The Queen's Bastard

Of course the day I’m reading a book with a prominent set of breasts on the cover is the day my boss asks me, “What are you reading?” as I saunter into the break room with my book. <br /> <br />Fortunately, there’s no shame in my reading game. I flashed her the cover with a smile and said, “It’s a lot like Game of Thrones.” <br /> <br />And I stand by the comparison. The Queen’s Bastard IS a lot like Game of Thrones--the TV show, not the books. You know how when you try to read the Game of Thrones books, you drown in extraneous junk about obscure characters who don’t matter? Yeah, there’s none of that here. Each scene is presented much the way it would be on the screen: the characters appear, stuff happens, and then we’re ushered smoothly on to the next scene. It’s like you’re an omniscient fly, somehow stuck to every wall in the castle right next to whatever shit is going down.<br /> <br />And lots of shit goes down. Belinda Primrose is, after all, a spy and assassin, as well as the unacknowledged bastard daughter of the queen. She’ll go to any lengths to protect her queen and by extension her country--up to and including sexing up and murdering her targets. I’ve seen some reviewers complain about her ruthlessness, but I have to wonder how many of those reviewers have watched a James Bond movie without batting an eye at 007’s promiscuity and cold-bloodedness. Mayhaps what really gets such readers’ tighty-whities in a bunch is the fact that the lusty murderer is actually a murderess? *sips tea*<br /> <br />Lord forbid a woman enjoy both her conquests and her line of work, amiright?<br /> <br />Anywhoodle, I love books that make me constantly question characters’ motives. Who’s on which side, who’s betraying whom, who’s lying, who’s cheating, who’s working for whom, who’s looking out just for their own interests, I love it all. That is this book from page 1, and it’s awesome. And there’s a sequel--excuse me while I go shove it into my face.<br /><br />More book recommendations by me at <a target="_blank" rel="noopener nofollow" href="http://www.readingwithhippos.com">www.readingwithhippos.com</a>

I must first say that C.E. Murphy is probably one of my favorite authors. Her Joanne Walker books are incredible and her other series equally enjoyable.<br /><br />This book, however, fell FAR short of my expectations. The writing was good, don't get me wrong, but her main character had absolutely NO redeeming factors. I kept turning the pages to find some good aspect to Belinda/Beatrice and I kept being denied any reason to like her. <br /><br />This is one series that I will not finish. I was sorely disappointed.

There are times when I read a book so well-put together, so deliciously complex, and so generally OH-MY-inducing that I despair of ever trying to write anything as good, much less sell it. The Queen's Bastard, latest offering from the redoubtable <a href="http://www.cemurphy.net" rel="nofollow noopener">C.E. Murphy</a>, is one of those times.<br /><br />For starters, the setting is quite unusual for a fantasy novel. This thing is basically alternate history fantasy--all the names have been changed, but any reader will definitely recognize Europe of the 16th century here, complete with a queen on one of the pertinent thrones that we all should find very, very familiar. ;) And there's magic--or rather, I should say, very interesting telepathic and telekinetic abilities possessed by the most major characters, the source of which is hinted at to be something rather more appropriate to a science fiction novel.<br /><br />And the sex... oh my yes, there's sex. But I am quite satisfied (aheh) to note that this novel has, hands down, the most effective use of sex I have read in quite some time. Our heroine cuts a swath through any number of men through this novel, from a lowly coachman clear up to a prince who turns out to share her secret abilities--and yet, every single sexual encounter is a means to an end, propelling Belinda through a web of increasingly complicated intrigue, and some of them come back to haunt her and hard. One scene in particular--you'll know it when you get to it--was quite intense, almost alarming, enough that I found myself genuinely challenged about whether I actually liked the heroine. (I'm still pondering that! Belinda is extremely effective as a character, but all throughout the book I was rather torn between cheering her on and muttering "Bitch!" at the page.)<br /><br />It amused me, too--and this may well amuse Kit when she reads this--that I got a big Elfquest vibe off of this story. And in particular, a vibe of Belinda as a very young Winnowill. Particularly in that aforementioned intense and alarming scene.<br /><br />I finished this thing up this afternoon, and am in awe. Awe, I tell you. Five stars!

