass. Need I say that the reveals and the novel's climax are amazing? Probably not. The novel is a widespread favorite of a lot of people and it won the Hugo in 2004.
Of course, she's not the only great character in the novel. I have to say I've grown quite fond of the Bastard. Liss has quite a personality, too. :)
I'm fascinated at just how much this novel does NOT feel like a pilgrimage of saints. Or how the portrayal of so much death does NOT feel strange or odd, but instead feels like a spur to great things. I was frankly amazed at feeling a great deal of awe at so many of the otherwise fantasy-normal events that were twisted on their sides to appear as something completely different than I'm used to.
I could just chalk that up to Bujold being Awesome Bujold, but I think it's something more than that. She manages to turn something that ought to be epic fantasy with battles and demons and mages with blood flying everywhere into something personal and revealing and surprising, and that isn't something that anyone should take lightly. It takes a brilliant writer to pull that off, and she's got the chops. :)
Beautiful novel. :)
Enter Ista, the dowager mother, considered mad but really just god-ridden, bored and desiring a bit of action on the side. (Get your mind out of the gutter. Yes, she does have some romantic feels, on the side, but it's more the case of a woman on a mission of self-discovery, travel, and understanding.) And just because she becomes the Paladin of a God and becomes one of my most favorite female protagonists in fantasy literature, full of rounded personality, wry humor, natural desires and surprising reactions to what ought to be some horrific reveals, should never downplay the fact that when push comes to shove, she really knows how to kick ass. Need I say that the reveals and the novel's climax are amazing? Probably not. The novel is a widespread favorite of a lot of people and it won the Hugo in 2004.
Of course, she's not the only great character in the novel. I have to say I've grown quite fond of the Bastard. Liss has quite a personality, too. :)
I'm fascinated at just how much this novel does NOT feel like a pilgrimage of saints. Or how the portrayal of so much death does NOT feel strange or odd, but instead feels like a spur to great things. I was frankly amazed at feeling a great deal of awe at so many of the otherwise fantasy-normal events that were twisted on their sides to appear as something completely different than I'm used to.
I could just chalk that up to Bujold being Awesome Bujold, but I think it's something more than that. She manages to turn something that ought to be epic fantasy with battles and demons and mages with blood flying everywhere into something personal and revealing and surprising, and that isn't something that anyone should take lightly. It takes a brilliant writer to pull that off, and she's got the chops. :)
Beautiful novel. :)
February 19, 2018
the woman is not old, but blame the place and time, she is seen as such. the woman is not maternal, despite having given birth to a child she loves. the woman is not mentally unwell, but blame the past's taint on her present, she is seen as such. the woman seeks adventure and an opening for escape from the smothering life that those who love her would trap her in. she forces a door to open and so off she goes! smart, brave, emotional, critical, modest, kind, and eccentric... she's all the best things, yet flawed as well. my kind of woman.
and my kind of book! so thoughtful and carefully considered. an immersive experience from an emotionally intelligent, empathetic author who cares about her characters - and her readers. the prose of a high caliber craftsman, a deliberate pace, fascinating mysteries and puzzling conflicts that resonate on many levels. a satisfying ending. a pleasure to read from beginning to end.
my only complaint: that blasted book cover! it is beautiful, no doubt. but if an author isn't shy about having a middle-aged woman as their novel's protagonist, damn the artist (and publishers) assigned to this book who couldn't be bothered to do the same.
and my kind of book! so thoughtful and carefully considered. an immersive experience from an emotionally intelligent, empathetic author who cares about her characters - and her readers. the prose of a high caliber craftsman, a deliberate pace, fascinating mysteries and puzzling conflicts that resonate on many levels. a satisfying ending. a pleasure to read from beginning to end.
my only complaint: that blasted book cover! it is beautiful, no doubt. but if an author isn't shy about having a middle-aged woman as their novel's protagonist, damn the artist (and publishers) assigned to this book who couldn't be bothered to do the same.
January 12, 2018
*** 4 ***
A buddy read with the folks at FBR, because we love good Fantasy!
"...“The gods give no gifts without hooks embedded.”..."
For anyone who knows me, they must understand my love affair with the works of Lois McMaster Bujold. I am all about the characters who seem normal but are anything but... They are just enough off-center, that they become different than most leading characters we usually meet in both Sci-Fi and the Fantasy genres, despite their obvious to us, after we get to know them, heroic tendencies. They are never perfect, they are never miraculously healed and their happily ever afters are never the ones from our dreams. After you close the book we are aware that their lives do not just end at the back cover of the book, they keep going, making big mistakes and still having the core of Honor which makes them perceive and keep trying to be better, overcoming all the odds. Ms. Bujold writes about the underdog, but not such because of financial or origin circumstances - an underdog by the virtue of their emotional state and the way they see themselves. But she always writes about the regular person who does their best just to stay afloat and that makes them a hero at one point or another, just enough to inspire us to keep on wanting to do better...
"...“And the Bastard grant us... in our direst need, the smallest gifts: the nail of the horseshoe, the pin of the axle, the feather at the pivot point, the pebble at the mountain's peak, the kiss in despair, the one right word.”..."
The Fifth G-d, The Bastard, is the patron of all those who the other four regular, more prominent G-ds overlook and do not desire. He is the G-d of the lost souls, bastards, underachievers, and even demons. So, it is no wonder that when a seemingly random infestation of wayward demons is encountered on the border of Chalion and its ancient foe, The Bastard and his representatives must get involved. At the same time, a very bored, coddled and lonesome Dowager Royina Ista, in her forties and already put in her "chamber" to spend her days with over-protective, overly stuffy and nosy ladies in waiting, every day for the rest of her life!!! She lost her husband, her son, just recently her mother, and carried a part of a dark curse most of her adult life, while for a time she was g-d touched and was able to see the lost souls of the departed, no wonder people think she is insane and are afraid she will take her life, thus creating a gentle prison for her... For her safety, you understand... If she wasn't insane for real, this smothering treatment of her would eventually finish the job. Her souls aches for a breath of freedom and she concocts a pilgrimage to holy cites just so she can get out of the room she has been sentenced to. A young female courier, a group of soldiers and a Divine (priest) of the Bastard accompany her, which is a heck of a lot smaller entourage than her "jailers" wanted to bestow upon her. However, the land is till unsettled and the border region has seen some enemy raids, and maybe her smaller group is not as prudent as it should as far as protection is concerned...
"...“One learns better than to hand one’s choices to fear. With age, with every wound and scar, one learns.”..."
So, our heroes get besieged, deal with demons, some maybe dead men, magic, and of course, the G-ds, most specifically, The Bastard. It is always trouble when the divine decide to involve you in their dealings. So our dowdy dowager finds the strength of spirit to deal with everything that comes her way, finding on the way parts of herself she thought long lost. This is where LMB shines - the simplicity of the way she captures deep emotional feelings without making them angsty and over-blowing the emotions we have gotten used to see overblown in other reads... She still finds a way, a very minimalistic and in that way very poignant way of making a deep emotional connection, delving into the soul just with a word, a nod or an act, but never with "prosaic fat"...
"...“It is imperfect. So are all things trapped in time. You are brilliant, nonetheless. How fortunate for Us that We thirst for glorious souls rather than faultless ones, or We should be parched indeed, and most lonely in Our perfect righteousness. Carry on imperfectly, shining Ista.”..."
Do I even need to say it now? Yes, I recommend this series to every fan of Fantasy and Ms. Bujold, but I think it would connect better with the more mature reader. After all, there is a sensibility that often comes with age, and only few of the luckier younglings get the pleasure to enjoy. As always, she brings deeply personal and spiritual questions, never giving you a right or wrong answer but leaving it up to us. We can never accuse LMB of being preachy:):):)
"...“We are all of us, every one, our own works; we present our souls to our Patrons at the ends of our lives as an artisan presents the works of his hands.” ..."
Now I wish you all Happy Reading and may you always find what you need in the pages of a Good Book!!!
A buddy read with the folks at FBR, because we love good Fantasy!
"...“The gods give no gifts without hooks embedded.”..."
For anyone who knows me, they must understand my love affair with the works of Lois McMaster Bujold. I am all about the characters who seem normal but are anything but... They are just enough off-center, that they become different than most leading characters we usually meet in both Sci-Fi and the Fantasy genres, despite their obvious to us, after we get to know them, heroic tendencies. They are never perfect, they are never miraculously healed and their happily ever afters are never the ones from our dreams. After you close the book we are aware that their lives do not just end at the back cover of the book, they keep going, making big mistakes and still having the core of Honor which makes them perceive and keep trying to be better, overcoming all the odds. Ms. Bujold writes about the underdog, but not such because of financial or origin circumstances - an underdog by the virtue of their emotional state and the way they see themselves. But she always writes about the regular person who does their best just to stay afloat and that makes them a hero at one point or another, just enough to inspire us to keep on wanting to do better...
"...“And the Bastard grant us... in our direst need, the smallest gifts: the nail of the horseshoe, the pin of the axle, the feather at the pivot point, the pebble at the mountain's peak, the kiss in despair, the one right word.”..."
The Fifth G-d, The Bastard, is the patron of all those who the other four regular, more prominent G-ds overlook and do not desire. He is the G-d of the lost souls, bastards, underachievers, and even demons. So, it is no wonder that when a seemingly random infestation of wayward demons is encountered on the border of Chalion and its ancient foe, The Bastard and his representatives must get involved. At the same time, a very bored, coddled and lonesome Dowager Royina Ista, in her forties and already put in her "chamber" to spend her days with over-protective, overly stuffy and nosy ladies in waiting, every day for the rest of her life!!! She lost her husband, her son, just recently her mother, and carried a part of a dark curse most of her adult life, while for a time she was g-d touched and was able to see the lost souls of the departed, no wonder people think she is insane and are afraid she will take her life, thus creating a gentle prison for her... For her safety, you understand... If she wasn't insane for real, this smothering treatment of her would eventually finish the job. Her souls aches for a breath of freedom and she concocts a pilgrimage to holy cites just so she can get out of the room she has been sentenced to. A young female courier, a group of soldiers and a Divine (priest) of the Bastard accompany her, which is a heck of a lot smaller entourage than her "jailers" wanted to bestow upon her. However, the land is till unsettled and the border region has seen some enemy raids, and maybe her smaller group is not as prudent as it should as far as protection is concerned...
