What do you think?
Rate this book
Kashran Cycle #1
A Whisper of Wings
"A Whisper of Wings" chronicles a time of spiritual crisis in the lives of a non-human race of hunter/gatherers known as the Kashra. As disaster looms over their stagnant and calcified culture, two Messiahs arise -- each one pure in their vision, yet tragically opposed. War and terror, hope and love, power and majesty vie in a conflict that will tear a people asunder and remake them again in the fires of conflict.
356 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 1997
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 26, 2025
It could’ve been great. The first part was interesting and suspenseful! I couldn’t put it down because the characters were so endearing. The world made sense and the injustice both sisters faced put me on their side!
Honestly the book was on track right up until midway, where it got confused and never found its way back to the point. What was really going on never quite came into the light.
The first half does a good job establishing Serpent and Zhukora as an evil force, while at the same time showing us that their cause is worth fighting for. It’s disturbing because you know Serpent and Zhukora are evil…but they’re right. It’s a just cause and the ruthless way they go about it is appropriate, but something doesn’t seem right. Watching Zhukora’s power grow kept me reading because the people love her. The way she exacts her revolution is perfect, evil, yet somehow you know she’s on the side of right. How can she be evil and right at the same time? She gathers followers, takes their minds, rapes the land…all because she loves the people and they love her. It really is scary to watch these dynamics unfold.
The second half, however, wastes too much time with Kotaru in a story of mistaken identity that goes nowhere when it should’ve been building up Shadarri’s side the same way it built up Zhukora’s! Shadarri should’ve been gathering followers, taking their minds, filling them with love while silently enslaving them in the name of a worthy and just cause of her own. She should’ve been conquering entire regions with her healing and peace, spreading what appeared to be the way of good and light. Instead Shadarii wastes a lot of time healing things and trying to invent a system of writing. She should’ve been doing exactly what her sister was doing—gathering followers to mindlessly follow her vision—her way to end the oppression—conquering villages, massing followers who love her and whom she loves in return. It almost establishes that she is like a vampire taking happiness and using it to make people do whatever she wants. It should’ve shown that, like Zhukora, her dream and methods were apparently good but just as evil at the same time. But the book never shows it. Barely explains it.
There are lines that imply Starshine is supposed to be seen as an evil force, but there’s no evidence to support this, and without it the point of the book is lost. Shadarri casting out both Serpent and Starshine doesn’t make any sense. It vaguely tries to imply why the Kashra lived apart for so long, why the rigid social order was instated and why violence was forbidden. All of this was deep down in there, but it never comes across.
Here’s what I think the book was trying to show: both Shadarri/Starshine and Zhukora/Serpent feed off the people’s minds. Both conquer in the name of a good cause. Both perform miracles. Serpent wants to fight and kill for freedom, while Starshine wants to love and heal to win the people’s trust and get them to do anything she wants. Serpent feeds off the free will of the people, and it’s (almost) implied that Starshine does the same. When you look at it, both Shadarri and Zhukora were fighting for the same thing, and while their methods were opposite, they achieved the same thing and both were equally destructive. Serpent encouraged the people to fight for their freedom. Serpent’s future would’ve been conquest and savage fighting, followed by mindless dedication to the greater good. Starshine’s future would’ve kept the people docile and thoughtless to maintain the peace—the old social order would’ve been reestablished along with the wealthy nobility and the repressed commoners.
Two different sides of the same evil.
From what I think I understand, here’s what the conclusion wanted to be: Mrrimimei needed to be the one to tell Shadarri all of this. She is the one who notices the parallel between Shadarri and her sister (and it’s really the only time we hear or see any similarity between Starshine and Serpent). Shadarri needed to finally see and hear what her sister was fighting for. Somewhere they both realize that they’re fighting for the same thing and they’ve been misled to believe they’re the one fighting on the side of justice. Both spirits are evil forces using whole armies of loyal, loving followers to fight their petty rivalry for them. No matter who wins, the Kashra lose. In the end they realize what they must do. They both must be destroyed.
Now if these parallels had been in the book they might’ve led the reader to understand that both sisters were evil! As it is, we see Serpent’s methods but not Starshine’s, whose personality is (very) briefly explained rather than built up. We don’t get to see Shadarii gathering followers just like her sister did. There is no odd dynamic of Shadarii being on the side of right…yet using methods to achieve her dream that are suspiciously evil. The parallel is not actually in the book—although it tried to be.
