Customer Reviews

Heir to the Shadows (Black Jewels, Book 2)

5 star:		(98)
4 star:		(30)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

"Heir To The Shadows" is the second book in Anne Bishop's extraordinary "Black Jewels Trilogy." I would advise reading the books in order, beginning with "Daughter of the Blood," to best appreciate the intricate story, characters and unique world that Ms. Bishop creates. This second part of the trilogy is a strong novel that really enhances the material in the first book.

In the world where Darkness rules, an ancient prophecy becomes reality. Jaenelle Angelline is born Witch. She is the "dream made flesh" and the hope and light of the future. There is a caste system in the Realms of this world where the powerful reign and power is determined by the Jewels one wears - the darker the Jewel's color, the more powerful its owner. Saetan, the High Lord of Hell is Jaenelle's adopted father. He and his Blood allies and Kindred are determined to protect the young Witch and nurture her until her majority when she can make the Offering to the Darkness and become a true Queen. Jaenelle is now coming into womanhood and must be guarded or she will be captured and used as a pawn by Dorothea, the High Priestess of Hayll, and Hekatah, the self-proclaimed Dark Priestess of Hell. Both women were created to be noble caretakers of the Realms. They each have perverted their Craft and their purpose, infected those who serve them, and threaten to destroy the Realms to fulfill their insatiable greed for power.

"Heir To The Shadows" continues the young Queen's story, taking her through the perils of adolescence. Jaenelle had been shattered by heinous crimes perpetrated at the asylum where her birth family had her institutionalized periodically, believing her to be mad. Daemon, her consort-to-be, sacrificed himself to rescue her. Jaenelle remains deeply wounded and remembers nothing of the horrors she experienced. The process of her physical and spiritual recovery is a slow one, as is her gradual acceptance of her role as Witch. "Heir To The Shadows" is also the story of the creatures sworn to protect their chosen Queen - the Warlord Princes, Black Widows, Priestesses, Kindred and Saetan.

This superb fantasy, adventure, magicical romance of a novel is one of a kind. I am not a fan of science fiction or fantasy but became immediately absorbed in Book 1, and before I had completed it, I ran out to buy Book 2. Ms. Bishop's prose is beautifully crafted, and her wry wit and sense of drama are exceptional. She upends the stereotype of Darkness and shows the reader, time and again, how exquisite the Dark can be. Highly recommended!
JANA

Daemon doesn't know what to believe when his brother accuses him of rape and murder of Jeanelle, Witch, a 12-year-old girl that he loves. He can't remember that night, only certain words that haunt him and torment him, driving him insane. It leads to him wandering the Twisted Kingdom, going deeper and deeper into it, with each step promising no return. And he knows one thing...

That Jaenelle is dead.

Saeton SaDiablo is the High Lord of Hell, and he has Jaenelle's body in his keep, waiting for the body to heal so he can bring the daughter of his soul back into it. So Jaenelle can be alive again. It takes two years... and he gets his chance, and brings back Witch.

Jaenelle is awake again, back inside her body. She can't remember the months before she had been 'hurt' and she does not know that she was raped. She has to get use to being a 15-year-old instead of being 12--which is a hard thing to do. There are people trying to get rid of her, like Heketah, and she must survive all the attempts untill she is old enough to make the Offering, and to claim a court, and her throne.

Surreal, the assassin, has been looking out for Daemon as much as possible, and is the only one that has seen him in the 8 years hes been gone. But he keeps dissappearing, and she thinks Jaenelle is dead, and Daemon has no hope.

Lucivar knows he must get out of the salt mines because his dream is dead. There was no reason left for him to keep on surviving. So he decides to escape, try to commit suicide, and it brings himself face-to-face with the girl whom is Dreams Made Flesh, Witch.

