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i_read_whatI'll be honest with you. I did not want to open this book for my review today. I think last chapter broke me. This is a series where our heroes have done despicable things that were never acknowledged as such by the narrative, but something crossed a line for me.
If I were reading for pleasure, I'd have a hard time not stopping here. But, well. I'm reviewing. So I suppose I have motivation to continue.
So, we rejoin our...I can't really even call them heroes with a straight face, can I, as they march with their soldiers into Solinde.
You know, the country that DIDN'T send an assassin into Homana-Mujhar. The country that Carillon ADMITS would probably be satisfied just getting their independence.
...why are these the heroes again?
When the Homanan army marched at last across the western borders into Solinde, it met with little resistance. Carillon took care to distinguish Solindish crofters and citizens who had no stake in the battle beyond trying to survive while their realm was battered by war, from those who supported Tynstar. Much of the realm still served Carillon’s interests, albeit reluctantly. Still, the tension was apparent from the moment they crossed the border.
...how do you determine who serves Tynstar? Do they have flags? Special outfits?
Of course, the Cheysuli troops are independent, under the command of their clan-leaders who deal directly with Carillon. This leads Donal to think about how he's known only a grudging peace between the races, and that his recent experiences have reminded him that his race isn't fully restored.
That's good. That's a thread I'd have liked to explore more than "please rape my daughter."
He found that most of the soldiers accepted the Cheysuli readily enough—the races had fought together to help win Carillon his throne—but there was uneasiness within the ranks. It was Carillon who kept the peace. And Rowan, whose Homanan ways and Cheysuli appearance made him a man of both and neither races.
...this seems contradictory. Is it "readily" or is it "uneasy"?
On the plus side, Donal has a friend?
Evan proved an easy companion for Donal. Together they argued and debated and discussed all manner of strategy in all varieties of emotions, but always recognizing the bond of true friendship. It was a bond Donal had never experienced before, being caught between his Homanan rank and Cheysuli warrior status, and he found it was one he valued greatly. It was not the same as the link with his lir, but it was very satisfying nonetheless.
...have you really never had friends, dude? Even back at the Keep? That's sad. Or a sign of how much of a dick you are.
More likely, it's a sign of Roberson's limitations as a writer. It's like how in Shapechangers, we met four Cheysuli period. We had no real sense of them as a people or community. We don't know who makes up their Council or how they work.
Song was better, but what do we know about Homanan culture? They have gods, but are these the same gods of the Cheysuli? What are their names? Are they personified like the Greek Gods, or more animistic like in Shinto? Are there holidays? Rituals?
Even now, when we went to the Keep, we met: Finn, Sorcha, Bronwyn and Alix. Who else is there? What else is there? How are Cheysuli educated? Are there people of like mind to Sorcha? Does Bronwyn get to hang out with other girls?
Or, let's look at the castle. It took the wedding before we saw even a glimpse of court life? And how does a princess grow up without attendants? A nurse? Hell, who FED Aislinn when Electra turned coat?
I'm not saying we need minutia, but there's no clear evidence that any thought was put into ANY of this. Donal's isolation at least seems somewhat deliberate, but the lack of any of these details also looks pretty lazy.
So anyway, he's sitting with Carillon the rape-dad, and the latter is lost in thought. We get some legitimately nice description here:
It was mid-summer and temperate. An evening breeze rippled the brilliant fabric of the pavilion. Light from the setting sun crept through the weave of the fabric and splashed color into the interior, so that the blond wood of table and chairs was dyed a rich ocher-bronze. The silver shone golden in the light.
Donal smelled roasting boar, spitted in the center of the camp. He smelled the bouquet of Carillon’s wine and a faint tinge of bitterness he ascribed to the coals in the brazier. He smelled the aroma of war, though they had barely met a soul in battle. He smelled death and futility, and the strivings of men who would spend their lives in defense of a throne they would never see, a throne that one day would be his.
Carillon asks after Evan, as both men were invited to his tent. I'd like to think Evan was too disgusted to deal with Carillon, but Donal tells us that Evan's found some companionship among Solindish crofter daughters who have "felt compelled to follow us".
Imagine getting consensual sex partners. I don't know that either of these men can conceive of that.
There's news. A letter from Aislinn. She's conceived. The reactions are interesting:
He broke the seal. He was afraid as well as curious; in the two months since the army had marched into Solinde, there had been no letters from Aislinn. There had been nothing but silence between them.
Donal read the message, then stared blankly at the lettering. “She has—conceived.”
Carillon rose slowly to his feet. “She is certain?”
“There has been confirmation.” Donal sucked in a deep breath. “Well, my lord…forced or not, it seems to have succeeded.”
“Thank the gods,” Carillon said fervently, “the throne is secured at last.”
Donal shook his head. “Only if the child is a boy.”
“You have already sired one—is it so foolish to think there may be another?” But Carillon turned away to pour more wine in his goblet, not bothering to wait for a response, though Donal offered none.
1. Gosh, Donal, maybe there's a REASON for the silence between you and your wife. Have you even tried to TALK to her after you raped her?
2. Donal doesn't seem very happy about conceiving. That may be to his credit, given the circumstances.
3. Um, Carillon. You only had a daughter?
We're told that Carillon's been drinking a lot lately, because of the ache in his joints. He still leads them into battle though.
You know. IN this war. That didn't need to happen.
Donal IS thinking of Aislinn now at least?
He looked again at the message, penned in a wavering hand. From Aislinn herself, he did not doubt; a scribe would do it more carefully.
Gods, what is she thinking…what does she think of me? “She says she is well,” he told Carillon. “But—first births are often hard. With Sorcha—” He broke off abruptly, knowing it was not the time to speak of his meijha. But then he turned sharply to Carillon. Of late there had been a bond between them of mutual affection and circumstances. Donal recalled how Carillon had taught him to read a map and explained the battles he had fought with Finn at his side. But now, with the specter of Sorcha suddenly between them, he felt the faint tension rise up to mock them both. “You hate me for that, do you not?” Donal asked. “For keeping Sorcha when Aislinn is my cheysula.”
Didn't we see a variation of this conversation already?
Anyway, does it MATTER what Carillon thinks, when he's already chosen you over his daughter in about nineteen other ways.
Carillon moved to one of the supple leather chairs and sat down slowly, lowering himself carefully into the seat. “I have learned, over the years, to respect many Cheysuli customs. I admit I do not understand most of them, but I have learned what integrity there is in your race. Though, given a choice, I would prefer you set aside your meijha—for my daughter’s sake—I will not ask it of you.”
“You did not answer my question.”
Carillon smiled. “No, I did not. Well enough.” He shifted in the chair and drank more wine; the pale, sweet wine with its acidic bouquet, that Carillon allowed no one else to touch. “I do not hate you, Donal. I kept myself to Electra when we were together because I desired no other—she would inspire fidelity in any man, regardless of his tastes…but it does not mean I cannot comprehend your ability to wed one woman and keep another as well.” He gazed into the brazier coals. “For all that, I am the last to speak of such things as a man desiring only one woman when there is another one he cares for. The gods know I wanted your mother badly enough, even when both of us were wed to other people.” There was pain in his voice as he said it, immense pain; he had taken the news of Alix’s death very badly.
...I feel like this whole exchange is meant to make me more sympathetic to Donal's plight but it just makes me angrier at him.
Donal gets everything. He gets a beautiful wife, who he is at least physically attracted to, who is basically isolated from everything and everyone. She has no life outside of him, no friends. And her father is not remotely in her corner. (He'd "prefer" Donal set aside his mistress. My ass.)
