Book Review: The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold

The Hallowed Hunt by Lois McMaster Bujold

Genre: Fantasy

Series: Chalion #3

Publisher: HarperCollins

Publication Date: 2005

Author Info: www.dendarii.com

Wendy's Rating: 2.5 of 5 stars

"Free will is sacred. The meaning of yes is created by the ability to say no"

When I stepped into the world of Chalion, I was introduced to its five gods—Father, Son, Mother, Daughter and the Bastard—and some of the rituals surrounding them, but I mistakenly assumed these gods were much like ours: believed in by some, but with little proof of their existence. But as with everything else in The Curse of Chalion, Bujold politely allowed me my assumptions, then gently pulled the rug out from under me and moved on before I even had time to catch my breath. Subsequently, I leapt into the second book, Paladin of Souls, eager to learn more about her world and her gods, and soon fell in love with the Bastard himself. I grabbed Hallowed Hunt hoping for more of the same, but while this did offer more insight into the supernatural and a new form of possession, that of spirit animals, the story and characters themselves were disappointing.

The story begins with the death of a prince, murdered in self-defense by the woman he meant to rape. Ijada is less concerned about her fate before judges who are unlikely to see her side of the story, than she is about the sorcery that the prince had involved, resulting in her acquiring the spirit of a leopard. She is to be delivered to her trial by Ingray, the gruff and deadly sword of a noble lord, who happens to possess an animal spirit of his own. He came by his wolf under traumatic means, but has since suppressed the creature, despite its strength. Their journey together quickly leads them to the realization that their spirits are some how bound together, and they must unravel the mystery.

After Paladin of Souls, where the character of Ista became my new hero, I apparently set my standards too high for Ijada. Not that Ijada wasn’t a good character. As usual, I am impressed with the way Bujold handles her women within a male patriarchal society. Her women are all aware of the inequality and may comment on it, but they aren’t desperately raging against it. They all overcome or out-manoeuver within the rules, and they all show an consistence strength of will and an inspirational endurance. As this is told entirely through Ingray’s point of view, you don’t get much from Ijada beyond his views of her stoicism and his disbelief in her willingness to accept him so easily when most people are intimidated by his harsh demeanour.

It’s obvious early on that Ijada and Ingray are meant to be together and, despite a few obstacles, that progresses more or less as expected. Bujold’s books often involve romances with unusual attractions, but the pairings are usually much more interesting and the build up to the realization that the one has feelings for the other is usually far more subtle.

I didn’t enjoy these characters and therefore did not become invested in them or in the story itself. By the time things were revealed and proceeded on to the epic not-quite-showdown and ghostly turn of events, I was rather bored.

However, I did enjoy the insight into demon possession, which mostly came through an encounter with a pregnant sorceress. Since demon possession and the subsequent sorcery status had negative connotations for the people in Paladin of Souls, it was interesting to see the counter view, since this takes place in another land where sorcerers are respected and their abilities are trained.

Audiobook Review: Paladin of Souls by Lois McMaster Bujold

Paladin of Souls by Lois McMaster Bujold

Genre: Fantasy

Series: Chalion #2

Publisher: HarperTouch

Publication Date: April 2005

Narrator: Kate Reading

Author Info: dendarii.com

Wendy's Rating: 5 of 5 stars

"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."

The Curse of Chalion taught me a number of things about this world and about Bujold. The first lesson is: do not make assumptions about where the story might be going. Bujold politely walks you down each path, letting you get comfortable with each captivating step until you are certain of what comes next, then gently tugs the carpet out from under you and keeps moving on before you have time to catch your breath.

Like Cazaril, this book begins with a broken, older protagonist. Royina Ista, dowager of Chalion, spent most of the previous book in a curse-ridden, god-touched fog that everyone but Cazaril wrote off as madness. Now free, though still heavy with the guilt of her dreadful crime, Ista sets off on a pilgrimage to visit the shrines of the Five Gods. In truth, after being trapped for so long within a life of royalty and sainthood, Ista simply wants to get away. There is irony in her deception, since Ista bares a grudge against gods for what they have done in her life. She spends much of her time cursing them, but the gods of Bujold's world accept all of this in stride.

