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The Black Jewels #2
Heir to the Shadows
Enough time has passed for the young girl Jaenelle, heir to the magical Darkness, for her physical wounds to heal, while amnesia keeps her frightening memories at bay. But with Saetan--a Black-Jewelled Warlord Prince and Jaenelle's foster-father--to protect her, she will continue to grow. Her magic will mature. Her memories will return. And Jaenelle will face her destiny when she remembers Daemon, Saetan's son, who made the ultimate sacrifice for her love....
432 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 1, 1999
751 people are currently reading
9368 people want to read
About the author
Anne Bishop
50 books10.6k followersAnne Bishop lives in upstate New York where she enjoys gardening, music, and writing dark, romantic stories. She is the author of over twenty novels, including the award-winning Black Jewels Trilogy. She has written a new series, the Others, which is an urban dark fantasy with a bit of a twist.
Crawford Award (2000)
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Crawford Award (2000)
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 929 reviews
July 28, 2011
OH ANNE, you expectation-shattering fountain of COYlicious sauciness, you completely drenched me in surprise on this one. After spending much of Daughter of the Blood setting up a dark, violent, matriarchal fantasy realm full of sexual sadism, rape and men wearing “rings of obedience” on their ROOSTERS, you pivot 90 degrees, throw back the covers and reveal a three dimensional fantasy world full of as much goodness and evil. You really blew my expectations and you came “THIS CLOSE” to getting a full 5 stars from me because of it. Well done, Ms. Bishop, well done.
Please don’t infer from the above that I did not like Daughter of the Blood, because I really did as I hope I made clear in my review. However, there’s no denying that it was brimming with dark imagery and mega doses of “non comfy” sex though, in my opinion, done in a non-gratuitous fashion by having most of the darker aspects occur off stage. In this second installment, the rapey non-niceties are completely absent and we have instead a deeply emotional story of friendship, love and the bonds they create giving the strength to overcome trauma. Sorry if that sounds a bit Hallmarky but it really was evocative.
This installment picks up shortly after Jaenelle has been “broken” (i.e., raped) in her enemies’ attempt to prevent her from coming into her power as Witch. While physically surviving the attack, emotionally and spiritually Jaenelle has been deeply scarred. Most of this book deals with Jaenelle’s slow physical and psychological recovery while living in safety under the angry, paternally badass protection of her adopted father, Saetan SaDiablo, who is easily my favorite character in the series. The relationship between the two is some truly epic.
The story also follows Daemon Sadi, my second favorite character, who was also brutally injured in his rescue (though a bit late) of Jaenelle from her attackers. In addition, he has suffered a complete mental breakdown as a result of being falsely told that it was he who raped Jaenelle in a fit of madness.
All the while, Dorothea and Hekatah the two vile BITCHillains of our little tale continue their plots to permanently destroy Jaenelle. There is much melodrama in the story and some might find it a bit much, but I loved it. The dialogue between the characters is heavy with emotion and depth and gives a sense of vitality to the narrative.
The biggest shocker for me, which I alluded to above, is that while still containing the lush, sensual prose and imagery that made Daughter of the Blood so fun to read, this middle volume feels much more like standard fantasy (in a good way). Sex is almost completely absent and there is a greatly reduced amount of violence. We also meet the “kindred” who are intelligent animals born of the Blood and include unicorns, dragons and other fantasy staples, but with an excellent flavor to their back story.
Most importantly, for me at least, we learn that the cruel, sadistic relationship between women and men in the realm ruled by Dorothea IS NOT the norm for the rest of the world. We learn of the strong bonds of fidelity and friendship between the strong Blood males and the wise Blood females who they serve, not through coercion but through more powerful bonds of mutual loyalty, respect and love. I know, I know, another Hallmark ad, but this is really what I found most rewarding about this story. As much as I enjoyed the darker, grittier aspects of the first story, it only really has power when it is contrasted against the light and this book really does a great job of expanding the world so that it becomes a true home….granted with some very nasty nasties.
So why ONLY 4 stars? Well as with many middle volumes, this feels a bit like a bridge between the first book and the final installment (which I am now very much looking forward to reading). The middle section of the book plodded a bit and the frequent change of POV characters made the narrative stall a bit. However, the good far outweighed the bad and this is still a strong 4 stars.
My favorite moment from the book requires a spoiler as it happens near the end of the book.
4.0 stars. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!
Please don’t infer from the above that I did not like Daughter of the Blood, because I really did as I hope I made clear in my review. However, there’s no denying that it was brimming with dark imagery and mega doses of “non comfy” sex though, in my opinion, done in a non-gratuitous fashion by having most of the darker aspects occur off stage. In this second installment, the rapey non-niceties are completely absent and we have instead a deeply emotional story of friendship, love and the bonds they create giving the strength to overcome trauma. Sorry if that sounds a bit Hallmarky but it really was evocative.
This installment picks up shortly after Jaenelle has been “broken” (i.e., raped) in her enemies’ attempt to prevent her from coming into her power as Witch. While physically surviving the attack, emotionally and spiritually Jaenelle has been deeply scarred. Most of this book deals with Jaenelle’s slow physical and psychological recovery while living in safety under the angry, paternally badass protection of her adopted father, Saetan SaDiablo, who is easily my favorite character in the series. The relationship between the two is some truly epic.
The story also follows Daemon Sadi, my second favorite character, who was also brutally injured in his rescue (though a bit late) of Jaenelle from her attackers. In addition, he has suffered a complete mental breakdown as a result of being falsely told that it was he who raped Jaenelle in a fit of madness.
All the while, Dorothea and Hekatah the two vile BITCHillains of our little tale continue their plots to permanently destroy Jaenelle. There is much melodrama in the story and some might find it a bit much, but I loved it. The dialogue between the characters is heavy with emotion and depth and gives a sense of vitality to the narrative.
The biggest shocker for me, which I alluded to above, is that while still containing the lush, sensual prose and imagery that made Daughter of the Blood so fun to read, this middle volume feels much more like standard fantasy (in a good way). Sex is almost completely absent and there is a greatly reduced amount of violence. We also meet the “kindred” who are intelligent animals born of the Blood and include unicorns, dragons and other fantasy staples, but with an excellent flavor to their back story.
Most importantly, for me at least, we learn that the cruel, sadistic relationship between women and men in the realm ruled by Dorothea IS NOT the norm for the rest of the world. We learn of the strong bonds of fidelity and friendship between the strong Blood males and the wise Blood females who they serve, not through coercion but through more powerful bonds of mutual loyalty, respect and love. I know, I know, another Hallmark ad, but this is really what I found most rewarding about this story. As much as I enjoyed the darker, grittier aspects of the first story, it only really has power when it is contrasted against the light and this book really does a great job of expanding the world so that it becomes a true home….granted with some very nasty nasties.
So why ONLY 4 stars? Well as with many middle volumes, this feels a bit like a bridge between the first book and the final installment (which I am now very much looking forward to reading). The middle section of the book plodded a bit and the frequent change of POV characters made the narrative stall a bit. However, the good far outweighed the bad and this is still a strong 4 stars.
My favorite moment from the book requires a spoiler as it happens near the end of the book.
4.0 stars. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED!!
June 19, 2012
So...I have mixed thoughts about this trilogy, not the least of which it's kind of hard to take seriously a world where hot men are controlled by penis rings. BUT...I still like it. This trilogy seems to me to be the ultimate teenage girl's fantasy. Everything is about this main character and her growing up to be the savior of the world, all the men are safe and doting (controlled by penis rings if they're super hot, lol), older women are the ones who are evil and jealous and want to control the young girl, etc etc. I mean, I REALLY like the books but yeah, there's some psychology going on here that a more penetrative mind could glean a lot from. THAT SAID I loved the first book, I felt like the mystery of the main character was a BIT infantilized in this one, she seemed way more "kiddie" towards the last half of the book, but it's a great continuation that lightens the world somewhat from the VERY dark first one, and I enjoyed it no less.
May 31, 2019
4.5 Not for the Faint of Heart Starts
The Black Jewels series is dark fantasy, characters in this do not have easy goes at things and suffer for years on end. Daughter of blood hit so many of my hot buttons in it, rape, incest, torture, human trafficking, pedophilia and slavery. It was dark and disturbing and I couldn’t look away or put it down. Heir to the Shadows picks up two years after the events of the first book of the series. This is still dark but we have moved away from some of the sexual darkness of the first book and we learn that The Blood have other ways to be horrible to each other.
Jaenelle remains in a coma in Saetan’s care two years after the events of Daughter of Blood. Daemon at least was able to tie her back to her body but it has left him vulnerable with cracks of his own and drained. Because he doesn’t remember the events of that horrible night it is all twisted in his head and he isn’t sure if he helped or harmed the girl that will one day become the woman he is meant to be with.
This worldbuilding in this is really fantastic. There are lands in the physical realm, magical realm and the realm of death. The tie in between all of the places and how they interact with one another is really amazing and I like the idea of Saetan as a Guardian of the world. The Kindred are magical creatures who as legend have it were once normal wolves, dogs, cats, unicorns etc. but a dragon flew over the land dropping her scales and giving the world her magic. Humans that caught a scale became witches, animals became more sentient with magic of their own and became known as the Kindred. I love how much depth there is to the worlds.
While sometimes this is a little slow in places I can’t say I was ever bored, I really couldn’t put this down for the most part as I followed Jaenelle on her journey from the lowest part of her life, to living while blocking the trauma of her past to the final acceptance of all of it on her journey into the future.
There are so many great characters and so many terrible characters I love to hate that I was captivated by the entire tale. Plus seeing Saetan with a household of teenage witches as he tries to mentor Jaenelle was pretty hilarious. I’m not sure he knew what he was getting into when that little girl showed up on his doorstep seeking magic lessons.
Anne Bishop has woven an intricate tale in a cruel world and I just can’t get enough of it. With the addition of the Kindred, Lucivar finding his place and Daemon’s journey this was a full tale that left me wanting more.
I can’t wait to see what our not so little Jaenelle will do now that she has made her choice.
The Black Jewels series is dark fantasy, characters in this do not have easy goes at things and suffer for years on end. Daughter of blood hit so many of my hot buttons in it, rape, incest, torture, human trafficking, pedophilia and slavery. It was dark and disturbing and I couldn’t look away or put it down. Heir to the Shadows picks up two years after the events of the first book of the series. This is still dark but we have moved away from some of the sexual darkness of the first book and we learn that The Blood have other ways to be horrible to each other.