Donal gets a mistress who he treats as his real wife. Who he goes to whenever he suffers a personal setback. He has children that his own culture views as just as legitimate as hers (and gosh, it's a good thing there are no Cheysuli separatist groups that might favor Donal's real firstborn...). And he suffers NO consequences.
Carillon says he'd "prefer" Donal set Sorcha aside, but at no point does he address that his daughter is HURT by this arrangement. Her feelings don't matter.
Anyway, Donal is distracted and horrified by the fact that Carillon once had feelings for Alix. And this is so weird:
“My jehana?” It was all Donal could manage.
Carillon sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes. “An old story, Donal….I thought surely you must know it by now.” Twisted fingers scraped silver hair back from his pain-wracked face. “Gods—I cannot believe she is gone. Not Alix. After all she has been to me…after all she has done….”
And my jehan? Donal wanted to ask. You say nothing of my jehan. Is it that even in death you compete?
...okay, look, Carillon did get a little gross about Alix in Song, but this weird defensiveness of Duncan is, well, weird.
Carillon and Alix were close even before Duncan was in the picture. Carillon has spoken favorably of Duncan a lot, in this book alone. He doesn't mention Duncan here, PROBABLY, because for him it's been fifteen years since the man died. Alix died like a month ago.
And if he DOES know that Duncan wasn't dead, well, then, he has to process the fact that Duncan was the instrument of Alix's death. And maybe he just isn't ready to deal with this now.
Oh, hey, no. He does know apparently. He tells Donal "the old story". Which isn't the one I expected:
Carillon shook his head after a moment. “I never stopped caring for her, Donal, even after she wed your father. Even after she had borne you.” He swirled wine in his goblet. “I wed Electra. And when that marriage was finished, I turned again to your mother.”
Possessiveness overruled Donal’s empathy. “Even while she was Duncan’s cheysula—?”
“No.” Carillon looked at him. “Your father was already lirless. Dead—or so we believed.” Carillon’s brow furrowed a little, as if reflecting a measure of his grief. “The day I took you and your mother back to the Keep, I asked her to marry me. I would have made her Queen.”
My jehana, the Queen of Homana—but the wonderment did not last. “She wanted no one but my jehan.” He said it a trifle cruelly, but he felt threatened by Carillon’s admission.
Donal, you're twenty five years old by this point. Why are you acting like a child. And heck, if you think about it, it would have solved your marital issues. Carillon says this would have made Donal his son.
...I don't think inheritance works like that. But hell, Donal is his heir anyway, maybe it would. Then Donal wouldn't have had to marry Aislinn. As the son, he's the heir. Aislinn would have married someone else.
But anyway, Carillon admits that Alix wouldn't have him, they died together, and Donal is still Duncan's son.
Thankfully, the scene is interrupted by Rowan. He says there's something that Carillon needs to see. Carillon gets the sword and Donal feels guilty for not accepting it yet. Dude, of all the things you have to feel guilty about, I wouldn't put that anywhere near the top of the list.
Anyway, there is Ihlini sorcery afoot.
The light was wrong. Instead of normal deepening twilight, it was nearly black as pitch. Torchlight illuminated the encampment, but the flames seemed almost muted, swallowed by the darkness. Something muffled sight, sound, smell, as if the camp had been swept beneath a carpet.
Rowan took them westward to a line of gentle hills that rolled out to ring the camp. He gestured briefly to the moon hanging so low against the starless sky: its face was filled with darkness. A thick, viscid darkness. The color was deepest purple.
Carillon stopped at the crest of a grassy hill where another man waited with his wolf. In the light from the dying moon, the slender stalks of grass glowed a luminous lavender.
“Ihlini,” Finn said.
...I'd say "get a room", but honestly, that kayak is sunk. Finn deserves better than a man who asks someone to rape his daughter. (I can't believe I'm saying that. I can't believe I HAVE to say that.)
There's a weird bit where Carillon explains Ihlini magic to actual Cheysuli:
Donal frowned. Wreaths of cloying mist rose up from the flatlands below the hills: bog steaming in a storm. There was the faintest of hisses, almost lost in the heavy darkness. “Some form of spell?”
“More like a warning—or a greeting.” Carillon’s hand was on his sword. “Who can say what Tynstar means by anything he does?”
Rowan, next to them, frowned. “How can he summon sorcery before so many Cheysuli?”
Carillon’s eyes did not stop moving as he studied the lay of the land and the mist that rose to obscure it. “Here, there are four times as many Homanans. Tynstar strikes at them.”
I suppose it's an indication of how much Carillon learned from Finn, who elaborates that Ihlini can do some simple tricks with Cheysuli, and with so many Homanans present, all he has to do is play on THEIR superstitions.
...I don't remotely understand how this works.
Donal wishes the lir could do something, but they can't. And this actually is legitimately interesting:
Lir, Donal said. I wish you could do something.
Nothing, Lorn answered. You know the law. We cannot fight Ihlini.
And yet Ihlini fight us.
I did not say the law was fair. Lorn’s tone was ironic. I only know we of the lir honor what the gods have given us.
If I die, you and Taj are dead.
It is all a part of the price.
Too high, Donal retorted. You should tell the gods.
It's an ethical quandary isn't it? It's likely that the Ihlini were meant to be under a similar restriction, but because they don't follow the mainstream Cheysuli gods, they don't feel any reason to be bound by it. So the Cheysuli are the only ones upholding their end of things.
It'd make sense to retaliate of course. But this is also a matter of faith and honor. Is it right to give up your own honor just because your opponent is a dishonorable bastard?
What's the point of faith, vows and honor if you CAN give it up so easily? What's the point of victory if you give up everything important to you?
I think I'm rather more pragmatic than the lir. But I can understand their position.
There's more discussion. Evan shows up too. And the illusion gets worse. The men are understandably freaked out. And Tynstar makes an admittedly grand entrance:
The Mujhar turned. Ten feet from them all, on the crest of the hill, the writhing serpent halted. It coiled, rose upward, stretched itself toward the sky. It thickened, as if it had been fed. It swelled, as if heavy with child.
And then the swollen belly spit open, and the serpent gave birth to a man.
He was wrapped in a purple cloak so dark it was nearly black. A silver brooch glinted at one shoulder; silver earrings flashed in his lobes; a ring was on one hand. But it was the eyes, not the jewelry, that Donal saw more than anything else; the eyes, black and beguiling, set in the smooth flesh of eternal youth. The smile, framed by black and silver beard, was singularly sweet.
For the first time Donal faced the man who done so much to destroy his life, and he found he was afraid.
So Tynstar says that it's time for Carillon's death. Carillon laughs in his face. Tynstar has, after all, failed repeatedly before.
There's an interesting implication here:
Tynstar’s smile was genuinely amused. “It is true you have guarded yourself well. The Cheysuli ever serve their Mujhar.” He looked at Finn. Then at Donal. “But now there is one of their own who waits to take the throne—and you are no longer needed.”
Carillon shook his head. “You will not put me in fear of the warriors who serve me so well. I am not Shaine, Ihlini. I do not succumb to such transparent tricks as these.”
When I read this before Shapechangers, I'd wondered if Tynstar had influenced Shaine somehow. It would make a certain amount of sense, and it would have tied Tynstar into the events of the first book better than a cryptic statement and a refusal to kill Alix.
And a part of me wonders, yet again, why exactly are we siding with the Homanans here?
