The Curse of Chalion (World of Five Gods #5) by Lois McMaster Bujold

 

The Curse of Chalion by Lois McMaster Bujold is the first in the World of Five Gods series.  You may remember that I recently read The Hallowed Hunt, which is the third book in the series. I had been led astray that since The Hallowed Hunt was first in the time chronology, I should have read it first, but I can see now that reading The Curse of Chalion would have been helpful to getting more out The Hallowed Hunt. Regardless, here I am, back on the right reading order track.

In this book, we meet Cazaril, a former soldier who has suffered many indignities, including losing a military siege and being tortured as a slave on a sea vessel. He ends up going back to the household of the Dowager Provincara where he was once a page in his youth and somehow becomes the personal secretary of the Royess Iselle, the sister of the next ruler of Chalion. They end up at court where magic and intrigue follow.

I really just ate this book right up. It's a very internal sort of fantasy novel since we follow Cazaril and basically just know what he's up to. He's sort of the fringes of what the Very Important People are doing and he's a lot like Fitz in my beloved The Realm of the Elderlings that way. It's great world building, great character building, and really seemed to fit where I wanted to be at this moment in my life. It's not an action packed adventure story, but there are occasional action scenes. It's more moody and inward-focused.

So, yes, I immediately put the next book on hold at the library and I intend to follow through on reading the series this time.

5/5 stars 

Lines of note:

"It used to be good land - it's now a waste. Orchards and olive groves and vineyards burned, farms abandoned, animals turned loose to go wild or starve - it's peace, not war, that makes wealth for a country. War just transfers possession of the residue from the weaker to the stronger. Worse, what is brought with blood is sold for coin, and then stolen back again." (page 117)

Reading this while watching news stories out of Ukraine was heartrending.

"I did not mean to insult you, dear sister, or, or the gods." Orico glanced around a little vaguely, as though afraid an offended god might pounce upon him out of some astral ambuscade at any moment. (pages 222-223)

I'm not sure exactly why this line made me chuckle, but it really did.

It was as much like coming home as anything he'd experienced for years. Yet his new eyes rendered familiar places strange again; the world made strange as he was remade, over and over, and no place to rest at last. (page 330)

I thought this was so sad. As we get older, home and comfort seem further and further away.

Words I looked up:

contretemps (page 107): a minor dispute or disagreement

concatenation (page 323): a series of interconnected things or events