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Romances of Arquitaine #1
The Hedgewitch Queen
"Vianne di Rocancheil has been largely content to play the gawky provincial. As lady in waiting at the Court of Arquitaine, she studies her books, watches for intrigue, and shepherds her foolhardy Princesse safely through the glittering whirl. Court is a sometimes-unpleasant waltz, especially for the unwary, but Vianne treads its measured steps well.
Unfortunately, the dance has changed. Treachery is afoot in gilded and velvet halls. A sorcerous conspiracy is unleashed, with blood, death, and warfare close behind. Her Princesse murdered and her own life in jeopardy, Vianne must flee, carrying the fate of her land with her -- the Great Seal of Arquitaine, awake after its long sleep. Invasion threatens, civil war looms, and the conspiracy hunts for Vianne di Rocancheil, to kill or to use her against all she holds dear.
A life of dances, intrigues, and fashion has not prepared her for this. Nor has it prepared her for Tristan d'Arcenne, Captain of the King's Guard and player in the most dangerous games conspiracy can devise. Yet to save her country and avenge her Princesse, Vianne will become what she must, say what she should, and do whatever is required.
A Queen can do no less.
Unfortunately, the dance has changed. Treachery is afoot in gilded and velvet halls. A sorcerous conspiracy is unleashed, with blood, death, and warfare close behind. Her Princesse murdered and her own life in jeopardy, Vianne must flee, carrying the fate of her land with her -- the Great Seal of Arquitaine, awake after its long sleep. Invasion threatens, civil war looms, and the conspiracy hunts for Vianne di Rocancheil, to kill or to use her against all she holds dear.
A life of dances, intrigues, and fashion has not prepared her for this. Nor has it prepared her for Tristan d'Arcenne, Captain of the King's Guard and player in the most dangerous games conspiracy can devise. Yet to save her country and avenge her Princesse, Vianne will become what she must, say what she should, and do whatever is required.
A Queen can do no less.
496 pages, Paperback
First published December 1, 2011
52 people are currently reading
2866 people want to read
About the author
Lilith Saintcrow
132 books4,512 followersLilith Saintcrow was born in New Mexico, bounced around the world as a child, and fell in love with writing stories when she was ten years old. She and her library co-habitate in Vancouver, Washington.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 233 reviews
April 17, 2012
I almost want to erase this book completely from my memory, but it did make me laugh out loud a few times. So I guess there's that. Honestly, it started out fine, exciting murder plots, capable heroine, interesting characters. But for some reason as soon as they step out of the palace, or should I say 'palais' (The bizarre bastardized French almost drove me to the point of madness.) Vianne the main character is no longer a likable hero at all. She wanders around being oblivious of the fact that the super, sexy, amazing,awesome, wonderful, perfect, but with a shady past (le gasp!)Captain of the guard is totally in love with her. (Actually we find out he has been literally stalking her for YEARS and she never noticed him lurking constantly outside her window because she is...special.)
She spends the first few chapters alternating between being dense about the complete lack of relationship that they have, and wanting to run away from her new duties as heir apparent. Because even though the king has just been brutally murdered and the culprit is now ruling the kingdom, she just doesn't feel like being a Queen, okay?! When she's not doing that she is getting romantically feverish and her hair is constantly being slightly sexily mussed from fever dreams. I felt like she was 'feverish and sick' a thousand times during the book, but I think it was only 3 or 4. MORE THAN ENOUGH.
Eventually our intrepid heroine(?) finds a very Robin Hood-Esque gang of bandits along with their families. We have one scene where the matriarch of the village takes her on a walk and explains how shitty the old kings rule was and why all of these people are destitute, I think we talk about tax men also being rapists, it's very sad. Fortunately this village is BURNED TO THE FUCKING GROUND and Vianne is able to completely forget about it. I mean, she's sad, but this is no time to talk of changing laws and helping the citizens. There are men to swoon over. I have no idea why we bothered to point out the plight of the peasants if we were never going to talk about it again.
Vianne's highly trained and super dangerous Queen's guard manages to lose her during the raid on the bandit village and so she wanders through the mountains until she comes upon a gypsy camp (THANK GOD THERE WAS A THIRD PARTY NEARBY TO SAVE HER.) who take her where she needs to go as long as she's somewhat useful. You'd think this might be her chance to grow as a character, or at least describe her hands becoming calloused from work or some shit, but no. We get a brief description of the Gypsy lifestyle and customs and oh yeah, enough time has passed for her to learn the language. Wham. Done. Time passed, mission accomplished. It was like 4 pages on my kindle screen. With large print. Nothing learned.
Vianne finds her way back to the captain of the guard and decides yeah, sure, why not, seems like a nice guy, let's get married. The day after their wedding she asks him if she thinks they will still be friends after he gets bored of her in the sack. Seriously. A marriage built to last. Even though Vianne proposed to HIM, she realizes their is something suspicious about him, but the sex is great so she doesn't question it.
There is a 'big twist!' at the end that failed to wow me completely. A good half, no more than half of this book was internal dithering about whether or not she was in love with her perfect guard, and *blush* does he really like me back?! Is he mad at me?! Oh no!? I cannot express with human words how much I would like to leap into the book and throttle the main characters. Both of them.
If you enjoy sanity, stay away from this book.
She spends the first few chapters alternating between being dense about the complete lack of relationship that they have, and wanting to run away from her new duties as heir apparent. Because even though the king has just been brutally murdered and the culprit is now ruling the kingdom, she just doesn't feel like being a Queen, okay?! When she's not doing that she is getting romantically feverish and her hair is constantly being slightly sexily mussed from fever dreams. I felt like she was 'feverish and sick' a thousand times during the book, but I think it was only 3 or 4. MORE THAN ENOUGH.
Eventually our intrepid heroine(?) finds a very Robin Hood-Esque gang of bandits along with their families. We have one scene where the matriarch of the village takes her on a walk and explains how shitty the old kings rule was and why all of these people are destitute, I think we talk about tax men also being rapists, it's very sad. Fortunately this village is BURNED TO THE FUCKING GROUND and Vianne is able to completely forget about it. I mean, she's sad, but this is no time to talk of changing laws and helping the citizens. There are men to swoon over. I have no idea why we bothered to point out the plight of the peasants if we were never going to talk about it again.
Vianne's highly trained and super dangerous Queen's guard manages to lose her during the raid on the bandit village and so she wanders through the mountains until she comes upon a gypsy camp (THANK GOD THERE WAS A THIRD PARTY NEARBY TO SAVE HER.) who take her where she needs to go as long as she's somewhat useful. You'd think this might be her chance to grow as a character, or at least describe her hands becoming calloused from work or some shit, but no. We get a brief description of the Gypsy lifestyle and customs and oh yeah, enough time has passed for her to learn the language. Wham. Done. Time passed, mission accomplished. It was like 4 pages on my kindle screen. With large print. Nothing learned.
Vianne finds her way back to the captain of the guard and decides yeah, sure, why not, seems like a nice guy, let's get married. The day after their wedding she asks him if she thinks they will still be friends after he gets bored of her in the sack. Seriously. A marriage built to last. Even though Vianne proposed to HIM, she realizes their is something suspicious about him, but the sex is great so she doesn't question it.
There is a 'big twist!' at the end that failed to wow me completely. A good half, no more than half of this book was internal dithering about whether or not she was in love with her perfect guard, and *blush* does he really like me back?! Is he mad at me?! Oh no!? I cannot express with human words how much I would like to leap into the book and throttle the main characters. Both of them.
If you enjoy sanity, stay away from this book.
December 13, 2011
OKAY. So I read this author religiously, and was particularly excited about this book, the description was SUPER yummy. I enjoyed the book on several levels, the setting was interesting, a classic fairy tale land. The heroine was a bit wallow-y for my taste but whatever. My primary problem was the following (and please say if you agree with me):
I swear to God, it's so WEIRD how this author's men are so emotionally retarded, and then she treats them SO BADLY. Having read like 15 books by her it's a crazy pattern I see, there is such a lack of tenderness, it always feels like the ladies are dealing with some wild animal that then turns on them.
I will always read her books, but it was just so weird to draw parallels between this hero and the one from the Dante Valentine series (who is AMAZING btw, one of my top heroes). I always just have the impulse to pull the dudes out of her book so they won't get abused, hahaha.
Anyway, maybe I'm crazy. I'll be picking up the next book in the duology when it comes out because she does have an awesome unique voice.
I swear to God, it's so WEIRD how this author's men are so emotionally retarded, and then she treats them SO BADLY. Having read like 15 books by her it's a crazy pattern I see, there is such a lack of tenderness, it always feels like the ladies are dealing with some wild animal that then turns on them.
I will always read her books, but it was just so weird to draw parallels between this hero and the one from the Dante Valentine series (who is AMAZING btw, one of my top heroes). I always just have the impulse to pull the dudes out of her book so they won't get abused, hahaha.
Anyway, maybe I'm crazy. I'll be picking up the next book in the duology when it comes out because she does have an awesome unique voice.
March 19, 2012
OK, Hedgewitch Queen, we are about to have some words.
i) Stop whining or I will cut you.
ii) That dude over there that you don't think is into you despite the fact that EVERYONE IN THE WORLD has told you he's into you? He's into you.
iii) I totally fail to understand why he's into you.
iv) If you are feeling sick, here is a thought -- let's try an Advil and a nap as opposed to ignoring your symptoms for 100 pages.
v) Have I mentioned yet that I totally don't get what your man friend sees in you?
vi) YES. You are REALLY the last legitimate heir. NO, it is not cool or responsible to run away with a Necessary and Sufficient to the Throne Magical Artifact.
vii) REALLY, Saintcrow? A Necessary and Sufficient to the Throne Magical Artifact? I hear good things about your writing in general, but that's just LAZY.
viii) And while we're on the subject, that's kind of my problem with this book in general: it's lazy, saccharine, and cliched.
ix) In other news, did you REALLY think you could just steal Jacqueline Carey's fantasy setting pretty much verbatim and none of us would notice?? That's ballsy, dude.
