Imriel de la Courcel's blood parents are history's most reviled traitors, while his adoptive parents, Phèdre and Joscelin, are Terre d'Ange's greatest champions. Stolen, tortured, and enslaved as a young boy, Imriel is now a Prince of the Blood, third in line for the throne in a land that revels in beauty, art, and desire. After a year abroad to study at university, Imriel returns from his adventures a little older and somewhat wiser. But perhaps not wise enough. What was once a mere spark of interest between himself and his cousin Sidonie now ignites into a white-hot blaze. But from commoner to peer, the whole realm would recoil from any alliance between Sidonie, heir to the throne, and Imriel, who bears the stigma of his mother's misdeeds and betrayals. Praying that their passion will peak and fade, Imriel and Sidonie embark on an intense, secret affair. Blessed Elua founded Terre d'Ange and bestowed one simple precept to guide his people: Love as thou wilt. When duty calls, Imriel honors his role as a member of the royal family by leaving to marry a lovely, if merely sweet, Alban princess. By choosing duty over love, Imriel and Sidonie may have unwittingly trespassed against Elua's law. But when dark powers in Alba, who fear an invasion by Terre d'Ange, seek to use the lovers' passion to bind Imriel, the gods themselves take notice. Before the end, Kushiel's justice will be felt in heaven and on earth.
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"OK, so i just finished reading this book and decided to take a look around at what other people said about it online. I think some people have become confused about the term "emo" and what it means. Allow me to explain: emo is when you're whining and you don't deserve to. Emo is when you're whining to get attention because you think that will make you more interesting. When no one understands why you cut yourself, you're emo. When daddy won't let you date the boy you like because he's a punk, you're emo. When you live in the suburbs, are a member of the middle classes and have no real problems, but still complain, you're emo. When you're upset that your boyfriend won't turn you into a vampire, you're the queen of emo. I'm emo a lot of the time. I will gladly admit it. But when your wife who you married for the sake of the kingdom even though you were in love with your own princess is murdered, together with your unborn child, after releasing you so that you can be with your one true love after she's dead and yet you still have to track down the man who killed her even though you know that he really only did it because he was saving his own nation the way you were saving yours by doing what you did that put her in that situation because the whole thing was your fault anyway because you loved someone else that you couldn't have... I'm sorry. I don't care who killed your soul back in the nineties, but at that point, you are a figure of great and terrible romance. Own it. Oh, and don't read this review if you haven't read the book."
— Gregory (5 out of 5 stars)
“Carey brings Alba vividly alive again in another stunner in the Kushiel series. A multilayered plot and Imriel’s complex inner life as he struggles with pain and loss in the present while trying to make peace with the past hook the reader.”
— Booklist (starred review)“Imriel serves well as protagonist, however, and events are clearly building to what promises to be a spectacular climax.”
— Publishers WeeklySuperbly crafted...unforgettable.... Highly recommended.
— Library Journal Starred Review" Probably my favorite of the kushiel legacy. I didn't want to put it down until I knew the conclusion "
— Brittany, 2/8/2014" These books rock by the way! Talk about a book that makes you experience strong emotions. Kushiel's Avatar had me terrified for half the book so that any time I picked it up or even thought about it, my heart would race in fear. Kushiel's Justice has had me absolutely sobbing and I still get teary eyed when I think about it. "
— Jeanna, 2/6/2014" The world and the characters are amazing. The writing first rate. I love this entire series. "
— Dawn, 1/30/2014" Alright, it is an improvement from Scion (or maybe I just like books with a massive upheaval in the middle), but still lacking the voice and beauty of the first trilogy. Events in my personal life certainly influenced my thinking in reading it, making it a much harder book to deal with than it should have been. Wandering new countries in each book is a little old by this point, almost a covering for the lack of real story. Imriel's constant mental self-beatings are a little old by now, too. I'm holding out hope for the third book. "
— Laura, 1/24/2014" fun and entertaining, but same as the first book of this trilogy. not as gripping as the first set i read by carey. i'll still read the last book when it comes out, but it's not going to be a set of books i'll buy in the long run. "
— Megan, 1/18/2014" This book is far more straight fantasy than spy/intrigue and it does an excellent job of it. I like this one more than the previous in the series. "
— Kristi, 1/12/2014" The ending was pretty unsatisfying, but overall I liked the rest of the story. It was nice to see Imriel finally grow up a little. "
