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Daughter of the Blood
(The Black Jewels #1)
by
Librarian's Note: Alternate cover for this ISBN can be found here.
The Dark Kingdom is preparing itself for the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy--the arrival of a new Queen, a Witch who will wield more power than even the High Lord of Hell himself. But this new ruler is young, and very susceptible to influence and corruption; whoever controls her controls the Darkness. An ...more
The Dark Kingdom is preparing itself for the fulfillment of an ancient prophecy--the arrival of a new Queen, a Witch who will wield more power than even the High Lord of Hell himself. But this new ruler is young, and very susceptible to influence and corruption; whoever controls her controls the Darkness. An ...more
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Mass Market Paperback, 412 pages
Published
March 1st 1998
by Roc NAL (New American Library) Penguin
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Start your review of Daughter of the Blood (The Black Jewels, #1)

My wife bought the first book in this series and for some reason read it. The whole time she read it she complained how bad it was. Then for some reason I read it and we finished the series. The only explanation I can come up with is that magic is real, anne bishop is a witch and we fell under her spell. Even now I fall into the black obsidian stone.

I think this book gave me brain herpes. A good read, but horrible. The characters are caricatures. The world is nigh-incomprehensible (who includes a list of jewel ranks and titles (broken down by gender), but not a freaking map? especially when this place apparently uses interdimensional travel?!) I wish I could feel sympathetic to the characters- but they all remind me of a too-perfect job interview: "my only flaw is that I love my work... too much." The plot is well-paced, and makes good use
...more

For her virgin effort at novel-crafting, Anne Bishop has laid down a strong piece of dark fantasy that is richly drawn, psychologically savage and dripping with THROB. I am suffering severe mind-boggle that this is really her first published work as this story has a high quality quotient and prose that displays real polish.
This first installment of the Black Jewel’s Trilogy introduces us to dark, sexified fantasy world called “The Three Realms” which are known individually as Terreille, Hell an ...more
This first installment of the Black Jewel’s Trilogy introduces us to dark, sexified fantasy world called “The Three Realms” which are known individually as Terreille, Hell an ...more

This book is incredibly awful. It's embarrassingly bad. The characters (with their ridiculous names) and the world are poorly developed. The author gives us variations of the same scenes again and again - Daemon is a sexy threat, dear old dad Saetan is old and tenderhearted, Jaenelle is very powerful and young, everyone else is amazed and afraid and/or 110% evil, full stop, no nuance. The plot? Languishes.
I never had a sense of where different "realms" existed in relation to one another, for all ...more
I never had a sense of where different "realms" existed in relation to one another, for all ...more

Let me get straight to the point here: I absolutely abhorred this book. I had to force myself to finish it.
I was actually really excited to start it though. It's widely acclaimed by critics -- professionals and goodreads members alike -- and the plot sounded promising. Plus, the idea of a dark fantasy intrigued me. And don't get me wrong, I wasn't really disappointed by either of those elements. The storyline was okay, and the world of the Blood did prove quite dark.
No, what disappointed me was ...more
I was actually really excited to start it though. It's widely acclaimed by critics -- professionals and goodreads members alike -- and the plot sounded promising. Plus, the idea of a dark fantasy intrigued me. And don't get me wrong, I wasn't really disappointed by either of those elements. The storyline was okay, and the world of the Blood did prove quite dark.
No, what disappointed me was ...more

Welcome to my DNF graveyard: a fun and cheerful place to be.

