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Daughter of the Blood (Black Jewels, Bk 1)
Daughter of the Blood - Black Jewels, Bk 1
Author: Anne Bishop
THE ONCE AND FUTURE QUEEN — Seven hundred years ago, a Black Widow witch saw an ancient prophecy come to life in her dazzling web of dreams and visions. Now the Dark Realm readies itself for the arrival of its Queen, a witch who will wield more power than even the High Lord of Hell himself. But she is still young, still open to influence -- and c...  more »
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PBS Market Price: $8.09 or $4.19+1 credit
ISBN-13: 9780451456717
ISBN-10: 0451456718
Publication Date: 3/1/1998
Pages: 416
Rating:
  • Currently 4.2/5 Stars.
 343

4.2 stars, based on 343 ratings
Publisher: Roc
Book Type: Mass Market Paperback
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review

Top Member Book Reviews

soraidh avatar reviewed Daughter of the Blood (Black Jewels, Bk 1) on + 20 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 12
While it is sort of high drama with intrigue and nefarious plots by people who want power, I found myself nearly laughing out loud many times. Jaenelles exploits, whether we read them or not, are rather amusing, many times because of the reactions her adventures provoke in her guardians.

It was also nice to see the Bishop could take a thread and weave it through the entire book. Something you read in the beginning chapters would be fully understood only later on. It was gratifying to read the more in-depth reasons for something you had already gathered was important and find that it was not only important it was more important than you had guessed.
lisareinke avatar reviewed Daughter of the Blood (Black Jewels, Bk 1) on + 123 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 10
An unusual fantasy novel that works well, and is fascinating in a dreadful way. The book is dark, chilling and charming. The fantasy world within is topsy-turvy to the traditional fare. The dead denizens of Hell have more humanity than the living. Sexual violation, childhood innocence and conceptions of good and evil are explored in the way that sci-fi and fantasy does best. An excellent book, but it really should be R-rated. I think the cover art and back cover description are deceptively benign, and parts of the book are a bit malevolent. The book description here at PBS is much more truthful and indicative of the content.
soraidh avatar reviewed Daughter of the Blood (Black Jewels, Bk 1) on + 20 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 8
Oh my. My my MY.

I don't quite know where to start. I devoured this book. I carried it around in my purse with me. I read it in restaurants and at work. And I'm reading the second book in the series much like I did the first.

In a lot of ways Bishop's writing reminds me of Guy Gavriel Kay's writing. Not necessarily in voice and cadence but in craftsmanship. I find myself as much involved with these characters as I was with Kay's while reading The Summer Tree. Though I hope I can manage to finish this trilogy as Kay's Fionivar Tapestry is still languishing on my bookshelf because I don't want to see the characters hurt any more!

One of the many reasons I enjoyed Daughter of the Blood is that while it is sort of high drama with intrigue and nefarious plots by people who want power, I found myself nearly laughing out loud many times. Jaenelle's exploits, whether we read them or not, are rather amusing, many times because of the reactions her adventures provoke in her guardians.

It was also nice to see the Bishop could take a thread and weave it through the entire book. Something you read in the beginning chapters would be fully understood only later on. It was gratifying to read the more in-depth reasons for something you had already gathered was important and find that it was not only important it was more important than you had guessed.
joyceanne avatar reviewed Daughter of the Blood (Black Jewels, Bk 1) on + 47 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 8
With The Black Jewels Trilogy (consisting of Daughter of the Blood, Heir to the Shadows and Queen of the Darkness), Anne Bishop has taken the literature of dark fantasy to heights I never even dreamed of. She has created a universe I can barely begin to describe, a realm of kingdoms ruled by women -- in the form of witches, priestesses and Black Widow queens -- where the strongest of men are forced into the role of consort to the most vindictive of mistresses. Bishop turns good and evil upside down in this masterful literary vision, giving us heroes the likes of Saetan the High Lord of Hayll, his sons Daemon Sadi and Lucivar, and one very special and very powerful young lady named Jaenelle Angelline.
If you are searching for something different, something that will completely captivate you in the form of a world unlike any you have yet encountered in your literary journeys, The Black Jewels Trilogy stands ready to redefine your very conception of the literature of dark fantasy. This is fantasy that should appeal to women as well as men, for this is not just another work of fantasy built around warlike dwarves, ethereal elves and heroic battles fought by stereotypical male characters. The Black Jewels Trilogy is literature of the highest order, more than earning author Anne Bishop the title I now personally bestow upon her: the Queen of Dark Fantasy.
PhoenixFalls avatar reviewed Daughter of the Blood (Black Jewels, Bk 1) on + 185 more book reviews
Helpful Score: 5
Several people recommended I try Anne Bishop's Black Jewels Trilogy based on my love of Jacqueline Carey's Kushiel's Legacy series. I can see why -- both books share a similar forthrightness about the act of love, particularly love tinged with sado-masochism. However, right off the bat it became obvious that while in the Kushiel novels sado-masochism was about trust, in Daughter of the Blood it is about power.

