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The Sun Sword #1
The Broken Crown
Tor Leonne—the heart of the Domionion of Annagar, where the games of state are about to become a matter of life or death—and where those who seek to seize the crown will be forced to league with a treacherously cunning ally... Tor Leonne, ancestral seat of power, where Serra Diora Maria di'Marano—the most sought-after beauty in the land, a woman betrayed by all she holds dear—may strike the first blow to change the future of Dominion and Empire alike...
Averalaan Aramarelas—the most ancient of civilized cities, the home of the Essalieyan Imperial Court, has long been a center of magics both dark and bright. And though the Enpire won its last war with the Dominion, and survived a devastating, magic-fueled battle with a far deadlier foe, both those victories were not without their cost... But now the realm is on the brink of a far greater confrontation, faced with an unholy alliance that could spell the end of freedom for all mortalkind...
986 pages, ebook
First published July 1, 1997
247 people are currently reading
6971 people want to read
About the author
Michelle West
75 books471 followersSee also:
Michelle Sagara West
Michelle Sagara
Michelle is an author, bookseller, and lover of literature based in Toronto. She writes fantasy novels as both Michelle Sagara and Michelle West (and sometimes as Michelle Sagara West). You can find her books at fine booksellers.
She lives in Toronto with her long-suffering husband and her two children, and to her regret has no dogs.
Reading is one of her life-long passions, and she is sometimes paid for her opinions about what she’s read by the venerable Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. No matter how many bookshelves she buys, there is Never Enough Shelf space. Ever.
She has published as Michelle Sagara (her legal name), as Michelle West (her husband's surname), and as Michelle Sagara West (a combination of the two).
Michelle Sagara West
Michelle Sagara
Michelle is an author, bookseller, and lover of literature based in Toronto. She writes fantasy novels as both Michelle Sagara and Michelle West (and sometimes as Michelle Sagara West). You can find her books at fine booksellers.
She lives in Toronto with her long-suffering husband and her two children, and to her regret has no dogs.
Reading is one of her life-long passions, and she is sometimes paid for her opinions about what she’s read by the venerable Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction. No matter how many bookshelves she buys, there is Never Enough Shelf space. Ever.
She has published as Michelle Sagara (her legal name), as Michelle West (her husband's surname), and as Michelle Sagara West (a combination of the two).
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 182 reviews
May 10, 2011
Last year, there was a student who sat outside the prep room reading. She read Michelle West, but she had yet to read this series. This is a shame because while the Sun Sword series is sprawling, it is a beautiful work.
This book is the first volume in the Sun Sword series and focuses on the shifts of power in a country that resembles an Arabia from the 1001 Nights (yes, I know the Nights are really from India). One of the central characters, Dio, is the most beautiful woman in the world. She also is the favored child of her father and eventually marries the prince of the kingdom, who doesn't deserve her or the kingdom. Her father and his friends have something to say about the kingdom bit.
What makes this series worth reading is the type of women that inhabit it. Dio is not a fighter in the traditional sense of the word. She does have a magic, think of it as a siren voice, but does she know how to use a sword, no. Yet, Dio is more of a fighter because of this. She plays the long game, if I may borrow a phrase.
This series deserves more popularity than it garners. It is better than any of those big sprawling male written series such as those by Jordon, Goodkind, or Martin. Her books are close to those in length, yet the focus is different. It is not "female" fantasy, whatever that is, but more of, in a part, of difference in heroes and heroism. In the fantasy books that make the New York Times Bestseller list and become television, there are big epic betters with swords. West has those, but in sharp contrast to those battles, the most heart-wrenching scene in the series occurs in this book when Dio must keep still. She cannot speak. She cannot movie. She must do this because it is the only way for her to win in the end.
West's series might be more traditional and genre based, but she presents one of the few books where people, women in particular, are strong in different ways.
This book is the first volume in the Sun Sword series and focuses on the shifts of power in a country that resembles an Arabia from the 1001 Nights (yes, I know the Nights are really from India). One of the central characters, Dio, is the most beautiful woman in the world. She also is the favored child of her father and eventually marries the prince of the kingdom, who doesn't deserve her or the kingdom. Her father and his friends have something to say about the kingdom bit.
What makes this series worth reading is the type of women that inhabit it. Dio is not a fighter in the traditional sense of the word. She does have a magic, think of it as a siren voice, but does she know how to use a sword, no. Yet, Dio is more of a fighter because of this. She plays the long game, if I may borrow a phrase.
This series deserves more popularity than it garners. It is better than any of those big sprawling male written series such as those by Jordon, Goodkind, or Martin. Her books are close to those in length, yet the focus is different. It is not "female" fantasy, whatever that is, but more of, in a part, of difference in heroes and heroism. In the fantasy books that make the New York Times Bestseller list and become television, there are big epic betters with swords. West has those, but in sharp contrast to those battles, the most heart-wrenching scene in the series occurs in this book when Dio must keep still. She cannot speak. She cannot movie. She must do this because it is the only way for her to win in the end.
West's series might be more traditional and genre based, but she presents one of the few books where people, women in particular, are strong in different ways.
Read
February 7, 2022“Be careful, Na’dio,” Serena said softly. “Remember that the heart is a dangerous land, and there is not one more painful to have to leave once it is full entered.”
This discussion will feature a discussion of sexual violence as well as spoilers.
So What’s It About?
The Dominion, once divided by savage clan wars, has kept an uneasy peace within its border since that long-ago time when the clan Leonne was gifted with the magic of the Sun Sword and was raised up to reign over the five noble clans. But now treachery strikes at the very heart of the Dominion as two never meant to rule–one a highly skilled General, the other a master of the magical arts–seek to seize the crown by slaughtering all of clan Leonne blood
What I Thought
You guys! I fucking made it through this book, and I want that to go on both my gravestone and my resume because it quite possibly the most difficult thing I’ve done in my life. I ended up struggling with it so much that I winnowed away at it over the course of several months, but I DID IT.
I didn’t hate it, but it happens to be the most willfully obtuse, irritatingly intricate epic fantasy I’ve ever read. And y’all know that I’m already at something of a Brain Disadvantage with epic fantasies – I just don’t have a good head for keeping track of thousands of interchangeable nobles who all hate each other for various reasons that are mentioned once and then never again. It felt like there were literally 7,000 various interchangeable men with names like Tyr Fileppo kai di’Ramero wandering around making Portentous Statements at each other, and 90% of my mental faculties were occupied with trying to keep them straight.
It also doesn’t help that I am simply not a fan of West’s writing style. There is intricate language, there is purple prose, and then there is whatever you would call her style of writing. The best word I can find to describe it is “ponderous” in the extreme. There is just so much to wade through, and the writing alone causes the pace to slow to an absolute crawl. What’s more, people constantly talk circles around each other, making these vague and weighty statements and leaving you to sift through the dialogue to figure out what’s actually going on. Between the writing style, the pacing and the massive number of boring characters and shifting allegiances to keep track of I found that I could only read a little bit of the book at a time without getting overwhelmed.
It’s a shame that I found so many things about the book offputting, because I do genuinely believe West has a great, compelling to story to tell here! It just gets lost in the way that it is conveyed. This is very much a story of direct power vs. indirect power in a richly-realized non-Western fantasy setting, and it discusses the ways that power is masculinized and feminized. In the Dominion, women are little more than ornamental sex objects to collect and have decorate your harem, and West has many interesting reflections to offer on what it would be like for a woman to exist within such a powerless position but nevertheless continue to fight and find meaning in her life where she can. This is essentially Diora’s story – she is told again and again that she should not develop any kind of attachments because they will simply be turned against her and used against her in the ruthless political landscape of the Dominion, where a woman is a disposable object and may be set aside or killed on a whim:
The desire to be loved—it is a false desire, a madness, a weakness. If you let it, it will control your life, and it will lead you down roads, in the end, that even the damned don’t travel.
Sold away to an influential but brutal husband, Diora nevertheless opens her heart to the women of her harem and finds love, meaning and sisterhood with them. To be honest this is the only happy part of the book and it is quickly ripped away when Diora’s father murders the husband’s entire household in a coup. Diora, possessing only indirect power, has no way of stopping this from happening and must find out how to live in the world after losing the only people who loved her and treated her with goodness – especially now that she must return to the household of the man who stole everything away from her. She must not grieve, cannot show that she has been wounded, is mandated to continue being the perfect, beautiful woman that she always has been. But beneath the still waters she has decided that she will use her position of visibility to make a statement to the men who think they can take whatever they want with no repercussions. She is not a warrior, and most would consider her little more than a pretty ornament, but she nevertheless devotes the rest of her life to fighting back against the men who view women’s lives as entirely disposable in their pursuit of power:
Threaten things loved, and a woman might buckle in terror, fold, and give in to any demand until such a time as she might come upon the means to end the threat permanently. But destroy those things, and you destroyed the life, if not the living, of the woman who so loved. Living ghosts were always dangerous.