Curse initially had me believe that the Five were merely figureheads, where prayer might result in something miraculous occurring, but such events could just as easily be explained by coincidence or parlour tricks. By the end, the guiding hands of the gods becomes shockingly clear. Now, Ista is unable to escape them as they haunt her dreams, guiding her to some unknown purpose. When her pilgrimage is interrupted by an enemy attack from which she is rescued by an unexpected hero, she begins to unravel the mystery as she attempts to decipher the cryptic messages from the Bastard god.

I adore the Bastard. He is not a typical trickster god, though he certainly takes his amusement whenever and where ever he pleases. He does not choose his saints randomly, and Ista's resistance seems to amuse him as much as her potential pleases him. Ista quickly became a favourite character for me as she does for him.

As I said of Ista and the other women in Curse, heroes come in many forms and one who is able to endure the kind of things Ista has must not be overlooked. She carries herself with such grace and dignity, but is not above humility - something else that struck me with Cazaril when we first meet him in Curse. Both he and Ista are easily recognizable as brilliant, brave and capable people, but neither of them abuse their intelligence or status and they respect everyone, both lowborn and high.

Finally, I have to praise Kate Reading's narration. I have listened to her before, usually reading the female-centric chapters of Brandon Sanderson and Robert Jordan's epic fantasies, but here she is on her own - and completely *owning* Ista. Reading captures all of Ista's subtext, every nuance, every emotion. She lets her be weak and flawed as easily as she is strong, commanding and determined. Reading truly embodies this incredible character and brings her perfectly to life.

Book Review: Beguilement by Lois McMaster Bujold

Beguilement by Lois McMaster Bujold

I recently read Bujold’s The Curse of Chalion which teased me with the romance between Cazaril and the young Beatriz. Beguilement, part one of the Sharing Knife series, served almost as a sequel to that romance for me, giving me all the sexual tension and adoration that were only hinted at in Chalion. The romance spawns from the unfortunate adventures of Fawn when she becomes entangled with a deadly Malice and works with the Lakewalker, Dag, to save the world from the blight of evil.

I love the whole concept of the Malices, creatures that feed on life and cannot be killed but by the Lakewalkers and their very special ground magic, bound to the bone sharing knives they carry for just such a purpose. I love the lore of the Malice and of the Lakewalkers and Dag’s history, much of which we learn through Fawn’s naïveté and her endless curiosity. The world Bujold created is fascinating and I really wanted more of it. But all I really got was the courtship of Dag and Fawn.

The romance and the questions end up taking up 80% of the story, with all the excitement and danger of the Malice more or less wrapped up in the first part. I don’t mind a story that focuses on a prolonged romance, and I enjoyed the character development that went along with it. But when they finally get it on, I expected the overlying plot of Malices and bandits to rear their ugly heads again.

Nope. We get to meet the parents! And plan weddings! Oh and deal with ex-boyfriends too!

I haven’t checked the blurb for Legacy , the sequel, but I half expect the plot to cover the honeymoon, birth of children, marital counselling, the messy divorce, custody battles…

2 of 5 stars

Cover Lover: Dag and Fawn

Welcome to Cover Lover, a feature on this blog dedicated to book covers! For a long time, I'd wanted a place where I can share some of my favorite covers, or talk about any that might have caught my eye. So when I came across this idea on fellow gamer/book lover Angelya's site The Oaken Bookcase, I jumped at the opportunity to adopt it as well. The "meme" was originally created by another friend of mine, Jaedia, on her book blog Once Upon A Time, so be sure to check out both their sites and take a look at some of the covers they have featured.

Opinions of Lois McMaster Bujold's The Sharing Knife series has always been a bit mixed. "Hey, what's this romance doing in my fantasy?" is a comment I see a lot when I read reviews of Beguilement and Legacy, and I suppose that's fair enough (though in my opinion, the books are still much more romance-fantasy than fantasy-romance -- there's a difference!)