The story of Jaenelle, Daemon, Lucivar, and Saetan continues. The characters in this series are so amazing, so powerful, so loving, so dark, and so dangerous. In this book you'll meet even more characters that will become a part of the family, who you'll fall in love with. Where "Daughter of the Blood" focused more on Daemon's and Jaenelle's relationship, this chapter of the series will focus on Lucivar's relationship with Witch. These books are filled with such humor, power, love, loss and fear; you'll be pulled into the story and wont want it to end! The Black Jewels Trilogy is one of the best trilogies I have ever read!

I am now in my third reading of this series. That is rarity for me. Jane Eyre, the Phantom of the Opera and Night Magic are the only novels which I have read repeatedly. Several things impressed me with this series. First, judging by the covers, one would suspect this is another typical fantasy epic, light hearted with sweet little elves and bunnies. Quite the opposite. A very real sense of darkness pervaids the series. Themes such as incest, rape, bondage and discipline are handled with graceless effort. Second, descriptions are amazing. Simple one word descriptions of characters convey more than whole pages in other novels. Third, the characters are very real, very life like. None of the simpering ladies and broadchested heroes that seem to inhabit other novels exist here. Finally, the depth of story and sub-plots is amazing. You can get lost in this world. Hours fly by as pages turn. This is perhaps one of the best series I've ever read, and it is well worth reading. It is, however, not meant for younger readers. I would definitely think twice before allowing anyone younger than high school to read them. Certain sexual themes would be to difficult and embarrasing for parents or teachers to explain. If more than five stars were available, I would give them.

I do not like to give plot away, so I will tell you only that this book starts where the other one (Daughter of the Blood) left off. It has a few more pages but once you start reading, you will not want to stop. If you have not read any other reviews, please note that this book is the second in a trilogy and you will be hopelessly lost if you do not start at the beginning with book one.

Jaenelle or Witch (Dreams made flesh) has been seriously harmed mind and body at the end of book one. Her protectors take her away to some place safe where she can heal but it literally takes years for her to get it together. After she wakes up- she is lost- her body has grown around her but her emotions have not caught up. She has endured so much with still more to come. She is forced to make choices that will change the Blood forever.

I never thought I would fall in love characters with the names Saeten, Daemon, Lucivar and want to go live in a place called Hell just to meet them. (LOL) The characters are complex, rich with detail and emotion. The kindred are introduced more fully in this book as the reader is informed that there are animals, mythical and well known, that are also part of the Blood realm. Anne Bishop is excellent at character development. I have not had a book draw me in the way this one did in a very long time.

It is very easy to slip into this book and feel like you are part of it. At the end of the first book, there was a point where I got chills and became quite emotionally bound to the welfare of the main character.The second book has repeated that sensation. I was so glad I orderd the last two books together so I would not have to wait to find out what happens.

This is a complex book but a truly easy and delightful read for people who have been burned out on the same old formula we have been getting fed lately from the bestsellers list. I absolutely recommend it and thank the author for sharing her imagination.

Stop what you are doing and go get this book. Don't walk- RUN! Then marvel at this trilogy and hold a mental vigil for a fourth book.

I honestly don't review books very often on here, despite being an avid reader. Usually I come here to read other trusted reader's opinions on books that fall flat, or exceed expectations. This books however, has many mixed reviews.

After reading great novel's with strong heroine's as the leading role (Tamora Pierce, Kristin Cashore, Robin Hobb), Jaenelle really falls far from the tree. The first book was really spectacular, probably because ( which many readers have already said), of Daemon. He really carries the story in the first novel, through his insights and love for the Mary Sue Jaenelle. I am 3/4 the way through this second book, and as I go through, I find myself having to go back sometimes a hundred pages to understand what is precisely going on. This book is very disjointed, one minute you are watching Jaenelle stride out of the hall, fiercely determined to rescue Daemon, and the next she is...married? poisoned? and you don't even know why she was there in the first place? I had to go back an reread just to make sure I didn't miss something in the book, because this seemed incredibly disjointed. Then there is the huge battle seen that they just stumble into, and I can't help thinking, why isn't anyone concerned with Daemon and how he is supposedly very close to being lost forever? There is no sense of a time-crunch, ever, in this book. Bad things just happen and then they are fixed, and nobody even stresses terribly about the bad things, just this somewhat spoiled queen (Oh no, she has a sad look in her eyes! Certainly that is much more pressing than your lost mate and all your other problems). I'm tired of reading about all the males who fall head over heals for this undeveloped, shallow character. She has no character flaws besides the fact she was raped, which I don't even consider a flaw, so much as a trauma. It's completely unrealistic, and it doesn't leave you loving the character. After reading the reviews for the rest of books here on amazon, I'm really tempted to just quit while I'm ahead, because it seems after the first book, all of the following are a disappointment.

