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Psalms of Herod #1

Psalms of Herod

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In the wake of an eco-catastrophe, civilization has risen again in a form at once familiar and horrific.It is an age that has elevated Herod's Slaughter of the Innocents into a sacrament, justifying hideous death with the blessings of a twisted faith. All life is sacred until it is born.A woman's place is to submit, to obey. A woman's place is to give over her newborn for exposure on a hillside if the child is flawed in any way, even if it sborn the wrong sex. A woman's place is not to decide these things.One woman, Becca of Wiseways Stead, will not accept her place. Becca's desire for change forces her to ultimately confront her vision of herself as she was raised. But thought she is name a vessel of miracles by Gilber Livvy of the hidden tribes, will the secret she carries by miracle enough to redeem a world?

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First published December 12, 1991

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About the author

Esther M. Friesner

265 books709 followers
Esther M. Friesner was educated at Vassar College, where she completed B.A's in both Spanish and Drama. She went to on to Yale University; within five years she was awarded an M.A. and Ph.D. in Spanish. She taught Spanish at Yale for a number of years before going on to become a full-time author of fantasy and science fiction. She has published twenty-seven novels so far; her most recent titles include Temping Fate from Penguin-Puffin and Nobody's Princess from Random House.

Her short fiction and poetry have appeared in Asimov's, Fantasy & Science Fiction, Aboriginal SF, Pulphouse Magazine, Amazing, and Fantasy Book, as well as in numerous anthologies. Her story, "Love's Eldritch Ichor," was featured in the 1990 World Fantasy Convention book.

Her first stint as an anthology editor was Alien Pregnant By Elvis, a collection of truly gonzo original tabloid SF for DAW books. Wisely, she undertook this project with the able collaboration of Martin H. Greenberg. Not having learned their lesson, they have also co-edited the Chicks In Chainmail Amazon comedy anthology series for Baen Books, as well as Blood Muse, an anthology of vampire stories for Donald I Fine, Inc.

"Ask Auntie Esther" was her regular etiquette and advice column to the SFlorn in Pulphouse Magazine. Being paid for telling other people how to run their lives sounds like a pretty good deal to her.

Ms. Friesner won the Nebula Award for Best Short Story of 1995 for her work, "Death and the Librarian," and the Nebula for Best Short Story of 1996 for "A Birth Day." (A Birth Day" was also a 1996 Hugo Award finalist.) Her novelette, "Jesus at the Bat" was on the final Nebula ballot in the same year that "Death and the Librarian" won the award. In addition, she has won the Romantic Times award for Best New Fantasy Writer in 1986 and the Skylark Award in 1994. Her short story, "All Vows," took second place in the Asimov's SF Magazine Readers' Poll for 1993 and was a finalist for the Nebula in 1994. Her Star Trek: Deep Space Nine novel, Warchild, made the USA TODAY bestseller list.

She lives in Connecticut with her husband, two children, two rambunctious cats, and a fluctuating population of hamsters.

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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
Profile Image for Ashley.
19 reviews3 followers
June 25, 2013
I like a good post-apocalyptic book. Sometimes the author tells you about the event, sometimes they don't. In this case the author does not except vaguely mentioning it in characters' rambling thoughts. All we know is that there was an Eco-disaster, from the description on the back of the book. In this book society is organized by "Steads," "Granges" and "The City." A stead is lead by an Alph, always a male, who is allowed as many wives as he chooses with whom he begets as many children as he so desires. Women are subservient to their Alph and in all areas take second place to males. Women are mainly breeders whose sole purpose is to serve men and produce children. The book gets a little freaky when the author starts talking about Harvest Home, a rite celebrating a girl's transition to becoming a women. All the young, nubile girls are gathered into the back of a covered wagon and taken by the Stead's Alph to the Grange, which seems to be a community that produces raw materials for the Steads and possibly Cities. The girls perform a dance intended to arouse the male audience. After all the girls have danced they are thrown into the streets of the grange with the men where, when approached by a man, they have to do whatever he asks and cannot turn him down. If he chooses to rape her then it's the girls fault, even given the fact that she cannot turn him down. This is also an opportunity for the girls to find husbands. A man can approach a women and ask her to marry him, after she's performed her duty of course. That's the basis for the book. The book centers around Becca who was born to Alph Paul of Stead Wiserways. She is clever and smart and strong for a women of the stead. The book follows her journey from Stead to Harvest Home and her escape upon returning to the Stead after a series of unfortunate events. I have tried to find a description of this book on Goodreads and Amazon and everything is vague and ambiguous. It's an interesting read. There is a second book called The Sword of Mary. I am looking forward to reading that and seeing what happens to Becca.
Profile Image for Felix Zilich.
471 reviews63 followers
August 8, 2012
Безмятежна и тиха жизнь в пост-апокалиптической деревне. Мужчины целыми днями работают в поле, женщины – растят детей, готовят стряпню, убираются по дому, стирают грязные тряпки. Раз в год крестьяне со всех хуторов собираются и едут в ближайшее Поместье, где проходит праздник в честь Окончания Жатвы. Здесь молодухи находят себе будущих мужей, а будущие мужья бьются друг с другом на ринге, демонстрируя свои силу и удаль.

