Customer Reviews

Diplomacy of Wolves: Book 1 of the Secret Texts

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Bear with me and let me give my bottom-line advice right now : The trilogy of The Secret Texts is a must read for anybody looking for great adventure, exotic settings and endearing characters. And if, like myself, you're curious about the genre but don't care about elves, goblins and traditional wizards, don't worry: Ms. Lisle's Secret Texts will provide you fantasy, but with an edge. Forget the elves and meet the Scarred; trade bearded wizards for dangerously powerful Dragons and cunning Wolves; and expect no damsel in distress : the heroine, Kait Galweigh, can be a tough - and deadly - cookie.

What has impressed me first in these three books is the setting. I finished this serie with the impression that Matrin was real and that, given the chance, I could find my way in it: this is what I call impressive worldbuilding. Matrin also includes very distinct territories inhabited by all kinds of different (you could say esthetically challenged but very functional) people. Those features alone would make it worth the trip, but what makes Matrin all the more interesting is that there is a frightful explanation for these variations. No, you can't blame it on the weather...

The characterization of the Falcon's and the Dragon's distinct magics is also admirably rigorous: You can't have nothing if you don't give anything first, and Ms. Lisle has given the Falcons and the Dragons drastically different ways of respecting this principle in the use of their magic. The result is magic you can make sense of; no annoying deus ex machina in Matrin's magical systems, and no offense done to the reader's intelligence.

As for the characters, well, I liked Kait and Ry, of course. But Ms. Lisle's Secret Texts are filled with endearing second roles. No, you won't yawn your head off when Kait and Ry aren't in the spotlight. Quite the contrary; every character has a story in store that will grab your interest and your heart. And what I appreciated the most in the Secret Texts was that these characters possess strong and plausible motives, and that these motives bring about numerous moral dilemmas. If you think about petty, conventional and easy choices, well, think again. The characters are caught in juicy, enticing, complicated moral issues, and each decision comes with a price to pay. And in Ms. Lisle's books, when characters suffer, it's always to the reader's benefit...!

Finally, all these characters gravitate around a story that contains a whole tank truck of unpredictable twists and turns. But again, I never felt cheated: in Ms. Lisle story as in Matrin's magic, everything makes sense.

I have only one complain concerning the trilogy, but you can skip this part, as it does not concern the story in itself. It's a problem of almost every fantasy book on the shelves, namely, these covers where you can see an image of the heroes. First, you're bound to discover inconsistencies between the image and the description done by the author (for example, Kait's hair is supposed to be black, and on the covers of the three books, she's either a red-head or strawberry blonde). But really, the biggest problem with this kind of cover is that you're deprived of your own image of the heroes. And when you really, really like a book, well, that stinks, because you'd so much like to think that the strong and witty heroine looks like, say, yourself...!

The person who sent this book to me commented that it was "brutal," which made me wonder what, exactly, I was getting myself into. I've read other books by Holly Lisle before and while I wouldn't classify any of them as brutal, I would classify them as dark, and I could easily see how she might cross over that line. It is, after all, but a short step from dark to brutal.

I suppose that, in a way, she was right. There were parts that, taken on their own, I would likely classify as brutal, but I don't think that the book as a whole qualifies. It is, however, definitely a dark fantasy; one in which no excuses are made and evil is given almost as much attention as good. This is not a typical fantasy book.

I think, though, that is a lot of its appeal. It was almost refreshing to read a book that was unapologetically dark, one that did not necessarily offer hope of a brighter tomorrow. It certainly isn't the type of book I would want to read all the time, but it did make a nice change of pace from my normal reading habits.

In <u>Diplomacy of Wolves</u>, Lisle weaves a world full of forbidden magic and intrigue, yet one with so much detail and thought that it seems real. Lisle is a talented world-builder, creating a believable place with many cultures and a solid history. Into it, she puts well-developed characters involved in complex, detailed plot that draws the reader in.

All in all, I would say that <u>Diplomacy of Wolves</u> is a very strong, well-written book.