I mean, okay, Tynstar kidnapped and raped Alix, which is awful. But our heroes are rapists too.
What is Tynstar doing that's so bad? We know he worships a "Dark God". We know he acts against the Cheysuli prophecy. Maybe. Does he?
Tynstar didn't rule Solinde in Shapechangers/Song, Bellam did. He used and furthered the qu'mahlin, but he didn't start it. He drained Carillon's life, but given that Carillon had forcibly married the woman he loved against his will, I kind of get it.
Is Tynstar torturing his subjects? Is Tynstar enslaving people? (there is the trap link, but does that take over their will? Or is that like a booby-trap? We know the CHEYSULI can take a man's will.) Is he draining life from the land?
I mean, these all could be true. But Roberson hasn't shown us this. So...why is Tynstar the villain.
...okay, he did have Duncan prisoner for a long time. But Duncan's awful.
Anyway, Tynstar has a warning:
Unconsciously, Donal put one hand to the flesh of his throat. He could feel the kiss of the iron collar, the weight of his vulnerability. Then he forced his hand away. “You are a fool indeed if you think I will turn against Carillon.”
Tynstar smiled. “No. I am quite aware of the folly in trying that. You are not so pliant as I could wish. No, you will not turn against Carillon…but you will not have to. He will be dead within a year.”
“And the throne?” Carillon rasped.
“Mine,” Tynstar said simply. “As it was ever meant to be.”
...since when does Tynstar want Homana? When Solinde had Homana in the five years between Shapechangers and Song of Homana, Bellam ruled both lands.
I do like that Tynstar is finally getting to be a real presence, though.
But Tynstar has more to say:
“I know the truth of the histories,” Tynstar said. “And I will willingly share them with you.”
“I will not listen,” Donal told him flatly. “Do you think I would heed your words?”
“Take them to the Keep with you and question your shar tahl,” Tynstar challenged. “See then who lies. See then who speaks the truth.” He put up a silencing hand. “Have you never wondered why the Firstborn left Homana to the Cheysuli? Have you never wondered precisely how an entire race died out?”
There's more back and forth. Then:
“I come, I go—I do as I wish.” Tynstar did not smile. “Heed me well, all of you—I give you insight into a truth you have never encountered.” Again, the hand was raised. He looked directly at Donal. “Cheysuli warrior, you are—with a little Homanan blood. Because the shapechangers serve the prophecy of the Firstborn, who gave it to them before the race died out. Do you know why?”
“A legacy,” Donal answered. “We are the children of the Firstborn—”
“—who were the children of the gods.” The flame burned more brightly around Tynstar, as if it answered some secret bidding. “But are you so proud, so insular, so arrogant, as to believe they sired no others?”
A blurt of sound escaped Donal. He felt Lorn go rigid beside him.
“What are you trying to say—” But Finn was interrupted.
“They sired a second race,” the sorcerer said. “They sired the Ihlini…who bred with the Cheysuli.”
Dun dun dun.
So...
This really doesn't mean that much, does it?
It makes SENSE, of course. It explains why the Cheysuli lir won't act against the Ihlini. It explains why Ihlini magic is less effective against the Cheysuli.
But, why do we care? I get why the heroes hate Tynstar as a person. But the Ihlini-Cheysuli conflict has been very undeveloped all along.
This is something later books do better. Between Tynstar and later Ihlini like Lilith, Strahan, [spoiler name], and Lochiel, we'll see a lot of occasions where the Ihlini do horrible things to our Cheysuli main characters. By book 8, you'll have a lot more reason to appreciate the hate between the races.
But now? Eh. SHAINE was a far bigger threat to the Cheysuli than Tynstar. The Homanans in the tavern, the assassin, they're far more a palpable threat to Donal than anyone else.
So there's a dramatic moment where Carillon brandishes the sword at Tynstar, who laughs, pointing out the blackened ruby. Carillon shoves it into Donal's hands and...wait, what?
Tynstar’s smooth face exhibited mild surprise, but very little concern. “So—Hale’s sword at last finds its master. I feared it might happen one day. I thought perhaps I might gainsay him in time when I slew him in the forest, but obviously not.”
“You slew him!” Finn took a single step forward. “It was Shaine’s men who slew my jehan—”
“Was it?” Tynstar smiled. “Do not be such a fool. I sought Hale because I knew his was the seed that could destroy the Ihlini race. Think you I could let him live?” A dismissive wave of a graceful, negligent hand. “Lindir I intended to slay as well, before she could bear the child—but she escaped me and fled to Homana-Mujhar. So I slew Hale after I slew his lir—I meant to take the sword. But he had given it to Shaine.” For a moment his beautiful, bearded face altered into something less sanguine, much more malevolent. “I should have known it would be Alix’s child for whom it was meant. I felt it in her, before she lay with Duncan. I should have slain her too, as I took Duncan’s hawk. It would have gainsaid the prophecy and saved me the trouble of meeting you here.”
...NONE OF THIS MAKES SENSE.
Tynstar KNOWS Hale is the ancestor of the line that could destroy the Ihlini, so he killed him. Lindir escaped.
But he repeatedly let Alix live! He let CARILLON live! WHY? He even says he should have slain her. But he didn't. Even though he murdered Hale immediately! WHY? Finn is Hale's son, but Tynstar has never shown interest in him. Supposedly, he knew the answer was in Hale and Lindir's kid. SO WHY NOT KILL HER?!
NONE OF THIS MAKES SENSE.
But there is some important information here:
Donal lowered the sword. The ruby had dimmed a little, as if knowing much of its job was done; only Tynstar remained, surrounded by his cocoon of living flame. The fog and the serpent were gone. “You slew her anyway And my jehan. When you sent him to trap us.”
“That was not my idea,” Tynstar said. “It was my—apprentice’s suggestion.” He smiled. “Was it not a good one? Nearly successful, as well.”
And now we get Tynstar's true motives:
“I worship nothing,” Tynstar retorted. “I serve, even as you pretend to serve. The Seker does not require the nonsense of obeisance and ritualistic loyalty. He knows what lies in a man’s true soul.” He touched the brooch at his left shoulder. “Aye, I am an integral part of the same prophecy that orders Donal’s life—but I serve it not. I seek only to break its power, before the Ihlini are destroyed.” For a moment, there was a touch of humanity in his eyes. “Can you not see? I do this for the salvation of my race.”
So what in the world does he mean by that?
Tynstar gives us his version of the Ihlini backstory.
Tynstar smiled. “You are idealistic, Donal—or perhaps merely young. Comprehension will come with age. You see, we Ihlini desired more gifts than those the Firstborn gave us. More—power. We turned to the only source that would heed us when the Firstborn would not—”
“—Asar-Suti,” Carillon finished.
“The god of the netherworld, who made and dwells in darkness.” That from Finn.
“Aye,” Tynstar agreed. “A generous lord, in fact. He did not stint what powers he gave those who wished to serve him.” His eyes were on the sword still clasped limply in Donal’s hand. “But the Firstborn sought to destroy us when they learned of our oath to serve the Seker. Knowing they would die before this destruction could be accomplished, they fashioned a prophecy instead, and left the destruction to the Cheysuli—”
“No,” Donal said.