И все было бы буколично, пасторально и пафосно, если бы это не был гребаный пост-апокалипсис. Никто не помнит причины Голодных Лет, у некоторых на фермах еще есть в заначке револьверы и рабочие сеялки (или что-то типа того), но человеческое общество изменилось до неузнаваемости, откатившись в доисторические времена. На каждом хуторе есть свой альфа-самец. Он – вожак, лидер и патриарх. Он – единственный, кто имеет право заводить детей и трахать всех женщин подряд. Остальные мужчины вынуждены терпеть, подчиняться, ждать своего шанса, чтобы бросить вызов на поединок и оспорить место альфы. Но целибата здесь тоже нет, целибат - это грех. Каждую женщину учат с малых лет “благодарить” мужчин - Поцелуем или Жестом (минет или просто подрочить). Каждый мужчина может потребовать в любой момент с незамужней (то есть не-альфовской) самочки немедленную “благодарность”.

Что из себя представляет праздник Завершения Жатвы. Всех мужчин и незамужних женщин загоняют на ночь в специальный квартал, все выходы из которого перекрыты баррикадами. В течении этой ночи женщины должны удоволетворить каждого мужчину, потребующего Поцелуй или Жест.

Про еблю разговор не идет, потому что с еблей в этом мире очень и очень сложно. Человеческая физиология необратимо изменилась, поэтому женщины доступны к вагинальному проникновению только пару месяцев в году. В остальное время половой акт крайне опасен для жизни. По этой причине изнасилование – это почти стопроцентная смерть. Настоящий феминистский пафос.

Признаться, я до конца не понял всех этих фишек. Например, для меня осталось непонятно, где кончается биология и начинается традиция. Дело в том, что книга написана очень невинно, без “чернухи”. В духе классической английской литературы – Теккерея, Гарди. Дрочки много, но она умело скрыта за скромными христианскими формулировками. Да, именно так. Наш буколический пост-апокалиптический рай весь насквозь христианский, хотя христианство там весьма странное и извращенное. Главная фигура для поклонения – не Христос и не Дева Мария, а Царь Ирод, хотя это и вполне логично. Просто я забыл вам рассказать, что в рамках контроля за рождаемостью хуторяне убивают младенцев, принося их в жертву на ближайшем поминальном холме. То есть на каждом хуторе должно быть определенное количество мужчин и женщин, и если любимая жена альфы понесла нового ребенка, то альфе вынужден пойти и забить насмерть кого-нибудь ненужного.

Как я уже говорил, обстоятельства, по которым погибла наша цивилизация, писательница не называет, благо они её и не особо волнуют. Для феминистки Фриснер куда интереснее показать тот сексистский свинарник, который по её мнению обязательно возникнет на руинах нашей культуры. Кухня, кирха, киндеры и один бесконечный минет на всю жизнь. Правда, на мой взгляд, быть мужчиной в мире “Псалмов” куда более херово, но писательницу, опять же, это не особо интересует.