Errr, I dunno, I'm listing this book here because I like this author and this book for SOME reasons, and don't like it a lot for others. This book started out VERY interesting with a complex heroine and some interesting world-building, an alternate Elizabethan-Era world with some magic thrown in. There were a lot of confusing turns though, and some outright left-field character behavior that made it VERY hard to plow through and continue the journey with the main character. I dunno, I might read the next one, but down the line.

In many ways delicious, <i>The Queen's Bastard</i> is a well-written, evocative piece of alternate-Elizabethan-era fantasy. Unfortunately, defects in both its plot and its characters detract from the otherwise beautiful prose of C.E. Murphy.<br /><br />At first I enjoyed the stalwart strength of the protagonist, Belinda Primrose. An unacknowledged bastard of Lorraine (Elizabeth), Queen of Aulun (England), she has been raised and trained as an assassin by her father, Robert Drake (Francis Drake). Belinda is, in essence, the product of two decades of manipulation by her father. Since her first kill at twelve, she has had no identity beyond those she assumes to fulfil her missions. This struggle for identity becomes a key theme in the book and an important aspect of the plot as Belinda finds her will subsumed by the fabricated identity of Beatrice Irvine.<br /><br />My problem with the book begins when Belinda rediscovers her quelled "witchpower" with the help of the Prince of Gallin (France), Javier, who is also a "witchbreed". This power is inextricably linked to emotion, particularly Belinda's anger and her sexuality. The book takes a sharp turn toward erotica when she wakes up in bed next to her serving maid, whom Belinda has bound and gagged. It wasn't the rampant sex that dismayed me--it was the inconsistency. Up until this point, sex had been a component of the story, but it never took centre stage in such an insistent manner as it did at this point.<br /><br />Soon I began to despise Belinda and actively cheer for her antagonists, particularly the clever countess Akilina Pankejeff. Unlike Belinda's machinations and her ambivalence over destroying Javier, Akilina was pleasantly cruel. And she actually seemed competent at her job. Belinda, on the other hand, made numerous mistakes and blunders. While I appreciate the lengths to which Murphy goes to give me a flawed protagonist, I just didn't enjoy it very much. It results in a hasty resolution to Belinda's plot, one much less artful than I wanted.<br /><br />I think what I'm trying to say is that <i>The Queen's Bastard</i> sacrifices political intrigue for character drama. For that reason, it's a good book--people who like character drama will enjoy it. But a great book, like <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/234225.Dune__Dune_Chronicles__1_" title="Dune (Dune Chronicles #1) by Frank Herbert" rel="noopener">Dune</a>, manages to reconcile both politics and character drama to create a moving, profound story. Instead, the political trappings fall away as the book becomes more about romance, forbidden love, and the price of power.<br /><br />I'm sad to say I was disappointed by <i>The Queen's Bastard</i>; I don't yet know if I'll read the sequel. Maybe I'll try some of Murphy's other works first. She has a wonderful talent for description; the book contains excellent similes and lyrical depictions of the scenes. The delectable prose makes it all the more unfortunate that I didn't enjoy the narrative more.