Tynstar did not allow the interruption to interfere. “They instilled within you all a perfect and blind obedience that even now binds your soul. They gave each warrior a fate and called it a tahlmorra, to make certain the task would be fulfilled. They turned you into soldiers for the gods, as dedicated to preserving and fulfilling the prophecy as we are to its downfall. Because that fulfillment, once achieved, means the annihilation of my race.” Tynstar’s voice was harsh. “An Ihlini qu’mahlin, Donal—instituted by the Cheysuli.”
Donal disagrees, the prophecy doesn't mention annihilation. It just talks about a Mujhar "of all blood" uniting four warring realms and two magic races. Is that so horrible?
Tynstar's view:
Tynstar’s teeth showed briefly. “It means the mingling of Cheysuli blood and Ihlini, Donal. It means the swallowing of our races and a merging of the power. No more independence. No more—apartness. The Ihlini and Cheysuli will die out, drowned in each other’s blood.”
...does it? I mean, one dude having both Ihlini and Cheysuli blood wouldn't literally merge them, right? So why can't they co-exist separately?
(Pan2000 points out the obvious Nazi/supremacy/blood purity language being used here in the comments below. And I agree with that. I'm glad it's presented as a villainous thing. But I think the message gets muddled as we get farther into the series.)
But we also reach the absurd illogic behind the Ihlini tactics here. Because from this point on, the Ihlini will be effective and terrifying, but they're also really fucking stupid. You know why?
BRONWYN.
Now, I've already spoiled the big plot twist about Bronwyn. She's Alix and Duncan's daughter. But right now, everyone THINKS she's Tynstar's. Because Tynstar raped Alix.
WHY, if you are worried about MINGLING BLOOD, are you raping a Cheysuli woman?!
This isn't going to be the last time this happens either. One nice trend in later books is that we see a sharp decrease in rapist lead characters. But we're going to see a sharp INCREASE in rapist adversaries.
Book four, five and six will all contain instances of an Ihlini raping a Cheysuli. All of those instances will result in children. One is miscarried, but two survive. Hell, one is the child of the first rape!
The prophecy requires a man "of all blood", right? So at some point they're going to start breeding into the four warring nations (hell, they've started. Aislinn is the product of Homana and Solinde. Two warring nations! Her child with Donal will have Cheysuli blood as well).
They're now the royal family, so it should be reasonably easy to marry members off to other royals. The HARD part of the prophecy is trying to introduce Ihlini blood into the mix.
UNLESS OF COURSE THE IHLINI ARE ALREADY DOING THAT. They're basically doing the hard part FOR the Cheysuli. If Lilith succeeded in raping Aidan in book seven, she'd have given birth to the chosen one a generation early! (Aidan has all the necessary blood but Ihlini. He marries his first cousin who has the same ethnic make up. His mother and her father are siblings. His father and her mother are ALSO siblings. This is, in fact, really gross. But you'll have to get used to that bullshit. It's Aidan's son who will...ahem...finish the job in book 8)
I realize a lot of this is really confusing, and I don't expect you to retain any of it. But just realize that the Ihlini are really fucking stupid and leave it at that.
Anyway, Tynstar takes the sword from a shocked and helpless Donal. The ruby flickers black again. Then:
Tynstar laughed. “Shall I make it mine? I have only to shut my hand around the hilt. I will take it into my hands and caress the shining blade—until the runes are wiped away. And then Hale’s sword will be nothing but a sword, intended for any man, even a common soldier.” He reached down, threatening languidly; one finger touched it, another; the palm slid down to rest against the grip.
...are you molesting a sword, dude.
Anyway, the ruby DOES flare up, Tynstar drops the sword and ends up fleeing with a cool teleportation rune and the chapter ends.
...so. Yeah. I'm sorry about the incoherence of the review, but the chapter was a mess.
I mean, honestly, the whole premise of the series is a mess. As a kid, I very much enjoyed the generational element and how it all wove together. As an adult, I still enjoy that, but I can't get over a few niggling points. Most of which I brought up here.
Basically, we're going to be spending the next five books watching our heroes struggle and suffer to fulfill a prophecy that we won't understand for a long time. And you kind of have to wonder WHY?
The peace between four warring realms thing is good. And actually, it's pretty much achieved by book five, not counting Ihlini interference. The Ihlini are still pretty opposed to the final culmination of the prophecy. But it kind of seems to me that they could GET peace with the Ihlini by just...not following the prophecy any farther?
There might be reasons this isn't doable. It's possible that the Ihlini's god requires them to conquer and dominate things. If that's the case, then yeah, they're probably still going to make trouble. I don't honestly remember.
What I do remember is that there's ANOTHER part of the prophecy that's going to come up in later books that is going to complicate things. Because see, after the man of all blood brings peace, there's another part: "the Lion shall lie with the Witch" and this is going to lead, apparently, to the return of the Firstborn.
...So is the return of an incredibly powerful godlike race a GOOD thing?
Fuck if I know. But I'm not sure I'm on board with finding out. Fortunately, the Ihlini villains will become increasingly stupid and horrible as this goes on, so there's no real worry that we'll ever have to consider the fact that they might have a point when they say this isn't a great idea.
If I were reading for pleasure, I'd have a hard time not stopping here. But, well. I'm reviewing. So I suppose I have motivation to continue.
So, we rejoin our...I can't really even call them heroes with a straight face, can I, as they march with their soldiers into Solinde.
You know, the country that DIDN'T send an assassin into Homana-Mujhar. The country that Carillon ADMITS would probably be satisfied just getting their independence.
...why are these the heroes again?
When the Homanan army marched at last across the western borders into Solinde, it met with little resistance. Carillon took care to distinguish Solindish crofters and citizens who had no stake in the battle beyond trying to survive while their realm was battered by war, from those who supported Tynstar. Much of the realm still served Carillon’s interests, albeit reluctantly. Still, the tension was apparent from the moment they crossed the border.
...how do you determine who serves Tynstar? Do they have flags? Special outfits?
Of course, the Cheysuli troops are independent, under the command of their clan-leaders who deal directly with Carillon. This leads Donal to think about how he's known only a grudging peace between the races, and that his recent experiences have reminded him that his race isn't fully restored.
That's good. That's a thread I'd have liked to explore more than "please rape my daughter."
He found that most of the soldiers accepted the Cheysuli readily enough—the races had fought together to help win Carillon his throne—but there was uneasiness within the ranks. It was Carillon who kept the peace. And Rowan, whose Homanan ways and Cheysuli appearance made him a man of both and neither races.
...this seems contradictory. Is it "readily" or is it "uneasy"?
On the plus side, Donal has a friend?
Evan proved an easy companion for Donal. Together they argued and debated and discussed all manner of strategy in all varieties of emotions, but always recognizing the bond of true friendship. It was a bond Donal had never experienced before, being caught between his Homanan rank and Cheysuli warrior status, and he found it was one he valued greatly. It was not the same as the link with his lir, but it was very satisfying nonetheless.
...have you really never had friends, dude? Even back at the Keep? That's sad. Or a sign of how much of a dick you are.
More likely, it's a sign of Roberson's limitations as a writer. It's like how in Shapechangers, we met four Cheysuli period. We had no real sense of them as a people or community. We don't know who makes up their Council or how they work.
Song was better, but what do we know about Homanan culture? They have gods, but are these the same gods of the Cheysuli? What are their names? Are they personified like the Greek Gods, or more animistic like in Shinto? Are there holidays? Rituals?
Even now, when we went to the Keep, we met: Finn, Sorcha, Bronwyn and Alix. Who else is there? What else is there? How are Cheysuli educated? Are there people of like mind to Sorcha? Does Bronwyn get to hang out with other girls?