Jaenelle remains in a coma in Saetan’s care two years after the events of Daughter of Blood. Daemon at least was able to tie her back to her body but it has left him vulnerable with cracks of his own and drained. Because he doesn’t remember the events of that horrible night it is all twisted in his head and he isn’t sure if he helped or harmed the girl that will one day become the woman he is meant to be with.
This worldbuilding in this is really fantastic. There are lands in the physical realm, magical realm and the realm of death. The tie in between all of the places and how they interact with one another is really amazing and I like the idea of Saetan as a Guardian of the world. The Kindred are magical creatures who as legend have it were once normal wolves, dogs, cats, unicorns etc. but a dragon flew over the land dropping her scales and giving the world her magic. Humans that caught a scale became witches, animals became more sentient with magic of their own and became known as the Kindred. I love how much depth there is to the worlds.
While sometimes this is a little slow in places I can’t say I was ever bored, I really couldn’t put this down for the most part as I followed Jaenelle on her journey from the lowest part of her life, to living while blocking the trauma of her past to the final acceptance of all of it on her journey into the future.
“It is easier to kill than to heal. It is easier to destroy than to preserve. It is easier to tear down than to build. Those who feed on destructive emotions and ambitions and deny the responsibilities that are the price of wielding power can bring down everything you care for and would protect. Be on guard, always.”
There are so many great characters and so many terrible characters I love to hate that I was captivated by the entire tale. Plus seeing Saetan with a household of teenage witches as he tries to mentor Jaenelle was pretty hilarious. I’m not sure he knew what he was getting into when that little girl showed up on his doorstep seeking magic lessons.
“I met your daughter recently. I asked her if she found it difficult living with your temper. She looked genuinely baffled, and said, ‘What temper?’”
Saetan stared at her for a moment, then the anger drained away. He rubbed the back of his neck, and said dryly, “Jaenelle has a unique way of looking at a great many things.”
Anne Bishop has woven an intricate tale in a cruel world and I just can’t get enough of it. With the addition of the Kindred, Lucivar finding his place and Daemon’s journey this was a full tale that left me wanting more.
I can’t wait to see what our not so little Jaenelle will do now that she has made her choice.
November 8, 2024
˗ˏˋ 2.5 ★ ˎˊ˗
this was definitely better and more enjoyable than the first book — i think because the author didn’t have to spend so much time establishing the world, which did not seem to be her strong suit. the plot is super interesting, but there are just too many disparate characters for any of their arcs and their resolutions to be fulfilling. each was set up well but felt kinda… expedited? like they were all wrapped up within a few chapters to keep the pacing bearable, but that made each one lack the emotional engagement i needed to really Care. still i enjoyed it comparatively !!
and if anyone cares about my sjm acotar inspo deep dive — in this book we additionally have the name beron, like calls to like, winged warriors, ~wingspan~ comparisons, jewels working like siphons, mating bonds specifically referred to as mating bonds, watery bowels, rhysand-coded chara’s ~hidden safe haven island~, AND a special tog bonus of blood oaths🤥 so a lot more here than i picked up on in the first book
this was definitely better and more enjoyable than the first book — i think because the author didn’t have to spend so much time establishing the world, which did not seem to be her strong suit. the plot is super interesting, but there are just too many disparate characters for any of their arcs and their resolutions to be fulfilling. each was set up well but felt kinda… expedited? like they were all wrapped up within a few chapters to keep the pacing bearable, but that made each one lack the emotional engagement i needed to really Care. still i enjoyed it comparatively !!
and if anyone cares about my sjm acotar inspo deep dive — in this book we additionally have the name beron, like calls to like, winged warriors, ~wingspan~ comparisons, jewels working like siphons, mating bonds specifically referred to as mating bonds, watery bowels, rhysand-coded chara’s ~hidden safe haven island~, AND a special tog bonus of blood oaths🤥 so a lot more here than i picked up on in the first book
April 21, 2021
There are so many things about this series that are just over-the-top faux horror, problematic, and cheesy. And yet, during this pandemic time as I'm languishing at home, I couldn't quit reading it. I mean there are still the issues that I had with book one, namely men named Saetan and Daemon who live in Hell. What's with the Old English diphthongs? I still find them distracting at the end of the second novel. They still make me roll my eyes.
And although women are supposed to have supremacy in this world, it is still the men (Saetan, Daemon, and Lucivar) that the author builds the narrative around. Despite the fact that Jaenelle is depicted as the ever-so-powerful Witch who seems to be destined to rule the world, she remains a rather secondary character. We don't get to share her viewpoint so she ends up being merely the motivation for the men to do things. She's like Helen of Troy, the face that launched one thousand ships, but at least she gets a little more attention than Helen did in The Iliad. (And her name has another one of those annoying ae combinations). Saetan is the Lord of Hell, but is also a big soft teddy bear for Jaenelle? He wants to be a supportive parent and good feudal lord, which just doesn't square in my head with how he got to his position. Cognitive dissonance for me for sure.
Bishop tries too hard with her world building, too. There's so much blood drinking, poisoning, sexual violence (or threat of it), torture, you name the vice. Saetan snarls and growls on virtually every page throws an awful lot of glassware. (You can tell he doesn't do the cleaning and his butler must have an impressive collection of brandy snifters.) In my opinion, George R.R. Martin portrays evil in a much more chilling fashion, simply by letting the foibles of realistic people shine through, the casual brutality and calculated cruelty. Ordinary humans can horrify much more than demons and witches, because I know I'll be in contact with them. (Stephen King knows this too, as demonstrated in The Shining.)
I'm having big problems with both concentration and maintaining interest in my reading material these days. So I have no idea why this book seemed to call my name right now and kept me going when I can't stick with many objectively better novels, but I stayed up far too late last night to see how things would shake out. Go figure! It gets three stars because I'm just so damn glad to find some flow in my reading life again without revisiting an old favourite. I've almost worn those favourites out over the past year. Oh, and book three is sitting on my shelves and may see action sooner than anticipated.
Book number 402 of my Science Fiction & Fantasy Reading Project.
Cross posted at my blog:
https://wanda-thenextfifty.blogspot.c...
And although women are supposed to have supremacy in this world, it is still the men (Saetan, Daemon, and Lucivar) that the author builds the narrative around. Despite the fact that Jaenelle is depicted as the ever-so-powerful Witch who seems to be destined to rule the world, she remains a rather secondary character. We don't get to share her viewpoint so she ends up being merely the motivation for the men to do things. She's like Helen of Troy, the face that launched one thousand ships, but at least she gets a little more attention than Helen did in The Iliad. (And her name has another one of those annoying ae combinations). Saetan is the Lord of Hell, but is also a big soft teddy bear for Jaenelle? He wants to be a supportive parent and good feudal lord, which just doesn't square in my head with how he got to his position. Cognitive dissonance for me for sure.
Bishop tries too hard with her world building, too. There's so much blood drinking, poisoning, sexual violence (or threat of it), torture, you name the vice. Saetan snarls and growls on virtually every page throws an awful lot of glassware. (You can tell he doesn't do the cleaning and his butler must have an impressive collection of brandy snifters.) In my opinion, George R.R. Martin portrays evil in a much more chilling fashion, simply by letting the foibles of realistic people shine through, the casual brutality and calculated cruelty. Ordinary humans can horrify much more than demons and witches, because I know I'll be in contact with them. (Stephen King knows this too, as demonstrated in The Shining.)
I'm having big problems with both concentration and maintaining interest in my reading material these days. So I have no idea why this book seemed to call my name right now and kept me going when I can't stick with many objectively better novels, but I stayed up far too late last night to see how things would shake out. Go figure! It gets three stars because I'm just so damn glad to find some flow in my reading life again without revisiting an old favourite. I've almost worn those favourites out over the past year. Oh, and book three is sitting on my shelves and may see action sooner than anticipated.
Book number 402 of my Science Fiction & Fantasy Reading Project.
Cross posted at my blog:
https://wanda-thenextfifty.blogspot.c...
June 13, 2015
Reviewed by: Rabid Reads.
It took me a full year to build up the courage to listen to HEIR TO THE SHADOWS after being thoroughly traumatized by book 1. I really love Anne Bishop’s THE OTHERS series, and I’m a firm believer in second chances when it comes to authors, so after twelve months of mental preparation, here we go again. It’s with a massive sigh of relief that I write this review because A) no nightmares & B) this installment was a vast improvement upon the previous one. It was slow paced, and was more about the dialogue than the action, but we’re definitely getting somewhere.
This novel concentrated on Jaenelle’s road to recovery; after two years in a coma, she must battle her way back to sanity, and then take the necessary steps in order to become the Queen she was meant to be. The story followed Angelline from the age of twelve to twenty, so it’s best to minimize the number of sessions spent reading this book in order to avoid confusing the timeline. Lots of character development takes place, both where the protagonist was concerned as well as the secondaries, and all of the chess pieces were brought to the fore, including the kindred—wolves, unicorns & dragons!
Even though THE BLACK JEWELS series now has nine volumes under its wing, it was originally a trilogy, so this installment felt like it was the limbo between books 1 & 3 which explains its lack of major intrigue. By the end of this novel everything was in place for an earth-shaking payoff, except the love interest. Daemon Sadi was off in cuckoo land, but other than that I was able to better appreciate Bishop’s Dark Fantasy because this story was minus the truly heinous tidbits; however that doesn’t mean that the author dons kid gloves. Every character is still fair game.
John Sharian’s narration didn’t creep me out nearly as much as it did in DAUGHTER OF THE BLOOD. I still question the producer’s decision to go with a male voice for this series, but Angelline’s entourage is a sausage fest, so with the more disturbing aspects behind us, he’s growing on me. Sharian’s ominous tone actually worked to his advantage when he mimicked Jaenelle’s ‘midnight voice’, and I thought that he was reasonably adept at keeping the plethora of personas separate, although he does goof on occasion, and slips into his staple timbre when he shouldn’t.
HEIR TO THE SHADOWS was almost good. I’m eager for Anne Bishop to bring it home with QUEEN OF THE DARKNESS. ~ 3.5 stars
It took me a full year to build up the courage to listen to HEIR TO THE SHADOWS after being thoroughly traumatized by book 1. I really love Anne Bishop’s THE OTHERS series, and I’m a firm believer in second chances when it comes to authors, so after twelve months of mental preparation, here we go again. It’s with a massive sigh of relief that I write this review because A) no nightmares & B) this installment was a vast improvement upon the previous one. It was slow paced, and was more about the dialogue than the action, but we’re definitely getting somewhere.
