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93rd out of 321 books
—
269 voters
The Steel Seraglio
by
Mike Carey (Goodreads Author),
Linda Carey, Louise Carey, Nimit Malavia
The sultan Bokhari Al-Bokhari of Bessa has 365 concubines - until a violent coup puts the city in the hands of the religious zealot Hakkim Mehdad. Hakkim has no use for the pleasures of the flesh: he condemns the women first to exile - and then to death Cast into the desert, the concubines must rely on themselves and each other to escape from the new sultan's fanatical pur...more
Paperback, 424 pages
Published
March 2012
by ChiZine Publications
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A fast-moving epic full of spicy humor and Arabian magic. This book is not like other fantasy. It's something different, and for that, I loved it.
The story unfolds through a variety of viewpoint characters. The constant switching of viewpoints could have been annoying, but it worked in the end. After all, we're talking about 365 concubines and their children, a prince, their camel-handlers, servants and other hangers-on etc. That's a lot of people. A city in itself (as the book tells it), and th...more
The story unfolds through a variety of viewpoint characters. The constant switching of viewpoints could have been annoying, but it worked in the end. After all, we're talking about 365 concubines and their children, a prince, their camel-handlers, servants and other hangers-on etc. That's a lot of people. A city in itself (as the book tells it), and th...more
The very first line grabbed my attention and never let go: "Once there was a city of women." This book is filled with amazing female characters. Strong, brave, frightened, noble, logical, emotional, seductive, violent and vengeful. It is a rainbow of female attributes that are rarely depicted in a book all at once. I found this story, refreshing and empowering. The story focuses on an army of women who take back their beloved city, aided by a few good men. I loved all the characters in this stor...more
What a most awesome book! So beautifully written & the story is amazing! 365 concubines are turned out into the desert, along with the bastard children after a coup. After being out in the desert, they find out that they too are to be killed. Zuleika, a trained asassin & Gursoon, the sultan's advisor lead the group of women into hiding. They are smart & outwit thieves & murderers. They learn to live out of caves & learn trades. The asassin trains them all in how to fight if n...more
Rather than be massacred by a fanatic usurper, a deposed sultan's seraglio takes matters into its own hands and fights for its collective survival. The major characters---a librarian who weeps ink and sees the future, a smooth talking bandit (neither original members of the seraglio--and the bandit is a man), a trained assassin who slipped into the seraglio on a mission but liked the society so much that she stayed, and a peace loving but strong minded senior matron---won me over right away, and...more
I would have to preface this review by stating The Steel Seraglio, by Carey, Carey and Carey, is an ambitious work, a literary etude or variation on the legendary collection of Islamic tales we’ve come to know as One Thousand and One Nights. Like its historical counterpart, it is a tale within many tales, complete with unreliable narrator, and with an oblique homage to some of the original characters (al-Rashid and Jafar among them).
The overarching story, that of a discarded seraglio of some 365...more
The overarching story, that of a discarded seraglio of some 365...more
Apr 03, 2012
Chris King Elfland's 2nd Cousin
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Fans of Cat Valente and Gregory Frost
NOTE: This review first appeared on April 3rd, 2012 at
The King of Elfland's 2nd Cousin
. If you enjoy it, please stop by!
Several years ago, I discovered N.M. Penzer's The Harem: Inside the Grand Seraglio of the Turkish Sultans , which opened my eyes to the fascinating history of the Ottoman sultan's harem. What could be more fertile soil for an awesome story than a group of educated women from diverse backgrounds, locked away by a patriarchal society yet with intimate access to the heart of pol...more
Several years ago, I discovered N.M. Penzer's The Harem: Inside the Grand Seraglio of the Turkish Sultans , which opened my eyes to the fascinating history of the Ottoman sultan's harem. What could be more fertile soil for an awesome story than a group of educated women from diverse backgrounds, locked away by a patriarchal society yet with intimate access to the heart of pol...more
"No one said it would be easy, and it wasn't. We did it anyway"
When the city of Bessa is seized by a religious zealot he casts out the former Sultan's harem of 365 women. Wandering alone in the desert, the women are forced out of their life of pampering, silks and perfumes into a vicious battle for survival. However when these dancing girls, assasins and artists join forces with with bandits, camel drivers and librarians, they start to understand the bliss of freedom and their dream to return ho...more
When the city of Bessa is seized by a religious zealot he casts out the former Sultan's harem of 365 women. Wandering alone in the desert, the women are forced out of their life of pampering, silks and perfumes into a vicious battle for survival. However when these dancing girls, assasins and artists join forces with with bandits, camel drivers and librarians, they start to understand the bliss of freedom and their dream to return ho...more
This is a minimally fantastic adventure story. There are small hints of magic just to give the narrative device a boost to get started, but it's a typical adventure story set in the ancient Sahara, about the aftermath of a coup against a Sultan, and how his harem of 365 concubines managed to deal with it.
