The Queen's Bastard (Inheritors' Cycle, #1)

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The Queen's Bastard (Inheritors' Cycle #1)

by C.E. Murphy (Goodreads Author)

3.1 of 5 stars 3.10 · rating details · 766 ratings · 111 reviews

“Wow. C. E. Murphy is good. Court intrigue in an alternate Elizabethan-era fantasy world: realpolitik with the sex included.”
–Kate Elliott, author of Crown of Stars

In a world where religion has ripped apart the old order, Belinda Primrose is the queen’s secret weapon. The unacknowledged daughter of Lorraine, the first queen to sit on the Aulunian throne, Belinda has been t...more

Paperback, 448 pages

Published April 29th 2008 by Del Rey

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Last Argument of Kings by Joe Abercrombie

2008 DGLA Fantasy Book Nominees

17th out of 92 books — 194 voters

Dude, Where's My Forehead?

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Jun 05, 2008 Deanna Roberts rated it 2 of 5 stars

I must first say that C.E. Murphy is probably one of my favorite authors. Her Joanne Walker books are incredible and her other series equally enjoyable.

This book, however, fell FAR short of my expectations. The writing was good, don't get me wrong, but her main character had absolutely NO redeeming factors. I kept turning the pages to find some good aspect to Belinda/Beatrice and I kept being denied any reason to like her.

This is one series that I will not finish. I was sorely disappointed.

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Jun 24, 2008 Angela rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

There are times when I read a book so well-put together, so deliciously complex, and so generally OH-MY-inducing that I despair of ever trying to write anything as good, much less sell it. The Queen's Bastard, latest offering from the redoubtable C.E. Murphy, is one of those times.

For starters, the setting is quite unusual for a fantasy novel. This thing is basically alternate history fantasy--all the names have been changed, but any reader will definitely recognize Europe of the 16th century he...more There are times when I read a book so well-put together, so deliciously complex, and so generally OH-MY-inducing that I despair of ever trying to write anything as good, much less sell it. The Queen's Bastard, latest offering from the redoubtable C.E. Murphy, is one of those times.

For starters, the setting is quite unusual for a fantasy novel. This thing is basically alternate history fantasy--all the names have been changed, but any reader will definitely recognize Europe of the 16th century here, complete with a queen on one of the pertinent thrones that we all should find very, very familiar. ;) And there's magic--or rather, I should say, very interesting telepathic and telekinetic abilities possessed by the most major characters, the source of which is hinted at to be something rather more appropriate to a science fiction novel.

And the sex... oh my yes, there's sex. But I am quite satisfied (aheh) to note that this novel has, hands down, the most effective use of sex I have read in quite some time. Our heroine cuts a swath through any number of men through this novel, from a lowly coachman clear up to a prince who turns out to share her secret abilities--and yet, every single sexual encounter is a means to an end, propelling Belinda through a web of increasingly complicated intrigue, and some of them come back to haunt her and hard. One scene in particular--you'll know it when you get to it--was quite intense, almost alarming, enough that I found myself genuinely challenged about whether I actually liked the heroine. (I'm still pondering that! Belinda is extremely effective as a character, but all throughout the book I was rather torn between cheering her on and muttering "Bitch!" at the page.)

It amused me, too--and this may well amuse Kit when she reads this--that I got a big Elfquest vibe off of this story. And in particular, a vibe of Belinda as a very young Winnowill. Particularly in that aforementioned intense and alarming scene.

I finished this thing up this afternoon, and am in awe. Awe, I tell you. Five stars!(less)

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Aug 29, 2009 Felicia rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: vaginal-fantasy, fantasy

Errr, I dunno, I'm listing this book here because I like this author and this book for SOME reasons, and don't like it a lot for others. This book started out VERY interesting with a complex heroine and some interesting world-building, an alternate Elizabethan-Era world with some magic thrown in. There were a lot of confusing turns though, and some outright left-field character behavior that made it VERY hard to plow through and continue the journey with the main character. I dunno, I might read...more

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Jan 11, 2009 Wealhtheow rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: queer-characters, fantasy, historical

This book looks like a romance version of The Assassin's Apprentice. It is set in a thinly veiled version of the late 16th century (pretty much the only difference are the names--the redheaded, married to her country, virgin queen of a misty island is named "Lorraine," for instance) and follows the hidden struggle for supremacy. The main character is the secret, bastard daughter of "Lorraine" and her spymaster. Belinda spends the entirety of the book manipulating, killing, and spying in the cour...more

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Aug 17, 2008 Elizabeth rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2008, reviewed, hem-steppers-and-bodice-rippers, fantasy-sci-fi

Weak premise, poorly executed, with some repulsive sex scenes about power and manipulation involving a lot of pain; doesn't that sound like something that I would like? I had liked her last book - gargoyles in Manhattan, I mean, really, doesn't that sound fun? (And it was). But now she is clearly intent on winning a prize in sweeping romance-fantasy epics when her strength is in adding smaller fantasy elements into the "real" world.

