Kushiel's Chosen
a Fantasy Romance Full of Intrigue and Betrayal
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- £5.99
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- £5.99
Publisher Description
Kushiel’s Chosen by Jacqueline Carey is a sweeping fantasy of romance, luxuriance and intrigue – perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas and Jennifer L. Armentrout.
'Rich, intricate worldbuilding meets swoonworthy romance. . . Phédre and Joscelin’s story is the beating heart of every romantasy to follow' Olivie Blake
Temptress. Traitor. Tormentor.
Phèdre was trained as a spy, courtesan and strategist under her tutor’s watchful eye. He saw she’d been touched by the god Kushiel’s dart, chosen to experience pain and pleasure as one. Above all, he taught Phèdre to observe and analyse – skills that may yet save her life.
Once before, Phèdre sacrificed everything to save her country, but the gods still cast a shadow over her land. Although their young queen is beloved by her people, traitors remain. Those who seek the throne aren’t done with schemes for power and revenge. To do her duty, Phèdre must again leave her homeland – only to uncover an earth-shattering plot. One masterminded by the one person she can’t deny. . .
‘Kushiel’s Chosen is elegant, intricate, sensual, and captivating’ Robert Jordan, author of The Wheel of Time
‘Ms Carey’s alternate Renaissance period is perfection’ Romantic Times
‘A great love story, intense spirituality, high eroticism, and lots of adventure, intrigue and swordplay’ Booklist starred review
Start the journey with Kushiel’s Dart, and finish with Kushiel’s Avatar.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
After Carey's boldly imaginative fantasy debut, Kushiel's Dart (2001), in which the dauntless Ph dre n Delaunay used intelligence and sexual skill to triumph in politics and war in a Renaissance-like world, Ph dre, elevated to the peerage and resuming her anguisetteduties, returns for further fabulous, if at times redundant, adventures, determined to rest on something other than her laurels. While the first novel told a coming-of-age story, the sequel covers only a relatively brief period, though it has enough plot lines and melodrama for six heroines. The action first focuses on the recapture of Ph dre's evil nemesis, the dominating Melisande Shahrizai, who has escaped from prison and death. Alas, the initially fascinating Melisande turns into a tiresome harridan. Later plot twists include everything from a journey to the Venetian La Serenissima to imprisonment at Melisande's hands in a mountainous jail on a lonely island. For opulence, a costume ball rivals that of Broadway's Phantom of the Opera. Carey is adept at bringing both her exotic settings and vast cast of characters fully to life. The dream of every man and not a few women, Ph dre is too much to handle for all but her faithful Joscelin, the Cassiline monk who defied his vows to remain her loving companion. Ph dre's first outing deservedly won her a host of followers, but wordiness and needless complexity combine to make this hefty novel less of a stellar achievement than its predecessor.