This book looks like a romance version of <a href="https://goodreads.com/book/show/45107.Assassin_s_Apprentice__The_Farseer_Trilogy__Book_1_" title="Assassin's Apprentice (The Farseer Trilogy, Book 1) by Robin Hobb" rel="noopener">The Assassin's Apprentice</a>. It is set in a thinly veiled version of the late 16th century (pretty much the only difference are the names--the redheaded, married to her country, virgin queen of a misty island is named "Lorraine," for instance) and follows the hidden struggle for supremacy. The main character is the secret, bastard daughter of "Lorraine" and her spymaster. Belinda spends the entirety of the book manipulating, killing, and spying in the courts of Europe. I expected it to be total trash. Imagine my surprise when I found the main character to be surprisingly sensible and cool headed, impatient with her flashes of loneliness or sympathy.<br />After years of pretending to be various peasants (and how refreshing, to see a spy who hides her pride and takes any dirty job), Belinda is unexpectedly thrust into the spotlight when she catches the eye of a prince. While using him to get closer to his mother's papers, Belinda and Prince Javier come to a startling realization: they share a witchy power. Their relationship deepens, but staying in one, high profile place is dangerous for Belinda. Her various plots and personas accumulate and might be about to catch up with her...<br /><br />Belinda is a particularly interesting character because of her troubled interaction with power. Having spent the first twenty-two years as unthinkingly obedient and subservient, it is a true reversal for Belinda to not only order her own servants, but to control the minds of those around her, as well. Her sexual appetites awaken, and she begins struggling to maintain a properly humble facade. I was intrigued by Murphey's gender politics (which are very much to the forefront of this book) and by the galloping pace of the plot. I read this in a single sitting.

All the right elements are in place in The Queen's Bastard: court intrigue, the lust for both flesh and power, tested loyalties, supernatural abilities. And yet, despite the inherent possibilities, the book does not deliver. The tale is long-winded, the characters unsympathetic, and the political intrigue lackluster at best. I found myself barely skimming large passages of text. The only intriguing tidbit comes at the end in Belinda's glimpse into the origins of her powers-but even the strange info garnered doesn't seem to mesh with the rest of the story's details. <br /><br />I think I'll stick to Murphy's UF novels.

I hated this book. I know, strong words. I really enjoyed C.E. Murphy's Negotiator series, and was intrigued by the concept of Queen's Bastard. Instead, I found myself cringing my way through the story. It wasn't so much the technical writing that disturbed me, as the story itself. I was disgusted and totally turned off by the main characters' change in personalitay as she came into her powers. I actually tossed this one into the trash. I guess there really is a first time for everything. Now,if I could just somehow wipe out the fact I ever read it and regain all that lost time...

Yuck. Yuck yuck yuck.

Meh. DNF. <br /><br />So...I didn't like this, but not for the same reasons most negative reviews have stated. I have no issue with female MCs who recognize that their body/sexuality can be used to further their own survival or rise to power -- because, sadly, even today some women view their femininity as their only marketable asset. (Yes, this is wrong &amp; unfair, etc etc. But sweeping it under a rug &amp; whitewashing the issue is no solution.) I could even deal with the unpleasant sex &amp; generally unlikable cast, if not for two glaring flaws:<br /><br />1) Belinda, the MC, is a cypher. An empty vessel. A nonexistent presence in her own story. WTF? It's not that she slips into any persona so much as she has no persona of her own, therefore she can be anything the AUTHOR tells her to be, not what her story dictates. Belinda's blank canvas existence is extremely annoying -- it's either poor writing or overdone lit-fic, &amp; neither wins points in my eyes. <br /><br />2) Why bother making this an alternate fantasy world? The countries &amp; cities &amp; cultures &amp; royalty &amp; other major signposts are so obviously lifted from Elizabethan &amp; Russian history that there is NO reason to rename them with awkward, confusing monickers. Why not just have used the European backdrop with mild fantasy elements?? That's why HISTORICAL FANTASY is a genre. It saves the book from tedious, pointless worldbuilding &amp; the reader from Excedrin headaches. <br /><br />DNF somewhere around pg 150, plus the bits I read near the end to see if it was worth finishing. (Nope.) It's unfortunate, because I liked the prologue &amp; opening chapter, but things just rolled downhill from there. <br /><br />...And I can only echo another reviewer: if you're looking for a better version of this story type, read Jacqueline Carey's KUSHIEL books. They're infinitely better.