This book was fun to read in a trashy, Romance-novel-found-in-an-airport-bathrooom-and-I-had-to-Lysol-the-pages-but-I-read-it-anyway kind of a way. It was a good palate cleanser. But it was one degree from self-published fan-fiction and priced to match, and I would hate to see someone waste $2.99 on it without understanding what she was getting. If you have a bookclub at which you eat In N' Out, everyone including the dog plays Edward Fortyhands, and the group habitually chooses such memorable titles as "a suspiciously stained copy of Esquire magazine", then this would be an excellent pick.
x) Yes, Saintcrow, "she". I feel comfortable with my gendered pronoun because I have it on very good authority (people with penises) that no guy wishing to retain even a hint of manarmor would even so much as sneeze on the "Hedgewitch Queen".
i) Stop whining or I will cut you.
ii) That dude over there that you don't think is into you despite the fact that EVERYONE IN THE WORLD has told you he's into you? He's into you.
iii) I totally fail to understand why he's into you.
iv) If you are feeling sick, here is a thought -- let's try an Advil and a nap as opposed to ignoring your symptoms for 100 pages.
v) Have I mentioned yet that I totally don't get what your man friend sees in you?
vi) YES. You are REALLY the last legitimate heir. NO, it is not cool or responsible to run away with a Necessary and Sufficient to the Throne Magical Artifact.
vii) REALLY, Saintcrow? A Necessary and Sufficient to the Throne Magical Artifact? I hear good things about your writing in general, but that's just LAZY.
viii) And while we're on the subject, that's kind of my problem with this book in general: it's lazy, saccharine, and cliched.
ix) In other news, did you REALLY think you could just steal Jacqueline Carey's fantasy setting pretty much verbatim and none of us would notice?? That's ballsy, dude.
This book was fun to read in a trashy, Romance-novel-found-in-an-airport-bathrooom-and-I-had-to-Lysol-the-pages-but-I-read-it-anyway kind of a way. It was a good palate cleanser. But it was one degree from self-published fan-fiction and priced to match, and I would hate to see someone waste $2.99 on it without understanding what she was getting. If you have a bookclub at which you eat In N' Out, everyone including the dog plays Edward Fortyhands, and the group habitually chooses such memorable titles as "a suspiciously stained copy of Esquire magazine", then this would be an excellent pick.
x) Yes, Saintcrow, "she". I feel comfortable with my gendered pronoun because I have it on very good authority (people with penises) that no guy wishing to retain even a hint of manarmor would even so much as sneeze on the "Hedgewitch Queen".
June 26, 2012
I really wanted this to be the next thing after Crown Duel, in terms of story style, characters, romance, and fantasy world. And on the surface, THE HEDGEWITCH QUEEN certainly seems promising in all those fields: Vianne is a humble minor noble lady who gets tangled up in the political court intrigue of a magical world that takes its inspiration heavily from a bastardized version of France and the French language. There's the strong and silent love interest who believes in the heroine long before she believes in herself. Doesn't that just remind you of Crown Duel and all that goodness?
Alas, the similarities end there. Vianne is no Meliara. I didn't get far into the story before Vianne was tripping over herself in an effort to prove herself to be the most tearful, pathetic, and un-self-confident female in all of Bastardized France. Vianne suffers from that literary syndrome I suppose I shall have to give a name to from here on out: the Anti-Histrionic Female Character Syndrome, in which the female MC goes out of her way to convince readers that she is worthless, plain, boring, uninteresting, by virtue of her lowly status, ordinary looks, absolute lack of character, (lack of intelligence), etc. Far from gaining my readerly sympathies, these females simply goad my ire. For this syndrome is wish fulfillment; it's trying to say that females don't have to actively improve themselves mentally, intellectually, or emotionally--because, of course, the hot guy loves them just the passive and pathetic way they are!
The way in which Vianne and Tristan d'Arcenne interacted simply made me feel tired. Everything they said to each other was riddled with misunderstandings--misunderstandings that didn't seem to be necessary to the main plot but rather only served to further the romantic intrigue. What's so romantic or intriguing about constant misunderstandings brought about by Vianne's lack of self-confidence, may I ask? Yeah... that's what I thought.
In the end, my lack of feelings for either of the main characters led to this being a DNF for me. I give Lilith Saintcrow props for trying, but the blandness, patheticness of the main characters could not hold my attention for the duration of the story.
Alas, the similarities end there. Vianne is no Meliara. I didn't get far into the story before Vianne was tripping over herself in an effort to prove herself to be the most tearful, pathetic, and un-self-confident female in all of Bastardized France. Vianne suffers from that literary syndrome I suppose I shall have to give a name to from here on out: the Anti-Histrionic Female Character Syndrome, in which the female MC goes out of her way to convince readers that she is worthless, plain, boring, uninteresting, by virtue of her lowly status, ordinary looks, absolute lack of character, (lack of intelligence), etc. Far from gaining my readerly sympathies, these females simply goad my ire. For this syndrome is wish fulfillment; it's trying to say that females don't have to actively improve themselves mentally, intellectually, or emotionally--because, of course, the hot guy loves them just the passive and pathetic way they are!
The way in which Vianne and Tristan d'Arcenne interacted simply made me feel tired. Everything they said to each other was riddled with misunderstandings--misunderstandings that didn't seem to be necessary to the main plot but rather only served to further the romantic intrigue. What's so romantic or intriguing about constant misunderstandings brought about by Vianne's lack of self-confidence, may I ask? Yeah... that's what I thought.
In the end, my lack of feelings for either of the main characters led to this being a DNF for me. I give Lilith Saintcrow props for trying, but the blandness, patheticness of the main characters could not hold my attention for the duration of the story.
December 3, 2011
4.5 stars - Wow! What kind of ending was that?!?! I'm totally stunned. I can't say I didn't have my hesitation, but I had not seen that one coming WHEN it did. I thought I had about 10 more pages to read, but apparently, it was the acknowledgement and the preview for Book 2, which doesn't come out for another six months!
Setting my shock aside, I thought this was a pretty awesome book. I love how the first line had me hooked, and it didn't stop from there. There was action from the start, and even the potential romance hit it off pretty much right off the bat. The setting, murder and conspiracy, the takeover of an evil ruler, the escape and journeying through the land and the route to take back the kingdom - definitely right down my alley.
The language was a bit brutal (it wasn't just formal Victorian or royalty speak, but it had a mix of French origin and also some made up words and concepts that were awkwardly put together) especially during the R'mini scenes, and it took me a while to go through, but not something I would hold against the book, given its setting.
Vianne is a bit of a ninny - her words, not mine - but instead of being irritated, I was rather amused that she was such a helpless dramatic damsel in distress. Even though I always love a girl that can kick butt, I hate the cliche guy teaching girl to defend herself if it's not written right, and I'm glad the concept wasn't forced into this book because I don't think it would have worked. But I like how her character grew to be the strong character she later became but still not losing her femininity. I'll save my words about other characters for later since I don't want to throw any hints out.
Setting my shock aside, I thought this was a pretty awesome book. I love how the first line had me hooked, and it didn't stop from there. There was action from the start, and even the potential romance hit it off pretty much right off the bat. The setting, murder and conspiracy, the takeover of an evil ruler, the escape and journeying through the land and the route to take back the kingdom - definitely right down my alley.
The language was a bit brutal (it wasn't just formal Victorian or royalty speak, but it had a mix of French origin and also some made up words and concepts that were awkwardly put together) especially during the R'mini scenes, and it took me a while to go through, but not something I would hold against the book, given its setting.
Vianne is a bit of a ninny - her words, not mine - but instead of being irritated, I was rather amused that she was such a helpless dramatic damsel in distress. Even though I always love a girl that can kick butt, I hate the cliche guy teaching girl to defend herself if it's not written right, and I'm glad the concept wasn't forced into this book because I don't think it would have worked. But I like how her character grew to be the strong character she later became but still not losing her femininity. I'll save my words about other characters for later since I don't want to throw any hints out.
July 22, 2013
Rating: 4.5 out of 5.
Lilith Saintcrow’s character and world building has always been my favourite. From my first read of Dante Valentine and the UF world she created to this fantasy duology, I am still quite impressed by her. She creates not only the worlds, but also other little nuances (such as new words, different countries, new objects and so forth) that make for a richer setting but that many authors do not employ.
So in this novel, I was equally if not more impressed with her setting and description, than I was at first.
Now for the characters. It is a beautiful love story. The story of a lady waiting on the Princess’s and the King’s Left Hand, Assasin, you name it. Add in a conspiracy that wreathes through several layers, whose mystery is not even fully founded by the end of the book.
Having said that, I think I got too used to this author’s naturally born strong heroines, because Vianne was in the beginning a bit too weak for my tastes. She was brave but she thought too much and twisted herself in circles. Nevertheless, Lilith Saintcrow does a great job of transforming a court lady interested only in books and hedge-witchery to a strong, independent, regal Queen by the end of the book. I couldn’t explain how proud I was of Vianne by the end of the book. She is exactly as a leader should be, strong when needed, but also loving.
Anyway, the ending blew me away. No not the ending even, but the glimpse of the first two pages of the next book: The Bandit King… I am so glad I already have the next book purchased and waiting for me on my kindle. So now I shall be off to read it!
Lilith Saintcrow’s character and world building has always been my favourite. From my first read of Dante Valentine and the UF world she created to this fantasy duology, I am still quite impressed by her. She creates not only the worlds, but also other little nuances (such as new words, different countries, new objects and so forth) that make for a richer setting but that many authors do not employ.
So in this novel, I was equally if not more impressed with her setting and description, than I was at first.
Now for the characters. It is a beautiful love story. The story of a lady waiting on the Princess’s and the King’s Left Hand, Assasin, you name it. Add in a conspiracy that wreathes through several layers, whose mystery is not even fully founded by the end of the book.
Having said that, I think I got too used to this author’s naturally born strong heroines, because Vianne was in the beginning a bit too weak for my tastes. She was brave but she thought too much and twisted herself in circles. Nevertheless, Lilith Saintcrow does a great job of transforming a court lady interested only in books and hedge-witchery to a strong, independent, regal Queen by the end of the book. I couldn’t explain how proud I was of Vianne by the end of the book. She is exactly as a leader should be, strong when needed, but also loving.
Anyway, the ending blew me away. No not the ending even, but the glimpse of the first two pages of the next book: The Bandit King… I am so glad I already have the next book purchased and waiting for me on my kindle. So now I shall be off to read it!
March 29, 2012
Also Found On: A Book and A Record
The Hedgewitch Queen was…well, it was. There were a lot of things about The Hedgewitch Queen that I liked, and a lot that – fell short of what I wanted to happen. Let’s start with the bad news and work our way towards the good stuff. First, this was long. Exponentially long, and slower than molasses. There were a lot of scenes that I kept thinking, “couldn’t that have been cut out?” Although I felt as though the book was original, the ideas and the love story were both pretty gripping, but I found myself stumbling over certain words, a lot of words in Hedgewitch are in some sort of French that I couldn’t really understand, I got the jist because of context, however I felt like they were overused. And again, the ending was a cliffhanger, after an extremely slow paced book there comes this big old blam of cliff hangeryness that I hated. After all of that un-needed fluff and stuff I was thrown a cliff hanger. No, no thank you.
Tristan, however, Tristan was someone that I could latch on to, where Vianne seems to do a lot of stupid things, Tristan remains (seemingly) levelheaded throughout the entire book, although I think my opinion of him will change. I would recommend this book with a warning, although I found it to be satisfying, a well thought out historical action/adventure/romance it will take a while to read.
