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Carthage Ascendant : The Book of Ash 2 (Mass Market Paperback)

by Mary Gentle (Author), Donato Giancola (Illustrator) "DIJON RESOUNDS TO the thundering of watermills..." (more)
Key Phrases: livery tabard, lion livery, wild machines, John de Vere, Earl of Oxford, Godfrey Maximillian (more...)

4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
In A Secret History, the first of a four-volume series, Mary Gentle began the story of Ash, a mercenary captain, and her band of 800 veterans embroiled in a war in 15th-century Europe. As the war assumes epic proportions, Ash--who hears a tactically astute voice in her head--becomes a sought-after commodity. Gentle, a writer who delights in confounding reader expectations, used as a literary device the insertion of e-mail from a present-day scholar and his editor to set up a series of intriguing questions about the main narrative: Are the Carthaginians' stone golems fantastical, or explicable in terms of alternate history? Is the shocking dimming of the sun evidence of magic, or of technology impossible in that milieu? Is Ash touched by God, or the end result of a careful breeding program? In the second volume, the author grins impishly and replies, "Yes."

Gentle keeps the reader enthralled on two levels. In the main narrative, Ash's enforced sojourn in Carthage is described authoritatively and viscerally. We believe in Ash, in her shock and pain and denial when she finds herself a slave in enemy territory. We understand her occasional despair, cheer her final refusal to give up, and absolutely delight in her hard-won escape and her satisfaction at once again donning armor and taking up her sword. However, it is the secondary narrative that adds depth. Gentle gives us explanations with one hand and takes them away with the other, while simultaneously posing ever more fascinating questions. The intertwined narratives reflect and complement one another, adding layer upon layer--and the sheen of brilliance--to the series. --Luc Duplessis

Review
"One of the best fantasies I've read in the past 15 years, bar none." -- S. M. Stirling, author of Against the Tide of Years

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Product Details

Mass Market Paperback: 432 pages
Publisher: Eos (February 8, 2000)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0380805502
ISBN-13: 978-0380805501
Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 1.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces

Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #969,234 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
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#14 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > ( G ) > Gentle, Mary

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Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!

Inside This Book (learn more)

First Sentence:
DIJON RESOUNDS TO the thundering of watermills. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
livery tabard, lion livery, wild machines, madam captain, blue rat, personal banner, wool gown, rei militaris, steel collar

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
John de Vere, Earl of Oxford, Godfrey Maximillian, Euen Huw, Fernando del Guiz, House Leofric, Thomas Rochester, Greek Fire, Charles of Burgundy, Robert Anselm, Duke Charles, Lion Azure, Floria del Guiz, Vaughan Davies, Thomas Morgan, Duke of Burgundy, Richard Faversham, Sancho Lebrija, Eternal Twilight, Jeanne Ch�lon, Anna Longman, Annibale Valzacchi, Antonio Angelotti, English Earl, Dickon de Vere

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Citations (learn more)

This book cites 10 books:

Scholars and Soldiers by Mary Gentle in Front Matter
Lost Burgundy:: The Book Of Ash, #4 (Book of Ash, No 4) by Mary Gentle in Front Matter
Rats and Gargoyles by Mary Gentle in Front Matter
The Lady Margaret by Betty King on page 13
Epitoma rei militaris (Oxford Classical Texts) by Vegetius on page 185

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John Hawkwood by William Caferro

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A Secret History by Mary Gentle

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	64% buy the item featured on this page: Carthage Ascendant : The Book of Ash 2 4.1 out of 5 stars (9)
	36% buy ASH: A Secret History 4.2 out of 5 stars (4)

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Customer Reviews

9 Reviews

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4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(2)
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4.1 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews)

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26 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Ash Goes to Carthage, February 24, 2000

By	Charles Seelig "Charlie Seelig" (Providence, RI) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

And won't be writing any blurbs for the Carthage Travel Bureau. Gentle continues to write with that mix of realism, humor, and adventure that made the first volume of this series an excellent mix of alternate history and medieval war epic with a strong, in all senses, lead character. I do not think that the "today"/"academic discussions" sections were integrated as well into the book as in the first volume as they lend less of a aura of mystery and instead almost are a second story going on and overall, with some of the mysteries revealed by the goings-on during this second book, more pedestrian. But, the series continues to be a very worthwhile read, for any number of segments of the sf & fantasy universe of readers.

