I Read What?!

Sorry about the delay on this one. It's been a really hectic week, as mentioned. Yep, that's a good excuse right? :-D

Anyway, last time, we had some sibling dialogue and Rory was kind of a dick.

( Ugh, Roberson, you've been doing pretty well with the male characters for a while, please don't backtrack... )

So last chapter started pretty well, with a lovely sibling duel and Ian as a mentor. Unfortunately, it also decided to try to convince me that Teirnan's idiot conclusions actually had some merit. Which I might allow IF Roberson bothered to give us an actual source/reason for these conclusions.

But it looks like Keely is going to finally come clean about the whole Sean/Rory mess. Can Roberson make this idiotic too?

( This is a better book than most in the series, but I'm guessing yes )

So we've made it to the second "part" of Daughter of the Lion, and I have to say that Ms. Roberson has improved tremendously in terms of pacing. When I stop and think about the first eleven chapters of this book, I realize that I don't think that much has actually happened. But I don't actually feel like the story has dragged.

I am curious as to where we'll go next though.

( We've got a few possible directions )

Last time, Keely was kind of obnoxious. Then she decided to do something pro-active. Unfortunately, it didn't work that well and we ended on a cliffhanger.

( Warning for my repetitive rants below )

So last time, Keely met a hot guy who subsequently stole her horse. Well, technically her brother's horse. And possibly out of jealousy because he thinks she and her brother are sleeping together.

The sad thing is, for Roberson, this still isn't that fucked up.

( I'm sure she has time to ruin it. )

So last time...which was a while ago, yeesh. Sorry. We met a dude with a penchant for manhandling who has claimed to have murdered Keely's fiance. Oops!

( At least he's hot? )

So last time, well, we saw the downsides in this particular type of would-be-feminist storytelling. It's really a shame because Keely, on her own, is a perfectly solid character. It does her as much of a disservice as anyone else to use her to shit on other female characters. She doesn't need that.

( You'd think being the only female shapeshifter of her generation would be enough shilling, really. But alas... )

My schedule for posting is all askew, isn't it. Oh well, at some point it will settle itself. (Honestly, the only books I ever really need a set day for is the Janny Wurts ones, as those really do need a weekend.)

Last time, we met Keely, the first female lead we've had in this series since Alix. And so far, she's not too bad. She's got obvious strengths and flaws, and they all seem fairly natural and realistic. Her issues are obvious and the self-centered aspects of her personality seem deliberate on the part of the author and will hopefully be explored as we go.

So far, not a bad start. Can Roberson keep this up and actually give us two good books in a row?

( I'm actually looking forward to finding out )

So we've kind of reached a milestone in this series. Last time, we hit the point where the books actually become outright decent reads. (Track of the White Wolf had the first tolerable lead character, but a few too many scattered plots to be a coherent narrative.)

Daughter of the Lion, as I recall, is also a pretty decent read. It's got a coherent plot and a lead character that isn't a rapist or a monster. It's also the first time since Shapechangers that we actually have a female lead character and the narrative even tries to be somewhat feminist!

As a feminist myself, I support this idea. However, as a feminist myself, I'm also going to be judging the book on how well Roberson executes it. In a way, it's probably not fair. I didn't judge Pride of Princes on this ground, after all. If anything, it got praised for hitting what should be a very low bar (in that it actually had a lead character openly worried about a woman's consent and potential exploitation.)

I'm not going to be as tolerant to Daughter of the Lion in that respect. Like Ginger Rogers, Keely's book is going to have to do what Pride of Princes did, but backwards and in high heels. Because if you promise me a book about a female lead character who is introduced challenging the sexism of the setting as well as her own role in the story, then I want it to deliver.

And I'm not about to give any slack to the author that gave us Alix, manipulated into a rapist romance at the age of seventeen, Electra, forced into an unwilling marriage and demonized for it, Sorcha, who exists only to complicate Donal's choice and kills herself as an attack on another woman, Aislinn who is violated and violates in turn, and promptly dies off screen because she has no role after her husband's death, or Gisella, sent back to her abusers for the inconvenience of being the woman that Niall doesn't love.

Roberson has a lot to make up for.

Now this is a nostalgia themed blog, so I have read this before. A long time ago. I remember some very good parts and some very frustrating parts. But I don't really want to tell other people how to read this book. Some folks, like the TOR reviewer that I mention periodically as my unknowing arch-nemesis, really loved this book. And maybe, with fresh eyes, I will too.

But we're not starting on level ground here. Roberson is going to have to EARN this.

There's another issue too. If you recall, one point of criticism I've had throughout the series is how basically, with the possible exception of Isolde (who is never clearly described, for some reason), we haven't had a positive depiction of a female character who LOOKS Cheysuli.

I'm overstepping a little here, with this complaint. I get that. I'm white and I really need to be cautious about this issue. I recognize that being of mixed race is complicated and the idea of "passing privilege" is flawed.

But I do feel like it's worth noting that this female character, daughter of dark-complected, yellow eyed Gisella, who identifies very heavily with her Cheysuli side in contrast with more Erinnish Maeve is depicted like this:



It's not Keely's fault that she's described and depicted as a white, blond woman with some vague indigenous stylistic traits. But it's hard not to read into it.

But enough preamble and opening critique. Let's get started.

( Well...sort of )