The final confrontation didn’t pull them together and make this revelation clear. It could’ve addressed a theme: what exactly is good, and what is evil? How does one tell the difference? Really, anything done out of love does not seem evil, and that was supposed to be the point of the whole book. Shadarri and Zhukora were not doing anything evil in their eyes. Their cause was just, and their actions to achieve their respective dreams seemed justified. There was no hate. They loved their followers, and their followers loved them. They both even loved their enemies! The book wanted to be about how evil deeds can have just causes, how vile actions are often done out of love, not hate, and therefore seem good. So if they’re interchangeable, what is the difference?
But the why behind the what never came across as strongly as it should have. I got all of that from trying to make sense of everything. None of it was actually in the book, and without these parallels nothing made sense. In the end it is another almost. It was almost great. Almost clear. Almost. Just like The Sight, Animist and The Blood Jaguar, the book came just short of being completely cohesive. So close! So very close!
The book makes a lot of mention of nude females. They bathe in pools a lot, dance naked, fight naked, go topless on the beach; the sun/moon highlights their slender, virgin curves, etc. Not that it was overly distracting (it actually seemed appropriate), but there is a limit. I noticed that the males didn’t dance naked, fight nude, or take nearly as many baths as the females. Hmmm… As a nitpicking side note, Terri Smith’s artwork did help me picture these creatures, but I agree with the Amazon reviewers. They’re too sexy and clean to match the mood of the chapters they depict. Cute pinups where there should’ve been savage vistas of blood-soaked fields. At times they mocked the story.
I should mention the homosexual love between Zhukora and Daimïru. It really was tasteful and I felt for these two. I understood a little bit of what was going on: Daimiru couldn’t love Zhukora like she wanted, so she expressed her love by killing for her. I especially like the detail at the end where her tail rises while in battle as if in anticipation of sexual pleasure. It’s implied that killing for Zhukora is an orgasmic pleasure for Daimiru. It wasn’t sick or perverted; it made sense, and it was another reference to how evil when done out of love seems good and just. Their subplot could’ve been dramatic and touching, but sadly it was overdone with exuberant and often lame dialogue. It worked in Wuthering Heights, but it wasn’t enough here. If the point of the book had been clearer, the dramatic death of these two characters would’ve meant more. Noble, but it didn’t make it.
I have a feeling Paul Kidd took his time with the first half, but maybe got into deadline panic and left the second half in an early draft state. Or maybe he didn’t fully understand what was going on either, so he tried to tie it all together in the epilogue by explaining some things away. It wasn’t enough and it didn’t clear anything up. With another draft to clarify the point it could have been wonderful! Oh, God it actually hurts me to see a potentially great story settle for this. The story brought me to tears because I saw that it could have—should have—might have been great. It’s so sad it hurts.
So close it breaks my heart. Another noble and bold attempt that nearly succeeded, Whisper of Wings is half a book. What I would give for the second half to be just as clear. There was a point and a theme hidden somewhere in the misdirected paths these sisters took. If only it could’ve been just as visible as the heavy breasts and young, virgin curves.
Honestly the book was on track right up until midway, where it got confused and never found its way back to the point. What was really going on never quite came into the light.
The first half does a good job establishing Serpent and Zhukora as an evil force, while at the same time showing us that their cause is worth fighting for. It’s disturbing because you know Serpent and Zhukora are evil…but they’re right. It’s a just cause and the ruthless way they go about it is appropriate, but something doesn’t seem right. Watching Zhukora’s power grow kept me reading because the people love her. The way she exacts her revolution is perfect, evil, yet somehow you know she’s on the side of right. How can she be evil and right at the same time? She gathers followers, takes their minds, rapes the land…all because she loves the people and they love her. It really is scary to watch these dynamics unfold.
The second half, however, wastes too much time with Kotaru in a story of mistaken identity that goes nowhere when it should’ve been building up Shadarri’s side the same way it built up Zhukora’s! Shadarri should’ve been gathering followers, taking their minds, filling them with love while silently enslaving them in the name of a worthy and just cause of her own. She should’ve been conquering entire regions with her healing and peace, spreading what appeared to be the way of good and light. Instead Shadarii wastes a lot of time healing things and trying to invent a system of writing. She should’ve been doing exactly what her sister was doing—gathering followers to mindlessly follow her vision—her way to end the oppression—conquering villages, massing followers who love her and whom she loves in return. It almost establishes that she is like a vampire taking happiness and using it to make people do whatever she wants. It should’ve shown that, like Zhukora, her dream and methods were apparently good but just as evil at the same time. But the book never shows it. Barely explains it.
