The Queen's Bastard

This book looks like a romance version of [b:The Assassin's Apprentice|45107|Assassin's Apprentice (The Farseer Trilogy, Book 1)|Robin Hobb|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170273738s/45107.jpg|171715]. It is set in a thinly veiled version of the late 16th century (pretty much the only difference are the names--the redheaded, married to her country, virgin queen of a misty island is named "Lorraine," for instance) and follows the hidden struggle for supremacy. The main character is the secret, bastard daughter of "Lorraine" and her spymaster. Belinda spends the entirety of the book manipulating, killing, and spying in the courts of Europe. I expected it to be total trash. Imagine my surprise when I found the main character to be show more surprisingly sensible and cool headed, impatient with her flashes of loneliness or sympathy.
After years of pretending to be various peasants (and how refreshing, to see a spy who hides her pride and takes any dirty job), Belinda is unexpectedly thrust into the spotlight when she catches the eye of a prince. While using him to get closer to his mother's papers, Belinda and Prince Javier come to a startling realization: they share a witchy power. Their relationship deepens, but staying in one, high profile place is dangerous for Belinda. Her various plots and personas accumulate and might be about to catch up with her...

Belinda is a particularly interesting character because of her troubled interaction with power. Having spent the first twenty-two years as unthinkingly obedient and subservient, it is a true reversal for Belinda to not only order her own servants, but to control the minds of those around her, as well. Her sexual appetites awaken, and she begins struggling to maintain a properly humble facade. I was intrigued by Murphey's gender politics (which are very much to the forefront of this book) and by the galloping pace of the plot. I read this in a single sitting. show less

Belinda Primrose is by all intents and purposes a femme fatale. The definition fits her character perfectly. Belinda, trained to be an assassin from birth, is a woman that uses her wiles to gain political secrecy for her country and unacknowledged mother, The Queen of Aulun, Lorriane. Under the command of her father Robert, Belinda is sent on missions that range from gathering enemy intelligence to killing those who threaten the Queen's throne.

Her most recent mission sends her to Lutetia where she is required to gain information that will prove that Sandalia, the Princess of Lutetia, wants to have Lorraine killed. To gain this information Belinda must align herself with people in high places, and she happens to do that more easily than show more she had planed by catching the eye of a merchant, Marius. Marius goes on to introduce Belinda to his best friend, the Prince of Luticia - and son of Sandalia - Javier.

Javier is taken with Belinda immediately, he recognizes something in her that he has found in no one outside of himself. An alien power that he refers to as witchbreed. Belinda's witchbreed power was taken from her at a young age when her father (a carrier of the power as well) realized how strong it was. But with the help of Javier, Belinda is able to cultivate her power again, in ways she had never imagined. While Belinda is quickly coming into her witchbreed, she is still on a mission to gain the intelligence that will take Sandalia down.

The Queen's Bastard reads much like a chess game. Each player: a part of the game, working strategically for and against the queen. All vying for a coveted seat at the throne. This aspect alone held enough intrique to keep me turning the pages but the heroine(?) in this book is what made it so interesting.

I mentioned above that Belinda is a femme fatale. 'Tis true. Some of the acts she commits during this book are cruel, and most of them involve the use of her body. A lot of her sexual dominance can be attributed to her coming into her power so quickly. The strength that she gets from it acts also as desire inside of her. Unlike Javier, who was able to come into his power gradually over time, Belinda's came almost from nowhere, and her power appears to stretch further than Javier's is able to. Even still, Belinda used her sexuality far before she came fully into her witchbreed as a means to the information she had to gain.

What I found most fascinating about Belinda is that in spite of some of her actions and cruelty, she is a likeable character. She is somewhat sympathetic. I credit Murphy greatly for this. Writing a female character as strong, confident, and dominant as Belinda, and still making her vulnerable could not have been easy. I appreciated that Belinda never harps on the fact that she is a bastard, and in employ of a mother that will not recognize her as a daughter. Too often a sore spot in a character's life is used as an excuse for their actions. Belinda has no excuses, she is even loyal to the woman who birthed her where many wouldn't be. This made me like her all the more.

Something I wasn't sure about in the beginning of the book was the large host of characters that inhabit the pages. I wondered if they each served a real purpose, and how I would keep them all in order. I was happy to find that each one was bright in their own way. Not one fades to the back of my mind. I can remember each by name, and I remember what their purpose was in the book. With a large cast, I find that commendable.

My only complaint is that the book ended without giving much insight to the witchbreed, other than what we gain from Belinda's assumptions. I would have liked a bit more expansion on the matter, especially after finding out that there is another witchbreed out there with a mother at the throne. That makes three young witchbreed's with Queens' for mothers. Very interesting. show less

Delicious court intrigue, great characters. Alternative reality elizabethan fiction. It made me nervous, the way the main character is frequently skirting the edge of disaster. I love the bawdy quality as well. Very nice.

This book had me torn. Sometimes I absolutely HATED this book and the next I couldn't put it down. It was definitely a love-hate relationship. The main character Belinda Primrose confused me. I would feel so bad for her because her entire life she has been trained to be an assassin but she dreams about what it would be like to be normal and find love. Then she would do something so nasty and I would just be disgusted with her character. I had a tough time keeping everything straight with the different kingdoms and who ruled them and who fathered what child. So like I said, very torn about this book. I have decided that I most likely won't read the next book in this series anytime soon.

This is a very well-written fantasy, set in alternate Elizabethan times. I was somewhat confused trying to map the alternate Europe and history to the real one. The main/viewpoint character is increasingly unattractive; about halfway through, she did something so repellant I stopped reading.

This is a very well-written fantasy, set in alternate Elizabethan times. I was somewhat confused trying to map the alternate Europe and history to the real one. The main/viewpoint character is increasingly unattractive; about halfway through, she did something so repellant I stopped reading.

It was a quick, easy read. But definitely one of those historical fantasy romance novels that you don't really want to admit to reading. Not that it wasn't enjoyable. It was. Just not the kind of book I feel I should indulge in... all the time.