It really is a shame, to have such a great start and then just have all your characters floundering through scene after scene. I wish Anne Bishop had spent more time editing this book, or re-reading it, because certainly then she would have realized the mistakes she made, and maybe would have provided us with a more suitable sequel.

I can't help but compare author Anne Bishop with this novel's main character Jaenelle, a long-awaited dark queen possessing a power no queen has ever seen the likes of before, and I would gladly serve in any literary court Anne Bishop chose to form. Just as Jaenelle establishes herself as the Queen of the Darkness in all her glory over the course of these pages, so Anne Bishop stakes a rightful claim to the title of Queen of Dark Fantasy. Heir to the Shadows accomplishes the impossible: not only is it a more impressive novel than Daughter of the Blood, it blows that first novel right out of the water with its intensity and extraordinary vision. I only wish I could convey in words the originality, genius, emotion, power, and literary magic that is Heir to the Shadows.

You really must read Daughter of the Blood before immersing yourself in this second novel of the trilogy. The realms of Terreille, Kaeleer, and Hell are not fictional worlds you can just drop in to visit, nor are the characters in this story at all comprehensible without your having made the journey to this point alongside them. The "good guys," by way of example, include Saetan, the High Lord of Hell, and his half-demon sons Daemon and Lucivar, as well as Jaenelle who is "dreams made flesh," Witch herself. The final set of events closing out Daughter of the Blood reach in and squeeze your heart dry, as you watch a beautiful and innocent young girl suffer dreadfully, and it is this emotional crescendo that breaks across the very first pages of Heir to the Shadows and carries you along with it, breathless, for close to 500 pages. You would think that such a powerful young queen as Jaenelle would lead a charmed life, but let there be no doubt that Jaenelle has suffered and continues to suffer terribly. As this novel opens, Jaenelle's guardians do not know if Jaenelle will even return to them. The horrors committed upon her body and mind, orchestrated by a malevolent witch queen and the power-hungry High Priestess of Hell, have forced her to retreat deep in to the black abyss; Daemon, an incredible character I cannot even begin to describe here, is himself lost to the alliance of protectors, having pushed himself too far in his effort to call Jaenelle back. Daemon towered above the pages of the original novel, but he is soon trapped in the Twisted Kingdom, tricked into believing he killed Jaenelle. Fortunately, another son of Saetan emerges to protect and guide the future queen, Daemon's brother Lucivar, a winged Eyrien who is himself initially tricked into believing Daemon guilty of killing the queen both brothers pledged themselves to serve.