The Hedgewitch Queen was…well, it was. There were a lot of things about The Hedgewitch Queen that I liked, and a lot that – fell short of what I wanted to happen. Let’s start with the bad news and work our way towards the good stuff. First, this was long. Exponentially long, and slower than molasses. There were a lot of scenes that I kept thinking, “couldn’t that have been cut out?” Although I felt as though the book was original, the ideas and the love story were both pretty gripping, but I found myself stumbling over certain words, a lot of words in Hedgewitch are in some sort of French that I couldn’t really understand, I got the jist because of context, however I felt like they were overused. And again, the ending was a cliffhanger, after an extremely slow paced book there comes this big old blam of cliff hangeryness that I hated. After all of that un-needed fluff and stuff I was thrown a cliff hanger. No, no thank you.
Tristan, however, Tristan was someone that I could latch on to, where Vianne seems to do a lot of stupid things, Tristan remains (seemingly) levelheaded throughout the entire book, although I think my opinion of him will change. I would recommend this book with a warning, although I found it to be satisfying, a well thought out historical action/adventure/romance it will take a while to read.
October 3, 2024
First off, love LOVE the dedication: “For Mel Sanders, with saddles and waterclosets.”
Also, such a great opening “If not for a muddy skirt, I would have been dead like all the rest.” The line hooks you, while also giving a premonition of things to come. Throughout the book, the telling the story from a point of more knowledge is an intriguing one, and it is difficult to do well. Saintcrow has a knack.
I also love the main character, Viane. That’s an important thing here, especially as I don’t normally gravitate towards historical fiction (the fantasy part helps though). She is smart and strong without being overdone and unrealistic. She gets sick. She has nightmares. She cries. These things do not make her any less of a woman.
The love interest, Tristan, was not particularly interesting to me. Rather insta love. To be honest, I was rooting for SEVERAL OTHER PEOPLE to become the love interest instead.
I feel like there are many loose ends that I am hoping the next book resolves.
Also, such a great opening “If not for a muddy skirt, I would have been dead like all the rest.” The line hooks you, while also giving a premonition of things to come. Throughout the book, the telling the story from a point of more knowledge is an intriguing one, and it is difficult to do well. Saintcrow has a knack.
I also love the main character, Viane. That’s an important thing here, especially as I don’t normally gravitate towards historical fiction (the fantasy part helps though). She is smart and strong without being overdone and unrealistic. She gets sick. She has nightmares. She cries. These things do not make her any less of a woman.
The love interest, Tristan, was not particularly interesting to me. Rather insta love. To be honest, I was rooting for SEVERAL OTHER PEOPLE to become the love interest instead.
I feel like there are many loose ends that I am hoping the next book resolves.
March 28, 2016
God help the people of Arquitaine. Between a bloodthirsty, murderous usurper for the throne and the utterly spineless protagonist, Vianne, I'm not really sure who the better choice would be.
Okay, let's back up. I've been reading more ebooks on my phone before sleeping lately, as it's easier for me to fall asleep holding a phone than a printed book. So, this popped up in my "suggested for you" feed on Kobo, and I figured, "Hey, why not give this a shot? It's only $3, so there's not much lost if I hate it." Boy, was I wrong. I actually lost a lot of time that I'd like back, with interest.
So, Vianne di Something-Something Rochaneil Vintmorecy is a noble lady of minor distinction in the royal court of Arquitaine, her main point of influence being her position as the lady in waiting to the heir of the kingdom. When not half-learning hedgewitchery (a level of magic-wielding not dissimilar to the lesser magic wielded by witches and lesser sorcerers in Earthsea, apparently), she carefully navigates the murky waters of intrigue, gossip, and position-jostling, generally doing a fine job of shielding the princess from those who'd seek to harm her. That is, until a serious conspiracy gains traction in the court and leads to the murder of the current king, the princess, and almost all of those loyal to them. I mostly enjoyed this section of the story - it certainly grabbed my attention, and it was also one of the only points in the novel that Vianne demonstrated any strength of will or critical thought.
From that point, it's basically one long, exhausting downhill slog. Perhaps I should have turned back when, with her dying breath, the princess bequeaths to Vianne the Dominion Jewel - I mean, the Aryx - a seal of immense importance to Arquitaine. In fact, this pendant will only awaken and answer to one it recognizes as someone worthy and of royal blood...namely, Vianne. Nice. Or, maybe the true indication I should've walked away from this one was the painting of Vianne as a stunningly-gorgeous-but-insists-she's-plain type (believe me, I almost quit there; I wish I had).
It's not necessarily the fact that Saintcrow used the Amulet of Concentrated Awesome trope; it's more that Vianne gets it and loses agency in the process. For god's sake, it becomes fused with her flesh at one point in the novel as a defense against her removing it. So, instead of her taking matters into her own hands and trying to learn more about the powers and dangers of said amulet, she tries to avoid thinking about it until the next disaster strikes - then, she uses it and falls deathly ill as a result.
That brings me to another thing that bugged me about this novel. There were several excruciatingly long sections of the story where Vianne was indisposed with extreme illness. I've read and enjoyed novels with chronically ill protagonists or primary characters before, but when handled with grace, it's not a monotonous Sisyphean battle to read, which is exactly how it felt in this tale. It seemed that each time Vianne recovered somewhat, she was once again stricken with a vague, feverish illness. I half-expected a lengthy monologue from her about the woes of being continuously struck with the vapors.
The odd thing is this: it's expected and understandable for a character who is hurled into frightening, traumatic experiences to have some sort of emotional fallout and baggage as a result. Vianne is definitely put through the ringer throughout the plot. So, why was her reaction so terribly frustrating to read? I think it was that she told herself, over and over, to be strong and brave despite her fears, and she never actually followed through. Instead, some plot event or broody musing from the love interest would interrupt any sort of character development that could have happened. Actually, I think Vianne may have regressed as a character through 2/3 of the book, only regaining some gumption in the last 20 or so pages.
Now that I've curb-stomped Vianne into the dust, I want to tackle the most disgusting, annoying character of all: Tristan D'Arcenne, Captain of the Guard and Vianne's heartthrob. I guess I can only blame myself with this one, because I had a strong feeling from Chapter 1 that I would hate him:
Ah, nothing like having your brains rattled to induce romantic feeling. And that's not all! In fact, dear Tristan seems to have a bad habit of pushing Vianne around forcefully:
That last one was especially galling to me, since by that point their relationship was openly romantic in nature. When not shaking Vianne's brains out, he also likes to grab her roughly - to the point of bruising.
I pretty much loathe the guy, and I also loathe that his behavior is presented as romantic. It's not. It's utterly abusive douchebaggery, that's what. And for all his posturing and alpha-male-territory-marking behavior toward Vianne and pretense of "honor" and "oath-keeping," he doesn't seem to respect her or her choices all that much.
Ultimately, the two of them together was even weirder. While I could tell they were growing more physically comfortable with each other (mostly - they still flinched an awful lot around each other ), their relationship, to the very end, felt emotionally distant, even calculated, and lacking in genuine feeling and warmth. The lead-up to the airing of their feelings for each other is likewise odd, circuitous, and boring. Of course, since I hated Tristan's guts, I'm not nearly as mad about their odd romantic compatibility or lack thereof; I was far more put-off by the idea of him as a romantic (anti-)hero at all.
I haven't even addressed how much I hated the bastardized fantasy-French language used in the novel. It wasn't that a fabricated language was used - that, in itself, I have no problem with. It was the constant needless insertion of (italicized, of course) words like m'dama, donjon, farrat, d'mselle, vilhain, ansinthe, and one I particularly hated, m'chri. Let's not even get into some of the character names. It didn't really read as creative, just annoying and amateurish.
Now that I've complained bitterly about nearly everything I could manage to complain about within a character limit, I'll leave you with a quote that perfectly encapsulates the tone of this novel:
Okay, let's back up. I've been reading more ebooks on my phone before sleeping lately, as it's easier for me to fall asleep holding a phone than a printed book. So, this popped up in my "suggested for you" feed on Kobo, and I figured, "Hey, why not give this a shot? It's only $3, so there's not much lost if I hate it." Boy, was I wrong. I actually lost a lot of time that I'd like back, with interest.
So, Vianne di Something-Something Rochaneil Vintmorecy is a noble lady of minor distinction in the royal court of Arquitaine, her main point of influence being her position as the lady in waiting to the heir of the kingdom. When not half-learning hedgewitchery (a level of magic-wielding not dissimilar to the lesser magic wielded by witches and lesser sorcerers in Earthsea, apparently), she carefully navigates the murky waters of intrigue, gossip, and position-jostling, generally doing a fine job of shielding the princess from those who'd seek to harm her. That is, until a serious conspiracy gains traction in the court and leads to the murder of the current king, the princess, and almost all of those loyal to them. I mostly enjoyed this section of the story - it certainly grabbed my attention, and it was also one of the only points in the novel that Vianne demonstrated any strength of will or critical thought.
From that point, it's basically one long, exhausting downhill slog. Perhaps I should have turned back when, with her dying breath, the princess bequeaths to Vianne the Dominion Jewel - I mean, the Aryx - a seal of immense importance to Arquitaine. In fact, this pendant will only awaken and answer to one it recognizes as someone worthy and of royal blood...namely, Vianne. Nice. Or, maybe the true indication I should've walked away from this one was the painting of Vianne as a stunningly-gorgeous-but-insists-she's-plain type (believe me, I almost quit there; I wish I had).
It's not necessarily the fact that Saintcrow used the Amulet of Concentrated Awesome trope; it's more that Vianne gets it and loses agency in the process. For god's sake, it becomes fused with her flesh at one point in the novel as a defense against her removing it. So, instead of her taking matters into her own hands and trying to learn more about the powers and dangers of said amulet, she tries to avoid thinking about it until the next disaster strikes - then, she uses it and falls deathly ill as a result.
That brings me to another thing that bugged me about this novel. There were several excruciatingly long sections of the story where Vianne was indisposed with extreme illness. I've read and enjoyed novels with chronically ill protagonists or primary characters before, but when handled with grace, it's not a monotonous Sisyphean battle to read, which is exactly how it felt in this tale. It seemed that each time Vianne recovered somewhat, she was once again stricken with a vague, feverish illness. I half-expected a lengthy monologue from her about the woes of being continuously struck with the vapors.
The odd thing is this: it's expected and understandable for a character who is hurled into frightening, traumatic experiences to have some sort of emotional fallout and baggage as a result. Vianne is definitely put through the ringer throughout the plot. So, why was her reaction so terribly frustrating to read? I think it was that she told herself, over and over, to be strong and brave despite her fears, and she never actually followed through. Instead, some plot event or broody musing from the love interest would interrupt any sort of character development that could have happened. Actually, I think Vianne may have regressed as a character through 2/3 of the book, only regaining some gumption in the last 20 or so pages.