What I mean is, the romance factor is definitely strong with these novels but at the same time, they don't read like typical Romances. Like in all fantasy books by Bujold, she really makes the world and its magic come to life, but what I loved most about this series are the characters. Bujold made the hero Dag Redwing a sweet, caring and protective male lead without turning him into an overbearing and possessive asshole. Fawn Bluefield is much younger than he is, but she holds her own and takes care of him in turn. They treat each other with respect, and their love is straightforward and honest -- no games, no manipulation, no silly misunderstandings a lot of romance plots throw in for the sake of stirring up relationship drama.

The first two books are really meant to be read together; they are two parts of one whole, just like the lovers Fawn and Dag. They're two people from two very different worlds, and yet they fit perfectly together. And that's why I love these original book cover images, because I think they reflect this so well.

Book Review: The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold

The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold

A shadowy curse hangs over the royal family of Chalion and it falls to a broken man to save them from the curse and the political viper pit that threatens to bring them down.

I fell in love with Cazaril not long after he was introduced. When he first appears, he is a broken man in both body and spirit. He has some how survived betrayal that led him into the hands of vicious slavers and is slowly making his way back to the royal family he serves. His restraint when he encounters arrogant soldiers is impressive. His humility when he presents himself to the Provinsara and requests the opportunity to return to the service of Chalion in some way is a little bit heartbreaking. Despite his wounds, inner and outer, the Provinsara knows him as a loyal, noble person and it becomes increasingly clear to the reader that he is a true hero, though not one that necessarily proves his valor with sword and shield. He is a soldier though and fully capable of fighting, in spite of his increasing health problems. What I respect is that he only resorts to the sword when necessary, relying more on his wits, which is exactly why the Pronvinsara appoints him as secretary-tutor to her beautiful, strong-willed niece, Iselle and, by default, Iselle's equally beautiful and strong-willed handmaiden, Beatriz.

When the ladies first appear, they are impetuously disobeying the rules and they seem to be the typical bratty princess types, but, as with many things in the book, they move quickly past expectations and predictions. This happens with both characters and plotlines, where I would make immediate assumptions about a person or the what-happens-next, only to have them step in a completely different direction, without any time wasted to get to that direction. A lot of authors add extra details and sometimes completely unnecessary words, perhaps to build tension or perhaps just as filler, but I really appreciate the way Bujold gets to the point without the preamble. Everything is artfully detailed and characters are all wonderfully fleshed out, but there is no detritus to sift through. Just a pure story that was a very engrossing and enjoyable read.

I very much liked the portrayal of women in the book. This is a patriarchal society where women are used as pawns through marriage for political gain. Due to the curse and circumstances, two of the women we meet, Ista and Sara, are seemingly downtrodden and, in Ista's case, considered mad. But there is far more to them that Bujold presents early on and recognizes clearly in the end. Heroes come in many forms and one who is able to endure should not be overlooked.

Iselle understands the role of women in this society, and she is also intuitive enough to determine how best to work within the rules to achieve her own happiness, and more importantly, what is best for Chalion. She is able to play the game of thrones, if you will, without compromising morals or herself.

Cazaril is definitely a favourite character, but I ended up appreciating almost all of the characters and appropriately disliking the not so nice ones. Everyone plays an important role in some way.

The other aspect I really enjoyed was the gods. Sometimes when a story includes gods, the gods are much like our reality: other than a few of their followers performing parlour tricks, there is no real evidence of the gods' existence. That is how it seems at first, but again, Bujold quickly proves otherwise in the form of some interesting miracles and saints. Not that these gods are all thunder and lightning. They are very subtle, but their workings and how involved they are in certain lives comes as a surprise each time. I loved the way everything was intertwined seamlessly, start to finish.

“The gods' most savage curses come to us as answers to our own prayers. Praying is a dangerous business.”

By the last twenty percent of the book when everything seemed to have fallen into place, my George R. R. Martin tainted mind was screaming for fear that something would go wrong and and everyone would die! I'm not opposed to unhappy endings, but this was definitely a nice change for me. If you do like happy endings that aren't contrived, then this book is an excellent choice.

