Customer Reviews

Servant of the Empire

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In "Daughter of the Empire" the first book of the series, Mara of the Acoma defeated her most immediate and dangerous enemy and saved her family name from obliteration. However, the defeat of Jingu of the Minwanabi doesn't end Mara's problems. Jingu's son Desio and his nephew Tasaio have merely taken up the family cause. And Tasaio was the cunning architect of the plans that killed Mara's father and brother. A long range thinker and a proponent of the idea of a well laid plan, Tasaio is a formidable enemy.

In the meantime, Mara buys Kevin of Zun and takes him into her home as a slave. As prisoners of war from the land of Midkemia across the rift, Kevin and his "barbarian" countrymen make terrible slaves. They don't believe in the Kelewanese concept of caste or of their treatment of slaves. They are rebellious, prone to escape and refuse to bow down to their masters. Mara is fascinated by the handsome slave and his strange ideas of freedom. Soon Mara and Kevin become lovers and Mara begins to learn more about the way of life in Midkemia. Kevin quickly becomes a valuable part of Mara's household and in her fight against her enemies. Mara has always been an unpredictable thinker and incorporating Kevin's off-worlder ideas into the fabric of her moves in the Great Game of Council further confounds her enemies.

Once again Mara manages to outwit her enemies using unconventional thinking, a lot of luck, and an Emperor who doesn't plan to be just a figurehead any longer.

The second book of Wurts' and Feist's Empire series is equal parts political fantasy and romance novel. Mara is once again deeply involved in the maneuverings and manipulations that at once gain her stature among her peers and strengthen her House against those who would see her destroyed. The inclusion of Kevin gives Mara a true love interest (her abusive husband from the previous book doesn't qualify) and gives her an outsider's view of her culture's enigmatic and often destructive way of life. It also ushers in the change of Mara from uncanny survivor to social reformer.

I liked the first book in the series but I liked this one better. The characters deepen, we see more of the countryside and meet more of the Tsurani people including the Emperor and the mysterious Black Robes. The introduction of the outlander Kevin to the story helps to drive the plot and also serves as a logical place for exposition. Kevin can stand in for the reader and ask the questions "Why" and make the wry observations that about the Tsurani way of life. He serves brilliantly as the Outsider-who shakes-up-the-establishment and is the focal point of the members of Mara's household beginning to question their culture's stance on many issues including honor, death and slavery.

Great book. I Highly recommend.

This is a wonderful book! Full of political intrigue, love, greed, and just about everything to make this a rewarding read of fantasy and sci-fi! Lady Mara of the Acoma is the brilliant Ruling Lady who happens to thwart and conquer just about anyone who tries to mess with her. Introducing Kevin, her barbarian lover, and the old cast, including Nacoya, Keyoke, and her son and Spy Master. It is a must-read! She might seem harsh at times, and she gets all goody at the end, but all in all it is a wonderful wonderful book! --Phoenix King

This is the second installment to the Empire series - a trilogy, of which Daughter Of The Empire was first. I highly recommend reading the first book, as it will make this second book easier to follow.

We follow the adventures of Mara, Ruling Lady of House Acoma, in the Tsurani Empire situated on the world of Kelewan. This fictional society was first introduced to us during the Riftwar Saga, written solely by Raymond E. Feist. It is a complex society which heavily relies on a code of honour and caste system, and has a distinctly Asian feel to it. Further, political action is invariably translated directly into loss or gain, life or death, for the parties involved. The goals aren't necessarily material, but in the garnering of honour, firstly for your House (or family), Clan or political party.

In the first book, Mara neutralized a powerful foe - House Anasati - by marrying one of their sons, whilst also defeating the Ruling Lord of the powerful House Minwanabi. After defeat, the Lord took his life to expiate the shame, and his son, Desio, assumed the mantle of Lord. This second book revolves around the plotting and scheming of Desio, and his brilliant (in all things military) cousin Taseo. Lady Mara also finds herself falling in love with a "barbarian" slave from the Kingdom Of The Isles - the nation which the Tsurani are invading by way of a magical gate called a Rift. To further complicate matters, the book also takes place around the time of the "barbarian" magician's outburst at the Imperial Games, which has shattering repercussions for the entire fabric of Tsurani society and political system. The book brings us right to the edge of a civil war, with Lady Mara striving to both defeat her enemy and helping to defuse of the volatile situation which threatens to plunge this mighty empire into bloody civil war.

Again, Feist and Wurts do an outstanding job. Feist created the world, and his strength lies in characterization, while Wurts excels at plot development, helping to lead the reader into dizzying webs of intrigue. Believe me, politics has never looked this good!

I highly recommend this book.