Now that I've curb-stomped Vianne into the dust, I want to tackle the most disgusting, annoying character of all: Tristan D'Arcenne, Captain of the Guard and Vianne's heartthrob. I guess I can only blame myself with this one, because I had a strong feeling from Chapter 1 that I would hate him:
He swore again, and did another passing-strange thing. He shook me so hard my head spun, then leaned forward and pressed his lips to my forehead.
Ah, nothing like having your brains rattled to induce romantic feeling. And that's not all! In fact, dear Tristan seems to have a bad habit of pushing Vianne around forcefully:
When he rounded on me, blue eyes flashing, I almost lost my footing. But he had my shoulders instead of my elbow, and he shook me, once, as he had in the passageway two days - or a lifetime - ago.
D'Arcenne shook me once again, so sharply I flinched.
He grabbed my shoulders, hauled me out of the chair, shook me twice, then crushed me to his chest, his swordhilt digging into my side.
That last one was especially galling to me, since by that point their relationship was openly romantic in nature. When not shaking Vianne's brains out, he also likes to grab her roughly - to the point of bruising.
I gasped, for D'Arcenne's hands tensed even more. I would be bruised both on knees and shoulders, come morning.
He whispered an oath that would normally have made me blanch, and pulled me forward into a rough embrace. I nearly cried out as my face crushed against his chest. He breathed another curse into my hair, as the hilt of his sword jabbed me in the shoulder and his belt made a clinking sound...his arms were bruising-tight.
I pretty much loathe the guy, and I also loathe that his behavior is presented as romantic. It's not. It's utterly abusive douchebaggery, that's what. And for all his posturing and alpha-male-territory-marking behavior toward Vianne and pretense of "honor" and "oath-keeping," he doesn't seem to respect her or her choices all that much.
Ultimately, the two of them together was even weirder. While I could tell they were growing more physically comfortable with each other (mostly - they still flinched an awful lot around each other ), their relationship, to the very end, felt emotionally distant, even calculated, and lacking in genuine feeling and warmth. The lead-up to the airing of their feelings for each other is likewise odd, circuitous, and boring. Of course, since I hated Tristan's guts, I'm not nearly as mad about their odd romantic compatibility or lack thereof; I was far more put-off by the idea of him as a romantic (anti-)hero at all.
I haven't even addressed how much I hated the bastardized fantasy-French language used in the novel. It wasn't that a fabricated language was used - that, in itself, I have no problem with. It was the constant needless insertion of (italicized, of course) words like m'dama, donjon, farrat, d'mselle, vilhain, ansinthe, and one I particularly hated, m'chri. Let's not even get into some of the character names. It didn't really read as creative, just annoying and amateurish.
Now that I've complained bitterly about nearly everything I could manage to complain about within a character limit, I'll leave you with a quote that perfectly encapsulates the tone of this novel:
For the love of every god that ever was, I thought, desperately, stop whining, Vianne!
July 27, 2012
It says something that I pushed my way through 250 pages of this book but was unable to garner enough interest to finish it. I did everything I could for four days to avoid picking it up - I cleaned my room, played endless bouts of Sims 3, baked a peach pie, and even went outside into the blazing heat to scrounge for tomatoes in our garden (I came up with two.. this drought is a killer).
This was a case of me being suckered in, again, by a beautiful cover and title. I've read Lilith Saintcrow's other series, and it was long enough ago that I figured I'd give her another shot - maybe I was just being too hard on her then? But a mere 50 pages into this story and it all came flooding back.
First, the italics. Oh, how they drive me crazy. Vianne says one thing, then elaborates on it in her head with a snarky, italicized voice that is ... somehow? supposed to encourage us to get to know her more. But this girl protests too much. I was driven crazy by her simpleness. No, Vianne, there really aren't any more heirs, no you cannot give this position away, yes, the King's Guard has to do some bad things to protect you... and my goodness, can you be any weaker in body and spirit?
And then there's Tristan, this flop of a "hero" who is tortured to pieces by Vianne. When did we decide that in order to make "strong" women in a book, men had to be emasculated? There was nothing enjoyable about this character - nothing at all.
I read some okay reviews after I put this book down, and some reviews that blasted this story. Each one of them makes very, very valid points about what all went wrong with The Hedgewitch Queen, and they even referenced a surprise ending... so I skipped ahead - thinking I wouldn't want to miss it. Trust me, it was something that made no difference to me. I still did not want to read the rest of the book.
Approach this one with caution. Be prepared to be thoroughly frustrated by Vianne and angry with the character of Tristan. I'm so upset that I wasted four days on this nonsense.
This was a case of me being suckered in, again, by a beautiful cover and title. I've read Lilith Saintcrow's other series, and it was long enough ago that I figured I'd give her another shot - maybe I was just being too hard on her then? But a mere 50 pages into this story and it all came flooding back.
First, the italics. Oh, how they drive me crazy. Vianne says one thing, then elaborates on it in her head with a snarky, italicized voice that is ... somehow? supposed to encourage us to get to know her more. But this girl protests too much. I was driven crazy by her simpleness. No, Vianne, there really aren't any more heirs, no you cannot give this position away, yes, the King's Guard has to do some bad things to protect you... and my goodness, can you be any weaker in body and spirit?
And then there's Tristan, this flop of a "hero" who is tortured to pieces by Vianne. When did we decide that in order to make "strong" women in a book, men had to be emasculated? There was nothing enjoyable about this character - nothing at all.
I read some okay reviews after I put this book down, and some reviews that blasted this story. Each one of them makes very, very valid points about what all went wrong with The Hedgewitch Queen, and they even referenced a surprise ending... so I skipped ahead - thinking I wouldn't want to miss it. Trust me, it was something that made no difference to me. I still did not want to read the rest of the book.
Approach this one with caution. Be prepared to be thoroughly frustrated by Vianne and angry with the character of Tristan. I'm so upset that I wasted four days on this nonsense.
December 28, 2011
You know I love Lili's writing, right? This year she managed to round up nicely two of her series - Jill Kismet and Strange Angels, so I'm eagerly awaiting what she'll come up with next.
I loved The Hedgewitch Queen for two reasons - it's a fantasy very much akin to Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder - dark enough, brutal enough with a strong female protagonist who presses all the right buttons for me :) Second reason is that despite being fantasy it's not too long, I've read it in few hours and was really shocked by how abruptly it ended. I want MORE and I want it NOW!
What did I like about Vianne? She is a medicine woman, a healer, so self-sacrificing is a must. She comes off as pretty weak in the beginning, but there are good reasons for it. She fight her destiny because she doesn't want people to die for her, and she cries and faints a lot because her body is totally wrecked with fever induced by enemy's sorcery.
As soon as our lady comes to terms with what she is and what needs to be done, she turns to be pragmatic, ruthless and Machiavellian enough so it's an absolute pleasure to read about her. She doesn't let men dictate her what to do and she goes with her instincts no matter what. You go, girl!
Tristan on the other hand is classic Valek, assassin of the previous King with his own agenda, he is dark, cold-blooded and pretty bloodthirsty. Vianne as far as I can see is his only weakness. That man will do anything for the girl, in fact he had a crash on her for years, but was too afraid to openly show his feelings.
Funnily enough despite all the men in Vianne's life she is the one who ends up saving everyone's ass over and over again. Classy. She really doesn't need all the knights in shining armour, and it filled me with glee to no end.
So yeah, not going into the plot itself so I won't give you any spoilers. All you need to know, - it's fast, pretty straightforward and quite realistic. This is no fairy tale.
I loved The Hedgewitch Queen for two reasons - it's a fantasy very much akin to Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder - dark enough, brutal enough with a strong female protagonist who presses all the right buttons for me :) Second reason is that despite being fantasy it's not too long, I've read it in few hours and was really shocked by how abruptly it ended. I want MORE and I want it NOW!
What did I like about Vianne? She is a medicine woman, a healer, so self-sacrificing is a must. She comes off as pretty weak in the beginning, but there are good reasons for it. She fight her destiny because she doesn't want people to die for her, and she cries and faints a lot because her body is totally wrecked with fever induced by enemy's sorcery.
As soon as our lady comes to terms with what she is and what needs to be done, she turns to be pragmatic, ruthless and Machiavellian enough so it's an absolute pleasure to read about her. She doesn't let men dictate her what to do and she goes with her instincts no matter what. You go, girl!
Tristan on the other hand is classic Valek, assassin of the previous King with his own agenda, he is dark, cold-blooded and pretty bloodthirsty. Vianne as far as I can see is his only weakness. That man will do anything for the girl, in fact he had a crash on her for years, but was too afraid to openly show his feelings.
Funnily enough despite all the men in Vianne's life she is the one who ends up saving everyone's ass over and over again. Classy. She really doesn't need all the knights in shining armour, and it filled me with glee to no end.
So yeah, not going into the plot itself so I won't give you any spoilers. All you need to know, - it's fast, pretty straightforward and quite realistic. This is no fairy tale.
August 17, 2023
My fluctuating opinions of this book, let me show you them.
On the one hand, I loved it. It had politics (sort of)! And a tough (mostly) believable heroine!
As you can see, it has qualifiers.
The politics were politic-y for the first chapter or two. And then we were just told that politics happened? I don't know, it felt like reading Crown Duel without its (much more interesting) sequel Court Duel. Tristan felt very much like Shevraeth/Vidanric. Vianne felt a lot like Mel without the bad temper.
And then Tristan turned out to be possibly evil. And I may have seen that coming, but more in a 'there are enough hints here for it to happen, and it would make this a much more interesting story if it did' way instead of my usual 'yeah, here's what's going to happen, don't try and be cute with me' way. It's possible that when I read the sequel I will do exactly what I did with Crown Duel upon finishing Court Duel - declare 'THIS IS AWESOME. GIVE ME MORE.' And hopefully Ms Saintcrow will comply, as Sherwood Smith did not see fit to do. You see, the world revolves around my reading taste. I know this for a fact, because I want to read more about white guys saving the world and the Fantasy/Sci-Fi genre has complied! (my sarcasm has hopefully been noted)
If you're confused as to why I seem to be reviewing three-ish books here, let me explain. The Hedgewitch Queen has a lot of potential. A hell of a lot of potential. I wanted this thing like a Hobbit wants elevensies the second I read the description. And I love Lilith Saintcrow's novels, especially Jill Kismet (Steelflower I loved but fell just short of the mark of awesome for reasons I cannot fully articulate. Possibly it's to do with the soulmate principle). Dante Valentine is pretty damn epic, too, and I need to take a gander at her earlier books because WOMEN. BEING WOMEN. AND STABBING THINGS. By which I mean that often authors, male and female, fall short of writing women as I have observed them my entire life, most especially myself. Many times authors think that writing a tough woman involves adding breasts and often upsetting and confusing messages about sexuality (on either side of the spectrum of NOT DOING IT RIGHT) to a man. And I would argue, normally, that I fully believe that a great deal of masculinity and femininity is a product of environment and socialization and all that jazz, but please assume that that argument (and the accompanying one about the marginalization of traditionally feminine traits) (and the one about how most authors write with the same sort of underlying societal structure that means they should deal with that baggage, dammit) has been made at length and in detail for the purposes of trying very hard to get to a point here. Lilith Saintcrow writes women. And gosh golly darn it, I would forgive her a fuckload more than an issue that boils down to me wanting more of something she's written just for that reason.
