Brokedown Palace [Paperback]

Steven Brust (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 5, 2006

Back in print after a decade, a stand-alone fantasy in the world of Steven Brust's bestselling "Vlad Taltos" novels.

Once upon a time…far to the East of the Dragaeran Empire, four brothers ruled in Fenario:

King Laszlo, a good man--though perhaps a little mad;

Prince Andor, a clever man--though perhaps a little shallow;

Prince Vilmos, a strong man--though perhaps a little stupid; and

Prince Miklos, the youngest brother, perhaps a little--no, a lot--stubborn.

Once upon a time there were four brothers--and a goddess, a wizard, an enigmatic talking stallion, a very hungry dragon--and a crumbling, broken-down palace with hungry jhereg circling overhead. And then…

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Brust is an indubitable master of swashbuckling high fantasy."
--Booklist on Five Hundred Years After

"Steven Brust just might be America's best fantasy writer."
--Tad Williams on Steven Brust

"Watch Steven Brust. He's good. He moves fast. He surprises you. Watching him untangle the diverse threads of intrigue, honor, character and mayhem from amid the gears of a world as intricately constructed as a Swiss watch is a rare pleasure."
--Roger Zelazny on Steven Brust

"Delightful, exciting and sometimes brilliant, Steven Brust is the latest in a line of great Hungarian writers, which (I have no doubt) includes Alexandre Dumas, C. S. Forester, Mark Twain, and the author of the juciest bits of the Old Testament."
--Neil Gaiman on Steven Brust

About the Author

Steven Brust is the bestselling author of Issola, Dragon, The Phoenix Guards, Five Hundred Years After, and many others. A native of Minneapolis, he currently lives in Las Vegas.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Orb Books (September 5, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765315041
• ISBN-13: 978-0765315045
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.6 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #894,672 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Look at the Deadication, July 14, 2004

By 

William Bourdeau (Anaheim, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Brokedown Palace (Paperback)

That is not a misspelling of dedication, the book is Deadicated to the members and lyric writers of the Grateful Dead in the mid-80's. All the "legends" are created from various Grateful Dead songs. For example, the boy trying to win the Princess meets the Demon Goddess in three guises, one twice his age, one twice his height, and one twice his weight. That's a reference to the song "I Need a Miracle". The wolf sleeping by the stream where the woodcutter's son finds the silver mine is a reference to the song "Cassidy". There is no Dead album called "Brokedown Palace" it's a song from the "American Beauty" album.

"River gonna take me, sing me sweet and sleepy..."

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Brust takes fantasy in unexpected directions, June 7, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Brokedown Palace (Mass Market Paperback)

Brokedown Palace is not high fantasy. It is not the story of the Great and Noble (or the Simple and Humble) Overcoming Great Evil. It is, rather, about four brothers dealing with themselves and each other during some extraordinary events in their lives. But Brust integrates the magical and fantastic with the ordinary in surprising and unusual ways. The focus is always on the relationships of the characters, and Brust uses a brief, sketchy style to paint what is at heart a very complex portrait.

Set in the world of Brust's Vlad Taltos series - albeit in a completely different part - Brokedown Palace offers some tantalizing hints of how the pieces of these very different stories may fit together. I read Brokedown Palace before the Taltos books, and have found additional pleasure in re-reading it since then.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of Brust's best, December 9, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Brokedown Palace (Mass Market Paperback)

Steven Brust had outdone himself. Brokedown Palace is a book written in the style of a Hungarian folk tale, with all of the dark, gothic mystery, and none of the Disney-esque cuteness. This is not a children's fairy tale. The characters are complex, and the plot is both powerful and subtle. Devoted readers of Brust may notice the veiled references to the world of his Taltos series; the connection makes a fantastic book even more enjoyable.