Banewreaker (The Sundering, Book 1) (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "TANAROS WALKED DOWN THE HALLWAY, black marble echoing under his bootheels..." (more)
Key Phrases: sinuous neck, lost weapon, mismatched eyes, Lord Satoris, Grey Dam, Aracus Altorus (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Following her well-received Kushiel's Legacy trilogy (Kushiel's Dart, etc.), bestseller Carey takes a daringly different tack in the first of a new epic fantasy series that focuses on seven gods rather than an ingratiating human heroine like the trilogy's Phèdre nó Delaunay. Readers may be overwhelmed at first by the vast cast of larger-than-life characters, including many exotic creatures, fanged, toothed and winged, but as the gods and their assorted hangers-on behave more like real people than mythic heroes, they gain in sympathy. Haomone, the eldest of the seven gods, and one of his younger brothers, Satoris, who sundered the earth with his sword, are in rebellion. Satoris's primary lieutenant, Tanaros Blacksword, who has lived 1,000 bitter years after killing his unfaithful wife and her lover, his king, endures the irony that he must kidnap but safeguard her beautiful descendant, Cerelinde, who is about to be married. The poignancy of Tanaros's situation is palpable but never overplayed. Also moving is the plight of Lillias, a beautiful sorceress also a millennium old, enamored of Callendor, a colossal dragon. Perhaps nowhere in fiction is a dragon described as remarkably or as lovingly, a creature of unbelievable power yet also of gentle tenderness. This is a memorable beginning to what should be another strong series.
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From Booklist

The Shapers' War has divided Urulat. Third Born Satoris has been thrown to one side of the great Sundering Sea with all Urulat's creatures, his six Shaper siblings to the other, separated from their creations. For ages, Satoris is content to sit in Darkhaven, his fortress, but when a new prophecy declares that the world can be healed with Satoris' death, he gathers forces to defend himself. To prevent a powerful, dangerous alliance, and with the help of Lilias the sorceror and the dragon Calendor, Satoris kidnaps Cerelinde, the lady of Ellylon, on the day of her marriage. The gentle Cerelinde has unforeseen effects on Darkhaven residents, however, that ultimately and irrevocably change their destinies. Carey's formal style, at first distancing, proves perfect for setting the tone for a grand epic and narrating the mythic lives of the larger-than-life Shapers. Its consistency and artistry form a strong frame for showcasing Carey's intimate development of deeply wounded, sometimes deeply flawed, yet utterly dignified and sympathetic characters--some of the best dragons in all fantasy literature. Paula Luedtke
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: Tor Books; 1st edition (October 21, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0765305216
• ISBN-13: 978-0765305213
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.5 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (71 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #783,999 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, She turns Tolkien on his head!, May 8, 2006

By	J. McHale (Pittsburgh, PA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Most people who read this immediately notice its similarity to Tolkien's Lord of the Rings. Well good for you! It's obvious! That is done with a purpose. This is a grand retelling of the same old good vs. evil story. But here - who is good and who is evil? In this book, you feel for Satoris. His only "crime" was an unwillingness to foraske his own gifts at the behest of his elder brother, Haomane. He befriends and loves the lumpy misshapen Fjeltroll, the abused and cast out among the humans, and the prideful men who worship money. These people had no place in Urulat, according to Haomane. This is the story of two sides destined to fight to the death in a classic good vs. evil, right vs. wrong tale. Only in this one, Carey artfull spins you into wanting the side of darkness to win; the reader finds herself unable to side with those on the side of "good." Excellently written, this book is a good read. Admittedly, the prose is not as artfully done as the Kushiel's series, but still is a cut above the norm.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Actually, I thought it was quite different and very compelling., January 23, 2006

By	J. Harvey Holcombe (Charlotte, NC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I just finished this novel, and I'll say this to those who are drawing comparisons to Tolkien and gibing Carey for her lack of originality: yes, the plot may not be too terribly original. But have you no sensitivity to the point of view? That is what truly sets the novel apart, along with some fantastic characterizations. I'll elaborate...