"...“One learns better than to hand one’s choices to fear. With age, with every wound and scar, one learns.”..."
So, our heroes get besieged, deal with demons, some maybe dead men, magic, and of course, the G-ds, most specifically, The Bastard. It is always trouble when the divine decide to involve you in their dealings. So our dowdy dowager finds the strength of spirit to deal with everything that comes her way, finding on the way parts of herself she thought long lost. This is where LMB shines - the simplicity of the way she captures deep emotional feelings without making them angsty and over-blowing the emotions we have gotten used to see overblown in other reads... She still finds a way, a very minimalistic and in that way very poignant way of making a deep emotional connection, delving into the soul just with a word, a nod or an act, but never with "prosaic fat"...
"...“It is imperfect. So are all things trapped in time. You are brilliant, nonetheless. How fortunate for Us that We thirst for glorious souls rather than faultless ones, or We should be parched indeed, and most lonely in Our perfect righteousness. Carry on imperfectly, shining Ista.”..."
Do I even need to say it now? Yes, I recommend this series to every fan of Fantasy and Ms. Bujold, but I think it would connect better with the more mature reader. After all, there is a sensibility that often comes with age, and only few of the luckier younglings get the pleasure to enjoy. As always, she brings deeply personal and spiritual questions, never giving you a right or wrong answer but leaving it up to us. We can never accuse LMB of being preachy:):):)
"...“We are all of us, every one, our own works; we present our souls to our Patrons at the ends of our lives as an artisan presents the works of his hands.” ..."
Now I wish you all Happy Reading and may you always find what you need in the pages of a Good Book!!!
February 18, 2017
Updated Review Sept 12, 2015:
I always find it really difficult to review those books that I experience at a gut level and love completely irrationally. This was one of those. I simply enjoyed reading every moment of it, and don't know how to explain why. Now I've put it off for too long, and I'm going to try anyway.
First of all, if you've read The Curse of Chalion, you need to know that the pacing and focus of this book is completely different. That one was epic, full of political intrigue and kingdom-wide conflicts. This is not. It mostly takes place in a remote fortress and focuses on characters more than kingdom. So the pace is much different, and may seem slow if you're expecting action-driven plot. Now that that's out of the way...
I really loved that the main character is a middle-aged woman. It's not often that you get someone with more experience as a main character in Fantasy. In this case, Ista has already lived a life. She was married to the (now dead) king, and has grown children who are out of the picture. But although everyone around her believes that's all she's allotted to get out of life, she is not by any means old and is completely stifled. She still needs to find out who she can be, just as much as any young protagonist out there. So we get a mature woman who escapes from home and her caretakers to find adventure and a new life for herself. Hurray!
Maybe it's the fact that I am no longer a fledgling myself, but her story really resonated with me. Her observations about life and people were so spot on for someone who has lived more than 30 years. Plus, I really liked her. I wanted to be her. Since this is a character-driven story, that's kind of important.
Aside from Ista, there's a full cast of characters to complement her, and I enjoyed all of them (except the ones I wasn't supposed to). It's been a couple months since I read this, and I still remember at least six of the characters even if I've forgotten their names. There's the monk, two soldier brothers who actually have their own personalities, a female messenger turned lady's maid, and a dynamic lord of the fortress whose brother is mysteriously ill. The mystery of the brother's illness is where the story really gets going, in case you haven't been hooked yet by that point.
What drives the plot are the mystery behind the brother's illness, and problems of god-possession and demon-possession. Ista has been touched by a god before, and was considered insane for years. Now she wants to avoid anything to do with gods because they can't be trusted. Yeah, that doesn't work out so well for her. Once a god notices you, it's impossible to ignore them.
Maybe it built a little slowly, but it captivated me, really from the start. I loved the development of the characters through it all, and the complexity that was revealed over time. How it turned out left me breathless. I was enjoying it so much that I was afraid the ending would disappoint, so I was almost giddy with relief that it didn't. I really loved it. And I know I haven't explained why well enough at all, and used too many words to do it.
Initial Review June 27, 2015:
I loved pretty much every minute of this. Why did I wait so long to read it?? I'll try to write a proper review later.
I always find it really difficult to review those books that I experience at a gut level and love completely irrationally. This was one of those. I simply enjoyed reading every moment of it, and don't know how to explain why. Now I've put it off for too long, and I'm going to try anyway.
First of all, if you've read The Curse of Chalion, you need to know that the pacing and focus of this book is completely different. That one was epic, full of political intrigue and kingdom-wide conflicts. This is not. It mostly takes place in a remote fortress and focuses on characters more than kingdom. So the pace is much different, and may seem slow if you're expecting action-driven plot. Now that that's out of the way...
I really loved that the main character is a middle-aged woman. It's not often that you get someone with more experience as a main character in Fantasy. In this case, Ista has already lived a life. She was married to the (now dead) king, and has grown children who are out of the picture. But although everyone around her believes that's all she's allotted to get out of life, she is not by any means old and is completely stifled. She still needs to find out who she can be, just as much as any young protagonist out there. So we get a mature woman who escapes from home and her caretakers to find adventure and a new life for herself. Hurray!
Maybe it's the fact that I am no longer a fledgling myself, but her story really resonated with me. Her observations about life and people were so spot on for someone who has lived more than 30 years. Plus, I really liked her. I wanted to be her. Since this is a character-driven story, that's kind of important.
Aside from Ista, there's a full cast of characters to complement her, and I enjoyed all of them (except the ones I wasn't supposed to). It's been a couple months since I read this, and I still remember at least six of the characters even if I've forgotten their names. There's the monk, two soldier brothers who actually have their own personalities, a female messenger turned lady's maid, and a dynamic lord of the fortress whose brother is mysteriously ill. The mystery of the brother's illness is where the story really gets going, in case you haven't been hooked yet by that point.
What drives the plot are the mystery behind the brother's illness, and problems of god-possession and demon-possession. Ista has been touched by a god before, and was considered insane for years. Now she wants to avoid anything to do with gods because they can't be trusted. Yeah, that doesn't work out so well for her. Once a god notices you, it's impossible to ignore them.
Maybe it built a little slowly, but it captivated me, really from the start. I loved the development of the characters through it all, and the complexity that was revealed over time. How it turned out left me breathless. I was enjoying it so much that I was afraid the ending would disappoint, so I was almost giddy with relief that it didn't. I really loved it. And I know I haven't explained why well enough at all, and used too many words to do it.
Initial Review June 27, 2015:
I loved pretty much every minute of this. Why did I wait so long to read it?? I'll try to write a proper review later.
Read
September 20, 2015I have to admit my partisanship right up front. I am a dedicated fan of the Miles Vorkosigan books and I loved The Curse of Chalion, which serves as a prequel to this book. Though Paladin stands quite well on its own.
The plot is fairly easily summed up: the Royina Ista, a middle-aged widow, decides to go on pilgrimage through the land of Chalion, which feels a lot like a Renaissance alternate-Spain, one that is overseen from the other-worldly realm by five gods, so there are five religious traditions going on here.
On the way she and the divine leading her entourage discover that demons have been appearing in the world with disturbing frequency, having escaped from the fifth god’s hell. The pilgrimage is then waylaid by a lost contingent of Roknari warriors from the neighboring kingdom; she is rescued by a swashbuckling horseman who attacks a troop single-handedly. He is Arhys, march of Porifors, a border fortress that has seen far too much action of late.
Roknari, demons, and gods tangle up in fast action covering just a span of days, and Ista is squarely at the center.
What make the story so rich and readable are Bujold’s strengths as a storyteller, here on confident display. Ista is, like Cordelia Naismith, a grouchy, funny, smart middle-aged heroine, not beautiful, but eminently lovable, even when she is angry and soul-parched and must rediscover love.
Besides Ista there are a pair of heroes who ought to please anyone who likes swashbuckling men, and a cast of subsidiary characters none of whom are mere spear carriers or cardboard Greek chorus, all reacting the same way in order to signal the reader what emotional reaction is required.
Bujold is not just a master of plot, she is a master of emotion.
“I think you left some hard turns out of your tale, too.” But that last remark had the weight and density of a truth too large to be denied. How like a man, to change from mask to mask like a player, concealing all intention, yet leave his heart out on the table, carelessly, unregarded, for all to see.
The action is enriched, with grace and wit, by subtle characterization that suggests that middle-aged love can be sexy and romantic, can even be the more powerful because the attraction is backed by experience.
But the young characters are not overlooked. One of the most interesting and complex is Arhys’ young wife, who is gorgeous, obsessively in love, and very self-centered. However she too is no one-note character. As the story unfolds, she reveals layers that make her fate impossible to predict.
One of Bujold’s strengths is the generosity of spirit that gleams like a vein of gold through even the grimmest wars and immoral actions of the Vorkosigan saga. In the Chalion world, there is plenty of room for emotional conflict, and growth, for moral choice and its consequences.
What this fantasy series permits Bujold to explore, as the Barrayaran stories do in a very limited sense, is speculative religion. And she does it with verve and dash.
Ista swallowed, or tried to. And prayed, Ista-fashion: or made a prayer of rage, as some claimed to do of song or the work of their hands. So long as it was from the heart, the divines promised, the gods would hear. . .I am not a child, or virgin, or modest wife, fearing to offend. No one owns my eyes now but me. If I have not the stomach by now to look upon any sight in the world, good or evil, beautiful or vile, when shall I? It is far too late for innocence.
The gods are not one-dimensional, predictable human analogues. Rare is the light-shaft of numinosity in fantasy these days, despite (maybe because of) vast powers being splashed back and forth across the megaverse by Evial Mages and Goddess-blessed Sorceresses, but Bujold manages it in this novel.
“Your Father calls you to his Court. You need not pack; you go garbed in glory as you stand.”
This series is generous with action, character, humor, terror, moral as well as physical conflict, emotional complexity, religious questing in the realm of the spirit-—and redemption.
The plot is fairly easily summed up: the Royina Ista, a middle-aged widow, decides to go on pilgrimage through the land of Chalion, which feels a lot like a Renaissance alternate-Spain, one that is overseen from the other-worldly realm by five gods, so there are five religious traditions going on here.
