I have recently been re-reading some of Anne Bishop's Black Jewels novels and decided Tangled Webs, the one I have currently finished would be a good start. If you have not read any of the books and intend to do so, there will be spoilers ahead revealing events in the other books which this one has as established.
Rather than explain the world Ms. Bishop has created, here is a link to the Wikipedia article giving a brief summary of it: The Black Jewels
One of the things I love about Ms. Bishop's books is how she revisits her characters. I have heard others find this to ruin the flow of some of the books, but I always enjoy it, which is why I love books in a series so much. I love being able to revisit those characters and see what they are up to.
Tangle Webs is a story focusing on Surreal SaDiablo. She belongs to the witch caste which is "a Blood female who wears Jewels but isn't one of the other hierarchical levels; also refers to any Jeweled female" (Bishop). She is very strong wearing a Green Birthright Jewel and a Gray Jewel of rank (both are considered dark Jewels on the scale of Jewels. Gray is the third strongest behind Ebon-gray and Black). Add to this strength of Craft (name for the type of power the Blood use) to the fact that she is also a former whore and assassin and related (indirectly) to the most powerful family in the Realms (Kaeleer, Terreille, and Hell) and to one of the most secretive races in those Realms (the Dea al Mon) its easy to figure out she's not someone you would want to mess with. Anyone who did would most likely meet with the men in her family, the three most dangerous men in the Realms: Saetan SaDiablo, Daemon Sadi, and Lucivar Yaslana. One thing to keep in mind in the Black Jewels novels is that Blood males serve. They women mostly are in charge of things and the men do anything to protect them. The 3 men in the SaDiablo family Warlord Princes, the highest and most lethal caste of Blood male. Saetan is a trained Black Widow, Daemon was born a Black Widow and both can weave terrible dreams, webs, illusions and do almost anything else. Luciver is an Eyrien (meaning he has wings) and is a warrior and has trained for centuries. Non of them wear a Birthright Jewel lighter than Red and their other Jewels are no lighter than Ebon-gray. Daemon and Saetan are the only males to ever wear Black Jewels in the entire existence of the Blood.
If those three were not enough to deter someone from harming anyone close to the SaDiablo family, Janelle Angelline is formerly the Queen of Ebon Askavi, a Healer, and a Black Widow. She was the most powerful woman in all the Realms wearing Ebony Jewels (Jewels no one else has ever worn). She sacrificed herself to save those who were true to the Blood's code of honor (Protocol) and destroyed those who did not. After a long recovery, she returned and no longer wears the Ebony Jewels, she now wears Twilight's Dawn, a Jewel very specific to Janelle. Basically she draws on the strength of power she needs when she needs it. But this should not fool anyway, she is still just as lethal if provoked and there is also the fact that she is married to Daemon, the adopted daughter of Saetan, and by association the adopted sister of Lucivar. (Daemon and Lucivar are both Saetan's sons, but since Janelle is adopted by Saetan, she has no blood ties to Daemon and can marry him. For more of their story and why they are together, read the earlier books in the Black Jewels series.
So in Tangled Webs, Jarvis Jenkell, a man who has recently discovered he is Blood, but not strong enough to wear Jewels, decides to tangle with the SaDiablo family. He sets a trap for them and hopes to catch them in a "spooky house" he has created. Janelle has also been working on a "spooky house" but her's is merely an entertainment for landen (non-Bloods) and the Blood. Jenkell however uses his version of the "spooky house" to trap as many of the high and mighty SaDiablo family as possible. He unwisely decides it is time to repay the Blood for ignoring what he really was (one of the) for too long. He is bitter and has a deep resentment for the Blood. Unfortunately, is plan does not work as well as he hopes and instead of trapping Daemon, Lucivar, and Surreal. He traps Surreal and her escort, and Opal Jeweled Warlord Prince named Ranier, along with some landen children. Once inside the house they soon realize it is not the "spooky house" created by Janelle and holds threats that just might kill them if they do not find a way out. Jenkell has engineered the house to close one of the 30 exits available if anyone inside the house uses Craft for even the tiniest spell.
I really enjoyed this the second time around. I think I appreciated the character of Surreal more, especially having read this so quickly after reading the earlier books in the series. She's a very strong character in many ways. She is given the chance to show some of her skills here, but this story allows for a deeper look at her character.