I have seen other readers argue that this book is simply too full of violence against women and that only Diora is exempt from it because she is the special protagonist, and I can understand that perspective. A shocking number of women die and experience sexual violence in this book, and I do certainly object to lots of violence against women in fantasy novels, but much more so if the author uses it cheaply and exploitatively. In this case I do think that the violence happens because West has something meaningful to say about the functions and mores of power and oppression and how people may try to find agency within those functions and mores. That doesn’t necessarily make it easier to read, however!
There are other parts to the story, certainly, as it is a sprawling epic fantasy – the demons are plotting something, and demonspawn Kiriel appears to be central to their nefarious goals, while the coup in the Dominion may be only the beginning of the blood shed over the throne. However I’d argue that Diora’s story is truly what is at the heart of this book, and that’s why I’ve given it the most attention here. If I knew what I was getting myself into with this book from the start I might honestly not have read it, but I’m pretty proud that I did and I don’t exactly regret it either.
This discussion will feature a discussion of sexual violence as well as spoilers.
So What’s It About?
The Dominion, once divided by savage clan wars, has kept an uneasy peace within its border since that long-ago time when the clan Leonne was gifted with the magic of the Sun Sword and was raised up to reign over the five noble clans. But now treachery strikes at the very heart of the Dominion as two never meant to rule–one a highly skilled General, the other a master of the magical arts–seek to seize the crown by slaughtering all of clan Leonne blood
What I Thought
You guys! I fucking made it through this book, and I want that to go on both my gravestone and my resume because it quite possibly the most difficult thing I’ve done in my life. I ended up struggling with it so much that I winnowed away at it over the course of several months, but I DID IT.
I didn’t hate it, but it happens to be the most willfully obtuse, irritatingly intricate epic fantasy I’ve ever read. And y’all know that I’m already at something of a Brain Disadvantage with epic fantasies – I just don’t have a good head for keeping track of thousands of interchangeable nobles who all hate each other for various reasons that are mentioned once and then never again. It felt like there were literally 7,000 various interchangeable men with names like Tyr Fileppo kai di’Ramero wandering around making Portentous Statements at each other, and 90% of my mental faculties were occupied with trying to keep them straight.
It also doesn’t help that I am simply not a fan of West’s writing style. There is intricate language, there is purple prose, and then there is whatever you would call her style of writing. The best word I can find to describe it is “ponderous” in the extreme. There is just so much to wade through, and the writing alone causes the pace to slow to an absolute crawl. What’s more, people constantly talk circles around each other, making these vague and weighty statements and leaving you to sift through the dialogue to figure out what’s actually going on. Between the writing style, the pacing and the massive number of boring characters and shifting allegiances to keep track of I found that I could only read a little bit of the book at a time without getting overwhelmed.
It’s a shame that I found so many things about the book offputting, because I do genuinely believe West has a great, compelling to story to tell here! It just gets lost in the way that it is conveyed. This is very much a story of direct power vs. indirect power in a richly-realized non-Western fantasy setting, and it discusses the ways that power is masculinized and feminized. In the Dominion, women are little more than ornamental sex objects to collect and have decorate your harem, and West has many interesting reflections to offer on what it would be like for a woman to exist within such a powerless position but nevertheless continue to fight and find meaning in her life where she can. This is essentially Diora’s story – she is told again and again that she should not develop any kind of attachments because they will simply be turned against her and used against her in the ruthless political landscape of the Dominion, where a woman is a disposable object and may be set aside or killed on a whim:
The desire to be loved—it is a false desire, a madness, a weakness. If you let it, it will control your life, and it will lead you down roads, in the end, that even the damned don’t travel.
Sold away to an influential but brutal husband, Diora nevertheless opens her heart to the women of her harem and finds love, meaning and sisterhood with them. To be honest this is the only happy part of the book and it is quickly ripped away when Diora’s father murders the husband’s entire household in a coup. Diora, possessing only indirect power, has no way of stopping this from happening and must find out how to live in the world after losing the only people who loved her and treated her with goodness – especially now that she must return to the household of the man who stole everything away from her. She must not grieve, cannot show that she has been wounded, is mandated to continue being the perfect, beautiful woman that she always has been. But beneath the still waters she has decided that she will use her position of visibility to make a statement to the men who think they can take whatever they want with no repercussions. She is not a warrior, and most would consider her little more than a pretty ornament, but she nevertheless devotes the rest of her life to fighting back against the men who view women’s lives as entirely disposable in their pursuit of power:
Threaten things loved, and a woman might buckle in terror, fold, and give in to any demand until such a time as she might come upon the means to end the threat permanently. But destroy those things, and you destroyed the life, if not the living, of the woman who so loved. Living ghosts were always dangerous.
I have seen other readers argue that this book is simply too full of violence against women and that only Diora is exempt from it because she is the special protagonist, and I can understand that perspective. A shocking number of women die and experience sexual violence in this book, and I do certainly object to lots of violence against women in fantasy novels, but much more so if the author uses it cheaply and exploitatively. In this case I do think that the violence happens because West has something meaningful to say about the functions and mores of power and oppression and how people may try to find agency within those functions and mores. That doesn’t necessarily make it easier to read, however!
There are other parts to the story, certainly, as it is a sprawling epic fantasy – the demons are plotting something, and demonspawn Kiriel appears to be central to their nefarious goals, while the coup in the Dominion may be only the beginning of the blood shed over the throne. However I’d argue that Diora’s story is truly what is at the heart of this book, and that’s why I’ve given it the most attention here. If I knew what I was getting myself into with this book from the start I might honestly not have read it, but I’m pretty proud that I did and I don’t exactly regret it either.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 9, 2011
This series was really gorgeous. I found the first book a little difficult to follow early on, as the author starts the book with a few chapters that seem entirely unrelated to the rest of the story. The switch back and forth between perspectives of characters in vastly different cultures can also be jarring. The ending of the first book was so powerful however, that it more than made up for the rocky start. The writing was beautiful, the world fascinating, and the women in the book were amazing. Princesses in desert communities struggling to survive and find power within their very defined "powerless" social class, a street child and her gang of street children who've been adopted into one of the warring noble house, a mysterious powerful girl who hasn't found her destiny or her place in the world...the story forces hard choices on the characters, and they do the best they can. A war between the Southern desert people and the northern Feudal society, with each side being manipulated by demons with their own agenda. It's a long, complicated series and definitely worth a read.
October 22, 2010
- I can't tell if the Annagarians are white or not, since they keep being described as "ivory" even though the culture trappings are a mixture of assorted Asian cultures
- Bored by the Empire
- Love that girl is the kid of a prophecy, love the intergenerational and inter-women relationships
- Diora = AWESOMESAUCE
- Teresa too. But mostly Diora
- Interesting reading of harems
- Chewy stuff on women and indirect power
- Bored by the Empire
- Love that girl is the kid of a prophecy, love the intergenerational and inter-women relationships
- Diora = AWESOMESAUCE
- Teresa too. But mostly Diora
- Interesting reading of harems
- Chewy stuff on women and indirect power
October 14, 2015
Trigger warning for sexual assault
The Broken Crown is the start of a six book epic fantasy series by Canadian author Michelle Sagara West. While The Broken Crown does have some sword fights and so on, the majority of it is political intrigue. It might appeal to the same audience as Game of Thrones, although it is less grimdark and more traditional. However, what really made me love The Broken Crown was the strength and presence of the female characters, of which there are many.
The Broken Crown tells of two countries – the Dominion and the Empire. Most of the page time is spent on the Dominion, which is ruled by a hierarchy of war lords who gain honor on the battle field. But the current ruler of the Dominion is weak, and his war with the Empire was a disaster. Some of the men who vowed to serve him embark on a conspiracy to overthrow him, and caught in the middle of all of this is Diora, a girl who grows up to be the Flower of the Dominion, the most beautiful and graceful woman of all. Yet this is not all, for the Lord of the Night and the demons who serve him have their own plans concerning these affairs…
The Dominion is extremely patriarchal. A woman’s place on society is based on who her father is and who she marries. Women have few choices and no legal rights. No woman of the Dominion wields a sword on the battlefield. They have to find power in other ways, such as with Serra Teresa, Diora’s paternal aunt. Serra Teresa is bard born – her voice has the power to influence or command others, and her song is enchanting. However, to Teresa this is as much a curse as a gift, for it means that she was considered to valuable to be married off and leave the family. Thus Teresa is not able to have control of a husband’s harem and friendships among sister-wives. Diora was born with the same gift and curse, and Serra Teresa will do everything within her power to see that Diora has the life that Teresa was unable to have.
