I won't say that the two previous books in this series didn't have their dark moments, but this third volume takes things much, much deeper into shadow and despair. If you struggled with the earlier books, consider leaving this one unread, because it will test you. I won't deny that I floundered at points with the sheer brutality. I also won't deny that Phedre is a lot Mary Sue-ish. Sometimes, while nearing the end of the book, I reflected on the distances traveled, dangers faced, rulers placated and confronted, darkness embraced and overcome, languages learned, and knowledge acquired, and I realized that realistically no one woman would be capable of all of this in the course of a few years. Nevertheless, I couldn't put it down. I had to know how Carey would end the crazy journey.
So much stuff shoved into this one novel! The search for a lost tribe of Israel and the treasures of Solomon, time in the seraglio of an avatar of Death, rescuing the son of a betrayer, traveling the Middle East, Egypt, and Ethiopia. All under the fantastical names that Carey assigned the, of course. I don't often consult the maps in the first pages of fantasy novels, but I broke that habit with this one. There were so many place names to keep track of!
During the section in Darsanga, which Phedre spends with the crazy ruler appointed by Death, I was unwillingly reminded of Wizard's First Rule by Terry Goodkind. It was like Richard Cypher's time being tortured by the Mord-Sith, Mistress Denna, whom he becomes fond of despite her discipline. Being an anguisette, Phedre is built for the task, but those of us who don't get turned on by pain may find ourselves flinching at some passages in the text. I might look away briefly, but I needed to know what happened next.
In short, Carey gives her main character several heavy burdens to bear for long distances and to uncertain receptions. She risks her status with her own gods at one point, by debating whether to keep going. Her faith is vastly superior to mine, her willingness to lean into the gods' appointed task is admirable. But really, if one has read this far, can one doubt that Phedre will prevail?
Book Number 433 of my Science Fiction & Fantasy Reading Project.
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