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.