Or, let's look at the castle. It took the wedding before we saw even a glimpse of court life? And how does a princess grow up without attendants? A nurse? Hell, who FED Aislinn when Electra turned coat?
I'm not saying we need minutia, but there's no clear evidence that any thought was put into ANY of this. Donal's isolation at least seems somewhat deliberate, but the lack of any of these details also looks pretty lazy.
So anyway, he's sitting with Carillon the rape-dad, and the latter is lost in thought. We get some legitimately nice description here:
It was mid-summer and temperate. An evening breeze rippled the brilliant fabric of the pavilion. Light from the setting sun crept through the weave of the fabric and splashed color into the interior, so that the blond wood of table and chairs was dyed a rich ocher-bronze. The silver shone golden in the light.
Donal smelled roasting boar, spitted in the center of the camp. He smelled the bouquet of Carillon’s wine and a faint tinge of bitterness he ascribed to the coals in the brazier. He smelled the aroma of war, though they had barely met a soul in battle. He smelled death and futility, and the strivings of men who would spend their lives in defense of a throne they would never see, a throne that one day would be his.
Carillon asks after Evan, as both men were invited to his tent. I'd like to think Evan was too disgusted to deal with Carillon, but Donal tells us that Evan's found some companionship among Solindish crofter daughters who have "felt compelled to follow us".
Imagine getting consensual sex partners. I don't know that either of these men can conceive of that.
There's news. A letter from Aislinn. She's conceived. The reactions are interesting:
He broke the seal. He was afraid as well as curious; in the two months since the army had marched into Solinde, there had been no letters from Aislinn. There had been nothing but silence between them.
Donal read the message, then stared blankly at the lettering. “She has—conceived.”
Carillon rose slowly to his feet. “She is certain?”
“There has been confirmation.” Donal sucked in a deep breath. “Well, my lord…forced or not, it seems to have succeeded.”
“Thank the gods,” Carillon said fervently, “the throne is secured at last.”
Donal shook his head. “Only if the child is a boy.”
“You have already sired one—is it so foolish to think there may be another?” But Carillon turned away to pour more wine in his goblet, not bothering to wait for a response, though Donal offered none.
1. Gosh, Donal, maybe there's a REASON for the silence between you and your wife. Have you even tried to TALK to her after you raped her?
2. Donal doesn't seem very happy about conceiving. That may be to his credit, given the circumstances.
3. Um, Carillon. You only had a daughter?
We're told that Carillon's been drinking a lot lately, because of the ache in his joints. He still leads them into battle though.
You know. IN this war. That didn't need to happen.
Donal IS thinking of Aislinn now at least?
He looked again at the message, penned in a wavering hand. From Aislinn herself, he did not doubt; a scribe would do it more carefully.
Gods, what is she thinking…what does she think of me? “She says she is well,” he told Carillon. “But—first births are often hard. With Sorcha—” He broke off abruptly, knowing it was not the time to speak of his meijha. But then he turned sharply to Carillon. Of late there had been a bond between them of mutual affection and circumstances. Donal recalled how Carillon had taught him to read a map and explained the battles he had fought with Finn at his side. But now, with the specter of Sorcha suddenly between them, he felt the faint tension rise up to mock them both. “You hate me for that, do you not?” Donal asked. “For keeping Sorcha when Aislinn is my cheysula.”
Didn't we see a variation of this conversation already?
Anyway, does it MATTER what Carillon thinks, when he's already chosen you over his daughter in about nineteen other ways.
Carillon moved to one of the supple leather chairs and sat down slowly, lowering himself carefully into the seat. “I have learned, over the years, to respect many Cheysuli customs. I admit I do not understand most of them, but I have learned what integrity there is in your race. Though, given a choice, I would prefer you set aside your meijha—for my daughter’s sake—I will not ask it of you.”
“You did not answer my question.”
Carillon smiled. “No, I did not. Well enough.” He shifted in the chair and drank more wine; the pale, sweet wine with its acidic bouquet, that Carillon allowed no one else to touch. “I do not hate you, Donal. I kept myself to Electra when we were together because I desired no other—she would inspire fidelity in any man, regardless of his tastes…but it does not mean I cannot comprehend your ability to wed one woman and keep another as well.” He gazed into the brazier coals. “For all that, I am the last to speak of such things as a man desiring only one woman when there is another one he cares for. The gods know I wanted your mother badly enough, even when both of us were wed to other people.” There was pain in his voice as he said it, immense pain; he had taken the news of Alix’s death very badly.
...I feel like this whole exchange is meant to make me more sympathetic to Donal's plight but it just makes me angrier at him.
Donal gets everything. He gets a beautiful wife, who he is at least physically attracted to, who is basically isolated from everything and everyone. She has no life outside of him, no friends. And her father is not remotely in her corner. (He'd "prefer" Donal set aside his mistress. My ass.)
Donal gets a mistress who he treats as his real wife. Who he goes to whenever he suffers a personal setback. He has children that his own culture views as just as legitimate as hers (and gosh, it's a good thing there are no Cheysuli separatist groups that might favor Donal's real firstborn...). And he suffers NO consequences.
Carillon says he'd "prefer" Donal set Sorcha aside, but at no point does he address that his daughter is HURT by this arrangement. Her feelings don't matter.
Anyway, Donal is distracted and horrified by the fact that Carillon once had feelings for Alix. And this is so weird:
“My jehana?” It was all Donal could manage.
Carillon sighed heavily and rubbed his eyes. “An old story, Donal….I thought surely you must know it by now.” Twisted fingers scraped silver hair back from his pain-wracked face. “Gods—I cannot believe she is gone. Not Alix. After all she has been to me…after all she has done….”
And my jehan? Donal wanted to ask. You say nothing of my jehan. Is it that even in death you compete?
...okay, look, Carillon did get a little gross about Alix in Song, but this weird defensiveness of Duncan is, well, weird.
Carillon and Alix were close even before Duncan was in the picture. Carillon has spoken favorably of Duncan a lot, in this book alone. He doesn't mention Duncan here, PROBABLY, because for him it's been fifteen years since the man died. Alix died like a month ago.
And if he DOES know that Duncan wasn't dead, well, then, he has to process the fact that Duncan was the instrument of Alix's death. And maybe he just isn't ready to deal with this now.
Oh, hey, no. He does know apparently. He tells Donal "the old story". Which isn't the one I expected:
Carillon shook his head after a moment. “I never stopped caring for her, Donal, even after she wed your father. Even after she had borne you.” He swirled wine in his goblet. “I wed Electra. And when that marriage was finished, I turned again to your mother.”
Possessiveness overruled Donal’s empathy. “Even while she was Duncan’s cheysula—?”
“No.” Carillon looked at him. “Your father was already lirless. Dead—or so we believed.” Carillon’s brow furrowed a little, as if reflecting a measure of his grief. “The day I took you and your mother back to the Keep, I asked her to marry me. I would have made her Queen.”
My jehana, the Queen of Homana—but the wonderment did not last. “She wanted no one but my jehan.” He said it a trifle cruelly, but he felt threatened by Carillon’s admission.
Donal, you're twenty five years old by this point. Why are you acting like a child. And heck, if you think about it, it would have solved your marital issues. Carillon says this would have made Donal his son.
...I don't think inheritance works like that. But hell, Donal is his heir anyway, maybe it would. Then Donal wouldn't have had to marry Aislinn. As the son, he's the heir. Aislinn would have married someone else.