Teresa and Diora are not action heroines. They do not lift swords or go to battle, but they fight in their own way, with words and gestures. Diora in particular endures immense difficulties, keeping face schooled into a careful mask of politeness. It takes a long time for her to act, but when she does, it is noteworthy. They are not the only female characters of note. The Empire is much more egalitarian, and many of the female characters we see there are involved in military pursuits. The Kalakar, a female general, is a particular favorite of mine. There’s also a girl Chosen One who is likely to become pivotal.
I will warn you, the first seventy pages at first appear to have nothing to do with the plot. And for the most part, they are not directly relevant to the events occurring in the rest of the novel although I believe they will become critical in later volumes. However, both passages also involve something that I see as an essential theme of The Broken Crown – choice. In these pages two women are offered hard, difficult choices for which they are unlikely to be remembered or gain any glory. Yet both accept, knowing that their difficulties have the possibility of leading to gains for humankind. Choice or lack of it underlines all of The Broken Crown.
Although I do believe the events of those seventy pages to be important thematically, does it really taken seventy pages to cover this material? Like most epic fantasy books, The Broken Crown is long, measuring out at somewhere over seven hundred pages. For the most part it is slow going, especially in the beginning. I don’t think it really starts to pick up until after page three hundred.
I encourage anyone who likes epic fantasy to pick up The Broken Crown, particularly if they are looking for some epic fantasy where women play a large role. It may be long, but I found it ultimately worth the time involved. I certainly intend to read the sequel.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
The Broken Crown is the start of a six book epic fantasy series by Canadian author Michelle Sagara West. While The Broken Crown does have some sword fights and so on, the majority of it is political intrigue. It might appeal to the same audience as Game of Thrones, although it is less grimdark and more traditional. However, what really made me love The Broken Crown was the strength and presence of the female characters, of which there are many.
The Broken Crown tells of two countries – the Dominion and the Empire. Most of the page time is spent on the Dominion, which is ruled by a hierarchy of war lords who gain honor on the battle field. But the current ruler of the Dominion is weak, and his war with the Empire was a disaster. Some of the men who vowed to serve him embark on a conspiracy to overthrow him, and caught in the middle of all of this is Diora, a girl who grows up to be the Flower of the Dominion, the most beautiful and graceful woman of all. Yet this is not all, for the Lord of the Night and the demons who serve him have their own plans concerning these affairs…
The Dominion is extremely patriarchal. A woman’s place on society is based on who her father is and who she marries. Women have few choices and no legal rights. No woman of the Dominion wields a sword on the battlefield. They have to find power in other ways, such as with Serra Teresa, Diora’s paternal aunt. Serra Teresa is bard born – her voice has the power to influence or command others, and her song is enchanting. However, to Teresa this is as much a curse as a gift, for it means that she was considered to valuable to be married off and leave the family. Thus Teresa is not able to have control of a husband’s harem and friendships among sister-wives. Diora was born with the same gift and curse, and Serra Teresa will do everything within her power to see that Diora has the life that Teresa was unable to have.
“There are battles that are fought in this world in which no sword is raised.”
Teresa and Diora are not action heroines. They do not lift swords or go to battle, but they fight in their own way, with words and gestures. Diora in particular endures immense difficulties, keeping face schooled into a careful mask of politeness. It takes a long time for her to act, but when she does, it is noteworthy. They are not the only female characters of note. The Empire is much more egalitarian, and many of the female characters we see there are involved in military pursuits. The Kalakar, a female general, is a particular favorite of mine. There’s also a girl Chosen One who is likely to become pivotal.
I will warn you, the first seventy pages at first appear to have nothing to do with the plot. And for the most part, they are not directly relevant to the events occurring in the rest of the novel although I believe they will become critical in later volumes. However, both passages also involve something that I see as an essential theme of The Broken Crown – choice. In these pages two women are offered hard, difficult choices for which they are unlikely to be remembered or gain any glory. Yet both accept, knowing that their difficulties have the possibility of leading to gains for humankind. Choice or lack of it underlines all of The Broken Crown.
Although I do believe the events of those seventy pages to be important thematically, does it really taken seventy pages to cover this material? Like most epic fantasy books, The Broken Crown is long, measuring out at somewhere over seven hundred pages. For the most part it is slow going, especially in the beginning. I don’t think it really starts to pick up until after page three hundred.
I encourage anyone who likes epic fantasy to pick up The Broken Crown, particularly if they are looking for some epic fantasy where women play a large role. It may be long, but I found it ultimately worth the time involved. I certainly intend to read the sequel.
Originally posted on The Illustrated Page.
Did not finish
November 15, 2019Time of death: 12% (100 pages)
I don't remember the names of anyone I've met so far and I'm not interested enough to be reminded. I really, really wanted to love this book, and I think it will likely be incredibly epic, but this far along we still have no forward momentum and no explanations for any of the key ideas. So, while I might try again in the future, it's time to pull the plug.
My major takeaway so far:
-This world is very complex. I think that once things fall into place, it will be very satisfying and layered.
-Heavily influenced by other epics. The world is quite well structured, but the foundation is mortared with tropes that go un-examined (at least in the first 100 pages). The gender essentialism was irritating in particular, since we see women in power and exalted status but are told they are inferior.
-Burying the lede. I'd say this book so far has been full of red herrings, except they're not red. They're normal herrings. Inconsequential tangents and actions in minute detail are laid out with some ominous or dramatic conclusion I can't make heads or tails of because I'm still trying to figure out why this scarred table was mentioned so many times but nobody mentioned, I don't know, that demons are real. I guess I am just not sophisticated enough to appreciate the details.
In effect, I think this suffers from Malazan syndrome. If you like that series, omg. You are going to lose your ding dang minds over this book, I think. I, however, am not prepared to fight prose that manually right now.
CONTENT WARNING: (a list of topics only)
I don't remember the names of anyone I've met so far and I'm not interested enough to be reminded. I really, really wanted to love this book, and I think it will likely be incredibly epic, but this far along we still have no forward momentum and no explanations for any of the key ideas. So, while I might try again in the future, it's time to pull the plug.
My major takeaway so far:
-This world is very complex. I think that once things fall into place, it will be very satisfying and layered.
-Heavily influenced by other epics. The world is quite well structured, but the foundation is mortared with tropes that go un-examined (at least in the first 100 pages). The gender essentialism was irritating in particular, since we see women in power and exalted status but are told they are inferior.
-Burying the lede. I'd say this book so far has been full of red herrings, except they're not red. They're normal herrings. Inconsequential tangents and actions in minute detail are laid out with some ominous or dramatic conclusion I can't make heads or tails of because I'm still trying to figure out why this scarred table was mentioned so many times but nobody mentioned, I don't know, that demons are real. I guess I am just not sophisticated enough to appreciate the details.
In effect, I think this suffers from Malazan syndrome. If you like that series, omg. You are going to lose your ding dang minds over this book, I think. I, however, am not prepared to fight prose that manually right now.
CONTENT WARNING: (a list of topics only)
Read
May 9, 2021Dnf ~ This one was just not something that starts well. There’s a big rape scene straight away and the story feels muddled and messy and like it’s a bit directionless at first. I certainly wanted to enjoy this author, as I own one of the other books by her, but I just couldn’t get motivated to carry on after the first section.
January 12, 2011
I haven't reread this series in ages, I'll be doing so in preparation for the coming books set at the end of the time line and later of the Sun Sword series.
I read these originally when they came out - at the time (and even now) a Jody Lee cover was an automatic guarantee that I would take a closer look and that I could be sure that a scene depicted on the cover would actually show up on the book and the persons would look the way the author had described them.
I had read the Sacred Hunt duology before, so I already know about Evayne, Meralonne, Jewel and the people of the Empire. It took oyceter's remarks on her own LJ in recent years to make me aware that the Indian/Arabian influenced Dominion may have awesome female characters that are the linchpin of that plot thread, but the Dominion is also the place of patriarchy and slavery. I probably accepted it so easy because lots of high fantasy had slavery at the time and because of my own personal prejudice against the role of women in my Arabic heritage (having visited Damascus three times and not being terribly impressed by the freedom of my age mates). I never asked myself why a person with Asian heritage would fall into the western stereotypical view of these countries...