Annoying, painful slog to get to the end.

A piece of advice for t...more

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Jul 29, 2008 April Erwin rated it 1 of 5 stars

I hated this book. I know, strong words. I really enjoyed C.E. Murphy's Negotiator series, and was intrigued by the concept of Queen's Bastard. Instead, I found myself cringing my way through the story. It wasn't so much the technical writing that disturbed me, as the story itself. I was disgusted and totally turned off by the main characters' change in personalitay as she came into her powers. I actually tossed this one into the trash. I guess there really is a first time for everything. Now,if...more

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Dec 03, 2012 Angie rated it 4 of 5 stars

In looking at the author's published dates for books, it makes sense this book isn't her first because the writing has grown up a bit, and the characters are more fleshed out in the sense that it feels like the author is letting them talk, instead of superimposing her own wit and personality on them (as she does especially with Joanne Walker). It's pretty dark, more as a historical fiction than the urban fairytale she's given so much of otherwise.

Since it does come off more as historical fiction...more In looking at the author's published dates for books, it makes sense this book isn't her first because the writing has grown up a bit, and the characters are more fleshed out in the sense that it feels like the author is letting them talk, instead of superimposing her own wit and personality on them (as she does especially with Joanne Walker). It's pretty dark, more as a historical fiction than the urban fairytale she's given so much of otherwise.

Since it does come off more as historical fiction, even with the place names all changed, there's some confusing freedom that the characters have; lip service is *barely* paid to the fact women weren't likely to be allowed out of doors by themselves, etc. I'd have to do research to really conclude how different the book is from the historical setting, and it's probably necessary to the plot of the book, but it did pop up quite a bit while going along- It feels as though more characters would have to do more conniving to get out and about the way they do.

Also, one very odd detail- again, all the place names are changed, and making it somewhat confusing if you're trying to overlay Europe to get a good grasp of the distances the characters are purportedly traveling.

But the author uses the word "welsh," as in "to welsh on a bet." Now, I looked it up to be sure, because I always thought it was a racially-born statement (i.e., Welshman go back on their bets, or bookmakers running to Wales to avoid paying winnings, therefore 'welshing' is going to Wales to get away). From what I can tell, even if the original meaning was "running to Wales" to get away from a debt, it's commonly enough to be considered offensive to the Welsh (along the lines of "gypping" is offensive to the Roma).

Either way, that's almost an aside- the author can be politically incorrect if she wants to, or she can be using it in a completely correct way that's lost on modernity, the point is, she's using a term that CANNOT exist in her world, because she's changed all place names, and therefore there is no Wales to run away to, or to be from.

Welshing can't exist in the world she's created. And perhaps it's nitpicky of me, but this does in fact very much bother me. Makes me grumpy- I think I get grumpier at things that could be awesome and fall flat, versus grumpy at things that are just mediocre. I can accept mediocrity, it's harder to accept a good book that could be awesome except for one or two details.(less)

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Aug 05, 2010 notyourmonkey rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2010-read, fantasy, kindle

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. (Includes possibly triggery discussion of sexual abuse, as well as minor spoilers for the first few pages of the sequel, but nothing that wasn't deeply implied by the last few pages of this book.)

In short: I enjoyed the first half of the book and the initial world-building, was immensely put off by some of the character development mid-range, and the WTFery at the end was so immense as to almost bump this up a star for sheer ballsiness.