This novel concentrated on Jaenelle’s road to recovery; after two years in a coma, she must battle her way back to sanity, and then take the necessary steps in order to become the Queen she was meant to be. The story followed Angelline from the age of twelve to twenty, so it’s best to minimize the number of sessions spent reading this book in order to avoid confusing the timeline. Lots of character development takes place, both where the protagonist was concerned as well as the secondaries, and all of the chess pieces were brought to the fore, including the kindred—wolves, unicorns & dragons!
Even though THE BLACK JEWELS series now has nine volumes under its wing, it was originally a trilogy, so this installment felt like it was the limbo between books 1 & 3 which explains its lack of major intrigue. By the end of this novel everything was in place for an earth-shaking payoff, except the love interest. Daemon Sadi was off in cuckoo land, but other than that I was able to better appreciate Bishop’s Dark Fantasy because this story was minus the truly heinous tidbits; however that doesn’t mean that the author dons kid gloves. Every character is still fair game.
John Sharian’s narration didn’t creep me out nearly as much as it did in DAUGHTER OF THE BLOOD. I still question the producer’s decision to go with a male voice for this series, but Angelline’s entourage is a sausage fest, so with the more disturbing aspects behind us, he’s growing on me. Sharian’s ominous tone actually worked to his advantage when he mimicked Jaenelle’s ‘midnight voice’, and I thought that he was reasonably adept at keeping the plethora of personas separate, although he does goof on occasion, and slips into his staple timbre when he shouldn’t.
HEIR TO THE SHADOWS was almost good. I’m eager for Anne Bishop to bring it home with QUEEN OF THE DARKNESS. ~ 3.5 stars
February 13, 2020
After the events in Daughter of the Blood, Jaenelle has been in a coma for two years. She awakens in the safety of her adopted father's keep and her physical and mental healing begin as well. Slowly, she is coming back to life and before you know it, she is a teenager. Jaenelle is coming into her powers and is learning how to use them. She is also forging alliances with her friends, the Kindred and starting her own coven without no one realizing it. Yet, she's marked by that terrible night at the altar. Her mind was fragmented by the attack and some memories are too painful to remember them.
Another one who's scarred after that night at the altar was Daemon. His mind became fragile after trying to help Jaenelle and failing. A confrontation with Lucivar only pushes him farther to the edge of madness.
Lucifer has lost faith in his freedom and is ready to give up until someone helps him take a different path.
Of course, the two evil women, Dorothea and Hekatah continue to fabricate schemes to damage all of them. Jaenelle, Daemon, and Lucivar would suffer through many of their plots. It baffles me that none of the three and or Saetan have killed them. Of course, if they did, there wouldn't be a story.
Heir to Shadows was less bloody and traumatizing than its predecessor. There was plenty of character development and some very humorous parts. The huge drawback was having Jaenelle and Daemon separated for most of the book, it just wasn't much fun.
Cliffhanger: No
3/5 Fangs
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August 1, 2013
Omg this series is just one big clusterf@ck. I mean honestly, this book had SO MUCH going on and because of that, the story was all over the place. It was hard to concentrate, so I lost interest real fast. There were so many loose ends and things weren't consistent and all the main characters were acting so different in this book compared to how they were in Book 1. Saetan was a bumbling idiot in this book. You're the dark lord! How are ppl able to trespass onto your property without you noticing? Why are you fretting over killing bad guys? Why are you letting ppl walk all over you?!!!! Jaenelle was still annoying because since she doesn't have a direct pov it's hard for me to understand her character. She has no personality. She's just this person that can do no wrong and that's not really entertaining to read about. New storylines kept getting introduced. Now there's talking animals in the mix? Hey, don't get me wrong, I like UF's with talking animals/shape shifters etc, but there's too many fantasy elements in this series already for me to keep up with. I just wanted to know what was happening with Daemon and Lucivar. I kept hoping Daemon and Jaenelle would finally reunite at some point but nothing happened. So now I have to read Book 3 to know what happens with them but I don't feel like reading another 400+ pages of nonsense. How does this series have such a high rating? what am I not getting? :(
June 24, 2024
SJM definitely took from this series 😅😅😅
Beware the golden spider who spins a tangled web. The Black Widow's web. Arachna's web. Beware the fair-haired Lady when she glides through the abyss clothed in spilled blood.
This is the second book of the Black Jewels series. It is the continuation of Jaenelle to become Witch. It also deals with the dark ramifications of what happened in Book 1
You can read my review here
Daughter of the Blood
And as in review 1, there will be stated of how this series inspired the Sarah J Mass universe
I absolutely love this series. It is like nothing I have ever read.
It is like Anne just pulled on a Slim Shady Houdini and said "Fuck to all the norms about writing"
For one, this series is about Jaenelle, the chosen one, Witch who is the all-powerful, yet she DOES NOT HAVE A POV!!!!
Through books 1 and 2, everything told and shown about here was through the eyes of the characters around here. Nevertheless, you do not feel that her POV is missing. You understand her anguish, love, joy, despair, etc completely.
In fantasies of similar themes, we always see the POV of the main protagonist and they describe how their actions are affecting the people around them. This book is the opposite.
Also, in stories about "THE CHOSEN ONE" whether Fae, witch, leader, shifter..., the plot starts when the chosen one discovers...well, that they are The Chosen One. Usually, we do not get to see "The Before" a lot, how they came to have their powers, how their prophecy came to be. It is most of the time through snippets or flashbacks.
Not here
This is the story of how Jaenelle Angelline became WITCH. The step by step.
throughout the series, there is always a mention of a four-sided triangle
In book one Daemon talks about "body, chalice and jewels surrounded by the fourth side, the Self"
In book two they are "the steward, the master of the guard, and Consort - who formed a strong intimate triangle around a Queen"
Jaenelle is the perfect Queen/Witch to rule the realm not because she is ALL-POWERFUL, but because she is the bringer of peace, healer of bonds, and soother of souls. She was able to bring together races deemed unfriendly. But above all, she is the reason the father-sons bond has been reconciled.
She says time and time again "I never wanted this (the rule). But its the only way to help them (the oppressed)"
The book also deals with a very dark theme. (please note that every TW you think of is found in this series)
Spoilers ahead
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.
.
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.
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At the end of book 1, Jaenelle is brutally raped. Her soul and body are severely damaged that she descended into madness.
Her ordeal is symbolized as a glass chalice broken into a million pieces.
Daemon went after her into the Twisted Kingdom (madness) and while he was able to save her body, her soul still needed a lot of time to come to terms with what had been done to her.
Daemon paid the price by being stuck in the Twisted Kingdom himself (he became mad because of what happened and what he had to do)
Young child-like Jaenelle could not save Daemon at the time because she herself needed to stop tormenting her body. She saw her body as the reason for what happened to her.
She had to grow up, mature, and see that she had to accept herself for others to accept her. That was the time to save Daemon.
My poor Daemon 😭💔
with everything that happened with him, he had to endure eight years in the Twisted Kingdom
The book ends with a BANG
As much as I loved the story, this book fell a little short
I thought we had a lot of stretched storyline with Saetan. I had enough of him. I wanted more Daemon and Lucivar.
Also, Jaenelle should have a POV by this point. Maybe at the beginning, it was OK, but by the middle, I wanted to read how she felt and how she came up with the decisions she made. I wanted to know how she befriended the Arachna and the Unicorns!
The SJM Universe
I said in book 1 review that I was 99.99% SJM was inspired by this series. Now, I am 10000% that not only was she inspired, she took some lines and plots as well 😅
Let's begin with the most obvious and famous one
*While Karla was teasing Lucivar about his wings she says this about them "They are impressive. is it true that the length of your " - her ice-blue eyes flicked to Lucivar's groin - "is in direct proportion to your wings?"
* How about the name Prythian? please do not say it is a coincident!!!! how common is this name to be the same??
* The Offering, the attaining of a jewel, the Virgin Night in The Black Jewels has influenced Crescent City's The Ordeal and the Drop.
in the BJ, a witch has to go through something traumatic or a challenge to earn her Birthright Jewel. In CC, It is the same for the Fae with their Ordeal.
Witches in BJ go through Virgin Night to become full pledged, and they need a Warlord Prince to help them through it as an Anchor otherwise they descend into madness.
In CC, Vanirs have to go through The Drop also with an Anchor
* The concept of Blood Oath in Throne of Glass is very similar if not exact to the Blood Acceptance in BJ where the "Inner Circle" of the Queen has to drink from her blood to become part of her court and it is an everlasting oath of loyalty and obedience.
* Now, the following is my own interpretation. I think Jaenelle in her three stages of the book represents the Archeron sisters.
book 1 is sweet, flower-loving Elain
book 2 is inexperienced yet caring Feyre
I am hoping by book 3 with Daemon we get Nesta
Beware the golden spider who spins a tangled web. The Black Widow's web. Arachna's web. Beware the fair-haired Lady when she glides through the abyss clothed in spilled blood.
This is the second book of the Black Jewels series. It is the continuation of Jaenelle to become Witch. It also deals with the dark ramifications of what happened in Book 1
You can read my review here
Daughter of the Blood
And as in review 1, there will be stated of how this series inspired the Sarah J Mass universe
I absolutely love this series. It is like nothing I have ever read.
It is like Anne just pulled on a Slim Shady Houdini and said "Fuck to all the norms about writing"
For one, this series is about Jaenelle, the chosen one, Witch who is the all-powerful, yet she DOES NOT HAVE A POV!!!!
Through books 1 and 2, everything told and shown about here was through the eyes of the characters around here. Nevertheless, you do not feel that her POV is missing. You understand her anguish, love, joy, despair, etc completely.
In fantasies of similar themes, we always see the POV of the main protagonist and they describe how their actions are affecting the people around them. This book is the opposite.
Also, in stories about "THE CHOSEN ONE" whether Fae, witch, leader, shifter..., the plot starts when the chosen one discovers...well, that they are The Chosen One. Usually, we do not get to see "The Before" a lot, how they came to have their powers, how their prophecy came to be. It is most of the time through snippets or flashbacks.
Not here
This is the story of how Jaenelle Angelline became WITCH. The step by step.
throughout the series, there is always a mention of a four-sided triangle
In book one Daemon talks about "body, chalice and jewels surrounded by the fourth side, the Self"
In book two they are "the steward, the master of the guard, and Consort - who formed a strong intimate triangle around a Queen"
Jaenelle is the perfect Queen/Witch to rule the realm not because she is ALL-POWERFUL, but because she is the bringer of peace, healer of bonds, and soother of souls. She was able to bring together races deemed unfriendly. But above all, she is the reason the father-sons bond has been reconciled.
