The devout know that divine Nari, founder of Narida, will be reborn when he is most needed. With the current God-king sick and Tjakorshi Raiders settling on the Black Coast, the time is surely ripe. But how will Narida welcome him?
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The Near Earth Orbital Guard handle search and rescue in space, a vital if underfunded mission delivered by small, tight crews determined to save lives. When rookie lieutenant Max Carmichael is unexpectedly assigned to the best Neo-G crew in the service, she has a lot to prove – to her new team, to her estranged family, but mostly to herself.
The new Parijatdvipan Emperor is a tyrant and a zealot, fond of ‘purifying’ women with flame. When his rebellious sister refuses to be sacrificed, she is imprisoned. But allies are sometimes found in the strangest places, and Malini is not alone in her fear of the Emperor. Chandra’s cruelty may set the whole Empire alight.
Ideas never die, but do books have souls? Rifts have opened between Claire and Brevity following Hell’s assault on the Unwritten Wing and when a new threat emerges, sparks fly. How can they fix the Library if they can’t even repair their friendship? Just as well there’s a Hero on hand…
In Vaskandar, everything boils down to power. As a Witchlord’s mage-marked granddaughter, Ryx is undeniably powerful. But her magic is flawed: it kills everything she touches. When she accidentally kills a visiting dignitary, she gives an ambitious neighbour a pretext for war… which is about to be the least of her worries.
Time for the final showdown: reunited at last, Phèdre and Joscelin and their unlikely allies must find a way to warn Ysandre, avenge Asherat and thwart Melisande’s deep-laid plans for a coup in Terre d’Ange.
Beset by political and literal storms, Phèdre and her Illyrian captors find themselves barred safe haven and cast ashore on an ancient island of mysteries. Phèdre needs help at any price, but can she persuade the Kritians – or the Illyrians – that the reward of Ysandre’s friendship is worth the risk of Serenissiman enmity?
Phèdre’s mission hangs by a thread. With certain knowledge of treachery, Phèdre is desperate to get a warning to her Queen before Ysandre falls victim to the same trap that has closed around Phèdre herself. But where Phèdre is too desirable to kill, Ysandre will be assassinated without hesitation…
As Phèdre and the boys settle into La Serenissima, it becomes clear that our anguisette’s familiarity with d’Angeline politics may not have fully prepared her for the sharks of the Caerdicci city state, where family members line up to stab one another in the back. But is Melisande Shahrizai to be found within these murky waters?
I really enjoyed my recent reread of space opera thriller The Vela, so I’ve been excited to pick up season two to find out what happens to its conflicted characters in the wake of the battle of Gan-De. The Vela: Salvation sees a new writing team take up the reins as humanity struggles to save itself from disasters of its own making.
Phèdre is back, and the d’Angeline court can’t get enough of her. But the most satisfying patrons in the City of Elua can’t heal the bruises left by Joscelin’s cold shoulder or help her sleep at night. As the pieces start to fall into place, it becomes clear to her that she won’t find her answers in Terre d’Ange – but what will be cost of persuading Joscelin to accompany her to La Serenissima?
Picking up where Kushiel’s Dart left off, we rejoin Phèdre nó Delaunay at Montrève, breaking the news to her household that she will be returning to the service of Naamah. Cue romantic anguish from a certain former Cassiline and a shudder of delight from the Court. Without Delaunay to guide her, Phèdre must set her own course – without tipping her hand – if she is to find Melisande Shahrizai…
Thanh is the Empress’s youngest daughter: the expendable one sent to powerful Ephteria as a ‘guest’; the forgotten foreigner they left to burn when their palace caught fire. But Thanh survived to go home, although she has found less herself welcome than she could wish. Now, the arrival of Ephterian envoys is her chance to prove her worth to the Empire… or see her home burn to the ground.
February is here, which means it’s time for us to return to Terre d’Ange. We will be reading and discussing Kushiel’s Chosen by Jacqueline Carey over the next 6 weeks; if you’d like to join us, you’re very welcome! A breakdown of our reading schedule and the first week’s discussion prompts are included below.
Once upon a time, I would have said a doorstop was my favourite kind of read: a big chonk I could lose myself in. These days, I have shorter commutes (ahem) and less patience; consequently, I’ve come to love shorter-form. Last year, a third of my reads – and half my favourite reads – were novellas. Today and tomorrow I’ll be wrapping up my thoughts on a few I haven’t yet reviewed.