On the way she and the divine leading her entourage discover that demons have been appearing in the world with disturbing frequency, having escaped from the fifth god’s hell. The pilgrimage is then waylaid by a lost contingent of Roknari warriors from the neighboring kingdom; she is rescued by a swashbuckling horseman who attacks a troop single-handedly. He is Arhys, march of Porifors, a border fortress that has seen far too much action of late.
Roknari, demons, and gods tangle up in fast action covering just a span of days, and Ista is squarely at the center.
What make the story so rich and readable are Bujold’s strengths as a storyteller, here on confident display. Ista is, like Cordelia Naismith, a grouchy, funny, smart middle-aged heroine, not beautiful, but eminently lovable, even when she is angry and soul-parched and must rediscover love.
Besides Ista there are a pair of heroes who ought to please anyone who likes swashbuckling men, and a cast of subsidiary characters none of whom are mere spear carriers or cardboard Greek chorus, all reacting the same way in order to signal the reader what emotional reaction is required.
Bujold is not just a master of plot, she is a master of emotion.
“I think you left some hard turns out of your tale, too.” But that last remark had the weight and density of a truth too large to be denied. How like a man, to change from mask to mask like a player, concealing all intention, yet leave his heart out on the table, carelessly, unregarded, for all to see.
The action is enriched, with grace and wit, by subtle characterization that suggests that middle-aged love can be sexy and romantic, can even be the more powerful because the attraction is backed by experience.
But the young characters are not overlooked. One of the most interesting and complex is Arhys’ young wife, who is gorgeous, obsessively in love, and very self-centered. However she too is no one-note character. As the story unfolds, she reveals layers that make her fate impossible to predict.
One of Bujold’s strengths is the generosity of spirit that gleams like a vein of gold through even the grimmest wars and immoral actions of the Vorkosigan saga. In the Chalion world, there is plenty of room for emotional conflict, and growth, for moral choice and its consequences.
What this fantasy series permits Bujold to explore, as the Barrayaran stories do in a very limited sense, is speculative religion. And she does it with verve and dash.
Ista swallowed, or tried to. And prayed, Ista-fashion: or made a prayer of rage, as some claimed to do of song or the work of their hands. So long as it was from the heart, the divines promised, the gods would hear. . .I am not a child, or virgin, or modest wife, fearing to offend. No one owns my eyes now but me. If I have not the stomach by now to look upon any sight in the world, good or evil, beautiful or vile, when shall I? It is far too late for innocence.
The gods are not one-dimensional, predictable human analogues. Rare is the light-shaft of numinosity in fantasy these days, despite (maybe because of) vast powers being splashed back and forth across the megaverse by Evial Mages and Goddess-blessed Sorceresses, but Bujold manages it in this novel.
“Your Father calls you to his Court. You need not pack; you go garbed in glory as you stand.”
This series is generous with action, character, humor, terror, moral as well as physical conflict, emotional complexity, religious questing in the realm of the spirit-—and redemption.
April 15, 2010
This book is an outstanding followup to the first in the series (that I actually read so long ago I didn't quite remember, but it didn't really matter). There are beautiful twists in storytelling here, and a very interesting mature woman character. I found the storytelling refreshing and the characters engaging on a fantasy-level, with a bit of romance (but nothing to turn off guys ;) ). Lois Bujold is an author that transcends genre, definitely check it out!
July 28, 2013
I was a really big fan of this when I started it. It's an aftermath story of a middle-aged woman, a Mother figure from a previous novel who has already lived through the fire and black magic that lead to the somewhat more typical fantasy-adventure of her daughter's coming of age, marrying the prince, producing an heir and living somewhat happily ever after. This woman, considered mad due to her previous involvement with gods and curses and magic, starts the book not even after those events close, but after the death of her dominating mother. She is suddenly alone, with no obligations or immediate threats to face for the first time in twenty years or more and asks a compelling question:
"Who am I, when the walls of my life no longer surround me?"
It drives her to run, to change, to Eat, Pray, Love it up high fantasy style. It's awesome at first watching her assert herself and build her own life and find out her strengths and her talents.
However, perhaps not unexpectedly, she discovers these talents through stumbling upon a A Situation that must be fixed, which only she can do. Unfortunately, this meant that we largely left the more interesting inner character development and exploration to watch her figure out the rules of magic and theology and demons, interspersed with battle sequences. This is her talent, so it makes sense, but I wish that Bujold had kept more of a balance between the way she started the book and the Quest that the rest of the book became. There were still a few affecting moments here and there, but on the whole the rest of the novel became a more typical sword and sorcery thing that I was far less interested in. It was cool, though, to see the hero of such a tale be a middle-aged, somewhat average looking woman, even if she did have super special powers and spoke to gods. That did seem to be somewhat the point, so well done, mission accomplished. You go girl!
It was an interesting experience to read how a typical fantasy hero might be different with twenty years more of experience, a life behind them, and, you know, being a woman, a mother, and one who had made a lot of mistakes and specifically NOT been a hero before. There were decisions that the heroine made that someone without those things would not have (her relationships with her love interest and his brother, her dealings with her former "keepers", and especially her dealings with the other female character with the most screen time). I wish we had spent more time on that aspect of things, though, rather than on the more typical action sequences, magical rules and world building that I could encounter elsewhere. Bujold created a cool thing here, I just wish she'd spent more time making the most out of it, rather than driving home the point of how much this thing is like the other.
In any case, an enjoyable read with an interesting premise that is pretty solidly written throughout. Just not as unique as I thought it would be at the start. Or maybe it's just that I have still only rarely encountered an action sequence that did not make my eyes glaze over if it lasted more than a few pages. That could be it, too. I'll take some of the blame for my less than stellar rating on this one.
"Who am I, when the walls of my life no longer surround me?"
It drives her to run, to change, to Eat, Pray, Love it up high fantasy style. It's awesome at first watching her assert herself and build her own life and find out her strengths and her talents.
However, perhaps not unexpectedly, she discovers these talents through stumbling upon a A Situation that must be fixed, which only she can do. Unfortunately, this meant that we largely left the more interesting inner character development and exploration to watch her figure out the rules of magic and theology and demons, interspersed with battle sequences. This is her talent, so it makes sense, but I wish that Bujold had kept more of a balance between the way she started the book and the Quest that the rest of the book became. There were still a few affecting moments here and there, but on the whole the rest of the novel became a more typical sword and sorcery thing that I was far less interested in. It was cool, though, to see the hero of such a tale be a middle-aged, somewhat average looking woman, even if she did have super special powers and spoke to gods. That did seem to be somewhat the point, so well done, mission accomplished. You go girl!
It was an interesting experience to read how a typical fantasy hero might be different with twenty years more of experience, a life behind them, and, you know, being a woman, a mother, and one who had made a lot of mistakes and specifically NOT been a hero before. There were decisions that the heroine made that someone without those things would not have (her relationships with her love interest and his brother, her dealings with her former "keepers", and especially her dealings with the other female character with the most screen time). I wish we had spent more time on that aspect of things, though, rather than on the more typical action sequences, magical rules and world building that I could encounter elsewhere. Bujold created a cool thing here, I just wish she'd spent more time making the most out of it, rather than driving home the point of how much this thing is like the other.
In any case, an enjoyable read with an interesting premise that is pretty solidly written throughout. Just not as unique as I thought it would be at the start. Or maybe it's just that I have still only rarely encountered an action sequence that did not make my eyes glaze over if it lasted more than a few pages. That could be it, too. I'll take some of the blame for my less than stellar rating on this one.
August 17, 2013
A totally satisfying vision of a middle-aged woman driven down by past tragedy who takes up the heroic work of making the world safe from the dangers of enslavement of souls. The character of Ista captured my heart with her charm, wit, and courage, as she almost did for the hero Cazaril in the previous book, “Curse of Chalion” (2001). For this feudal world, Bujold invents a lovely blend of Christian dualism with a Roman-style pantheon of five gods, a system within which saints and demon-infested sorcerers square off over the fate of souls with opposing approaches for melding matter and spirit.
Ista, the mother of the current queen, dreams of escaping the emptiness of her protected life and settles on a fake pilgrimage. In the first pages, Bujold builds a pre-condition for her hero worthy of mythological themes identified by Joseph Campbell. Ista’s stultifying life in a provincial capital is punctuated by a series of bubbling thoughts:
Who am I, when I am not surrounded by the walls of my life? When they have all fallen into dust and rubble. …
I want a road that does not come back. …
But how could she gain the road? Roads were made for young men, not middle-aged women. …
I am an orphan now, though. Is that enough to qualify me? .
It was fun to see her put together an ideal escort, bullying her way past her official protectors to avoid a big retinue of attendants, soldiers, and a distinguished spiritual guide. In her mind she ponders, “What might pilgrimage be like if, instead of dragging a lot of tired guardians out on a road that suited their bones so ill, she could travel with people who laugh? Young people, not brought low by old sin and loss?” A small troop led by two dashing young brothers is enlisted from Cazaril’s forces. A young, scholarly acolyte of the quirky Bastard god is tapped to be her religious guide. A young female courier who is masterful with horses is snapped up to be a combination personal courier and lady’s maid.
Many dangers beset their party. She ends coming under the protection of the governing family of a province besieged by marauding Roknari soldiers from a neighboring enemy kingdom. Among them are sorcerers who host demons within their souls. Her host family has a terrible dark secret of their own, which also involves demons. For survival, Ista is forced to learn to how to harness her own special talents in dealing with spiritual beings and in leading people toward effective action. A love story is buried in the rich and rewarding tale of second chances.
Bujold works a lot of poetic metaphors into the spiritual order of her world, as introduced early in the book through their priest’s first sermon:
From the fire at the heart of the world slowly grew the World-Soul.
But the eye cannot see itself, not even the Eye of the World-Soul. So the World-Soul split into two, that it might so perceive itself; and so the mother and father came into being. And with that sweet perception, for the first time, love became possible in the heart of the World-Soul. Love was the first of the fruits that the realm of the spirit gifted back to the realm of the matter that was its fountain and foundation. But not the last, for song was next, then speech.
…In their first love for each other they bore the Daughter and the Son, and divided the seasons of the world among them, each with it special and particular beauty, each to his own lordship and stewardship. And in the harmony and security of this new composition, the matter of the world grew in boldness and complexity. And from its strivings to create beauty, plants and animals and men arose, for love had come into the fiery heart of the world, and matter sought to return gifts of spirit to the realm of spirit, as lovers exchange tokens.”
