Book Review: Swordspoint

[next_to_normal]

I actually finished this book a while ago, but I was holding off on writing about it because I planned to do a multi-book review post, which ended up getting way too long, so I broke it up anyway. Oops.

Swordspoint, by Ellen Kushner

I found this book via flake_sake's rec. It's a historical fantasy set in a preindustrial world where disputes and matters of honor are settled via professional swordsmen for hire. In this unnamed city, the nobility run the city via council and live in luxury on The Hill, while the lower class live with the riffraff and criminals in the poorer Riverside district. The story involves the political maneuvering of the nobles, and the Riverside swordsman who gets caught up in the middle of it all.

The book was enjoyable, but kind of... unremarkable, I guess. If it hadn't been recced by someone on my flist, I'm not sure I'd have given it much consideration (probably not enough to write a whole review). The best thing about it is the world-building, as the author creates a historically-influenced setting that is at once both foreign and familiar. The stark divisions in society set the stage for exploring class conflict, and the descriptions of the two very different parts of the city created a vivid mental picture. I also liked that the structure of government is hinted at just enough to be clear without being tedious.

The characters were a bit of a mixed bag. Only Richard St. Vier, the swordsman, and his unstable lover Alec really feel fleshed out enough to be more than a stock Regency character. Their relationship is intense and complex, and the political and sexual exploits of the nobles seem prosaic and unoriginal in comparison. It's the typical scheming aristocracy without a king, and these characters don't do much to distinguish themselves outside of their slightly unusual setting. And since everyone is morally grey and completely self-centered, there aren't really any particularly sympathetic characters. Even Richard and Alec, although it was clear that they had very strong feelings toward one another, it was a little hard to understand what they actually saw in each other in the first place. It makes me curious how they met, which is never mentioned.

The plot is rather low-key for most of the novel and spends a lot of time on sitting room conversations. There's a lack of urgency to the proceedings, even though the stakes ought to be high in a story that involves swordfighting and death. The author never truly made me worry. It never really seemed to be a question of whether Richard would succeed, merely how, in which case, all that's at stake are the reputations of the nobles who've tried to use him for their own ends. I've also seen the term "Melodrama of Manners" used to describe the novel, and I think that premise makes it seem a bit stilted and too far removed from the reader to engage very deeply.

I really enjoyed the universe Kushner's created, though, so I did get the next book in the series from the library. Thus far, it seems to be an even slower start than the first. I'd say if you are looking for an atmospheric story with a well-crafted setting, Kushner's your gal, but if you expect a fair amount of action in a fantasy novel, you might want to look elsewhere.

Comments

[flake-sake.livejournal.com]

You read it, you read it!

I agree with your points of critique, the book is not very fast and I'm not exactly sure I'd call it exciting either (Melodrama of Manners is Kushner's own subtitle for the books btw.), what I really liked about the book were the two main characters and how their relationship is described. Kushner never tells, she always shows. And she shows two people who are both not exactly easy. Alec is such a cynic he's often downright mean even to Richard and Richard keeps his emotions at bay to a large extend.

When you say, you got the second book, which do you mean? Privilege of the sword (is in story cronologically second) or the fall of the kings (was written second)?

I thought in swordspoint it's still very obvious that it is Kushner 's first book. She loves her main characters and has some things to say about some others (say Michael Godwin), the worldbuilding is nice and she just loves the duels and musketeery stuff.
Privilege is a lot more interestingly structured and works on more than one plane, also there I really fell in love with the side characters very easily.

What I love about the books as a triology is how Alec's family develops through the generations. How you can see things the grandparents did affecting the grand children in roundabout ways.

Also, I'm wondering now, if I can honestly say that the book is that brilliant or that it just hits some favorite rare plot points of mine. I'm just very into couples that are not all star crossed destiny, but where you stil feel that though they both are strong individuals they have a connection that explores depts in them the society around them could never reach. Pretty much the same thing that speaks to me from Spike/Buffy and Spike/Angel.
I didn't find it so hard to see what they see in each other though. Alec grew up in that sceming society on the hill and loathed it, finally breaking out, when his sister was force married off. He hates the dishonesty, the not getting one's hands dirty (and that he is very good at those things is part of what composes his self loathing). Richard is someone real in a world of liars to him. Richard couldn't properly lie if he tried to, which he doesn't. He fights his own battles and for that his blade is for sale, he himself isn't.

What Richard sees in Alec is more compicated and I think I'd need some material from the later books to break it down, so maybe we can talk afterwards.

There is a story about how they met in the works as far as I know. Kushner published an awful lot of short stories that are a bit hard to come by

[next_to_normal]

Melodrama of Manners is Kushner's own subtitle for the books btw.

Ah-ha! That explains why it was mentioned in so many reviews, lol. I don't recall it being part of the title for my edition, although I also noticed that I had an old edition, and apparently the newer one has short stories at the end? Which mine didn't.

When I said second, I meant The Fall of the Kings. That is a bit confusing, lol.

I thought in swordspoint it's still very obvious that it is Kushner 's first book.

Yeah, I can see that. Good to know that she gets better. :)

[flake-sake.livejournal.com]

Sorry that I kept editing my post so often.

When I said second, I meant The Fall of the Kings. That is a bit confusing, lol.

Yeah, I was wondering, because Privilege is the book that moves fastest and I was curious about the slow start you wrote about.

Imho reading it the other way round might be more interesting, because the points in time are so far apart and a lot of Alec's family history is discussed in Privilege (also Privilege is the book about the women of the Riverside universe).

What I found very interesting in Fall of the Kings is how the family developed. In Privilege you see how Alec created his weird little family in complete opposition to the repressive values of his own parents. Theron grows up with these people now and while he resembles Alec in many ways, he never got the same bitterness, but is on the other hand quite aimless and even naive at times.

[next_to_normal]

You edited while I was typing! lol

When I said I didn't know what they saw in each other, I was thinking more along the lines of that they're both not very nice people - what you said about Alec being cynical and mean and Richard being emotionally closed off. Not attractive qualities. And beyond that, they don't seem to have much in common - Alec is a scholar, Richard doesn't even know how to read; Alec despises the nobility and seems almost self-righteous about his newly-adopted poverty, Richard is more than happy to exploit their scheming as a career, he'll take their money and spend it. Those things would seem to make for a very rocky relationship. And we do see them have fights, but it made me curious why they were initially attracted to one another when they would seem to be at odds so much.

[flake-sake.livejournal.com]

Richard doesn't know how to read, but he isn't stupid either. Which considering that Alec's experiences at university where yet another disappointment to him also makes for an attractive quality, because it's unlearned crude intelligence.

Richard on the other hand somewhat admires booksmartness though he never tried to achieve it. There is a short story about him and his mother (who was educated, but also a little crazy) that makes those things a little clearer.

Richard lives of the scheming nobility but he's not part of it. He's bleeding the people Alec hates and they still can't really corrupt him (until they do, but that's to save Alec).

I think their initial attraction must have been a very messed up thing. Alec had a total death wish when they met, so someone who kills people for a living must have been attractive, Richard on the other hand is not actually easily offended. He find Alec funny, even at his worst and he'd never kill someone who doesn't pose a challenge. It figures that with all the mutual interest and all the tension from their very different characters they ended up in bed pretty quickly.