She says time and time again "I never wanted this (the rule). But its the only way to help them (the oppressed)"
The book also deals with a very dark theme. (please note that every TW you think of is found in this series)
Spoilers ahead
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.
.
.
.
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At the end of book 1, Jaenelle is brutally raped. Her soul and body are severely damaged that she descended into madness.
Her ordeal is symbolized as a glass chalice broken into a million pieces.
Daemon went after her into the Twisted Kingdom (madness) and while he was able to save her body, her soul still needed a lot of time to come to terms with what had been done to her.
Daemon paid the price by being stuck in the Twisted Kingdom himself (he became mad because of what happened and what he had to do)
Young child-like Jaenelle could not save Daemon at the time because she herself needed to stop tormenting her body. She saw her body as the reason for what happened to her.
She had to grow up, mature, and see that she had to accept herself for others to accept her. That was the time to save Daemon.
My poor Daemon 😭💔
with everything that happened with him, he had to endure eight years in the Twisted Kingdom
The book ends with a BANG
As much as I loved the story, this book fell a little short
I thought we had a lot of stretched storyline with Saetan. I had enough of him. I wanted more Daemon and Lucivar.
Also, Jaenelle should have a POV by this point. Maybe at the beginning, it was OK, but by the middle, I wanted to read how she felt and how she came up with the decisions she made. I wanted to know how she befriended the Arachna and the Unicorns!
The SJM Universe
I said in book 1 review that I was 99.99% SJM was inspired by this series. Now, I am 10000% that not only was she inspired, she took some lines and plots as well 😅
Let's begin with the most obvious and famous one
*While Karla was teasing Lucivar about his wings she says this about them "They are impressive. is it true that the length of your " - her ice-blue eyes flicked to Lucivar's groin - "is in direct proportion to your wings?"
* How about the name Prythian? please do not say it is a coincident!!!! how common is this name to be the same??
* The Offering, the attaining of a jewel, the Virgin Night in The Black Jewels has influenced Crescent City's The Ordeal and the Drop.
in the BJ, a witch has to go through something traumatic or a challenge to earn her Birthright Jewel. In CC, It is the same for the Fae with their Ordeal.
Witches in BJ go through Virgin Night to become full pledged, and they need a Warlord Prince to help them through it as an Anchor otherwise they descend into madness.
In CC, Vanirs have to go through The Drop also with an Anchor
* The concept of Blood Oath in Throne of Glass is very similar if not exact to the Blood Acceptance in BJ where the "Inner Circle" of the Queen has to drink from her blood to become part of her court and it is an everlasting oath of loyalty and obedience.
* Now, the following is my own interpretation. I think Jaenelle in her three stages of the book represents the Archeron sisters.
book 1 is sweet, flower-loving Elain
book 2 is inexperienced yet caring Feyre
I am hoping by book 3 with Daemon we get Nesta
August 14, 2008
Wow!! My face is still a bit damp from tears and my heart is still pounding. This is the second book in this trilogy. I read but didn't review the first although it was almost as good. I'm a lover of fantasy, humor, sex and mystery and this trilogy contains all of that. This second book was light on the sex but when you read something this amazing, it really doesn't matter to me.
This is the fantasy story of a girl and how she becomes queen of almost all she sees. In the first book we find out some about her lineage and then about the horrible people that pose as her family. She is "witch" and has power beyond any that has been seen before but she must grow up as human and take the abuse and use that goes along with it.
This second book is her story of her rise to power, her search for her true lover and her love and acceptance for the "kindred" of the Blood (her lineage).
This is a wonderful trilogy for almost anyone. It is so well written that you are in the middle of the story before you know it. Even the long descriptions of things are enticing and I'm a fast reader aka a skimmer. I find myself not skimming in these books.
Now I can't wait to jump into the Queen of Darkness. If I could rate this trilogy higher than a 5, I would do so.
This is the fantasy story of a girl and how she becomes queen of almost all she sees. In the first book we find out some about her lineage and then about the horrible people that pose as her family. She is "witch" and has power beyond any that has been seen before but she must grow up as human and take the abuse and use that goes along with it.
This second book is her story of her rise to power, her search for her true lover and her love and acceptance for the "kindred" of the Blood (her lineage).
This is a wonderful trilogy for almost anyone. It is so well written that you are in the middle of the story before you know it. Even the long descriptions of things are enticing and I'm a fast reader aka a skimmer. I find myself not skimming in these books.
Now I can't wait to jump into the Queen of Darkness. If I could rate this trilogy higher than a 5, I would do so.
December 30, 2013
*Edited* 12/30/13 reread. Totally loved it as much as the first time! Some of the scenes that shouldn't have been as intense since I already took the ride were just as intense for some reason! Thanks for the BR and a reason to do the reread BW and Esra!
Wow!! This book totally consumed me! I haven’t read a fantasy with so many pieces woven together without getting overwhelmed with the politics. I guess I was just in the PERFECT mood for this book. I don’t think I skimmed a single adjective. There was just sooo much tension. Even when nothing was going on you just felt like things were about to explode. I think Janelle might be my favorite heroine of all time. Sorry Elena..haha I loved this book so much I feel like giving the first in the series an extra star. Dusting off a spot on my favorites shelf. Moving right along while I still know who is who…haha
Wow!! This book totally consumed me! I haven’t read a fantasy with so many pieces woven together without getting overwhelmed with the politics. I guess I was just in the PERFECT mood for this book. I don’t think I skimmed a single adjective. There was just sooo much tension. Even when nothing was going on you just felt like things were about to explode. I think Janelle might be my favorite heroine of all time. Sorry Elena..haha I loved this book so much I feel like giving the first in the series an extra star. Dusting off a spot on my favorites shelf. Moving right along while I still know who is who…haha
July 5, 2017
2.5 rounded up
This was nowhere near as good as the first book. Still, there's just something about Bishop's writing that I find comfortable, which is similar to how I feel about Patricia Briggs's books. That being said, the story in this second book seemed more like filler or a bridge between Jaenelle's childhood and adulthood without a whole lot of substance. Also there wasn't enough Daemon. I could go into more and point out some nitpicks but honestly this is an old series and there are a ton of reviews and I'm lazy.
Not sure if I'm going to read the third book any time soon. I don't feel the urgency to find out what will happen next but I know someday I'll continue.
This was nowhere near as good as the first book. Still, there's just something about Bishop's writing that I find comfortable, which is similar to how I feel about Patricia Briggs's books. That being said, the story in this second book seemed more like filler or a bridge between Jaenelle's childhood and adulthood without a whole lot of substance. Also there wasn't enough Daemon. I could go into more and point out some nitpicks but honestly this is an old series and there are a ton of reviews and I'm lazy.
Not sure if I'm going to read the third book any time soon. I don't feel the urgency to find out what will happen next but I know someday I'll continue.
September 8, 2017
Reread: 9/6-7/17
First read: 4/3-5/17
This book was so SO GOOD! I love these characters so much. I missed Daemon through a lot of it, but I also understood it. And freaking LUCIVAR is awesome. I love the brother-sister dynamic between him and Jaenelle.
Saetan continues to be given a hard time by Jaenelle. He loves it, but I'm sure he sometimes wishes he were capable of falling into an early (not so much) grave.
For such a dark series, I end up laughing a lot, and I feel so much for all of these characters. I can't wait to start the next one! (Literally, I'm starting it right now.)
First read: 4/3-5/17
This book was so SO GOOD! I love these characters so much. I missed Daemon through a lot of it, but I also understood it. And freaking LUCIVAR is awesome. I love the brother-sister dynamic between him and Jaenelle.
Saetan continues to be given a hard time by Jaenelle. He loves it, but I'm sure he sometimes wishes he were capable of falling into an early (not so much) grave.
For such a dark series, I end up laughing a lot, and I feel so much for all of these characters. I can't wait to start the next one! (Literally, I'm starting it right now.)
October 2, 2018
1st read - July 2014
2nd read - October 2018
Buddy read with Aly
Daughter of the Blood may have been an incredibly dark and at times shocking story but I loved every minute of it so although I had to brace myself beforehand I couldn't wait to continue reading Jaenelle's story in Heir to the Shadows. I was expecting an intense read when I picked up this book and I wasn't wrong but I was also pleasantly surprised to find it isn't quite as dark and disturbing as the first book. Although this sequel wasn't quite as painful to read it does still contain scenes of mental and physical torture so I should probably warn anyone new to the series that you need to prepare yourself for the worst. I'm not trying to put anyone off because it's a FANTASTIC series but if you don't know what to expect you'll end up getting quite a shock! You also need to make sure you read this series in order, the world building is detailed and complex, there are a lot of different characters to keep track of and they have all had significant growth just in the first two books. You'll be completely lost if you pick up the books at this point and I would hate to see people to ruin the series for themselves.
As much as I enjoyed Daughter of the Blood I loved Heir to the Shadows even more, I can't tell you how grateful I am to already have my hands on the next book because as soon as I've finished writing this review I'm diving straight back into the world Anne Bishop has created! I just can't wait any longer to discover what happens to all of my favourite characters next. I don't think I have it in me to write a review that will fully explain what an amazing book Heir to the Shadows is or just how much I adore this series but I'm going to do my best in the hope of convincing you to read it for yourself.
At the end of the previous book we saw Jaenelle suffer the worst kind of physical and mental torture imaginable, it actually hurt my heart thinking about everything she went through and it's the kind of thing that no woman should ever have to deal with - let alone a 12 year old child. It was hard to see how Jaenelle would survive, let alone come out of the ordeal mentally stable but I had underestimated the amount of love and faith her friends and adopted family have and they pulled together to help her through. It takes 2 years for her mind to heal enough to return to her body but Saetan never loses faith in her. She has blocked the memory of the event that nearly killed her but she is still a very different girl to the Witch we met in the beginning. She is much more wary and finds it hard to fully trust even the people she was closest to before, she is also angry and has much less control over her temper. It takes a long time and the help of some very close friends before she starts to emerge as the fun loving and friendly girl she used to be but even then there will always be lasting effects from her trauma.