The social system of the world of the book is matriarchy. It seems women in power decided the best use for the men is to keep them as sex slaves: I have yet to see a single free man in the part of the book managed to read; there are some outside of the world though. The injustice is everywhere, but there is a prophecy concerning a coming of The Queen who Will Make Everything Right. Every man - free and enslaved fall in love (not Platon ...more

The social system of the world of the book is matriarchy. It seems women in power decided the best use for the men is to keep them as sex slaves: I have yet to see a single free man in the part of the book managed to read; there are some outside of the world though. The injustice is everywhere, but there is a prophecy concerning a coming of The Queen who Will Make Everything Right. Every man - free and enslaved fall in love (not Platon ...more

Things I did not like about this book:
- Proper names (the winter solstice holiday is Winsol... Satan is Saetan... Demon is Daemon...
- Lack of character development
- Redundant descriptive language
- Elaborate and pointlessly nonsensical magic schema
- Crappy plot arc
- Completely implausible antihero
- TOO MUCH SHIT ABOUT HAVING SEX WITH KIDS
- TOO MUCH SHIT ABOUT HATING WOMEN
Things I did like about this book:
- There was a horse character
- The child molesters got exploded
- Proper names (the winter solstice holiday is Winsol... Satan is Saetan... Demon is Daemon...
- Lack of character development
- Redundant descriptive language
- Elaborate and pointlessly nonsensical magic schema
- Crappy plot arc
- Completely implausible antihero
- TOO MUCH SHIT ABOUT HAVING SEX WITH KIDS
- TOO MUCH SHIT ABOUT HATING WOMEN
Things I did like about this book:
- There was a horse character
- The child molesters got exploded

Oct 04, 2013
Jaidee
rated it
it was ok
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
two-ana-half-stars-books
2.5 "trashy, campy, cheesy, sordid" little stars !!
In grade six, my second best friend and I discovered her mother's V.C. Andrews' Flowers in the Attic series and we snuck them out the bookshelf and read them in the park while eating chips and drinking lemonade. We found those books so enticingly wicked and could not believe all the things we read about. No more Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew for us- all we wanted to do is read adult books and unbeknownst to us that these were the trashiest books out ...more
In grade six, my second best friend and I discovered her mother's V.C. Andrews' Flowers in the Attic series and we snuck them out the bookshelf and read them in the park while eating chips and drinking lemonade. We found those books so enticingly wicked and could not believe all the things we read about. No more Hardy Boys or Nancy Drew for us- all we wanted to do is read adult books and unbeknownst to us that these were the trashiest books out ...more

Excerpts from a stream of consciousness transcript as I read this series:
"So that's his brother? Ah, right, his brother with wings. . . . Saetan Sa Diablo? For serious? . . . Magical cockring of Obedience! . . . Aww, that's actually pretty cute. Family togetherness, d'aww. . . . Ew! Ew Ew! He just circumcised someone with his teeth! . . . Oh, look, the unicorns just showed up. . . . Someone else is in a killing rage, yawn. . . . Magical cockring of honor! . . . So he has wings, and also apparent ...more
"So that's his brother? Ah, right, his brother with wings. . . . Saetan Sa Diablo? For serious? . . . Magical cockring of Obedience! . . . Aww, that's actually pretty cute. Family togetherness, d'aww. . . . Ew! Ew Ew! He just circumcised someone with his teeth! . . . Oh, look, the unicorns just showed up. . . . Someone else is in a killing rage, yawn. . . . Magical cockring of honor! . . . So he has wings, and also apparent ...more

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Daughter of the Blood is a brutal and twisted tale and isn’t going to be for everyone. Heck I think that with a lot of the things touched on in this book nine times out of ten it wouldn’t be for me, but Anne Bishop’s writing and ability to weave a tale kept me captivated. There is so much brutality in this against Men, Women and children that it goes really dark at times. The story also touches on child molestation and a bit of human trafficking neatly disgui ...more
Daughter of the Blood is a brutal and twisted tale and isn’t going to be for everyone. Heck I think that with a lot of the things touched on in this book nine times out of ten it wouldn’t be for me, but Anne Bishop’s writing and ability to weave a tale kept me captivated. There is so much brutality in this against Men, Women and children that it goes really dark at times. The story also touches on child molestation and a bit of human trafficking neatly disgui ...more