Having been raised white and Catholic, it was just part of the world-building. I enjoyed this re-read nevertheless because the strength of the single characters and the intricacies of the plot (and even the strength of the world, although I may not like all I see) holds up. The more than 700 pages flow pleasantly, reminding me of watching a TV series in that the time is taken to have more than one important thing happening, to have multiple power threads flowing, from political to spiritual to family power dynamics, and so on.
And we get heroic scenes and drama from the women mostly in this book (Diora, Teresa, Jewel, Kiriel - and her mother and nurse before her, Evayne) while the Dominion men who think they are the movers and shakers get foiled repeatedly. There are some fascinating sympathetic and not so sympathetic men around, too, on both sides: Meralonne, Alessandro, Sendari, Federo kai el'Sol, Kallandras (in cameos so far), Ilsadar, Valedan, Ramiro etc.
It's interesting that the top powers of the Empire, the god born, remain remarkably in the background. Except for the Princess Royal - I think the most we ever get is the interior disagreement between the two god born kings. We already know that the Empire isn't paradise either, but it does come across as more egalitarian and tolerant concerning race, religion and gender.
I think the re-read at my current age allowed me to follow more of the intrigues and politics, too.
I read these originally when they came out - at the time (and even now) a Jody Lee cover was an automatic guarantee that I would take a closer look and that I could be sure that a scene depicted on the cover would actually show up on the book and the persons would look the way the author had described them.
I had read the Sacred Hunt duology before, so I already know about Evayne, Meralonne, Jewel and the people of the Empire. It took oyceter's remarks on her own LJ in recent years to make me aware that the Indian/Arabian influenced Dominion may have awesome female characters that are the linchpin of that plot thread, but the Dominion is also the place of patriarchy and slavery. I probably accepted it so easy because lots of high fantasy had slavery at the time and because of my own personal prejudice against the role of women in my Arabic heritage (having visited Damascus three times and not being terribly impressed by the freedom of my age mates). I never asked myself why a person with Asian heritage would fall into the western stereotypical view of these countries...
Having been raised white and Catholic, it was just part of the world-building. I enjoyed this re-read nevertheless because the strength of the single characters and the intricacies of the plot (and even the strength of the world, although I may not like all I see) holds up. The more than 700 pages flow pleasantly, reminding me of watching a TV series in that the time is taken to have more than one important thing happening, to have multiple power threads flowing, from political to spiritual to family power dynamics, and so on.
And we get heroic scenes and drama from the women mostly in this book (Diora, Teresa, Jewel, Kiriel - and her mother and nurse before her, Evayne) while the Dominion men who think they are the movers and shakers get foiled repeatedly. There are some fascinating sympathetic and not so sympathetic men around, too, on both sides: Meralonne, Alessandro, Sendari, Federo kai el'Sol, Kallandras (in cameos so far), Ilsadar, Valedan, Ramiro etc.
It's interesting that the top powers of the Empire, the god born, remain remarkably in the background. Except for the Princess Royal - I think the most we ever get is the interior disagreement between the two god born kings. We already know that the Empire isn't paradise either, but it does come across as more egalitarian and tolerant concerning race, religion and gender.
I think the re-read at my current age allowed me to follow more of the intrigues and politics, too.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 28, 2018
There are a lot of things I liked about this book. I can be seduced by sprawling fantasies (more so if they're not a quest narrative), strange lands with political intrigues, magic that is secondary to politics but not irrelevant, and interesting gender politics. The Broken Crown has that, in abundance. And yet, at the same time, I don't know if I'm running right out to get the next one. I haven't quite been convinced to add Michelle West to my list of authors I need to follow fervently. That might happen eventually, and I'm certainly happy to read more in this world, or more of her books, but I have not yet hit the point where a switch is flipped and I become evangelical.
Note: The rest of this review has been withheld due to the changes in Goodreads policy and enforcement. You can read why I came to this decision here.
In the meantime, you can read the entire review at Smorgasbook
Note: The rest of this review has been withheld due to the changes in Goodreads policy and enforcement. You can read why I came to this decision here.
In the meantime, you can read the entire review at Smorgasbook
June 5, 2014
I read West's first SUNSWORD book up to about 40 or 50 pages. It had promise but it was waaaay too much effort to wade through. Very heavy on details and context but poor in pacing and keeping the reader focused and understanding of the world.
February 18, 2026
This is a literary masterpiece. And it's a shame Michelle West isn't well known as the giants of the fantasy genre because in my own opinion, not only does she stand shoulder to shoulder with them, she actually surpasses them in many aspects
I started the Essalieyan series with the first 3 House War books and Sacred Hunt duology — the recommended chronological reading order — and the first book of The Sun Sword arc has taken the scope of the series to a whole new height I can barely quantify
The book expands its view from just the Essalieyan empire and takes us to the Dominion of Annagar. The Dominion is an extremely patriarchal and misogynistic nation with enforced systems & ideas to keep women subservient to men. Not only is it patriarchal, but it also has an enforced caste system.
The narrative finely draws a link between this mode of thinking the men exhibit and their religion. They are fanatics who believe in a god that is not real, even though there are real gods in this world. But they regard these gods and their children as demons, utterly blinded by their fanatical belief for their Lord whom they proclaim values strength and frowns upon weaknesses. So they believe slavery is right and granted to them by their Lord, and women are their possessions. Reading the pov of men from The Dominion always made my blood boil in anger and I doubt another author can make me hate an entire nation's men like Michelle West just did in this book.
But despite how misogynistic this culture is, the women are not utterly helpless and pliant. They are the highlight of this book for me. I fucking love Diora en'Leonne. Her story is one of loss, grief and pain — all these caused by the political games of these men. She quietly takes in what they dish out, hiding her true intentions from them, and waiting for the right time to strike and damage all the political machinations that they have contrived for decades. She has a gift that lets her subtly command people, a gift if discovered will lead to arrest and possibly her death because they believe that a woman should not hold any sort of power capable of influencing a man. So she hides that via the direction of her aunt, who also has that gift. Through a series of political machinations, Diora is forced to assume a symbolic role to reflect the view of what these men believe the height of a woman is — a graceful, beautiful, submissive, quiet and delicate sight for the pleasure of the men. She is forced to be that object of feminine perfection because she is the most beautiful woman in this series, and they see her as nothing more than that. Her arc explores and implicitly criticizes the expectations men impose on women even in our current climate. And she uses these tools forced on her, together with her gift to hide her goals and strike back at the men responsible for what she's lost.
Michelle West takes her time to explore the interiority and psyche of her characters in ways I haven't seen any other author do. And only Robin Hobb and Janny Wurts come close to this. This level of character interiority doesn't only exist in isolation, but ties itself to the heavy thematics and threading plot stringed across the entire story. Despite my hate for the men in this book, they are perfectly crafted multi dimensional characters. From Sendari to Alesso to Ramiro to Cortano and so many other men in The Dominion. All well fleshed out with complex motivations of their own.
On the side of The Essalieyan Empire, I was completely enamored by Kiriel di'Ashaf — a spawn of Allasakar (The Lord of Hells). Her story is one of nature vs nuture. And she has a lot of parallels to Duster (a character in the previous books of the series, present in the first two House War books). Her arc questions whether who we are is set in stone because of our blood or nature or if we have a choice to be what we want to be. She wrestles with the compulsion ot her blood, which pushes her to the path of darkness and pain, and the memory of love bestowed to her by the woman that raised her for the first 3 years of her life.
I'm also proud seeing how far Jewel has come so far, even though it felt jarring seeing her still behave like her 16 year old self while being an adult. But the framing of it, the innocence she has decided not to lose in order to appease the patriciate makes her even more endearing
The worldbuilding here is utterly impeccable and lived in. It does not feel like dumped lore and information of something past, but one that pulls you into its experience via the characters perception of the world. At this point in the series, I can proudly say that I consider only Erikson as a better world builder. And she stands at the same level as Janny Wurts does
There's so much I want to say but it will be giving out a lot. All I can say is that Michelle is a genius and this series should be echoed amongst the greatest of fantasy.
I started the Essalieyan series with the first 3 House War books and Sacred Hunt duology — the recommended chronological reading order — and the first book of The Sun Sword arc has taken the scope of the series to a whole new height I can barely quantify
The book expands its view from just the Essalieyan empire and takes us to the Dominion of Annagar. The Dominion is an extremely patriarchal and misogynistic nation with enforced systems & ideas to keep women subservient to men. Not only is it patriarchal, but it also has an enforced caste system.