I absolutely loved meeting some of the friends that she'd spoken of in the previous book but that we hadn't been introduced to. We knew she visited lots of people besides Saetan, Daemon and Lucivar but now we get to meet her Kindred friends for ourselves along with the other young witches and warlords she has met over the years. Jaenelle draws both people and animals to her, they feel her power and know that she is the longed for Witch who has the ability to bring peace to the realms but that isn't the only reason they care for her. Jaenelle has no intention of setting up a court or taking over the duties of running a territory but she is still incredibly protective of the people she cares about and will use the power she was born with to keep them safe no matter what it costs her.
One of the characters who nearly broke my heart in the first book was Lucivar, every time we saw him he was either being tortured or being forced to watch someone else suffer and his POV made for some uncomfortable reading. I badly wanted to see him escape and find some happiness so I was absolutely thrilled with how things progressed for him in this book. He is finally reunited with his father Saetan and he is at Jaenelle's side like the protective older brother he's always wanted to be. Jaenelle needed men around her who had no interest in her sexually and I loved her interactions with both Lucivar and her adopted father Saetan. Their family dynamics are difficult at times because they all have reasons to distrust each other but there is such a sense of love between them and that really shines through in every conversation.
The one person missing from the family reunion is Daemon and although I understood his absence I'll admit I missed him because he doesn't play such a big role in this part of the story. Daemon is the one who saved Jaenelle's life but mentally throwing himself into the abyss to reach her cost him dearly and now he's paying the price. Daemon's memories of what happened to Jaenelle are vague and now he's not even sure if she's dead or alive. Worse still, he can't remember what caused her injuries and he is terrified that he did something to hurt her. His anguish over her possible death and the role he may have played in it have caused him to lose his mind and now he is walking in the Twisted Kingdom completely lost and alone. The only person who has the power to reach Daemon and bring him back is Jaenelle but when she blocked the memories of what happened to her she also blocked out the time she spent with Daemon. The most important question is will she remember who he is in time to save his life?
I've already said that this story isn't quite as dark as the first one but that doesn't mean things are all plain sailing and there are still plenty of enemies out out there making plots against Jaenelle and her family. I was glad we see some people start to get what they deserve but others like Hekatah and Dorothea are still plotting and getting ready to cause more trouble. In a lot ways the focus of this story is Jaenelle's recovery and seeing her build a network of close friends and allies that I think she will need on her side in the next book though. This instalment almost feels like the calm before the storm and I have a feeling things are going to go downhill fast for our favourite characters as the series continues in Queen of Darkness. I just hope Jaenelle and her allies are strong enough to face whatever is about to be thrown at them.
2nd read - October 2018
Buddy read with Aly
Daughter of the Blood may have been an incredibly dark and at times shocking story but I loved every minute of it so although I had to brace myself beforehand I couldn't wait to continue reading Jaenelle's story in Heir to the Shadows. I was expecting an intense read when I picked up this book and I wasn't wrong but I was also pleasantly surprised to find it isn't quite as dark and disturbing as the first book. Although this sequel wasn't quite as painful to read it does still contain scenes of mental and physical torture so I should probably warn anyone new to the series that you need to prepare yourself for the worst. I'm not trying to put anyone off because it's a FANTASTIC series but if you don't know what to expect you'll end up getting quite a shock! You also need to make sure you read this series in order, the world building is detailed and complex, there are a lot of different characters to keep track of and they have all had significant growth just in the first two books. You'll be completely lost if you pick up the books at this point and I would hate to see people to ruin the series for themselves.
As much as I enjoyed Daughter of the Blood I loved Heir to the Shadows even more, I can't tell you how grateful I am to already have my hands on the next book because as soon as I've finished writing this review I'm diving straight back into the world Anne Bishop has created! I just can't wait any longer to discover what happens to all of my favourite characters next. I don't think I have it in me to write a review that will fully explain what an amazing book Heir to the Shadows is or just how much I adore this series but I'm going to do my best in the hope of convincing you to read it for yourself.
At the end of the previous book we saw Jaenelle suffer the worst kind of physical and mental torture imaginable, it actually hurt my heart thinking about everything she went through and it's the kind of thing that no woman should ever have to deal with - let alone a 12 year old child. It was hard to see how Jaenelle would survive, let alone come out of the ordeal mentally stable but I had underestimated the amount of love and faith her friends and adopted family have and they pulled together to help her through. It takes 2 years for her mind to heal enough to return to her body but Saetan never loses faith in her. She has blocked the memory of the event that nearly killed her but she is still a very different girl to the Witch we met in the beginning. She is much more wary and finds it hard to fully trust even the people she was closest to before, she is also angry and has much less control over her temper. It takes a long time and the help of some very close friends before she starts to emerge as the fun loving and friendly girl she used to be but even then there will always be lasting effects from her trauma.
I absolutely loved meeting some of the friends that she'd spoken of in the previous book but that we hadn't been introduced to. We knew she visited lots of people besides Saetan, Daemon and Lucivar but now we get to meet her Kindred friends for ourselves along with the other young witches and warlords she has met over the years. Jaenelle draws both people and animals to her, they feel her power and know that she is the longed for Witch who has the ability to bring peace to the realms but that isn't the only reason they care for her. Jaenelle has no intention of setting up a court or taking over the duties of running a territory but she is still incredibly protective of the people she cares about and will use the power she was born with to keep them safe no matter what it costs her.
One of the characters who nearly broke my heart in the first book was Lucivar, every time we saw him he was either being tortured or being forced to watch someone else suffer and his POV made for some uncomfortable reading. I badly wanted to see him escape and find some happiness so I was absolutely thrilled with how things progressed for him in this book. He is finally reunited with his father Saetan and he is at Jaenelle's side like the protective older brother he's always wanted to be. Jaenelle needed men around her who had no interest in her sexually and I loved her interactions with both Lucivar and her adopted father Saetan. Their family dynamics are difficult at times because they all have reasons to distrust each other but there is such a sense of love between them and that really shines through in every conversation.
The one person missing from the family reunion is Daemon and although I understood his absence I'll admit I missed him because he doesn't play such a big role in this part of the story. Daemon is the one who saved Jaenelle's life but mentally throwing himself into the abyss to reach her cost him dearly and now he's paying the price. Daemon's memories of what happened to Jaenelle are vague and now he's not even sure if she's dead or alive. Worse still, he can't remember what caused her injuries and he is terrified that he did something to hurt her. His anguish over her possible death and the role he may have played in it have caused him to lose his mind and now he is walking in the Twisted Kingdom completely lost and alone. The only person who has the power to reach Daemon and bring him back is Jaenelle but when she blocked the memories of what happened to her she also blocked out the time she spent with Daemon. The most important question is will she remember who he is in time to save his life?
I've already said that this story isn't quite as dark as the first one but that doesn't mean things are all plain sailing and there are still plenty of enemies out out there making plots against Jaenelle and her family. I was glad we see some people start to get what they deserve but others like Hekatah and Dorothea are still plotting and getting ready to cause more trouble. In a lot ways the focus of this story is Jaenelle's recovery and seeing her build a network of close friends and allies that I think she will need on her side in the next book though. This instalment almost feels like the calm before the storm and I have a feeling things are going to go downhill fast for our favourite characters as the series continues in Queen of Darkness. I just hope Jaenelle and her allies are strong enough to face whatever is about to be thrown at them.
March 20, 2016
Mother Night...
So, instructions for reading this book: rip it half. The second half of it could arguably be called “Heir to the Shadows.” Just read that section. The first half, name “Diary of a Pissy Baby aka Saetan.” That part you can burn.
In case you are wondering what happens in that part, I'll sum up. (I'll put it in a spoiler tag just in case, but really, don't be afraid to read it. Nothing happens in the first half.)
That's it. That's the first half. You're welcome.
There are honestly three main issues with this book. We've already talked about Saetan I think so we can skip that. Count it as numero uno.
Number two, there was no main story arc. The story just bounced from one unconnected point to another and none of them really mattered. Imagine reading a collections of fanfiction short stories. That's basically what this was. There was no overall conflict until maybe the last bit of the book. Hekatah was off plotting but she is so incredibly inept as a villain, that it does not actually count.
Finally, Jaenelle has no point of view chapters. In the first book, this worked out all right because she was not a very active character to that story so it served to add an air of mystery about her. In Heir to the Shadows she does play a much more active role; she goes off and does stuff on her own, things happen from only her perspective that are fairly major to what little plot there is. Not seeing them, just hearing about them happening “off screen” or after the fact, took a lot away from the reader's ability to immerse themselves.
Other than that, there was a ridiculous amount of repetition of phrases. If I ever have to hear the phrase “Mother Night” again, I will stab my own ears. Also used too frequently:
“May the darkness be merciful.”
“Jaenelle fluffed her hair.”
“Jaenelle said in her midnight voice....”
“Jaenelle's sapphire eyes...”
“Why do I want to have sex with Jaenelle?'
Okay, maybe that last isn't actually said. But it is implied. Heavily. By Saetan. Did I mention how much I hate him?
Oh and you remember Daemon? That guy that was fairly important in Daughter of the Blood. Yeah, he's crazy now so eff that guy. Maybe we will go save him someday. Oh is he conveniently easy to get to now? While Jaenelle is weak so it makes it more dramatic? Okay, I guess we will save him now. Halfway anyway. Fucker can do the legwork on his own.
I cannot handle another description about what position kitties and puppies are in to cuddle with Saetan at naptime. I just can't. The first half of the book is told almost entirely from his point of view. When Lucivar comes in, it gets better, but I still think it goes without saying that I have zero interest in reading Queen of the Darkness. I read Kushiel's Dart, which is comparable to The Black Jewels in that it is a dark fantasy with a lot of sex, a while back and never read the others because it just wasn't my thing. Damn am I now missing Phedre!
So, instructions for reading this book: rip it half. The second half of it could arguably be called “Heir to the Shadows.” Just read that section. The first half, name “Diary of a Pissy Baby aka Saetan.” That part you can burn.
In case you are wondering what happens in that part, I'll sum up. (I'll put it in a spoiler tag just in case, but really, don't be afraid to read it. Nothing happens in the first half.)
That's it. That's the first half. You're welcome.
There are honestly three main issues with this book. We've already talked about Saetan I think so we can skip that. Count it as numero uno.
Number two, there was no main story arc. The story just bounced from one unconnected point to another and none of them really mattered. Imagine reading a collections of fanfiction short stories. That's basically what this was. There was no overall conflict until maybe the last bit of the book. Hekatah was off plotting but she is so incredibly inept as a villain, that it does not actually count.
