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Mistress of the Empire (Hardcover)

by Janny Wurts (Author)
Key Phrases: first adviser, ruling lords, imperial games, Lady Mara, Black Robes, Force Commander (more...)
4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (39 customer reviews)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
The trilogy begun with Daughter of the Empire is here brought to a strong conclusion. Lady Mara of the Acoma clan, named Servant of the Empire by Ichindar, Emperor of the Tsuranuanni, whom she has raised from figurehead to true ruler, feels safe from her enemies for the first time in her life--until an assassination attempt aimed at her kills her young son and heir instead. Convinced her old foe, Jiro of the House Anasati, is behind the deed, she plans war. But her desires are thwarted by the reactionary Assembly of Magicians, who are, Mara begins to understand, the true power in the Empire, having kept the people docile for a millennium. In her fight to bring down her enemies and ensure peace for the Empire, Mara must employ the nonhuman cho-ja and an ancient secret. The characters' efforts to work out their destinies within the constraints of a tradition-bound culture is depicted with skill.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Lady Mara of the Acoma, consummate player of the deadly game of intrigue that maintains the stability of the Tsurani Empire, pits her vision of a transformed society against an apparently unbeatable foe in this conclusion to a trilogy that includes Daughter of the Empire ( LJ 6/15/87) and Servant of the Empire ( LJ 10/15/90). Feist and Wurts have created an exotic fantasy world that is rich in texture and alive with political machinations. Fans of the series, as well as readers interested in Feist's "Riftwar" novels (set in a related universe), will enjoy this well-constructed fantasy.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

  • Hardcover: 613 pages
  • Publisher: Doubleday; 1st edition (April 1, 1992)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0385247192
  • ISBN-13: 978-0385247191
  • Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.5 x 1.9 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #653,417 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
first adviser, ruling lords, imperial games, twenty gods, little hadonra, stout magician, shah board, barbarian magician, tong assassin, battle sandals, grey warriors, spy master, runner slave, imperial dais, prayer gate, barge master, spice seller, hive mind, green armor, spy net, caravan master, command tent
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Lady Mara, Black Robes, Force Commander, Servant of the Empire, Great Ones, Lord Jiro, Light of Heaven, Red God, Lady of the Acoma, Good Servant, Holy City, Hamoi Tong, Lord Keda, Game of the Council, Jiro of the Anasati, Anasati Lord, Strike Leader, Reed Life, Imperial Precinct, Imperial Whites, Tasaio of the Minwanabi, House Acoma, Assembly of Magicians, Lady Isashani, Clan Hadama
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Customer Reviews

39 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
4.4 out of 5 stars (39 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars Gripping read, but . . ., June 12, 2002
This review is from: Mistress of the Empire (Empire Trilogy, Bk. 3) (Paperback)
This book brings to an end the saga of Mara of the Acoma, and her political rise through the Empire of Tsuranuanni. It begins with a tragedy that leads a grief-stricken Mara to realise that she has a new enemy, the awesomely powerful Assembly of Magicians. The story follows Mara through a new series of plots, near-death encounters, revelations, and personal struggles as she once more fights to protect her loved ones and family honour.
Mistress of the Empire is as well-written as its two prequels, and as the tension mounted towards the end, I couldn't put it down. Yet the book did leave a sour taste in the mouth, and that is because Mara ends up with everything. Yes, we know she's lost many people she loved. Yes, we know she's suffered greatly. But at the end of the book she has more power and wealth than ever, the literal protection of the gods, and the love of her life returned. Some balance on this score would have been preferable. In contrast to the other books, it didn't seem to me that Mara really learnt anything in this book, either - it's hard to believe that she's acting for anyone other than herself, no matter how moving her struggles can be. Her supposed concern for the underprivileged just doesn't seem to shine through in this book.
The Assembly of Magicians was an unsatisfactory enemy; its portrayal in other books seemed at variance with its portrayal here, and I did wonder how well the concept had been thought out. And it certainly gave up far too easily in the end. The priests, too, were problematic. They never seemed to care about the cruelty in the empire before, so why start now? There was too much plot contrivance of this sort, and it did undermine Mistress of the Empire. Other annoying contrivances that furthered specific plot ends were the poisoning, the divorce of Hokanu, and the death of Ayaki.
The book was also let down by its ending. The showdown before the emperor's throne was silly, with all its stops and starts, the constant raising of the stakes, and its contrived resolution. And as for the epilogue, that read like wish fulfilment on the part of the authors, rather than being consistent with what had gone before - sorry, I just don't believe that social change would have come that fast. Feist and Wurts have perhaps caught a disease that is unfortunately becoming more common amongst fantasy authors: total control of their imaginary world from creation to destruction, with nothing left unresolved and nothing left for anyone else to play with, even readers.
Yet it was nice to see in this book how much came about through the actions of characters other than Mara, particularly Arakasi and Lujan. The change in Arakasi (always my favourite character) was especially welcome and well done.
If you liked Daughter of the Empire and Servant of the Empire, you'll no doubt enjoy this, too. It's not as good as Servant of the Empire, but it's still a fun read. You might find it best not to think on it too deeply, though.
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful characters, engaging plot (review for the entire trilogy), January 7, 2006
By Erin L. (Missouri, USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Mistress of the Empire (Empire Trilogy, Bk. 3) (Paperback)
I first read this when it was published and I still come back to it every year or two, because the story of Mara's struggle for survival never gets old. She's truly a woman in a man's world, reminiscent of Queen Elizabeth, albeit in a culture whose inspiration is obviously from the Orient. And yet, as other readers have mentioned, Mara doesn't take on mannish traits to win, she's always purely female. And she uses that, at times, ruthlessly.