That paragraph got away from me there. Back to why I was discussing Sherwood Smith in a Lilith Saintcrow review.
Because it was incredibly similar, both in writing style, characters, and... not themes. What's the word I'm looking for here? Maybe structure? At a few points during the reading of this, I looked up and thought to myself, "Hunh, Sherwood Smith did something a little different there" only to remember that no, I was reading Lilith Saintcrow.
And I think that's my real problem with this book. For some, it may not be a problem, especially if you (as I do) like Sherwood Smith. But for me, it was jarring, and confusing, and somewhat irksome. (please excuse any and all fragments in this post; stream of consciousness ends in fragments and humorous or ragey run-ons for me more than I'd like)
ANYWAY. Moving away from the Sherwood Smith comparisons.
I loved that Vianne never forgot her Princesse. I loved that she was motivated more by her duty and love of a friend in the end than she was by her love interest. I loved that that love interest was mostly supportive in the end, and I loved even more that Vianne learned that she could live without that support if she needed to. I loved that she didn't want to. I loved Rhisaine, whose name I am probably butchering. I loved the Baroness (no, not THAT one). I loved, loved, LOVED that Ms Saintcrow seems to be going in the crazed love/obsession direction with Tristan, and I sincerely hope that if she really is it does not get watered down or made okay in the end. I loved more than that that Vianne came into her own on her own, and that she didn't fall into it but decided to do so.
4/5, for women who do stuff, more women who do stuff, interesting plot and character twists, and women who love other women. It will probably be made higher when the second one comes out.
Note from the present (but the future at the time this (older) review was written): It was not made higher. I am very upset.
On the one hand, I loved it. It had politics (sort of)! And a tough (mostly) believable heroine!
As you can see, it has qualifiers.
The politics were politic-y for the first chapter or two. And then we were just told that politics happened? I don't know, it felt like reading Crown Duel without its (much more interesting) sequel Court Duel. Tristan felt very much like Shevraeth/Vidanric. Vianne felt a lot like Mel without the bad temper.
And then Tristan turned out to be possibly evil. And I may have seen that coming, but more in a 'there are enough hints here for it to happen, and it would make this a much more interesting story if it did' way instead of my usual 'yeah, here's what's going to happen, don't try and be cute with me' way. It's possible that when I read the sequel I will do exactly what I did with Crown Duel upon finishing Court Duel - declare 'THIS IS AWESOME. GIVE ME MORE.' And hopefully Ms Saintcrow will comply, as Sherwood Smith did not see fit to do. You see, the world revolves around my reading taste. I know this for a fact, because I want to read more about white guys saving the world and the Fantasy/Sci-Fi genre has complied! (my sarcasm has hopefully been noted)
If you're confused as to why I seem to be reviewing three-ish books here, let me explain. The Hedgewitch Queen has a lot of potential. A hell of a lot of potential. I wanted this thing like a Hobbit wants elevensies the second I read the description. And I love Lilith Saintcrow's novels, especially Jill Kismet (Steelflower I loved but fell just short of the mark of awesome for reasons I cannot fully articulate. Possibly it's to do with the soulmate principle). Dante Valentine is pretty damn epic, too, and I need to take a gander at her earlier books because WOMEN. BEING WOMEN. AND STABBING THINGS. By which I mean that often authors, male and female, fall short of writing women as I have observed them my entire life, most especially myself. Many times authors think that writing a tough woman involves adding breasts and often upsetting and confusing messages about sexuality (on either side of the spectrum of NOT DOING IT RIGHT) to a man. And I would argue, normally, that I fully believe that a great deal of masculinity and femininity is a product of environment and socialization and all that jazz, but please assume that that argument (and the accompanying one about the marginalization of traditionally feminine traits) (and the one about how most authors write with the same sort of underlying societal structure that means they should deal with that baggage, dammit) has been made at length and in detail for the purposes of trying very hard to get to a point here. Lilith Saintcrow writes women. And gosh golly darn it, I would forgive her a fuckload more than an issue that boils down to me wanting more of something she's written just for that reason.
That paragraph got away from me there. Back to why I was discussing Sherwood Smith in a Lilith Saintcrow review.
Because it was incredibly similar, both in writing style, characters, and... not themes. What's the word I'm looking for here? Maybe structure? At a few points during the reading of this, I looked up and thought to myself, "Hunh, Sherwood Smith did something a little different there" only to remember that no, I was reading Lilith Saintcrow.
And I think that's my real problem with this book. For some, it may not be a problem, especially if you (as I do) like Sherwood Smith. But for me, it was jarring, and confusing, and somewhat irksome. (please excuse any and all fragments in this post; stream of consciousness ends in fragments and humorous or ragey run-ons for me more than I'd like)
ANYWAY. Moving away from the Sherwood Smith comparisons.
I loved that Vianne never forgot her Princesse. I loved that she was motivated more by her duty and love of a friend in the end than she was by her love interest. I loved that that love interest was mostly supportive in the end, and I loved even more that Vianne learned that she could live without that support if she needed to. I loved that she didn't want to. I loved Rhisaine, whose name I am probably butchering. I loved the Baroness (no, not THAT one). I loved, loved, LOVED that Ms Saintcrow seems to be going in the crazed love/obsession direction with Tristan, and I sincerely hope that if she really is it does not get watered down or made okay in the end. I loved more than that that Vianne came into her own on her own, and that she didn't fall into it but decided to do so.
4/5, for women who do stuff, more women who do stuff, interesting plot and character twists, and women who love other women. It will probably be made higher when the second one comes out.
Note from the present (but the future at the time this (older) review was written): It was not made higher. I am very upset.
February 22, 2012
I wanted to like it. Vianne was a good heroine -- neither too capable nor too incapable, and though the does he/doesn't he like me storyline was way too long, well, more than about one chapter is too long, and it was much shorter than many other books. The alt-France was fun, though some of the Frenchish vocabulary and spelling were intensely grating (especially the accents). The way magic worked was interesting. It had so much going for it.
And yet. The "shocking twist cliffhanger ending" was a shocking twist cliffhanger only if you've never read fantasy before. It was not so much foreshadowed as welcomed in with a 21 gun salute. The plot was so predictable I kept reading, sure I was going to be surprised somewhere because I couldn't believe that the story was going to follow the same lines and not do anything different at all. But it did, and for all that Vianne is likable and a good main character and for all that the world sketched out is a world that, if filled in, could be very interesting, I just don't care.
And yet. The "shocking twist cliffhanger ending" was a shocking twist cliffhanger only if you've never read fantasy before. It was not so much foreshadowed as welcomed in with a 21 gun salute. The plot was so predictable I kept reading, sure I was going to be surprised somewhere because I couldn't believe that the story was going to follow the same lines and not do anything different at all. But it did, and for all that Vianne is likable and a good main character and for all that the world sketched out is a world that, if filled in, could be very interesting, I just don't care.
January 3, 2012
I liked this a lot more than I had thought I would. I did have some problems with it but on the whole this was a very solid fantasy from Saintcrow. The worldbuilding was detailed, the pacing was fine - those are just details but what blew me away was what was revealed at the end. Hot damn. I think that alone pushed the second book on my to read list. Simply because I haven't yet seen anything similar to what happened in a book that is meant for more adult YA.
Also, if your father in law is your subordinate and you are the Queen, how do you treat him when he tries to intimidate you because he's older and you're his daughter in law? I thought that was a pretty interesting question. Can you still be the Queen and his daughter-in-law? (And the family dinners must be really uncomfortable, huh?) The price of power is steep. Anyway, give this a try. It's not perfect but it is intellectually crunchy. Gives you plenty of things to think about.
Also, if your father in law is your subordinate and you are the Queen, how do you treat him when he tries to intimidate you because he's older and you're his daughter in law? I thought that was a pretty interesting question. Can you still be the Queen and his daughter-in-law? (And the family dinners must be really uncomfortable, huh?) The price of power is steep. Anyway, give this a try. It's not perfect but it is intellectually crunchy. Gives you plenty of things to think about.
August 28, 2015
Yes, I read other reviews. There are a lot of books I love I would have never read if I listened to reviews. I was lucky since my library has copies of both The Hedgewitch Queen and The Bandit King. Lilith Saintcrow does not write books full of sweetness and light. She writes dark, often violent and frequently horrific, fantasy; I did not expect these books to be any different. Although I was not thrilled with the narrator shift in the second book, I understand why it was done. The male protagonist was more difficult for me to connect with, but I enjoyed The Bandit King. I loved The Hedgewitch Queen.
December 27, 2020
yep, I still really like this book.
September 7, 2012
Okay, I know Lilith Saintcrow can write full-blown fantasy, because I enjoyed The Steelflower she wrote for Samhain (and would love to see a second book which was hinted at on her website a few years back). I've read some reviews of this book and I can see why people compare it to the Kushiel books so much - the fact that the gods are companions and the Arquitaine people see themselves as having been given the country by the gods, the fact that basically EVERY other country is either hated or looked down or a place to be wary of, for example.
As a German reader I didn't feel welcome with the rampant anti-Damasene sentiment (which in this book at least had no foundation, there is talk of an invading army, which the current big baddie of Arquitaine himself has invited, just like he hired some Prussian assassins) and sheer disgust of it. As a history teacher I can understand the fact that Germans simply are the easiest bad people to pick in recent history, the Nazi reign was as horrible as people think it was - but a) if I want to explore my national guilt I read a nonfiction book about that time or go to Dachau as I do every year with my 9th graders, b) I read for relaxation and escape from stress in my real life and new ideas or views I may not have explored - so if I buy a fantasy book I don't expect to read thinly veiled pseudo-medieval European history with an anti-Nazi and anti-Prussia background - I mean even the Kushiel books had us only as a version of the Völkerwanderung wild Goth.
When I have a look at when the Duchy of Aquitaine and the Kingdom of Aquitaine were politically relevant - ca. 600 to 843 according to Wikipedia, so way before the time of Eleaonor and her troubadours which seem to be the inspiration for both Jacqueline Carey and Lilith Saintcrow here, then Germany was part of the kingdom of Franks anyway and there were no organised Prussians. From what I remember offhand the Prussians were forcibly christianised much later anyway and were most likely disorganised tribes at the time.