Finally, Jaenelle has no point of view chapters. In the first book, this worked out all right because she was not a very active character to that story so it served to add an air of mystery about her. In Heir to the Shadows she does play a much more active role; she goes off and does stuff on her own, things happen from only her perspective that are fairly major to what little plot there is. Not seeing them, just hearing about them happening “off screen” or after the fact, took a lot away from the reader's ability to immerse themselves.
Other than that, there was a ridiculous amount of repetition of phrases. If I ever have to hear the phrase “Mother Night” again, I will stab my own ears. Also used too frequently:
“May the darkness be merciful.”
“Jaenelle fluffed her hair.”
“Jaenelle said in her midnight voice....”
“Jaenelle's sapphire eyes...”
“Why do I want to have sex with Jaenelle?'
Okay, maybe that last isn't actually said. But it is implied. Heavily. By Saetan. Did I mention how much I hate him?
Oh and you remember Daemon? That guy that was fairly important in Daughter of the Blood. Yeah, he's crazy now so eff that guy. Maybe we will go save him someday. Oh is he conveniently easy to get to now? While Jaenelle is weak so it makes it more dramatic? Okay, I guess we will save him now. Halfway anyway. Fucker can do the legwork on his own.
I cannot handle another description about what position kitties and puppies are in to cuddle with Saetan at naptime. I just can't. The first half of the book is told almost entirely from his point of view. When Lucivar comes in, it gets better, but I still think it goes without saying that I have zero interest in reading Queen of the Darkness. I read Kushiel's Dart, which is comparable to The Black Jewels in that it is a dark fantasy with a lot of sex, a while back and never read the others because it just wasn't my thing. Damn am I now missing Phedre!
July 29, 2016
2.5 stars
Very little happened to move the plot forward. Anne Bishop’s books aren’t action packed, and I don’t expect them to be. I do expect something interesting to happen. Most of this book rehashed the same problems from Daughter of the Blood . This covered Jaenelle's teenage years, which were relatively uneventful. She recovered from the traumatic events in the prior book, hung out with her friends, and learned how to hone her craft. *yawn*
Hekatah hatched a fewdesperate attempts evil plans to destroy Jaenelle’s chances of coming into power as a queen. Hekatah was spoken about as if she was some extremely deceptive, manipulative person. Her actions indicated that she attempted to be those things but failed. Her plans were weak and desperate nor did they involve much intelligence or plotting. She doesn’t stand a chance. Frankly I wish she’d been killed off because I don’t want to waste my time reading about her since she is insignificant.
Lucivar’s role in the first book was small. His role in this was much bigger, but he went from being interesting, intelligent, and strong to a fool. He followed Jaenelle around like a lost puppy, and I desperately wish she would have told him to get lost. Also he is one or two thousand years old but he acted like a teenager.
The majority of this was told from Saetan’s perspective since Jaenelle was with him most of the time. He is the lamest character ever! Seriously grow some fucking balls Saetan! He is long lived and the High Lord of Hell, so stop acting like some driveling idiot! Saetan should be a bad ass, but instead he is the kindest, fairest ruler of them all. He is so intent on following the rules that he sacrificed his two sons to horrible fates all because of protocol.
Instead of being a BAMF all Saetan did was think about Jaenelle to the degree that he is blind to anything else going on in his realm including threats to Jaenelle. He is a horrible leader. He would be a loyal friend but is way too weak to be an effective leader. He’s also a shitty father to Jaenelle. He took great care of her but didn’t give her any direction. When she wanted something to be a certain way, she got her way.
Daemon was barely in this, and he is the most interesting character in the series by far. His absence deeply impacted the book and not in a good way. There was a point to it, but so many other inconsequential things didn’t need to be focused on in his absence. He sacrificed almost everything for Jaenelle in Daughter of the Blood, but did anybody give a shit about what he sacrificed for her? Nooooooo. He’s expendable, but apparently Jaenelle is not. She was the only one that cared about him at all, but she failed to show the outrage I wanted to see from her.
I’m still going to read the next one, but my expectations aren’t as high as they were when I started this book.
Very little happened to move the plot forward. Anne Bishop’s books aren’t action packed, and I don’t expect them to be. I do expect something interesting to happen. Most of this book rehashed the same problems from Daughter of the Blood . This covered Jaenelle's teenage years, which were relatively uneventful. She recovered from the traumatic events in the prior book, hung out with her friends, and learned how to hone her craft. *yawn*
Hekatah hatched a few
Lucivar’s role in the first book was small. His role in this was much bigger, but he went from being interesting, intelligent, and strong to a fool. He followed Jaenelle around like a lost puppy, and I desperately wish she would have told him to get lost. Also he is one or two thousand years old but he acted like a teenager.
The majority of this was told from Saetan’s perspective since Jaenelle was with him most of the time. He is the lamest character ever! Seriously grow some fucking balls Saetan! He is long lived and the High Lord of Hell, so stop acting like some driveling idiot! Saetan should be a bad ass, but instead he is the kindest, fairest ruler of them all. He is so intent on following the rules that he sacrificed his two sons to horrible fates all because of protocol.
Instead of being a BAMF all Saetan did was think about Jaenelle to the degree that he is blind to anything else going on in his realm including threats to Jaenelle. He is a horrible leader. He would be a loyal friend but is way too weak to be an effective leader. He’s also a shitty father to Jaenelle. He took great care of her but didn’t give her any direction. When she wanted something to be a certain way, she got her way.
Daemon was barely in this, and he is the most interesting character in the series by far. His absence deeply impacted the book and not in a good way. There was a point to it, but so many other inconsequential things didn’t need to be focused on in his absence. He sacrificed almost everything for Jaenelle in Daughter of the Blood, but did anybody give a shit about what he sacrificed for her? Nooooooo. He’s expendable, but apparently Jaenelle is not. She was the only one that cared about him at all, but she failed to show the outrage I wanted to see from her.
I’m still going to read the next one, but my expectations aren’t as high as they were when I started this book.
February 29, 2020
Reread 2020. Still enjoyable though I think the tension was lacking this time due to knowing what was coming. Original review below.
--------------
The Blood have waited centuries for the coming of Witch. The living myth. Dreams made flesh. She who will rule the Darkness. But not all are happy for the arrival of their savior. Some refuse to believe. Others consider her only a myth. And some few look forward to using her, a puppet in their games of control and politics. With time and the love of her family Jeanelle's physical wounds have healed. Her mind is still fragile, threatened by the memories of how her childhood was violently ripped away. And yet destiny calls. The day of reckoning draws near, the day Jeanelle must accept her fate or be driven into the Twisted Kingdom.
Heir to the Shadows is the second in Anne Bishop's Black Jewels trilogy. The story picks up two years after book one ends. Jeanelle has barely survived the violence that threatened to take her life and her power. Her physical wounds have healed. Her frightening memories are mostly kept at bay by amnesia. Her loved ones are afraid to fill in the gaps because they don't know whether she will be able to accept what happened or if it will drive her mad. A semblance of normal life returns.
This book becomes more of your typical fantasy fare. While there are still some action sequences, gone is the over the top violence and sexual situations. It also feels a bit more like a middle book that is bridging the gap between the first and final acts. The story slows down significantly and it's pacing plods along in the beginning half as Jeanelle recovers. Things pick up midway through as we learn more of the world and it sets up most of the players for what is yet to come.
The first story was set primarily in Terrielle, the Realm of Light. This time the story is mostly set in Kaeleer, the Realm of Shadow. This realm is more Other and more magical than we've seen before. Dorothea's taint and perversion of what it means to be Blood is just stating to spread. It gives us insight into how Terrielle could have been had Dorothea not existed. It's here that we're introduced to the Kindred, animals that are also Blood. They come in all shapes and sizes from centaurs and satyrs to dragons, unicorns and wolves. They are the same and different from human Blood. They have Jewel ranks yet manage to avoid many of the failings that comes with great power for humanity. Unfortunately their form of innocence leaves them open to other influences they're unprepared for. Bishop does a great job of giving each animal its own personality and insight into how other species could think and act if they had magic.
The villains begin to move more openly. Dorothea and Hekatah continue to scheme, both together and against each other, each trying acheive her own ends. It is a common fantasy theme of evil starting to turn against and consuming itself that works well in this setting.
This is the book where Lucifer comes into his own. We finally learn what it means to be an Eyrien warrior.
Events wrap up neatly this time around leaving all characters in place for the finale to come.
--------------
The Blood have waited centuries for the coming of Witch. The living myth. Dreams made flesh. She who will rule the Darkness. But not all are happy for the arrival of their savior. Some refuse to believe. Others consider her only a myth. And some few look forward to using her, a puppet in their games of control and politics. With time and the love of her family Jeanelle's physical wounds have healed. Her mind is still fragile, threatened by the memories of how her childhood was violently ripped away. And yet destiny calls. The day of reckoning draws near, the day Jeanelle must accept her fate or be driven into the Twisted Kingdom.
Heir to the Shadows is the second in Anne Bishop's Black Jewels trilogy. The story picks up two years after book one ends. Jeanelle has barely survived the violence that threatened to take her life and her power. Her physical wounds have healed. Her frightening memories are mostly kept at bay by amnesia. Her loved ones are afraid to fill in the gaps because they don't know whether she will be able to accept what happened or if it will drive her mad. A semblance of normal life returns.
This book becomes more of your typical fantasy fare. While there are still some action sequences, gone is the over the top violence and sexual situations. It also feels a bit more like a middle book that is bridging the gap between the first and final acts. The story slows down significantly and it's pacing plods along in the beginning half as Jeanelle recovers. Things pick up midway through as we learn more of the world and it sets up most of the players for what is yet to come.
The first story was set primarily in Terrielle, the Realm of Light. This time the story is mostly set in Kaeleer, the Realm of Shadow. This realm is more Other and more magical than we've seen before. Dorothea's taint and perversion of what it means to be Blood is just stating to spread. It gives us insight into how Terrielle could have been had Dorothea not existed. It's here that we're introduced to the Kindred, animals that are also Blood. They come in all shapes and sizes from centaurs and satyrs to dragons, unicorns and wolves. They are the same and different from human Blood. They have Jewel ranks yet manage to avoid many of the failings that comes with great power for humanity. Unfortunately their form of innocence leaves them open to other influences they're unprepared for. Bishop does a great job of giving each animal its own personality and insight into how other species could think and act if they had magic.
The villains begin to move more openly. Dorothea and Hekatah continue to scheme, both together and against each other, each trying acheive her own ends. It is a common fantasy theme of evil starting to turn against and consuming itself that works well in this setting.