Here is a novel much more along the typical fantasy line than Carey's last series (Kushiel's Dart, et al), which I enjoyed, and which had a vague hint of epistemological depth in its exploration of angelic and celestial themes. For me, someone who adores the "typical fantasy line" - I mean, if you are tired of gods and dragons, why did you even pick it up? - it's great stuff. The world of this novel was created by the Seven Shapers, who are demi-gods. Here again is Carey's fascination with the human characterization of divinity, and with human interaction with the celestial, definitely one of the strongest factors of interest in her writing.

There is definitely interest in the concept and even some ties to Hindu philosophy in the way that Carey ties each of her Shapers to a particular human attribute; the Eldest is the Lord of Thought, the Second the Bestower of Love, the Third is the Sower - who bestows the urge to procreate. This is an interesting mythology, and certainly one that I find thought-provoking and original. The war of the Shapers, and how it plays out between the races of Ellylon, Men, Were, Fjell, Dwarfs (all created by the Shapers), is the premise of the book. What is even more interesting is the point of view of the novel.

Satoris Third-Born, the Sower and the "Sunderer of the World", the dark lord that others compare to Sauron of Middle Earth, centers the main storyline. He is a sympathetic character, and those surrounding him are the main protagonists of this novel. Here is a philosophical demi-god unto whom was made an unreasonable request - to withdraw his gift - the urge to procreate - from the race of Mankind - and who denied, at the cost of his Gift itself, all the regard of all the races, and the wrath of his siblings. I suspect that there are strong metaphysical reasons, only hinted at in the beginning of this series, for his actions.

There are many other tragic storylines that create sympathy for the other main "evil" characters, and very little characterization of those who fight for "Good", personified by "the Lord of Thought". Carey's subtext is not only a metaphysical hint to the mastery of the other senses over thought itself, it is a subtle commentary on any who identify with a majority unthinkingly. There is also a strong cyclical nature to the mythology of this book, as identified by the deep and abiding knowledge of the dragons, who maintain that though Satoris has sundered the world, only in sundering can it be made whole again. The mystical nature of this cycle is, again, very metaphysical.

And, oh! The dragons! This characterization of dragons may just be the most moving I have read in many years, bestowing on them such tremendous wisdom, terrible beauty, and wonderful capriciousness. The dragons alone may just be worth the read.

In short, I think it's a fascinating read, with many levels on which it can be enjoyed, and I favor it over Carey's other work. I look forward to reading the next installment!

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The lovechild of Phedre and Aragorn, April 16, 2005

By	Saskia Van Uylenburgh "Saskia" - See all my reviews

The author of the acclaimed Kushiel trilogy breaks out into new territory: a classic high fantasy which riffs off of Tolkien's Middle Earth and the Blessed Lands. This is not, however, just another stereotypical high fantasy with elaborate made-up names, featureless countryside, and magical objects to be won by young heroes rising out of obscurity. Carey describes Banewreaker and its forthcoming second part Godslayer as tragedies; they are the story of a War between Good and Evil told from the perspective of the losing (evil) side.

Carey uses certain elements recognizably borrowed from Tolkien: differing races of Elves (called Ellyl, the Welsh word for elf), Men, Dwarfs, Fjeltroll, and shapeshifting, predatory Were; a world in which mortals and immortals inhabit different continents, separated by a Sundering Sea; a dark lord brooding in his mountain fastness; a band of representatives of the different races toiling together on a quest. She combines these elements, however, with a cosmology that seems to be influenced by Zoroastrian and Indo-Iranian mythology, in which Uru-Alat the World God gives birth, in his death, to Seven Shapers, one of whom, Satoris the Sower, the giver of sexual desire and generation, falls at odds with the others. As in the Kushiel books, she borrows existing languages for her peoples; the trolls seem to speak Norwegian, the Ellylon (Elves) Welsh.

It is typical of Carey that sexuality plays an important role in the story--it is the giver of sexual desire who is demonized and exiled from the angelic ranks, and Satoris has an unhealing wound in his thigh which brings to mind the wounded Fisher King of Grail mythology. I hope that she will bring this theme more to the fore in the second half of the story and use it as her tool for exploring the root question, Are you evil if everyone says you are evil? And by extension, is sexuality evil because everyone condemns it?

I feared I would not like this book, precisely because I loved the Kushiel trilogy so very much, but I hated to finish it and can't wait until its sequel Godslayer comes out in August.