There are lines that imply Starshine is supposed to be seen as an evil force, but there’s no evidence to support this, and without it the point of the book is lost. Shadarri casting out both Serpent and Starshine doesn’t make any sense. It vaguely tries to imply why the Kashra lived apart for so long, why the rigid social order was instated and why violence was forbidden. All of this was deep down in there, but it never comes across.
Here’s what I think the book was trying to show: both Shadarri/Starshine and Zhukora/Serpent feed off the people’s minds. Both conquer in the name of a good cause. Both perform miracles. Serpent wants to fight and kill for freedom, while Starshine wants to love and heal to win the people’s trust and get them to do anything she wants. Serpent feeds off the free will of the people, and it’s (almost) implied that Starshine does the same. When you look at it, both Shadarri and Zhukora were fighting for the same thing, and while their methods were opposite, they achieved the same thing and both were equally destructive. Serpent encouraged the people to fight for their freedom. Serpent’s future would’ve been conquest and savage fighting, followed by mindless dedication to the greater good. Starshine’s future would’ve kept the people docile and thoughtless to maintain the peace—the old social order would’ve been reestablished along with the wealthy nobility and the repressed commoners.
Two different sides of the same evil.
From what I think I understand, here’s what the conclusion wanted to be: Mrrimimei needed to be the one to tell Shadarri all of this. She is the one who notices the parallel between Shadarri and her sister (and it’s really the only time we hear or see any similarity between Starshine and Serpent). Shadarri needed to finally see and hear what her sister was fighting for. Somewhere they both realize that they’re fighting for the same thing and they’ve been misled to believe they’re the one fighting on the side of justice. Both spirits are evil forces using whole armies of loyal, loving followers to fight their petty rivalry for them. No matter who wins, the Kashra lose. In the end they realize what they must do. They both must be destroyed.
Now if these parallels had been in the book they might’ve led the reader to understand that both sisters were evil! As it is, we see Serpent’s methods but not Starshine’s, whose personality is (very) briefly explained rather than built up. We don’t get to see Shadarii gathering followers just like her sister did. There is no odd dynamic of Shadarii being on the side of right…yet using methods to achieve her dream that are suspiciously evil. The parallel is not actually in the book—although it tried to be.
The final confrontation didn’t pull them together and make this revelation clear. It could’ve addressed a theme: what exactly is good, and what is evil? How does one tell the difference? Really, anything done out of love does not seem evil, and that was supposed to be the point of the whole book. Shadarri and Zhukora were not doing anything evil in their eyes. Their cause was just, and their actions to achieve their respective dreams seemed justified. There was no hate. They loved their followers, and their followers loved them. They both even loved their enemies! The book wanted to be about how evil deeds can have just causes, how vile actions are often done out of love, not hate, and therefore seem good. So if they’re interchangeable, what is the difference?
But the why behind the what never came across as strongly as it should have. I got all of that from trying to make sense of everything. None of it was actually in the book, and without these parallels nothing made sense. In the end it is another almost. It was almost great. Almost clear. Almost. Just like The Sight, Animist and The Blood Jaguar, the book came just short of being completely cohesive. So close! So very close!
The book makes a lot of mention of nude females. They bathe in pools a lot, dance naked, fight naked, go topless on the beach; the sun/moon highlights their slender, virgin curves, etc. Not that it was overly distracting (it actually seemed appropriate), but there is a limit. I noticed that the males didn’t dance naked, fight nude, or take nearly as many baths as the females. Hmmm… As a nitpicking side note, Terri Smith’s artwork did help me picture these creatures, but I agree with the Amazon reviewers. They’re too sexy and clean to match the mood of the chapters they depict. Cute pinups where there should’ve been savage vistas of blood-soaked fields. At times they mocked the story.
