Imriel, foster son of Phedre and her consort Joscelin,
takes center stage in KUSHIEL'S SCION. Three heartbeats
away from the throne of Terre d' Ange, Imriel is only too
aware of his precarious position at court. By blood, Imriel
is the son of his nation's most hated traitors. Although
embraced by his cousin the Queen and her family, there are
many in her court who see him as tainted.
Gossip and speculation dog Imriel's days in the royal city.
He's much more at home in the countryside where he lives
with his foster family. However, as a Prince of the Blood,
he has duties that take precedent over his own desires.
Although he wants only to be good and do good, Imriel's
fear is that he will fail those who love him. How he deals
with his fears and makes peace with himself is the heart of
this story.
Carey's Kushiel's Legacy series is set in an alternate
reality Europe. Her world is complex and she's spent a lot
of time building it in the quartet of books that encompass
it. Carey does explain a lot of the backstory for new
readers, but it's helpful if you've read the first three
books in the series. Briefly: Terre d' Ange (the Land of
the Angels) corresponds to France, the population descended
from angels who left the holy land many generations before.
The time period, basically very early Renaissance.
Religion, is very important in the books and is based on
Judeo-Christian tradition with some interesting variations
that mostly involve an "ill-begotten" son of the one God
and other Demigods. Sex and sensuality are also important
and very much a part of the characters' lives. The scenes
aren't lewd but can be graphic. She doesn't shy away from
them, but at the same time, they're not overly romantic or
pornographic. They're plainly written and an integral part
of the story. This isn't a story that moves along quickly.
Carey takes her time with her world and characters.
KUSHIEL'S SCION is very much a "journey not a destination"
book. It's the evolving relationships and the characters
that are important, not the adventuring, although there is
that too. And the final destination isn't the armies and
swordplay and saved kingdoms so much as self-discovery and
the peace and freedom that come with it.
There's a lot that goes on in the Kushiel books. Trying to
describe all the plots and relationships would take
forever. There's an important villain readers will know
from previous books and obviously, since she's Imriel's
mother and Kushiel's greatest scion, she appears here too.
The world is described in rich detail and continues to
fascinate. The characters are completely three-dimensional.
They come across as people, not just convenient plot
devices to move the action along. The series could have
been tied up at the end of the third book. Carey's readers
are fortunate she's continued the story of Phedre and her
clan with this new story revolving around Imriel.
Imriel de la Courcel's blood parents are history's most
reviled traitors, but his adoptive parents, the Comtesse
Phèdre and the warrior-priest Joscelin, are Terre d'Ange's
greatest champions. Stolen, tortured, and enslaved as a
young boy, Imriel is now a Prince of the Blood, third in
line for the throne in a land that revels in art, beauty,
and desire. It is a court steeped in deeply laid
conspiracies…and there are many who would see the young
prince dead.
Some despise him out of hatred for his birth mother
Melisande, who nearly destroyed the realm in her quest for
power. Others because they fear he has inherited his
mother's irresistible allure-and her dangerous gifts. And
as he comes of age, plagued by dark yearnings, Imriel
shares their fears.
At the royal court, where gossip is the chosen poison and
assailants wield slander instead of swords, the young
prince fights character assassins while struggling with his
own innermost conflicts. But when Imriel departs to study
at the famed University of Tiberium, the perils he faces
turn infinitely more deadly.
Searching for wisdom, he finds instead a web of
manipulation, where innocent words hide sinister meanings,
and your lover of last night may become your hired killer
before dawn. Now a simple act of friendship will leave
Imriel trapped in a besieged city where the infamous
Melisande is worshiped as a goddess; where a dead man leads
an army; and where the prince must face his greatest test:
to find his true self.
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