The one thing that I had a problem with was part of the characterization of Kait, one of the main characters. For the most part, she is well-developed, with both flaws and strengths, and is actually a rather likeable character. However, in her interactions with one other character, she fails to notice obvious slip-ups that someone with her background wouldn't miss. These were the kind of slip-ups that were designed to let the reader know something that the characters weren't supposed to know yet, but they were so glaringly obvious that I found it annoying. Not only was the information conveyed in a poor manner, but it also diminished the characterization of the main character in the book. I can easily think of a few other ways to convey the needed information to the readers that wouldn't have gone against established character traits.

Other than the few slip-ups dealing with that particular information, the rest of the characterization was strong and well-done. In the layers of intrigue, the characters were not always aware of the truth about each other, but Lisle still managed to convey motivation to the readers, even when the characters themselves weren't fully aware of it.

I found the plot to be similarly strong, with several different layers intertwining, yet easy enough to follow and, with the exception of the before-mentioned incident, surprisingly lacking in holes. Given the complexity of the plot, I would have expected more things to slip by Lisle and I was pleasantly surprised to find that there was nothing else that really bothered me or felt as though it was missing.

The world Lisle created in <u>Diplomacy of Wolves</u> may be dark, but it's intriguing, and I for one cannot wait to read more.

On the planet Matrin, four centuries of bitter fighting between the houses of Dokteerak and Galweigh appear to be finally over with the pending wedding of an individual from each side. While attending the nuptials, Kait Galweigh overhears a treacherous plan that will eradicate her family. In spite of her efforts to save her kin, the plan works, leaving the Galweighs decimated. Kait manages to escape.

Heeding a voice telepathically talking inside her head, Kait travels to a remote area of the planet, seeking the mystical Mirror of Souls, which has awakened after a millennium. On her trek, Kait is followed by an unknown enemy, who plan to add her death to their body count. As Kait struggles to survive, she learns that she has the shape-shifting ability of the detested and feared werewolf. With the help of one of her kind, Kait battles for her life as the beginning of a war of magic threatens to destroy her home planet.

DIPLOMACY OF WOLVES is a great opening gamut to Holly Lisle's "Secret texts" trilogy. The story line brilliantly mixes politics, betrayal, and magic into a coherent, fun to read speculative fiction novel. Matrin feels like a real planet and the magical aspects come across as if they are a form of physics. However, what makes Ms. Lisle's novel appear to be the tale that takes her to the top of the genre (if justice prevails) is Kait, an enchanting, complex, and genuine person, who will steal the souls of readers.

Harriet Klausner 11/8/98

DIPLOMACY OF WOLVES starts one of the best written and most enjoyable fantasy trilogies I've run across in years. It manages to realize many of the strengths of epic fantasy while succumbing to only one of its shortcomings.

The single shortcoming: because it's the opener of a series, the first book doesn't offer the closure I tend to like and the ending is a cliffhanger (but a subtle one--not the irritating protagonist-hangs-by-her-fingernails-from-a-cliff ).

The characters are incredibly well-drawn, especially the female protagonist. Kait Galweigh is a likable young member of a noble family who burns to escape becoming a decoration, which is the doom of her fellow Galweigh women; she gets the chance via a small-time diplomatic assignment that quickly escalates into a run for her life and a quest to save her family from their old enemies, the Sabirs. Crispin Sabir, the chief villain, is a despicable and frightening ego-maniac who will stop at nothing to destroy the Galweighs; but he's no Snidely Whiplash--he's terrible but textured, and brought to my mind nothing so much as the Borgias.

The world of the story, Matrin, is shadowy place with an apocalyptic past and dark magic; its slowly-revealed history is broad and complex, and not one event feels contrived--except insofar as people within that history have contrived it. You can feel the weight of the past through the characters, which is an effect that not many fantasies manage to convey. We only get glimpses of the most interesting parts here--the dissident philosopher Vincalis the Agitator, the Wizards' War that wrecked the planet and left lingering dangers for the present, and the awe-inspiring civilization of the Ancients before the war.