The culture in which she exists is so stagnate, so utterly drowning in pointless tradition that seeing Mara figure out ways to both work with it and around it in order to *change* her people's entire way of life never ceases to be a joy. She proves herself to be a tactical genius and yet she still makes mistakes, she has prejudices to overcome, ways of thinking that she has to force herself to change, she's still so very human and you can identify with her. Her sorrows, regrets, fears, they're all very real and you can't help but feel for her, worry that maybe this one time she and her House won't survive.

Such wonderfully well-developed characters, even the minor ones, beautifully described culture and Machiavellian politics. The entire trilogy is a feast for someone looking for books heavy on the plot while still being character driven. When you've turned the last page, read the last sentence, you'll find yourself wishing that there were books more to devour, because you won't want to let go of Mara or her world.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Trilogy, March 14, 2005
This review is from: Mistress of the Empire (Empire Trilogy, Bk. 3) (Paperback)
Mistress of the Empire is the exciting conclusion to an amazing trilogy (Daughter of the Empire and Servant of the Empire are the 1st two books).
Once again Mara must fight to save her family, the Acoma, from obliteration by enemies. She must use all of her resources to the fullest and learn to think outside of the traditional Tsuranni ways of thinking in order to survive, and for the good of the stagnant Empire.
While some parts of this book DO seem to drag somewhat, the end result is more than worth it. The book starts with a bang, and has some very moving/touching twists at the end.
Feist & Wurtz have outdone themselves with this trilogy, creating characters that you come to love. You fear for their lives when they are in peril, and cry and laugh along with them.
I finished re-reading this book yesterday, and I still feel the emotional impact of it, and I'm sad that the book doesn't continue on.
If you liked Raymond Feist's Riftwar saga, definitely give this series a try. This trilogy contains 3 of my top 10 favorite books of all time.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars Not Free SF Reader
Once again a target.


Mara, now a woman of power and influence again finds herself under attack once more. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Blue Tyson

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic book, fantastic series! Doesn't disappoint.
This is a fantastic conclusion to the thrilling series on the other side of the Riftwar! Although the companion series (Riftwar Saga) should be read first, I accidentally started... Read more
Published 23 months ago by L. Toll

5.0 out of 5 stars The grand finale for House Acoma
This book is the third and final installment following the trials and tribulations of Mara, Ruling Lady of House Acoma of the Empire of Tsuranuanni. Read more
Published on June 15, 2007 by Luke Waygood

3.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing
I was quite excited about the conclusion to the series. Feist is a favorite author and the two earlier books in the trilogy was quite good. Read more
Published on January 17, 2007 by Sigrun

2.0 out of 5 stars An unappealing and repetitive end to a good series
Before I start this review, I would like to say that I really liked "Daughter of the Empire", and greatly enjoyed reading it. Read more
Published on October 27, 2006 by Brett

4.0 out of 5 stars So much better and a good ending
I finished this trilogy within the space of two days and I must say... although I dislike the cliche of "This last book was the best in the entire series!", it really was. Read more
Published on May 13, 2005 by Crystal

5.0 out of 5 stars Much more than I expected
Well, I tend to be a little picky and choosy when getting new books to read. I had quicky devoured anything that had to do with Midkema, buying books one after another, and then I... Read more
Published on March 20, 2005 by J. Wiegand

5.0 out of 5 stars A Resounding Finale
Wow! This book is a great finale to what has been a wonderful series (see my reviews for the previous two installments. Read more
Published on February 9, 2005 by Michael Le Houllier

4.0 out of 5 stars The end of an outstanding Trilogy
Mistress of the Empire, full of mysticism, action, adventure and a touch of romance. A fantasy work, well written and perfectly descriptive. Read more
Published on February 7, 2005 by Christine Jones Author of the ...

4.0 out of 5 stars Starts off slow...
...but really flies in the end. The first half of the book droned on, then all of a sudden, everything starts happening. Read more
Published on August 21, 2004 by E. L. Sapp

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