The whole thing annoys me so much, because other European countries seem to be much more similar to their real life version in her version - apart from the UK not existing at all, which gives me a wtf-feeling.
So these things got my gander up and then I found the choices for words like lisse/lys and baguetton/baguette just twee after the first few grins.
But my personal main problem where the two main characters, although I became sure about the second one there only late in the book (and in the preview for the second book). Tristan is everything a man of that time should be and good at what he does, being the personal henchman of the king seems to have lead to him deciding to also be the best there, so he did everything he was advised to do (I'm still not sure how much of the thinking he did, he certainly did the execution flawlessly).
By this first book he doesn't seem to be able to think too much, he's incredibly influenced by whatever is happening to Vianne - to the extent that he is stupid enough to let himself be recognised while shopping during their escape. He is impulsive, even when he regrets it and while he has put Vianne on a pedestal he can't quite credit her brains or her decisions, he seems to see her as a femme fatale who is worth every sacrifice. He also has massive anger control issues.
If this book had been in third person maybe I could have handled all that so far, Vianne at the end finally starts showing that she does have a brain to use and starts successfully standing up to Tristan and his father - but her first person narration and interior monologue revealed her as a totally self-centered woman (probably quite unterstandably self-centered - she seems to have had no life as a child at home and when she was sent to court her intelligence made her see that only the friendship of the princess was going to give her a place there, she and her father who died soon after having no money or power) and EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING gets suspiciously analyzed and related to what she can get out of it.
Which is why she never saw any of the people who admired and wooed her for real when she had grown up, it wasn't the role she had set herself to play and she was safer not believing it anyway, because people only said it because she was the princess BFF. So none of the comfort she had in the meantime is something she believes she could have had if she had not successfully schemed for it.
All the interactions she has in the book are first and foremost avoiding conflict, escaping, evaluating whether she can manipulate a person into doing what she thinks is best, wanting to avoid personal connections and the burden that her heritage has revealed - understandable after the horrible day she saw the princess die.
She is in shock and she keeps being in shock for weeks, to the extent that she continually ruins her health. She can't trust any of the guards because a) at the beginning they didn't think she was worth saving b) she rarely had contact with them before and hadn't manipulated them into liking her - so why the heck should she feel trust or loyalty. Look out for number one is the only way she has lived - which is why the interlude with the Romani version of that country is probably the best thing that has ever happened to her.
The set-up remains intriguing and the whole feeling of the book has nothing to do with Kushiel's Dart: but you know, I'm self-centered myself. Not for Vianne's reason and at my age it has mellowed out so far that I don't hog everything to me as I used to do in my yourth, but READING this permanent relating of things and people to yourself and thinking everything may be aimed at you is not something I enjoy. I already have to live with myself on my bad days, I don't need fictional bad days for a character with that personality on top of that (I'm a reader who follows the emotional journey when the author leaves me with first person view point - that's something Vianne hasn't learned yet, feeling with others).
As a German reader I didn't feel welcome with the rampant anti-Damasene sentiment (which in this book at least had no foundation, there is talk of an invading army, which the current big baddie of Arquitaine himself has invited, just like he hired some Prussian assassins) and sheer disgust of it. As a history teacher I can understand the fact that Germans simply are the easiest bad people to pick in recent history, the Nazi reign was as horrible as people think it was - but a) if I want to explore my national guilt I read a nonfiction book about that time or go to Dachau as I do every year with my 9th graders, b) I read for relaxation and escape from stress in my real life and new ideas or views I may not have explored - so if I buy a fantasy book I don't expect to read thinly veiled pseudo-medieval European history with an anti-Nazi and anti-Prussia background - I mean even the Kushiel books had us only as a version of the Völkerwanderung wild Goth.
When I have a look at when the Duchy of Aquitaine and the Kingdom of Aquitaine were politically relevant - ca. 600 to 843 according to Wikipedia, so way before the time of Eleaonor and her troubadours which seem to be the inspiration for both Jacqueline Carey and Lilith Saintcrow here, then Germany was part of the kingdom of Franks anyway and there were no organised Prussians. From what I remember offhand the Prussians were forcibly christianised much later anyway and were most likely disorganised tribes at the time.
The whole thing annoys me so much, because other European countries seem to be much more similar to their real life version in her version - apart from the UK not existing at all, which gives me a wtf-feeling.
So these things got my gander up and then I found the choices for words like lisse/lys and baguetton/baguette just twee after the first few grins.
But my personal main problem where the two main characters, although I became sure about the second one there only late in the book (and in the preview for the second book). Tristan is everything a man of that time should be and good at what he does, being the personal henchman of the king seems to have lead to him deciding to also be the best there, so he did everything he was advised to do (I'm still not sure how much of the thinking he did, he certainly did the execution flawlessly).
By this first book he doesn't seem to be able to think too much, he's incredibly influenced by whatever is happening to Vianne - to the extent that he is stupid enough to let himself be recognised while shopping during their escape. He is impulsive, even when he regrets it and while he has put Vianne on a pedestal he can't quite credit her brains or her decisions, he seems to see her as a femme fatale who is worth every sacrifice. He also has massive anger control issues.
If this book had been in third person maybe I could have handled all that so far, Vianne at the end finally starts showing that she does have a brain to use and starts successfully standing up to Tristan and his father - but her first person narration and interior monologue revealed her as a totally self-centered woman (probably quite unterstandably self-centered - she seems to have had no life as a child at home and when she was sent to court her intelligence made her see that only the friendship of the princess was going to give her a place there, she and her father who died soon after having no money or power) and EVERYTHING, EVERYTHING gets suspiciously analyzed and related to what she can get out of it.
Which is why she never saw any of the people who admired and wooed her for real when she had grown up, it wasn't the role she had set herself to play and she was safer not believing it anyway, because people only said it because she was the princess BFF. So none of the comfort she had in the meantime is something she believes she could have had if she had not successfully schemed for it.
All the interactions she has in the book are first and foremost avoiding conflict, escaping, evaluating whether she can manipulate a person into doing what she thinks is best, wanting to avoid personal connections and the burden that her heritage has revealed - understandable after the horrible day she saw the princess die.
She is in shock and she keeps being in shock for weeks, to the extent that she continually ruins her health. She can't trust any of the guards because a) at the beginning they didn't think she was worth saving b) she rarely had contact with them before and hadn't manipulated them into liking her - so why the heck should she feel trust or loyalty. Look out for number one is the only way she has lived - which is why the interlude with the Romani version of that country is probably the best thing that has ever happened to her.
The set-up remains intriguing and the whole feeling of the book has nothing to do with Kushiel's Dart: but you know, I'm self-centered myself. Not for Vianne's reason and at my age it has mellowed out so far that I don't hog everything to me as I used to do in my yourth, but READING this permanent relating of things and people to yourself and thinking everything may be aimed at you is not something I enjoy. I already have to live with myself on my bad days, I don't need fictional bad days for a character with that personality on top of that (I'm a reader who follows the emotional journey when the author leaves me with first person view point - that's something Vianne hasn't learned yet, feeling with others).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 25, 2019
I'm at the 57% mark, and you know what? I can't do it anymore. This lady's insufferable whining must end. And if the only way to do that is stop reading, then stop reading I shall.
Just... I get it, she went thru a traumatic experience, but by this point in the story I need the heroine to put on her big-girl britches and start to get shit done. Which will never happen at this rate.
She is going to get everyone killed with her stupidity and I have no desire to stay around long enough to see it happen.
Just... I get it, she went thru a traumatic experience, but by this point in the story I need the heroine to put on her big-girl britches and start to get shit done. Which will never happen at this rate.
She is going to get everyone killed with her stupidity and I have no desire to stay around long enough to see it happen.
June 27, 2012
I really, really wanted to like this book, but I think my favorite part was when I hit 90% finished and I realized I was almost done. That usually isn't a good sign, is it?
This is a ebook-exclusive novel by Lilith Saintcrow (whose previous novels I have not and probably never will read) about a young woman named Vianne Frenchy-French-Fancy-Name who is a practicing hedgewitch and close courtesan to the princess Lisele. Hedgewitchery, a vague and oft-used type of peasant sorcery, was what I was so excited about reading this book, because I love books that build new types of magic and I like seeing how that magic works with the characters. But unfortunately, hedgewitchery wasn't really explained enough. Can everyone do it? Why are some better at it than others? What is its intended or common use? And how does it differ from the fancier court sorcery? All questions I had that were never really answered, which ticked me off. I can't envelope myself in the story if I have so many basic, unanswered questions.
One day, Vianne has a run-in with Tristan d'Arcenne, one of the king's Guard and his trusted Left Hand. He kills a man in the palace, shocking Vianne, who goes to the king, but the king just tells her everything is fine. Vianne flees, but later, she discovers her dear princess, all of the court ladies, and even the king had been violently murdered. As her last dying wish, Lisele gives Vianne the Aryx, a magical royal medallion that basically makes Vianne queen, since it awakens to her ownership. Vianne saves Tristan from the dungeon and they meet up with the rest of the guard and flee for Arcenne, where Vianne can be safe. Along the way, Vianne discovers that she is the only living royal blood left, since the rest of the king's distant relations were being systematically killed by d'Orlaans, who wants the kingdom. She can either marry the evil man who killed her loved ones, or rule as queen in Arcenne and take Tristan as her trusted Consort.
It is a great fantasy plot- young woman must use her untapped talents to make a great journey while falling in love. Unfortunately, Vianne spends most of her time whining, swooning, and falling ill with fever. She was so unpleasant to read as a heroine because she really WASN'T a heroine at all, only a spoiled, weak little girl who keeps trying to throw the amazing power she's been given off on someone else. I want to read about strong and capable women getting shit done, not girls who only wish to wear dresses and fiddle with herbs and books (both are fine, but do it with a little passion!). The entire first 3/4 of the novel are devoted to the Guard having to stay behind in small cities while Vianne sleeps and rests from a fever. And then she plots ways to get rid of the Aryx and give up. I just don't identify with characters like Vianne, and even after she accepts her role as queen and takes charge, she still has that resisting, whiny way about her.
One major thing that turned me off from this novel was the language. The dialect is some weird, bastardized pseudo-French with words like "m'dmselle" instead of mademoiselle, "Palais" insead of palace, and "m'chri" instead of "mon cherie". The names are also WAY too complicated and wordy, which would be alright if we had more backstory on the families, but since we don't, they just confuse the reader. It took me halfway through the novel to know the differences between the guard members. The language may be pretty, but it didn't add anything to an already muddled novel.