Before I get to the bits I did like (or at least boggle at)...more

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Jun 08, 2010 Monique rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: miss-independent-strong-woman-book

Okay so tried to break from the urban reality I was reading to the realm of fantasy and was intrigued by a book promising a strong heroine, a skilled assasin and spy, secret daughter of the Titian Queen or Red Bitch Lorraine..In this story Belinda Primrose is cultivated and carefully hidden until she is of age to discover her somewhat disturbing sexuality and use that as a tool to seduce and murder any opponents to her mother's throne..That in itself piqued my interest but when you also add the...more

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Jun 14, 2009 Krissie rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, sci-fi

Now that my computer is (mostly) behaving, I think I can honestly give this book a proper rating. To write another Krissie-style bad review, I have to say that I feel most of this book's characters to be underdeveloped, and that the main character is a little power hungry. Perhaps further development will be broached in the following books, and perhaps our main character will confront her power-hungry attitude and do something about it. Maybe not. But as a book on its own, without sequels to kee...more

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Jun 09, 2009 Colleen rated it 2 of 5 stars

The main character, Belinda, is presented in a way that is very female, though not very feminine. Her mix of strengths and flaws provides solid reading material as she develops throughout the book, and that same mix sets up a stunning domino fall for the final scenes.

Murphy has a gift with expressing emotion more than setting, and that imbalance is unfortunately obvious in a few spots. Her most annoying literary artifice is her swap between present and past tense depending on how the story is mo...more

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Jul 09, 2012 Barbara rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sf

This book is loosely based on the reign of Elizabeth I in England with alternates for Mary, Queen of Scots and an anachronistic Catherine the Great in Russia. The title character is the bastard daughter of Elizabeth and the Robert Dudley equivalent (so much for the Virgin Queen). She is raised in secret and trained to be a loyal spy and assassin.

This book is well written. The author doesn't shy away from the grim and occasionally downright ugly aspects of life in such a society, especially for w...more

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Mar 08, 2011 Starfire rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, historical-fantasy, 6-10

Previous reviews suggest that this is very much a love it or hate it book, and reading through it, I can see why.

There are things that frustrated me majorly: the two main examples were the constant playing with tenses (which, granted, I finally worked out was about reflecting the main character, Belinda's POV vs anyone else's); and the decision to have a world that's EXACTLY like Elizabethan Europe except that all the names (both country and monarch names) are different but still 100% recognisab...more

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Dec 05, 2010 Vasya rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy-paranormal

This book is terrible, and I have to say that it is probably one of the worst ones that I have ever started reading, and I couldn't read it until the end because I my brain cells really couldn't suffer through it.

The beginning was so awful that I don't really know why I read as far as I did. Everything is jumbled around, names and lands and events have whatsoever no connection, mentions of sex are unnecessary and sometimes even revolting, not to mention the main heroine who does her job as an as...more

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Apr 18, 2010 Ally rated it 1 of 5 stars

I write this review having finished the book mere seconds ago. I am a bit disgusted and a tad outraged, I think. I was set to love this book. I loved the premise upon first reading its summary. Shortly after beginning, I found the setting to be a poorly disguised 16th century Europe. Not an ideal setting for a fantasy, in my mind. So after choking on this realization for quite a few chapters, I decided that the premise was enough to overcome this. I continued reading. The idea of an assassin who...more

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Nov 11, 2009 Blodeuedd Finland rated it 1 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

So I am not entirely sure if this is a fantasy world, or an alternate universe, or alternate timeline. It has the essence of 16th century Europe and there is where she lost me the first time. You see there is with one particular person too much that is the same. Queen Lorraine, who has the same appearance, family history and more as a certain Virgin Queen. It is so obvious that it is her that it is not funny anymore. The rest she hides better and I liked that. But I wish she at least could have...more So I am not entirely sure if this is a fantasy world, or an alternate universe, or alternate timeline. It has the essence of 16th century Europe and there is where she lost me the first time. You see there is with one particular person too much that is the same. Queen Lorraine, who has the same appearance, family history and more as a certain Virgin Queen. It is so obvious that it is her that it is not funny anymore. The rest she hides better and I liked that. But I wish she at least could have changed the name of her dad or the color of her hair. She could have done with this world if the had created more of her own. She could still have had a Virgin Queen, but you know, another name, another and etc.

Then there is the thing that made me appalled by this book. I was horrified and I have never hated a heroine more. First of, Belinda Primrose, the bastard daughter of the queen is trained to be an assassin. She is weird as a little kid and does things they would not do. Then her father, a father I could not understand, sends her out to kill at 12, and she does it. Ok, I can take a little sociopath. Then we move forward and she sleeps her way to her pray. She is no better than a prostitute, and then there is the first scene that has me wondering. Things move on and she does seem to think with her libido, she is supposed to be a great assassin but still she could almost mess things up with suddenly having to have sex. That is not the mark of a great assassin.

