Mother of Lies [Hardcover]

Dave Duncan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 15, 2007

The past fifteen years have not been kind to Celebre, the greatest city on the Florengian face of a dodecahedral world. Its walls have been breached and its Doge humiliated by the evil Bloodlord Stralg; all four of its heirs kidnapped and taken over the Edge to Vigaelia; its Dogaressa forcibly impregnated by Stralg and--when her husband's health begins to fail--left to rule over a city teeming with Stralg's troops. And if you think Stralg is bad, wait until you meet his sister Saltaja, a fanatic who sees no human cost as too great to keep the Hrag dynasty in power and her goddess--evil Xaran, the Mother of Lies--appeased.

But there are a few great hopes for the future of the city: the Mutineer, Marno Cavotti, who will not stand to see his hometown destroyed and is massing a powerful liberation movement mere inches beyond Stralg's grasp. And the four heirs of Celebre--each with god-given expertise in their respective fields of artistry, combat, wisdom, or death--are wending their way back over the Edge to their birthplace. Of course, even as Marno and the Celebre children are working towards the common goal of defeating the Hrags, they're all painfully aware that once that hurdle is crossed only one of them can wind up on the throne.

Continuing the storyline set out in Children of Chaos, Mother of Lies is a fierce, kinetic romp that will keep readers guessing until the last blow is dealt.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Heroes and villains charge toward a satisfying climax in the violent, intrigue-filled conclusion to Duncan's two-volume epic fantasy (after 2006's Children of Chaos), set on a dodecahedral world. The four young sibling heirs to the dying Doge of Florengia, who were kidnapped and separated years earlier by the Bloodlord Stralg, have grown to adulthood and finally been reunited by the Liberators, led by brash Marno Cavotti (aka the Mutineer). As they fight their way homeward, Stralg's bloodthirsty, fanatical sister, Saltaja Hragsdor, begins her own march on Florengia, intent on setting her brother's bastard son on the doge's throne. One well-choreographed combat scene follows another. Some playful sibling rivalry provides comic relief. This smartly plotted fantasy should please not only Duncan's many loyal fans but also those who enjoy the work of Terry Goodkind and Jennifer Fallon. (May)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

The four exiled children of Celebre struggle to return home before the doge dies and their mother loses power. Marno Cavotti's liberation movement is gaining in its fight against Bloodlord Stralg's forces. Stralg's sister Saltaja will stop at nothing to dominate two faces of their dodecahedral world, and as a Chosen of Xaran, mother of lies, she has some terrifying powers. Fortunately, the homebound exiles are all god-touched, and Fabia has her own link to Xaran. But which of the four will ascend the throne? Duncan handles both political and sibling rivalries well in the satisfying and conclusive sequel to Children of Chaos (2006). Regina Schroeder
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 352 pages
• Publisher: Tor Books; First Edition edition (May 15, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765314843
• ISBN-13: 978-0765314840
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,851,009 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Dave Duncan is a prolific writer of fantasy and science fiction, best known for his fantasy series, particularly The Seventh Sword, A Man of His Word, and The King's Blades. He and his wife Janet, his in-house editor and partner for over fifty years, live in Victoria, British Columbia. They have three children and four grandchildren.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Solid, May 27, 2007

By 

R. Albin (Ann Arbor, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mother of Lies (Hardcover)

A solid production. This is the sequel to Children of Chaos and better than that book. Characterization and plotting are adequate and Duncan has done a good job of producing a clever alternative world. The door is open for a sequel.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly recommended for all fantasy fans, July 10, 2007

By 

Lena (Toronto, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mother of Lies (Hardcover)

Dave Duncan did it again. He created a new unique world, which is weird and cool, even though physically impossible, as he himself admits in the appendix to the book. He brought to life monsters, heroes and bloodlords... and you can forget about your night sleep until after you close the last page.

For the fans of the previous works by Duncan I would say only that in my opinion "Mother of lies" is one of the best books by this author. The characters are complex and interesting, and the plot has so many twists and surprises, that I actually had to go for a very long lunch break, to be able to finish the book.

For new readers who never has heard about Dave Duncan - please do yourself a favor and grab "Children of Chaos" (the first book in "The Dodec Books" series). If you love fantasy books, you will not be disappointed.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good ..., June 11, 2008

By 

rkay48 (Columbia, MD United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mother of Lies (Tor Fantasy) (Mass Market Paperback)

I have enjoyed most of Mr. Duncan's books, and this short series is no exception. While good, I did not think it was up to the same level as some of his earlier works. Just my personal taste, but I found some of the violence overdone, but that seems to be the norm for most fantasy books these days. Also, I found the Dodec concept rather distracting. I may have missed something, but I cannot fathom why this has much relevance to the story (and it shows up in a technical appendix which did not interest me at all).
Even though this may not be his best (in my opinion), this series is still well worth reading and is full of interesting characters that I grew to care about.