…But the fire at the heart of the world also held forces of destruction that could not be denied. And from this chaos arose the demons, who broke out and invaded the world and preyed upon the fragile new souls growing there as a mountain wolf preys upon the lambs of the valleys.
While these four gods can only deal with the spiritual realm, the Bastard god is more Christ-like in its blend of matter and spirit:
And so was born the last god, the Bastard, love child of the goddess and the great-souled demon. …their Son, of all the gods, was given agency over both spirit and matter, for He inherited as servants the demons that His father’s great sacrifice had conquered and enslaved and so swept out of the world.
Despite my focus here, the spiritual system and magical elements involved in negotiating the bleeding edge of good and evil forces at play are not overwrought, as is often the case in classic fantasies like “The Lord of the Rings.” The excitement of the teamwork as a band of “brothers” and creative problem solving during crises made this tale a compelling read for me.
Ista, the mother of the current queen, dreams of escaping the emptiness of her protected life and settles on a fake pilgrimage. In the first pages, Bujold builds a pre-condition for her hero worthy of mythological themes identified by Joseph Campbell. Ista’s stultifying life in a provincial capital is punctuated by a series of bubbling thoughts:
Who am I, when I am not surrounded by the walls of my life? When they have all fallen into dust and rubble. …
I want a road that does not come back. …
But how could she gain the road? Roads were made for young men, not middle-aged women. …
I am an orphan now, though. Is that enough to qualify me? .
It was fun to see her put together an ideal escort, bullying her way past her official protectors to avoid a big retinue of attendants, soldiers, and a distinguished spiritual guide. In her mind she ponders, “What might pilgrimage be like if, instead of dragging a lot of tired guardians out on a road that suited their bones so ill, she could travel with people who laugh? Young people, not brought low by old sin and loss?” A small troop led by two dashing young brothers is enlisted from Cazaril’s forces. A young, scholarly acolyte of the quirky Bastard god is tapped to be her religious guide. A young female courier who is masterful with horses is snapped up to be a combination personal courier and lady’s maid.
Many dangers beset their party. She ends coming under the protection of the governing family of a province besieged by marauding Roknari soldiers from a neighboring enemy kingdom. Among them are sorcerers who host demons within their souls. Her host family has a terrible dark secret of their own, which also involves demons. For survival, Ista is forced to learn to how to harness her own special talents in dealing with spiritual beings and in leading people toward effective action. A love story is buried in the rich and rewarding tale of second chances.
Bujold works a lot of poetic metaphors into the spiritual order of her world, as introduced early in the book through their priest’s first sermon:
From the fire at the heart of the world slowly grew the World-Soul.
But the eye cannot see itself, not even the Eye of the World-Soul. So the World-Soul split into two, that it might so perceive itself; and so the mother and father came into being. And with that sweet perception, for the first time, love became possible in the heart of the World-Soul. Love was the first of the fruits that the realm of the spirit gifted back to the realm of the matter that was its fountain and foundation. But not the last, for song was next, then speech.
…In their first love for each other they bore the Daughter and the Son, and divided the seasons of the world among them, each with it special and particular beauty, each to his own lordship and stewardship. And in the harmony and security of this new composition, the matter of the world grew in boldness and complexity. And from its strivings to create beauty, plants and animals and men arose, for love had come into the fiery heart of the world, and matter sought to return gifts of spirit to the realm of spirit, as lovers exchange tokens.”
…But the fire at the heart of the world also held forces of destruction that could not be denied. And from this chaos arose the demons, who broke out and invaded the world and preyed upon the fragile new souls growing there as a mountain wolf preys upon the lambs of the valleys.
While these four gods can only deal with the spiritual realm, the Bastard god is more Christ-like in its blend of matter and spirit:
And so was born the last god, the Bastard, love child of the goddess and the great-souled demon. …their Son, of all the gods, was given agency over both spirit and matter, for He inherited as servants the demons that His father’s great sacrifice had conquered and enslaved and so swept out of the world.
Despite my focus here, the spiritual system and magical elements involved in negotiating the bleeding edge of good and evil forces at play are not overwrought, as is often the case in classic fantasies like “The Lord of the Rings.” The excitement of the teamwork as a band of “brothers” and creative problem solving during crises made this tale a compelling read for me.
June 28, 2023
A somewhat difficult book to rate, in that I see what makes it the cream of the crop for genre-exclusive readers, and I did enjoy my time with it. But especially at a time when I’m moving toward reading more literary fiction and less fantasy (this book was an experiment in whether I would be less frustrated with a slightly older work than with new releases, with mixed results), its limitations are very apparent.
This is an epic fantasy novel though more or less self-contained, focusing on a queen mother, Ista, who feels stifled in her life and, in the course of trying to start anew, winds up entangled with gods, demons and enemy forces. Others have called it a character-driven novel, but I respectfully disagree. Ista is a proactive character, and the first 75 pages or so focus on her struggle to take control of her life, but once the adventure really starts, the remaining 400 pages are driven by larger forces and enemy action. So, a plot-driven novel, though leisurely-paced by the standards of plot-driven novels. The secondary characters are here to fill roles and are not particularly complex or interesting, and there are lots of long scenes in which characters try to puzzle out what’s going on and what to do about it. That said, I think it works: it’s an engaging plot, somewhat predictable but with enjoyable twists. The danger feels dangerous and the solutions generally earned, despite heavy involvement of gods leading to rather literal deus ex machina. But there are some rousing scenes, no glaring plot holes, sufficient depth to the worldbuilding for reader immersion, and an interesting religious backdrop. Combined with a competent writing style and engaging protagonist, I can see why people love it.
This is my third Bujold book, and they all seem to start out strong, with a lot of pathos to get us invested in the protagonist, but then turn plot-focused and never deepen my investment, and wind up at 3-3.5 stars in the end. I had high hopes for Ista, who’s a change from most fantasy heroines—she’s 40, she’s had a life, she has some emotional intelligence—and whose initial situation is especially compelling: due to a history of real or perceived mental illness, her family considers her incompetent and in need of a stifling degree of protection. And so she’s trying to break away from that and establish her own agency, but has to be careful about it or risk being perceived as unhinged and losing her autonomy again. However, all this functions mostly just as Ista’s inciting incident, and while it is cathartic to see her leave all that behind and quickly come into her own, it also feels a bit wasteful to take that character and just have her solve typical fantasy problems. It probably doesn’t help that I read the first book over a decade ago, and this one doesn’t stand quite as independently as it claims—I didn’t remember Ista at all and some key character establishment, in terms of the nature of her malady and conditions of her adult life, seems to have been left to that book.
Meanwhile, while I appreciated the departure from the tropes and expectations of current fantasy, this one reminded me how very “genre” epic fantasy tends to be. The overly telegraphed thoughts and feelings of non-POV characters, including physical reactions and whispered conversations perceived from implausible distances; the very rational, slow-motion portrayal of violence in which even someone unaccustomed to it fully understands what’s going on and can take intelligent action in the moment; the suicidal heroism of most of the cast. I don’t want to oversell this, because in many ways it does better than a lot of genre work: it doesn’t play around with head injuries; it offers understanding to characters who annoy or get in the way of the protagonist, who are generally seen as redeemable; the villain’s motivations make sense and are even sympathetic, although their methods are terrible; the one character with a sense of self-preservation is not treated with contempt. Overall I think it will come across as very mature if you read a lot of fantasy, a little over-the-top if you don’t.
It does show its age a bit—Ista’s daughter the queen is planning a war of conquest against some other countries, which the narrative fully supports (I think I am missing some context from book one, but the context is presumably “they’re evil countries!” and that’s still a hell of a thing for a progressive American author to have published in 2003). Readers are constantly reminded that the fat guy is fat. And there’s a definite blind spot around class and privilege, although on the other hand I have read more recent fantasies that attempt to tackle this from the perspective of the aristocracy and the results have been uniformly nauseating, so perhaps it’s best to just accept the blind spot. I do think that for most readers this novel will come across just fine today.
Overall, not one I loved but an enjoyable enough experience. I think I liked it better than its predecessor, so 3.5 stars.
This is an epic fantasy novel though more or less self-contained, focusing on a queen mother, Ista, who feels stifled in her life and, in the course of trying to start anew, winds up entangled with gods, demons and enemy forces. Others have called it a character-driven novel, but I respectfully disagree. Ista is a proactive character, and the first 75 pages or so focus on her struggle to take control of her life, but once the adventure really starts, the remaining 400 pages are driven by larger forces and enemy action. So, a plot-driven novel, though leisurely-paced by the standards of plot-driven novels. The secondary characters are here to fill roles and are not particularly complex or interesting, and there are lots of long scenes in which characters try to puzzle out what’s going on and what to do about it. That said, I think it works: it’s an engaging plot, somewhat predictable but with enjoyable twists. The danger feels dangerous and the solutions generally earned, despite heavy involvement of gods leading to rather literal deus ex machina. But there are some rousing scenes, no glaring plot holes, sufficient depth to the worldbuilding for reader immersion, and an interesting religious backdrop. Combined with a competent writing style and engaging protagonist, I can see why people love it.
This is my third Bujold book, and they all seem to start out strong, with a lot of pathos to get us invested in the protagonist, but then turn plot-focused and never deepen my investment, and wind up at 3-3.5 stars in the end. I had high hopes for Ista, who’s a change from most fantasy heroines—she’s 40, she’s had a life, she has some emotional intelligence—and whose initial situation is especially compelling: due to a history of real or perceived mental illness, her family considers her incompetent and in need of a stifling degree of protection. And so she’s trying to break away from that and establish her own agency, but has to be careful about it or risk being perceived as unhinged and losing her autonomy again. However, all this functions mostly just as Ista’s inciting incident, and while it is cathartic to see her leave all that behind and quickly come into her own, it also feels a bit wasteful to take that character and just have her solve typical fantasy problems. It probably doesn’t help that I read the first book over a decade ago, and this one doesn’t stand quite as independently as it claims—I didn’t remember Ista at all and some key character establishment, in terms of the nature of her malady and conditions of her adult life, seems to have been left to that book.