By now I am not that fond of her, she clearly has issues, but then there is the scene that made me think this was the most horrible heroine I have ever read. There is a rape scene, she does it, and then she helps to do it to the victim. After that I am mostly sick to my stomach of Belinda, and I am speeding trough the book to just get it over with. Thinking only of the fact that I sadly have book 2 also. And I don't want to read more about her.

There is no other characters to like, they all have issues too, and even the nice one does something bad. Sure it is all a play of politics and more but people does have some decency in them.

This was clearly not the book for me. Some scenes I can just not stomach, and I can not read a book about someone I despise.

(less)

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Jul 07, 2009 Schnaucl rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, fiction, glbt, owned, read_2009, science-fiction, series, june

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. This book reminds me a little of Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel series. Like Carey, Murphy creates an alternate Europe with different names. Murphy's lands are fixed firmly in the Elizabethan era. She also focuses heavily on court intrigue and has a highly sexual heroine. However, I think Carey does all of that much better. Still, the book is enjoyable.

Belinda is the bastard daughter of the queen of Aulun. She is trained from birth to be a spy and an assassin. Eventually, she is sent to find or crea...more

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Apr 18, 2010 Jean Tatro rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

C.E. Murphy really finds a different style here, which is much different from her more fast-paced, high energy urban fantasy series. It's not badly written, but was hard to sink into. The first half of the book is a slow and meandering, almost tedious, introduction of the players and build up of the back story. Even though it's basically an alternate history of 16th century Europe, with all the political talk I was dying for a map, just for a sense of scale and to be ability to solid associate s...more C.E. Murphy really finds a different style here, which is much different from her more fast-paced, high energy urban fantasy series. It's not badly written, but was hard to sink into. The first half of the book is a slow and meandering, almost tedious, introduction of the players and build up of the back story. Even though it's basically an alternate history of 16th century Europe, with all the political talk I was dying for a map, just for a sense of scale and to be ability to solid associate say, Aulun with England. I did like the use of this setting - it brings to mind the history and conflicts of that time period while warning us that it's not going to be exactly the same.

It doesn't really get actively engaging until about the halfway mark(roughly 50,000 words in? That's almost a novel by itself), and I probably wouldn't have made in that far in if I didn't have a somewhat blind faith in C.E. Murphy's ability as a writer. After the halfway mark, though it didn't become any easier to read, I lost my desire to set aside the book as I got wrapped up in the fate of the various thrones, and warmed to the characters. The pace is still slow, but it gains a sort of straining tension as the relationships play out. Belinda isn't the most relate-able of heroines, but I found her sympathetic in that I can see how she came to be. There is a lot of exploration of power and privilege in the second half, that comes along with the character's exploration of her witchbreed abilities.

Then came the eleventh hour revelation that absolute blew my mind and instantly sold me on the second book. It knocked me flat on my butt; I even dropped the book in surprise. I hesitate to say anything more, because it would massively spoil... well pretty much the nature of the entire story. (But then again it seems to be outlined in some detail at the beginning of the second book, so...)

I hope I am able to meet the author in person again, so that I can tell her in person that she blew my socks off with such an unexpected twist.(less)

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Mar 05, 2013 Rachel rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

This book was really disappointing. It had a lot of potential to be a really fun and surprisingly strong story, I was really into it for the first 2/3 or so. The ending felt like a total cop out though. The story was building up to one thing (Belinda's maturity and independence) and then the ending didn't deliver on that. Plus a completely weird and totally unnecessary description related to Belinda's origin.

I think this book would have been stronger as a stand alone and seems to have been inte...more

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Aug 12, 2009 Elizabeth rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

It took me a little while to get into this book, but only because of the format that it's written in. But its easy to get used to, like, 10-20 pages into it, I was hooked.

Belinda is the Queen's Bastard. She is also trained from a very young age to be the Queen's secret weapon. She is a spy, an assassian, the works. From the completion of her first 'mission' at the age of 14, also the age she realizes that she is the Queen's daughter, she is sent to and fro, on missions for the crown.

Later on, sh...more

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Mar 25, 2009 Victoria rated it 2 of 5 stars

Recommended to Victoria by: Joseph

Not nearly as good as I expected it to be. I've read only one other book by C.E. Murphy ("Heart of Stone") and it was erudite, respectful, a little run-of-the-mill, but GOOD.

This book disappointed on every level... most aggravating, though, were the many nagging details that never managed to make sense.