Mara of the Acoma, in trying to extend her family's wealth and prestige in the Empire, buys Midkemian slaves at the market. Falling in love with the slave Kevin, opens her eyes to how unstable Tsurani Society really is.
Raymond Feist and Janny Wurts continue to work dynamically together to create a series that is exciting and challenging. Though there is more heart stopping action in conparison to Daughter of the Empire, Servant of the Empire concentrates on the romance between Ruler and slave, leaving it not as gripping as the first. However saying this, Servant of the Empire is still a very recommendable book and had me pursuing Mistress of the Empire.

The death of the Lord of the Minwanabi didn't end the blood feud. In fact, successors intensified it. The rivalry between House Minwanabi and House Acoma would be played out from the estates to the distant lands of Tsubar far across the Southern Sea to the Holy City of Kentosani.

However, the Game of the Council becomes more intense, and even more dangerous when one of the Great Ones loses his temper and the Emperor himself involves himself in the Game.

The Game will return to Kentosani and the result will mean that the Empire will never be the same.

The story is well written and even when one thinks the climax of the story is on the way, there is more coming. This is a book you can't put down and will want to read to the end. Don't miss a word, or you may miss something.

These authors really present a compelling story, something that rivals the best series' of the genre.

With Servant of the Empire fantasy author Janny Wurts successfully continues her magnificent Kelewan series. Lady Mara of the Acoma not only has succeeded to strengthen her terribly weakened house, but also has managed to strike a severe blow to the House of Minwanabi, her blood-sworn arch-enemies. But the forthcoming events don't give much room to relax, as her enemies rally under a much more deadly leader and occurrences of a much wider scale threaten to upset the very foundations of Tsurani society. But again Mara finds yet another unexpected source of help.

Enter Kevin, a captive from Midkemia, the world beyond the Rift. A battle-proven veteran, smart, witty and not willing to accept his place as a will-less slave in a society that is solidified in its own rigid traditions and castes. He wins the heart of Mara (admittedly not that unexpected, but that's okay) and earns the legitimate respect of Mara's most trusted intimates and officers. But most important, he lends Mara new insights to her own society, one of these being an awakened awareness that it's the deeds that define a man's worth and not his social standing.

One may argue now, that constellations like a slave winning his mistress' (or her master's) heart while changing her (his) view to things around her (him) are nothing new, but the way Janny Wurts exploits this setup for the trilogy's overall development is brilliant. One reason is, that in contrary to the first book, where Mara was the absolute main protagonist, she now has to share sympathies with Kevin. The recurring changes between both characters' viewpoints paint a whole new picture of the world of Kelewan.

Additionally Janny Wurts once again delves deep into the fascinations of a complex political and social structure with intricate plots, ambitious rulers and a deadliness that can plunge a mighty House into utter destruction just within a good day's scheming. And of course for all fans of Feist's Midkemia saga, the events involving Mara and Kevin are perfectly woven into the plot preset by Feist.

As a summary, Servant of the Empire is a great fantasy novel, which manages to grab the readers attention for many hours but still has enough room to spin a complex tale with love for detail and many surprising twists.

Once again, the Feist-Wurts team has created a beautiful masterpiece. Feist supplies the intricate fantasy setting, and Wurts tells the tale from a woman's perspective. Fearfully, I actually began to view Mara of the Acoma as my own personal hero! Time to take a break and ground myself in reality. But truth to tell, Janny Wurtz has struck an admirable balance between strength, beauty, and self-improvement. The Feist-Wurtz heroine is a more realistic one than is often seen on the fantasy shelves, as the progression of the story lies as much in her own development as in the plot. Forgoing the traditional "sword and sorcery" formula, this book may well be a fiction novel from another world.

The only one of Feist's novels that I have read 4 times, Servant of the Empire is a brilliant balance of politics that would make anything on earth seem like a nursery game, and an emotional upheaval in a woman who for the first time sees the injustices of the society she has been brought up to love before all other things. Along with A Darkness at Sethanon, this novel is Feist's best. After the tragedies of the Riftwar, any story that can make me relate to the Tsurani more than the people of the kingdom has to be amazing. Another Empire novel would be a dream come true!

The detailed story of Kevin falling in love with Mara is detailed in the extreme. The change which Mara udergoes is amazing. The detailed explanation of a culture both beautiful and ugly is amazing. Since starting to read this book I have become possesed,I go to great lenghths to get its' various continuations and and its counterpart Midkemean continuations. I just wish that in the Midkemean editions you would mention what is going on in Kelewan.(you only mentioned it in "The King's Buccaneer" so far) It is very difficult to try to figure out the various figures ages,and nearly impossible to find out if Mara or Kevin are alive still.

I found that this book was the best one in the series. I'm constantly taking it off the bookshelf and rereading parts of it. The book contains an intriguing encounter with Pug, which should've gone into more detail. Mara once again deludes the Minwanabi with her ability to reason. Kevin is a very intresting character and I found his part in the book a very good addition.