Ilario: The Lion's Eye: A Story of the First History, Book One (Paperback)

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Key Phrases: stone golem, linen kilt, King Rodrigo, Ramiro Carrasco, Aldra Videric (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Set in an alternative medieval world in which Carthage has survived to become a mighty empire, this impressive first in a new fantasy series from British author Gentle introduces a highly unusual protagonist, the hermaphrodite Ilario. A native of Iberia, Ilario is visiting Carthage en route to Rome, where he/she plans to serve as an apprentice to a master painter, when he/she is sexually violated and becomes the slave of Rekhmire', an amiable Egyptian and castrato by choice, who wants Ilario for his/her artistic abilities. Meanwhile, Ilario's mother, ashamed of her offspring's deformity, schemes to kill Ilario. Eventually, Ilario hooks up with Masaccio, an actual pre-Renaissance artist, from whom he learns to paint in perspective. Gentle (A Secret History and other titles in her Book of Ash series) delivers a delicious twist ending involving Ilario's impending marriage that will leave readers eager for the next installment. (July)
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Review

"[an] impressive first in a new series from British author Gentle..." -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"winderfully convincing...the intricate plots allow plenty of room for Gentle’s subtle, ironic commentary on politics and gender. -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)

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Product Details

• Paperback: 303 pages
• Publisher: Eos (June 26, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060821833
• ISBN-13: 978-0060821838
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #157,222 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Ilario is not an easy character to like..., March 4, 2008

By	A. Lee (L.A., CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Ilario has spent childhood as a slave, as the Iberian "King's Freak." A true hermaphrodite, abandoned as an infant to die, Ilario recently found out his/her mother was a court lady, the wife of the king's chief advisor, Lord Videric--who wants to kill him/her to stop scandal and keep their positions.

At the start of the book Ilario has come to Carthage, a city that is always in darkness (one wonders if any plants survive--or how the darkness comes about, but this isn't revealed). He/she's recently been freed by the Iberian King and wants to go to Rome to study art. Even the guy at customs wonders why an artist would come to a place of darkness. Ilario takes the suggestion of the customs guy and stays with him at his mother's place--and has sex... and ends up drugged and sold into slavery.

And the misadventures and odd decisions do not stop there--they, naturally, get worse, as the scandal may affect the course of kingdoms and Ilario's father appears to help, to his own cost. Ilario is NOT an easy person for me to like. I almost threw the book across the room half a dozen times. For instance, Ilario is immediately sold to a large but soft-spoken Alexandrian, Rekmire', and immediately demands to be allowed to practice art when not doing scribe work (IS there time-off for a slave?). Rekmire' seems to go out of his way to accommodate Ilario (who also refuses to sleep with Rekmire' who asked politely). Things continue in this vein--Ilario continues to rush head-strong through life, others want to kill him, friends try to help him. And the first book doesn't really end so much as pause, and the tale continues right from that moment in the second book.

Somehow, after simply deciding that Ilario was a bit crazy-- as well as those around him/her-- I kept being curious about what would happen. I picked up the second book when I got the first and am reading that, now. So far, there has been no temptation to throw it against the wall, but I remain somewhat detached from the characters and the tale, even though it still holds my interest.

EDIT: I'm in the middle of the 2nd book now and all the characters are MUCH more fun and likable now. Ilario still makes some crazy decisions, but they are more and more understandable, given the established character. I suppose I'm just getting more used to him/her! I think I would give the first book 4 stars, now, in retrospect--but can't change it in the edit function.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Lots of set-up, not much follow-through., February 6, 2008

By	J. K. Moore (Southern California, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I loved Gentle's "A Secret History" and thoroughly enjoyed "1610", but couldn't manage to finish "Rats and Gargoyles". I had high expectations for Gentle's "Ilario" series because it was set in the same world as "A Secret History". Having finished The Lion's Eye, I'm not sure if I'll read the next, The Stone Golem, even though I purchased both books.

Gentle's world building is wonderful, but in this outing, the characters are not deep or engaging. Ilario, a "true hermaphrodite" possessed of functioning sets of male and female organs, is not as interesting a character as this setup suggests. Aside from an early sexual encounter and a midpoint attempt to marry, Ilario's sexuality seems unimportant to him/her, and is mainly important to the plot for the reactions it provokes in other characters. Ilario's true passion is to study art, and Gentle is moderately successful in portraying it. But Ilario's quest too often leads him/her heedlessly into danger-- a danger established in the first pages and which powers the plot as Ilario flees from it. The result is that Ilario comes awfully close to resembling a stock heroine of the too-stupid-to-live variety. (She's fiesty! She's spirited! She tosses her head and defies the hero! ..and gets into trouble and needs to be rescued! Again!)

Ilario is fortunate to immediately meet up with a stock romance hero-- Rehkmire' is kind, tolerant of Ilario's emotionaly outbursts, amused by his/her cheekiness, always ready to come to the rescue, and a voluntary eunuch. Unfortunately this paragon adds no tension to Ilario's story. Ilario's long lost father also makes an early appearance, and is in every respect the fantasy father that any orphan would dream of. This all too agreeable trio make dull traveling companions through Gentle's fascinating alternate Renaissance world.

The Lion's Eye ends in a cliff-hanger involving the most interesting character yet introduced-- that of an assassin sent to kill Ilario. I might read the second book to find out what happens to him.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars soulless, February 26, 2009

By	Furio (Genova - Italy) - See all my reviews

The problem here is that the author tries too hard.

This novel (the first in a trilogy) is set in an alternative XV century where people and events from our history are mixed with plausible ones, plausible if you assume Muslims (who are never mentioned) never conquered northern Africa which remained in the hands of Visigoths; that a schism divided the Christianity; that ellenistic Egyptians were forced (by whom?) to move to Costantinopole and reestablished their kingdom there.

A true hermaphrodite is chosen as the main character, a painter, which is not only potentially interesting but gives the opportunity to explore conventions, gender, society and physical places in an unconventional way. Yet this opportunity is not always exploited, Ilario looking for most of the time a spoiled brat (of whichever sex).

If assumptions are interesting there are downsides:

Ilario is 24 year old but generally acts and reasons like someone ten years its junior, despite the assumed time (in the middle ages people at 24 were married with children) and his having been brought up as a courtier/jester in a dangerous court. Sometimes, suddenly, the author chooses to show us how worldly and mature its upbringing has made it and we have a full grown, dangerous individual who nonetheless had time to train both as a soldier and as a lady but never achieved a decent skill in his chosen profession.

The plot is well contrived but at times rushed, at times slow to the point of dragging.

The writing is deliberately simple, made of short, abrupt sentences, everywhere we are made clear how painstaking the author's efforts have been.

All the above to say that I was bored most of the time (I still do not know whether I shall buy the second episode), the exceptions being nicely executed action scenes.
The book cover mentions "hot sex scenes" which are completely absent: there's one sex act, uncharacteristically muted, so that if I do not recommend this book to minors is not because of the sex but because of the effort it takes to appreciate the intended points of this work.

Insipid blurb on the cover aside, the book is a nice editorial object for a paperback: nice bookcover, fine paper, spotless printing in a most elegant font.

Borrow it before you buy it.