This is the book where Lucifer comes into his own. We finally learn what it means to be an Eyrien warrior.
Events wrap up neatly this time around leaving all characters in place for the finale to come.
February 6, 2015
3,5 stars
I am an amazing procrastinator. I truly am. It's been two weeks since I finished this book, and yet I still haven't reviewed it. Maybe lazy would be a more fitting adjective. I can be such a sloth sometimes.
This book definitely lacked something when compared to the first installment. Oh well. Second-book-syndrome is a reality. Yes, that's exactly what this is. Sequel-syndrome at work.
Please refer to my review of the previous book for information on the world-building.
"Heir to the Shadows" offered an extended journey into the depths of Terreille and Kaeleer, focusing more on this last kingdom. It revolved around Jaenelle's teenage years and the development of her powers, plus her recovery from the tragic events of the first book. Also, we get to see her forming her court, composed of other young and powerful Lords and Ladies of the Blood.
All in all, this was a much more childish book that "Daughter of the Blood", and I felt it was more disorganised. Besides, Daemon was barely present, and he is one of my favourite characters, along with Saetan. Ironically, Jaenelle, the center of the story, is the character I feel more distanced towards. Maybe because I find some of her attitudes too juvenile, and I don't have access to her thoughts (there aren't any chapters focusing on her POV).
I admired this series' ability to shock me with it's raw version of reality, where little girls are lusted after, women are mentally broken if their Night of the Virgin doesn't go smoothly, and there are women who violently enslave men. This element was much softer in "Heir to the Shadows", and for that I was disappointed.
I am an amazing procrastinator. I truly am. It's been two weeks since I finished this book, and yet I still haven't reviewed it. Maybe lazy would be a more fitting adjective. I can be such a sloth sometimes.
This book definitely lacked something when compared to the first installment. Oh well. Second-book-syndrome is a reality. Yes, that's exactly what this is. Sequel-syndrome at work.
Please refer to my review of the previous book for information on the world-building.
"Heir to the Shadows" offered an extended journey into the depths of Terreille and Kaeleer, focusing more on this last kingdom. It revolved around Jaenelle's teenage years and the development of her powers, plus her recovery from the tragic events of the first book. Also, we get to see her forming her court, composed of other young and powerful Lords and Ladies of the Blood.
All in all, this was a much more childish book that "Daughter of the Blood", and I felt it was more disorganised. Besides, Daemon was barely present, and he is one of my favourite characters, along with Saetan. Ironically, Jaenelle, the center of the story, is the character I feel more distanced towards. Maybe because I find some of her attitudes too juvenile, and I don't have access to her thoughts (there aren't any chapters focusing on her POV).
I admired this series' ability to shock me with it's raw version of reality, where little girls are lusted after, women are mentally broken if their Night of the Virgin doesn't go smoothly, and there are women who violently enslave men. This element was much softer in "Heir to the Shadows", and for that I was disappointed.
January 7, 2019
So here's the thing about Heir to the Shadows.
Back when I first read the trilogy (middle school, for those not following me on tumblr), this one was my favorite.
Looking back, I assume it's because Jaenelle does the most of her own thang she ever gets to do (plus friends! Friendship is magic!) and the lack of Daemon Sadi interacting with her. Also unicorns and various other talking fuzzy creatures.
Is it a good book? No. Is it, again, weirdly compulsively readable? Chyeah. Did it eek out an extra half star from me because of Tersa and Karla and said talking animals? You be the judge.
Honestly though all the cute moments are tooth-grittingly twee, the humor is juvenile, and it all feels very condescending when the men talk about how much trouble the ladyfolk are and how powerful they are becoming and how scary they are. Plus, everybody is warm for Jaenelle's form still, including her father.
Not the ladies though. That would be crossing A LINE, amirite?
Same warnings for the first book, because the author is a one trick pony. But with rape.
Back when I first read the trilogy (middle school, for those not following me on tumblr), this one was my favorite.
Looking back, I assume it's because Jaenelle does the most of her own thang she ever gets to do (plus friends! Friendship is magic!) and the lack of Daemon Sadi interacting with her. Also unicorns and various other talking fuzzy creatures.
Is it a good book? No. Is it, again, weirdly compulsively readable? Chyeah. Did it eek out an extra half star from me because of Tersa and Karla and said talking animals? You be the judge.
Honestly though all the cute moments are tooth-grittingly twee, the humor is juvenile, and it all feels very condescending when the men talk about how much trouble the ladyfolk are and how powerful they are becoming and how scary they are. Plus, everybody is warm for Jaenelle's form still, including her father.
Not the ladies though. That would be crossing A LINE, amirite?
Same warnings for the first book, because the author is a one trick pony. But with rape.
February 15, 2021
Loved this amazing story beyond words. Sharing one of my favorite scenes:
Jaenelle vanished the bow, turned away from the sea, and walked into the twisted, shattered-crystal landscape. Her voice reached him, faint and fading. *Come, Daemon.*
Daemon rushed across the bridge. . . He caught her psychic scent before he noticed the glittering trail. It was like a ribbon of star-sprinkled night sky that led him through the twisted landscape to where she perched on a rock far above him.
*Stubborn, snarly male.*
*Stubbornness is a much-maligned quality,* he panted as he climbed toward her. . .
*I love you, Witch. I always will. You're everything I'd dreamed you would be.*
Jaenelle vanished the bow, turned away from the sea, and walked into the twisted, shattered-crystal landscape. Her voice reached him, faint and fading. *Come, Daemon.*
Daemon rushed across the bridge. . . He caught her psychic scent before he noticed the glittering trail. It was like a ribbon of star-sprinkled night sky that led him through the twisted landscape to where she perched on a rock far above him.
*Stubborn, snarly male.*
*Stubbornness is a much-maligned quality,* he panted as he climbed toward her. . .
*I love you, Witch. I always will. You're everything I'd dreamed you would be.*
November 18, 2016
Este segundo volume é um pouco mais parado, mas nem por isso menos interessante.
É o livro de ligação entre “Filha do Sangue” e “Rainha das Trevas” e por isso não tem grandes desenvolvimentos em termos de história.
O livro deixa um pouco de lado Daemon Sadi para se focar em Lucivar Yaslana, o outro filho bastardo do Senhor Supremo do Inferno.
Jaenelle Angelline está agora com 17 anos e é constantemente pressionada para constituir a sua corte.
É o livro de ligação entre “Filha do Sangue” e “Rainha das Trevas” e por isso não tem grandes desenvolvimentos em termos de história.
O livro deixa um pouco de lado Daemon Sadi para se focar em Lucivar Yaslana, o outro filho bastardo do Senhor Supremo do Inferno.
Jaenelle Angelline está agora com 17 anos e é constantemente pressionada para constituir a sua corte.
March 18, 2024
This series is the best I have read this year. It will hit the top 10 of my favorite fantasy books.
Start with the weird: I thought the time line was a bit weird in book 1 and 2. First Jaenelle is seven, then she is 12, 14 then 17 turning 18 and at the end she is 20. Luckily they started mentioning Jaenelle's age, other wise I hadn't noticed that she got older and so much time passed.
I read this book much faster than the first. It is so addiction and I enjoyed it so much. Love the characters, the plot, the good, in between and bad. I'm kind of sorry that I have to wait 1.5 weeks to read the last book, because I want to binge it and can't for the next 1.5 weeks.
A must read for fantasy fans!
Start with the weird: I thought the time line was a bit weird in book 1 and 2. First Jaenelle is seven, then she is 12, 14 then 17 turning 18 and at the end she is 20. Luckily they started mentioning Jaenelle's age, other wise I hadn't noticed that she got older and so much time passed.
I read this book much faster than the first. It is so addiction and I enjoyed it so much. Love the characters, the plot, the good, in between and bad. I'm kind of sorry that I have to wait 1.5 weeks to read the last book, because I want to binge it and can't for the next 1.5 weeks.
A must read for fantasy fans!
March 11, 2010
In Book 2 of Bishop's Black Jewels Trilogy, With Daemon's help, Janelle has been brought back from the psychic wasteland she had descended into after a vicious attack. Her body has healed and aged a only couple years but her spirit, that which makes her Witch- Dreams Made Flesh and the very embodiment of magic, is fully mature. She is coming into her powers but some things are missing, chief among them- Daemon. (Thinking he killed her body in the process of recovering her mind, Daemon never left the psychic mists after showing Janelle the way out.)
Janelle has blocked out much of what happened, and thus has forgotten Daemon. But those around her, not knowing exactly where Daemon is anyway, are not ready to lead her through those forgotten memories, assuming she will come to them on her own when she is ready.
Saetan, after challenging the council he helped create for the right to become her Guardian, has stepped up to train and aid her. He would have lost that challenge too if it wasn't for a magnificent display of power by Janelle that sealed, once and for all, her right to one day become Queen of the Blood.
This chapter of the saga gets a bit bogged down in the mire of political intrigue, but with Janelle's detractors foiled at every turn, we are still led to an ending where all is returned to her- including her consort- and with her throne all but seized, if not yet secure.
As this is the "bridge" book, the one that continues to build on what started in Daughter of the Blood and leads us to the happenings in the one to follow, it's not as exciting as the first and last. But it's needful to read and just as heart wrenching at times.
Janelle has blocked out much of what happened, and thus has forgotten Daemon. But those around her, not knowing exactly where Daemon is anyway, are not ready to lead her through those forgotten memories, assuming she will come to them on her own when she is ready.
Saetan, after challenging the council he helped create for the right to become her Guardian, has stepped up to train and aid her. He would have lost that challenge too if it wasn't for a magnificent display of power by Janelle that sealed, once and for all, her right to one day become Queen of the Blood.
This chapter of the saga gets a bit bogged down in the mire of political intrigue, but with Janelle's detractors foiled at every turn, we are still led to an ending where all is returned to her- including her consort- and with her throne all but seized, if not yet secure.
As this is the "bridge" book, the one that continues to build on what started in Daughter of the Blood and leads us to the happenings in the one to follow, it's not as exciting as the first and last. But it's needful to read and just as heart wrenching at times.
April 18, 2018
Van deze heb ik veel meer genoten dan van de eerste, blij dat ik toch verder gelezen heb :-)
May 29, 2025
3.75/5 ⭐
December 3, 2013
Anne Bishop is a very good storyteller; she knows how to keep you shocked and turning the page. I know I read Daughter of the Blood well into the night in order to finish it. Unfortunately her flaws seem to have caught up with her in Heir to the Shadows.