Meanwhile, while I appreciated the departure from the tropes and expectations of current fantasy, this one reminded me how very “genre” epic fantasy tends to be. The overly telegraphed thoughts and feelings of non-POV characters, including physical reactions and whispered conversations perceived from implausible distances; the very rational, slow-motion portrayal of violence in which even someone unaccustomed to it fully understands what’s going on and can take intelligent action in the moment; the suicidal heroism of most of the cast. I don’t want to oversell this, because in many ways it does better than a lot of genre work: it doesn’t play around with head injuries; it offers understanding to characters who annoy or get in the way of the protagonist, who are generally seen as redeemable; the villain’s motivations make sense and are even sympathetic, although their methods are terrible; the one character with a sense of self-preservation is not treated with contempt. Overall I think it will come across as very mature if you read a lot of fantasy, a little over-the-top if you don’t.
It does show its age a bit—Ista’s daughter the queen is planning a war of conquest against some other countries, which the narrative fully supports (I think I am missing some context from book one, but the context is presumably “they’re evil countries!” and that’s still a hell of a thing for a progressive American author to have published in 2003). Readers are constantly reminded that the fat guy is fat. And there’s a definite blind spot around class and privilege, although on the other hand I have read more recent fantasies that attempt to tackle this from the perspective of the aristocracy and the results have been uniformly nauseating, so perhaps it’s best to just accept the blind spot. I do think that for most readers this novel will come across just fine today.
Overall, not one I loved but an enjoyable enough experience. I think I liked it better than its predecessor, so 3.5 stars.
Read
July 21, 2017The was more of a spin-off from Curse of Chalion rather than a regular sequel but that did not stop it from retaining most of the elements that made the first book such a good story. The pacing is fairly sedate but Bujold has an engaging style and this character driven story mixes in more than enough magic, mystery, action, and even a tad of romance to keep things interesting!
Curse of Chalion was Cazaril's story but Paladin of Souls switched focus and gave us Ista's story. We met the Dowager Royina Ista in the first book and I enjoyed following her on her quest for redemption and spiritual healing now that she has been freed from the dark curse of Chalion. Ista was not quite as easy to like as Cazaril but she was likeable enough despite her imperfections and still an easy character to root for.
The story was an interesting one. Ista, feeling stifled in her home of Valenda, decides a pilgrimage would be the perfect way to break the drudgery of her life. It could have been a relaxing holiday but the Bastard had other plans and tried his best to draw Ista back into the dealings of the Gods. I liked the story and we got to learn a lot more about the nature of the Gods and also about demons!
All in all I enjoyed this one a lot but not quite as much as Curse of Chalion. It had just a tiny bit less mystery than the first book and the character in Curse of Chalion were also just a tiny bit more interesting on the whole. Still, we are taking about small margins and that did match Curse of Chalion for quality in most ways and was definitely a worthy sequel.
Rating: 4 stars.
Audio Note: The was narrated by Kate Reading. She gave a typically fantastic performance.
Curse of Chalion was Cazaril's story but Paladin of Souls switched focus and gave us Ista's story. We met the Dowager Royina Ista in the first book and I enjoyed following her on her quest for redemption and spiritual healing now that she has been freed from the dark curse of Chalion. Ista was not quite as easy to like as Cazaril but she was likeable enough despite her imperfections and still an easy character to root for.
The story was an interesting one. Ista, feeling stifled in her home of Valenda, decides a pilgrimage would be the perfect way to break the drudgery of her life. It could have been a relaxing holiday but the Bastard had other plans and tried his best to draw Ista back into the dealings of the Gods. I liked the story and we got to learn a lot more about the nature of the Gods and also about demons!
All in all I enjoyed this one a lot but not quite as much as Curse of Chalion. It had just a tiny bit less mystery than the first book and the character in Curse of Chalion were also just a tiny bit more interesting on the whole. Still, we are taking about small margins and that did match Curse of Chalion for quality in most ways and was definitely a worthy sequel.
Rating: 4 stars.
Audio Note: The was narrated by Kate Reading. She gave a typically fantastic performance.
April 9, 2014
Following the resounding success of my Locus Quest, I faced a dilemma: which reading list to follow it up with? Variety is the spice of life, so I’ve decided to diversify and pursue six different lists simultaneously. This book falls into my LOCUS FANTASY list.
As the Locus Sci-Fi Award winners list treated me so kindly, I figure I’ll trust those same good folk to pick me some stars in their sister-list, the Locus Fantasy Award winners.
While I was predominantly reading my way through every winner of the Locus Sci-Fi award, I decided to sample a few of the equivalent Fantasy winners. I’d already read a good percentage of the 21st century winners (all the Mieville, Gaiman, Pratchett, etc) so I decided to fill in a few of those gaps. I ordered a trio of books: Paladin of Souls (2004 winner), The Privilege of the Sword (2007 winner) and Lavinia (2009 winner). This is my pick of the three – it was a whisker away from getting a four star rating from me.
This is the second book of the Chalion trilogy, but I read it out of order and have only recently gotten around to buying the first in the series (Curse of Chalion). The events of that book are occasionally referred to, but as going-ons from the distant past with no direct bearing on the current plot, so Curse of Chalion is certainly not essential reading to appreciate Paladin of Souls , which stands up just fine on its own.
Bujold takes an unconventional approach to her female lead. I’m casting my mind about for other adult fantasy woks with a female lead and I’ve got Phedre’s Trilogy (young and sexy), Thursday Next (young and smart), Mistborn (young and dangerous), Greywalker (young and sassy), The Privilege of the Sword (young and romantic), Lavinia (young and homely) – what I aint seeing a whole caboodle of is anything comparable to Paladin of Souls (middle-aged and dotty).
That’s not being entirely fair to our heroine here, Ista – she’s far more than just dotty. She’s a complex, intelligent, god-touched (bit mental), bitter and depressed noblewoman, who’s trying to seize control of her cosseted life from her overly-controlling family. She dragoons an independent-minded female horseback courier into being her lady’s maid, collars an obese priest from an inappropriate sect, and then convinces her family to release her on a religious pilgrimage. Magical adventure ensues.
Paladin of Souls is written superbly; likeable characters, some good action scenes, a nice little mystery at the heart of the plot and a solidly constructed and imaginative world, faith and magic system. I’ve become a big fan of Bujold’s work with her Vorkosigan Saga and a lot of the trademark wry wit and quips are here – yet I’ve scored this lower than any of her sci-fi works. Why?
I enjoyed it, no doubt about that, and as I said at the start – it was only a whisker away from a four-star, “I loved it” rating – but I had just a few too many reservations, none of which were individually overwhelming but cumulatively they weighed me down. I found it a bit predictable. While the variations on fantasy tropes were imaginative, none were a revelation. The overall tone felt a bit safe. And, while I can applaud the brave choice of depressed middle-aged heroine, I didn’t ever truly connect with Ista – not like I have done with Miles and Cordelia in her Vorkosigan books.
Paladin of Souls was good enough that I plan to finish the trilogy, but flawed enough that I’m feeling no great urgency to do so imminently.
** Update: I have now read book one, The Curse of Chalion, and it's solid gold.
June 1, 2023
I don't know what to give this. For me this novel was a tale of 2 halfs. It is just under 500 pages, and I found the first 200 to just not be exciting. It was fine. I liked the protagonist, but it didn't really feel like the plot was happening, and in hindsight I would agree with that assessment. The main actual interesting plot of this book took a while to get going, and the start mainly feels like just trying to get the main character there.
The thing is, once the main plot started, it was brilliant. Phenomenal cast of characters, plotting, great protagonist. Tense action, and final act, heartfelt resolution.
So I guess 4 stars, for a 3 star first half, and a 5 star second half.
Have sat on it: 8.1/10
The thing is, once the main plot started, it was brilliant. Phenomenal cast of characters, plotting, great protagonist. Tense action, and final act, heartfelt resolution.
So I guess 4 stars, for a 3 star first half, and a 5 star second half.
Have sat on it: 8.1/10
April 18, 2020
5 brilliant stars!
Because this is what I call 'Book Heaven!'
What do you do when you can talk to Gods and have the second sight but everybody thinks you’re completely and undeniably MAD?!
Easy – you do what Ista did: start off on a quest to curse a few Gods, fight a few demons, save a few souls and gain forgiveness for your own, answer a few prayers, fall in love, curse the Gods some more and then become their tool to maybe save the world?! Perhaps find courage, happiness and even yourself along on the road.
I loved The Curse of Chalion but this second book is even better than the first. It centers on Ista dowager royina of Chalion-Ibra who was one of my least favorite characters till now. This story however, told from Ista’s perspective, turns the small little grey mouse of a woman from the first book into a strong, proud, level-headed independent woman with a sharp tongue and an even sharper understanding of world, spirit and life. It is a romance, a philosophical treaty, a spiritual guide as well as a quest and an adventure. And everything is glued together with an amazing craftsmanship!
This is a book for mature readers – not because it has sex – It doesn’t! But because you need to reach a certain age and life experience to be able to fully appreciate this author’s subtleties of meaning:
the gods did not desire flawless souls, but great ones. I think that very darkness is where the greatness grows from, as flowers from the soil. I am not sure, in fact, if greatness can bloom without it.
There are so many little sentences in here that will set you thinking about life and love, about future and your soul. My book looks ravaged with so many little notes and highlights.
There are witty dialogues:
"No attendants, no guards - five gods, consider your station and your safety! Consider my grey hairs! You have stood them on end with this start."
"I do apologise to your grey hairs," said Ista with a little real contrition. "They do not deserve the toil of me, nor does the remainder of you either, good dy Ferrej...."
hilarious internal musings:
“A god-given lover, importunate and bold as a scarred stray cat,rubbing past my guard into my good graces. If I can keep him fed.”
And above all, wonderful compliments:
‘Tch, tch, tch, look at yourself, bittersweet Ista. Saint, sorcerer, dowager royina of all Chalion-Ibra, converses with gods, when not cursing them - a man would have to be maniacally intrepid to even think of you in that rude way... . This is good. It will cut down on my rivals.”
As you see, you need to reach a certain age to fully appreciate this masterpiece. If you’re looking for YA romance, don’t even think about it! But if you’re looking for something special to make you meditate on love and life, spirit and purpose as well as make you laugh out loud and brighten your day, this is the perfect choice.
Believe me! It’s book heaven!