I enjoyed the tricks in the "spooky house" they were just enough to be gruesome, but not enough to scare me (and that's pretty easy since almost everything scares me). I also liked the interaction between Surreal and Ranier, the Warlord Prince who serves as her 'escort', although she protest to his attempts at this. Ms. Bishop allows us to see that Surreal is not as tough as she acts when she encounters beetles in a bath tub that burts. The giggling spiders were entertaining, and it was nice to see that if Surreal was going to become queasy about something, it wasn't going to be the typical spider thing, but some other insect.
The ending is fulfilling, because Jenkell is given what he deserves by Daemon, and of course that is always interesting.
An idea that runs through all of the Black Jewels novels has to do with the consequences the actions the characters take. There's a saying among the Blood, "Everything has a price" and the consequences are both good and bad, but those who understand the Protocol which governs the Blood, know how true these words are. Someone such as Jarvis Jenkell has absolutely no idea and rightly suffer for their lack of understanding.
Listening to: Johnny Cash - "Heart of Gold"
Friday, April 30, 2010
Book Musings: The Shadow Queen by Anne Bishop
I wasn't going to look at two of Anne Bishop's books, but since I was reading them, I figured why not, its good practice.
I last read The Shadow Queen about a year ago, and I really enjoyed it. Reading it again this time, I found I had completely forgotten a great deal of it. I really only remembered the basic storyline:
The territory of Dena Nehele had suffered under the rules of Dorothea SaDiablo for quite some time, but everything changed after Dorothea and the other Blood were destroyed in the witch storm. Now they need a Queen otherwise they will not survive.
Theran Grayhaven calls in the favor Daemon Sadi offered to his relative Jared Grayhaven and requests a Queen from Kaeleer who is trained in the "Old ways" for Dena Nehele, a territory in Terreille still recovering from Dorothea's damage. Theran is not very smart when he asks for this, not understanding exactly how the what the "Old ways" are and require. Therefore when he is given Cassidy, a young light-jeweled Queen whose court left deserted her. He is, obviously less than pleased with his one and only option. The book then goes through challenge Cassidy and Theran attempting to work together and bring Dena Nehele back to some of its former glory. Cassidy tries to be a Queen who lives by the "Old Ways" and the type of Queen Theran wants while Theran tries to accept the Queen he did not want.
As with all of the books in the Black Jewels series, I enjoyed visiting again with some of my favorite characters, although Surreal is absent. Some people find sidetracking to these other plots to be annoying, and I can understand that because the story doesn't flow in one direction, but I enjoy it. Ms. Bishop works the other plots in enough that everything still flows together. It also allows for the reader to have a deeper understanding of the characters who are so familiar from previous series. I never tire of seeing a new aspect of Daemon, Saetan, Lucivar, and Janelle.
I really enjoyed Cassidy as a character. She's spunky, in a hidden sort of way, but its there. She's strong in a different way than Janelle or Surreal. I also like the character of Gray. He's described as having the mentality of a boy in a man's body. I find this image comes across very clearly and find myself trying to distinguish which part is dominating him in each scene just as Cassidy, Theran, and other characters try to figure out which part of Gray they are confronting.
I have to Theran is just a jerk. A well written jerk, but a jerk just the same. Towards the end of the book I thought perhaps he had some redeemable qualities, but then I remembered everything he does in the sequel, Shalador's Lady and that was enough for me to remember how the changes do not last.
I also enjoy Ranon. He's very tough and has some good comments throughout the story. Another character I enjoy is the kindred Scheltie, Vae. Vae is so hard not to love, although Thearn does a good job of it. If not for anything else, her comments about "snarly males" is worth having for the humor.
After finishing the book, I was disappointed with myself. I read Shalador's Lady less than a month ago, but I think I read it too fast and even though I enjoyed it, I have forgotten much of it, especially with all of the other books I have read in between then and now. I think I may actually have to read it again this way I'll have The Shadow Queen fresh in my mind...
Listening to: Roger Daltrey - "The Price of Love"
I last read The Shadow Queen about a year ago, and I really enjoyed it. Reading it again this time, I found I had completely forgotten a great deal of it. I really only remembered the basic storyline:
The territory of Dena Nehele had suffered under the rules of Dorothea SaDiablo for quite some time, but everything changed after Dorothea and the other Blood were destroyed in the witch storm. Now they need a Queen otherwise they will not survive.
