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A review by levesc17
Kushiel's Dart by Jacqueline Carey
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
This was a wildly long tale! It could have been two or three books easily. This was on my radar because Sarah J Maas had mentioned in an interview in 2015. You can definitely see some inspo from this book in Throne Of Glass.
I had read other reviews about not liking how sex was so central to the book. I wish I had known before I started the origins of this complaint. To be ultra clear, the fantasy place this is set in completely de-stigmatizes sex. The origin of the fictional universe is based loosely on Jesus and Mary Magdalene— except that Mary Magdalene’s role as a prostitute is exemplified as the holiest work you can do. So the whole culture worships sex as a holy activity with no stigmas. Sex work is the primary focus of the first third of the book- the main character is birthed by a sex worker and grows up in the trade. Children as young as ten learn about sex in this fictional world.
The second third of the book has the MC sold into slavery by a court rival. The final third of the book has no onscreen sex and is about saving their country from invasion.
I hope this helps you decide to read this book, going in with a better understanding of what the book is about.
I had read other reviews about not liking how sex was so central to the book. I wish I had known before I started the origins of this complaint. To be ultra clear, the fantasy place this is set in completely de-stigmatizes sex. The origin of the fictional universe is based loosely on Jesus and Mary Magdalene— except that Mary Magdalene’s role as a prostitute is exemplified as the holiest work you can do. So the whole culture worships sex as a holy activity with no stigmas. Sex work is the primary focus of the first third of the book- the main character is birthed by a sex worker and grows up in the trade. Children as young as ten learn about sex in this fictional world.
The second third of the book has the MC sold into slavery by a court rival. The final third of the book has no onscreen sex and is about saving their country from invasion.
I hope this helps you decide to read this book, going in with a better understanding of what the book is about.
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Slavery, Torture, Violence, Trafficking, and War
Minor: Abandonment
This book has a lot of sex, but it’s not as graphic as it could be. Mostly, it has the start of a sex scene and then fades to black. There’s some BDSM content as well, but again just the first minutes or so of a liaison and then fades to the next chapter.