From the premise - a queen who has managed to bear a bastard daughter who acts as her spy, all without anyone suspecting - to a main character with a long wig of her own hair, despite having worn...more

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May 17, 2011 Sarah rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy

This book constantly bordered between 1 or 2 stars. If there'd been a half-star mark, I probably would have given that instead. This book was kind of a chore sometimes. There was way too much interior monologue going on, a lot of thinking instead of action. Sometimes the writing was too subtle and just left me confused instead of impressed. Also the constant reminder of sex and desire got a bit annoying and made me feel like I was reading a cheap bodice-ripping novel (and there is actually bodic...more

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Jul 05, 2011 Christina rated it 3 of 5 stars

I liked where the book is going. I like Belinda. My only real problem with this book is that the author writes on a different level of comprehension than I am on, therefore, I have a hard time reading her book. It almost feels like I have to have a translator around to explain to me what just happened. I can follow the events for the most part but then it feels like the author monologues and I start to fade out. It seems that she can't just put the story out there, but that she works overtime tr...more

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Jun 28, 2009 MsMiz (Tina) rated it 2 of 5 stars

Not my favorite of C.E. Murphy. I am waiting for the next Walker Paper books and really enjoyed the Negotiator series. Maybe it is just not in me to enjoy fantasy set in the 1500s. It could also be that I was not happy with the fantasy part of this book and found the beginning to be confusing and the characters irredeemable. With that said, I found I wanted to find out what happened and devoured this book. It says something to me about C. E. Murphy's writing that I did not have a clue as to how...more

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Aug 19, 2009 Jennifer rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: fantasy, fiction

This is not too bad. It's a fictional recreation of Renaissance Europe, with names changed -- England is Aulun, France is Gallin. Paris is Lutetia, which reminded me of Asterix comic books and kept me from taking the thing too seriously, if there were any danger of that. Also there is magic and sex (the main character sleeps with everyone). It is certainly amusing, but this fantasyizing of the setting frees the author of the necessity of historical accuracy (Parisian opera in 1587? Really?) and...more

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Aug 19, 2009 Anila rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: reviewed, not-for-the-sensitive

Mature content?
Oh. My. Goodness.
Yes.
This book has, hands down, the most sex of anything I have read to date.
Despite this...I really enjoyed the story. (Yes, there was story. This is C.E. Murphy, after all, not some trashy romance novel.)
It really gets into your head, and it stays there. I stayed up almost to midnight- on a school night, let it be noted- to finish it, because after a certain point I simply could not put it down.
So- Not reccomended for those with delicate sensibilities, but if you...more

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Aug 02, 2009 Donna rated it 3 of 5 stars

First, let me say that I really love C.E. Murphy's Urban Shaman series.
I liked this book but it didn't match the quality of the Walker books,
The story is basically a reworking of Elizabethan England. Belinda Primrose is the bastard daughter of the Virgin Queen Lorraine. She is raised by her uncle to be the queen's spy and assassin. She is raised to kill without question. Given that, the main character is slightly antisocial and less endearing than Murphy's normal character.
If you like Elizabet...more

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Nov 23, 2009 Courtney rated it 2 of 5 stars

Thank god I'm done this, that's all I can say. I forced myself to finish it in the hopes the ending would redeem the whole book and make me want to read the sequel. Unfortunately the ending fell as flat as the book itself. I think I probably skimmed the last four chapters just so I could finish it and move on to something more interesting.

Belinda/Beatrice as a character was so completely unlikable I can't even believe that I put up with her. The other characters were so thinly veiled from their...more

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Nov 21, 2010 Kelsey rated it 2 of 5 stars

This book had me torn. Sometimes I absolutely HATED this book and the next I couldn't put it down. It was definitely a love-hate relationship. The main character Belinda Primrose confused me. I would feel so bad for her because her entire life she has been trained to be an assassin but she dreams about what it would be like to be normal and find love. Then she would do something so nasty and I would just be disgusted with her character. I had a tough time keeping everything straight with the dif...more

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May 13, 2011 Denise rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, my-fav-authors

A real page-turning book with a unique twist on history of the Tudor period. Belinda Primrose is the queen's illegitimate daughter. Turned into a spy and a murderess at the tender age of 12, she is an expert at the game of hiding within plain sight. A mistress of disguise, expert in languages and local customs, she slips in/out of political intrigues in a world gone bizarre. Yet through all the royal households the reader can see the strange similarity to our Renaissance past. NOTE: NOT a book f...more

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The Queen's Bastard (Inheritors' Cycle #1)

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