The narrative finely draws a link between this mode of thinking the men exhibit and their religion. They are fanatics who believe in a god that is not real, even though there are real gods in this world. But they regard these gods and their children as demons, utterly blinded by their fanatical belief for their Lord whom they proclaim values strength and frowns upon weaknesses. So they believe slavery is right and granted to them by their Lord, and women are their possessions. Reading the pov of men from The Dominion always made my blood boil in anger and I doubt another author can make me hate an entire nation's men like Michelle West just did in this book.
But despite how misogynistic this culture is, the women are not utterly helpless and pliant. They are the highlight of this book for me. I fucking love Diora en'Leonne. Her story is one of loss, grief and pain — all these caused by the political games of these men. She quietly takes in what they dish out, hiding her true intentions from them, and waiting for the right time to strike and damage all the political machinations that they have contrived for decades. She has a gift that lets her subtly command people, a gift if discovered will lead to arrest and possibly her death because they believe that a woman should not hold any sort of power capable of influencing a man. So she hides that via the direction of her aunt, who also has that gift. Through a series of political machinations, Diora is forced to assume a symbolic role to reflect the view of what these men believe the height of a woman is — a graceful, beautiful, submissive, quiet and delicate sight for the pleasure of the men. She is forced to be that object of feminine perfection because she is the most beautiful woman in this series, and they see her as nothing more than that. Her arc explores and implicitly criticizes the expectations men impose on women even in our current climate. And she uses these tools forced on her, together with her gift to hide her goals and strike back at the men responsible for what she's lost.
Michelle West takes her time to explore the interiority and psyche of her characters in ways I haven't seen any other author do. And only Robin Hobb and Janny Wurts come close to this. This level of character interiority doesn't only exist in isolation, but ties itself to the heavy thematics and threading plot stringed across the entire story. Despite my hate for the men in this book, they are perfectly crafted multi dimensional characters. From Sendari to Alesso to Ramiro to Cortano and so many other men in The Dominion. All well fleshed out with complex motivations of their own.
On the side of The Essalieyan Empire, I was completely enamored by Kiriel di'Ashaf — a spawn of Allasakar (The Lord of Hells). Her story is one of nature vs nuture. And she has a lot of parallels to Duster (a character in the previous books of the series, present in the first two House War books). Her arc questions whether who we are is set in stone because of our blood or nature or if we have a choice to be what we want to be. She wrestles with the compulsion ot her blood, which pushes her to the path of darkness and pain, and the memory of love bestowed to her by the woman that raised her for the first 3 years of her life.
I'm also proud seeing how far Jewel has come so far, even though it felt jarring seeing her still behave like her 16 year old self while being an adult. But the framing of it, the innocence she has decided not to lose in order to appease the patriciate makes her even more endearing
The worldbuilding here is utterly impeccable and lived in. It does not feel like dumped lore and information of something past, but one that pulls you into its experience via the characters perception of the world. At this point in the series, I can proudly say that I consider only Erikson as a better world builder. And she stands at the same level as Janny Wurts does
There's so much I want to say but it will be giving out a lot. All I can say is that Michelle is a genius and this series should be echoed amongst the greatest of fantasy.
February 23, 2015
A good plot spoiled by verbose writing and repetitive phrases. These were two distracting components of the book:
1. Surprising interjections in a conversation between two characters, when they (and the reader) thought they were speaking alone and privately. Lo! a different character interrupts with a line of dialogue, then "steps in from the shadows." Michelle used this device far too often. It was hard to imagine this actually taking place as often as it did, and equally difficult to take into consideration the elaborate dress they wear while ninjaing about. How big are these shadows?
2. Far too many characters had the grace to do various things. Not that they were incapable, but that was the exact phrase. Over. And over. "Had the grace to blush" was by far the most common and distracting. I think Michelle has an infatuation with the word "grace." And with ninjas in elaborate dress.
If repetitive devices don't distract you, give it a go.
1. Surprising interjections in a conversation between two characters, when they (and the reader) thought they were speaking alone and privately. Lo! a different character interrupts with a line of dialogue, then "steps in from the shadows." Michelle used this device far too often. It was hard to imagine this actually taking place as often as it did, and equally difficult to take into consideration the elaborate dress they wear while ninjaing about. How big are these shadows?
2. Far too many characters had the grace to do various things. Not that they were incapable, but that was the exact phrase. Over. And over. "Had the grace to blush" was by far the most common and distracting. I think Michelle has an infatuation with the word "grace." And with ninjas in elaborate dress.
If repetitive devices don't distract you, give it a go.
October 10, 2023
An incredible amount of world building with a significant cast of characters. The first half was unfortunately a chore to read. There's a lot of people and cultural nuances to navigate initially. Once I got to the halfway mark, it really took off. I was hooked. If the first half was presented in an easier fashion I'd have given this another star. Still worth the read if you're a veteran of fantasy slogs and can weather the journey.
November 27, 2010
I've first heard of Michelle West from starlady's persuasive rec post of her works and I'm glad to have followed her rec.
(Aside: I read Cast in Shadow, the first novel of the Chronicles of Elantra series which the author wrote under the name of Michelle Sagara, and I was surprised by the difference in wordbuilding and style of writing between Cast in Shadow and The Broken Crown -- though you can recognize common threads in both.)
The Sun Sword series itself follows the Dominion of Annagar and the Empire of Essalieyan as they seek to keep the Shining Court (where the Lord of Hells presides) from gaining a foothold over the lands of mortal kind. It's very hard not to attribute characteristics of Eastern cultures, for lack of better words, to the Dominion of Annagar and that of Western cultures to the Empire of Essalieyan. It's equally as hard to dismiss the dichotomy inherent in a narrative that mainly focuses on two cultures such as that of Annagar Dominion and Essalieyan Empire.
Despite I think (I hope) the author's intention, The Broken Crown skirts close a couple of times to the pervading portrayal of Western civilization as enlightened and Eastern civilization as backward. When the narrative switches to an Essalieyan setting, there's an overabundance of positive descriptions and a feeling that Essalieyan's softness (kindness) will gentle (save) Annagar's harshness -- a feeling that hasn't been outright contradicted yet.
There's also this: when the narrative is set in Annagar, the pacing is absolute and tightly paced, but when the narrative switches, the pacing fell apart for me. The Essalieyan POVs switch too much for me and this colludes with my feeling that many of the powers behind the Essalieyan Empire is superficial. I felt there is no strength behind those powers (too much tell and no show) and yes, beside a few Essalieyan characters, I found most of them unsympathetic and often times wooden.
But thankfully, a majority of the novel is set in the Annagar Dominion and as starlady said, Annagar is "unabashedly patriarchal". Annagar's patriarchy is not vilified as many Eastern patriarchal cultures have been vilified nor are the female characters portrayed without agency. Serra Diora and Teresa's characters -- and their machinations -- are one of the truly compelling points of the novel for me.
In conclusion: I love the worldbuilding of the Annagar Dominion -- truly awesome worldbuilding, characterizations and portrayals -- and fearful of where the relationship between Annagar and Essalieyan will head.
P.S. Why is there such an emphasis on golden hair and blue eyes?
(Aside: I read Cast in Shadow, the first novel of the Chronicles of Elantra series which the author wrote under the name of Michelle Sagara, and I was surprised by the difference in wordbuilding and style of writing between Cast in Shadow and The Broken Crown -- though you can recognize common threads in both.)
The Sun Sword series itself follows the Dominion of Annagar and the Empire of Essalieyan as they seek to keep the Shining Court (where the Lord of Hells presides) from gaining a foothold over the lands of mortal kind. It's very hard not to attribute characteristics of Eastern cultures, for lack of better words, to the Dominion of Annagar and that of Western cultures to the Empire of Essalieyan. It's equally as hard to dismiss the dichotomy inherent in a narrative that mainly focuses on two cultures such as that of Annagar Dominion and Essalieyan Empire.
Despite I think (I hope) the author's intention, The Broken Crown skirts close a couple of times to the pervading portrayal of Western civilization as enlightened and Eastern civilization as backward. When the narrative switches to an Essalieyan setting, there's an overabundance of positive descriptions and a feeling that Essalieyan's softness (kindness) will gentle (save) Annagar's harshness -- a feeling that hasn't been outright contradicted yet.
There's also this: when the narrative is set in Annagar, the pacing is absolute and tightly paced, but when the narrative switches, the pacing fell apart for me. The Essalieyan POVs switch too much for me and this colludes with my feeling that many of the powers behind the Essalieyan Empire is superficial. I felt there is no strength behind those powers (too much tell and no show) and yes, beside a few Essalieyan characters, I found most of them unsympathetic and often times wooden.