I have come late to everything. To forgiveness. To love. To my god. Even to my own life.”
And yet...
it is never too late
Find this review and more on my book review and cover art blog The Magic Book Corner
Because this is what I call 'Book Heaven!'
What do you do when you can talk to Gods and have the second sight but everybody thinks you’re completely and undeniably MAD?!
Easy – you do what Ista did: start off on a quest to curse a few Gods, fight a few demons, save a few souls and gain forgiveness for your own, answer a few prayers, fall in love, curse the Gods some more and then become their tool to maybe save the world?! Perhaps find courage, happiness and even yourself along on the road.
I loved The Curse of Chalion but this second book is even better than the first. It centers on Ista dowager royina of Chalion-Ibra who was one of my least favorite characters till now. This story however, told from Ista’s perspective, turns the small little grey mouse of a woman from the first book into a strong, proud, level-headed independent woman with a sharp tongue and an even sharper understanding of world, spirit and life. It is a romance, a philosophical treaty, a spiritual guide as well as a quest and an adventure. And everything is glued together with an amazing craftsmanship!
This is a book for mature readers – not because it has sex – It doesn’t! But because you need to reach a certain age and life experience to be able to fully appreciate this author’s subtleties of meaning:
the gods did not desire flawless souls, but great ones. I think that very darkness is where the greatness grows from, as flowers from the soil. I am not sure, in fact, if greatness can bloom without it.
There are so many little sentences in here that will set you thinking about life and love, about future and your soul. My book looks ravaged with so many little notes and highlights.
There are witty dialogues:
"No attendants, no guards - five gods, consider your station and your safety! Consider my grey hairs! You have stood them on end with this start."
"I do apologise to your grey hairs," said Ista with a little real contrition. "They do not deserve the toil of me, nor does the remainder of you either, good dy Ferrej...."
hilarious internal musings:
“A god-given lover, importunate and bold as a scarred stray cat,rubbing past my guard into my good graces. If I can keep him fed.”
And above all, wonderful compliments:
‘Tch, tch, tch, look at yourself, bittersweet Ista. Saint, sorcerer, dowager royina of all Chalion-Ibra, converses with gods, when not cursing them - a man would have to be maniacally intrepid to even think of you in that rude way... . This is good. It will cut down on my rivals.”
As you see, you need to reach a certain age to fully appreciate this masterpiece. If you’re looking for YA romance, don’t even think about it! But if you’re looking for something special to make you meditate on love and life, spirit and purpose as well as make you laugh out loud and brighten your day, this is the perfect choice.
Believe me! It’s book heaven!
I have come late to everything. To forgiveness. To love. To my god. Even to my own life.”
And yet...
it is never too late
Find this review and more on my book review and cover art blog The Magic Book Corner
Read
November 12, 2023"Carry on imperfectly, shining Ista."
So What’s It About?
In a land threatened by treacherous war and beset by demons, royal dowager Ista, released from the curse of madness and manipulated by an untrustworthy god, is plunged into a desperate struggle to preserve the endangered souls of a realm.
What I Thought
It’s a testament to Bujold’s skill that she decided to make The Curse of Chalion’s sequel focus on Ista, who was one of that book’s best side characters. It turns out that Ista is a fantastic main character too - grimly determined after everything she’s been through, furious at the gods, surprisingly funny, and fierce when she puts aside the stifling constraints that have forced her into meekness for so long. She starts the book considering herself a drab, boring person who is smothered by the world around her and has wasted her life, and it’s absolutely amazing to see her gradually grow beyond that to find a purpose in life, forgiveness for the wrongs of her past, self-assuredness, and new love. One of my only complaints about The Curse of Chalion was that Caz was somewhat miraculously cured of his PTSD at the end, and while Arhys kind of does something similar for Ista regarding his father’s murder, I think there’s far more ambiguity here as well as a lot more character development that leads to Ista’s healing feeling much more earned.
There’s some kind of icky, questionable stuff regarding consent in this book - my usual caveat applies in that my issue is with the author not really addressing it for what it is and dealing with its ramifications, not that it simply exists in the book at at all. Characters are kissed while unconscious several times, the Bastard forces himself on Ista in one of her visions, and there’s this random bit where the side character Foix wants to use his newfound sorcery to seduce Ista's maid Liss. This makes for a satisfying moment where Ista rips him to shreds for it, but it still made me hate him for the rest of the book and not want him to end up with Liss (which he does.) I did really love Liss, though - she is so spunky and funny and adorable.
Second paragraph of criticisms: I got very tired of reading endless descriptions of how fat Dy Cabon is. We get it, Lois, the man is rotund and he struggles with physically demanding tasks! Illvan, Ista’s love interest, is okay overall, but he doesn’t really stand out to me as a character and the content of the romance is not especially strong - I was more primarily invested in the fact that Ista was getting to fall in love than I was invested in him specifically as a love interest, if that makes sense.
The unraveling of the book's messy, complicated curse is consistently clever and engaging, and there is a good balance of character development, relationship development, magical encounters and revelations, action, politics, and explorations of faith and the world’s religion. I genuinely can’t say whether I prefer this book or The Curse of Chalion - while neither are perfect books to me, I thoroughly enjoyed them both and they are unquestionably mature, thoughtful works of fantasy.
So What’s It About?
In a land threatened by treacherous war and beset by demons, royal dowager Ista, released from the curse of madness and manipulated by an untrustworthy god, is plunged into a desperate struggle to preserve the endangered souls of a realm.
What I Thought
It’s a testament to Bujold’s skill that she decided to make The Curse of Chalion’s sequel focus on Ista, who was one of that book’s best side characters. It turns out that Ista is a fantastic main character too - grimly determined after everything she’s been through, furious at the gods, surprisingly funny, and fierce when she puts aside the stifling constraints that have forced her into meekness for so long. She starts the book considering herself a drab, boring person who is smothered by the world around her and has wasted her life, and it’s absolutely amazing to see her gradually grow beyond that to find a purpose in life, forgiveness for the wrongs of her past, self-assuredness, and new love. One of my only complaints about The Curse of Chalion was that Caz was somewhat miraculously cured of his PTSD at the end, and while Arhys kind of does something similar for Ista regarding his father’s murder, I think there’s far more ambiguity here as well as a lot more character development that leads to Ista’s healing feeling much more earned.
There’s some kind of icky, questionable stuff regarding consent in this book - my usual caveat applies in that my issue is with the author not really addressing it for what it is and dealing with its ramifications, not that it simply exists in the book at at all. Characters are kissed while unconscious several times, the Bastard forces himself on Ista in one of her visions, and there’s this random bit where the side character Foix wants to use his newfound sorcery to seduce Ista's maid Liss. This makes for a satisfying moment where Ista rips him to shreds for it, but it still made me hate him for the rest of the book and not want him to end up with Liss (which he does.) I did really love Liss, though - she is so spunky and funny and adorable.
Second paragraph of criticisms: I got very tired of reading endless descriptions of how fat Dy Cabon is. We get it, Lois, the man is rotund and he struggles with physically demanding tasks! Illvan, Ista’s love interest, is okay overall, but he doesn’t really stand out to me as a character and the content of the romance is not especially strong - I was more primarily invested in the fact that Ista was getting to fall in love than I was invested in him specifically as a love interest, if that makes sense.
The unraveling of the book's messy, complicated curse is consistently clever and engaging, and there is a good balance of character development, relationship development, magical encounters and revelations, action, politics, and explorations of faith and the world’s religion. I genuinely can’t say whether I prefer this book or The Curse of Chalion - while neither are perfect books to me, I thoroughly enjoyed them both and they are unquestionably mature, thoughtful works of fantasy.
October 4, 2019
I had a rather puzzling experience with this novel. I find the quality of Bujold’s writing itself to be quite fluid, assured, and inventive; and I find her characters to be appealing, surprising, and full of intriguing quirks and depths. But somehow throughout this novel I felt kept at an arms’ length from feeling fully swept up by it. Then there were lovely, crystalline moments of emotional complexity and grace — the final scene between Ista and Goram was especially rich and moving — and I found myself wondering why other long stretches didn’t capture me as viscerally.
At any rate, of the three Bujold novels I’ve read so far — The Curse of Chalion and Falling Free being the others — this was probably the most complex, although I enjoyed the overall moment-to-moment experience of reading Chalion the most. She’s an incredibly prolific writer, and much celebrated, and I remain impressed by her talents and intrigued enough by her work to continue to explore it.
At any rate, of the three Bujold novels I’ve read so far — The Curse of Chalion and Falling Free being the others — this was probably the most complex, although I enjoyed the overall moment-to-moment experience of reading Chalion the most. She’s an incredibly prolific writer, and much celebrated, and I remain impressed by her talents and intrigued enough by her work to continue to explore it.
June 22, 2011
Quite possibly the best fiction I've read in a decade. I was always fond of Lois McMaster Bujold's "Vorkosigan Series" of Science-Fiction books - always rollicking good fun while having deep underlying issues that make the reader remember them long after all the action and humor have faded to the background... but when Bujold decided to turn her hand to grand fantasy she found even more.
The first book of this grouping, "The Curse of Chalion" grabbed me from the first page. As a fan of Tolkein who does NOT enjoy most of the imitators and pretenders that simply don't have the depth of plot, deeper issues, facility with language, and creation of a fully realized alternate reality I was thrilled to find Bujold a worthy successor to Tolkein and Ursula LeGuin.
However, her second book in this loosely associated trio - "Paladin of Souls" took me from thrilled to astonishment. Not at all what one expects in a fantasy, our main character is a middle-aged noble woman, former Royina (Queen-Consort) and now "Dowager Royina" (mother of the current monarch). Only in her mid-forties, she is percieved as having served her purpose and is now no longer useful. In fact, she's considered slightly mad, though the reader will discover that assumption to be quite wrong. Troubled by a recurring dream, she embarks on what is obstensibly a religious pilgrimage, but is frankly an escape from those who would smother her with good intentions but slowly wring the life from her soul.
What she finds is remarkable, inspiring and frightening. The book brought me, a grown 40-something man to tears of heartbreak, rage and overwhelming joy on several occassions - and I've heard other men, usually not the type, respond in the same way. It is not a surprise that this book won just about every award a science-fiction/fantasy novel CAN win.