— Catherine, 1/11/2014" 5th in ser, 2nd Imriel bk, great writing, fascinating char "
— Michelle, 12/31/2013" This one was a very sad tale for me, and very exciting. Who am I kidding? They are all awesome! Great book, this one is neat because it goes into more history about the patrilineal heritage in the royal family. "
— Victoria, 11/27/2013" Jacqueline Carey is amazing... this book was so rich and satisfying that I'm compelled to read the series (for the 3rd time) from the beginning just so I can share the journey again and again. "
— Heather, 11/7/2013" Better than the first of this trilogy, but not as good as the first trilogy. "
— Jennifer, 10/26/2013" I give it 4 stars only because I can't give it 3.5. I DID enjoy most of it. "
— Alison, 9/15/2013" I wish it was thicker... I couldn't stop reading and yet I wish it never ends... I can't wait for teh next one! It is just magic :) "
— Anna, 9/4/2013" I'm enjoying the second Kushiel trilogy, maybe not quite as mush as the Phedre series but still, they're captivating. And I dare say that everyone can empathize with Imriel in that sense of loneliness and loss when you realize that the one you want may not be the one you can have. "
— Beth, 6/14/2013" The first one was good enough that I wanted to immediately start this book. This one dragged quite a bit toward the end. I suppose I understand the quest to kill the bear but ultimately it took too long for me. Was happy to see it conclude. "
— Rebecca, 1/31/2013" This series is incredible. Like other reviewers I have read, I think the orginal trilogy were the best but they are all still very intriguing and I look forward to reading Kushiel's Mercy, which I did not realize was out until I joined this site today. "
— Dana, 12/8/2012" I liked this book much more than the first book in the Imriel series. Thought it was a very gripping read. "
— Allison, 12/10/2011" If I could, I would give this 2 .5 stars...solely because I found the book emotionally difficult for me...it was hard to enjoy because it was so depressing. "
— Rachel, 10/29/2011" Imri kills the were-bear who killed his wife, and returns to his love. "
— Manda, 5/17/2011" Le défi lancé étant de le lire en 2 jours... je vais voir si j'y parviens !!<br/><br/>je mettrais l'heure à laquelle je l'ai commencé pour que ce soit plus "juste" et qu'on voit exactement en combien de temps je vais le lire...<br/><br/> "
— Melisande, 5/17/2011" This whole series is fantastic. If this is your genre, don't pass it up. "
— Liz, 4/28/2011" 5th in ser, 2nd Imriel bk, great writing, fascinating char "
— Michelle, 4/1/2011" As usual, hard to put down. The middle got a little long but not so long that I got exasperated. I think it's leading up to a great third book ... I'll know when I get there. "
— Theresa, 3/26/2011" Blah. I deserve credit for wading through all of that. One of the chapters near the end begins with the sentence: "The balance of our journey was unremarkable." That pretty much describes the entire book. "
— Alsha, 3/6/2011" Parts of this book were really good, parts were really hard to get through. The first 3 books in the series were amazing so I really do recommend the books. Not as much sex as she had put in the first books in the series but there was some. Over all a good book. "
— Cornelia, 3/2/2011" Loved this series....well developed characters. Lots of action. Hard to put down. "
— Muriel, 1/18/2011" I enjoy these books and it is interesting to see how the series develops as it moves along. We are into a second generation now and going strong. Still a little odd, at times, but not nearly as much as it was in the early books. "
— Pete, 1/2/2011" Please read reviews for Kushiel's Scion. "
— April, 1/1/2011" This, the second in the trilogy, takes a step up from the debut, Kushiel's Scion. Carey really gets the old feeling back. This one brings back memories of the first Kushiel's Legacy trilogy. Well done, indeed! "
— Chris, 11/3/2010" Ah, this author just keeps getting better. I don't have a lot to add to this review because I'm too busy reading the follow-up book! "
— Courtney, 9/23/2010" I love all of the Kushiel books, but I must admit that these ones aren't quite as entrancing as those with female leads. Still TOTALLY worth the read. <3 "
— Clair, 8/14/2010Jacqueline Carey is the New York Times bestselling author of the critically acclaimed Kushiel’s Legacy series of historical fantasy novels; the Sundering series, an epic fantasy duology; and the postmodern fables Santa Olivia and Saints Astray, among others.
Simon Vance (a.k.a. Robert Whitfield) is an award-winning actor and narrator. He has earned more than fifty Earphones Awards and won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration thirteen times. He was named Booklist’s very first Voice of Choice in 2008 and has been named an AudioFile Golden Voice as well as an AudioFile Best Voice of 2009. He has narrated more than eight hundred audiobooks over almost thirty years, beginning when he was a radio newsreader for the BBC in London. He is also an actor who has appeared on both stage and television.