The novel takes great pleasure in taking the reader several levels into the narration, as stories lie within stories lie within the novel; the language is evocative and beautiful, at the expens...more
The novel takes great pleasure in taking the reader several levels into the narration, as stories lie within stories lie within the novel; the language is evocative and beautiful, at the expens...more
This was a very different book for Mike Carey, although it may be because he was one of three writers contributing (with his wife and his daughter). But different doesn't mean bad; in this case the book while very different, was also wonderful. It felt very much like the Arabian Nights, a series of individual tales that work together to tell a greater story. The concubines of an assassinated sultan are banished, only to band together into an army to retake their city. That's a quick summary, and...more
When a zealot decides to take over the city of Bessa he orders the death of the sultan, and all the sultan's wives and children. However, being a pragmatist he decides to send the sultan's concubines as a gift to a neighbouring nation. This is how over three hundred women and children comes to be in the middle of the desert, when the conqueror realises that they harbour the last remaining heir to the throne and orders them all to be executed.
What happens next is the tale of how the women survive...more
What happens next is the tale of how the women survive...more
Living in the desert sounds like an especially unpleasant way to spend my days, but I'm Canadian with a body acclimated to wintry conditions. Even if I had a huge palatial estate in which to luxuriate with my harem of hundreds, I'd still spend most of my time sweltering. So, I can only imagine how many seconds it would take for me to drop dead if exiled to the sandy desert like the 365 concubines that comprise an ousted sultan's seraglio.
Sultan Bokhari Al-Bokhari is the kind of ruler who has a t...more
Sultan Bokhari Al-Bokhari is the kind of ruler who has a t...more
I picked up this book based on the gorgeous cover and the blurb on the back - a story of women who band together in the face of adversity. I wasn't expecting to come to love each character, no matter whether they were villain, victim, hero or citizen. The Careys weave a tale so well that it's easy to get lost in the book, to surface hours later and wish desperately that it never ended. I must also point out that the occasional illustrations in the book are gorgeously done, and I wish I could hav...more
This wasn't quite what I was expecting. I was prepared to read a series of tales told by different characters in the seraglio along the lines of 1001 nights. Whilst we do hear some fantastical tales, they are interwoven with the lives and experiences of the women of the seraglio and the people of Bessa. I was surprised by the humour, intrigued by echoes of other stories (eg Midas), occasionally thrown by the voices, and engaged by both the richly drawn characters and the timeless quality of the...more
Sentenced to death in the desert, the concubines of a fallen sultan instead free themselves and evade the pursuit of the fanatical new ruler of their city, Hakkim Mehdad. Out of nothing, they and their allies – robbers and storytellers, a librarian, a female assassin – found a new city in the desert, the fabled City of Women.
The three Careys – Mike, Linda, and Loiuse, have written a vibrant, colourful, page-turner of an adventure with passion and care. Filled with drama, romance, and humour, it...more
The three Careys – Mike, Linda, and Loiuse, have written a vibrant, colourful, page-turner of an adventure with passion and care. Filled with drama, romance, and humour, it...more
Review originally posted on www.christinavasilevski.com.
About the book: The sultan Bokhari Al-Bokhari, ruler of the desert city of Bessa, has been deposed by the zealot Hakkim Mehdad. Mehdad, disdainful of the pleasures of the flesh, at first sentences the sultan's 365 concubines to exile. However, when he learns that the seraglio harbours the sultan's only remaining heir, he orders them to be executed instead. Now, these women must use their wits and the talents of their greatest members and al...more
About the book: The sultan Bokhari Al-Bokhari, ruler of the desert city of Bessa, has been deposed by the zealot Hakkim Mehdad. Mehdad, disdainful of the pleasures of the flesh, at first sentences the sultan's 365 concubines to exile. However, when he learns that the seraglio harbours the sultan's only remaining heir, he orders them to be executed instead. Now, these women must use their wits and the talents of their greatest members and al...more
The way in which this book was written had me hooked from the start. The story of the city of Bessa and what happened there is remarkable. The tale of 365 concubines, their children, somebandits, camel thieves, and the challenges they overcame to reclaim the city that was stolen from them is astounding. You can't turn the pages fast enough. The bookd the first and book the second made the story complete. There was no huge sense of wait, what else? what more? the story ended, but it makes you thi...more
What could have been an Arabian Nights pastiche ended up being an utterly immersive tale told in linked stories about a harem of women who escape certain death and become warriors to take back their desert city. This should be read by far more people than will probably discover it, but give this feminine fable a chance. It reminded me weirdly of the Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser stories by Fritz Leiber that I devoured in my youth, but with kick-ass women.
This was an odd one. Some sections I adored and tore through, but others were incredibly slow-paced and as a whole, the book went on long after I stopped being interested. There were too many characters for me to form a bond with more than one or two. Deaths came flying fast at the end, and I didn't really find any affecting.