The follow-up third book "The Hallowed Hunt", is just as captivating as the first book "Chalion", and though it does not reach the soaring apex of the soul that "Paladin" acheives, it is in no way a letdown. It still has moments of staggering beauty and painful goodness, and brings us back to earth from the heights of the central novel.
The grouping is so wonderful that after reading each at its initial publication (2001, 2003, 2005) I have since re-read them twice. The "finish" date is for my most recent reading. I recommend this series even to those who do not generally go for "Grand Fantasy" as this is true Grand Fantasy, NOT a "swords and sorcery" stamped-out rehashed pulp novel. The issues and emotions dealt with here are much more evolved and thoughtful than any pretender to Tolkein's throne could be. Dare I say it, her insight into emotions and motivations is better than that of Tolkein, who did not let us see into the very souls of his heroes and heroines the way Bujold bares the very core of her protagonists.
The first book of this grouping, "The Curse of Chalion" grabbed me from the first page. As a fan of Tolkein who does NOT enjoy most of the imitators and pretenders that simply don't have the depth of plot, deeper issues, facility with language, and creation of a fully realized alternate reality I was thrilled to find Bujold a worthy successor to Tolkein and Ursula LeGuin.
However, her second book in this loosely associated trio - "Paladin of Souls" took me from thrilled to astonishment. Not at all what one expects in a fantasy, our main character is a middle-aged noble woman, former Royina (Queen-Consort) and now "Dowager Royina" (mother of the current monarch). Only in her mid-forties, she is percieved as having served her purpose and is now no longer useful. In fact, she's considered slightly mad, though the reader will discover that assumption to be quite wrong. Troubled by a recurring dream, she embarks on what is obstensibly a religious pilgrimage, but is frankly an escape from those who would smother her with good intentions but slowly wring the life from her soul.
What she finds is remarkable, inspiring and frightening. The book brought me, a grown 40-something man to tears of heartbreak, rage and overwhelming joy on several occassions - and I've heard other men, usually not the type, respond in the same way. It is not a surprise that this book won just about every award a science-fiction/fantasy novel CAN win.
The follow-up third book "The Hallowed Hunt", is just as captivating as the first book "Chalion", and though it does not reach the soaring apex of the soul that "Paladin" acheives, it is in no way a letdown. It still has moments of staggering beauty and painful goodness, and brings us back to earth from the heights of the central novel.
The grouping is so wonderful that after reading each at its initial publication (2001, 2003, 2005) I have since re-read them twice. The "finish" date is for my most recent reading. I recommend this series even to those who do not generally go for "Grand Fantasy" as this is true Grand Fantasy, NOT a "swords and sorcery" stamped-out rehashed pulp novel. The issues and emotions dealt with here are much more evolved and thoughtful than any pretender to Tolkein's throne could be. Dare I say it, her insight into emotions and motivations is better than that of Tolkein, who did not let us see into the very souls of his heroes and heroines the way Bujold bares the very core of her protagonists.
October 18, 2010
I'm going to say the same thing about this, the second volume of Bujold's Chalion trilogy (I suppose, I've only seen three titles, I have the third as "to read"), I'm surprised at how much I enjoyed it. I do try to reserve the "5 star" rating for books that I truly enjoy. Neither artistic writing, nor classic prose will I rate alone as 5 stars. I just got/get involved in these books. I care about the characters in them and am able to suspend belief and flow with the story.
Of late I've been (I believe) a bit burned out and having trouble finding a book I really liked. I was becoming concerned that I might be...too hard on some. Whether that's true or not, I really like these books and give both of the volumes I've read so far my highest recommendation.
That being said, let me say I'm surprised because these are not the type of books I might have thought of as the "type I generally like". Still the execution is wonderful. While they may be a bit more on the romantic side than I prefer, it somehow didn't/doesn't drive me away from these. They carry their romanticism without being maudlin. They manage to work in all the necessary plot points and do it as the book is carried by the characterization.
So far excellent and I plan to get to the third as quickly as "may be" (LOL). Again, 5 stars, highest recommendation.
Of late I've been (I believe) a bit burned out and having trouble finding a book I really liked. I was becoming concerned that I might be...too hard on some. Whether that's true or not, I really like these books and give both of the volumes I've read so far my highest recommendation.
That being said, let me say I'm surprised because these are not the type of books I might have thought of as the "type I generally like". Still the execution is wonderful. While they may be a bit more on the romantic side than I prefer, it somehow didn't/doesn't drive me away from these. They carry their romanticism without being maudlin. They manage to work in all the necessary plot points and do it as the book is carried by the characterization.
So far excellent and I plan to get to the third as quickly as "may be" (LOL). Again, 5 stars, highest recommendation.
March 24, 2024
Rereading was just as satisfying. Original review below.
==========
How good is this?
I read it in 24-hours, devoting every spare moment to it. It helps that it was a Sunday, when I had more time, but I did ignore normal chores this morning in order to dash to the conclusion.
I admit that I was a bit dismayed to find myself in Ista's company at the beginning of the book. However, her unique past and relationship to the gods yielded a compelling story, especially when coupled with the situation into which she was thrust by war.
I won't say more because part of the pleasure was not knowing anything about the story. If you liked The Curse of Chalion, you'll like this just as much.
==========
How good is this?
I read it in 24-hours, devoting every spare moment to it. It helps that it was a Sunday, when I had more time, but I did ignore normal chores this morning in order to dash to the conclusion.
I admit that I was a bit dismayed to find myself in Ista's company at the beginning of the book. However, her unique past and relationship to the gods yielded a compelling story, especially when coupled with the situation into which she was thrust by war.
I won't say more because part of the pleasure was not knowing anything about the story. If you liked The Curse of Chalion, you'll like this just as much.
April 12, 2017
I love, LOVE the protagonist of this book. She's not a great warrior, or a skillful rogue, or a powerful wizard, or anything like that. She's not even a not-great warrior or a not-powerful wizard who grows more powerful as the story progresses.
She's a middle aged woman who really wants a vacation.
Ista was a fairly minor character in Curse of Chalion, albeit one who was hugely affected by the events of that book. Here, she's been restored to full sanity, and chafing at the restrictions of her (loving) caretakers who can't see that she no longer needs the caretaking. By sheer force of will, she bullies her way into going on a religious pilgrimage, and the story builds from there.
She's a wonderfully cynical character, and this was a sedate, very adult story - much as the previous book was. While we don't see Cazavril at all (though he's mentioned plenty of times), this was an excellent addition to the world of Chalion, expanding and deepening the world.
I still have trouble believing this is the same author who writes the action packed, overly clever Vorkosigan Saga, but I suppose she's just that talented.
She's a middle aged woman who really wants a vacation.
Ista was a fairly minor character in Curse of Chalion, albeit one who was hugely affected by the events of that book. Here, she's been restored to full sanity, and chafing at the restrictions of her (loving) caretakers who can't see that she no longer needs the caretaking. By sheer force of will, she bullies her way into going on a religious pilgrimage, and the story builds from there.
She's a wonderfully cynical character, and this was a sedate, very adult story - much as the previous book was. While we don't see Cazavril at all (though he's mentioned plenty of times), this was an excellent addition to the world of Chalion, expanding and deepening the world.
I still have trouble believing this is the same author who writes the action packed, overly clever Vorkosigan Saga, but I suppose she's just that talented.
September 11, 2021
Slow but good overall. I liked the adventures of grumpy old Ista, who isn't actually old but is treated as such. I particularly liked the start where she goes on meandering pilgrimage, before the book becomes more focused on war and threats. There are some good mysteries around demons and sorcery and the influence of the Gods. The slow build of romance was a nice touch too.
I have a very limited tolerance for books where the elite person feels bad about how all their privilege and servants are constraining them. Um. I like how Ista works against the perceptions of her age to sort of rage against the patriarchy (sometimes. A little bit). But there were still many moments where she and the book in general felt very selfish and narrowminded. Ah yes these lovely servants who speak their minds and their abiding love for their rulers, the important nobility. Oy.
Anyway, I really enjoyed the sorcery angle and the "old" lady protagonist, though she really wasn't old at all by our standards.
I have a very limited tolerance for books where the elite person feels bad about how all their privilege and servants are constraining them. Um. I like how Ista works against the perceptions of her age to sort of rage against the patriarchy (sometimes. A little bit). But there were still many moments where she and the book in general felt very selfish and narrowminded. Ah yes these lovely servants who speak their minds and their abiding love for their rulers, the important nobility. Oy.
Anyway, I really enjoyed the sorcery angle and the "old" lady protagonist, though she really wasn't old at all by our standards.
November 17, 2023
I love how character focused this is. Surprised and delighted me.
September 29, 2019
This was the right book at the right time. These are not the 5 stars of an enthuiastic love at first sight, or a wow-moment. These are the 5 stars of the longlasting love that comes when the first impulses died down and reality is faced.
I felt absolutely comfortable with this story on nearly every level. Like in the first book Lois McMaster Bujold's prose is a perfect mix of lightfooted humor and a mature take on story and characters. It feels completely self-assured and therefore is able to draw me right into the going-ons. Ista is a brilliant character and deviates refreshingly from your usual sword and sorcery heroes. She is strong without having to be badass, she is allowed to be insecure, yet she doesn't let others decide her life for her (not anymore). In the company of her young travel companions - each of them quite likeably drawn - she is more the motherly type without having to stand aside when the going gets tough. - In short: she is my dream character come true. It was simply a pleasure to follow her path and stand beside her in dire situations. Even the romance - which I so often don't like - was shown in a mature and still kind of cute way.
The plot itself was full of interesting characters and twists, which I didn't see coming cause Bujold managed to get me fully immersed in the story so that I didn't watch it from the outside. This is the ideal story experience.
I can understand why "Paladin of Souls" won the Hugo, the Nebula and the Locus award. I highly recommend it to everybody who is tired of the every same setup and heroes in Fantasy literature.
I felt absolutely comfortable with this story on nearly every level. Like in the first book Lois McMaster Bujold's prose is a perfect mix of lightfooted humor and a mature take on story and characters. It feels completely self-assured and therefore is able to draw me right into the going-ons. Ista is a brilliant character and deviates refreshingly from your usual sword and sorcery heroes. She is strong without having to be badass, she is allowed to be insecure, yet she doesn't let others decide her life for her (not anymore). In the company of her young travel companions - each of them quite likeably drawn - she is more the motherly type without having to stand aside when the going gets tough. - In short: she is my dream character come true. It was simply a pleasure to follow her path and stand beside her in dire situations. Even the romance - which I so often don't like - was shown in a mature and still kind of cute way.