I wanted to get into this book. The plot was enticing, the romance between Vianne and Tristan had its moments of sweetness and sexiness, and I enjoyed the parts when Vianne bonded with the R'Mini people, but too many annoying things just got in the way of my enjoyment. I don't think I'll read the sequel.
This is a ebook-exclusive novel by Lilith Saintcrow (whose previous novels I have not and probably never will read) about a young woman named Vianne Frenchy-French-Fancy-Name who is a practicing hedgewitch and close courtesan to the princess Lisele. Hedgewitchery, a vague and oft-used type of peasant sorcery, was what I was so excited about reading this book, because I love books that build new types of magic and I like seeing how that magic works with the characters. But unfortunately, hedgewitchery wasn't really explained enough. Can everyone do it? Why are some better at it than others? What is its intended or common use? And how does it differ from the fancier court sorcery? All questions I had that were never really answered, which ticked me off. I can't envelope myself in the story if I have so many basic, unanswered questions.
One day, Vianne has a run-in with Tristan d'Arcenne, one of the king's Guard and his trusted Left Hand. He kills a man in the palace, shocking Vianne, who goes to the king, but the king just tells her everything is fine. Vianne flees, but later, she discovers her dear princess, all of the court ladies, and even the king had been violently murdered. As her last dying wish, Lisele gives Vianne the Aryx, a magical royal medallion that basically makes Vianne queen, since it awakens to her ownership. Vianne saves Tristan from the dungeon and they meet up with the rest of the guard and flee for Arcenne, where Vianne can be safe. Along the way, Vianne discovers that she is the only living royal blood left, since the rest of the king's distant relations were being systematically killed by d'Orlaans, who wants the kingdom. She can either marry the evil man who killed her loved ones, or rule as queen in Arcenne and take Tristan as her trusted Consort.
It is a great fantasy plot- young woman must use her untapped talents to make a great journey while falling in love. Unfortunately, Vianne spends most of her time whining, swooning, and falling ill with fever. She was so unpleasant to read as a heroine because she really WASN'T a heroine at all, only a spoiled, weak little girl who keeps trying to throw the amazing power she's been given off on someone else. I want to read about strong and capable women getting shit done, not girls who only wish to wear dresses and fiddle with herbs and books (both are fine, but do it with a little passion!). The entire first 3/4 of the novel are devoted to the Guard having to stay behind in small cities while Vianne sleeps and rests from a fever. And then she plots ways to get rid of the Aryx and give up. I just don't identify with characters like Vianne, and even after she accepts her role as queen and takes charge, she still has that resisting, whiny way about her.
One major thing that turned me off from this novel was the language. The dialect is some weird, bastardized pseudo-French with words like "m'dmselle" instead of mademoiselle, "Palais" insead of palace, and "m'chri" instead of "mon cherie". The names are also WAY too complicated and wordy, which would be alright if we had more backstory on the families, but since we don't, they just confuse the reader. It took me halfway through the novel to know the differences between the guard members. The language may be pretty, but it didn't add anything to an already muddled novel.
I wanted to get into this book. The plot was enticing, the romance between Vianne and Tristan had its moments of sweetness and sexiness, and I enjoyed the parts when Vianne bonded with the R'Mini people, but too many annoying things just got in the way of my enjoyment. I don't think I'll read the sequel.
February 28, 2012
Vianne is a pampered princess in all but name. She is the princesse's agemate and favored lady-in-waiting, and a Duchesse in her own right. She is both a friend and a counselor. Her life in constrained, but not bad, until everything goes to heck.
She is caught up in a coup and forced to flee the palace carrying a magic talisman. She spends her whole time scared spitless and dealing with survivor's guilt, but as much as she has been trained to be frail and cossetted, she does manage to get herself going when she needs to.
I can certainly see how some readers will be annoyed by her constant desire not to be who the fates are conspiring for her to be, but I think that for someone trained to be a lady, it is probably a pretty huge transition to become a leader. To move from keeping track of romances because they matter in the world of gossip to keeping track of alliances and the world of diplomacy is a pretty big scale change.
I really appreciated how much Vianne gave up and had to grow up over the course of the book. She couldn't afford to be uncritical of anyone. The King, her princesse, everyone she met needed to be evaluated or re-evaluated in light of her new roles and duties. Does her Captain of Guards love her? Was the King bleeding the country? Are her new allies just using her? She can't afford to be trusting, although she does attempt to hang on to kindness as much as possible.
She is not the sturdiest heroine. She has migraines. She spends much of the book dragged down by a fever. She cries a lot. I am pretty sure I would not cut a stoic figure if you dragged me two weeks by horse when I was suffering from the loss of all I had known. I am inclined to forgive her that, although it is an interesting authorial choice to make her so frail and yes, a bit whiny. I don't think it was an accident, so I want to think about what it means to be a heroine without being strapping.
Possibly the best part of the book was the worldbuilding. Everything from the matrilineal descent to the two kinds of magic to the pantheon of gods was interesting and thought-through. I enjoyed the puzzle of figuring out who was what, and it was sometimes highly amusing, like the Pruzian Knives (ninjas!).
I think the weakest part of the book was that sometimes you wanted to shake Vianne for not trusting herself. Once, she makes a decision against strenuous advice, and ends up saving herself, but then promises not to go against advice again. You were right, Vianne! Have some faith!
I thought the captain of the guard and the bandit king were both compellingly interesting, each with his own flaws and strengths. Tristan (the captain) is pretty humorless, but he has his reasons.
On the whole, I am looking forward to the sequel.
Read if: you like palace intrigue. You enjoy watching people have greatness thrust upon them.
Skip if: a whiny heroine is going to bother you. You want an uncomplicated happily ever after.
She is caught up in a coup and forced to flee the palace carrying a magic talisman. She spends her whole time scared spitless and dealing with survivor's guilt, but as much as she has been trained to be frail and cossetted, she does manage to get herself going when she needs to.
I can certainly see how some readers will be annoyed by her constant desire not to be who the fates are conspiring for her to be, but I think that for someone trained to be a lady, it is probably a pretty huge transition to become a leader. To move from keeping track of romances because they matter in the world of gossip to keeping track of alliances and the world of diplomacy is a pretty big scale change.
I really appreciated how much Vianne gave up and had to grow up over the course of the book. She couldn't afford to be uncritical of anyone. The King, her princesse, everyone she met needed to be evaluated or re-evaluated in light of her new roles and duties. Does her Captain of Guards love her? Was the King bleeding the country? Are her new allies just using her? She can't afford to be trusting, although she does attempt to hang on to kindness as much as possible.
She is not the sturdiest heroine. She has migraines. She spends much of the book dragged down by a fever. She cries a lot. I am pretty sure I would not cut a stoic figure if you dragged me two weeks by horse when I was suffering from the loss of all I had known. I am inclined to forgive her that, although it is an interesting authorial choice to make her so frail and yes, a bit whiny. I don't think it was an accident, so I want to think about what it means to be a heroine without being strapping.
Possibly the best part of the book was the worldbuilding. Everything from the matrilineal descent to the two kinds of magic to the pantheon of gods was interesting and thought-through. I enjoyed the puzzle of figuring out who was what, and it was sometimes highly amusing, like the Pruzian Knives (ninjas!).
I think the weakest part of the book was that sometimes you wanted to shake Vianne for not trusting herself. Once, she makes a decision against strenuous advice, and ends up saving herself, but then promises not to go against advice again. You were right, Vianne! Have some faith!
I thought the captain of the guard and the bandit king were both compellingly interesting, each with his own flaws and strengths. Tristan (the captain) is pretty humorless, but he has his reasons.
On the whole, I am looking forward to the sequel.
Read if: you like palace intrigue. You enjoy watching people have greatness thrust upon them.
Skip if: a whiny heroine is going to bother you. You want an uncomplicated happily ever after.
July 2, 2012
See the full review at Short & Sweet Reviews.
The story starts out with great promise. Vianne is an unlikely lady at Court, orphaned and coming from more humble beginnings than many of the other ladies, but she and the Princesse became fast friends as girls, which endured as they came of age. Of course, there is a conspiracy afoot, one which Vianne stumbles headfirst into, and the story takes off as Arquitaine is plunged into chaos and Vianne must hurry to escape. I love a good story fraught with danger and treason and peril, so I had high hopes, during the first two chapters. It goes downhill from there, though, as the story can't seem to balance whether it wants to be an adventure-fantasy, or a romance between Vianne and Tristan. Many books blend the two seamlessly -- it seems like Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel's Legacy series is becoming my gold standard, even if they are 100% definitely not YA books -- but The Hedgewitch Queen, unfortunately, does not.
I was far more charmed by the minor characters in the book. For example, the rest of the guard who accompany Vianne and Tristan and the various peasants who the group encounters were more interesting and fun to read about than our two leads. I kept reading because I heard there was a big shocker at the end, and I wanted to know what it was. Otherwise, I think I may have given up somewhere in the middle. I also disliked the fact that the book didn't wrap up its plot points before it ended, as it's clearly banking on the reader wanting to read the next book in the series. It doesn't stand alone very well at all, at least, not if you want to have any resolution at all to the situation Vianne has found herself in. This book could have been so much better than it was, but unfortunately, it didn't live up to my expectations.
The story starts out with great promise. Vianne is an unlikely lady at Court, orphaned and coming from more humble beginnings than many of the other ladies, but she and the Princesse became fast friends as girls, which endured as they came of age. Of course, there is a conspiracy afoot, one which Vianne stumbles headfirst into, and the story takes off as Arquitaine is plunged into chaos and Vianne must hurry to escape. I love a good story fraught with danger and treason and peril, so I had high hopes, during the first two chapters. It goes downhill from there, though, as the story can't seem to balance whether it wants to be an adventure-fantasy, or a romance between Vianne and Tristan. Many books blend the two seamlessly -- it seems like Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel's Legacy series is becoming my gold standard, even if they are 100% definitely not YA books -- but The Hedgewitch Queen, unfortunately, does not.
I was far more charmed by the minor characters in the book. For example, the rest of the guard who accompany Vianne and Tristan and the various peasants who the group encounters were more interesting and fun to read about than our two leads. I kept reading because I heard there was a big shocker at the end, and I wanted to know what it was. Otherwise, I think I may have given up somewhere in the middle. I also disliked the fact that the book didn't wrap up its plot points before it ended, as it's clearly banking on the reader wanting to read the next book in the series. It doesn't stand alone very well at all, at least, not if you want to have any resolution at all to the situation Vianne has found herself in. This book could have been so much better than it was, but unfortunately, it didn't live up to my expectations.
December 20, 2011
It's not quite what I expected. Though I liked it, over all. There's the language to get used to. And the cliffhanger at the end. The heroine spends a lot of time ill, pale, told to rest or fainting and some of her thought process annoyed me so much in the first half (the denial, over and over, of her being Queen and trying to escape the people who helped her, denial of the possibility of Tristan's feelings for her, and of her being pretty - I hate the 'she's so pretty but she can't see it' thing in books). But once she got over those, and stopped thinking people were joking it got better, and it was hard to put the book down.
