Customer Reviews

The Paladin

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Like Rusalka and the sequels, Paladin is based on one of the classic stories of a fascinating culture. This time, like Cuckoo's Egg, the source is the warrior culture of medieval Japan, and the story is the moral tale of the retired courtier and swordmaster. The resemblance ends there.. this one ends the way you always wanted it to. People and the right, not duty, and not tragedy, come out on top. Cherryh never forces a happy ending on a story..but Taizu does. Always. Good for her! Shoka keeps trying to follow his cultural programming to be a classic tragic hero, the peasants to be victims, the lords to domineer..but she won't let it happen. Taizu gets her revenge, ghita gets what's coming to him, and Shoka gets his life back, and his revenge on Taizu for making him take it..Paladin is worth reading just for the innuendo Shoka pumps into his conversation with the merchant. Paladin is the story behind Taizu's legend, not Shoka's. It should have been the central myth for some culture, somewhere.

I realize this book was written 14 years ago...so sue me. I'm late. "The Paladin" is a sterling example of Cherrye at the peak of her art. She uses terse dialog and concise action to convey not only an exciting adventure story, but also a poignant story of two damaged people discovering a life beyond bitterness in each other.

Taizu is little more than a child, and she has fought-- not always successfully-- the dangers of both travel and brigands in order to find Saukandar, a warrior who was once the Emperor's closest advisor and who now resides in seclusion. She wants his help to make her a warrior, so that she can seek revenge against the politician who slaughtered her family. He wants her to leave him alone-- then, he simply wants her. They are separated by years, by class, and by motive, and by the end of the book, they are inseparable. Saukandar's journey from grumpy old man to irrascible and wily fighter is believable and real, as is Taizu's growth from ragged urchin to demon warrior. Between the two of them, they prove to be more than enough to save their Kingdom from corruption-- and themselves, from loneliness more aching than death.

This is one of C.J. Cherryh's lighter books, in the sword and sorcery (less the sorcery) vein, but with an historical sensibility. Set in a country that resembles old China, Taizu is a peasant girl who comes seeking the Sword Master Saukendar (known to his intimates as Shoka), late of the imperial court. Shoka has left after the feckless heir to the throne has allowed his advisors to assasinate those who would guide him with good sense, Saukendar being one target. Shoka has spent the last ten years just across the country's border in a mountain hut by himself when Taizu comes seeking to deceive him into taking her on as a (male) pupil, in order to seek revenge on the scheming lords who have destroyed her family and community. Shoka has become a legend for his abilities with a sword as well as being an honorable man. While undeceived by Taizu, he thinks her a crazy girl who he will humor until she tires of his regimen. Instead, over time, she becomes an accomplished swordsperson and they leave together to seek revenge (Shoka not willing to let Taizu proceed alone, despite his doubts about their survival), stepping back into a complex political situation. This is developed altogether convincingly, and in a way that is perfectly plausible. The strong point of the book is the usual wonderful Cherryh character development and ability to create characters that you care about and and believe in. The realtionship between Taizu and Shoka is believable and well developed. Her worlds are always self-consistent and deeply involving, and this one is no exception. While not as thought provoking or complex as her best books (Cyteen, Downbelow Station, Fortress in the Eye of Time) this is a great read and a lot of fun to boot.

You rarely get books as good as this on the fantasy shelves. A delightful character study of a crotchety retired swordmaster (Saukendar) and the wilfull, obstinate peasant girl (Taizu) who proves to be a match for him. Enthralling from beginning to end, never drags at any point and always completely believable. There's so few supernatural elements in the book it probably shouldn't be classed as fantasy but I'm glad it was or I may never have found it. Why this isn't far more popular I've no idea, it's one of the best you'll find on the fantasy shelves of your bookstore.

In search of the means of revenge the scarred, peasant girl, Taizu turns for help to the reclusive sword master, Shoka, on his mountain retreat. Shoka refuses her request as he does all others, his skills not for hire. But Taizu persists and Shoka acquiesces, reckoning it unlikely that she will master the sword, or even if she does, time will have mellowed her outlook and she will be content to remain as his companion. Two years pass, and although Taizu has gained skill with the sword, and she and Shoka have shared his bed, her hunger for revenge is undiminished. So Shoka is left with no alternative but follow her.

During their cross-country progress, news travels fast. And as well as attending to Taizu's demands Shoka becomes the figurehead for a rebellion against Lord Ghita and his allies who have taken control of the Chiyaden throne.

This book is similar to The Goblin Mirror, Cuckoo's Egg, and Rimrunners in its easy to read style whist retaining her use of intense viewpoint to embellish the characterisation in a way which doesn't tend to overwhelm the plot like some of her more densely written books can, to the point of tedium: Fortress of Eagles being a good example.

The Paladin, whist not having the breadth of scope of some of her other works, is nonetheless, significantly better than the majority of her rivals' fantasy-genre offerings, with its tight, straightforward prose, and its clever developments of what at face value would be considered of little significance. But this is a C.J. Cherryh trademark: a sort of, when a butterfly flaps its wings in Peking, what's the consequences, sort of thing. Which, for me, is one of the main reasons why I look forward to reading her work as much as I do.