Положительных мужских персонажей в книге всего трое. Точнее, не положительных, а персонажей, которым сочувствуешь. Старый альфа, предательский убитый главным злодеем романа. Парнишка-пидорок, которого долбил в жопу сводный брат. И бродячий сентиментальный жид, который приютил главную героиню (евреев в мире христианского пост-апокалипсиса, мягко говоря, не любят).

Забыл рассказать про главную героиню. Её зовут Бекка и она только вступила в пору девичьей ебабельности. Одна из самых ярких сцен книги – ночь её первого праздника Завершения Жатвы. Но, подобно героине любой феминистской книги, Бекка не намерена становиться свиноматкой, она мечтает быть травницей. И не в родном хуторе Праведный Путь, а в далеком и загадочном Городе, где, наверное, не убивают детей и где живёт сбежавший с хутора её брат.

Роман Эстер Фриснер пролежала у меня на полке 15 лет. Пару месяцев назад я даже собирался от него избавиться, решив, что никогда уже не возьму его в руки. Но в пятом туре “барсумской рулетки” судьба распорядилась иначе. Прочитал, много и ядовито издевался, но вчера сломался и заказал себе сиквел. Такие дела.
Profile Image for H. Anne Stoj.
Author 1 book22 followers
June 16, 2007
I first read this about fifteen years ago or so. Some of the images, I realize now, stuck with me and I never really knew until I re-read this as I finally got ahold of the sequel.

Friesner creates a really well thought out world where civilization fell, turned a bit into ash, and then rose up again much changed from what life had been like before whatever environmental nonsense happened. She never says what that was and I'm hoping to get a better idea in the second novel, but I'm not particularly sure that will happen. It's more my own interest rather than some flaw.

Like Atwood's Year of the Flood the chapters begin with hymns or snippets of the new scripture that's followed. It's a very divided society where women have been thrown back into a far more submissive role than what we have now. Multiple wives are the norm. There's a whole lot on what men and women have in terms of mysteries with the men tending to crops and the like while women give birth and tend to homemaking.

What I liked extremely was her narrative voice. A very rollicking rural sort of cant that didn't just fall from the characters' mouth, but was the language of the entire novel. However, like most things, there's always a term that drives me up the wall. "Any road" has joined my dislike pile of overused phrases. Overall, I don't have a problem with words like that, just when they feel forced into being there.

Definitely worth the read if one can find a copy.
Profile Image for Amanda.
174 reviews13 followers
April 12, 2011
I got about halfway through. It was totally different from what I thought it would be, and not in a good way. I stopped when it just got too disturbing.
224 reviews
September 19, 2011
Very unusual book, but fascinating! Futuristic, science fiction, the redevelopment of a world after a catastrophic event. I couldn't put it down. Some gruesome events, so not for everyone.
Profile Image for Tom.
16 reviews
October 7, 2012
From what I've learned, not much like Friesner's other works. It exciting and infuriating. A great read.
Author 2 books2 followers
July 14, 2025
This held up, on my 4th or so reading. It reminds me of Handmaid's Tale, with a more religion-gone-mad focus. I'm curious what inspired this book and its sequel, being so unlike Friesner's other work. It's rare to see a series that an author wasn't trying to stretch into a full career. There's no padding here, she takes two books to tell a unique story.
Even things that would usually make me drop my rating or stop reading altogether serve a purpose here. The constant talk of lore, and the superstitious reactions all the characters have toward it, does become grating; but for once that's the point. Becca is suffocated by all of it, and as the reader I could feel that frustration. It gave me flashbacks to my own frustrations growing up. In short, effective writing.
Yes, I recommend this one for those who don't describe themselves as squeamish. There's some ugly stuff in this book. Newspapers have been worse, and at least here it's couched in a lot of new but plausible euphemisms.
Profile Image for Laurianne.
29 reviews
January 21, 2025
I can't say it was a nice reading. It was cruel, sad and dark, but I liked it all the same.
I was really puzzled at the beginning. It's really hard to understand what's going on, how the world works, and so on, but I stayed for Becca and did not regret it. It's fascinating to see her struggling with how she was raised and what she thinks.
These days, this book feels real and scary. I'm looking forward to reading the second book.
Profile Image for Zoreslava Ninovska.
313 reviews
May 9, 2022
Тяжелая для женщины проза. Антиутопия, и это много объясняет. Книга читается в напряжении до конца, но оставляет ощущение незавершенности. Так что, основной посыл: что это было? Страшно, муторно в описанном новом мире, и мораль неясна именно потому, что автор множество сюжетных линий до конца не довела.
Profile Image for Paul Kane.
16 reviews2 followers
January 23, 2019
read this a long time ago, in the 1990s i think. it has stuck in my brain, so it did something right....
3 reviews
March 14, 2025
I loved this when I read it in middle school. Looking back it's not s well written as I thought!
Profile Image for Rachel Brown.
Author 18 books171 followers
July 27, 2012
This is a feminist dystopia, a genre which has thankfully become less popular of late, but was relatively common up to about fifteen years ago. (And seems to be making a mini-resurgence in YA.) I’m not saying that it’s a bad genre. Many examples are good. But they are nearly universally awesomely depressing, often with additional bonus random depressingness slapped on to an already inherently depressing set-up, and if you read too many of them in a row, you will get the impression that the future is wall-to-wall rape, broken up by cannibalism, oppressive religion, slavery, and sex with horses.