But anyway, Carillon admits that Alix wouldn't have him, they died together, and Donal is still Duncan's son.
Thankfully, the scene is interrupted by Rowan. He says there's something that Carillon needs to see. Carillon gets the sword and Donal feels guilty for not accepting it yet. Dude, of all the things you have to feel guilty about, I wouldn't put that anywhere near the top of the list.
Anyway, there is Ihlini sorcery afoot.
The light was wrong. Instead of normal deepening twilight, it was nearly black as pitch. Torchlight illuminated the encampment, but the flames seemed almost muted, swallowed by the darkness. Something muffled sight, sound, smell, as if the camp had been swept beneath a carpet.
Rowan took them westward to a line of gentle hills that rolled out to ring the camp. He gestured briefly to the moon hanging so low against the starless sky: its face was filled with darkness. A thick, viscid darkness. The color was deepest purple.
Carillon stopped at the crest of a grassy hill where another man waited with his wolf. In the light from the dying moon, the slender stalks of grass glowed a luminous lavender.
“Ihlini,” Finn said.
...I'd say "get a room", but honestly, that kayak is sunk. Finn deserves better than a man who asks someone to rape his daughter. (I can't believe I'm saying that. I can't believe I HAVE to say that.)
There's a weird bit where Carillon explains Ihlini magic to actual Cheysuli:
Donal frowned. Wreaths of cloying mist rose up from the flatlands below the hills: bog steaming in a storm. There was the faintest of hisses, almost lost in the heavy darkness. “Some form of spell?”
“More like a warning—or a greeting.” Carillon’s hand was on his sword. “Who can say what Tynstar means by anything he does?”
Rowan, next to them, frowned. “How can he summon sorcery before so many Cheysuli?”
Carillon’s eyes did not stop moving as he studied the lay of the land and the mist that rose to obscure it. “Here, there are four times as many Homanans. Tynstar strikes at them.”
I suppose it's an indication of how much Carillon learned from Finn, who elaborates that Ihlini can do some simple tricks with Cheysuli, and with so many Homanans present, all he has to do is play on THEIR superstitions.
...I don't remotely understand how this works.
Donal wishes the lir could do something, but they can't. And this actually is legitimately interesting:
Lir, Donal said. I wish you could do something.
Nothing, Lorn answered. You know the law. We cannot fight Ihlini.
And yet Ihlini fight us.
I did not say the law was fair. Lorn’s tone was ironic. I only know we of the lir honor what the gods have given us.
If I die, you and Taj are dead.
It is all a part of the price.
Too high, Donal retorted. You should tell the gods.
It's an ethical quandary isn't it? It's likely that the Ihlini were meant to be under a similar restriction, but because they don't follow the mainstream Cheysuli gods, they don't feel any reason to be bound by it. So the Cheysuli are the only ones upholding their end of things.
It'd make sense to retaliate of course. But this is also a matter of faith and honor. Is it right to give up your own honor just because your opponent is a dishonorable bastard?
What's the point of faith, vows and honor if you CAN give it up so easily? What's the point of victory if you give up everything important to you?
I think I'm rather more pragmatic than the lir. But I can understand their position.
There's more discussion. Evan shows up too. And the illusion gets worse. The men are understandably freaked out. And Tynstar makes an admittedly grand entrance:
The Mujhar turned. Ten feet from them all, on the crest of the hill, the writhing serpent halted. It coiled, rose upward, stretched itself toward the sky. It thickened, as if it had been fed. It swelled, as if heavy with child.
And then the swollen belly spit open, and the serpent gave birth to a man.
He was wrapped in a purple cloak so dark it was nearly black. A silver brooch glinted at one shoulder; silver earrings flashed in his lobes; a ring was on one hand. But it was the eyes, not the jewelry, that Donal saw more than anything else; the eyes, black and beguiling, set in the smooth flesh of eternal youth. The smile, framed by black and silver beard, was singularly sweet.
For the first time Donal faced the man who done so much to destroy his life, and he found he was afraid.
So Tynstar says that it's time for Carillon's death. Carillon laughs in his face. Tynstar has, after all, failed repeatedly before.
There's an interesting implication here:
Tynstar’s smile was genuinely amused. “It is true you have guarded yourself well. The Cheysuli ever serve their Mujhar.” He looked at Finn. Then at Donal. “But now there is one of their own who waits to take the throne—and you are no longer needed.”
Carillon shook his head. “You will not put me in fear of the warriors who serve me so well. I am not Shaine, Ihlini. I do not succumb to such transparent tricks as these.”
When I read this before Shapechangers, I'd wondered if Tynstar had influenced Shaine somehow. It would make a certain amount of sense, and it would have tied Tynstar into the events of the first book better than a cryptic statement and a refusal to kill Alix.
And a part of me wonders, yet again, why exactly are we siding with the Homanans here?
I mean, okay, Tynstar kidnapped and raped Alix, which is awful. But our heroes are rapists too.
What is Tynstar doing that's so bad? We know he worships a "Dark God". We know he acts against the Cheysuli prophecy. Maybe. Does he?
Tynstar didn't rule Solinde in Shapechangers/Song, Bellam did. He used and furthered the qu'mahlin, but he didn't start it. He drained Carillon's life, but given that Carillon had forcibly married the woman he loved against his will, I kind of get it.
Is Tynstar torturing his subjects? Is Tynstar enslaving people? (there is the trap link, but does that take over their will? Or is that like a booby-trap? We know the CHEYSULI can take a man's will.) Is he draining life from the land?
I mean, these all could be true. But Roberson hasn't shown us this. So...why is Tynstar the villain.
...okay, he did have Duncan prisoner for a long time. But Duncan's awful.
Anyway, Tynstar has a warning:
Unconsciously, Donal put one hand to the flesh of his throat. He could feel the kiss of the iron collar, the weight of his vulnerability. Then he forced his hand away. “You are a fool indeed if you think I will turn against Carillon.”
Tynstar smiled. “No. I am quite aware of the folly in trying that. You are not so pliant as I could wish. No, you will not turn against Carillon…but you will not have to. He will be dead within a year.”
“And the throne?” Carillon rasped.
“Mine,” Tynstar said simply. “As it was ever meant to be.”
...since when does Tynstar want Homana? When Solinde had Homana in the five years between Shapechangers and Song of Homana, Bellam ruled both lands.
I do like that Tynstar is finally getting to be a real presence, though.
But Tynstar has more to say:
“I know the truth of the histories,” Tynstar said. “And I will willingly share them with you.”
“I will not listen,” Donal told him flatly. “Do you think I would heed your words?”
“Take them to the Keep with you and question your shar tahl,” Tynstar challenged. “See then who lies. See then who speaks the truth.” He put up a silencing hand. “Have you never wondered why the Firstborn left Homana to the Cheysuli? Have you never wondered precisely how an entire race died out?”
There's more back and forth. Then:
“I come, I go—I do as I wish.” Tynstar did not smile. “Heed me well, all of you—I give you insight into a truth you have never encountered.” Again, the hand was raised. He looked directly at Donal. “Cheysuli warrior, you are—with a little Homanan blood. Because the shapechangers serve the prophecy of the Firstborn, who gave it to them before the race died out. Do you know why?”
“A legacy,” Donal answered. “We are the children of the Firstborn—”
“—who were the children of the gods.” The flame burned more brightly around Tynstar, as if it answered some secret bidding. “But are you so proud, so insular, so arrogant, as to believe they sired no others?”
A blurt of sound escaped Donal. He felt Lorn go rigid beside him.
“What are you trying to say—” But Finn was interrupted.
“They sired a second race,” the sorcerer said. “They sired the Ihlini…who bred with the Cheysuli.”
Dun dun dun.
So...
This really doesn't mean that much, does it?
It makes SENSE, of course. It explains why the Cheysuli lir won't act against the Ihlini. It explains why Ihlini magic is less effective against the Cheysuli.
But, why do we care? I get why the heroes hate Tynstar as a person. But the Ihlini-Cheysuli conflict has been very undeveloped all along.
This is something later books do better. Between Tynstar and later Ihlini like Lilith, Strahan, [spoiler name], and Lochiel, we'll see a lot of occasions where the Ihlini do horrible things to our Cheysuli main characters. By book 8, you'll have a lot more reason to appreciate the hate between the races.
But now? Eh. SHAINE was a far bigger threat to the Cheysuli than Tynstar. The Homanans in the tavern, the assassin, they're far more a palpable threat to Donal than anyone else.
So there's a dramatic moment where Carillon brandishes the sword at Tynstar, who laughs, pointing out the blackened ruby. Carillon shoves it into Donal's hands and...wait, what?
Tynstar’s smooth face exhibited mild surprise, but very little concern. “So—Hale’s sword at last finds its master. I feared it might happen one day. I thought perhaps I might gainsay him in time when I slew him in the forest, but obviously not.”
“You slew him!” Finn took a single step forward. “It was Shaine’s men who slew my jehan—”
“Was it?” Tynstar smiled. “Do not be such a fool. I sought Hale because I knew his was the seed that could destroy the Ihlini race. Think you I could let him live?” A dismissive wave of a graceful, negligent hand. “Lindir I intended to slay as well, before she could bear the child—but she escaped me and fled to Homana-Mujhar. So I slew Hale after I slew his lir—I meant to take the sword. But he had given it to Shaine.” For a moment his beautiful, bearded face altered into something less sanguine, much more malevolent. “I should have known it would be Alix’s child for whom it was meant. I felt it in her, before she lay with Duncan. I should have slain her too, as I took Duncan’s hawk. It would have gainsaid the prophecy and saved me the trouble of meeting you here.”
...NONE OF THIS MAKES SENSE.
Tynstar KNOWS Hale is the ancestor of the line that could destroy the Ihlini, so he killed him. Lindir escaped.
But he repeatedly let Alix live! He let CARILLON live! WHY? He even says he should have slain her. But he didn't. Even though he murdered Hale immediately! WHY? Finn is Hale's son, but Tynstar has never shown interest in him. Supposedly, he knew the answer was in Hale and Lindir's kid. SO WHY NOT KILL HER?!
NONE OF THIS MAKES SENSE.
But there is some important information here:
Donal lowered the sword. The ruby had dimmed a little, as if knowing much of its job was done; only Tynstar remained, surrounded by his cocoon of living flame. The fog and the serpent were gone. “You slew her anyway And my jehan. When you sent him to trap us.”
“That was not my idea,” Tynstar said. “It was my—apprentice’s suggestion.” He smiled. “Was it not a good one? Nearly successful, as well.”
And now we get Tynstar's true motives:
“I worship nothing,” Tynstar retorted. “I serve, even as you pretend to serve. The Seker does not require the nonsense of obeisance and ritualistic loyalty. He knows what lies in a man’s true soul.” He touched the brooch at his left shoulder. “Aye, I am an integral part of the same prophecy that orders Donal’s life—but I serve it not. I seek only to break its power, before the Ihlini are destroyed.” For a moment, there was a touch of humanity in his eyes. “Can you not see? I do this for the salvation of my race.”
So what in the world does he mean by that?
Tynstar gives us his version of the Ihlini backstory.
Tynstar smiled. “You are idealistic, Donal—or perhaps merely young. Comprehension will come with age. You see, we Ihlini desired more gifts than those the Firstborn gave us. More—power. We turned to the only source that would heed us when the Firstborn would not—”
“—Asar-Suti,” Carillon finished.
“The god of the netherworld, who made and dwells in darkness.” That from Finn.
“Aye,” Tynstar agreed. “A generous lord, in fact. He did not stint what powers he gave those who wished to serve him.” His eyes were on the sword still clasped limply in Donal’s hand. “But the Firstborn sought to destroy us when they learned of our oath to serve the Seker. Knowing they would die before this destruction could be accomplished, they fashioned a prophecy instead, and left the destruction to the Cheysuli—”
“No,” Donal said.
Tynstar did not allow the interruption to interfere. “They instilled within you all a perfect and blind obedience that even now binds your soul. They gave each warrior a fate and called it a tahlmorra, to make certain the task would be fulfilled. They turned you into soldiers for the gods, as dedicated to preserving and fulfilling the prophecy as we are to its downfall. Because that fulfillment, once achieved, means the annihilation of my race.” Tynstar’s voice was harsh. “An Ihlini qu’mahlin, Donal—instituted by the Cheysuli.”
Donal disagrees, the prophecy doesn't mention annihilation. It just talks about a Mujhar "of all blood" uniting four warring realms and two magic races. Is that so horrible?
Tynstar's view:
Tynstar’s teeth showed briefly. “It means the mingling of Cheysuli blood and Ihlini, Donal. It means the swallowing of our races and a merging of the power. No more independence. No more—apartness. The Ihlini and Cheysuli will die out, drowned in each other’s blood.”
...does it? I mean, one dude having both Ihlini and Cheysuli blood wouldn't literally merge them, right? So why can't they co-exist separately?
(Pan2000 points out the obvious Nazi/supremacy/blood purity language being used here in the comments below. And I agree with that. I'm glad it's presented as a villainous thing. But I think the message gets muddled as we get farther into the series.)
But we also reach the absurd illogic behind the Ihlini tactics here. Because from this point on, the Ihlini will be effective and terrifying, but they're also really fucking stupid. You know why?
BRONWYN.
Now, I've already spoiled the big plot twist about Bronwyn. She's Alix and Duncan's daughter. But right now, everyone THINKS she's Tynstar's. Because Tynstar raped Alix.
WHY, if you are worried about MINGLING BLOOD, are you raping a Cheysuli woman?!
This isn't going to be the last time this happens either. One nice trend in later books is that we see a sharp decrease in rapist lead characters. But we're going to see a sharp INCREASE in rapist adversaries.
Book four, five and six will all contain instances of an Ihlini raping a Cheysuli. All of those instances will result in children. One is miscarried, but two survive. Hell, one is the child of the first rape!
The prophecy requires a man "of all blood", right? So at some point they're going to start breeding into the four warring nations (hell, they've started. Aislinn is the product of Homana and Solinde. Two warring nations! Her child with Donal will have Cheysuli blood as well).
They're now the royal family, so it should be reasonably easy to marry members off to other royals. The HARD part of the prophecy is trying to introduce Ihlini blood into the mix.
UNLESS OF COURSE THE IHLINI ARE ALREADY DOING THAT. They're basically doing the hard part FOR the Cheysuli. If Lilith succeeded in raping Aidan in book seven, she'd have given birth to the chosen one a generation early! (Aidan has all the necessary blood but Ihlini. He marries his first cousin who has the same ethnic make up. His mother and her father are siblings. His father and her mother are ALSO siblings. This is, in fact, really gross. But you'll have to get used to that bullshit. It's Aidan's son who will...ahem...finish the job in book 8)
I realize a lot of this is really confusing, and I don't expect you to retain any of it. But just realize that the Ihlini are really fucking stupid and leave it at that.
