Phoenix

Phoenix (1990) Steven Brust

Chronologically, Phoenix follows Teckla. Verra, the demon goddess, has “work” for Vlad. She wants the king of Greenaere killed, and she refuses to say why. Vlad and Cawti are still at odds, with no reconciliation on the horizon, as Cawti’s actions with the revolutionary group continue to place her in danger, and Vlad’s opposition to anyone harming her places him at odds with the Jhereg.

Although Phoenix is not as depressing as Teckla, it is still a dark book. Morrolan and Sethera and Aliera all appear in this book, which to some degree helps alleviate some of the tension, but there is still the underlying issue of Vlad and Cawti’s marriage falling apart, and there’s little one can do to make that easy to read, other than keep Vlad distracted with other things.

Vlad meets a Greenaere drummer, and for various good reasons, ends up bring him back to Adrilankha. Aibynn is a strange character, and I never did figure out what I thought about him and how I felt about him, which is unusual, since Steven Brust’s characters usually evoke some response, one way or the other, from me.

This is, like Teckla, not a book that I particularly like to read, however, like Teckla, it is also an incredibly important book. If you attempt to skip this book, you’ll have lost a major thread of the story.
Rating: 6/10

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