In this novel, we witness Jaenelle grow and mature through her teenaged years and develop into full womanhood. We see traces of the Jaenelle who charmed us into loving submission in the first novel, but the intense suffering she has endured has irrevocably changed the young maiden. For a long time, she has no memory of the trauma that almost destroyed her, but she is terribly withdrawn and touched with a darkness her soul should never have had to endure. Now under the official guardianship of Saetan, she picks up the broken pieces of her life. She is greatly helped in this regard by the assembly of a number of her childhood friends: future queens of nearby lands as well as creatures previously known only in legends and myths. Jaenelle breaks down the magical barriers separating the world Saetan knows from the hidden realms of unicorns, centaurs, wolves, dream-weaving spiders, and other creatures known as the kindred. The kindred are also children of the Blood, but the Dark Council, under the control of Jaenelle's enemies, refuses to recognize this fact and begins a terrible campaign that forces Jaenelle to take steps she doesn't really want to take. There is much misery and sadistic exploitation in this story, but there is also great hope inspired by Jaenelle, Saetan, and the members of what will become Jaenelle's Dark Court. The forces of evil never rest, never stop scheming, and the amount of shed innocent blood is exceeded only by the impact of the continuing emotional and physical hardships inflicted upon Jaenelle. I was almost moved to tears by the powerful climax of this novel.

Plenty of unresolved problems and critical plot elements remain, and I can scarcely imagine the dark power that Queen of the Darkness, the third and final novel in The Blood Jewels Trilogy, must contain. I marvel somewhat at those who dismiss Bishop's work as romantic drivel. While this is dark fantasy of a sensual nature, there is more horror to be found in these pages than in many a standard horror novel; sex is in fact the ultimate weapon by which perverted women of the Blood control the Blood males and rule the lands. The romantic elements are actually rather subdued in this novel, largely due to the nature of Jaenelle's most hideous sufferings. There is no ambivalence on my part: the books of The Black Jewels Trilogy are the most impressive works of dark fantasy I have ever read.

The trilogy is excellent. I loved it. I loved the innocence and power Jaenelle. Saetan is just a big teddy bear. I fell in love with all the good characters and hated all the bad. It's a simple message -- don't judge a book by its cover -- but told in an exciting and unforgettable way. I usually don't buy books like these, you know Dungeons and Dragons type books, but after reading the summary ... I put the entire trilogy in my cart. Weeks later I finally decided to purchase and never regretted it. I read all three book in 6 days. Kudos to Anne Bishop for such a unique and riveting tale.

It took about three monthes for me to get around to reading this book after reading Daughter of the Blood (book 1.) I admit I wasn't even looking for it when I went in to the bookstore. I was in a hurry and when I found that the original book I was looking for was not in stock, my mind went to any series that I had started reading, but had not finished. The Black Jewels Trilogy came to mind. As soon as I started reading and managed to dust the cobwebs off of my mind about certain instances in the plot I began to get deeply involved in the story.

It starts off with our Heiorine, Jeanelle, Witch, still deep in the abyss after suffering major emotional trauma. Saetan, the Dark Prince, returning to Kaeleer and winning parenthood of the little Queen. Lucivar, prisoner in the saltmines, being fed a nasty lie about his brother, Deameon, and his queen, Jeanelle. Deameon being thrown into the Twisted Kingdom by pain and confusion. And Dorthea and Hekatah still scheaming for ways to win the Dark Realm.

The plot only escalates from there. This book is exceptional for it includes wit, romance, pain, sorrow, joy, and courage all in one great plot. I was astounded and it left wanting more, more, more!!

The second book, Heir to the Shadows, is a very, very different book from the first in the series. Daughter of Blood was so graphic in its telling. It was truly an uncomfortable read. But Heir to the Shadows is a bit more calm and hopeful. Hopeful in the sense that even thought certain characters are still separated from one another (Daemon and Jaenelle) and their enemies are still free and planning to destroy them, Anne gives her readers hope that when all is said and done, there will be peace and happiness across the land, much like the fairy tales we have read when we are children. The prince will find the princess, even though he must battle evil and fight for the right for her love. Of course the prince and princess I am thinking in these terms are Daemon and Janelle. Where as in Daughter of the Blood, they went through more physical traumas, in Heir to the Shadows, these two are so lost and feel unworthy. They refuse the acceptance within themselves and the others around them. Even though Jaenelle and Daemon now have a wonderful support system that includes family and friends, they seem to turn away from the love given to them. And even though the fates say these two belong together, there are many outside forces keeping them apart.