But thankfully, a majority of the novel is set in the Annagar Dominion and as starlady said, Annagar is "unabashedly patriarchal". Annagar's patriarchy is not vilified as many Eastern patriarchal cultures have been vilified nor are the female characters portrayed without agency. Serra Diora and Teresa's characters -- and their machinations -- are one of the truly compelling points of the novel for me.
In conclusion: I love the worldbuilding of the Annagar Dominion -- truly awesome worldbuilding, characterizations and portrayals -- and fearful of where the relationship between Annagar and Essalieyan will head.
P.S. Why is there such an emphasis on golden hair and blue eyes?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 17, 2016
Why is this author not more well known? This was an excellent book. BUT...yes there is a but I didn't like how the South, inhabited by POC was sexist, harsh and enforced slavery while the North recognized equality of the sex, its culture was simpler and easier of the people and there was no slavery. It is especially puzzling because the author is Asian. Besides, sure it is fiction, but I must say that historically, the West was as sexist as the South. For a long time, in most countries in Europe women were essentially considered as brood mare by their family. Also, noble houses and royalty were CONSTANTLY involved in power struggle. The wrong words or wrong gesture to the wrong ears or in front of the wrong eyes could mean the downfall of an noble family or the death of someone from a lower class. Yes, slavery reached the shore of Europe later than in other part of the world. But anyone that was not noble or a wealthy merchant lead hard and harsh life and were often considered as no better than chattel. It was ridiculous to me how in the book the Empire (the Northern country) women could marry as they wished, become soldiers and the noble houses tended to fight less for power while the Dominion (Southern country) was the exact opposite. By the way, both countries takes place in the Middle Age or something similar.
This book was published a while ago, in 1998. I Wonder if this obvious bias and prejudice was the author's doing or if she was pressured by her publishing house. Honestly, I might have knocked a whole star off my rating because of this. But the writing was so so good and I loved the story and the characters so much that in the end I just couldn't do it. Even though, the South was supposed to be this terrible place, the story and the characters set in this part of the world the author created were the most interesting to me. When the narration shifted to the North, the bias and the disregard of history might have dimmed my enjoyment. I thought it was ridiculous how they were so many trustworthy and good people in the Empire. Like please.
Nonetheless, I highly recommend this book. Especially to those looking for diversity in their famtasy. Besides, contrary to many other books of this genre, West has a plethora of strong women characters. Serra Theresa and Diorra being among my favorite.
This book was published a while ago, in 1998. I Wonder if this obvious bias and prejudice was the author's doing or if she was pressured by her publishing house. Honestly, I might have knocked a whole star off my rating because of this. But the writing was so so good and I loved the story and the characters so much that in the end I just couldn't do it. Even though, the South was supposed to be this terrible place, the story and the characters set in this part of the world the author created were the most interesting to me. When the narration shifted to the North, the bias and the disregard of history might have dimmed my enjoyment. I thought it was ridiculous how they were so many trustworthy and good people in the Empire. Like please.
Nonetheless, I highly recommend this book. Especially to those looking for diversity in their famtasy. Besides, contrary to many other books of this genre, West has a plethora of strong women characters. Serra Theresa and Diorra being among my favorite.
June 26, 2017
There's an element of grimdark about this epic fantasy, with ethically gray "good guys" (who nonetheless can manage to be sympathetic, though perhaps not quite admirable) contrasted with truly despicable bad guys. Characters routinely abuse and betray one another, and the whole thing kicks off with a horrific rape. (Fortunately it is treated with the horror it deserves.) The author presents the reader with a complex, often confusing world and a multitude of characters and situations to keep track of. My interest fluctuated, depending on whom I was reading about at the moment. When the Kalakar, Kiriel, and Jewel were the focus, I galloped eagerly through the chapters and scenes. When Serras Teresa and Diora took center stage, I found myself slowing down a bit -- I confess I enjoyed reading about the Empire more than about the Dominion, and in the ever-escalating conflict I find myself firmly on the Empire's side -- but nonetheless I remained engrossed. But when women left the scene, and menfolk like Alesso (ugh! but I hate him) and Sendari took over, I found myself slogging through the chapters in question, hoping that on the next page some woman or other would reappear.
Still, I found the novel as a whole involving, with the plentiful cast of fascinating female characters a major selling point, and I consider myself lucky to have stumbled onto the next five volumes in the series at a used bookstore. I mean to follow this story through. It may take a while...
Still, I found the novel as a whole involving, with the plentiful cast of fascinating female characters a major selling point, and I consider myself lucky to have stumbled onto the next five volumes in the series at a used bookstore. I mean to follow this story through. It may take a while...
March 4, 2024
*edit: Everything below (and in the next two of the series reviews) holds true only if you begin your Michelle West journey with this book. If you read the duology first (and I don't recommend it) then none of the following is true.
I have never read a book quite like this one.
I'm usually the type of reader who is gripped from the very first page and am seven books into the series before I figure out that the writer is actually not that good. When I pick up a book and I'm not into it immediately, I usually finish it because I'm a completionist, but I don't usually enjoy it, and I finish it more out of a sense of duty than anything else.
This book is the first book that I kept reading out of a sense of duty that transformed into something gripping.
At first I found West's writing style stilted, ponderous, and, frankly, boring. By the end I was kind of amazed. This book is an extremely slow burn, nothing much happens in it, most of the action takes place off the page, instead focus is paid to the drape of clothing, the stillness of control, and the placement of hands. It's the first book I've read where what is left unspoken is more important than what is said, and where all of the meaning is found in silence.
It's odd, because there are a lot of words in this book. It's quite long, and yet it still manages to convey stillness and all the meaning that is found in restraint. I found it quite remarkable.
I have never read a book quite like this one.
I'm usually the type of reader who is gripped from the very first page and am seven books into the series before I figure out that the writer is actually not that good. When I pick up a book and I'm not into it immediately, I usually finish it because I'm a completionist, but I don't usually enjoy it, and I finish it more out of a sense of duty than anything else.
This book is the first book that I kept reading out of a sense of duty that transformed into something gripping.
At first I found West's writing style stilted, ponderous, and, frankly, boring. By the end I was kind of amazed. This book is an extremely slow burn, nothing much happens in it, most of the action takes place off the page, instead focus is paid to the drape of clothing, the stillness of control, and the placement of hands. It's the first book I've read where what is left unspoken is more important than what is said, and where all of the meaning is found in silence.
It's odd, because there are a lot of words in this book. It's quite long, and yet it still manages to convey stillness and all the meaning that is found in restraint. I found it quite remarkable.
February 20, 2021
This book ends really strongly. For readers like me who are reading the entire Essalieyan series, this book might feel a bit jarring after Hidden City due to the total change in setting, but things definitely get better after the midway point.
This book is about the people living to the south of the Empire depicted in Hidden City. Its a very different culture, with clans and families, a strongly patriarchal system, harems etc. This can be a bit of an adjustment for readers as instead of the very overt agency exercised by women in the Empire, we see how they use more subtle measures to exert some influence, though I think its still clear that they have nowhere near the power and influence they might have had in the empire.
This book is about the one young woman as she is growing up and the terrifying political conspiracy she finds herself at the centre of. There are multiple elements here - internal political intrigue, darker storylines that relate directly to the Hidden City storyline, larger scale politics involving both the south and the empire, as well as smaller, more personal stories that are the hallmark of Michelle West's writing
Overall, this book shows how West is able to maintain and continue a gigantic plotline over multiple huge books while continuing to craft political intrigue and character dynamics with the utmost skill
This book is about the people living to the south of the Empire depicted in Hidden City. Its a very different culture, with clans and families, a strongly patriarchal system, harems etc. This can be a bit of an adjustment for readers as instead of the very overt agency exercised by women in the Empire, we see how they use more subtle measures to exert some influence, though I think its still clear that they have nowhere near the power and influence they might have had in the empire.
This book is about the one young woman as she is growing up and the terrifying political conspiracy she finds herself at the centre of. There are multiple elements here - internal political intrigue, darker storylines that relate directly to the Hidden City storyline, larger scale politics involving both the south and the empire, as well as smaller, more personal stories that are the hallmark of Michelle West's writing
Overall, this book shows how West is able to maintain and continue a gigantic plotline over multiple huge books while continuing to craft political intrigue and character dynamics with the utmost skill
May 15, 2012
Some day I will reread all the books in the Sun Sword series and give them a real reviews. For now, let me just say that this is one of my favorite fantasy series ever. I love West's prose which is lyrical and descriptive. But for me the best part of these books by far are the outstanding characters. These books are told from multiple view points -- and they all come across as genuine. In some ways I am reminded some of GRR Martin, however West is both better able to keep the characters under control while at the same time being less willing to ruthlessly kill them off.