They say `never judge a book by its cover', but I think the Brian Salmon (for Mandarin UK) artwork is a better match for the story than the current one. Taizu looks a lot more like the peasant girl she's said to be.

I loved this book, I will always love this book. (And now I'm buying it again) Because, unlike much of the books in the genre it doesn't hit you on the head with senseless brutality, but puts a little more thought into the art of martial "arts." And it has humor. It brings this big breath of the real world into these characters with its humor. It has plenty of action, has plenty of do-or-die and save the world kind of stuff without being silly. But what really makes it, is that the characters grow and find redemption, which is ultimitely more important. I've kept it around long after other ones have gone into the garage sale box.
It ought to be a movie.

I realize this book was written 14 years ago...so sue me. I'm late. "The Paladin" is a sterling example of Cherrye at the peak of her art. She uses terse dialog and concise action to convey not only an exciting adventure story, but also a poignant story of two damaged people discovering a life beyond bitterness in each other.

Taizu is little more than a child, and she has fought-- not always successfully-- the dangers of both travel and brigands in order to find Saukandar, a warrior who was once the Emperor's closest advisor and who now resides in seclusion. She wants his help to make her a warrior, so that she can seek revenge against the politician who slaughtered her family. He wants her to leave him alone-- then, he simply wants her. They are separated by years, by class, and by motive, and by the end of the book, they are inseparable. Saukandar's journey from grumpy old man to irrascible and wily fighter is believable and real, as is Taizu's growth from ragged urchin to demon warrior. Between the two of them, they prove to be more than enough to save their Kingdom from corruption-- and themselves, from loneliness more aching than death.

This book is something of an oddity, written as if it were a fantasy, but it could have just as easily have been placed into the 'historical' novel camp, with just some minor changes in the described locale and time, as there are no magical happenings, no flights of fancy, nothing that could not have happened in the real world.

The plot line is quite simple. A young girl comes to beg training in sword fighting from a legendary master who has 'retired' to a mountain hermitage so she can use the acquired skills to exact revenge on a lord who has desecrated her homeland and family. The master, former advisor to the old Emperor, is actually in exile, forbidden on pain of death from ever returning to court, and has settled into a simple life of meditation and taking care of his old war-horse, and not wishing to get involved with anyone, or to return to intrigues of the court. But the girl finally manages to force the master to accept her as an apprentice, and her training begins.

The interaction between these two characters during this portion of the work is excellent, as each displays traits of stubbornness that make for continuous conflict between the two. And the conflict extends beyond the physical training, into the realm of why one should or shouldn't take action against perceived wrongs, what purpose an individual's life has, the value of honesty both to self and others. This is well done, and I felt that I really got to know and admire these two individuals, as each has traits that are worth emulating.

But the second half of this novel, when the two take to the road to actually accomplish the girl's original objective, is not nearly as good, dropping down to a standard swash-buckling adventure novel, with action a-plenty (and somewhat confusing as the reader is hit with many minor characters and place names that are difficult to keep track of), but almost none of the fine philosophy and character interaction of the first portion. The ending is quite predictable, and left me with a disappointed feeling, as I could see this could have been much better.

Cherryh used something of the same type of plot line and character interaction in her Cuckoo's Egg, but there the resolution of the story held up to the premises and promise of its beginnings, making for a much better story, and I would recommend that book in preference to this one. Read this one only if you are desperate for more Cherryh to read.

---Reviewed by Patrick Shepherd (hyperpat)

The author's prolific output includes a large number of hard science fiction tales, a few magic or fantasy novels, and a few with high-tech artifacts in low tech societies where technology comes over as magic.

To the best of my knowledge "The Paladin" is her only novel which has no science fiction or fantasy elements: it is also very possibly C. J. Cherryh's best book.

"The Paladin" is set in a pre-industrial society, the location of which is not precisely identified but where the names sound oriental and the description sounds reminiscent of medieval China or Japan.

On a remote mountain just outside the borders of a troubled empire, a former Master Swordsman hides away on a hill, calling himself Shoka and tending his garden. Once he was Master Saukendar who served the previous Emperor, but the present monarch and Regent betrayed him, and he had to flee; legend has it that he killed twenty of the Imperial Guard in self defence on his way to the border.

For many years Shoka has retreated from the world, but then a youth with a scarred face comes to see him, begging the master swordsman for teaching in how to use a sword, with the intention of employing that knowledge to seek vengeance.

Shoka is about to send the suppliant packing when something catches his eye ...

This book is dominated by strong, believable, and very memorable characters: the interaction between them is a major part of the story.

In spite of the fact that it's a different genre, if you enjoyed the "Morgaine" quartet, you will love "The Paladin."

This is Ms. Cherry's only full length novel into Asia.
I have read this several times and lent it out and given it away several times. This is probably Ms. Cherryh's least complicated book, so for many it will be the most readable. I always love a story about honor, and am a sucker for the reluctant hero, both of which are found abundantly in this tale. The short version ... This is "Mulan" for grown ups.
Ms. Cherry's patented Third Person Internal writing style is found here as in her other books, but is easier to keep track of with the smaller cast of characters.
If you like historical novels or martial arts stories, then this is a book you should enjoy.
If you want a little more magical action in your "Historic Fantasy" you might try The "Arefel" stories set in ancient Britain, or the "Rusalka" Stories set in Ancient Russia.