I read a bunch of them because at that time it was more-or-less possible to read all the sf that was published that year or at least was available where I was, and I did. They did not make me feel like the future was anything to look forward to.

On to Esther “Chicks in Chainmail” Friesner’s cannibal apocalypse rape gang book!



These books were part of a fictional rape trend, especially in fantasy. If a female character had a dark secret, it would inevitably turn out to be rape. Even today, especially in TV and movies, a female character’s dark secret is typically rape. (If it isn’t, it’s probably child abuse or a Secret Baby.)

Why all the rape? In some novels, it's a lazy shortcut to trauma: what else bad could possibly happen to a woman other than something sexual? In a few, it's pure exploitation. But in the feminist dystopias, and in many other books, the thought behind seemed neither lazy nor sleazy. These writers are clearly deeply concerned about sexism. The ultimate expression of sexism is rape, so if you're writing a book about sexism... The problem, or one of the problems, is that while the intent of the books individuallly is to say that rape is bad, considered as a group, if practically every fantasy you read with a heroine has her getting raped, what tends to come across was that rape is inevitable.

I am a hard sell on fictional depictions of rape, but a soft sell on fictional depictions of trauma and healing. I’m less bothered by rape when that’s a large part of what the character’s journey is about than when it’s just lurking in the background or is a large part of what the setting is about.

One person’s deeply felt exploration of trauma and recovery is another person’s trashy exploitation, of course. But there is a place for rape in fiction so long as it exists in real life. That being said, I am rather relieved that I haven't read much written after about 1995 in which the apocalypse inevitably results in state-sanctioned rape, state-mandated rape, rape festivals, or roving rape gangs.
Profile Image for Laura.
1,936 reviews27 followers
November 22, 2016
I never quite know what to expect from an Esther Friesner book. Some of her books have been huge hits with me. Others, well, not so much.

I think part of the problem is that I immediately began to make comparisons to The Handmaid's Tale and The Gate to Women's Country. This book suffered in comparison. The two books I mentioned had many themes to pick apart. This one only seemed to have one, or maybe two, themes: the dangers of the misquoted holy book and humans are evil in survival situations. Okay, I could come up with another: Bad laws twist lawful men into monsters.

Rather than reading as a strong feminist dystopian novel, this read more as a survival adventure book so I was disappointed. However, that didn't stop me from ordering a copy of the next book The Sword of Mary.
Profile Image for Trunatrschild.
158 reviews15 followers
September 5, 2009
Dark and depressing, can sort of be compared with Atwood's "Handmaid's Tale" with what can happen in the future with Christianity changed in a very negative manner. I've read this book and "The Sword of Mary" several times, but it's not a series to read if you're a bit depressed.
I really like it... can't recommend it higher, but only to certain people who can read that sort of thing and not go out and try to get Christianity wiped off the face of the Earth.
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