The assasination at the beginning (which really grabs the reader), the bastard heir, the mysterious guard, the journey through the forrest, bandits, Gypsies. All these elements seem familiar. Some of these worked for me - the coup at the beginning, Tristan for one as a character, is pretty intriguing, the bandits- I liked that part alright too. But the R'mini/ Gypsies- couldn't help but roll my eyes -they take the heroine in as their own in no time and she learns the language within two months (I'm not sure of the purpose of that part). And the journey with the guards was mostly Vianne being in denial/thinking of escaping/ being sick.
The worldbuilding is interesting, but over all I wanted more - more about the world and politics, more of the strong heroine she seemed to be in the end, more twists and turns harder to predict. It does seem things will shake up a bit in the next book, so I'm definitely gonna read it.
So 3.5 I guess.
The assasination at the beginning (which really grabs the reader), the bastard heir, the mysterious guard, the journey through the forrest, bandits, Gypsies. All these elements seem familiar. Some of these worked for me - the coup at the beginning, Tristan for one as a character, is pretty intriguing, the bandits- I liked that part alright too. But the R'mini/ Gypsies- couldn't help but roll my eyes -they take the heroine in as their own in no time and she learns the language within two months (I'm not sure of the purpose of that part). And the journey with the guards was mostly Vianne being in denial/thinking of escaping/ being sick.
The worldbuilding is interesting, but over all I wanted more - more about the world and politics, more of the strong heroine she seemed to be in the end, more twists and turns harder to predict. It does seem things will shake up a bit in the next book, so I'm definitely gonna read it.
So 3.5 I guess.
December 18, 2011
This is a fantasy with some romance, but if you are looking for your typical "follow the rules, guaranteed HEA" well, that's not what you'll get here. To be honest, I don't read Saintcrow's books for a guaranteed anything other than I know she is going to throw a ton at her characters, and I will most likely enjoy it (even though the characters probably won't).
Vianne is very different from Dante or Dru, but that doesn't mean she is "weak." She has survived at court from a very young age. She is the trusted confidante of the Princess, and does her best to keep her Lady out of the fire of court intrigues. She is often overlooked, and is happier in the garden among the herbs than indulging in courtly dalliances. She has some power as a hedgewitch (healing, sensing poison or other spells from sorcerers). Then there is an assassination of the royal family and Vianne is entrusted with a royal artifact. Racing through the countryside with Tristan, the Captain of the Guard, and his men. She learns more about her own family's heritage and her own power.
But of course, I also spent the whole time waiting for the other shoe to drop and it all to come crashing down. The shoe has kind of dropped, but there is more to come in book 2.
THe book was fast-paced and held my attention and I want more.
Vianne is very different from Dante or Dru, but that doesn't mean she is "weak." She has survived at court from a very young age. She is the trusted confidante of the Princess, and does her best to keep her Lady out of the fire of court intrigues. She is often overlooked, and is happier in the garden among the herbs than indulging in courtly dalliances. She has some power as a hedgewitch (healing, sensing poison or other spells from sorcerers). Then there is an assassination of the royal family and Vianne is entrusted with a royal artifact. Racing through the countryside with Tristan, the Captain of the Guard, and his men. She learns more about her own family's heritage and her own power.
But of course, I also spent the whole time waiting for the other shoe to drop and it all to come crashing down. The shoe has kind of dropped, but there is more to come in book 2.
THe book was fast-paced and held my attention and I want more.
June 17, 2012
4.5 stars
it somehow reminded me of reading Dumas. Dumas with magic that is, naturally. Dumas is one of my all time favorite authors so it was a pleasant surprise.
Love the story line, the action, the characters up until the end. The end, omg, that was a shock! I felt so taken aback! it was like being thrown into cold water and left to drown... REALLY i kept on thinking (actually shouting) I kept on checking if i maybe missed a page or 10..but no. that was it. i guess it means i got to read the next book asap...
Vianne is a total damsel in distress, which she is totally aware of. She even calls herself a ninny. But she does try to overcome her fears and to live up to the situation, which is i think the reason I actually really liked her. (I have an aversion to the damsel of distress syndrome)
Im not a fan of written dialects so found some of the dialogues a bit tedious. Which is one of the reasons that prevented this from being a 5star book for me
Actually, Katy has written a really good review on this. Her words and thoughts to the book exactly reflect mine. So all im writing here is a bit of a waste, since she put it in much more eloquent terms
so check out Katy's review
it somehow reminded me of reading Dumas. Dumas with magic that is, naturally. Dumas is one of my all time favorite authors so it was a pleasant surprise.
Love the story line, the action, the characters up until the end. The end, omg, that was a shock! I felt so taken aback! it was like being thrown into cold water and left to drown... REALLY i kept on thinking (actually shouting) I kept on checking if i maybe missed a page or 10..but no. that was it. i guess it means i got to read the next book asap...
Vianne is a total damsel in distress, which she is totally aware of. She even calls herself a ninny. But she does try to overcome her fears and to live up to the situation, which is i think the reason I actually really liked her. (I have an aversion to the damsel of distress syndrome)
Im not a fan of written dialects so found some of the dialogues a bit tedious. Which is one of the reasons that prevented this from being a 5star book for me
Actually, Katy has written a really good review on this. Her words and thoughts to the book exactly reflect mine. So all im writing here is a bit of a waste, since she put it in much more eloquent terms
so check out Katy's review
March 24, 2012
I loved every single book I read from Ms Saintcrow since DV, and The Hedgewitch Queen was no different.
Once I picked it up I could not put it down. Maybe because it reminded me both of Dante Valentine and Steelflower, two of the books/series I love beyond compare.
Even with the due differences, Viane's doubts made me think a bit of Steelflower, while the relationship with Tristan has echos of Dante and Japh. But V. is not Dante neither Kaia. She is clever, but not a kick-ass heroine. She is a damsel in distress who learns at her own expenses that she has to get strong or pay the consequences. I confess that I got the "Tristan question" midway, but then having read of Japh....:)
But the book is good in itself if you like fantasy like Poison study: a court intrigue, threats, traitors, a dash of magic.
I had already pre-ordered The Bandit King on faith alone, but the cliffhanger at the end of the novel would have propelled me to Amazon anyway. Thank God that, at least this time, we don't have to wait for a year.
Once I picked it up I could not put it down. Maybe because it reminded me both of Dante Valentine and Steelflower, two of the books/series I love beyond compare.
Even with the due differences, Viane's doubts made me think a bit of Steelflower, while the relationship with Tristan has echos of Dante and Japh. But V. is not Dante neither Kaia. She is clever, but not a kick-ass heroine. She is a damsel in distress who learns at her own expenses that she has to get strong or pay the consequences. I confess that I got the "Tristan question" midway, but then having read of Japh....:)
But the book is good in itself if you like fantasy like Poison study: a court intrigue, threats, traitors, a dash of magic.
I had already pre-ordered The Bandit King on faith alone, but the cliffhanger at the end of the novel would have propelled me to Amazon anyway. Thank God that, at least this time, we don't have to wait for a year.
September 10, 2016
I would give this book 3.5 stars. I enjoyed it and I'm looking forward to the sequal. Two things bothered me about it. The first was that about 100 pages of the book were simply Vianne being sick, but insisting she's not sick and laying in bed oblivious to the fact that Tristan is in love with her, despite his mens attempts to set her straight. ok, I enjoyed the parts where Tristan was obviously in love with her and she misinterprted them, but it just went far too long with her being to sick to be moved. I kept waiting for something to happen. The other part I didn't like was where it ended. Without any spoilers, i didn't like that it ended with her crying because she didn't know what to do. She wasn't a weak character, but this being the last scene, its the last image I'm left with, so I'm more likely to remember her as a weak character when I'm considering whether or not to read the sequel. and the feminist in me hates weak female characters. I'm super intrigued by Tristan's story though, so I probably will want to read the next part. I trust him because Liselle (that might be wrong... the princess?) trusted him.
April 23, 2012
This is a wonderful story. I had so much fun trying to keep up with everyone in her world. This book reminds me a lot of George R.R. Martin A Game of Thrones. It was wonderfully written and executed. There were some overly long parts ... yes, we get that Vianne is sick and Tristan loves her ... but I can't wait to read Tristan's story next in The Bandit King.
July 31, 2012
To be fair, if you are looking for a love story that requires almost no thought at all, this might fit the bill. Just prepare yourself for an unbelievable world; some very annoying bastardized French, characters that aren’t believable, stilted dialogue, and a very meandering plot. However, The Hedgewitch Queen does have one redeeming characteristic. Saintcrow really can write. Her prose are lyrical and flowing, but I’m not sure they are worth sticking the book out for. There are plenty of other books with excellent prose I could point you in the direction of – and their plots might actually not give you a headache.
Read my full review here:
http://www.bookwormblues.net/2012/07/...
Read my full review here:
http://www.bookwormblues.net/2012/07/...
August 29, 2016
There are few things i Like less than a heroine who refuses to look as the facts in front of her and deal with a situation instead of hemming, hawing and generally making everyone else's lives difficult through her general ninny-ness.
And that, in a nutshell, is Vianne.
For me, there was practically nothing to like about her. I wanted to like her hedgewitchery skills, but halfway through the book you realize that she must have been doing a lot more gardening than studying the craft.
This seems like Ms. Saintcrow's halfhearted and frankly awful attempt to rewrite the Jacqueline Carey Kushiel series without the S&M storylines.
She fails miserably.
And that, in a nutshell, is Vianne.
For me, there was practically nothing to like about her. I wanted to like her hedgewitchery skills, but halfway through the book you realize that she must have been doing a lot more gardening than studying the craft.
This seems like Ms. Saintcrow's halfhearted and frankly awful attempt to rewrite the Jacqueline Carey Kushiel series without the S&M storylines.
She fails miserably.
January 17, 2012
I got this book from the ‘great reads for under $4.99’ deal so I picked it up cheap and wasn’t sure what to expect. I was not a big fan.
The main character was quite annoying though I think we were meant to like her. The ‘could he really find me beautiful’? crap got a little annoying about 1/3 of the way in – the fact that it continued through the WHOLE book was too much.
The 2 or 3 pages of intro to the 2nd book answered all the questions that needed answering from the first so that was nice that it was included.
The main character was quite annoying though I think we were meant to like her. The ‘could he really find me beautiful’? crap got a little annoying about 1/3 of the way in – the fact that it continued through the WHOLE book was too much.
The 2 or 3 pages of intro to the 2nd book answered all the questions that needed answering from the first so that was nice that it was included.
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