VERY perverse, twisted, brilliant, engaging and provoking bit of fantasy reading... It was definitely worth reading!
Not for the faint of heart, not for the squeamish either. Lovers of angst will appreciate it. People with kid sex triggers won't, at all.
The book receives 5 stars for the original world built from scratch. A beautiful and terrible world submerged in darkness, where almost everyone is twisted to some extent..., many beyond all possible and impossible boundaries.
I will go on with th ...more
Not for the faint of heart, not for the squeamish either. Lovers of angst will appreciate it. People with kid sex triggers won't, at all.
The book receives 5 stars for the original world built from scratch. A beautiful and terrible world submerged in darkness, where almost everyone is twisted to some extent..., many beyond all possible and impossible boundaries.
I will go on with th ...more

If you like feminist fantasy fiction, this is the series to read. Bishop creates a fantasy otherworld unlike any I have read (and I've read quite a bit).
Bishop’s work is highly subversive. It develops a female-dominant society based on Kipling’s reminder: “the female of the species is more deadly than the male.” Bishop does not simply put the female in the power position in a “patriarchal” structure, as Lackey does; rather, she highlights the physical and society differences between female and ...more
Bishop’s work is highly subversive. It develops a female-dominant society based on Kipling’s reminder: “the female of the species is more deadly than the male.” Bishop does not simply put the female in the power position in a “patriarchal” structure, as Lackey does; rather, she highlights the physical and society differences between female and ...more

As I started reading Daughter of the Blood by Anne Bishop, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew it was a dark fantasy tale that the majority of my fellow readers have glommed. I also come to the realization that Anne Bishop has created a universe unlike anything I have ever read before. I wonder in the ten years since Anne created the Black Jewels Trilogy, how many authors she has influenced? If only I had read Daughter of the Blood when it was first published! This book blew me away from both a
...more

Jun 23, 2010
Sarah
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
People who like their fantasy very, VERY dark
1st read - January 2014
2nd read - September 2018
Buddy read with Aly, Ange, Annie & Anzu (Although I think only Aly, Anzu and I actually ended up reading it LOL)
Daughter of the Blood is a really difficult book to review and I think that's partly due to how uncomfortable it made me feel when I was reading it. This is a DARK fantasy story, if you're looking for an easy read then that's not what you're going to get here. However, if you're looking for a story that is as compelling as it is disturbin ...more
2nd read - September 2018
Buddy read with Aly, Ange, Annie & Anzu (Although I think only Aly, Anzu and I actually ended up reading it LOL)
Daughter of the Blood is a really difficult book to review and I think that's partly due to how uncomfortable it made me feel when I was reading it. This is a DARK fantasy story, if you're looking for an easy read then that's not what you're going to get here. However, if you're looking for a story that is as compelling as it is disturbin ...more

Major mixed feelings on this one. I bumped my original 3 stars down to 2 after a bit of thought.
On one hand- I kept reading because I was so curious about where the story was going. On the other- this book made me squeamish and uncomfortable. When reviewers say this book is dark what they mean is it contains some really unpleasant aspects of violence, rape, incest, and pedophilia. Most of the characters were pretty awful human beings. Women rule men in this world and they do it by brute force. ...more
On one hand- I kept reading because I was so curious about where the story was going. On the other- this book made me squeamish and uncomfortable. When reviewers say this book is dark what they mean is it contains some really unpleasant aspects of violence, rape, incest, and pedophilia. Most of the characters were pretty awful human beings. Women rule men in this world and they do it by brute force. ...more

The three realms of Terreille, Kaeleer (the Shadow Realm) and Hell are ruled by the Blood, people given the gift of Jewels of different-ranking colours. They are supposed to be caretakers of the land, and are deeply heirarchical. It's a matriarchal world, but a taint, a rot, has seeped into the Blood, and now the ruling Blood - both female and male - spend their time indulging in pleasures of all manner, often cruel. Some of the races are long-lived, and the Demon-Dead in Hell still have the use
...more