I also love how these books portray a clash of very different cultures -- a north modeled off of a western-ish culture with relative gender equality and a south modeled off of a muslim-ish culture with outwardly subservient and repressed women.(Although it is interesting to see the power that they are able to wield in a different way.)
Anyway, I highly recommend these books to anyone who enjoys elaborate world building, complex characters, exotic yet realistic fictional cultures and doesn't mind series of multiple door-stop length books.
I also love how these books portray a clash of very different cultures -- a north modeled off of a western-ish culture with relative gender equality and a south modeled off of a muslim-ish culture with outwardly subservient and repressed women.(Although it is interesting to see the power that they are able to wield in a different way.)
Anyway, I highly recommend these books to anyone who enjoys elaborate world building, complex characters, exotic yet realistic fictional cultures and doesn't mind series of multiple door-stop length books.
January 7, 2014
3.5 Stars
I love world building series but the first half of this book is almost unbearable with the numerous names, hierarchical structure and long winded descriptions. It would behoove the author to provide a type of diagram or tree to better explain the structure of the Clans and Tyrs in the Dominion vs. constantly throwing names at the readers and half descriptions of what is going on. A simply glossary and diagram/tree would have made this book so much better in that such needless chapters could have been edited out and I wouldn't have been so bored.
Having said all of that once the story switched back to the North with it's familiar cast of characters and I'd finally gotten to the point that I understood who was being referenced from the Dominion about 70% the story was more enjoyable. Plus the action picked up which also helped vs. constantly reading about sister wives, concubines, lack of female power, to the point of utter boredom.
I love world building series but the first half of this book is almost unbearable with the numerous names, hierarchical structure and long winded descriptions. It would behoove the author to provide a type of diagram or tree to better explain the structure of the Clans and Tyrs in the Dominion vs. constantly throwing names at the readers and half descriptions of what is going on. A simply glossary and diagram/tree would have made this book so much better in that such needless chapters could have been edited out and I wouldn't have been so bored.
Having said all of that once the story switched back to the North with it's familiar cast of characters and I'd finally gotten to the point that I understood who was being referenced from the Dominion about 70% the story was more enjoyable. Plus the action picked up which also helped vs. constantly reading about sister wives, concubines, lack of female power, to the point of utter boredom.
August 15, 2014
Unfortunately I could not finish this. Normally I am undaunted by length of book and amount of politics, but while I could understand what was going on WHY it was going on was beyond me. The amount of idiot ball holding put me off, too, but my biggest gripe is the way the book deals with women and how expendable all but the super special ones are. Maybe it gets better later on. Maybe it doesn't. I can't slog through to find out.
December 22, 2021
How the fuck can Michelle West write so many interconnected epic fantasy books over the span of 30 years, where none of the books feel padded with useless information, and the characters are super compelling and the driving action of the book? I read over 600 pages and just want more. Why have these books not won awards? Why are people not reading and weeping over them? Why is Michelle West not a household name for epic fantasy? The more I ponder about this, the more upset I get.
April 7, 2021
Political fantasy. Long and at times a bit tedious and repetitive, but I've read later books and they seem more accomplished so I will continue at some point with this series. I think the problem for me is the structure and pace, it's all rather ponderous and slow and also I feel it needs to be heavily edited!?
February 18, 2025
Lyrical prose , magical
complex sprawling World building, a really underrated series which gets rarely talked upon in mainstream fantasy circles ....
Reinvigorated my dwindling interest for the genre, a much superior offering than the vapid dross , the so called genre stalwarts like Sanderson & Gwynne cooked up last year ..
Cannot wait to further delve into this magical , gorgeous world, Michelle has created ...
PS..Shoutout to that unknown reddit user who had recommended this series ...
complex sprawling World building, a really underrated series which gets rarely talked upon in mainstream fantasy circles ....
Reinvigorated my dwindling interest for the genre, a much superior offering than the vapid dross , the so called genre stalwarts like Sanderson & Gwynne cooked up last year ..
Cannot wait to further delve into this magical , gorgeous world, Michelle has created ...
PS..Shoutout to that unknown reddit user who had recommended this series ...
May 13, 2015
The Broken Crown Star Rating: 5 Stars, Buy it
Self Purchase for Kindle, Re-read review
If you haven't read this series, you really have no idea of what you are missing. The writing style is so unique and superb and adds so much to the series. I must admit though sometimes the writing can be hard to follow. Also, there is so much politics in this series, that sometimes I just can’t follow it all. That being said though, it’s still an incredibly original and unique series. This is a reread for me, having read this originally years ago. I had forgotten how long the prelude was on this book. At 9% in, I’m only now getting to chapter one. Yes, Michelle Sagara West can be very wordy. Normally I don’t mind but I wanted to get sucked back into this world so it was hard to plow through the opening which I barely remembered- but this time I actually understood what it was about since I know the novel.
Part of what makes this book so amazing is that it’s so unique, not only in the writing style I mentioned above but also in the world building. It’s so incredibly detailed, you can’t keep track of it all. Especially the names, I find the names hard to keep track off. But as this is my second time around, I'm finding it a smidgen easier than the first time. While I’ve given this book a high rating, If I were to rate it again, I might do so just a smidge less than 5 stars. Some points of this book are so hard to plow through.
Another thing I want to mention is that I remembered this book differently. The writing style was exactly how I rememebered but the plot was different. I’m wondering if I am remembering the wrong book in the series or a different book. But I know I had the characters right. I will answer this question when I get around to reading the second book in the series. But for now, some notes on my favorite characters:
Jewel- where to start with her. She has her own series related to this one in which we learn all about her past leading up to this series (These are called the House War books). I love her character but she is barely in this first volume.
Diora- The Flower of the Dominion- is my other favorite character. She is a very complicated, intelligent and very sneaky young woman.
Cover- I absolutely adore the cover and think is a perfect depiction of the novel.
Description (Amazon): Tor Leonne—the heart of the Domionion of Annagar, where the games of state are about to become a matter of life or death—and where those who seek to seize the crown will be forced to league with a treacherously cunning ally… Tor Leonne, ancestral seat of power, where Serra Diora Maria di’Marano—the most sought-after beauty in the land, a woman betrayed by all she holds dear—may strike the first blow to change the future of Dominion and Empire alike…
Averalaan Aramarelas—the most ancient of civilized cities, the home of the Essalieyan Imperial Court, has long been a center of magics both dark and bright. And though the Enpire won its last war with the Dominion, and survived a devastating, magic-fueled battle with a far deadlier foe, both those victories were not without their cost… But now the realm is on the brink of a far greater confrontation, faced with an unholy alliance that could spell the end of freedom for all mortalkind…
Self Purchase for Kindle, Re-read review
If you haven't read this series, you really have no idea of what you are missing. The writing style is so unique and superb and adds so much to the series. I must admit though sometimes the writing can be hard to follow. Also, there is so much politics in this series, that sometimes I just can’t follow it all. That being said though, it’s still an incredibly original and unique series. This is a reread for me, having read this originally years ago. I had forgotten how long the prelude was on this book. At 9% in, I’m only now getting to chapter one. Yes, Michelle Sagara West can be very wordy. Normally I don’t mind but I wanted to get sucked back into this world so it was hard to plow through the opening which I barely remembered- but this time I actually understood what it was about since I know the novel.
Part of what makes this book so amazing is that it’s so unique, not only in the writing style I mentioned above but also in the world building. It’s so incredibly detailed, you can’t keep track of it all. Especially the names, I find the names hard to keep track off. But as this is my second time around, I'm finding it a smidgen easier than the first time. While I’ve given this book a high rating, If I were to rate it again, I might do so just a smidge less than 5 stars. Some points of this book are so hard to plow through.
Another thing I want to mention is that I remembered this book differently. The writing style was exactly how I rememebered but the plot was different. I’m wondering if I am remembering the wrong book in the series or a different book. But I know I had the characters right. I will answer this question when I get around to reading the second book in the series. But for now, some notes on my favorite characters:
Jewel- where to start with her. She has her own series related to this one in which we learn all about her past leading up to this series (These are called the House War books). I love her character but she is barely in this first volume.
Diora- The Flower of the Dominion- is my other favorite character. She is a very complicated, intelligent and very sneaky young woman.
Cover- I absolutely adore the cover and think is a perfect depiction of the novel.