Every character in the novel except for Jaenelle is involved in power plays large and small; there is no trust to be had between any two individuals (again, excepting Jaenelle). This made the novel incredibly frustrating for me -- I hate it when the entirety of the conflict in a novel could be solved by a few of the people sitting down together, talking things out, and taking that (to me, easy) leap of faith that they aren't all trying to stab each other in the back. That that lack of trust meant that Jaenelle was being sexually abused (blindingly obvious to me from page one, though none of the men that supposedly loved her noticed) for almost 400 pages with no one to step in and rescue her made me very angry at times.

Many things in the novel created a low level of frustration. The magic system was too much like in an RPG; I never got any sense for the physical landscape; I could have used a cast of characters but none was provided; there were too many places where the most obvious choice was taken in a scene. (How many times do I have to see/read a character get offered a handkerchief, blow his/her nose in it, then wonder whether to hand it back to the person who offered it?) On a larger level, Daemon's rigidly controlled lust for Jaenelle left a bad taste in my mouth -- I don't care that her soul was Witch, and ageless; both her body and her consciousness were that of a 12-year old girl. Given Daemon's character as it had been set out prior to their meeting, his strong physical reaction to her presence didn't fit. I didn't accept their relationship until several chapters in, when Bishop showed Jaenelle bringing out his playful side and giving him a glimpse of the childhood he never had.

But that scene served as a sort of turning-point for me with this novel. At that moment I finally believed in Jaenelle and Daemon as people, and once I believed I cared desperately what was going to happen to them. I read the final quarter of the novel breathlessly, rooting for a happy ending with all my heart. Therein lies the real difference between the Kushiel novels and Daughter of the Blood: from page one in Kushiel's Dart, Carey treated her heroic characters like real people, showing their flaws and hesitations, showing their epic qualities, and always balancing those bits with their humor and lightheartedness and joy. That balance between the heroic and the mundane, the dark and the light, captured my heart immediately, while Bishop took almost 300 pages to do the same. I will be continuing the trilogy, because I finally did break through and love Jaenelle, but I certainly can't put it in the same breath as Jacqueline Carey's masterpiece yet.
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reviewed Daughter of the Blood (Black Jewels, Bk 1) on + 215 more book reviews
Great start to what I hope will be an amazing series! What is witch, does witch still exist? In this world that Bishop has created people of the blood and by people I mean Women, control all aspects of society. Men are basically pleasure slaves. A young girl starts to show up in strange places. Is she witch? Is she the one everyone of Blood has been waiting for? The character development is fantastic. I cannot wait for more!
fyrefairy54 avatar reviewed Daughter of the Blood (Black Jewels, Bk 1) on + 13 more book reviews
DAUGHTER OF THE BLOOD is the beginning of a trilogy, of a work where dark power holds sway, and the heroes/heroines struggle hard against corrupted Witches, Warlords, and their minions. It begins with a prophecy of a child, the Dark Queen-to-be, of two troubled men, their ancient, canny father, and a loathsome secret...and a child destined to turn all of this around.
Jaenelle Angelline is that child. Misunderstood, lonely beyond bearing, angry, troubled, and strangely powerful, this child faces enemies she doesn't even know she has. The Warlord Prince Daemon, and his brother each find her the Queen they long for--but the battle to save this child is an uphill one, full pitfalls...
This novel is not for those looking for light fantasy. There are themes and emotions here that are violent, including rape. Still, the story is well-told, the world Anne Bishop creates deeply affecting and powerfully written, and it really speaks to one question: how do you cope with pervasive evil? How do you help a child in danger?
If the reader follows through and reads the trilogy, these questions--in the context of this world--can be answered.
Jaenelle's answer is one of love and self-sacrifice. This book is only the beginning of the heavy price she pays to bring her world around.
it is a story well worth the reader's time.
hillcountrygirl avatar reviewed Daughter of the Blood (Black Jewels, Bk 1) on
Hmm, one chapter was enough. I usually love long fantasy series but not this one. Starts out with a man chained and rats are encouraged to eat his genitals. A little dark, don't you think?
citygrrl avatar reviewed Daughter of the Blood (Black Jewels, Bk 1) on
I have mixed feelings about this book. I couldn't stop reading and yet found myself highly creeped out by a main character with a physical response to a 12-year old, even if he was engaged more by her "old soul" presence. And yet I want to read the next one. I can only wish that Anne Bishop had left that part out of the novel - it wouldn't have impacted the storyline. While I will read the next book, I'd gladly have never read this one. Again, engaging but also icky.
nelliebly1025 avatar reviewed Daughter of the Blood (Black Jewels, Bk 1) on + 141 more book reviews
Reviewed by Bibliophile's Bestiary Blog at bibliophile-bestiary.blogspot.com

I picked up the second and third book in this series because it was on sale. The cover art was really neat and the story idea was appealing. It didn't disappoint! The first book was a great lead in to the world. The characters are wonderful and very interesting. It took some time getting used to how different it was, and sometimes I got lost on what was going on and had to re-read the last few sentences, but it was worth it. The book had me pulled in and captured. It does have some parts that are a little graphic, and some points that made me angry that something like that would happen to a character I liked, but it is a good emotion feel towards a book. I am very anxious to continue the series to see what happens next! 4 out of 5 stars.


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