5 of 5 stars

This review also appears at Worlds Without End

as part of the Women of Genre Fiction Reading Challenge.

Book Review: Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold

Falling Free by Lois McMaster Bujold

Leo Graf a talented engineer who finds himself pulled from his current station to a habitat operating in a system on the fringes of intergalactic law. Leo is chosen to teach welding to a group of special cases. He doesn't learn how special until he reaches the habitat and witnesses just how loose and fast his employers have played with genetics. Soon, Leo finds himself placed in the center of a revolution, forcing him to confront the ambiguous morality that plagues the Cay habitat, forcing him to take a stand where he'd once only wanted to do his job and stay under the radar.

The quaddies (the experimental humanoids who are classified as "post fetal experimental tissue cultures") are considered little more than inventory, and the company who funded the project to create them are equally as anxious to find a way to get rid of them once they're proven to be obsolete. They don't  have standings as human beings. They shouldn't exist and aren't protected under intergalactic law. Leo, who has only worked with the quaddies for a few months, seems to be the only person who acknowledges that they are people despite their appearance. He hatches a plan to save them and allow them to live life on their terms. Leo's plan to help the quaddies gain freedom is enormous in scope and seems a bit too ambitious, but the alternative is far worse.

This is actually the fourth book in the series, but I'm reading the series in chronological order as suggested by the author herself. My first jaunt with Bujold was with her book The Curse of Chalion, which I loved because it played with many interesting ideas about things like godship and wit being a far more capable weapon than swords. I wasn't quite as taken with this story or its characters. While I undeniably did care about Leo and the quaddies. I never connected to them in the same way as I did with Cazaril and company in The Curse of Chalion.

However, that doesn't mean the characters are shallow by any stretch. I just felt like I didn't get enough time with them. Bujold has a wonderful hold on the characters regardless.  Even when I may think the story is dragging a bit, the characters make up for the lull. Leo is a good man. He's a hardworking engineer who says what he means without tiptoeing around the truth. He has a sense of honor that won't allow him to remain passive in the face of the injustice he's witnessing on Cay. And she did such a wonderful job portraying the precociousness and innocence of the quaddie.

One thing that threw me off was how we don't really see the pivotal point Leo made his decision to help instead of standing by idly. One page, he's saying that he's not going to risk his retirement, and literally, the next page Leo has decided to be involved. True, readers already know that Leo doesn't appreciate the politics and word mincing involved with the assignment, but he'd resolved to be a bystander and leave well enough alone. We don't get to witness that moment when he decides that he will not be an observer. It's not even touched on briefly in the prose.

Even though this is only the second book I've read by Bujold, I've noticed that May-December romances seem to be a thing with her writing with the man lamenting how old he is in comparison to the woman he desires. With Leo and Silver, there were echoes of Cazaril and Beatriz. There is certainly nothing wrong with that, especially since the romance is nicely understated, but it was just something I noticed. I guess all writers have their formula they have to sneak into their stories.

Anyhow, this was a very interesting premise. I enjoyed the story for what it's worth and found the plight of the quaddies and Leo's dilemma of helping them compelling and fast paced. I will say that this story felt as if it went much quicker than The Curse of Chalion, which had bits that felt like filler. Also, Bujold doesn't bog readers down with too much "science." I don't mind it, but some people find it a bit daunting and confusing. Bujold explains the scientific elements involved very well and in a manner that's understandable even by those who may not be big on sci-fi.

I'm very interested in seeing how this fits in the grand balance of the Vorkosigan universe based on what little I already know of the series.

Final Verdict: 

3 of 5 stars

The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold

The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold

First, I should say that if you enjoy a fantasy story full of action, then, this may not be the story for you. There's more talk of battle and war than actual battle. This book relies more on political intrigue, dark family histories, and betrayals. And these are things I enjoyed about the story, especially toward the end of this book.

Something spoilerish this way comes.