On the other hand, every time a story within a story is told, the book shines. And the illustrations are lovely. I read somewhere this was initially conceived of as a comic,...more
On the other hand, every time a story within a story is told, the book shines. And the illustrations are lovely. I read somewhere this was initially conceived of as a comic,...more
Other reviewers have said most of what describes this wonderful fantasy--strong female characters (and some appealing males, too), a fresh setting, and a wonderful set of voices. Reminiscent of the "Arabian Nights," not only because of the setting, but as a set of stories set within the larger novel. I've been a fan of Mike Carey's "Felix Castor" series for a while, and now I am going to have to seek out the work of his cowriters!
Wasn't sure if I would like this, and enjoyed it much more than I expected. Part Arabian nights, part A-Team, it was very readable with humour, sadness, love, betrayal. I found the style of writing - which normally I dislike when disjointed and told from multiple points of view - really suitable for this book, and didn't detract from it at all. Happily read more from these authors.
Not everything I had hoped. I barely finished it before it was due back at the library. The plot wasn't bad. It just wasn't great. Not a bad piece of light reading but nothing particularly special. I liked the character of Rem but maybe I got turned off by the obviously feminist fantasy elements. The love story was sweet but I've read better.
There's something about p. 68 lately. It was at that point in Ellis' Gun Machine when I realized how good a book that one was. It was the same point in this one - by Carey, his wife, and his daughter. A tale of revenge, freedom, love, and learning that mixes gallows humor with scenes of heartbreak and love.
In the style of a tale within a tale, a la Gaiman's American Gods, The Steel Seraglio interweaves origin stories within a larger broader context to powerful effect.
This is a close second to th...more
In the style of a tale within a tale, a la Gaiman's American Gods, The Steel Seraglio interweaves origin stories within a larger broader context to powerful effect.
This is a close second to th...more
This book was fascinating and well written, even with three authors. The parts blended together, and there were only a few slow spots, but they did not diminish the wonderful story and character development. A city of women and all that entails, and the richness of storytelling and love of all sorts and intricate details. A wonderful read.
It's been awhile since I've read a feminist utopia, and I've never before encountered one set in ancient Arabia. The concept is high, no doubt, and it's got a bit of the dewy-eyed wishfulness that characterizes all utopian fiction, but the story is excellent. It reminds me a bit of Cathrynne Valente's fantasy.
I did not expect to enjoy this book as much as I did. I could not put it down and read into the night, sucked into the world the three authors created. The empowerment of women is always a subject close to my heart and the book gives you lots of that. Fun, fast paced and hypnotic....a great read.
When the sultan Bokhari Al-Bokhari's fomer concubines are threatened with death after military coup, they must use all their ingenuity to save their lives.
I loved the way this book collected individual stories within the main plot in a vaguely Thousand and One Arabian Nights fashion. Every character has a story to tell, and they all combine to make the many characters that fill the story of the City of Silk and Steel more interesting.
I loved the way this book collected individual stories within the main plot in a vaguely Thousand and One Arabian Nights fashion. Every character has a story to tell, and they all combine to make the many characters that fill the story of the City of Silk and Steel more interesting.
A “Short-List” selection for the 2013 Reading List Fantasy category.
For the complete list of 2013 Reading List winners please go to the RUSA Awards page.
For the complete list of 2013 Reading List winners please go to the RUSA Awards page.
Beautiful, lyrical, funny, heartbreaking. Whiffs of The Lions of al-Rassan mixed with Skybowl in a big weave of Scheherazadian story-silk and yet made inimitable by an array of strong voices and unique characterisation. A complete delight.
Powerful story of women overcoming male rule and sustaining their own life. Unique and powerful characters; author writes as if she is speaking to you personally which provides some humorous side-bars!
May 14, 2013
Beth
rated it
5 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2013reads,
noncomic2013
I'm not going to say it's a perfect book, but it was well crafted, engaging and moving from start to finish. There were clunky bits, but they didn't detract, there were a couple of predictable bits that made me, not quite cringe, but feel a little awkward, and some of the foreshadowing was a little heavy handed, but I loved it, and it's only taken me so long to read because I didn't want to finish it (and because I've been busy).
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Mike Carey was born in Liverpool in 1959. He worked as a teacher for fifteen years, before starting to write comics. When he started to receive regular commissions from DC Comics, he gave up the day job.
Since then, he has worked for both DC and Marvel Comics, writing storyli...more
More about Mike Carey...
Mike Carey was born in Liverpool in 1959. He worked as a teacher for fifteen years, before starting to write comics. When he started to receive regular commissions from DC Comics, he gave up the day job.
Since then, he has worked for both DC and Marvel Comics, writing storyli...more
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“In fifteen hundred years someone will figure out a way to squeeze black juice out of the yellow sand, and that will get everyone very excited. Some people who were rich already will get a lot richer, and some people who were poor will be told that they're richer but will be pretty sure they're not.”
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3 people liked it
“Sooner or later our souls find their centre of gravity in a hot, salt-tasting kiss and a trembling touch. Trembling is a good sign: it means you're open to a world that knows you're coming.”
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3 people liked it
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Sep 16, 2012 09:30pm