The first book in Carey’s second trilogy, set in an alternate magical Europe. Our narrator now is Imriel de la Courcel, much-abused son of the treacherous princess Melisande, who was adopted by Phédre nò Delaunay, the central character of the previous trilogy, at the end of the last book. Imri spends the first half of this book growing to maturity between his adoptive parents’ country estate and the royal court [in what we would know as southern France], and the second half as a student in “Tiberium” [Rome] and then as a defender in the besieged city of Lucca (whose name for some reason is not changed), dealing withhis own personal demons as well as with the mysterious entanglements of his birth mother. As with Carey’s other books, I loved the lush psychological and political landscapes she has created, and am glad I have the next two books waiting for me on the shelves. It may not be Great Literature but it is very enjoyable, even though (perhaps even because) it is less kinky than the first trilogy.

Top LibraryThing Unsugegstion: Disgrace, by J.M. Coetzee