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Swords, and now some sorcery, October 8, 2002

By	Maddi Hausmann Sojourner "madhaus" (Silicon Valley, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Carthage Ascendent is the second Book of Ash, although this isn't a series but a tremendous novel published in four parts. It's the only one that takes place away from Ash's stomping grounds of western Europe, where the other three books are set. Here, our heroine, the leader of a mercenary company, is captured and taken prisoner, then returned to her birthplace of Carthage. She didn't know this was her birthplace, and this is not the Carthage you think it is. Oh, and she's got this twin who is the general of the Visigoth army. And if you think that isn't weird enough, there's no sun in Carthage. And now it's getting very cold.

Yes, things are defintely getting beyond a straight historical fiction, but it doesn't read like just fantasy either. The story of Ash is supposedly a manuscript translation, but the editor wants to yank the project because the manuscripts are disappearing from their supposed libraries. Meanwhile the translator has joined an archaelogical expedition and is finding evidence supporting the events in Ash's life.

This second book has a very different sense than the first one, since we meet her as a competent leader, and now she's reduced to a defeated slave. But with two more books to go, there are plenty more plot developments, and they are very surprising. The "voice" in Ash's head is not what she thought it was in Book 1, and dealing with it takes up a good deal of her worries (that is, when she isn't plotting her escape). Her husband shows up in Carthage, too, and she gets to watch the politics of the amirs here after handling European nobility in book 1. Have I mentioned that there is a lot going on here?

Keep at it and enjoy. Check out the reviews of Book 1: A Secret History if you haven't already.

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Engaging ideas behind the story., November 20, 2001

By	Christopher Ware (Fremont, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is the second part of THE BOOK OF ASH (following A SECRET HISTORY), the story of a female mercenary captain in an alternate 15th century Europe. This main alternate history story is framed by the story of a historian in the early 21st century translating a manuscript of this history. He is trying to uncover why we have never heard any of this history as it is being told in the manuscript. This all makes for a very engaging read because, not only does it draw the reader into the mystery, but we also get an extremely well told and realistic tale of a mercenary band in war torn medieval Europe. As in the first book, the reader is again deeply immersed in this reality through the author's use of vivid description, brilliantly imagined characters, and engaging plot devices.

I was tempted to give this book only three stars. The first fifty pages of the book, as well as the last hundred, were exciting and very engaging reading. Unfortunately, the middle two hundred or so pages did not do much to advance the story. The problem was that not much really happened. Sure, we learn some important backstory and a lot of the relevant politics, but it was severely bogged down with superfluous scenes and interior monologues that could easily have been cut without losing anything from the story.

The main reason I didn't give it three stars was the fact that there were so many mysteries that were hinted at in the first book that were unearthed in this one that it made for some very interesting reading. We learn about Ash's past, what her voice really is, as well as more of the history of the world in which she lives. In addition, the final hundred pages were so full of action and military operations, that it was impossible to put the book down. This is the type of action that I had been expecting in a book about a mercenary captain that seemed so sorely lacking in the first book. The author also hits us with another revelation and an even bigger mystery in the last portion of the book. I couldn't wait to get to the next one in the series and see if we didn't find out what was truly going on.

Despite the shortcomings of the storytelling in the middle of the book, I still felt that this was a better than average fantasy story and, thus, felt compelled to give it a four star rating. If you enjoyed the first book in the series (and you'd better read it before trying this one), this one should also grab your attention. This is a must read series for any fantasy fan, especially for those who enjoy stories with a military bent.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars The Lioness is Trapped... but Not Tamed!
Ash's story was originally published as one mammoth book in the UK. In USA (and the rest of Europe) divided into four tomes. A wise option IMHO. Read more

Published 9 months ago by Maximiliano F Yofre

3.0 out of 5 stars A detailed look at 15th century life, but slow at times
I like the series because it seems to be an accurate, gritty view of life in 15th century Europe. The author brings out little details that usually aren't found in period novels,... Read more

Published on March 11, 2003 by - Glenn

5.0 out of 5 stars Part 2 of a brilliant fantasy novel
This is part 2 of "Ash: A Secret History" - an excellent fantasy novel by UK author Mary Gentle. Read more

Published on July 22, 2001 by Stefan Raets

4.0 out of 5 stars Elements Of Realism Begin To Unravel
Had I been allowed to award half stars, I would have given this second installment of Mary Gentile's medieval reconstruction 3.5 stars. Read more

Published on December 12, 2000 by Elyon

3.0 out of 5 stars Puffy middle of a good book/series
The first volume offered great combat scenes, a gritty depiction of medieval life, and a pair of weird plotlines. This second book bogs down. Read more

Published on September 5, 2000

4.0 out of 5 stars Exciting and scary second installment in a fine new series
The second volume of the US edition of Mary Gentle's brilliant novel _Ash_ (published as one HUGE book in the UK) takes the young woman mercenary Ash to Carthage. Read more

Published on June 8, 2000 by Richard R. Horton

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