Heir to the Shadows begins two years after Daughter of the Blood has ended. Jaenelle is still in her coma like state. Her body has healed but her mind is lost in the Abyss. Saeten appeals to the Dark Council and is granted for the right to be her guardian, essentially her foster father. Saeten is able to enter into the Abyss and find Jaenelle and bring her out. Unfortunately Jaenelle has some memory loss and does not remember everything that has happened to her. She does not remember Daemon or how he went into the Abyss to save her. Both Jaenelle and Witch (the side of her that will bring peace and is dreams made flesh) have pushed her rape and molestation, deep down inside of her. And because of that, Daemon is suffering horribly.

Daemon is in the Twisted Kingdom, where his mind is lost, much like Jaenelle's. But whereas Jaenelle's was on a vacation of sorts, Daemon has gone insane from the grief over his one true love. He has distorted the events of when he went to save Witch Because his brother Lucivar accuses Daemon of taking advantage of Jaenelle/Witch, by seducing the then twelve year old in the Abyss, Daemon's grief holds no bounds. Jaenelle has been brought back to the living, much like Lazarus rising from his grave. Daemon is buried, perhaps forever, unless Jaenelle can save him.

You are probably wondering why Saeten does not try to find his son and save him like he did Jaenelle. Saeten doesn't know what has happened to Daemon, and in part, he is afraid that if he tells Jaenelle, she made have a relapse. So instead, Saeten lets Jaenelle heal until she is strong both in mind and in spirit to tell her about her mate. During this time Jaenelle grows into an extraordinary young woman. Unbeknownst to even Jaenelle, she is slowly growing her own court even though she is so set against becoming a queen. What makes Jaenelle also very special and different is that as her human followers grow she also has the undying support of the Kindred. The Kindred are the animals of the blood such as the unicorns, dragons, wolves and other creatures that will protect Jaenelle from all harm. That harm comes in the form of the skanky evil wench queen Dorothea, and her counterpart, the former wife of Saeten and, "I hope she rots in sewage" Hekatah. They have an idea of what Jaenelle can accomplish and need to stop her and control her. If only they truly knew what Jaenelle is capable of. No one knows, not even Saeten, and as Jaenelle continues to embrace Witch, she could become very unstable. Looks are very deceiving when it comes to Jaenelle and when she is backed into a corner or manipulated; she lashes out in a way that could destroy all three realms.

Jaenelle is still a kind and gentle soul who longs to be a Healer. The one she saves most is Lucivar. Lucivar is able to escape the salt mines he was placed in as punishment. Lucivar was going to commit suicide and enter into Hell as a demon-dead, but Jaenelle saves him and from that he is free. He no longer has the ring of obedience and he can serve Witch as he has always longed for. Whereas Daemon wants to be Witch's lover, Lucivar wants to be Witch's brother and servant in everything else. The relationship Anne writes between Lucivar and Jaenelle is just as wonderful as Saeten and Jaenelle's father and daughter relationship. We have two of these relationships that almost complete the triangle that Daemon's biological mother, Tersa, first mentions in Queen of Darkness. The only one still unresolved and incomplete is the one of the two lovers of Daemon and Jaenelle/Witch. That is the main question that arises in Heir to the Shadows. Will Daemon and Jaenelle be reunited?

Heir to the Shadows was much more comfortable to read than Daughter of the Blood. There are some scenes of torture, but it happens to the ones who have caused the most pain against Jaenelle and her family. Also, Anne gives us a taste of what is to come in Queen of Darkness, and what Jaenelle will be forced to do to save the world and bring peace across the land.

Daughter of the Blood had me by the throat and wouldn't let go. Heir to the Shadows allowed me breathe a bit, as if this was the calm before the storm that will be Queen of the Darkness. With that in mind, I have still embraced this world of the blood and the jewels and that of Jaenelle, Daemon, Lucivar and Saeten and their unknown paths that will be concluded in Queen of the Darkness.

Katiebabs