Bishop has created a very dark world of power play between males and females and masters and slaves. This is a matriarchal world where men serve the more magically powerful women. Unfortunately the Queens have taken advantage of their power and enslaved many of the men and force them to serve them both in and out of the bedroom. Jaenelle was born to be Queen over all of the Blood, those who have magic, and her future lover Daeman, his half brother Lucivar and their father Saetan have sworn to serve her.
Heir to the Shadows takes up where Daughter of the Blood ends. Saetan has taken custody of Jaenelle, who has selective amnesia of her rape, Daeman is mostly insane and Lucivar has managed to get himself thrown into the Salt Mines. This all makes up for a very promising storyline, but unfortunately the book's strengths are far outweighed by its weaknesses.
The setting is not well described or very detailed. We are still given little to no detail about the world itself and only somewhat more detail about how the magic works. It sometimes seems like rape and/or sex is thrown in simply for the sake of having rape and/or sex in there, which makes it sometimes feel like little more than a dark erotica novel.
The plot itself has serious flaws. For instance we are consistently bludgeoned over the head by the narrator, and by the characters themselves, by the fact that Jaenelle, Daemon, Lucivar, and Saetan are incredibly powerful. More powerful than any of their enemies. So why do they they take so long to stop their enemies? If Lucivar has killed queens with such ease before why did it take so long for him to escape the mines, where he was clearly in serious danger? Also, Lucivar has apparently been having sex with women for centuries, and as far as we know none of them got pregnant. If that's supposed to be the reason why all the witches want to have sex with him, why doesn't anyone think that he's sterile, and thus useless?
Saetan is supposed to be the most powerful person around until Jaenelle comes but for vague, not clearly explained reasons, he doesn't bother to free either of his sons from slavery, and although he knows that Hekatah is a threat and that he is much more powerful than her he never does anything about it. I can sort of understand him not wanting to kill her, but he couldn't have imprisoned her, or at least kept a closer eye on her activities? Especially when he already knows that she's killing people? For that instance, he couldn't he have at least kept a closer eye on his sons? After all this I'm really supposed to believe that he doesn't want his sons to be hurt? Obviously he doesn't care enough to actually stop their tormentors. I can forgive Jaenelle for not being very good at dispatching enemies because she is young, but it seems as if even though the reader is told several times in Heir to the Shadows and Daughter of the blood that each of the main characters are incredibly powerful, when it came to the actual events in the book, half the time you were supposed to forget that.
I was willing to accept that Jaenelle was unable to stop her own rape despite being told that she is ridiculously powerful. I was willing to accept that most of the people in this world seem to think of little except sex. I was even willing to accept that Bishop is frustratingly vague about what their magic is actually capable of and that I have no idea what most of the world is like. What I am not so willing to forgive is that Bishop is a weak writer who is unable to make her character's actions match up with her descriptions of those characters.
Unless Anne Bishop drastically improves her writing I will not be reading any more of her books.
Bishop has created a very dark world of power play between males and females and masters and slaves. This is a matriarchal world where men serve the more magically powerful women. Unfortunately the Queens have taken advantage of their power and enslaved many of the men and force them to serve them both in and out of the bedroom. Jaenelle was born to be Queen over all of the Blood, those who have magic, and her future lover Daeman, his half brother Lucivar and their father Saetan have sworn to serve her.
Heir to the Shadows takes up where Daughter of the Blood ends. Saetan has taken custody of Jaenelle, who has selective amnesia of her rape, Daeman is mostly insane and Lucivar has managed to get himself thrown into the Salt Mines. This all makes up for a very promising storyline, but unfortunately the book's strengths are far outweighed by its weaknesses.
The setting is not well described or very detailed. We are still given little to no detail about the world itself and only somewhat more detail about how the magic works. It sometimes seems like rape and/or sex is thrown in simply for the sake of having rape and/or sex in there, which makes it sometimes feel like little more than a dark erotica novel.
The plot itself has serious flaws. For instance we are consistently bludgeoned over the head by the narrator, and by the characters themselves, by the fact that Jaenelle, Daemon, Lucivar, and Saetan are incredibly powerful. More powerful than any of their enemies. So why do they they take so long to stop their enemies? If Lucivar has killed queens with such ease before why did it take so long for him to escape the mines, where he was clearly in serious danger? Also, Lucivar has apparently been having sex with women for centuries, and as far as we know none of them got pregnant. If that's supposed to be the reason why all the witches want to have sex with him, why doesn't anyone think that he's sterile, and thus useless?
Saetan is supposed to be the most powerful person around until Jaenelle comes but for vague, not clearly explained reasons, he doesn't bother to free either of his sons from slavery, and although he knows that Hekatah is a threat and that he is much more powerful than her he never does anything about it. I can sort of understand him not wanting to kill her, but he couldn't have imprisoned her, or at least kept a closer eye on her activities? Especially when he already knows that she's killing people? For that instance, he couldn't he have at least kept a closer eye on his sons? After all this I'm really supposed to believe that he doesn't want his sons to be hurt? Obviously he doesn't care enough to actually stop their tormentors. I can forgive Jaenelle for not being very good at dispatching enemies because she is young, but it seems as if even though the reader is told several times in Heir to the Shadows and Daughter of the blood that each of the main characters are incredibly powerful, when it came to the actual events in the book, half the time you were supposed to forget that.
I was willing to accept that Jaenelle was unable to stop her own rape despite being told that she is ridiculously powerful. I was willing to accept that most of the people in this world seem to think of little except sex. I was even willing to accept that Bishop is frustratingly vague about what their magic is actually capable of and that I have no idea what most of the world is like. What I am not so willing to forgive is that Bishop is a weak writer who is unable to make her character's actions match up with her descriptions of those characters.
Unless Anne Bishop drastically improves her writing I will not be reading any more of her books.
March 11, 2014
Daughter of the Blood is fun and intriguing; Heir to the Shadows is just cheap wannabe storytelling. My main complaints are:
1. The story is a lot more scattered. Bishop keeps track of the main storyline (which is compelling at the beginning of the book and at the end) but I am not sure about the many, many unnerving and quite laughable subplots. These subplots are not well-integrated in the narrative, they don't enrich our understanding of the characters' psychology, and they have a "fill-up space" feel to them. Ultimately the pattern is this: the subplot is introduced in the span of 2 pages, resolved within the next chapter, then forgotten about. The most ridiculous one was about the scary looking demon that Saetan hired as an art teacher for Janelle and her friends. That's when I realized the book was going to be bad.
2. Characterization is really really really weak. Janelle is cool and very powerful, what else? Lucivar has a hot temper but seems kind of simple-minded, Hekatah and Dorothea are pathetic villains. The most ridiculous character of all is Saetan, though. He is supposed to be the Prince of Hell and he acts like a whiney old man. He wears cozy sweaters and we even see him play with kittens!!!!! Are you serious? He is an idiot throughout the entire book and it is hard to take him seriously. Also, all the characters love milk and nut cakes. Wait, isn't this supposed to be Hell?
3. The writing is bad and disjointed; the vocabulary fairly limited and unimaginative.
4. Where is all the sex we anticipated from reading Daughter of the Blood? And where is Daemon??
As I said, the main storyline is still worthwhile and captivating. I particularly liked when J makes the Offering to the Darkness and becomes Queen. Also, the very notion of the Twisted Kingdom is fascinating. That's why I will read Queen of the Darkness, keeping my fingers and toes crossed.
1. The story is a lot more scattered. Bishop keeps track of the main storyline (which is compelling at the beginning of the book and at the end) but I am not sure about the many, many unnerving and quite laughable subplots. These subplots are not well-integrated in the narrative, they don't enrich our understanding of the characters' psychology, and they have a "fill-up space" feel to them. Ultimately the pattern is this: the subplot is introduced in the span of 2 pages, resolved within the next chapter, then forgotten about. The most ridiculous one was about the scary looking demon that Saetan hired as an art teacher for Janelle and her friends. That's when I realized the book was going to be bad.
2. Characterization is really really really weak. Janelle is cool and very powerful, what else? Lucivar has a hot temper but seems kind of simple-minded, Hekatah and Dorothea are pathetic villains. The most ridiculous character of all is Saetan, though. He is supposed to be the Prince of Hell and he acts like a whiney old man. He wears cozy sweaters and we even see him play with kittens!!!!! Are you serious? He is an idiot throughout the entire book and it is hard to take him seriously. Also, all the characters love milk and nut cakes. Wait, isn't this supposed to be Hell?
3. The writing is bad and disjointed; the vocabulary fairly limited and unimaginative.
4. Where is all the sex we anticipated from reading Daughter of the Blood? And where is Daemon??
As I said, the main storyline is still worthwhile and captivating. I particularly liked when J makes the Offering to the Darkness and becomes Queen. Also, the very notion of the Twisted Kingdom is fascinating. That's why I will read Queen of the Darkness, keeping my fingers and toes crossed.
January 9, 2011
Daemon! OH Daemon! How could this happen? I don't care what anyone else says, Daemon is my favourite of the line. Yes, okay, his father Saetan is very sexy and his brother Lucivar is hot. Still, in this second story, I felt sorry for all the SaDiablo members. I did like reading about Jaenelle growing up. Her time with Lucivar brings a smile to my face. All these blood coming together for a time when Witch will make people pay, it's pretty heady. At times, I find this story to be young adult and then other times I find it to be sensually erotic.
May 20, 2011
I couldn't put this down. Incredible story.
Again, I would give it a five star rating without question if it didn't end on a NASTY cliff hanger. So, it gets four. I'm greatful that the series is so far advanced. I'd be swearing it off if I had to wait a year or more to get the rest of the story.
Again, I would give it a five star rating without question if it didn't end on a NASTY cliff hanger. So, it gets four. I'm greatful that the series is so far advanced. I'd be swearing it off if I had to wait a year or more to get the rest of the story.
August 10, 2024
It's too epic to put into words.
The one with the brother who discovers he is loved.
The one with the unicorn horn scepter.
Smoke
Bitches being crazy
Webs of lies and entrapment
Cock Rings of Choice
Saetan is humanized.
Jaenelle creates a court.
5 Stars
The one with the brother who discovers he is loved.
The one with the unicorn horn scepter.
Smoke
Bitches being crazy
Webs of lies and entrapment
Cock Rings of Choice
Saetan is humanized.
Jaenelle creates a court.
5 Stars
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