Anyway, Tynstar takes the sword from a shocked and helpless Donal. The ruby flickers black again. Then:
Tynstar laughed. “Shall I make it mine? I have only to shut my hand around the hilt. I will take it into my hands and caress the shining blade—until the runes are wiped away. And then Hale’s sword will be nothing but a sword, intended for any man, even a common soldier.” He reached down, threatening languidly; one finger touched it, another; the palm slid down to rest against the grip.
...are you molesting a sword, dude.
Anyway, the ruby DOES flare up, Tynstar drops the sword and ends up fleeing with a cool teleportation rune and the chapter ends.
...so. Yeah. I'm sorry about the incoherence of the review, but the chapter was a mess.
I mean, honestly, the whole premise of the series is a mess. As a kid, I very much enjoyed the generational element and how it all wove together. As an adult, I still enjoy that, but I can't get over a few niggling points. Most of which I brought up here.
Basically, we're going to be spending the next five books watching our heroes struggle and suffer to fulfill a prophecy that we won't understand for a long time. And you kind of have to wonder WHY?
The peace between four warring realms thing is good. And actually, it's pretty much achieved by book five, not counting Ihlini interference. The Ihlini are still pretty opposed to the final culmination of the prophecy. But it kind of seems to me that they could GET peace with the Ihlini by just...not following the prophecy any farther?
There might be reasons this isn't doable. It's possible that the Ihlini's god requires them to conquer and dominate things. If that's the case, then yeah, they're probably still going to make trouble. I don't honestly remember.
What I do remember is that there's ANOTHER part of the prophecy that's going to come up in later books that is going to complicate things. Because see, after the man of all blood brings peace, there's another part: "the Lion shall lie with the Witch" and this is going to lead, apparently, to the return of the Firstborn.
...So is the return of an incredibly powerful godlike race a GOOD thing?
Fuck if I know. But I'm not sure I'm on board with finding out. Fortunately, the Ihlini villains will become increasingly stupid and horrible as this goes on, so there's no real worry that we'll ever have to consider the fact that they might have a point when they say this isn't a great idea.
Because of what I said last chapter...
Date: 2021-08-11 07:50 am (UTC)Ganondorf: Greetings, worthless mortals
He smelled death and futility, and the strivings of men who would spend their lives in defense of a throne they would never see, a throne that one day would be his.
Pan: I feel bad about them.
He broke the seal. He was afraid as well as curious; in the two months since the army had marched into Solinde, there had been no letters from Aislinn. There had been nothing but silence between them.
Donal read the message, then stared blankly at the lettering. “She has—conceived.”
Carillon rose slowly to his feet. “She is certain?”
“There has been confirmation.” Donal sucked in a deep breath. “Well, my lord…forced or not, it seems to have succeeded.”
“Thank the gods,” Carillon said fervently, “the throne is secured at last.”
Donal shook his head. “Only if the child is a boy.”
“You have already sired one—is it so foolish to think there may be another?” But Carillon turned away to pour more wine in his goblet, not bothering to wait for a response, though Donal offered none.
Pan: Wow, that's true love right here. For the throne, of course. Bastards.
...I'd say "get a room", but honestly, that kayak is sunk. Finn deserves better than a man who asks someone to rape his daughter. (I can't believe I'm saying that. I can't believe I HAVE to say that.)
Ganondorf: He just said Donal should use magic to make his daughter fall for him! That's not rape! I make imprints like this often!
What's the point of faith, vows and honor if you CAN give it up so easily? What's the point of victory if you give up everything important to you?
Ganondorf: Sometimes, you have to win by all means!
Carillon shook his head. “You will not put me in fear of the warriors who serve me so well. I am not Shaine, Ihlini. I do not succumb to such transparent tricks as these.”
Pan: You might not be Shaine, but you are a whole different kind of evil.
Ganondorf: *looks Shaine up* Pan, you don't mean I am no better than Emperor Palpatine, right?
“They sired a second race,” the sorcerer said. “They sired the Ihlini…who bred with the Cheysuli.”
Pan: Hey, I did somewhat expect that, but it was a good twist that made sense.
“Can you not see? I do this for the salvation of my race.”
So what in the world does he mean by that?
Pan: At least Tynstar cares about his men.
Tynstar’s teeth showed briefly. “It means the mingling of Cheysuli blood and Ihlini, Donal. It means the swallowing of our races and a merging of the power. No more independence. No more—apartness. The Ihlini and Cheysuli will die out, drowned in each other’s blood.”
Pan: Thank God we are supposed to hate him! Because this guy is delusional, truly evil. What he said is that he fights for his racial purity.
Sexual assault might get the wrong treatment in this series, but all the villains are like the Nazis, and racism is portrayed correctly at least.
This isn't going to be the last time this happens either. One nice trend in later books is that we see a sharp decrease in rapist lead characters. But we're going to see a sharp INCREASE in rapist adversaries.
Book four, five and six will all contain instances of an Ihlini raping a Cheysuli. All of those instances will result in children. One is miscarried, but two survive. Hell, one is the child of the first rape!
Pan: It was the moment even the author realized rape is evil.
Ganondorf: Maybe some of Tynstar's men don't follow his ideals?
UNLESS OF COURSE THE IHLINI ARE ALREADY DOING THAT. They're basically doing the hard part FOR the Cheysuli. If Lilith succeeded in raping Aidan in book seven, she'd have given birth to the chosen one a generation early! (Aidan has all the necessary blood but Ihlini. He marries his first cousin who has the same ethnic make up. His mother and her father are siblings. His father and her mother are ALSO siblings. This is, in fact, really gross. But you'll have to get used to that bullshit. It's Aidan's son who will...ahem...finish the job in book 8)
Ganondorf: Our Lilith had been a horny psychopath, but she didn't actively undermine my goals with her actions. Then again, my goals don't include racial purity and those who sabotage them with their stupidity get their heads chopped off if they are lucky.
Tynstar laughed. “Shall I make it mine? I have only to shut my hand around the hilt. I will take it into my hands and caress the shining blade—until the runes are wiped away. And then Hale’s sword will be nothing but a sword, intended for any man, even a common soldier.” He reached down, threatening languidly; one finger touched it, another; the palm slid down to rest against the grip.
...are you molesting a sword, dude.
Anyway, the ruby DOES flare up, Tynstar drops the sword and ends up fleeing with a cool teleportation rune and the chapter ends.
Ganondorf: Tynstar, Tynstar, Tynstar you idiot. Try magic, not contact, to wipe it out.
Re: Because of what I said last chapter...
Date: 2021-08-11 03:30 pm (UTC)We end up with the mixed message of "sometimes eugenics is good!"
Re: Because of what I said last chapter...
Date: 2021-08-11 03:43 pm (UTC)Re: Because of what I said last chapter...
Date: 2021-08-11 03:44 pm (UTC)Pan: Forgive him, he is kind of... a very bad guy.
Re: Because of what I said last chapter...
Date: 2021-08-11 03:46 pm (UTC)Sorry for editing my comment so many times. I actually forgot how much I'd already talked about in the review itself so it was like "wait, Pan2000 already knows this part."
Re: Because of what I said last chapter...
Date: 2021-08-11 08:58 pm (UTC)Re: Because of what I said last chapter...
Date: 2021-08-12 02:44 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2021-08-14 03:09 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2021-08-14 03:12 am (UTC)