The plot itself was full of interesting characters and twists, which I didn't see coming cause Bujold managed to get me fully immersed in the story so that I didn't watch it from the outside. This is the ideal story experience.
I can understand why "Paladin of Souls" won the Hugo, the Nebula and the Locus award. I highly recommend it to everybody who is tired of the every same setup and heroes in Fantasy literature.
April 21, 2021
Ista, a character peripheral to the action in book one, takes centre stage here, and she's magnificent. Having been seen, erroneously, as mad for many years, she's healed now and chafing at her restrictions at home; pondering escape, she decides to go on a pilgrimage get away from her brother's and servants' constant coddling.
She quickly becomes embroiled in a fight with demons and a plot against Chalion, and with the heightened emotions of a difficult and dangerous situation with the noble family at the fortress of Porifors.
Ista shows herself as more than capable of dealing with multiple problems with determination and a somewhat sardonic sense of humour. She find much more than she expected here than a simple escape from her many years of sadness.
Bujold does a wonderful job of showing Ista's strength of character, as well as this character ably dealing with the dangerous situation at Porifors.
I especially loved how Ista and Liss, the messenger-maidservant, forged a wonderful, strong bond together, and how this bond repeatedly helped Ista accomplish so much throughout the story.
I actually enjoyed this book so much more than the first book set in this world; I loved Ista so much and feel a little sad that I won't get to spend more time with her.
She quickly becomes embroiled in a fight with demons and a plot against Chalion, and with the heightened emotions of a difficult and dangerous situation with the noble family at the fortress of Porifors.
Ista shows herself as more than capable of dealing with multiple problems with determination and a somewhat sardonic sense of humour. She find much more than she expected here than a simple escape from her many years of sadness.
Bujold does a wonderful job of showing Ista's strength of character, as well as this character ably dealing with the dangerous situation at Porifors.
I especially loved how Ista and Liss, the messenger-maidservant, forged a wonderful, strong bond together, and how this bond repeatedly helped Ista accomplish so much throughout the story.
I actually enjoyed this book so much more than the first book set in this world; I loved Ista so much and feel a little sad that I won't get to spend more time with her.
February 11, 2019
I love this book. I love Ista. I love her sense of humor, and I admire her strength and forbearance. I love watching her warm up and fill up over the course of the book.
I love how the worldbuilding is just so natural and easy, and how complete and interesting it is. I love the theology.
I love how she tackles the themes of redemption, grace, forgiveness, guilt, sin, failure, the relationships of gods with their creations, power and impotence, selfishness, aging, death and dying, finding a sense of purpose, pain, and destiny.
I love pretty much everything about this book. Granted, it takes about 100 pages for the action to really start, but once it does, it doesn't really let you go.
I love how the worldbuilding is just so natural and easy, and how complete and interesting it is. I love the theology.
I love how she tackles the themes of redemption, grace, forgiveness, guilt, sin, failure, the relationships of gods with their creations, power and impotence, selfishness, aging, death and dying, finding a sense of purpose, pain, and destiny.
I love pretty much everything about this book. Granted, it takes about 100 pages for the action to really start, but once it does, it doesn't really let you go.
May 1, 2020
Left me with a happy glow!
April 24, 2021
"Once, she had been her parents' daughter. Then great, unlucky Ias's wife. Her children's mother. At the last, her mother's keeper. Well, I am none of these things now. Who am I, when I am not surrounded by the walls of my life?"
Paladin of Souls is the second book in Bujold's World of the Five Gods series. Technically it can be read standalone as the story is wholly contained, has all the information needed to understand the nuances of the world and only references the first novel that aren't plot impacting. If you're looking for a fantasy novel starring a mature, middle aged woman with demons and gods mucking about, this is the book for you. Ista's story had me hooked immediately.
Dowager Royina Ista is questioning what to do with her life. Previously believed to be mad though in reality just god cursed, the feeling of being stuck and believing her life has no purpose is slowly driving Ista mad in actuality. Unable to put up with the condescension of her keepers any longer, Ista decides to go on a pilgrimage to escape castle life. It's not long before Ista learns that while you can run away to a different location, problems eventually find a way back to you, especially when gods are involved.
Ista is such a great character and one that's easy to identify with. Who hasn't had that same feeling of being at a crossroads in life, unsure where to go next, unsure if your life has purpose at all and just wanted to run away from everything? I know I've been there a few times. As Ista sets off on her journey a bigger mystery starts to unfold. Ista is up for the challenge and encounters a great supporting cast along the way. There are plenty of clues as to where the mystery is going, several I picked up on, a few I missed and were nice surprises.
A small warning. There is an apparent love triangle early on. If you hate that trope please push through. It ends up not being what it first appears at all.
If I had one gripe with the book it is that
I absolutely loved this book. This having being my second time reading her works, I love Bujold's writing style and am firmly a fan now. I need to check out some of her other series.
Paladin of Souls is the second book in Bujold's World of the Five Gods series. Technically it can be read standalone as the story is wholly contained, has all the information needed to understand the nuances of the world and only references the first novel that aren't plot impacting. If you're looking for a fantasy novel starring a mature, middle aged woman with demons and gods mucking about, this is the book for you. Ista's story had me hooked immediately.
Dowager Royina Ista is questioning what to do with her life. Previously believed to be mad though in reality just god cursed, the feeling of being stuck and believing her life has no purpose is slowly driving Ista mad in actuality. Unable to put up with the condescension of her keepers any longer, Ista decides to go on a pilgrimage to escape castle life. It's not long before Ista learns that while you can run away to a different location, problems eventually find a way back to you, especially when gods are involved.
Ista is such a great character and one that's easy to identify with. Who hasn't had that same feeling of being at a crossroads in life, unsure where to go next, unsure if your life has purpose at all and just wanted to run away from everything? I know I've been there a few times. As Ista sets off on her journey a bigger mystery starts to unfold. Ista is up for the challenge and encounters a great supporting cast along the way. There are plenty of clues as to where the mystery is going, several I picked up on, a few I missed and were nice surprises.
A small warning. There is an apparent love triangle early on. If you hate that trope please push through. It ends up not being what it first appears at all.
If I had one gripe with the book it is that
I absolutely loved this book. This having being my second time reading her works, I love Bujold's writing style and am firmly a fan now. I need to check out some of her other series.
August 1, 2016
Executive Summary: A slow-paced but enjoyable fantasy novel that can mostly be read as a stand-alone.
Audio book: This is my first novel read by Kate Reading. I have long heard she is a great narrator, and I would have to agree. She doesn't exactly do voices or anything but she does distinguish a bit between characters. She speaks clearly with good inflections and emotions.
Full Review
Right off the bat this novel is unique for me. The protagonist is a 40-something woman. That's never the case for any of the fantasy books I've read.
This book like it's predecessor The Curse of Chalion, has a slow pace that somehow just works for me. The only other author/series I can think of that manages this is Robin Hobb's Edlerling books.
I don't really remember the details of The Curse of Chalion, but that doesn't seem to matter. In fact I'd imagine you'd be able to read this book having skipped that one without issue. Not that I recommend it, because that book was also enjoyable.
Most reviews I've read seem to indicate this is the best of the series. I found my enjoyment to be about the same. If anything distinguishes the two it's that this one doesn't focus on a male whose righting wrongs with his sword, but a woman who is doing it with her wits (and some help from the gods).
I think this is one of those books you need to be in the right mood for. It's not a fast-paced, action packed sword and sorcery story. It's also not a politically charged struggle for power. Often times it seems that when strong woman are portrayed in fantasy, they are politically savvy nobility maneuvering for power.
Instead we have a woman who decides she needs a journey. Not for adventure. Not for glory. Simply because she needs a break. Royina Ista has spent most of her life under a family curse or control of someone else. She just needs to get away. This doesn't seem to make sense to anyone else, so she does so under the guise of making a religious pilgrimage to pray for her daughter to have a grandson.
Unfortunately for her (and fortunately the reader), the gods have other plans. Royina Ista is confronted with raiding soldiers, demons, sorcerers and a plot that threatens the safety of all of Chalion. There is a bit a of romance thrown in for good measure.
All and all this is a well written and enjoyable fantasy story that is quite different from just about everything I read.
Audio book: This is my first novel read by Kate Reading. I have long heard she is a great narrator, and I would have to agree. She doesn't exactly do voices or anything but she does distinguish a bit between characters. She speaks clearly with good inflections and emotions.
Full Review
Right off the bat this novel is unique for me. The protagonist is a 40-something woman. That's never the case for any of the fantasy books I've read.
This book like it's predecessor The Curse of Chalion, has a slow pace that somehow just works for me. The only other author/series I can think of that manages this is Robin Hobb's Edlerling books.
I don't really remember the details of The Curse of Chalion, but that doesn't seem to matter. In fact I'd imagine you'd be able to read this book having skipped that one without issue. Not that I recommend it, because that book was also enjoyable.
Most reviews I've read seem to indicate this is the best of the series. I found my enjoyment to be about the same. If anything distinguishes the two it's that this one doesn't focus on a male whose righting wrongs with his sword, but a woman who is doing it with her wits (and some help from the gods).
I think this is one of those books you need to be in the right mood for. It's not a fast-paced, action packed sword and sorcery story. It's also not a politically charged struggle for power. Often times it seems that when strong woman are portrayed in fantasy, they are politically savvy nobility maneuvering for power.
Instead we have a woman who decides she needs a journey. Not for adventure. Not for glory. Simply because she needs a break. Royina Ista has spent most of her life under a family curse or control of someone else. She just needs to get away. This doesn't seem to make sense to anyone else, so she does so under the guise of making a religious pilgrimage to pray for her daughter to have a grandson.
Unfortunately for her (and fortunately the reader), the gods have other plans. Royina Ista is confronted with raiding soldiers, demons, sorcerers and a plot that threatens the safety of all of Chalion. There is a bit a of romance thrown in for good measure.
All and all this is a well written and enjoyable fantasy story that is quite different from just about everything I read.
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