Customer Reviews

King Javan's Year (Heirs of Saint Camber, Vol 2)

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Javan held my imagination since I first saw his name on the Table of Gwynedd's Kings in the back of Katherine Kurtz' first Deryni novel. His year and his book do not disappoint. Kurtz does a tremendous job of letting the young King and his Court live. And breathe. And hope. I enjoyed this work more than any other of the Deryni line. Javan's hope surely found its way to Kelson's soul.

I believe this was the first of the Deryni novels that i read, so perhaps my fondness for the book stems from that. I knew nothing about the Deryni, the history of the Eleven Kingdoms, or the Regency; but this world drew me in and kept me there.

If you have read any of the Deryni novels and have looked at the Haldane lineage, you know how long Javan lived and served as king. From the title "King Javan's Year", you have an idea what is going to happen.

In so many fantasy novels, the main characters are treated lightly and make it through and they save the day. In the Deryni novels, things are much darker for the protagonists and what surprised me was how vicious things were against Javan. Through all of this darkness, the light of who Javan is shines through and I really cared what happened to him and was somewhat upset at how this ended...

I suppose that is the mark of a good writer, that you can be drawn into the the world and care about the characters. The characters i care the most about, though, are those who are earliest in the timeline (Joram, Evaine, Camber, Javan, etc)...i really hope Katherine Kurtz returns to the earlier times of the Eleven Kingdoms. Until that day, i will continue to read about Camber and his children.

I am in a love/hate relationship with this book. The book was so well written you quickly become attached to the characters and fall in love with them. You find a continuation of events from previous novels accompanied by new developments. This of course leaves you wanting more. It is for all of these reasons that I loved the book.

I hate this book for only one reason, and it directly correspondes with my fast growing love for the characters and how and when King Javan's Year comes to an end. A must read, but be prepared for tears.

The second volume of the 'The Heirs of Saint Camber' series this volume tells anther depressing tale of treachery and evil overcoming good. At the end most of the good characters are killed including the main character so much of the book is spent developing. Even though I had trouble just finishing the book it's still highly recommended. If you haven't read one of Kurtz's Deryni books the setting is a medieval human kingdom with a human race, the Deryni, that have magic-like powers. Most of the series plots revolves around ordinary human - Deryni conflict. If you haven't read any Deryni books start with either 'Deryni Rising' the first book written or 'Camber of Culdi' the chronologically first Deryni book written.

The book starts off slowly, as Alroy (Javan's older brother) becomes victim to what sounds like tuberculosis and the drugs that the regents had been giving him for years, thereby sealing Javan's emerging powers when Javan slips on the Ring of Fire. As the book progressed, I found myself drawn further into the world of the Deryni; her characterizations are VERY precise, and the people of the books seem quite real. The treachery of Hubert MacInnis and his cohorts was expected, but that they would stoop to what finally happened to Javan near the end of the book was an unpleasant surprise indeed! I had seen that something of the order was in the making when Rhys Michael was abducted, when the pace of the story accelerated to high gear. Many things happened in this book that I do not wish to spoil for the other readers. All in all, a fine read indeed...

Kathryn Kurtz takes us back to the world after Camber and before Kelson. Young Prince Javan Haldane was led naively once to trust--or at least underestimate--the Regents who took over government of Gwynedd in the name of his sickly brother Alroy. Now sixteen (and legally of age), Javan is prepared to rule in his own right and determined not to make the same mistake again. Alroy's death sets off a climactic fight for the throne, or at least for the power behind it. The freedom of Javan and his brother Rhys Michael--even their lives--depends on his success. The Regents have had five years to entrench their power. Javan has only his wits, his convictions, and the help of a resourceful but dwindling group of secret Deryni. He is not used to manipulation. But in this kind of a war, the pawns may be the most important players...

I found the premise of this novel thoroughly enjoyable. And frightening. I, like Rhys Michael, was surprised by the sheer viciousness of the Regents' tactics. I can almost believe that Rhys Michael had cause to think them more benign than they were. Javan is an interesting martyr--so rock-solid in his convictions and so coldly calculating at times, mixing these qualities liberally on occasion with great warmth and discretion. I walked away from the book shaken, with a void in me, wondering what went wrong and sent Javan, Revan, Tavis, and so many others to their deaths. That is definitely a mark of good storytelling.

Kurtz may have taken things a little too far, and I still have to wonder if Javan shouldn't have had more control and ability to put the Regents down, no matter what their personal forces might have done. And I wonder, too, if the distinctions between right and wrong, between Javan and his opponants, are so great sometimes. In the end, it all comes down to Rhys Michael's stupidity (gullibility for those of you who feel more sympathetic to him than I do in this book). But Javan's story still packs a welcome punch for all fantasy-lovers.

This is one of the Deryni books that is still set in the Cambrian age, that is during the life of, or shortly after the death of St Camber MacRorie. The Haldane heirs have returned, thanks to Camber and his family, and taken over from the declining and nasty Festil Kings. King Cinhil, the former monk, was succeed by the eldest of his twin sons, the sickly and weak-willed boy King Alroy, now King Alroy's brother, young Javan takes the throne and must fight the forces that threaten Deryni and justice alike. Javan is remarkably intelligent and knows what the fight is about, but he suffers from a club foot which makes ignoramuses and plotters alike whisper that he is cursed and unfit for the throne. Add to that the instigations of a nasty Archbishop (this is a pro-pagan/pro-celtic series) charged with "protecting the King" and you'll see that Javan and his MacRorie allies have their work cut out for them.

Well, the title tells you to not expect a happy ending. This is a rare book in that the author basically tells you up front that something horrible is going to happen to the main character at the end of the book. There is a lot of suspense, however, in wondering just how everything will turn out, and whether poor Javan will be alive at the end of his year, or not... it's a very dark and scary book, and I'd not reccomend it for children under 13. It's also part 2 of three, so read The Harrowing of Gwynned first and The [...] Prince after.

This is a great novel with great characters - the only problem is that we know from the family tree at the rear of the book that King Javan's year is not going to be a happy ending. As always Katherine's characters are her strength and even the bad guys are much more than cardboard cut outs.
Highly recommend this triology

Katherine Kurtz takes her writing to a new level in this novel. Book two of the heirs of Saint Camber series, she gives the readers the feeling of hope for the characters. She definately takes a sad story and makes it beautiful by showing the true meaning of friendship, loyalty, and love. Again, this is a must read for anyone who is a fantasy fan, or even just someone who loves a friend.