The Leaning Pile of Books is a feature in which I highlight books I got over the last week that sound interesting—old or new, bought or received in the mail for review consideration. Since I hope you will find new books you’re interested in reading in these posts, I try to be as informative as possible. If I can find them, links to excerpts, author’s websites, and places where you can find more information on the book are included, along with series information and the publisher’s book description.
Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org, and I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase.
Technically, this should have gone up last weekend, but life got in the way! In case you missed any of the new posts since the last one of these, they were:
- Guest Post by House of Dusk Author Deva Fagan — Deva Fagan shared about some of the books and resources on ancient history that she found inspirational when working on her epic fantasy novel in “Real History for Fantasy Worlds.”
- Review of The Dream Hotel by Laila Lalami — This literary science fiction novel set in the near future had a strong start, but I didn’t think it engaged enough with the various aspects it introduced and it ended up feeling underbaked to me.
This is basically The Leaning Pile of Books: Kushiel’s Legacy Edition since I’ve been reading the first trilogy in its entirety this year after Cassiel’s Servant made me want to revisit Kushiel’s Dart and finish the original trilogy. (I actually had already read all three books in the third Kushiel’s Legacy trilogy set a few generations after the first six books: Naamah’s Kiss, Naamah’s Curse, and Naamah’s Blessing. I’d now like to revisit those as well.)
I’m now very close to done with the first trilogy, and I love this series so much. These are now among my favorite books ever, and Phèdre and Joscelin are now some of my favorite characters ever. Of course I had to get the trilogy I was missing, and then I came across a not-too-expensive hardcover copy of the book I only had in ARC form and had to get that, too. (Not covered below: the new copy of Kushiel’s Avatar that I bought because my copy had a torn page and was missing a bunch of text. Fortunately, I was able to read the missing parts elsewhere, but I wanted to have a copy that, you know, contains all the words.)
Kushiel’s Scion (Kushiel’s Legacy: Imriel’s Trilogy #1) by Jacqueline Carey
I’m showing the cover of the first book in this trilogy and its description here since that’s the place to start with the middle trilogy, but I got Kushiel’s Justice (book 2) and Kushiel’s Mercy (book 3) at the same time.
I remember always seeing these on the bookshelves at Borders, but sadly, they now seem to be harder to find than they once were. That’s actually why I bought them now instead of just adding them to my wish list for later. I kind of regret not looking around for hardcover editions, but I saw these on Bookshop and decided to snatch them up because I needed to have all 10 related books!
It will be interesting to see how the story continues with the next generation of characters. I was intrigued to see Jacqueline Carey’s thoughts on this “orphaned” series of hers and how now would be a good time for it given the rise of romantasy:
I don’t actually consider myself a “romantasy” writer—to me, Kushiel’s Legacy has always been alternate historical fantasy—but it’s mostly just a marketing term. Each trilogy has a strong romantic throughline, and nowhere more than in Imriel’s story. Hell, forbidden love doesn’t get much more forbidden. She’s the heir to the kingdom, he’s the son of its greatest traitor. Their love could quite literally divide the realm. But it’s also about a journey of healing and self-reclamation, intrigue, friendship, desire, shame, coming of age, politics, war, justice, forgiveness… all the things.
I adore how she wrote the relationship between Phèdre and Joscelin, so I’m excited to see how this one unfolds.
Imriel de la Courcel’s birth parents are history’s most reviled traitors, but his adoptive parents, the Comtesse Phedre and the warrior-priest Joscelin, are Terre d’Ange’s greatest champions.
Stolen, tortured and enslaved as a young boy, Imriel is now a Prince of the Blood; third in line for the throne in a land that revels in art, beauty and desire. It is a court steeped in deeply laid conspiracies—and there are many who would see the young prince dead. Some despise him out of hatred for his mother, Melisande, who nearly destroyed the entire realm in her quest for power. Others because they fear he has inherited his mother’s irresistible allure—and her dangerous gifts.
As he comes of age, plagued by unwanted desires, Imriel shares their fears. When a simple act of friendship traps Imriel in a besieged city where the infamous Melisande is worshiped as a goddess and where a dead man leads an army, the Prince must face his greatest test: to find his true self.
Cassiel’s Servant (Kushiel’s Legacy) by Jacqueline Carey
Cassiel’s Servant was my 2023 Book of the Year, and I have already read and reviewed this companion to Kushiel’s Dart from the perspective of Joscelin. But I’d like to have as many of the Kushiel’s Legacy books in hardcover as possible, so I ended up buying a more durable copy.
I have a confession to make: I actually love this book more than its counterpart, Kushiel’s Dart. (Not a lot more, just a little!) It had been years since I read the previously published novel when I read the latest one, so I wasn’t sure if I’d still feel that way after a reread. After rereading the first, I realized I did prefer this one (again, a little!) and had a better understanding of why that is: Cassiel’s Servant is more deeply introspective and character-driven than Kushiel’s Dart.
It’s the perfect example of how to write the same story from another viewpoint since it is so different from the first. Though it has a lot of the same plot points, it glosses over a lot of the politics and conspiracies since that’s not relevant to Joscelin. Instead, it focuses on the parts that matter to him, and it shows how he grapples with what it means to him to truly follow Cassiel and his example. I love his internal journey, and I’m certain this is a book that I’ll reread at some point.
The lush epic fantasy that inspired a generation with a single precept: “Love As Thou Wilt.”
Returning to the realm of Terre d’Ange which captured an entire generation of fantasy readers, New York Times bestselling author Jacqueline Carey brings us a hero’s journey for a new era.
In Kushiel’s Dart, a daring young courtesan uncovered a plot to destroy her beloved homeland. But hers is only half the tale. Now see the other half of the heart that lived it.
Cassiel’s Servant is a retelling of cult favorite Kushiel’s Dart from the point of view of Joscelin, Cassiline warrior-priest and protector of Phèdre nó Delaunay. He’s sworn to celibacy and the blade as surely as she’s pledged to pleasure, but the gods they serve have bound them together. When both are betrayed, they must rely on each other to survive.
From his earliest training to captivity amongst their enemies, his journey with Phèdre to avert the conquest of Terre D’Ange shatters body and mind… and brings him an impossible love that he will do anything to keep.
Even if it means breaking all vows and losing his soul.