Description (Amazon): Tor Leonne—the heart of the Domionion of Annagar, where the games of state are about to become a matter of life or death—and where those who seek to seize the crown will be forced to league with a treacherously cunning ally… Tor Leonne, ancestral seat of power, where Serra Diora Maria di’Marano—the most sought-after beauty in the land, a woman betrayed by all she holds dear—may strike the first blow to change the future of Dominion and Empire alike…
Averalaan Aramarelas—the most ancient of civilized cities, the home of the Essalieyan Imperial Court, has long been a center of magics both dark and bright. And though the Enpire won its last war with the Dominion, and survived a devastating, magic-fueled battle with a far deadlier foe, both those victories were not without their cost… But now the realm is on the brink of a far greater confrontation, faced with an unholy alliance that could spell the end of freedom for all mortalkind…
February 19, 2018
This book was hard for me to read.
Firstly - and honestly, the smallest reason - is that it had all the unwieldy bulk of the first book in an epic fantasy series, as you meet a very large cast of characters and establish the world of the Dominion. Frankly, it was a relief to get back to the Northern city, because I'm reading this series in the order suggested on The House War series page - the first 3 books of that series, and then all 6 of this series - and it was great to get back to characters I know, however brief our time with them.
The biggest reason why it was hard for me to read is because I loathe - and that word is not an exaggeration - the Dominion. Utterly loathe it. The casual disdain for women, the rampant misogyny and abuse, the constant cruelty to slaves ... everything combined to make me hate that entire society and literally every man in it (except perhaps one, but the par el'Sol that was maybe decent wasn't around much, and I fully expect him to be a bag of shit if we get more of him, because every man in the Dominion is). These are people that partner with demons for power - and that in itself is idiocy, because the demons aren't even subtle about the fact that they will turn on them as soon as they've used the humans to eliminate the threats to the demonic court - but proclaim to hate the Northern empire because they are led by demons (which they are not - and even their own lore of the Lord calls that out, because the Northern empire allied with them to overthrow the demons centuries ago, when the demons last ruled the Dominion - they are ruled by the children of gods) with astonishing hypocrisy.
And it was the hypocrisy that became so tough to swallow. You've got a father continually trading his daughter for power - he leverages her several times over the course of this book - lamenting that she doesn't seem to have affection the same affection for him that she used to. The treatment of the women is just gross, and it isn't that a couple characters are awful, it is that their entire fucking culture is awful, and it was nearly impossible for me to read the first 60% or so. It was that hard to swallow the evil of their entire society.
It also, I think, hurts the male characters that the author clearly wants us to see as complicated, flawed men. I'm sorry, but I can't do anything but despise Sendari and Alesso. Their disdain for all women, and their willingness to use / discard / murder them - and their demand that all women just accept that as their role - is so awful that I can't find even a moment of sympathy for their occasionally conflicted feelings. Oh, I'm sorry Sendari, does it give you a sad that your daughter might despise you for trading her away for power, and then murdering the entire family you gave her to after she has built a home for herself? Awww. I am playing the world's tiniest violin for you, asshole.
I want them all to die, and I mean die horribly. And I want the Dominion to be wiped from the face of the world like the toxic hell that it is.
But I love the complicated women that are at the heart of the story - Diora, Teresa (who is underappreciated by Diora for all that she's done to help her, behind the scenes), Jewel, Kiriel, The Kalakar. (Not Evayne though - she's a self-righteous asshole that uses everyone as a pawn.) And I'm drawn by the overall story... so I will certainly continue on. After all, the women are the leads of this series, and so hopefully their journey will shatter this bullshit world that they are bound within.
Firstly - and honestly, the smallest reason - is that it had all the unwieldy bulk of the first book in an epic fantasy series, as you meet a very large cast of characters and establish the world of the Dominion. Frankly, it was a relief to get back to the Northern city, because I'm reading this series in the order suggested on The House War series page - the first 3 books of that series, and then all 6 of this series - and it was great to get back to characters I know, however brief our time with them.
The biggest reason why it was hard for me to read is because I loathe - and that word is not an exaggeration - the Dominion. Utterly loathe it. The casual disdain for women, the rampant misogyny and abuse, the constant cruelty to slaves ... everything combined to make me hate that entire society and literally every man in it (except perhaps one, but the par el'Sol that was maybe decent wasn't around much, and I fully expect him to be a bag of shit if we get more of him, because every man in the Dominion is). These are people that partner with demons for power - and that in itself is idiocy, because the demons aren't even subtle about the fact that they will turn on them as soon as they've used the humans to eliminate the threats to the demonic court - but proclaim to hate the Northern empire because they are led by demons (which they are not - and even their own lore of the Lord calls that out, because the Northern empire allied with them to overthrow the demons centuries ago, when the demons last ruled the Dominion - they are ruled by the children of gods) with astonishing hypocrisy.
And it was the hypocrisy that became so tough to swallow. You've got a father continually trading his daughter for power - he leverages her several times over the course of this book - lamenting that she doesn't seem to have affection the same affection for him that she used to. The treatment of the women is just gross, and it isn't that a couple characters are awful, it is that their entire fucking culture is awful, and it was nearly impossible for me to read the first 60% or so. It was that hard to swallow the evil of their entire society.
It also, I think, hurts the male characters that the author clearly wants us to see as complicated, flawed men. I'm sorry, but I can't do anything but despise Sendari and Alesso. Their disdain for all women, and their willingness to use / discard / murder them - and their demand that all women just accept that as their role - is so awful that I can't find even a moment of sympathy for their occasionally conflicted feelings. Oh, I'm sorry Sendari, does it give you a sad that your daughter might despise you for trading her away for power, and then murdering the entire family you gave her to after she has built a home for herself? Awww. I am playing the world's tiniest violin for you, asshole.
I want them all to die, and I mean die horribly. And I want the Dominion to be wiped from the face of the world like the toxic hell that it is.
But I love the complicated women that are at the heart of the story - Diora, Teresa (who is underappreciated by Diora for all that she's done to help her, behind the scenes), Jewel, Kiriel, The Kalakar. (Not Evayne though - she's a self-righteous asshole that uses everyone as a pawn.) And I'm drawn by the overall story... so I will certainly continue on. After all, the women are the leads of this series, and so hopefully their journey will shatter this bullshit world that they are bound within.
October 30, 2013
I found this book confusing and disappointing. When I started it, it felt like I was reading from the middle. So little is explained and the jumps between characters is jarring.
Halfway through the book and I still have no idea where the main element from the prologue comes in. Things are referred to in a very veiled way and I felt like I was missing a chapter where things were explained. I guess I expected some explanation because there was so much detail and scene overlaps from different characters.
It was a very political book but it failed to hold my interest and wasn't until the last 200 pages that things started making sense and things picked up. It's nowhere near the league of say Daughter of the Empire although it is is in a similar sort of vein. If I'm bored and happen across the second in the series I'll try reading it, but for now I won't go out of my way.
Halfway through the book and I still have no idea where the main element from the prologue comes in. Things are referred to in a very veiled way and I felt like I was missing a chapter where things were explained. I guess I expected some explanation because there was so much detail and scene overlaps from different characters.
It was a very political book but it failed to hold my interest and wasn't until the last 200 pages that things started making sense and things picked up. It's nowhere near the league of say Daughter of the Empire although it is is in a similar sort of vein. If I'm bored and happen across the second in the series I'll try reading it, but for now I won't go out of my way.
January 20, 2012
The first book in a six-volume series, this took me by surprise and now I can't get enough! This is not the type of book you can skim, because you'll just miss too much. West's prose is detailed, colourful and engrossing. Prepare yourself for a highly satisfying journey into a new world and an epic tale that gets bigger as it unfolds. All the keys of a great fantasy writer are here - depth of history, power-hungry gods and tons of political intrigue in an Empire vying for a war of retribution against their Northern neighbours. The thing that sets this apart is that, while West uses a standard formula, she displays a flare for world-building and convoluted plot lines that should entice any reader looking for something to sink their teeth into.
March 14, 2015
I'm giving it two stars because it's well-written, and I believe if I had the patience, the story might pay off. But this is one of those cases where an intriguing series (LOTS OF POLITICS) is bogged down by a writer who seems to feel she is much better at her craft than she is. She's really good at coining little turns of phrase, and using half-sentences for effect, but DEAR GOD WHEN WILL SOMETHING OF INTEREST HAPPEN. I realized I was 50 pages in, pushing myself through every page, waiting for the plot to kick in. I don't think I'd even met any of the main characters yet. Again, I wish I had the patience to wade through things like this, because it promises to get way better, but I'm just bored easily & I feel old and my time feels limited.
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