Anne Bishop's Black Jewel's Trilogy pinged my radar a few years back when old Blogger friends couldn't say enough good about it. Per usual, it took me all this time to finally get to it, but it didn't take me long to see the appeal.
High fantasy to be sure, The Black Jewel's Trilogy follows along the lines of what made this genre popular. Witches, Magic, Enchanted Jewels/rings, Mystical Creatures and Chosen ones- it has it all! And for those of us gals who need it- a dash of romance!
Book 1: Daugh ...more
High fantasy to be sure, The Black Jewel's Trilogy follows along the lines of what made this genre popular. Witches, Magic, Enchanted Jewels/rings, Mystical Creatures and Chosen ones- it has it all! And for those of us gals who need it- a dash of romance!
Book 1: Daugh ...more

The first book in what is known as The Black Jewels trilogy and now to be released on Kindle internationally. This is a classic piece of fantasy writing by this established author and it's an absolute joy to read such unique world building. This is unashamedly a journey into a world of imagination unlike any other that you will take . So be prepared to feel both challenged and revolted by all the machinations you are about to encounter here.
An ancient prophecy foretells of a Witch who will appea ...more
An ancient prophecy foretells of a Witch who will appea ...more

It took me halfway through this book before I could tell the men apart or figure which woman I was reading about! They all act the same, that is to say badly. I can see why this book is one of those “love it or hate it” novels. So how did I end up in the middle of the road? Well, I can perhaps see what Bishop was trying to achieve—a dark fantasy with women at the top of the hierarchy.
But I found the execution of this idea to be so clumsy! It was as if she took her cue for this Dark Kingdom from ...more
But I found the execution of this idea to be so clumsy! It was as if she took her cue for this Dark Kingdom from ...more

I couldn't finish this. It wasn't the darker aspects that some of the other reviewers complained about that bothered me- it was simply tedious. There were millions of names and places thrown around, none of which were likable or enjoyable. I hung in there until nearly 100 pages into the book. I can't take it anymore. I give up.
...more

*Reread* 12/15/13 Well this was an interesting reread. The world building is actually done throughout the series so it was Awesome to reread and follow everything much clearer. It was also during a BR so it was interesting to see how confusing this is the first time around. I didn't have as much problems as my buddies the first time around but I'm glad I got the input of those as they read it for pimping purposes...haha It was still uncomfortable at times but i read every word without skimming a
...more

Finished this first book from the Omnibus and damn that ending was intense. Also, quite sad. This world is very brutal.
I find it interesting how very "adult" this series is since my first intro to Bishop was The Others and that whole series is PG-13 at worst. I wonder if this is a product of its times, since it was written back when LKH was still popular.
I'm a fan though, and I wish there was more dark adult fantasy like this out there. ...more
I find it interesting how very "adult" this series is since my first intro to Bishop was The Others and that whole series is PG-13 at worst. I wonder if this is a product of its times, since it was written back when LKH was still popular.
I'm a fan though, and I wish there was more dark adult fantasy like this out there. ...more


If you have any trigger, this book is likely to have it. Sexual violence (against both men and women), torture, rape, incest, pedophilia...it was all in there. It served a purpose in the story, but holy Moses, it was hard to read.
Daughter of the Blood is very difficult to get into and not just because of what I mentioned above. The first 15% is a maze of names, places and world building. It takes a while for the reader to understand the power structure and what the heck is going on. Once you do ...more

I bought this book with no concept of how much I would be drawn to the world Anne created. It spoke to my soul. Then it slammed my heart to the ground. The ending is quite possibly one of the most painful I've ever had to read. It just ripped apart a fragile little dream and smiled while it did so. After I sat in shock for more than a few minutes, I checked the publication date, thinking the second book might be available soon. No such luck. I bought the book in it's first month of release. The
...more

I am dropping this 25% in. I know there are many reviews out there talking how fucked up this book is. I did not drop it because of this. I did it because it's incredibly boring. It reads like a Romance novel, just with more perverted sick shit in it. And I feel like the author wanted to have all this crap in order to make it stand out. Nope.
ZzZzZz ...more
ZzZzZz ...more

