Kushiel's Mercy (original 2008; edition 2009)

It's odd to think how much I love the first trilogy and how much I struggled with the second trilogy. They're different kinds of stories, really, I think. The first trilogy definitely has love in it, and to some degree, magic, but there's also a lot of heroism-in-unlikely-places and politics. Politics and heroism definitely have their place in the second trilogy, but love and magic hold centre-stage. I wasn't expecting it. Another issue is that Imriel is a less mature hero than Phèdre, and his trilogy covers shorter spans of time.

The plot is definitely Jacqueline Carey all over, but Sidonie and Imriel just don't carry it as well as Phèdre and Joscelin, for me. All the same, I enjoyed it quite a lot, when I didn't stall with reading it. I think it's best to just bear in mind that it's a different kind of story. And that Imriel isn't Phèdre -- where Phèdre opens doors with her body, Imriel has to wait and chafe, and that carries through to the reader, I think!

In terms of this book alone, it definitely brings the trilogy to an amazing finish. The very last chapter made me grin and clap my hands. A lot of the events of the book are painful -- Jacqueline Carey, once again, spares the readers nothing. I think it's partly my hatred of lying/deceit/seeing people being deceived that makes this book very hard to read. There's a lot of that.

In terms of characters, Phèdre and Joscelin are unimpressive, in this book, for plot reasons. It makes me uncomfortable to see them so wrong, for once. I know they're spell bound, but I also feel like somehow they should doubt, somehow they should realise Imriel is right... Melisande is also another interesting point. It feels odd seeing her with much less ambition, content, mellowed out some by motherhood. I don't really like the point it makes about motherhood, in one sense. It shouldn't make you "soft". But I also like that she was redeemed somewhat.

I definitely liked this trilogy, even though I stalled with it, but my feelings are much more conflicted than with the first trilogy, and I don't think I'll be taking it up to reread very soon. ( )

Taut plotting, engaging characters. This is the 6th book in the Kushieline series, and I think it suffers from some credulity-straining plot devices. There's adventure and intrigue, certainly, along with true love and steamy sex but there are also fairly good-sized holes in the story and some inconsistencies that hurt. It's so Byzantine that I'm reluctant to go into any detail for fear of spoilers, but Melisande is back, her beauty undimmed. I recommend this with reservations to those of you who have read and loved the first five books. ( )

very interesting twist that brings a whole new area of that world and culture into focus ( )

Kushiel's Mercy by Jacqueline Carey is the third volume of the trilogy featuring Imriel nó Montrève de la Courcel as the protagonist. Or, depending on how you want to count it, the novel is the sixth volume in Carey's series Kushiel's Legacy. Regardless, it is an ending point. I've been reading Kushiel's Legacy from the beginning and I love the books. The series has gained a devoted following and many of the individual volumes have been nominated for and have won various awards and honors. Kushiel's Mercy was first published in 2008, so I'm a few years behind in my reading. I've been taking my time with the series. The books are fairly lengthy, and while the second trilogy's style is less flowery than the first's, there is still quite a bit going on. It was only a matter of time before I got around to reading Kushiel's Mercy, and now I have.

After taking revenge on the person responsible for his wife Dorelei's murder in Alba, Imriel is able to return to Terre d'Ange and the woman he loves with all his soul--Sidonie, the heir to the throne. There are many people in the realm who are unhappy with this situation. Because Imriel is the son of Terre d'Ange's greatest traitor, many suspect his motivations and believe his desire to be impure. Imriel and Sidonie know better. However, in order to prove his intentions to the Queen and the peerage, and in order to be officially recognized as Sidonie's husband, Imriel is ordered to bring his mother to justice. Imriel has not had much happiness in his life, and he is willing to do what he must in order to keep it and the woman he loves. But before he can, Terre d'Ange falls victim to the schemes of Carthage and he must confront a foe even more dangerous than his mother.

It has been wonderful to watch Imriel grow and change ever since his introduction in Kushiel's Avatar and as the protagonist of his own trilogy (Kushiel's Scion, Kushiel's Justice, Kushiel's Mercy). He used to be defined by those around him--his traitorous mother, his heroic foster parents--but in Kushiel's Mercy he has finally become his own person. Imriel has matured greatly throughout Kushiel's Legacy; he now knows who he is and what he wants, and he is willing to fight for his own sake. One of the things that I love about Carey's Kushiel books is that the characters' sexuality is integral to who they are as people and is important to their development. The sex isn't just there to be there (although I'm okay with that, too) but it's an important part of the story for a reason.

I'll admit, there were some aspects of Kushiel's Mercy that I was hesitant about, particularly the prominence of arcane magic in the story. Honestly, I felt a little cheated. At least at first. Terre d'Ange doesn't really have a tradition of arcane magic. Although divine gifts and abilities have always played a part in Kushiel's Legacy, arcane magic's role has always been fairly limited up until now. But by the end of Kushiel's Mercy, Carey had convinced me that the incorporation of arcane magic into her world was the correct one. The story that she wanted to tell couldn't have been told in any other way. However, what probably impressed me most about Kushiel's Mercy, was how skillfully Carey not only ties together Imriel's trilogy but the entire Kushiel cycle as a whole. I found Kushiel's Mercy to be an extremely satisfying ending, but I still look forward to reading the next trilogy as well.

Experiments in Reading ( )

fabulous book by a great author. ( )