The best thing about the book, however, is the language. It's _alive_ in a way that very little fantasy is, and it puts a lot of fantasy writers to shame. The best way to end the review is with a particularly good quote, from a dream sequence on pages 72-73:

"Then the dream metamorphosed, and she ran, wild and reckless, smelling the rich earth and the vibrant growth of jungle and forest and field, floating at incredible speeds with her feet never quite touching the ground. All the while, something terrible pursued her. The scent of her pursuer rose out of the ground and poisoned the air she breathed. Honeysuckle. Sweet Honeysuckle. It terrified her, though she did not know why. She careened along the edge of a cliff that appeared out of nowhere, and discovered in the same instant that she was running beside her cousin Danya. The two of them were girls again, exploring the grounds outside the House, and she knew without knowing how that the two of them had wakened something old and evil . . . and that the monster they had awakened wanted to destroy them. Then the cliff fell away beneath them, and she and Danya fell silently . . ."

Having never read any of Holly Lisle's work, I came into this book unsure of what to expect. The premise sounded interesting, but I've been disappointed before. I'm happy to say that this is not the case here. The world and its history are well thought out, the magic systems are interesting, and the characters are intriguing and well developed. The plot is definitely engaging and the book flows well overall.

I think the thing that grabbed my attention the most was Lisle's worldbuilding. I'm a sucker for history in a fantasy book that has been forgotten by most of the characters. I enjoy learning about that history along with them. Lisle comes through in spades here. A Wizard War a thousand years ago that killed of most of humanity and mutated a large number to boot? And the current population has no memory of this, except for a select few? Very nice. Not only that, but Ms. Lisle has also apparently done quite a bit of work in developing the every day things for this world: a daily clock with names for each hour; the naming conventions for days of the week, months, and years; as well as religious and governmental institutions. All make for a very convincing world in which to explore the story being told.

A lot of times, after spending so much time developing the world, authors tend to come up with one dimensional characters to populate it. That is definitely not the case here. Each main character, and there are at least four, has their own personality quirks, their own fears, their own weaknesses, and, most importantly, their own personality. What's interesting is how Ms. Lisle uses each to affect the other. Her dialogue flows well and the characters interactions are, for the most part, believable.

Lisle also has a very good grasp of pacing. Enough action to keep the reader on the edge of their seat, but not so much that there is no character development. She intersperses her action scenes with down time that is used study her characters or to uncover a bit more of the world's past or to explain the magic systems or any of a number of other things that make the book enjoyable and well rounded, rather than one big action scene.

Overall, I have to say I am very impressed with this author. Not enough for a five star review, but enough that I will eventually track down some of her other books and definitely finish this trilogy. Well written and with interesting characters, it's definitely something that I'm sure I will continue to enjoy beyond the first book.

The opening of "Diplomacy of Wolves" is fast and dark. I love that. It's darker and more tense than any of her other work.

Holly's development as a writer can be seen easily, here. In her "Arhel" novels (her first series, from about ten years ago) character motivation was sometimes sketchy. In the two "Secret Texts" novels I've read so far, that isn't the case.

Holly's first great strength as an author is her ability to create and maintain tension. Her second great strength is her use of humor. While her books cannot be considered funny she manages to work in some of the simplest and most effective humor I've ever found in Fantasy. Third is her avoidance of preaching. That isn't to say she doesn't have her points to make, or that her characters don't, but we aren't mugged with them.

She does a great job of leaving the ending of "Diplomacy of Wolves" open. Rather than annoying me it made the next book that much more appealing.