Theran Grayhaven calls in the favor Daemon Sadi offered to his relative Jared Grayhaven and requests a Queen from Kaeleer who is trained in the "Old ways" for Dena Nehele, a territory in Terreille still recovering from Dorothea's damage. Theran is not very smart when he asks for this, not understanding exactly how the what the "Old ways" are and require. Therefore when he is given Cassidy, a young light-jeweled Queen whose court left deserted her. He is, obviously less than pleased with his one and only option. The book then goes through challenge Cassidy and Theran attempting to work together and bring Dena Nehele back to some of its former glory. Cassidy tries to be a Queen who lives by the "Old Ways" and the type of Queen Theran wants while Theran tries to accept the Queen he did not want.
As with all of the books in the Black Jewels series, I enjoyed visiting again with some of my favorite characters, although Surreal is absent. Some people find sidetracking to these other plots to be annoying, and I can understand that because the story doesn't flow in one direction, but I enjoy it. Ms. Bishop works the other plots in enough that everything still flows together. It also allows for the reader to have a deeper understanding of the characters who are so familiar from previous series. I never tire of seeing a new aspect of Daemon, Saetan, Lucivar, and Janelle.
I really enjoyed Cassidy as a character. She's spunky, in a hidden sort of way, but its there. She's strong in a different way than Janelle or Surreal. I also like the character of Gray. He's described as having the mentality of a boy in a man's body. I find this image comes across very clearly and find myself trying to distinguish which part is dominating him in each scene just as Cassidy, Theran, and other characters try to figure out which part of Gray they are confronting.
I have to Theran is just a jerk. A well written jerk, but a jerk just the same. Towards the end of the book I thought perhaps he had some redeemable qualities, but then I remembered everything he does in the sequel, Shalador's Lady and that was enough for me to remember how the changes do not last.
I also enjoy Ranon. He's very tough and has some good comments throughout the story. Another character I enjoy is the kindred Scheltie, Vae. Vae is so hard not to love, although Thearn does a good job of it. If not for anything else, her comments about "snarly males" is worth having for the humor.
After finishing the book, I was disappointed with myself. I read Shalador's Lady less than a month ago, but I think I read it too fast and even though I enjoyed it, I have forgotten much of it, especially with all of the other books I have read in between then and now. I think I may actually have to read it again this way I'll have The Shadow Queen fresh in my mind...
Listening to: Roger Daltrey - "The Price of Love"
Book Musings: The Final Solution by Michael Chabon
This past semester I have taken a literature course entitled Detective Fiction and Film. The purpose of the course was to take works which are not considered "literature" and analyze them as literature. The class looked at The Hound of the Baskervilles, The Maltese Falcon, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Watchmen, and other detective genre works. The last book we read was intended as a look back on themes in many of the books we had previously looked at, basically a capstone for the course all within one book.
As it was so late in the semester, and I am a senior making my desire to read anything which I will not be quizzed, tested, or forced to recall in some manner is at zero I strongly debated not reading this book despite it being only 130 pages. However, I did because I really enjoy the professor's class and felt is was disrespectful not to read it. I did read it and found I was glad I did.
The book is called The Final Solution, by Michael Chabon. Its a detective story set in England during World War II. The story opens with The Old Man (his name is never provided) looking out his window at a boy who has a gray parrot with a red tail on his shoulder. Throughout the novel hints are dropped to alert the reader of The Old Man's identity. A deerstalker hat, a magnifying glass given by the most dear friend he ever had, a pipe, and a penchant for bouncing ideas off of another person (almost any person will do) in order to help him make sense of the case he has been presented (if you can't figure out what literary character The Old Man is supposed to be I suggest you either read the book for a better understanding of the hints that are dropped, I have no plans on revealing him by name).
The case presented to The Old Man is the death of a man and his possible connection to the boy's parrot, which has gone missing. The boy is a mute German Jew who has been brought to England and has escaped the horrors of the Holocaust. The book then describes how the man goes about solving the case.
As The Old Man is supposed to be a character in literature it is interesting to see how he tries to solve the case since some of the elements so essential to him are missing, his youth and vitality, his trusty side kick, among others. There is still a sense of his arrogance, though it is somewhat diminished, and he still has an air of 'I know everything about you just by looking at your boots', though it is also somewhat less as he seems to have lost some of his confidence.