I’m going to do my best to avoid spoilers in this review, but a few minor ones might slip in.
First things first, this book (and I expect the rest of the series as well) is not for the faint of heart. I got misled by the cover and thought it was a young-adult book until certain sex toys were mentioned. That got me wondering… until a little bit of full castration was thrown in along with other less desirable practices; be warned this is no YA book. Many parts I found downright disturbing and that ...more
First things first, this book (and I expect the rest of the series as well) is not for the faint of heart. I got misled by the cover and thought it was a young-adult book until certain sex toys were mentioned. That got me wondering… until a little bit of full castration was thrown in along with other less desirable practices; be warned this is no YA book. Many parts I found downright disturbing and that ...more

May 02, 2009
Glitterfairy
rated it
did not like it
Recommends it for:
anyone who likes self-indulgent fantasy-trash a la Twilight
Shelves:
fantasy
Read this if you like self-indulgent, "oh how cute I want to be her" type books where the beautiful young heroine is surrounded by males who want to take care of her. Bad things happen of course, so she needs lots of rescuing. Lots and lots of rescuing. Conversely, if you prefer well-written fantasy, go for something else - Jennifer Fallon or even Anne Rice, if you like.
There is some 'darkness' in this book, but it's clumsily executed. Again, if you want real bleak darkness go read Robin Hobb's ...more
There is some 'darkness' in this book, but it's clumsily executed. Again, if you want real bleak darkness go read Robin Hobb's ...more

If you are just perusing the comments wondering whether or not give this book a chance, take this fair warning: Every review of one star (and below) is true and well deserved.
A rare occurrence: I DID NOT finish this book (something that happens once in a blue moon) and I most sincerely advise you not to even start it. Life is too short to waste it on such a pitiable example of scribomania. There are far too many good books out there just waiting for you Dear Reader; the only good use of the Dau ...more
A rare occurrence: I DID NOT finish this book (something that happens once in a blue moon) and I most sincerely advise you not to even start it. Life is too short to waste it on such a pitiable example of scribomania. There are far too many good books out there just waiting for you Dear Reader; the only good use of the Dau ...more

Feb 19, 2010
Regina
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Fantasy and Urban Fantasy Fans.
4.75 stars. This book completely engrossed me -- I didn't want to do anything else but finish it. The beginning 10% is difficult to get through, alot of world building, keeping names straight, figuring out the magic power structure and the polictics. But after I got past that, I was just blown away. Gritty fantasy? This is it -- I hadn't known such a thing to exist before! This book is not for people bothered by violence, sexual violence or sexual deviance. This is a world where those in power u
...more


The Others is one of my favorite fantasy series. I've been meaning to read the Black Jewels but for lack of time, I couldn't do it until now.
The one thing I love about the Daughter of the Blood is the 4 main characters.
We have a young girl, Jaenelle who has magical powers who can become the most powerful Witch. She is innocent and has been able to make many friends in different realms. She is not aware of how much power she has, so she does things her own way. Jumping from region to another ...more
topics | posts | views | last activity | |
---|---|---|---|---|
What's the Name o...: SOLVED. Succubus/incubus named daemon promised to an angelique, power levels in colours of diamonds. [s] | 5 | 12 | Sep 30, 2020 12:34PM | |
Fantasy Buddy Reads: Daughter of the Blood [Feb 3, 2020] | 41 | 33 | Feb 14, 2020 11:01AM | |
The Challenge Fac...: Ezi & ~Melissa~ - Daughter of the Blood | 14 | 19 | Feb 12, 2020 07:17PM | |
'Namesake' | 12 | 131 | Apr 07, 2016 08:45AM | |
What's the Name o...: SOLVED. Romance? A (young?) woman escapes somewhere where she was being experimented on (?) in wintertime and finds safety in dangerous compound [s] | 6 | 94 | Aug 21, 2015 12:24PM |
Anne Bishop lives in upstate New York where she enjoys gardening, music, and writing dark, romantic stories. She is the author of over twenty novels, including the award-winning Black Jewels Trilogy. She has written a new series, the Others, which is an urban dark fantasy with a bit of a twist.
Crawford Award (2000)
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this na ...more
Crawford Award (2000)
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this na ...more
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The Black Jewels
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