What do I hate about this book? I hate that I read "Courage of Falcons" first! ::Thunk on head::

I have been an avid reader of Science Fiction and Fantasy since the early 1960s, starting with the works of Robert E. Howard, Poul Anderson, Isaac Asimov and Robert Heinlein. I have found that most Fantasy written over the years is placed in the same Medieval setting, with an honored class of powerful Wizards controlling the forces of magic, ruled by a class of nobles with mostly noble intentions. Good and evil is very well differentiated in most of these novels, and the battle between them is a straightforward affair at best, with maybe a betrayal here or there for the element of surprise. Holly Lisle turned her back on these conventions and breaks new ground in her Diplomacy of Wolves, the first in a trilogy. The time line and technology level of the book is somewhere between the late Rennaisance and early industrial age. The base of habitation is a tropical region, unlike the Northern European based settings of most Fantasy. The political structure is closest to that of Medieval to Rennaisance Italy, with powerful Families controlling the world. Good and evil resides in all of the families, and the aquisition of power is the goal of all. Holly Lisle develops this fascinating world in great detail. Blood is not always thicker than Gold, as the plot twists around multiple betrayals between and within families. Magic (and there are several different systems involved) is both forbidden and well practiced, and the use of harmful magic comes at a terrible price. In the hands of Lisle, an accomplished author who has gotten better with time, this world comes to life with powerful imagery and wonderful prose. The characters are very well developed, with human foibles aplenty, even in the most inhuman of characters. Kait Galweigh, the protagonist, is an especially strong character whose world collapses around her in the struggle between her family and the magically powerful Sabirs. I found this novel to be one of the best Fantasy pieces I have ever read, and definitely the best I have seen in quite some time. I recommend this book to any lover of Fantasy who is tired of the same old characters in the same old settings. And even those who still enjoy the old settings of classical fantasy will find much to like in this book.

Wow! I loved this book so much I took it to school with me. The whole plot is just twisting and turning throughout the entire book. The character interactions fit in perfectly and Kait is just one amazing heroine. I suggest you don't plan on reading the first one and then waiting a while before reading the 2nd, unless you like being left with cliff-hangers! As soon as I dropped the 1st I grabbed up the second, not able to wait for more. An exciting fantasy with a great mix of magic, romance, and adventure!

First books of a trilogy can be a problem, because they are not always self-contained stories. Diplomacy of Wolves is definitely just the first installment of a story spread over three books. But did it inspire me to want to continue reading the series? Yes, it did. The premise of the fanstasy world is very different to other books I've read - a planet polluted by magical fallout, with a severe divide between the mutated and non-mutated, on the verge of an era on re-exploration and re-discovery. Mysterious artefacts and long-lost cities always drag me in, though the map was definitely sub-standard in its reproduction. I enjoyed the novelty of the setting, which was tropical for once, and the technological level, which made this book stand out from the usual medieval-Europe-inspired fanstasy novel. The magic system was unusual and satisfying - too often, magic comes without responsibility or cost in fiction. The story was a good one, with a nice combination of action, intrigue, and the characters' thoughts and feelings. There were even some mysterious villains. When it ended, Diplomacy of Wolves was definitely heading in an interesting direction.
However, I did have some problems with this book. I just did not find Kait an engaging or appealing character. She seemed incredibly naive in many ways, and not a nice person otherwise. Determined, yes; nice, no. And the fact that she is both beautiful AND sexually irresistable because of her Karnee nature was over the top. In fact, none of the characters, with the exception of Ian Draclas and Kait's uncle, were nice people or characters worth caring about. I would also have liked to have it brought home more strongly, particularly to Kait herself, that Kait's family, at all branches and all levels, are probably just as bad as the Sabirs - and stupid to boot. That ambush, for example . . . very, very dumb of them. There was too much grossness and brutality in the story for my liking - yes, I'm squeamish, but too much nastiness finds its way into fiction these days under the guise of "realism".
But these are points on which other readers may very well disagree. For me, they did detract from this book - but I still looked forward eagerly to the sequel.

I thought that this book was great. It had everything that a person could hope for in a fantasy. I always find myself looking for a book to keep me reading. I found this one and I couldn't put it down. Kait is such a believable character-I felt like I was sharing her adventures, wishing that I was Karnee(can change into a wolf). I really recammend this, and the rest of the books in this series. You will not regret it.