The title also gives a clue to who the famous literary character because it plays on one of the titles this character appears in and the idea that this is the last one for The Old Man. But the title also is a reminder of the Nazi's plan for the Jews which becomes even more obvious upon learning the boy has escaped from Germany.
I really enjoyed the book, but it took me a long time to realize that. It wasn't until the "A-ha!" moment when everything came together that I figured it out I was enjoying it. I really enjoyed all the hints dropped reminding me who The Old Man was and how his age effected him making him almost an anachronism in the world he was living in.
I find my professor's decision and placement of this novel to be spot on. In analyzing it in class it touched on a number of the major issues discussed throughout the semester.
Overall, a nice short read looking at an established character very much at the end of his life, but still able to be as brilliant as ever.
Listening to: .38 Special - "Like No Other Night"
As it was so late in the semester, and I am a senior making my desire to read anything which I will not be quizzed, tested, or forced to recall in some manner is at zero I strongly debated not reading this book despite it being only 130 pages. However, I did because I really enjoy the professor's class and felt is was disrespectful not to read it. I did read it and found I was glad I did.
The book is called The Final Solution, by Michael Chabon. Its a detective story set in England during World War II. The story opens with The Old Man (his name is never provided) looking out his window at a boy who has a gray parrot with a red tail on his shoulder. Throughout the novel hints are dropped to alert the reader of The Old Man's identity. A deerstalker hat, a magnifying glass given by the most dear friend he ever had, a pipe, and a penchant for bouncing ideas off of another person (almost any person will do) in order to help him make sense of the case he has been presented (if you can't figure out what literary character The Old Man is supposed to be I suggest you either read the book for a better understanding of the hints that are dropped, I have no plans on revealing him by name).
The case presented to The Old Man is the death of a man and his possible connection to the boy's parrot, which has gone missing. The boy is a mute German Jew who has been brought to England and has escaped the horrors of the Holocaust. The book then describes how the man goes about solving the case.
As The Old Man is supposed to be a character in literature it is interesting to see how he tries to solve the case since some of the elements so essential to him are missing, his youth and vitality, his trusty side kick, among others. There is still a sense of his arrogance, though it is somewhat diminished, and he still has an air of 'I know everything about you just by looking at your boots', though it is also somewhat less as he seems to have lost some of his confidence.
The title also gives a clue to who the famous literary character because it plays on one of the titles this character appears in and the idea that this is the last one for The Old Man. But the title also is a reminder of the Nazi's plan for the Jews which becomes even more obvious upon learning the boy has escaped from Germany.
I really enjoyed the book, but it took me a long time to realize that. It wasn't until the "A-ha!" moment when everything came together that I figured it out I was enjoying it. I really enjoyed all the hints dropped reminding me who The Old Man was and how his age effected him making him almost an anachronism in the world he was living in.
I find my professor's decision and placement of this novel to be spot on. In analyzing it in class it touched on a number of the major issues discussed throughout the semester.
Overall, a nice short read looking at an established character very much at the end of his life, but still able to be as brilliant as ever.
Listening to: .38 Special - "Like No Other Night"
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Blog Beginnings
I've been spending some time looking at blogs about books lately and have decided to create my own. As a History and Literature major, I read a great deal. Add to that that I will be pursuing a master's degree in library science so I enjoy reading for pleasure. For me, books and music are two must haves on a desert island.
Anyway, in this blog, I hope to post thoughts on books I've read. I'll try to make them as diverse as possible, but as much as I love variety, I also like my comforts. I wouldn't say I'm going to review books necessarily. I may give them a rating...but that may come later. I'll be sure to give some info about how I came across the book and if it is a re-read.
I'm sure random thoughts will intrude, how often, I have no idea, but they will worm their way in. These are solely my thoughts so take from them what you will, but remember they are mine, they belong to no one but me. If you agree or like what I say, that's great, if not you are entitled to your opinion.
Anyway, in this blog, I hope to post thoughts on books I've read. I'll try to make them as diverse as possible, but as much as I love variety, I also like my comforts. I wouldn't say I'm going to review books necessarily. I may give them a rating...but that may come later. I'll be sure to give some info about how I came across the book and if it is a re-read.
I'm sure random thoughts will intrude, how often, I have no idea, but they will worm their way in. These are solely my thoughts so take from them what you will, but remember they are mine, they belong to no one but me. If you agree or like what I say, that's great, if not you are entitled to your opinion.
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