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Blood of the Goddess #2
Bijapur
A microcosmos of India assembles in two competing caravans to seek the Blood of the Goddess, among them Thomas Chinnery, English prisoner of the Portuguese Inquisition. The Goddess is reputed to live near Bijapur, and so the two parties make their way there--to be united inextricably by the hospitable and wily Sultan Ibrahim of Bijapur. Prophecies, Sufi mysticism, herb lore, and legends (or are they histories?) gild this exotic historical novel. Kara Dalkey's storytelling is masterfully paced, dark and light, grief and hope, mundane and magical. It is well worth waiting for Volume Three and what promises to be a mesmerizingly suspenseful conclusion.
- GenresFantasyFictionHistorical
292 pages
First published April 1, 1997
3 people are currently reading
64 people want to read
About the author
Kara Dalkey
44 books90 followersKara Mia Dalkey is an American author of young adult fiction and historical fantasy. She was born in Los Angeles and has lived in Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, Colorado, and Seattle. Much of her fiction is set in the Heian period of Japan.
She was married to author John Barnes; they divorced in 2001. She is a member of the Pre-Joycean Fellowship and of the Scribblies. She is a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Design and Marketing in Los Angeles.
She is also a musician and has gigged extensively on electric bass (which she plays left-handed) and harmony vocals, with such bands as Runestone, the Albany Free Traders, and Nate Bucklin and the Ensemble (in Minnesota) and Relic and Voodoo Blue (in Seattle.) At different times she has also played drums, banjo and acoustic guitar. She is a songwriter, but her total output is low, and consequently no CD or other album is presently in the works.
She was married to author John Barnes; they divorced in 2001. She is a member of the Pre-Joycean Fellowship and of the Scribblies. She is a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Design and Marketing in Los Angeles.
She is also a musician and has gigged extensively on electric bass (which she plays left-handed) and harmony vocals, with such bands as Runestone, the Albany Free Traders, and Nate Bucklin and the Ensemble (in Minnesota) and Relic and Voodoo Blue (in Seattle.) At different times she has also played drums, banjo and acoustic guitar. She is a songwriter, but her total output is low, and consequently no CD or other album is presently in the works.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
January 29, 2021
After quite a number of years I just reread “Bijapur” by Kara Dalkey. I last read it in the late 90’s, along with the first book in the trilogy, “Goa” but then, coincidentally, moved to India before I caught up with the final book. Now that I finally got hold of the final book, I’m rereading the first two because it’s been so long since I first read them I had to refresh my memory of where the story was at.
This book follows Thomas Chinnery in a caravan of other Portuguese Catholics from the Goa colony and some Indian merchants as they travel to Bijapur on their quest to find the Rasa Mahadevi, or “blood of the Goddess,” a magical powder that kills the living and restores life to the dead. Thomas wants to bring the powder home to England, or barring that, escape from the Portuguese and find a way home alive, while the priest in charge of the Portuguese wants to destroy it, believing it’s evil and caused the corruption of the Catholic priests in charge of the Inquisition in Goa.
It also follows the Mirza Ali Akbarash, a trusted general of the Mughal emporer, Akbar from the north who is also on a quest for the Rasa Mahadevi. He’s joined by his trusty lieutenant and a traveling Sufi mystic, along with his small army. His goal is to get the Rasa Mahadevi in order to supercharge the Mughal armies for greater conquest.
The two parties converge on Bijapur, where the ruler, a minor king who is more interested in art, music and culture than war wants to manipulate the two groups and get them out of his hair.
Overall it’s an enjoyable book, a good adventure. I appreciate it more now than I did when I first read it, having spent a decade living in India, being more familiar with the people and geography of India.
Dalkey does write one nice, but short sex scene in this book, though disappointingly it’s between two of the secondary characters, without involving either of the main ones.
Having finished this, now I’m caught up and ready to tackle the third and final book of the trilogy that I haven’t ever read before.
This book follows Thomas Chinnery in a caravan of other Portuguese Catholics from the Goa colony and some Indian merchants as they travel to Bijapur on their quest to find the Rasa Mahadevi, or “blood of the Goddess,” a magical powder that kills the living and restores life to the dead. Thomas wants to bring the powder home to England, or barring that, escape from the Portuguese and find a way home alive, while the priest in charge of the Portuguese wants to destroy it, believing it’s evil and caused the corruption of the Catholic priests in charge of the Inquisition in Goa.
It also follows the Mirza Ali Akbarash, a trusted general of the Mughal emporer, Akbar from the north who is also on a quest for the Rasa Mahadevi. He’s joined by his trusty lieutenant and a traveling Sufi mystic, along with his small army. His goal is to get the Rasa Mahadevi in order to supercharge the Mughal armies for greater conquest.
The two parties converge on Bijapur, where the ruler, a minor king who is more interested in art, music and culture than war wants to manipulate the two groups and get them out of his hair.
Overall it’s an enjoyable book, a good adventure. I appreciate it more now than I did when I first read it, having spent a decade living in India, being more familiar with the people and geography of India.
Dalkey does write one nice, but short sex scene in this book, though disappointingly it’s between two of the secondary characters, without involving either of the main ones.
Having finished this, now I’m caught up and ready to tackle the third and final book of the trilogy that I haven’t ever read before.
June 2, 2016
I think I liked this book better than the first book in the series, but mostly because it didn't include the Inquisition as much. I have a hard time even reading about torture and religious extremism. The characters in this aren't amazingly entertaining, but they seem real. The writing is fine but not blowing me away. I do love the historical/period environment and intrigue though and we've (my wife and I) now invested the time to read two books in the series, so we'll be reading the third (and final) book once we pickup a copy.
November 3, 2015
Dalkey's specialty is the exploration of intentions and desires. The first book in this series, Goa, is much better; this one is certainly a pretty read but suffers middle-book syndrome, and while it manages the character exploration Dalkey does so well, it lacks the critical insights I have loved to discover in other things she's written.
September 2, 2016
The first book in this series was good but this was even better. I can't wait to finish the series by reading the last book.
A great plot line, an interesting mix of characters and good descriptions of the setting make this series stand out.
A great plot line, an interesting mix of characters and good descriptions of the setting make this series stand out.
February 7, 2013
Depois de um empolgante 1º volume, este perde muito do entusiasmo...
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews