There were 25,000 copies of the book published in the first printing.[3]
Plot
The story is set in Arbonne, a fictional country bordered by the countries of Arimonda, Gorhaut, Götzland, Portezza and Valensa. Residents of these countries worship one of two deities, the war god Corannos or the mother goddess Rian.
The main protagonist is a Coran soldier named Blaise from Gorhaut. Like other men of his country, he is a ruthless warrior devoted to Corannos.[3] A mercenary for hire, he leaves the increasingly politically corrupt Gorhaut, in which a puppet king has been installed after resolution of a long war with Valensa. The leaders intend to conquer Arbonne to the south, a land ruled by women and observant of the god Rian, and abolish the worship of the female deity.[3]
The blind Priestess of Rian,[2] religious leader in Arbonne, informs the country's political leaders of the impending arrival of Blaise, who is hired by the powerful duke and troubadour Bertran de Talair.[2] The latter is engaged in a decades-long feud with another nobleman, Urte de Miraval.
Reception
In a review published in November 1992, Kirkus Reviews stated that the novel was "one of the most impressive fantasies in a long time".[2] Viviane Crystal, in a review for the Historical Novel Society, stated that Kay "remains a master craftsman of historical fiction".[1]