I should mention the homosexual love between Zhukora and Daimïru. It really was tasteful and I felt for these two. I understood a little bit of what was going on: Daimiru couldn’t love Zhukora like she wanted, so she expressed her love by killing for her. I especially like the detail at the end where her tail rises while in battle as if in anticipation of sexual pleasure. It’s implied that killing for Zhukora is an orgasmic pleasure for Daimiru. It wasn’t sick or perverted; it made sense, and it was another reference to how evil when done out of love seems good and just. Their subplot could’ve been dramatic and touching, but sadly it was overdone with exuberant and often lame dialogue. It worked in Wuthering Heights, but it wasn’t enough here. If the point of the book had been clearer, the dramatic death of these two characters would’ve meant more. Noble, but it didn’t make it.
I have a feeling Paul Kidd took his time with the first half, but maybe got into deadline panic and left the second half in an early draft state. Or maybe he didn’t fully understand what was going on either, so he tried to tie it all together in the epilogue by explaining some things away. It wasn’t enough and it didn’t clear anything up. With another draft to clarify the point it could have been wonderful! Oh, God it actually hurts me to see a potentially great story settle for this. The story brought me to tears because I saw that it could have—should have—might have been great. It’s so sad it hurts.
So close it breaks my heart. Another noble and bold attempt that nearly succeeded, Whisper of Wings is half a book. What I would give for the second half to be just as clear. There was a point and a theme hidden somewhere in the misdirected paths these sisters took. If only it could’ve been just as visible as the heavy breasts and young, virgin curves.
June 30, 2015
This is, to be honest, like no book I have ever read and it is also the most Furry-esque published novel I have found. Unlike most of the anthropromorphic animal genre, it is dark and gritty and obviously intended for an adult audience. It is also a most compelling and engrossing read, with a similar feel to two of my favourite things - ElfQuest and Princess Mononoke.
Set in Australia, the dominant sentient race are a species of anthopromorphic foxes with butterfly wings and antennae, known as the "kashra" - indeed, this is book one of the Kashran Cycle, but I am happy to note (especially since the other books don't seem to yet exist) it is a story in itself and comes to a satisfying conclusion. The two main characters are sisters, but very different in personality and appearance. There is Zhukora, the huntress, black of fur and blue of wing and fierce and ambitious of nature contrasted with the gentle, and mute, Shadarii, lover of life and the dance. For centuries the Kashran have followed a simple way of life - a hunter/gatherer cycle, but that is all about to change. The forest is dying, food is getting scarce and Zhukora unwittingly awakens a spirit that will change their world forever.
One of the successes of this epic story is that you grow attached both the antagonist and protagonist. It is a tragic, and spiritual tale and I would whole-heartedly suggest that anyone who calls themselves a "Furry" should make an effort to read it. Seriously, I cannot understand how after four years in the fandom it has only recently been drawn to my attention. For non-furries, however, don't be fooled - this is not Redwall - it is a lot more grim, more sexual and much less formulaic.
It is also illustrated by Terrie Smith, with a black and white picture in almost every chapter (including several pictures of different tribes at the back) and a colour one on front and back covers. I, personally, am not a huge Terrie Smith fan and think some of the pictures are fairly basic, but I am aware she is very popular. Although, as someone pointed out in the Amazon reviews, her pictures are a little too cute and pin-up for the general atmosphere of the story and you can almost imagine the heaving bosoms.
June 28, 2008
Yep, I read it. And I enjoyed it. Not a great book by any means; a fan-fiction-y story - though with a slightly better than fan-fiction level of writing - and WAY too many footnotes (come on Paul, that’s just lazy. Terry Pratchet only gets away with that because HIS footnotes are always funny), it was also pretty, and tragic, and fantastical, and pretty, and romantic, and sweet, and pretty. Did I mention that it was pretty? Terrie Smith’s illustrations were pretty too.
August 3, 2012
This is another great book by Paul Kidd. The characters are very fleshed out and memorable, and evolve significantly as the story progresses. If you're familiar with his work then this should feel familiar, although it is a considerably sadder story than his usual fare. There were plenty of times through the story that I honestly didn't know who (if anyone) was going to make it to the end. A great book for fans of fantasy and/or anthropomorphic settings.
June 19, 2020
Read this in middle school, I reread it every now and again. There's a love story, a war story, some lovable characters... idk, it's foxes with butterfly wings with a class and anti-imperialist narratives, so.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews