Paladin of Souls
Ratings59
Average rating4.2
E-Book Extras: ONE: The Keys to Chalion: A Dictionary of People, Places, and Things; TWO: Chalion MiscellanyIt's been three years since the curse was lifted, but Ista dy Baocia, Dowager Royina of Chalion, holds a dark secret: she was responsible for the destruction of Chalion years ago. When her kingdom is threatened once again, Ista must defend her homeland, and her soul.One of the most honored authors in the field of fantasy and science fiction, Lois McMaster Bujold transports us once more to a dark and troubled land and embroils us in a desperate struggle to preserve the endangered souls of a realm.Three years have passed since the widowed Dowager Royina Ista found release from the curse of madness that kept her imprisoned in her family's castle of Valenda. Her newfound freedom is costly, bittersweet with memories, regrets, and guilty secrets -- for she knows the truth of what brought her land to the brink of destruction. And now the road -- escape -- beckons. . . . A simple pilgrimage, perhaps. Quite fitting for the Dowager Royina of all Chalion.Yet something else is free, too -- something beyond deadly. To the north lies the vital border fortress of Porifors. Memories linger there as well, of wars and invasions and the mighty Golden General of Jokona. And someone, something, watches from across that border -- humans, demons, gods.Ista thinks her little party of pilgrims wanders at will. But whose? When Ista's retinue is unexpectedly set upon not long into its travels, a mysterious ally appears -- a warrior nobleman who fights like a berserker. The temporary safety of her enigmatic champion's castle cannot ease Ista's mounting dread, however, when she finds his dark secrets are entangled with hers in a net of the gods' own weaving.In her dreams the threads are already drawing her to unforeseen chances, fateful meetings, fearsome choices. What the inscrutable gods commanded of her in the past brought her land to the brink of devastation. Now, once again, they have chosen Ista as their instrument. And again, for good or for ill, she must comply.
Series
Series
4 primary books12 released booksWorld of the Five Gods (Publication)
World of the Five Gods (Publication) is a 12-book series with 4 primary works first released in 2001 with contributions by Lois McMaster Bujold.
Series
4 primary books11 released booksWorld of the Five Gods (Chronological)
World of the Five Gods (Chronological) is a 11-book series with 4 primary works first released in 2001 with contributions by Lois McMaster Bujold.
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Enjoyed having an older main character for once. Writing was great as per usual with Bujold, and I really enjoy the world-building.
ORIGINALLY POSTED AT Fantasy Literature.
Paladin of Souls takes place just after the events of The Curse of Chalion and focuses on one of the minor female characters in Curse. It can stand alone, but you'll get a lot more out of it if you read Curse first. This is another beautifully written masterpiece which won several prestigious awards, including a Hugo and a Nebula. Not only is Bujold an excellent writer, but her world of Chalion is believable and complex, the magic is deep, fascinating, and just plain scary. This is very far from the wizard-coming-of-age, orphan-boy-saves-the-world, or hunk-whips-up-on-the-bad-guys-with-a-cool-sword kind of fantasy epic. This is fresh. And highly recommended.
Read more Lois McMaster Bujold book reviews at Fantasy literature.
Lois McMaster Bujold is an elegant writer, and I often just enjoy the way her words flow over the page. Paladin of Souls continues the universe of The Curse of Chalion. However, it references Cazaril and Iselle only in passing, instead following the Dowager Royina Ista into her life post-madness. Ista is a forty year old former madwoman whose widowhood is dominated by her late mother's overprotective court. She has never been in love and, having experienced her ultimate failure at age eighteen, has striven to leave no mark upon the world.
With the curse's lifting, however, Ista finds herself aching to escape her kindly prison and undertakes a false pilgrimage literally just to get out of the house. She is a unique hero in that she is neither young, strong, nor beautiful, and that is what makes her interesting and relatable. This story would not work if the main character was Iselle. It's about a grown woman with a grown woman's perceptions and priorities within the world. That is just far too rare in this genre.
The world itself also plays to my favorite theme of what happens when the Gods are just real. No faith necessary. Miracles, saints, and demons are all perfectly apparent and certain people are elected to play certain roles by ineffable but difficult to deny deities. Quintarian theology is explored much more deeply especially the nature of demons. Sadly, this means that a lot of the lovely ambiguity from Chalion (what's demon and what's a tumor?) is missing. It's all clearly Gods' work. For me, Chalion was superior in weaving mortal and divine together, but there is still a place for Paladin in this school.
Like Chalion, this book also took quite a while to get going. The slow start is worth it, and while the ending is a bit cheesy, it's also still quite appropriate. I've already picked up Hallowed Hunt, so I'll be finishing off this trilogy soon.
